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Sarge
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by Sarge Tue Aug 07, 2018 4:40 pm

I don't like the heft much at all. The SNES DKC games are much snappier, and I appreciate that.
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dunpeal2064
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by dunpeal2064 Wed Aug 08, 2018 3:40 am

The new DKC games take some adjusting, but the control of the character is far from bad. The new games require much more precise platforming (And are just way more difficult overall), and there was never a point where I felt that was hampered by the way the character controls. Its different, though, so I can see why it would be off putting.

They are divisive games, so all I can suggest for anyone curious about them is to just give them a try. But, fwiw, I enjoyed the games a lot, and Tropical Freeze is probably my favorite DKC game.
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BoneSnapDeez
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by BoneSnapDeez Wed Aug 08, 2018 5:05 pm

1. Antarctic Adventure (Famicom)
2. Nuts & Milk (Famicom)
3. Commando (Atari 2600)
4. Binary Land (Famicom)
5. Devil World (Famicom)
6. Disney's Aladdin (SNES)
7. Popeye (NES)
8. Super Mario Land (Game Boy)
9. Ys: The Vanished Omens (Sega Master System)
10 Ys II: Ancient Ys Vanished - The Final Chapter (Famicom)
11. Final Fantasy Mystic Quest (SNES)
12. Lunar: The Silver Star (Sega CD)
13. Otenba Becky no Daibouken (MSX)
14. Metroid (Famicom Disk System)
15. Mahou Kishi Rayearth (Game Boy)
16. Wabbit (Atari 2600)
17. Kirby's Dream Land (Game Boy)
18. Warpman (Famicom)
19. Final Fantasy (NES)
20. Transformers: Convoy no Nazo (Famicom)
21. Arcade Archives: Moon Patrol (Switch eShop)
22. Gremlins (Atari 2600)
23. Arcade Archives: Ninja-Kid (Switch eShop)
24. Shining in the Darkness (Genesis)
25. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Gate of Doom (Switch eShop)
26. Front Line (Atari 2600)
27. Donkey Kong 3 (NES)
28. Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (Game Boy)
29. Exerion (Famicom)
30. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Bad Dudes (Switch eShop)
31. Arcade Archives: Double Dragon (Switch eShop)
32. ACA NeoGeo: Ninja Combat (Switch eShop)
33. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Wizard Fire (Switch eShop)
34. Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land (Game Boy)
35. Virtual Boy Wario Land (Virtual Boy)
36. Grand Master (Famicom)
37. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Sly Spy (Switch eShop)
38. ACA NeoGeo: Top Hunter Roddy & Cathy (Switch eShop)
39. ACA NeoGeo: Shock Troopers (Switch eShop)
40. Donkey Kong Country (SNES)
41. Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (SNES)
42. Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (SNES)

Just a quickie post. I don't have the energy to write long ass reviews anymore, especially for games "everyone" has already played.

So, I maintain that the original Donkey Kong Country is the best of the original trilogy by a huge margin. Cut from the same cloth as the strongest of Mario games, it offers up some solid mechanics and plenty of variety,

Donkey Kong Country 3 reminds me quite a bit of the second game. It's too big, too bloated, with a smattering of specific stages that are downright trollish and awful (seriously, that "poison" stage with the inverted controls can suck it). I actually enjoyed the first two worlds the best, as they were the most straightforward, tight, and consistent. There's an explorable world map, and plenty of collectibles, none of which are interesting or worthwhile. Graphically, this one's fantastic, with a velvety subdued color palette. I also like the subtle and ambient musical score.

I dunno, if I had to "score" this one I'd probably give it a 5/10 or 6/10 or so. It's not an "average" game, but a mechanically competent title that's buried under a bunch of really extraneous unfortunate design choices. I get the same vibes from this one that I get from something like Phantasy Star II.

I'm starting to think that, with the exception of the first installment, the DKC games just aren't for me.
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BoneSnapDeez
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by BoneSnapDeez Fri Aug 10, 2018 9:09 am

1. Antarctic Adventure (Famicom)
2. Nuts & Milk (Famicom)
3. Commando (Atari 2600)
4. Binary Land (Famicom)
5. Devil World (Famicom)
6. Disney's Aladdin (SNES)
7. Popeye (NES)
8. Super Mario Land (Game Boy)
9. Ys: The Vanished Omens (Sega Master System)
10 Ys II: Ancient Ys Vanished - The Final Chapter (Famicom)
11. Final Fantasy Mystic Quest (SNES)
12. Lunar: The Silver Star (Sega CD)
13. Otenba Becky no Daibouken (MSX)
14. Metroid (Famicom Disk System)
15. Mahou Kishi Rayearth (Game Boy)
16. Wabbit (Atari 2600)
17. Kirby's Dream Land (Game Boy)
18. Warpman (Famicom)
19. Final Fantasy (NES)
20. Transformers: Convoy no Nazo (Famicom)
21. Arcade Archives: Moon Patrol (Switch eShop)
22. Gremlins (Atari 2600)
23. Arcade Archives: Ninja-Kid (Switch eShop)
24. Shining in the Darkness (Genesis)
25. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Gate of Doom (Switch eShop)
26. Front Line (Atari 2600)
27. Donkey Kong 3 (NES)
28. Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (Game Boy)
29. Exerion (Famicom)
30. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Bad Dudes (Switch eShop)
31. Arcade Archives: Double Dragon (Switch eShop)
32. ACA NeoGeo: Ninja Combat (Switch eShop)
33. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Wizard Fire (Switch eShop)
34. Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land (Game Boy)
35. Virtual Boy Wario Land (Virtual Boy)
36. Grand Master (Famicom)
37. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Sly Spy (Switch eShop)
38. ACA NeoGeo: Top Hunter Roddy & Cathy (Switch eShop)
39. ACA NeoGeo: Shock Troopers (Switch eShop)
40. Donkey Kong Country (SNES)
41. Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (SNES)
42. Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (SNES)

43. Kangaroo (Atari 2600)
Image
Kangaroo was a single-screen platformer developed by Sunsoft. Originally released in the arcades in 1982, it was ported to various Atari systems the next year. I (re)played the game for the Animals month. The protagonist is a mother kangaroo, who must reach the top tier of each stage to rescue her joey from some devious monkeys.

So, I had this revelation about classic single-screen platformers the other day. Most allow you to either jump or attack, but not both. Kangaroo bucks that trend, as the mommy has quite the moveset. She can jump, attack (punch), and duck. Not that this makes the game any easier. The monkeys are relentless and have their own ammunition attacks (I hope those are rocks they're throwing). There's also a sort of homing bouncing ball that drops from the top of each stage that needs to be persistently avoided.

Oh, and there's fall damage. This is common among this genre, but it's taken to extremes here. Basically, you can't "drop" down at all; every jump must be made to a higher platform or one at the exact same elevation as mommy. Hilariously, if you do "fall" the death animation is initiated immediately, there's no dramatic plummet & splat.

Graphics are solid and the occasional "public domain" jingles are always welcome.

I rather enjoy this game. I've never played the arcade original, but this Atari version is much stronger than the Donkey Kong, Popeye, and Mario Bros. ports that ended up on the 2600. I know Atari stuff isn't popular around here, but I think NES fans would enjoy this one.

Sunsoft released a game called Arabian the following year with similar mechanics. That one ended up on the Famicom (I own it, but haven't been able to finish it).
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by Flake Mon Aug 13, 2018 9:12 am

January:

Yakuza Kiwami (PS4)
Batman: The Telltale Series (PS4)
Super Mario Odyssey (Switch)
Mario vs Donkey Kong: Minis March Again (DSi ware)

February:

Roundabout (PS4)
Pocket Fighter (PSX)
Double Dragon Neon (PS3)
Batman Arkham VR(PSVR)

March:

Gundam Versus (PS4)

April:

Batman: The Enemy Within (PS4)
Megaman 9 (PS4)
Megaman 10 (PS4)

May:

The Legend of Zelda: BotW (Switch)
Injustice: Gods Among Us (PS4)
Metroid: Zero Mission (GBA/WiiU)

June:

Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors Dreams (Switch)
Megaman (Switch)
Megaman 2 (Switch)
Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (PS4)
Ikaruga (Switch)
Batman: Tell Tale Series (Switch)
Gunbird (Switch)
Street Fighter Alpha 2 (Switch)
Caladrius Blaze (PS4)

July:

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater HD (PS3)
Street Fighter (PS4)
Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (PS4)
Megaman X (PS4)
Megaman X4 (PS4)
Super Mario World (SNES Classic)

August:

Mario Kart Wii (Wii)
Megaman X2 (PS4)


I owe Mario Kart Wii an apology. I barely played it back when it first came out back in 2008 (I think?) because it didn't seem fast enough. At this point, I'd mostly just played either the original on the Super Nintendo or the DS version. I don't remember more about my specific gripes but they stuck with me for a decade. Just a couple weeks ago in the Slack channel, I remember calling it garbage.

Recently I hooked up my Wii Mini and have been rebuilding the Wii collection via eBay and pulling some boxes out of storage. I popped Mario Kart Wii in with no real expectations. I think a lot of my gripes were either unfair or unsubstantiated. For one, the AI is actually challenging on 50cc - and not just in a 'throw all the items' way. Probably due to rubber banding but it feels like someone is always trying to edge you out. It makes for a shit racing sim but a great short burst, intense gaming session. The item mix is pretty good, too. There are some fun ones that don't seem to be in Mario Kart 8DX as far as I know like the Giant Mushroom from the New Super Mario Bros series.

I don't think that the tracks are particularly great but there are reasons why Mario Kart Wii isn't a fan favorite, even if it's not as bad as I remembered.

Megaman X2 is the game in the 2D Megaman X era that I have played the fewest times. I have probably played the original Megaman X over a hundred times. X4 probably counts in the dozens. X3 and X5 probably around 10 times. I have played X6 to completion 5 times (don't ask why I know that specifically) but I know for a fact this is only the 4th time I have ever played Megaman X2.

Megaman X2 is not a bad game but it commits to nothing that it introduces. Every part of the game screams 'optional'. You don't have to do the fetch quest that is pretty much the game's entire narrative hook. You don't have to use any of the new armor items you're given, not even once. You can skip 3 major bosses all you want. And if you play the game the 'right' way, it makes the final level so easy that you probably won't need more than one energy reserve tank to get through it.

Megaman X2 is, in terms of control, art, and music pretty damn good. It doesn't give you a lot of reasons to play it though - a product of a time when the first game's success commanded a sequel and said sequel was produced out of what feels like obligation, not passion. Megaman X6 is a fucking mess but it's a mess that truly commits to its premise so it sticks in my memory and makes me want to replay it more often to re-experience what it has to offer. Megaman X2 doesn't offer anything and playing through it every time I do an 'All X series' run has become a chore to avoid.
Maybe now Nintendo will acknowledge Metroid has a fanbase?
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by prfsnl_gmr Mon Aug 13, 2018 1:55 pm

First 50
1. Bastion (iOS)
2. LaserCat (360)
3. Zombie Incident (3DS)
4. Bye-Bye BoxBoy! (3DS)
5. Monument Valley 2 (iOS)
6. Zenge (iOS)
7. Master of Darkness (Game Gear/3DS)
8. Wonder Boy (SMS)
9. Full Throttle Remastered (iOS)
10. Adventure Island (NES)
11. Adventure Island II (NES)
12. Adventure Island (GB)
13. Super Adventure Island (SNES)
14. New Adventure Island (TG16)
15. Adventure Island III (NES)
16. The Legend of the Ghost Lion (NES)
17. Part Time UFO (iOS)
18. Adventure Island II: Aliens in Paradise (GB)
19. Adventure Island IV (NES)
20. Super Adventure Island II (SNES)
21. Adventure Island: The Beginning (WII)
22. Quell Memento (3DS)
23. Wonder Boy in Monster Land (ARCADE)
24. Saiyuuki World (FAMICOM)
25. Whomp ‘Em (NES)
26. Bikkuriman World (TG16)
27. Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair (TG16)
28. Go Series: Picdun (DS)
29. The Keep (3DS)
30. Dooors (3DS)
31. Ninja Gaiden (ARCADE)
32. Advance Guardian Heroes (GBA)
33. TMNT (GBA)
34. Double Dragon Advance (GBA)
35. Mighty Final Fight (NES)
36. Double Dragon II (ARCADE)
37. Kung Fu Master (GB)
38. Cube Escape: The Lake (iOS)
39. Cube Escape: Seasons (iOS)
40. Cube Escape: Arles (iOS)
41 . Cube Escape: Harvey’s Box (iOS)
42. Cube Escape: Case 23 (iOS)
43. Cube Escape: The Mill (iOS)
44. Rusty Lake Hotel (iOS)
45. Cube Escape: Birthday (iOS)
46. Cube Escape: The Theatre (iOS)
47. Rusty Lake Roots (iOS)
48. Cube Escape: The Cave (iOS)
49. Rusty Lake Paradise (iOS)
50. Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone (ARCADE)

51. Knightmare Tower (iOS)
52. 80s Overdrive (3DS)
53. Hitman Go (iOS)
54. Deus Ex Go (iOS)

Deus Ex Go is the third game in Square-Enix’s Go series (i.e., turn-based strategy games based on popular Enix franchises). Deus Ex Go is just fine, and it introduces some neat mechanics inspired by the series. That said, it’s easily the easiest and weakest of the games in the Go series. (I beat it over a week ago, and I only just now remembered to write about it...) I have now run the series, though, and I recommend it overall. Lara Croft Go was definitely my favorite, and anyone interested good puzzle games should give them a shot. (They go on sale frequently, and I think I was able to buy all three for less than $10 total.)
Last edited by prfsnl_gmr on Wed Aug 15, 2018 11:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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laurenhiya21
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by laurenhiya21 Mon Aug 13, 2018 3:25 pm

Some day I'll catch up on my reviews...

6/29: Persona 4: Dancing All Night (Vita)
With Persona 4 being as successful as it was, it’s no surprise that there would be some spinoffs made afterwards. Out of all of the spinoffs, Persona 4: Dancing All Night was definitely the most interesting to me since I really like rhythm games. Plus, one of the things that I really enjoyed about Persona 4 was how good the OST was. Before playing the game, I had also heard that there was a pretty big Story Mode in the game and that it was canon to the series. Because of that, I had pretty high expectations for Dancing All Night. While I can’t say that it fully met my high expectations, there is definitely a lot to like about the game.

First off, the good aspects. The remixes in this game are really good. While I’m definitely more of a fan of the original soundtracks, I don’t think that there were any tracks that I disliked. They’re all pretty catchy and fun. I maybe would have preferred some more tracks, but there are only so many to work with so it’s not a huge deal. The rhythm game aspect is also a lot of fun, and it can be made to either be really easy or really challenging (depending on the difficulty and what handicaps you have set). There’s also a lot of various clothing options that you can set for all of the characters. As usual for the Persona games (at least the newer ones), Dancing All Night is also just really colourful and a treat to look at.

As far as negatives… I found the Story Mode to be rather lackluster. It’s probably better than most rhythm games, but I wouldn’t say that it adds too much to the Persona 4 series. I did like the chapter that you unlock after beating the other chapters and clearing all of the songs and I also did like the new character, but there really wasn’t much meat to the story until right at the end. Maybe if I had gone into the game expecting that then I wouldn’t have been so disappointed with it, but as it is I definitely don’t think that the game would be worth playing for just the story.

With that being said, I still did enjoy the game! I’ll probably go back to it and try some of the difficulty options at some point. I would recommend it if you like rhythm games and Persona 4’s OST, but not for the story alone.
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by Ack Tue Aug 14, 2018 11:33 am

1. Jungle Book (SNES)(Platformer)
2. Metal Combat: Falcon's Revenge (SNES)(Light Gun Shooter)
3. Might and Magic VI (PC)(RPG)
4. Revenant (PC)(RPG)
5. Neo Turf Masters (NGPC)(Sports)
6. Fatal Fury: First Contact (NGPC)(Fighter)
7. Pac-Man (NGPC)(Action)

8. Golden Axe (Genesis)(Hack and Slash)
9. Blood and Bacon (PC)(FPS)
10. Gain Ground (Genesis)(Strategy)

11. Flicky (Genesis)(Platformer)
12. Zombie Shooter 2 (PC)(Top-Down Shooter)
13. Phantasmagoria (PC)(Point and Click)
14. SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighter's Clash - Capcom Version (NGPC)(Card Game)
15. Toonstruck (PC)(Point and Click)
16. Riven (PC)(Point and Click)
17. Dragon Wars (PC)(RPG)
18. Dungeon Hack (PC)(RPG)
19. SNK vs. Capcom: The Match of the Millennium (NGPC)(Fighter)
20. Portal 2 (PC)(Puzzle FPS)
21. Goat Simulator: Waste of Space (PC)(Action)
22. Goat Simulator: Payday (PC)(Action)
23. Goat Simulator: MMO Simulator (PC)(Action)

24. Goat Simulator: GoatZ (PC)(Action)
25. Goat Simulator (PC)(Action)
26. Streets of Rage 2 (Genesis)(Beat 'Em Up)
27. Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon (PC)(Action Platformer)

28. Deadlight (PC)(Platformer)
28. Antichamber (PC)(Puzzle FPS)
29. S.C.A.R.S. (N64)(Racing)
30. Anvil of Dawn (PC)(RPG)
31. Earth Defense Force 4.1 (PC)(Action)
32. Inherit the Earth (PC)(Point-and-Click Adventure)

Inherit the Earth is a point-and-click adventure following the quest of an anthropomorphic fox, elk, and boar as they work together to find the stolen Orb of Storms. In the game, humans raised a brood of genetically-modified animals to be more humanoid and then fled the planet for some unknown reason; by the time Inherit the Earth plays out, the animals have reached a medieval-like state of kingdoms and guilds, where tribes serve in different roles, and there is both an element of racial prejudice and government power plays shaping how each group sees each other. Add in some high technology left behind from the humans which the animals don't fully comprehend, and you have a recipe for mysticism, religion, and potentially war.

At the start of the game, our clever fox comes in second place in a puzzle competition, only to then be accused of stealing the Orb of Storms by the Boar Guard simply because he is a fox. The Boar Guard take our hero's lady friend hostage and send a sergeant who's made a bad mistake to travel with the fox on crap detail. The Forest King, an elk, also sends one of his lieutenants along the journey to ensure it gets done. From there, the trio have to meet with the various tribes, interact with additional human technology, and venture out into the Wild Lands where less civilized tribes live to discover the thief and try to recover the Orb.

Of course, things don't always go as planned, so there are some puzzles to solve, some fetch quests to endure, and unfortunately a good deal of back tracking to face. And then there are the mazes, which artificially inflate the length of the game for no good reason. Yes, Inherit the Earth suffers from a steady ramp up in maze design that changes over time but remains a continuous annoyance, be it repeatedly searching for the head of the Rat Tribe or sneaking through the Dogs' castle. The mazes really drag down the experience. To add to it, there is an inset that the game will adopt to show the interior of certain locations, but you can cause game-ending issues by interacting with objects as you leave these insets, which results in the game being unable to tell what to do. At this point, you just have to kill the game and reload your old save to continue.

But those are the only real problems you'll face. Beyond that, there is a lot to like about Inherit the Earth: likable characters, a believable plot combining sci-fi and fantasy, some interesting puzzles, and an overworld that is actually kind of cool to navigate when you're not constantly having to go back and forth to the same places. It's a world that is fun to visit for a little while, and the game doesn't overstay its welcome(beyond the aforementioned mazes); if anything, it wraps up its story but gives just enough of a cliffhanger to imply more to come, which you can track down if you so desire. A webcomic that has been running now for several years continues the plot.

As for me, I'm good with what I got. It's a succinct experience that doesn't need to be expanded upon for me. It's exactly what I want out of a point-and-click when I play one every now and again: some adventure, a good story, interesting puzzles, and the satisfaction of discovery and a job well done.
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laurenhiya21
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by laurenhiya21 Tue Aug 14, 2018 3:41 pm

7/14: Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls (Vita)
I wasn’t really sure what to expect with this game. I did really like Danganronpa and Danganronpa 2, but Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls is a very different game (as you might expect from a spin-off). Instead of focusing on finding out whodunnit in classroom trials, you’re shooting and slashing away at waves of Monokumas (with sections of more puzzly Monokuma shooting). This sort of game is not really something that I normally play, as I’m pretty bad at third-person shooters, but I wanted to play it regardless since its story does reveal a few important things here and there. Was it worth it? Maybe?

The game thankfully controls pretty well (from what I can tell), and thankfully it doesn’t tend to be too unforgiving on Easy. I also really liked the interaction between the two main characters and the story was interesting for the most part. However, I have number of gripes with the game.

Firstly, the overall look of the game is just very gray, muted, and dull to look at. It’s kind of weird to me that it the overall game is so dull looking, considering how colourful Danganronpa 1 & 2 are. Secondly, most of the cutscenes don’t look very good. The game utilizes a number of different styles of cutscenes, including the traditional pop-up bookish style that Danganronpa is known for, an animated anime style, and just using the 3D in-game models. While I understand why they chose to make most of the cutscenes with the in-game models (as this kind would require the least amount of work out of the three), the 3D models just look really ugly in these cutscenes. They’re definitely fine during normal gameplay but they all move their mouth strangely and the chosen camera angles often are really awkward. I guess they do the job, but I think it would have looked way better if they didn’t bother with the models in the cutscenes and just stuck with the traditional visual novel boxes with 2D character sprites. Finally, my biggest gripe with the game is that the gameplay quickly gets repetitive and tiresome. It tries to break up the actiony shooting segments with puzzle rooms, which you have to try and defeat a number of Monokumas using only certain kinds of bullets with various obstacles in the way, but I really didn’t like these rooms. They just weren’t that interesting for me to play, and the game throws so many of them at you (especially near the end) that they’re not really much a break any more.

Overall, I would have a hard time recommending this. Maybe this game is still worth playing if you’re a big Danganronpa fan and you don’t mind some repetition, but it’s definitely not a game that I myself would play again.
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PartridgeSenpai
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Re: Games Beaten 2018

by PartridgeSenpai Tue Aug 14, 2018 5:51 pm

Partridge Senpai's 2018 Beaten Games:
Previously: 2016 2017
* indicates a repeat

1-20

21. Deadbolt (Steam)
22. Legend of Grimrock 2 (Steam)
23. The Witness (PS4)
24. Uurnog (PC)
25. Fire Emblem Warriors (Switch)
26. Hyrule Warriors (Wii U)
27. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii)
28. Magicka 2 (PS4)*
29. Tales of Phantasia (PSP)
30. BOXBOXBOY! (3DS)
31. Blossom Tales (Switch)
32. Wolfenstein: The Old Blood (Steam)
33. Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn (PS4)
34. Jikkyou Oshaberi Parodius: Forever With Me (PSP)
35. Super Mario Odyssey (Switch)

36. Runbow Pocket (3DS)

I got this for free from My Nintendo rewards and thought I'd give it a play while I listened to audiobooks. It's a fun diversion and a pretty good port of the Wii U version, but it has some noticeable flaws.

It's 140 levels of platforming speed-running with cameos of all sorts of indie game characters from Commander Video to Shovel Knight. It's fairly simple control-wise, but controls well. The presentation is still very nice though. It's easy to tell where your character is, and the music and graphics, while obviously a step down from their Wii U counterpart, are still very pretty UwU.

My main complaint in the controls is that this has no reason to have both the charge and the punch bound to the same button (tap once for punch and twice for dash), as it makes the forward charge really finicky and delayed to do because it NEEDS to follow a punch. So many buttons aren't used for anything in this, and I didn't really see any real reason why it needed to be that way. The other kinda lousy thing in this port is the terrain, as occasionally you or enemies will get momentarily caught on it while you're walking and it'll throw off your momentum. The original game also had 9 player multiplayer, and this port has scaled it down to 4, although I never tried out that part of the game.

Verdict: Recommended. Especially if you can get it through My Nintendo effectively for free with gold coins like I did, this is an easy game to recommend. If you carry your 3DS around with you like I do, it's a compelling speed run challenge at best and a fun time-waster at worst. Not a perfect port, but more than good enough.

37. Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows (3DS)

I played and LOVED Shovel Knight back when it came out after I helped Kickstart it, and I've been sitting on my hands for AGES on playing the free DLC's for it. First up is Plague of Shadows, an alternate quest where you get to play through as Plague Knight, one of the bosses from the original game. Design-wise it isn't super different from the main game, but it's still loads of fun.

Most of the levels are more or less unchanged unless it's to encourage you to use Plague Knight's new controls or getting rid of bits that only Shovel Knight could use. Instead of the Duck Tales-style pogo-stick jump that Shovel Knight has, Plague Knight has powers similar to how he fights in the game as he can throw bombs, explode up or at an arc to the side for traversing stages, as well as a small second jump he can do after his tiny normal jump. Moving around the stages with the vertical detonation jumps is super quick and super responsive. The curio sub-weapons can still only be used by a combo of Y+Up, but a couple in particular really stand out in letting you climb all over the place as they either give you an uppercut for more air or an explosive platform to launch off of. It takes some getting used to, but it's great fun to fight as Plague Knight before long.

Verdict: Highly Recommended. Other than a changed story to reflect our new hero Plague Knight instead of Shovel Knight (although Shovel Knight is still here sometimes XP), the bosses, map, and even levels are mostly unchanged from the main Treasure Trove game, save for a changed final boss. This isn't particularly a bad thing, but it may make Plague of Shadows a difficult sell if you've only just beat Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove and want something noticeably different. All the same great animation and level design are still here, just with a new playable character with his own new great playstyle and music. If you loved the original Shovel Knight, the first expansion is a pretty safe bet that you'll enjoy it.

38. Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment (3DS)

The second expansion for Shovel Knight REALLY changes things up as you now play a prequel to the main story as Specter Knight. He plays really differently, and Yatch Club Studios toted this as more of a brand new game compared to Plague of Shadows, and they weren't kidding.

Specter Knight once again controls quite differently from the other two playable characters. No pogo-hopping or bomb-exploding for him (and this is a prequel, so he also can't outright fly or teleport yet :P ). Instead, he can run short distances up walls and launch off of them, as well as use his scythe melee attack in the air to do angular dashes up or down at enemies or nodes nearby to go in for quick attacks or to get some quick altitude. To accommodate this radical new way of play, being that it's more Ninja Gaiden than Ducktales, all the levels have been radically redesigned from the original game, and even all of the bosses have been altered, sometimes very significantly, and it all plays and feels GREAT. Zooming around with the scythe dash feels awesome as you repeatedly try to slash through enemies to take down their health bars before they can smash at you back.

On top of the great new levels and playstyle, the new music is some of the best they've done. There was more than once that it just straight up grabbed my attention away from playing the actual game, and I'm almost never one to do that (especially in Tinker Knight's stage). The new story is a touch more serious than the other two, but it's not exactly a tear-jerker. It's more than serviceable though and never irritating, so there's no need to worry about that UwU.

Verdict: Highly Recommended. If you don't want something as similar to Treasure Trove as Plague of Shadows, Specter of Torment is an absolutely fantastic use of your time. This game is like Shovel Knight's level design and gameplay crossed with Ninja Gaiden's, with a smattering of Casltevania's aesthetic thrown in for good measure (Specter's fashion armor is even a SOTN reference <3) and it was one I enjoyed the whole way through.

(And if you own any of the physical versions of Shovel Knight or bought the digital release back around when it came out, Plague of Shadows and Specter of Torment are just totally free downloads :D )
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