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prfsnl_gmr
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by prfsnl_gmr Tue Dec 10, 2019 10:16 pm

First 75
1. The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary (NDS)
2. Reigns (iOS)
3. Castlevania: The Adventure (GB)
4. Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge (GB)
5. Castlevania Legends (GB)
6. Yankai’s Triangle (iOS)
7. Mega Man III (GB)
8. Mega Man IV (GB)
9. Mega Man V (GB)
10. Sin & Punishment (N64)
11. Love You to Bits (iOS)
12. Mega Man Powered Up - Old Style (PSP)
13. Mega Man Powered Up - New Style (PSP)
14. Mario vs. Donkey Kong (GBA)
15. Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis (NDS)
16. Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again! (NDS)
17. Detective Pikachu (3DS)
18. Super Fantasy Zone (Genesis)
19. Fantasy Zone Gear (GG)
20. Fantasy Zone - The Maze (SMS)
21. Fantasy Zone (Famicom)
22. Fantasy Zone (NES)
23. Kung Fu Master (2600)
24. Kid Dracula (Famicom)
25. Kid Dracula (GB)
26. Fantasy Zone (TG16)
27. Double Dragon V (SNES)
28. Fantasy Zone II (Famicom)
29. Street Fighter: The Movie (PS1)
30. Fire Fly (2600)
31. Pac Man (2600)
32. Extreme Sports with the Berenstain Bears (GBC)
33. Fantasy Zone (PS2)
34. Space Fantasy Zone (TG16)
35. Arnold Palmer Tournament Golf Fantasy Zone (Genesis)
36. Mega Man (GG)
37. Konami Pixel Puzzle (iOS)
38. Qix (Arcade/NES)
39. Congo Bongo (Arcade)
40. Phantasy Star Gaiden (GG)
41. Phantasy Star Adventure (GG)
42. Panzer Dragoon Mini (GG)
43. Spartan X-2 (Famicom)
44. BS The Legend of Zelda: The Ancient Stone Tablets (Super Famicom)
45. BS The Legend of Zelda (Super Famicom)
46. Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! (NDS)
47. Double Dribble (NES)
48. Super Pro Football (INTV)
49. Indy 500 (2600)
50. Tecmo Bowl (NES)
51. Ninja Gaiden (GG)
52. SonSon (Arcade)
53. Wonder Girl: The Dragon’s Trap (iOS)
54. Minit (iOS)
55. Ninja Gaiden (SMS)
56. Surround (2600)
57. Pocket Bomberman (GBC)
58. Dr. Mario World (iOS)
59. Shadowgate (iOS)
60. Kuru Kuru Kururin (GBA)
61. Metroid Prime Hunters - First Hunt (NDS)
62. Mekorama (iOS)
63. Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles (PSP)
64. Akamajou Dracula Peke (TG16)
65. Darius Burst (iOS)
66. DoDonPachi Resurrection HD (iOS)
67. Vigilante (TG16)
68. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii)
69. Oxenfree (iOS)
70. Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest (NES)
71. Tormentum: Dark Sorrow (iOS)
72. Hidden Folks (iOS)
73. 3D Classics Urban Champion (3DS)
74. Ufouria (NES)
75. Eternal Ring (PS2)

76. Super Phantom Cat (iOS)
77. Vectorman (Genesis)
78. The Room: Old Sins (iOS)
79. Wolf Fang (PS1)
80. Vectorman 2 (Genesis)
81. Corrypt (iOS)
82. Universal Paperclips (iOS)


There are a lot of “game of the decade” lists out right now, and I stumbled on these two games on them. (Universal Paperclips had a place to itself. Corrypt was listed as part of Michael Brough’s oeuvre.) Corrypt starts as a pretty basic Soukoban game, with a few small twists. (You can pull blocks too! You have to manipulate other characters on the screen to solve puzzles.) It goes deliciously off the rails in the second half, however, and you solve previously unsolvable puzzles by almost-literally breaking the game. I enjoyed it immensely, and if you’re clever, you can beat the game pretty quickly. Highly recommended.

Universal Paperclips has you playing as an AI program designed to create as many paper clips as possible. You manipulate a few things, such as the price of paper clips, when to buy more wire, how quickly to cut new paper clips, etc., and you get more abilities and production capacity as you go. Mostly, however, you watch various performance metrics, and adjust your production accordingly. It’s incredibly addictive, and you can progress in the game by letting it run while you do other things. It requires attention to progress quickly, however. Eventually, you take the production of paperclips to undreamed of levels:

RELEASE THE HYPNODRONES


and the game makes a few slight points about both the power of exponential growth and the dangers of uncontrolled AI. Also highly recommended.
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BoneSnapDeez
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by BoneSnapDeez Wed Dec 11, 2019 1:34 pm

1. Ys III: Wanderers from Ys (Famicom)
2. Dragon Scroll: Yomigaerishi Maryuu (Famicom)
3. Ninja-kun: Majou no Bouken (Famicom)
4. Hello Kitty World (Famicom)
5. Galaxian (Famicom)
6. Esper Dream 2: Aratanaru Tatakai (Famicom)
7. Ninja Jajamaru-kun (Famicom)
8. Jajamaru no Daibouken (Famicom)
9. Front Line (Famicom)
10. Field Combat (Famicom)
11. Portopia Renzoku Satsujin Jiken (Famicom)
12. Mississippi Satsujin Jiken: Murder on the Mississippi (Famicom)
13. Space Harrier (Famicom)
14. Geimos (Famicom)
15. Attack Animal Gakuen (Famicom)
16. Sky Destroyer (Famicom)
17. Ripple Island (Famicom)
18. Oishinbo: Kyukyoku no Menu 3bon Syoubu (Famicom)
19. Bird Week (Famicom)
20. Baltron (Famicom)
21. Yie Ar Kung-Fu (Famicom)
22. Challenger (Famicom)
23. Ikki (Famicom)
24. Dough Boy (Famicom)
25. Atlantis no Nazo (Famicom)
26. Bio Senshi Dan: Increaser tono Tatakai (Famicom)
27. Yume Penguin Monogatari (Famicom)
28. King Kong 2: Ikari no Megaton Punch (Famicom)
29. Congo Bongo (Atari 2600)
30. Coconuts (Atari 2600)
31. Arcade Archives: Donkey Kong (Switch eShop)
32. Dragon Quest V: Tenkuu no Hanayome (Super Famicom)
33. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Super Burger Time (Switch eShop)
34. Fire Fly (Atari 2600)
35. Fire Fighter (Atari 2600)
36. Space Jockey (Atari 2600)
37. Airlock (Atari 2600)
38. Makai Hakkenden Shada (PC Engine)
39. Squeeze Box (Atari 2600)
40. Lagoon (SNES)
41. Atlantis (Atari 2600)
42. Xak III: The Eternal Recurrence (PC Engine CD)
43. Blue Blink (PC Engine)
44. Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys (PC Engine CD)
45. Cally's Caves 3 (Steam)
46. Planetarian: The Reverie of a Little Planet (Steam)
47. Contra (NES)
48. Arcade Archives: Vs. Super Mario Bros. (Switch eShop)
49. Arcade Archives: Moon Cresta (Switch eShop)
50. Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Joe and Mac Caveman Ninja (Switch eShop)
51. Ice Hockey (Atari 2600)
52. Indy 500 (Atari 2600)
53. Video Olympics (Atari 2600)
54. Fast Eddie (Atari 2600)
55. Muv-Luv (Steam)
56. Air-Sea Battle (Atari 2600)
57. Combat (Atari 2600)
58. Street Racer (Atari 2600)
59. Food Fight (Atari 7800)
60. Galaga (Atari 7800)
61. Donkey Kong (ColecoVision)
62. Cosmic Avenger (ColecoVision)
63. Mouse Trap (ColecoVision)
64. Zaxxon (ColecoVision)
65. Armor Battle (Intellivision)
66. Armor Ambush (Atari 2600)
67. Basic Math (Atari 2600)
68. Astrosmash (Intellivision)
69. Astroblast (Atari 2600)
70. Donkey Kong (Intellivision)
71. Beauty & the Beast (Intellivision)
72. Surround (Atari 2600)
73. Borderline (SG-1000)
74. Omega Race (VIC-20)
75. Star Battle (VIC-20)
76. Mahou Kishi Rayearth (Game Gear)
77. Muv-Luv Alternative (Vita)
78. Joe & Mac (SNES)
79. Muv-Luv photonflowers* (Steam)
80. Cadash (TurboGrafx-16)
81. Cadash (Genesis)
82. Circus Charlie (Famicom)
83. Ankoku Shinwa: Yamato Takeru Densetsu (Famicom)
84. Gyromite (NES)
85. Suishou no Dragon (Famicom Disk System)

86. Captain Silver (Sega Master System)
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Generally speaking, if one is looking for a riveting 8-bit action-platformer they should head to the NES, a system known for excelling in that sort of thing. But there are some notable retro titles that bypassed Nintendo's gray box. Case in point: Captain Silver, a 1987 Data East arcade game that made its way to the Sega Master System one year later. Actually wait, it was also on the NES (okay, on the Famicom in Japan). And ya know what, the North American SMS port (which I have) had two stages excised (compared to the Japanese and European variants), apparently as a cost-saving measure. Things are already looking bad.

Players do not take on the role of the Captain himself. Instead, he's the villain. He's also dead, or undead at the very least. The "hero" is some guy named Jim (not the same one from Hydlide), who's attempting to plunder the Captain's treasures. Jim has four stages to traverse, and the game boasts a grand total of two bosses. Gameplay is your standard stuff: one button for jumping, one for a swiping sword attack. There are some various power-ups to obtain along the way, like high-jump enabling boots and a potion that grants temporary invincibility. But most important are the sword upgrades, oddly granted by fairies. These allow Jim to fire a series of projectiles from his weapon, which is invaluable in the later stages. Of course, losing a life dumps all those acquired upgrades, and unsurprisingly this is one of those "one-hit-death" experiences. There are some occasional shops, which house the same items that can be found elsewhere. The game keeps things simple here, by treating score and currency as one and the same.
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Combat isn't too bad. Even Jim's standard sword attack has a nice upward swing to hit airborne foes. Jumping is rather stiff, however. And three out of four stages feature moving platforms. This is not a game that should feature moving platforms. The boss battles are fairly basic (and terrible). Both are just giant sprites that bounce around aimlessly and occasionally attack. The first is mind-numbingly easy while the Captain himself is quite challenging, mainly due to lazy programming rather than genuine design. Stage backgrounds look rather pretty, and the there's a decent helping of enemies even if most simply follow the same attack pattern. The music is garbage: some stock "pirate tunes" and some otherwise forgettable tracks.

Data East was never really one of those "A-list" arcade developers, at least compared to the likes of Capcom and Konami, and this isn't exactly one of their better games. It's wholly generic and blasé, despite its slightly esoteric "high seas" setting. This is a "playable" port, and relatively loyal to the arcade original minus the missing content. Some seem upset about this, though this isn't really a game that needs to be any longer than it is.
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prfsnl_gmr
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by prfsnl_gmr Wed Dec 11, 2019 2:25 pm

Wait...it’s not the same Jim from Hydlide?! :lol:
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PartridgeSenpai
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by PartridgeSenpai Wed Dec 11, 2019 4:46 pm

Bone that game looks like so much XD
It looks like Skulljagger meets Alex Kidd and I don't know how to feel about that :lol:
I identify everyone via avatar, so if you change your avatar, I genuinely might completely forget who you are. -- Me
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Ack
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by Ack Fri Dec 13, 2019 5:09 pm

The First 50:
1. Dusk (PC)(FPS)
2. Project: Snowblind (PC)(FPS)
3. Soldier of Fortune: Platinum Edition (PC)(FPS)
4. Ziggurat (PC)(FPS)
5. Wolfenstein 3D: Ultimate Challenge (PC)(FPS)
6. Destiny 2 (PC)(FPS/RPG)
7. Destiny 2: Curse of Osiris (PC)(FPS/RPG)
8. Destiny 2: Warmind (PC)(FPS/RPG)

9. Destiny 2: Forsaken (PC)(FPS/RPG)
10. Star Wars: Rebel Assault (PC)(Rail Shooter)

11. Castle Werewolf (PC)(FPS)
12. Project Warlock (PC)(FPS)
13. Castle Crashers (PC)(Hack and Slash)
14. This Strange Realm of Mine (PC)(FPS)
15. BioShock Remastered (PC)(FPS)
16. BioShock 2 (PC)(FPS)
17. BioShock 2: Minerva's Den (PC)(FPS)

18. Blood (PC)(FPS)
19. Blood: Cryptic Passage (PC)(FPS)
20. Blood: Post Mortem (PC)(FPS)

21. Shadow Warrior (PC)(FPS)
22. Shadow Warrior: Twin Dragon (PC)(FPS)
23. Shadow Warrior: Wanton Destruction (PC)(FPS)

24. F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin (PC)(FPS)
25. F.E.A.R. 2: Reborn (PC)(FPS)

26. Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines (PC)(RPG)
27. Men of Valor (PC)(FPS)
28. Ultima III: Exodus (PC)(RPG)
29. Albedo: Eyes from Outer Space (PC)(Point and Click)

30. Midnight Ultra (PC)(FPS)
31. Amid Evil (PC)(FPS)
32. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (PC)(RPG)
33. Betrayer (PC)(Horror)

34. Borderlands 2: Commander Lilith & the Fight for Sanctuary (PC)(FPS/RPG)
35. Far Cry 2 (PC)(FPS)
36. Apocryph (PC)(FPS)
37. Eye of the Beholder III: Assault on Myth Drannor (PC)(RPG)

38. Menzoberranzan (PC)(RPG)
39. TimeShift (PC)(FPS)
40. Heretic Kingdoms: The Inquisition (PC)(RPG)
41. Shadowgate (PC)(Point and Click)

42. Might & Magic Book One (PC)(RPG)
43. Miasmata (PC)(Adventure)
44. Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood (PC)(FPS)
45. Legendary (PC)(FPS)
46. Hedon (PC)(FPS)
47. Last Rites (PC)(FPS)
48. Half-Dead 2 (PC)(Adventure)
49. Dishonored (PC)(Stealth Adventure)
50. Might and Magic II: Gates to Another World (PC)(RPG)

51. Dishonored: The Knife of Dunwall (PC)(Stealth Adventure)
52. Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches (PC)(Stealth Adventure)

53. The Spy Who Shot Me (PC)(FPS)
54. Z.A.R. (PC)(FPS)
55. Bunker Punks (PC)(FPS)


Z.A.R.

I think I killed the Together Retro thread for the month by talking about Z.A.R. Your loss; this game is awesome.

Z.A.R. is an obscure Russian FPS from 1997 that saw limited release in other regions. The gist is that Earth is horribly overpolluted and lacking in resources, so it seeds several systems of worlds with robot drones run by a supercomputer to mine a rare element called Iberium which helps with the pollution problems. Unfortunately, that supercomputer gets hit with a meteor and goes full Skynet, so a single soldier is sent in with a super spacesuit to planet hop across multiple worlds destroying the robot menace that the supercomputer is now creating as well as completing strategic objectives to help the people back on Earth and the military space station slowly advancing on the supercomputer to take it down.

To do this, you have to shoot stuff and blow things up. That's ok though, as your weapons tend towards the explosive. Sure, some shoot bullets or plasma bolts like your run of the mill minigun. But you also get access to grenade launchers, flamethrowers, landmines, rocket launchers, a cannon, a super flamethrower, and so forth. There's even one gun that creates tornadoes. Now you won't be getting all of these weapons in the same level, mind you. Why? Because due to the robot defenses, you have to be teleported down to each planet, and weapons must be sent down separately due to the limitations of teleportation tech. Gear is teleported down in specific spots, so as you run low on ammo, you have to go find resource drops.

But why so many explosives? Because the worlds of Z.A.R. were generated with voxels, so they are open worlds to wander and fully destructible. That right there is the major selling point of Z.A.R., that you're in a game where you can flat out destroy things. For example, I'm in a canyon, and there is artillery on a nearby ridge. I can go up there to shoot it and expose myself to other artillery fire, or I can shoot from below and blast open a path to it. Trust me on this, option B is preferred, because you can only get health back by killing enemies and collecting a small bit of energy they drop. It's also not a lot of health, and grabbing it is dangerous, because explosions cause shrapnel to fly everywhere, and shrapnel hurts. Kill an enemy and rush to get the health, and might take more damage from the remains than you heal. And yes, everything explodes. Everything also hurts you, including falling, so you have to be extremely careful when walking down angles, jumping, or using your jump jets. In fact, I found it was usually best to just stay on the ground.

Now even if you die, you can get a leg up on the enemies in this game. Instead of simply restarting, your spirit now floats around the battlefield slowly, so you can take a look and get to know where all of the enemy weapon placements are and understand the terrain. Then, when you want to respawn, you choose to do so and restart the level. Levels are generally pretty short too, with a simple objective to achieve, like "Destroy an enemy convoy" or "Hold a point from attacking enemies." One level has all the robots going haywire against each other, so you teleport in only to find everything shooting at everything else and exploding. I ran for cover as soon as I could, and once I found my gun, anything that got close got mowed down. There is a wide variety in mission types, though typically it involves some sort of hit-and-run operation, where you whittle away at defenses and then swoop in for the kill. You also have to then find your escape teleport, so even if you're successful, you can get killed while trying to evac if you aren't careful. One level in particular is devastating about putting the evac point in the middle of a ring of artillery; I got through by literally throwing myself at it with my jump jets. I got lucky and lived, but a misstep would have meant death.

The worlds you experience range from mostly aquatic to volcanic, deserts to snowy peaks. One level has an acidic river that rises and falls with a tide, while another has craters you can hop in for cover while blasting away at points trying to destroy storage units full of warheads the supercomputer intends to launch against Earth. With 33 levels, the variety is great, and any level you've beaten can be replayed from the starting menu. While the game is consistently challenging, I found the most difficult spot was level 32, a long and treacherous level where you protect a convoy from artillery and missile batteries as well as pop-up energy cannons hidden on the ground.

Look, Z.A.R. is a technological marvel, a rare treat, and also a really fun game. It's sad that it is so little known, because frankly it deserves more attention. If you like late '90s FPS titles, go check this one out.

Bunker Punks

Moving on to something more modern, Bunker Punks is a roguelike FPS with some base-building elements. Don't get too overly excited about that base building bit though, because it's basically just stat buffs for your characters.

It is the future. The world is a post-apocalyptic wasteland, where the few cities are havens for corporate greed, and those unlucky enough to reside in the wastes between are the bunker punks, raiders who survive by assaulting corporate buildings and looting whatever they can while shooting the army of corporate drones that serve as defensive muscle. You start each round by picking several characters (up to three) with slightly different stats and abilities, and then as you fight, you gather weapons and armor as well as money for bunker upgrades and tech. Tech is used when you die or beat the game to purchase more potential future upgrades, additional characters and character slots, make new kinds of gear available, and so forth. Once you get through the initial 50 unlockable items, you no longer worry about tech and get back to raiding the bunkers as you wish.

That's pretty much it, and while the game lets you rush through on lower difficulties and have fun blasting away, at higher levels it basically becomes a stealthy crawl where only very specific character builds seem to actually work. Yeah, balance isn't exactly great, and most folks play on Easy to get all the unlocks since they're tied to your overall game and not to the specific difficulty. Truth be told, once you've gotten the unlocks and beaten the game, you pretty much are only playing for achievements, bragging rights, and purely for the fun of it.

The game is probably at its best when you can run and gun and experiment with different styles of play and characters. It's also more fun like that; otherwise, it's a stealth shooter, and the enemy types you fight are basically made tougher by having higher amounts of health and dealing more damage. At the highest difficult, you basically just can't get hit, which means really only one character is worth using, and the only weapons worth using are the shotgun and hunting rifle...mainly the shotgun.

So...what keeps me coming back? The music is freaking amazing and reminds me of Chu Ishikawa, a Japanese industrial artist who scored several movies by Shinya Tsukamoto. Sadly, I do not have a link to the OST...but I do have a link to an Ishikawa track, so you're getting that to give you an idea: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z10AlFDQfY
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alienjesus
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by alienjesus Sun Dec 15, 2019 12:50 pm

Games Beaten 2019:
First 50:
1. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Switch
2. Alex Kidd in The Enchanted Castle Switch
3. Streets of Rage Switch
4. Vectorman Switch
5. Galaxy Force II Switch
6. Flicky Switch
7. Phantasy Star 2 Switch
8. Sonic the Hedgehog Switch
9. Altered Beast Switch
10. ESWAT: City Under Siege Switch
11. Columns Switch
12. Virtua Fighter 2 Switch
13. Kirby Star Allies Switch
14. Katamari Damacy Reroll Switch eShop
15. Pokémon: Let's Go, Eevee! Switch
16. Octodad: Dadliest Catch Switch eShop
17. Sword of Vermilion Switch
18. Decap Attack Switch
19. Golden Axe Switch
20. The Revenge of Shinobi Switch
21. Beyond Oasis Switch
22. WarioWare Gold 3DS
23. Shining in the Darkness Switch
24. Kid Chameleon Switch
25. Streets of Rage 2 Switch
26. Bio-Hazard Battle Switch
27. Super Thunder Blade Switch
28. Gain Ground Switch
29. Phantasy Star III: Generations of Doom Switch
30. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Switch
31. Comix Zone Switch
32. Vectorman 2 Switch
33. Light Crusader Switch
34. Crack Down Switch
35. ToeJam and Earl Switch
36. Dynamite Headdy Switch
37. Golden Axe II Switch
38. Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi Switch
39. Columns III: Revenge of Columns Switch
40. Shining Force: The Legacy of Great Intention Switch
41. Kirby No Kirakira Kizzu Game Boy
42. Klonoa Wii
43. Looney Tunes Collector: Martian Alert! GBC
44. Mario Tennis N64
45. Fire Emblem Warriors Switch
46. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time [Randomiser] N64
47. The New Zealand Story SMS
48. Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana Switch
49. Shenmue 2 Dreamcast
50. Castlevania GBA

51. Mario Party N64
52. ActRaiser SNES
53. GoldenEye 007 N64
54. Mom Hid My Game Switch eShop
55. Money Puzzle Exchanger Switch eShop
56. Gunbird Switch eShop
57. Tokyo School Life Switch eShop
58. Musynx Switch
59. Gremlins 2: The New Batch NES
60. Subsurface Circular Switch eShop
61. Yoshi's Woolly World Wii U
62. ToeJam & Earl: Panic on Funkotron Switch
63. Bare Knuckle III Switch
64. Gunstar Heroes Switch
65. Space Harrier II Switch
66. Sonic Spinball Switch
67. Phantasy Star IV: The End of the Millennium Switch
68. Sonic 3D Blast Switch
69. Rabbids Go Home Wii
70. Alien Storm Switch
71. Alien Soldier Switch
72. Untitled Goose Game Switch eShop
73. Landstalker: The Treasures of King Nole Switch
74. Fatal Labyrinth Switch
75. Ristar Switch
76. Golden Axe III Switch
77. Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master Switch
78. Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine Switch
79. Bonanza Bros. Switch
80. Shining Force II [& Sega Mega Drive Classics] Switch
81. Castlevania Bloodlines Switch
82. Puyo Puyo Sun 64 N64
83. Chameleon Twist 2 N64
84. Cruis'n USA N64



Castlevania Bloodlines

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After finishing up playing through 51 Mega Drive games on the Switch this year, I was looking forward to relaxing with something different. So of course, the very next game I decided to play was Castlevania Bloodlines – a Mega Drive title – via Castlevania Collection on the Switch. Consider it a victory lap of sorts I guess. Anyway, this is actually the US Genesis version of the game, so I guess we can pretend it’s a bit different.

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Castlevania Bloodlines is an old-school Castlevania game of the side scrolling platformer variety, but it does have some aspects about it that make it unique. First and most obvious of these are the two playable characters. First up is John Morris, who is the closest we have to a Belmont in this game. He uses a whip in the traditional series style, and can whip diagonally upwards with it. He can also whip the ceiling and swing across gaps with it. However, I used the second (and easier imo) character, Eric Lecarde. Eric wields a large spear which can also be used to vault up to higher platforms.

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The game takes place over 6 levels, most of which have a lot of sections to work through. The game seems to really dial up the gore, perhaps due to the lack of an early 90s Nintendo being involved. This is prevalent from the outset with zombies falling apart and half od a giant monster chasing you through the first stage. I’m not fussed by the gore either way really, but this game sure is a looker for the system regardless. As with most Konami games on the Mega Drive, it really feels like they’re out to impress with their special effects (and show up former employees Treasure if they can). This can be seen with stages such as the Tower of Pisa which features lots of rotating and tilting effects, and the infamous stage where bands of the level separate as you go making your footing uncertain.

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The game also sounds pretty great. It’s hard to match up to the spectacular soundtracks of Super Castlevania IV and especially Rondo of Blood, but Bloodlines holds it’s own. It’s a little more sombre and atmospheric than other soundtracks in the series perhaps, certainly less energetic, but it’s still great, and it picks up and drops away where it needs to.

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Subweapons are back, with the usual suspects of axe, cross and holy water in tow. New to this game is a special subweapon obtained when your weapon is fully powered up though, which lasts until you take a hit or grab another subweapon. This unleashes a powerful screen clearing blast and is very useful against bosses if you can keep it for one.

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The game isn’t perfect. It’s a bit short for one, and it attempts to remedy that by giving you limited continues, which is a bit of a jerk move for a Castlevania game if you ask me. Some of the platforming challenges can be pretty brutal for your life count too. That said, I found the bosses in the game to be surprisingly easy overall, with few offering much of a challenge – and the new special subweapon often making short work of those that do.

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Overall though, I enjoyed my time with Bloodlines. I don’t know if I’d say it’s as good as Rondo, but it’s a contender for me vs Super Castlevania IV. Whichever of the main 3 castlevanias of this generation you play though, you cant really go wrong. We’ll ignore Vampire’s Kiss/Dracula X.

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Puyo Puyo Sun

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As I’ve mentioned a few times before on the site, I’m a big fan of Puyo Puyo. I’ve played Puyo Puyo 1 in various forms (the Arcade original, Mean Bean Machine, Kirby’s Ghost Trap and the TGCD port), as well as Puyo Puyo Tsuu via various means as well. But I’ve never played the third game, Puyo Puyo Sun before. So I sat down with the Nintendo 64 version and gave it a shot.

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Puyo Puyo 1 is pretty brutal in it’s difficulty level, and Puyo Puyo Tsuu amps it up even further, causing me to rage and shout new and inventive swear words on a regular basis whilst playing. Tears of frustration may or may not have been shed. I put this down to the game being an arcade release. I don’t know if Puyo Puyo Sun got an arcade release too, but it feels like this game may have been targeted at consoles first, because it’s notably easier. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still not easy, but it’s not quite as hair pulling as Tsuu, and I beat it within about 2 hours overall.

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The core gameplay of Puyo remains, with 4 connected Puyos of the same colour disappearing. Combos are the name of the game, as if more puyos connect and match after the first, you’ll create a combo which sends junk puyos to your opponent. The bigger the chain, the more junk. If you set of a chain before the junk drops on your side, you can reduce or even counter attack the opponent back. Junk puyos disappear when other puyos are matches next to them, but can prevent you setting off massive combos if they land in the wrong places. Balancing setting off big chains with sending smaller garbage attacks to block opponents is the name of the game.

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Puyo Puyo Sun, besides being a pun on the Japanese word for 3 (san) also ties in to the plot and a new mechanic of the game. The plot see’s Satan bringing the Sun closer to earth with our hero Arle out to stop him as per usual. The new mechanic is the Sun puyo – a solar blob who creates more junk when matched during a combo.

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Puyo Puyo Sun looks great on N64, especially with my HDMI modded system. I’d imagine on standard hardware it’s not quite as impressive as it is on Saturn, but with my console it looks crisp, clean and sharp. It really shows off what the N64 could do in 2D, which was rarely utilised. The soundtrack, being on cartridge, is a downgrade from the Saturn OST, but that’s not to say it’s bad – it still sounds great.

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Overall, I had a good time with Puyo Puyo Sun. It was still tough, but not quite as unrelenting as before, and the bright colours and tropical vibes of the game kept it nice and relaxing. I think regardless of what system you end up playing this on, it’s a great time. Pick it up if you’re a Puyo fan for sure.



Chameleon Twist 2

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Chameleon Twist was a game I played a few years back on Nintendo 64. It let you play as one of 4 Chameleon characters with names like Davy and Linda as they platformed through a 3d world. The game had some fun and creative mechanics based around grappling and swinging with your tongue, but it was a bit short at only 6 levels, and kind of left you wanting more. Now, here is Chameleon Twist 2, with more of the same.

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Chameleon Twist 2, on it’s title screen, promises us High Voltage Screaming Action, which is a big and bold claim. Is it one it can live up to? We’ll wait to see. The core gameplay here though doesn’t suggest so, as it’s built on the same mechanics as the first. A is jump, and B uses your tongue. You can move the tongue with the analogue stick as it extends to direct it. Grabbing a pole will let you either pull yourself towards it, or swing around it by holding A and B. Licking an enemy or item will pull it in towards you, and then said enemies can be spat out with another tap of B – you can lick up multiple enemies though and machine gun them all out in a row. Z lets you stand on your tongue, and doing this whilst moving lets you vault higher than a standard jump.

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New moves are added this time though – holding A in mid air extends an umbrella to slow your fall. You can pull yourself to any surface with your tongue and then jump off of it again with A. Poles can now be swung around vertically as well as horizontally. So the game has a lot of fun moves, but the problem again is the execution and level design.

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The game is again super short with only 6 levels, and many of these fail to use the mechanics in a challenging and interesting way. There are a few too many basic platforming sections or big open spaces with easily avoidable enemies to encounter. But the bigger problem is on the few occasions where the game does ask you to fully utilise your moveset, it feels too awkward and fiddly to use effectively – I found myself struggling a lot at these sections as the game felt a bit too unwieldy to handle the level of acrobatics it wanted me to use. This is especially apparent during the ‘tutorial’ sections, which were easily the hardest parts of the game for the most part, and I couldn’t finish most of them.

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The other issue the game is waiting. There’s a lot of sequences with moving platforms where you basically just have to sit and wait for a long time. Often, there are no hazards, secrets of anything else to find in these sections, so you can end up stuck doing nothing for a long time. The second level is the worst here, with 3 back to back ferris wheels which can take well over 2 minutes to get past, most of which standing still.

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That’s not to say there’s no fun to be had here though. The game is simple fun and it looks pretty nice too, with bold colours throughout. The Chameleons have had a redesign too to look more like Chameleons, but this is only in the west – in Japan they look the same as the first game. The game’s music is decent enough too, if a little forgettable.

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Overall then, Chameleon Twist 2 is a perfectly fine platformer. It’s definitely not worth a high price due to it’s fairly average quality and very short length, but it’s a fun enough game for a weekend. It’s certainly not full of High Voltage Screaming Action (often the opposite in fact), but if you like a bit of Gen 5 weirdness it’s worth a look.


Cruis’n USA

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Cruis’n USA was a game I didn’t really have a whole lot of interest in until I saw My Life in Gaming’s Youtube video on the series a few years back. I knew Try4ce from the backloggery before he started that series, and his tastes often align with mine. Being that he was quite a fan, I figured it might be worth picking up the game if I saw it for cheap. And that’s just what I did.

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Cruis’n USA is a racing game where you tour 14 different tracks across the USA – at least in theory, actually 8 of them are in California, but never mind! You race through these tracks in your sports car, aiming to beat the other cars to the finish line. The game definitely leans very heavily into the arcade racer genre, with a countdown timer and checkpoints which add to you time. The game also has some very unrealistic car physics, with a super twitchy car which almost seems glued to the track – no drifting and no heavy handling here guys.

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The game isn’t really a looker for the system, but for an early title it doesn’t look awful. You can choose between 3 camera views for the game – the default behind the car view, then the usual more zoomed out view and the first person view. Personally, for a dumb racer like this, I go with the first person view – even if the other views are better for seeing the upcoming track. The game also adds to the fun in first person by having bugs fly into your windscreen and splat on some tracks.

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The game has multiple audio tracks that play, all of which are kinda cheesy and cover a range of genres – house, rock, bluegrass and more. They are technically radio stations, so you can switch between them by pressing B whilst driving. They do get a bit repetitive though, as they music loops are super short, so even though the game only has 14 tracks about 3 minutes long each, the music gets a bit tiresome before you finish at Washington DC.

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The game is fairly easy overall, at least at the default difficulty level I played it at. However, track difficulty varies drastically, and some of the earlier tracks are way harder than some late game ones. Chicago, which is track 11 or so, is also by far the hardest.

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Overall, Cruis’n USA isn’t great, but it is some dumb fun which you can enjoy on occasion. It’s no classic, but if you fancy some cheese you could do a lot worse.
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Markies
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by Markies Sun Dec 15, 2019 2:34 pm

AJ, if you enjoyed Cruis'n USA, might I suggest Cruis'n World!

The game plays much better as it is much smoother than USA. The frame rate doesn't jerk around so much and stuff doesn't just pop out of nowhere. The track variety is much better as you are going through the entire World.

Cruis'N Exotica is pretty crazy and ramps up the insanity for it. I didn't like it as much because World just plays better. But, if you looking for some more craziness regarding cars and tracks, Exotica has it.
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alienjesus
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by alienjesus Sun Dec 15, 2019 3:42 pm

I'd be willing to give them a go at some point on my Everdrive. Sadly, Cruis'n USA is the only one of the games they released over here in Europe for some reason.
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Markies
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by Markies Sun Dec 15, 2019 7:21 pm

I always feel bad following AJ.
It's like the poor suckers who had Hendrix, Nirvana or Zeppelin open for them...

Markies' Games Beat List Of 2019!
*Denotes Replay For Completion*

1. Power Stone 2 (SDC)
2. Radiata Stories (PS2)
3. Dusty Diamond's All-Star Softball (NES)
***4. Saiyuki: Journey West (PS1)***
5. Shining In The Darkness (GEN)
***6. Metropolis Street Racer (SDC)***
7. Half-Life 2 (XBOX)
8. Soul Blazer (SNES)
9. Mario Party (N64)
10. Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance (GCN)
11. Street Fighter Collection (PS1)
12. Pokemon Stadium 2 (N64)
13. Burnout (PS2)
14. Phantasy Star III (GEN)
15. Batman: The Video Game (NES)
16. X-Men Legends (XBOX)
***17. Final Fantasy VII (PS1)***
18. Maximum Pool (SDC)
19. Puzzle Quest (PS2)
20. Jet Moto (PS1)
21. The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition (GCN)
22. Dead Or Alive 3 (XBOX)
23. Growlanser III: The Dual Darkness
24. Luigi's Mansion (GCN)
25. Diddy Kong Racing (N64)

26. Wild Arms 4 (PS2)

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I beat Wild Arms 4 on the Sony Playstation 2 this afternoon!

I have been slowly going through the Wild Arms franchise as I have been playing them on the PS1 and then the PS2. Almost two years exactly, I beat Wild Arms 3 for the PS2. There was a lot I liked about the game, but I didn't enjoy it as much as the PS1 games. So, I was now on the hunt for the next game in the series when I happened to discover a near mint copy at my now defunct favorite local game store. We talked about how the prices for the games in the series had begun to rise in price and a part of me said that I shouldn't pass it up. Needing a quicker RPG before the end of the year, I decided to pop it in and see if the series was able to right itself.

The best part of the Wild Arms series is the music and that does not disappoint here. It was my favorite part of Wild Arms 3 and I would say the same about Wild Arms 4. In fact, I bought the Wild Arms 3 soundtrack and will do the same for Wild Arms 4 in the future. The Wild West esthetic has been changed to a more post apocalyptic setting, however, those are very interchangeable. Granted, you don't see any horses or stagecoaches, but people still dress like the Wild West and it has more of a steampunk feel to it. The story is interesting, but I enjoyed the characters much better. They are likeable, though they could get on my nerves with the constant dialog. And the battle system is really unique with a hex based grid that allows you to target almost anybody. It's unique and one I have never seen before. It made bosses a joke because you could focus on one hex and do massive amounts of damage.

However, the same could be said for your party. I never died in boss fights throughout the entire game, but I did die in random encounters all the time. Throw a healer with little defense in the middle hex with all enemies hitting her is a recipe for death. The story was unique, but they drove the theme of war and adults versus children a bit too much. I know that war is bad, you don't have to hammer it home every hour for thirty hours!

Overall, I felt like Wild Arms 4 surpassed Wild Arms 3. Sometimes, it felt like I was playing another RPG with Wild Arms stuff slapped on it, but that other RPG is really good. The hex battle system is really unique and the characters are likable enough for the duration of the game. Another good entry if you enjoy PS2 RPG's.
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dsheinem
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Re: Games Beaten 2019

by dsheinem Sun Dec 15, 2019 9:54 pm

Games Beaten 2019

Kentucky Route Zero Act 1 - PC
All Our Asias - PC
Shape of the World - Switch
Hidden Folks - PC
Hyrule Warriors - Wii U
Onrush - PS4
Assassin's Creed Origins - X1
Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown -360
Metro Exodus - PS4
Split/Second - 360
Far Cry: New Dawn - PS4
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon - X1
Marvel vs Capcom Infinite - PS4
Rage - PC
Red Faction: Armageddon - 360
Momonga Pinball Adventure - Switch
Psycho Soldier - Vita (Arcade)
Super Mutant Alien Assault - Vita
Burly Men at Sea - Vita
Sigil - PC
Fat Princess - PS3
Borderlands 2: Commander Lilith and the Fight for Sanctuary - PC
Monster World IV - Genesis (PS3)
Marvel's Spider-Man - PS4
Mega Man X4 - Switch
Armored Warriors - Switch (Arcade)
Battle Circuit - Switch (Arcade)
Borderlands 3 - PS4
Hyper Dyne Side Arms - PS3(Arcade)
Legendary Wings - PS3 (Arcade)
The Outer Worlds - X1
Akai Katana - 360
RayStorm - PS2 (Arcade)
Operation C - PS4 (Game Boy)
Kid Dracula - Switch (Famicom)
Castlevania: The Adventure - Switch (Game Boy)
Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge - Switch (Game Boy)
What the Golf - iOS *new*

Total: 38


Previously: 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010

This game is not really a golf game - although it also is a golf game, in a weird way. Suffice to say, there's lots of strangeness and inventiveness going on - it a game that uses golf as a medium for parody of many other titles (e.g. Superhot, Katamari Damacy, Angry Birds, etc.), all constructed by developers who claim to hate golf. There's a lot of wit and humor, and I LOL'ed more than a few times at some of the ideas in the game's many stages. A nice mix of something like the work of Keita Takahashi (Katamari, Noby Noby Boy, etc.), and the work of Davey Wreden (The Stanley Parable, The Beginner's Guide, etc,) with an aesthetic that is a cross between Donut County and Proteus....

There's a lot going on here, and its mostly great.
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