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Sunday, October 30, 2011

This year's pick for Halloweenish themed games: the Castlevania Series

It's that time of year again, Halloween (2011).  Are you looking for some good halloweenish titles to play on your favorite game system (or emulator)?  Here is a short list of halloweenish games you will probably love.  Some are completely halloweenish, while some others are not really halloweenish (though they do have some noteworthy halloweenish themes to them)
image caption: picture of Count Dracula in the game, Castlevania Symphony of the Night (you can find the original screen shot at Moby games at http://www.mobygames.com/game/xbox360/castlevania-symphony-of-the-night/screenshots/gameShotId,430217/).  Count Dracula is the main antagonist of the famous Castlevania series and is a classic if you are looking for halloweenish titles.


Ah, it's been a while since I have posted last.  Been a bit busy, plus this blog is not the only blog I have, as I also have several other blogs, including a blog about demos at http://rjstoredemos.blogspot.com (talks about demos I do, has a section on special promotions online from select retailers, as well as several other features).  I also have 2 relatively new blogs, including one about siberian huskies and alaskan malamutes at http://instantblogsubscribers.com/?w=huskies (yes, I am trying out a new blog host for that blog and it is pretty similar to blogspot, with some differences, such as cleaner layouts for blogs, less restrictions on what you can post about, as well as more ways you can monetize your blogs, such as adding clickbank affiliate links, referral links for your Sokule downline, as well as built in referral links to IBS) and a general animal videos blog at http://rjanimalvideos.blogspot.com.  Feel free to check them out and subscribe to them too as I try to add new posts to them often too.  Anyways, on to this post.  As you probably know, it is halloween season and you might be wondering if there are some good halloweenish games to play, and one game series that you are bound to love is the Castlevania Series (it is definately a classic and a very halloweenish game)


The first game series that SHOULD be on your list is probably the Castlevania series.  This game certainly does bring back memories, especially back in the days of the classic NES when Castlevania 2, Simon's quest came out, when you played as Simon Belmont in his mission to lift a hiddeous curse that turns people into monsters as well as to defeat the evil Count Dracula.  Of course, that is just one of many games in the Castlevania series.  In case if you are not familiar with the Castlevania series, it is a lengthy series of games created by Komnai (the same people who made the Contra series) about heroes such as Simon Belmont (as well as his predecessors and successors) in their struggle against the evil forces of demons lead by the evil Count Dracula, who is the "dark lord" (Satan-like) and the main antagonist of the series (though some of the newer games do have a new villian, such as Satan himself at the end of the Lords of Shadows game, besides the 2 expansion packs).  Many of the games come in different forms and have evolved quite a bit since the NES games with plenty of hit titles, including "Symphony of the Night", Circle of the Moon, Lamment of Innocents, Lords of Shadow, and many other titles. 

Typical themes in the Castlevania Series:
- you fight through hordes of ghosts, goblins, monsters, demons, and other foul creatures of the night that you would find in a halloween themed game, movie or show.
- Plenty of hideous bosses to fight. In most if not all Castlevania games, you are bound to fight some huge and monsterous minions of the evil Count Dracula (which varies by games), with some noteworthy boss fights including: Frankenstein in Super Castlevania 4, Death (the grim reaper, who is pretty much 2nd in command of Dracula's forces), the "Forgotten One" (a very goulish optional boss you can fight in Lamment of Innocents), Legion (a huge ball of dead bodies that appears in some of hte games), Dullahan (the headless horseman look alike), as well as many others. 
- The final boss in most (though not all Castlevania games) is usually Count Dracula (who usually teleports around a room and hurling fireballs and other projectiles at you), though he usually comes in 2 forms (a human form, followed by a huge demonic/dragon form).
- Levels do come with good Castlevania style music, especially in the earlier games in the series, such as the "vampire killer", "beginning", and "bloody tears" themes (though many of the newer games have different sound tracks).

Noteworthy titles in the Castlevania Series:

1) Lamment of Innocence -


this is the official prequel of the Castlevania series and is almost like a movie in a way (given the 3D nature of the game as well as the voice acting of the characters and all) and features Leon Belmont, who is a distant grandfather of Simon Belmont, who is on a quest to stop an evil vampire named Walter (who happens to be one of the predecessors of Dracula) and save his wife who was kidnaped by Walter (in an attempt to lure Leon into a cat and mouse game at his castle).  While the game may seem a little short, the levels in the game are pretty lenghty and you will fight hordes of skeletons, flying eyeballs (peeping toms), ghosts, zombies, and other creatures of the night, along with some huge bosses like Medusa, a succubus creature, an undead parasite worm, as well as several others.  Even in the main castle, the music is creepy, and yes, there is a hideous monster (known as the "Forgotten One") lurking at the bottom of the main castle that you can fight towards the end of the game when you have gotten a certain item to open the door leading to him and you can hear him moving around as you get closer to him. 

2) Castlevania 64 -


 This is definitely another classic.  If you have a Nintendo 64, you would probably like Castlevania 64 (though the camera graphics can be a little choppy).  You play as either a girl named Carrie or a decendent of Simon Belmont, named Reinhardt Schneider in their latest quests to Dracula's Castle in their mission to stop his evil plans.  By the way, the storylines are slightly different depending on who you play as (for example, if you are Carrie, part of your quest will involve hunting down an evil witch named, Actriz, who is bent on kidnapping and sacrificing young children all in the name of preserving her "youth") and as Belmont, the main mission is to hunt down Dracula (who unbeknownst to him happens to be a mysterious child named Malus though that fact does not get revealed until the end of the game).  Plenty of  memorable features in this game:

- The eerie feel when playing (especially on the first few levels where you are in the woods and heading into the castle).  Also, I do like the boss music as well (the shutter theme) on the early bosses.
- On the 3rd level, you will be going through an eerie maze chasing after Malus (a mysterious kid, who is really Dracula unbeknownst to Reinhardt/Carrie), while watching your back as you have 2 gargoyle dogs and literrally a crazed Frankenstein monster armed with a chain saw (just two hits from that baby can prove fatal for Reinhardt/Carrie) chasing after you for the entire maze portion level (btw, there is a major boss fight at the end of that level).  It is bound to get your adrenaline going, as one false move and it is game over there.  Even the castle you enter before the maze is eerie as it is full of ghosts, vampires (some of them serve as mini bosses too), a "friendly" ghost named Rosa (who becomes a boss character later on in the game), as well as some other eerie features.
- You do collect gold in the game that you can use to buy items and power ups. Be warned though: the salesman is really a demon in disguise as a salesman and if you buy too often, you will have to fight him as a boss character in the last level of the game (before you fight Dracula).
- You do fight vampires on various occasions, and they can turn you into a vampire if they "bite" you (which comes with negative effects too).
- Epic boss battles too, including a massive battle against Death (has the boss theme from Castlevania Dracula X when you face him), Renon (the "businessman" if you buy from him too often), Actriz (the evil witch in the game), as well as a 3 fold battle against Dracula (including the imposter version of Dracula that you fight at the top of the "Clock Tower" level), as well as an epic two part final battle with the real Dracula. 
- Plenty of clip scenes too (plays like a "silent film" though).

As you can see, Castlevania 64 is a one of a kind game for the 64 and is definately a title you don't want to miss.  A few downsides though: 1) deaths do come cheap on some levels (by the way, it is possible to fall to your doom in this game), 2) the camera angles can be tricky sometimes, and 3) no voice acting in most of the clipscenes (the dialogues play out a bit like that of a silent film where the game shows subtitles when the characters "talk" in the clipscenes).

Tips with Castlevania 64:
- It is recommended that you play on Medium or Hard since you won't get to the end on "easy mode" (the game ends on level 5 if you play on easy mode, which is not really the final level of the game as much as it might seem like the final level at first).
- You do have to try to get through the levels as quickly as possible since you are kind of in a race against another vampire hunter named, Vincent (who is a reckless vampire hunter who wants to reach Dracula before your character does).  If you take too long or you use the sun/moon cards too often, you will have to face Vincent as a boss character, and that makes it so you get the bad ending (though the imposter version of Dracula will seem like the final boss on the surface, especially given the "dance of illusions" theme when you fight him). 
- Be careful not to buy from Renon too often, as you will have to fight him as a boss at the end of the game if you do.


3) Castlevania Dracula X (and it's alternate version: Dracula X Chronicles) -

this game is probably one of my favorites in the series.  You play as Richter Bemont (one of the many successors of Simon Belmont).  Count Dracula had been resurrected by a corrupt priest named, Shaft and Dracula proceeds to kidapping Richter's sister, Maria, as well as his girlfriend (Annette?) and it is up to Richter to "pay a visit" to Dracula's castle, rescue Maria and Annette, and defeat Dracula once again against all odds.  The game spans about 8 levels or and has an arcade style feel.  Some of the levels also have some of the classic Castlevania music tracks, such as the "Bloody Tears" theme on level 3.  At the end of the game is an epic battle against Dracula.  Note: while I have played the SNES version of Dracula X, I haven't played the Dracula X Chronicles verion yet.  I used to have a PSP, but it broke, but I am planning to get a new one some time, and then I can get the game then.  However, I have seen videos of the game on Youtube and definitely seems to be alot different from the SNES version (besides some similarities).  By the way, personally I liked Castlevania Dracula X more than Super Castlevania 4 in many ways (probably given the newer feel to the game).

4) Symphony of the Night -


This is the official sequel to Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles (it appears this game takes place after the events of Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles, not the original Dracula X game).  Set around the time of the end of Dracula X Chronicles (aka Rondo of Blood), Richter Belmont thought that he had defeated Shaft and Dracula and ended his evil plans, but the not yet over, not by a long shot.  Soon, the evil priest named Shaft comes back into the picture, "kidnaps" Richter and causes him to turn evil by making him into "lord" of Dracula's castle, and soon plans the resurrection of the evil Count Dracula (which seems to be inevitable with Richter out of the picture at the time).  However, Dracula's "son", Alucard (who seems to be sympathetic towards the human race) intervenes (thus betraying Dracula's cause) and sets on a quest to rescue Richter from Shaft and Dracula's clutches, defeat Shaft once and for all, and stop Dracula's resurrection before all is lost.  This game is definately a classic and seems to be the inspiraton for many of the current generation 2D Castlevania games, including Circle of the Moon, Harmony of Dissonance, Portrait of Ruin, and others.  You go through not 1, but 2 huge castles (the other one is really a clone of the first one, but everything is upside down there) facing countless foes, hiddeous boss characters (including the infamous Legion/Granlafoon boss, Death, Cerebus, and many others), and make your way to rescue Richter (who is under Shaft's influence) and save the day.  The game also uses a level up system, plenty of weapons, shields and other items you can use to help boost your stats and to help progress through the castles, making your character stronger and more powerful as you progress).  It also comes with a satisfying ending too.  It is probably my favorite Castlevania game.  I used to have the game on the Playstation, but decided to sell it along with the original playstation I had around the time I got the PS 2 (sold it to a guy on Ebay).  Though, I wouldn't mind getting the Xbox Live version some day. 

Well, there are many other noteworthy games in the Castlevania series (this list would be too long if I posted them all) and is worth mentioning.

By the way, what do you think of the Castlevania series?  Do you have any favorites?  The latest one I've played is the Lords of Shadow version, which is the latest 3D Castlevania game, where you play as Gabriel Belmont in his quest to avenge the death of his wife and rescue her spirit (which is in limbo after her death).  The only downside to the Lords of Shadow version is that it is definitely much darker than many of the previous Castlevania games I've played (even on the boss battles, your character now has gruesom fatality moves that you can use to completely destroy bosses when you beat them) and plus part of the game takes your character to Hell (literally), with the end boss being Satan himself (I guess they decided to make Satan the angagonist for LOS), which may be offensive to some, especially mothers.

Looking for a information about particular Castlevania game?  Take advantage of this search widget below from Amazon:

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Found out that one of my videos on youtube was rejected for "inappropriate content"

You know, I wasn't expecting this today.  I was checking my videos on youtube today, and noticed that my video, "Sims 2 PSP 1: Misadventures of my sim 1" was rejected for "inappropriate content".  The odd thing was is that I don't remember doing anything wrong with the video.  In the video, I was playing Sims 2 for the PSP, and decided to be funny with my character, such as having him get scared by the 2 ghosts roaming the house he is in, as well as having him become a ghost as well (in the PSP version, when your sim dies, he/she automatically becomes a ghost and you can control him), and apparently someone did not like that and my video was removed.  I tell you, some people can be very up tight about things on sites like Youtube.  By the way, has something like this happened to you before?  I still have several other videos from my games on youtube, including one where my sims get abducted by aliens at



Other comments:
You know the game play video I posted from Sims 2 for PSP is pretty mild content wise (no blood, gore, etc), and if they are going to remove that video, I wonder if they are going to go after other types of game play videos too, such as deathmatches on Call of Duty Black ops, going on rampages in games like Grand Theft Auto 4, and other games where characters "die"?  I tell you, some times social media sites can be very rigid about what you can post, especially whenever you get some wiered policies as well as the troll types lurking around (you know, the people that like to write inflamatory comments about what you post, do "false flagging", etc).

Friday, July 29, 2011

GTA San Andreas BEST DEATH MOMENTS


Here is a funny video that you all might like that I found on youtube.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Top 10 Game Villians part 1

In my history of playing video games, I have stumbled across several game villians you might like.  Note: this post is too long to do in one entry, so I will break it up into 2 posts.

1.  Bowser Koopa-
Bowser
Bowser is definately the first of his kind, and is the main antagonist of the Super Mario Bros series.  Time and time again, Bower kidaps Princess Peach and try to conquer the mushroom Kingdom.  Of course Mario and Luigi remain thorns in his side and constantly thwart his plans.

2. Dr Robotnik
Dr. Ivo Robotnik
Dr Robotnik (aka Dr Eggman) is the evil mad scientist from the Sonic the Hegehog series and is always on a quest to defeat Sonic and his pals, conquer the world and turn everyone into robots.  Of course, Dr Robotnik is not smart enough to defeat Sonic and his sidekicks (Tails, Knuckles, etc), who remain foils to his evil plans.  In some of the newer games, Dr Robotnik has even found himself to being a pawn in a much larger scheme of things (like in Sonic the Hedgehog 2006, where the real bad guy is actually Mephiles, who is an evil clone of Shadow the Hedgehog that wants to revive Solaris and destroy time itself).

3. General Morden from the Metal Slug Series

If you have played any of the Metal Slug games (with the exception of Metal Slug 5), you are probably familiar with this Saddam Hussein look-alike.  Morden is the main antagonist in the Metal Slug series and is always forming coup de' tiats in hopes of forming a global dictatorship and even commands his own armies as well as noteworthy cronies (like Allen, who reminds me of an evil version of Mr T that you encounter in some of thegames).  Of course, Marco and his allies are always ready to take on Morden and his men, even if it means going through multiple lives to stop him (the games play like the contra series and one hit kills your characters, so unless if you are very good at these games, you will probably die alot playing through the missions, especially the latter missions in the games as they get progressively harder as you play through them, especially the final missions in the games).  By the way, Morden is not always the brightest figure in the video game universe as he tends to form unholy alliances with space aliense (and other entities) who end up abducting him and even abusing him in the end (as is the case on Metal Slug 3), thus making Morden more as a pawn in many of the games (even in Metal Slug 4, you fight a whole new villianous business man as a final boss, with Morden only being a regular boss in level 3) and forcing Morden and his men to form alliances with the heroes (which usually dissolves by the time the sequel comes). By the way, of all of the battles I've played against Morden, my favorite is probably in Metal Slug XX, in that game, Morden is officially the main villian again and the final boss fights against him in that game are very epic (which is pretty much an 8 part battle, including the fight in the "portal room", as well as the multi-tiered final battle at the end) where you fight him in this huge tentacled space ship machine (not sure what it is called).

4. Count Dracula from the Castlevania Series


Count Dracula is the evil dark lord that serves as the evil genious for the Castlevania series (though some of the newer Castlevania games have a new villian, as was the case in Castlevania Lords of Shadow, where you will actually fight Satan himself as the final boss in the game).  Dracula is the bloodthirsty vampire that plots to bring about an everlasting dark kingdom upon the world (presumably under the guise of Satan himself) and has the ability to come back to life every 100 years (sometimes even in a shorter period of time if somone decides to resurrect him, such as Shaft in Symphonhy of the Night).  Of course, Dracula's nemesis is the whole Belmont clan (starting with Leon Belmont, and later Trevor, Richter, Simon, and other Belmonts, spanning many generations) and Dracula and his minions are no match for the Belmonts' vampire whip and holy powers, usually dooming Dracula back to the underworld each time (only for him to come back to life once again sometime later).  By the way, which Dracula battle is your favorite?  I think mine is the one from Castlevania Curse of Darkness.

5.  Dr Wily from the Mega Man series

Dr Wily is Mega Man's nemisis in the original Mega Man series.  Dr Wily is an evil scientist that wants to take over the world and creates hordes of robots and robot masters aimed at defeating Mega Man (who remains a foil to his schemes throughout the series) as well as do his bidding.  In some games, Wily has even tried to frame others to cover up his schemes (like Dr Light in Mega Man 9, Protoman in Mega Man 5, as well as Cossack in Mega Man 4), though his true colors are always revealed near the end of the games (before the Dr Wily levels).  Also, while Dr Wily does not seem to exist in the Mega Man X series, he does have a successor, namely Sigma (who is just as evil as Dr Wily was in the original series).  Plus he was the one who created Zero (Mega Man's side kick throughout the Mega Man series) with the idea that he wold become Wily's successor and to defeat Mega Man X, though after a fateful battle with Sigma in a scene from Mega Man X4 (before Sigma became evil), Zero became a hero and later an ally of Mega Man X, and has yet to turn maverick once again, even despite attempts from Dr Wily to goad Zero to kill Mega man in is dreams in Mega Man X4 (if you play as Zero in Mega Man X4, and watch the opening clip scene, you will see a video of what looks like Dr Wily appearing to Zero in a dream, ordering him to kill X), as well as attempts by Sigma to corrupt Zero (especially in Mega Man X5).  By the way, like the original series, the Mega Man X series has yet to reach a conclusion, so it is not clear how the story will unfold.  Does Zero betray Mega Man?  Does Dr Wily make an official apperarence in the X series (either as a person or a ghost)?  Who becomes Sigma's successor (he seems to have been permanently defeated in X8 from what I have seen)?  We probably won't know until a future sequel (and no I don't work for Capcom and so I wouldn't know, though how the story plays out is open to speculation at this time of course).

Stay tuned for part 2.  By the way feel free to share this post with others.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Metal Slug 3 - Final Mission - Seccion 1

Playing through Metal Slug Anthology

Now that I have beaten Scott Pilgrim vs the World for the second time (this time playing as "Kim"), I started playing through Metal Slug Anthology.  That game is pretty fun too.  It is a shoot em' up game that is alot like contra with obvious differences and features a villian named, Morden, who is pretty much a Saddam Hussein look-alike.

Here is a trailer I found on youtube that shows off the game:


Information:
I have already beaten the Metal Slugs 1-3 since I started playing the game and will play through Metal Slug 4 when I get the time to do so.  Personally, I find the Metal Slug series to be pretty fun with all of the shoot em up action, comedic themes, boss fights and other stuff.   By the way, I decided to play through the game with unlimited continues on since I am not ready to do the game under the other mode yet.  So far, my favorite game in the series is probably Metal Slug 3.  That one is epic.  I got the game for the playstation 2 by the way.

Tips and tricks in the metal slug series:
- consider doing the game 2 player.  The games get progressively harder as you play through them (especially on the final mission) and playing the game on "2 player mode" can make things a little easier for you.
- If it is your first time through or you are a casual gamer, you might want to consider leaving "unlimited continues" on.  A nice thing about Metal Slug Anthology is that not only can you adjust the difficulty level, you can also decide whether you want unlimited continues or limited continues.  Obviously, if you find the game to be too easy, you can always turn off unlimited contines (it is on by default by the way) for a little challenge.  Otherwise, if you find yourself dying alot (especially in the later missions), unlimited continues can be good to have, especially if you are the type that is likely to break your favorite controller when you get game over.
- Be sure to use your grenades and bombs when you are in hairy situations as well as when going up against tough enemies (like boss fights, aliens, tanks, etc).
- be sure to take advantage of the vehicles you can use in the games as they not only give you more fire power, but you can avoid dying as long as you have them. 
- When using the vehicles in the game, if you encounter situations where you are likely to lose them, you can always get out of the vehicle and fight the enemies that way.

Want metal slug anthology?  Be sure to take advantage of these links from Amazon.com below.  Commissions will be used to cover the costs of running this site (having a website is not free you know).

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Is it a good idea to microwave a nintendo wii? (video and commentary)



I was watching some of the "Is it a good idea to microwve this?" videos on youtube (posted by JPizzle1122), which is kind of like mythbusters, where these dudes conduct experiments by putting random stuff in microwaves and seeing if it is a good idea to microwave various stuff (besides food of course), like batteries, remote controls, cds, etc (usually with bizarre results), and later give a verdict. Anyways, in this video, the guys decide to microwave a Nintendo Wii. I found this video to be pretty funny, as the wii soon catches fire and the metal was even starting to melt as well. Disclaimer: while the duo claim that microwaving a wii is a "holy idea", personally I don't recommend getting ideas from this, unless if you don't care for your game system of course. By the way, JPizzle1122 has posted similar videos about the Xbox 360, Play Station 3, and other game systems as well (like the Gameboy).

So, what do you think of these videos?

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Metal Slug XX - PSP - Mission #01


This is the next game I want to get someday on Xbox Live, when I get the extra money for one. I've played Metal Slugs 1-6 (got the Anthology Version for the Play Station 2), but I haven't played through Metal Slug XX or Metal Slug 7 yet.

Friday, June 24, 2011

Scott Pilgrim : Boss Rush Run [Supreme Master Difficulty]



Here is a video showing off all of the boss fights on Scott Pilgrim vs the World.

Scott Pilgrim vs the World review

If you liked Castle Crashers, you will probably love Scott Pilgrim vs the World.
Scott Pilgrim vs the World: The Game
Here is a random screen shot of the game I found on Flickr.  Scott Pilgrim vs the World is a side scoller arcade style beat'em up game

In a previous post I made, I started playing through Scott Pilgrim vs the World, and already beat the game at least once (with my first character of choice being Scott, after all he is the main protaganist), and would be happy to share with you what I know about the game.

Story:
The game is based on the movie/book where Scott develops a crush on a girl he meets named, Ramona, and he decides to start dating her (ending a former relationship he had with Knives).   However, Ramona's 7 evil ex boyfriends don't like the relationship between her and Scott, and it is up to Scott, along with his sidekicks, Kim Pine, Stephen Stills, Knives Chau, and even Ramona her self to battle through 7 unique levels and defeat all 7 of Ramona's evil ex boyfriends (which make up the official boss fights for this game, with Gideon being the final boss of the game) along with the hordes of interesting cronies they send after the protaganists.  There are plenty of pixelated clipscenes too, usually with Scott making love with Ramona between levels, as well as other events that take place.  Note: I haven't seen the movie nor read the book yet, so I wouldn't know much about the movie version of this game, so I wouldn't be able to make any comparisons between the game and the movie version.

Things I liked about Scott Pilgrim vs the World:
  • I liked the arcade style game play (similar to games like X-men, Castle Crashers, Ninja Turtles, etc)
  • Lots of special moves you can acquire
  • The leveling up system is great.  Allows your character to get stronger and stronger, which is pretty useful to have as you play through the game as the levels do get progressively harder as you play through the game. 
  • Lots of colorful levels.  The first level has you playing in suburban landscape of Toronto, Ontario (I've never been to Toronto myself, so I wouldn't know how accurate the picture is from the game).  I've doing a replay through the game, this time playing through the game as Kim (yes, I am playing through the game in order, starting with Scott, and ending with Ramona, and Kim is the second player I decided to play as).
  • High replay value, especially if you want to play the game as the other characters as well, though the story doesn't seem to change too much on the other characters.
  • Epic boss battles.  Yes you will face a good number of boss fights through the game, mostly in the form of the 7 ex boyfriends that Scott and his comrades are up against, each with their own unique characters, strenghs and weakenesses.  By the way, the bosses don't have health bars as you would find in Castle Crashers, the bosses do start flashing (similar to the ones in X-men and Ninja Turtles) when their health meter runs low.  By the way, the higher your level is, the easier it will be to take them out.
  • Like Castle Crashers, you can either go solo or play with up to 4 of your buddies.  I've been going solo myself, but it seems to be fun on 4 player too.  By the way, if you think the game is too easy, you can always crank up the difficulty level to the game more challenging. 
Things I didn't like about Scott Pilgrim vs the World:
  • The game is a bit short.  The game is only 8 levels long, and you could proably beat the game within a few sittings (you probably won't be able to beat the whole game in one shot since the levels are usually long, but you could probably beat the game within a few days).  On the positive note, you will probably want to play through the game several times as the other characters as well.
  • Some of the moves can be tricky to master.  For example, when you use the "counter" move that you can acquire as you level up, the timing can be pretty tricky.  It is a powerful move of course as you can easily devastate enemies and bosses that way when performed correctly, but you are bound to miss a bunch of times and take a good beating when you do miss. 
  • Some of the enemies do get repetitive as you will find yourself facing hordes of look alike enemies in the levels.
  • Some of the special attacks could be more useful.  For example, if you play as Kim, her special "attack" is to summon some girl (probably Knives), kiss her and gain 15 health points (similar to the King's heal move in Castle Crashers).  In Scott's mode, sometimes you can get more powerful special attacks, but they happen at random.  The best special attack I found is the one when you press the RB button and your guy does a radial attack (such as Kim's spin kick attack). 
Anyways, despide the short comings, Scott Pilgrim vs the world is a pretty fun arcade style game, and this game is bound to be popular among people who liked Castle Crashers as it does have a similar feel to it. 

Fun things you can do in Scott Pilgrim:
- Some levels have special stages you can visit and earn easy coins and power ups.  Sometimes they allow you to skip difficult parts of a level (for example, in level 1, you will be able to bypass the "snowball" fight section if you take the first special stage that you can enter through a hidden doorway).
- Playing the game "Battletoads Style".  One thing you can do on multiplayer mode is to turn on the "friendly fire mode" and if you get tired of fighting bad guys and want to mess around, you can always turn on each other and beat up your buddies.  By the way, if you play as a high level character and your buddy plays as a low level character (for example, I play as Scott at level 16, and you play as Stephen at level 1), your high level character will have an unfair advantage over the other and can easily take out the lower level players.  Did that once myself, playing as Scott (level 16) and having another player play as Kim (level 1) and even one hit on her is brutal on her health.  Even a counter attack proved to be instant death for her too as I found out.  Anyways, it does make the game funner.  Note: if you are trying to beat the game, I recommend you leave "friendly fire" mode off, otherwises if your buddy gets in your way as you beat up bad guys, he or she may take the brunt of the attack as well. 
- Revisiting previous levels.  In Scott Pilgrim vs the World, if you want, you can always revisit levels you were at previously and not only level up more, but do things you couldn't do the first time.  I find playing through level one more than once pretty fun to do.  By the way, as your character makes more money, he/she can buy more expensive items, such as paying "Scott's Late fees" and unlocking some hidden powerups (such as extra lives) that you can buy later.  Also, early level bosses get progressively easier to take out on replays too, usually taking less hits to defeat than they did when you faced them the first time.

Tips and tricks for playing Scott Pilgrim:
- be sure to save up money your character earns as he/she can use it to buy food (replinishes your health, gut points, etc), powerups (such as items that raise your defenses, level, etc), as well as other useful items.
- Be sure to take advantage of moves you unlock as you level up, as the make fighting foes much easier.
- Try to master the art of "countering", especially when facing tough enemies.  If you get their pattern down, you can block their attacks more easily and unleash devestating attacks on them.
- It is helpful to have lots of lives on hand when facing tough boss fights and long levels (especially when you face Gideon, which comes in the form of 3 different boss fights as well as areas that seprate the 3 boss fights).
-  If it is your first time playing through the game, or find the game to be too difficult, I recommend you play the game on the "Average Joe mode" (the easiest mode in the game).  Playing on the harder modes is recommended for more experienced players unless if you want an extra challenge when playing the game.
- Take advantage of items you can use as weapons, such as brooms, swords, etc as they are pretty useful when it comes to tougher enemies, as well when faced with hordes.
- Don't be afraid to use the special attacks when needed, such as the radial attack move your guy has when surrounded by enemies.
- Some levels are much easier played on 2+ player mode (such as the Bus/Japanese garden level). 
- Be sure to buy items like CD's, books, wristbands, etc if you can afford them as they help your character's stats greatly, and can also help you to level up more.
- Most bosses have patterns to them, and can be easy to master (similar to boss fights in most Mega Man games).

Thinking about getting Scott Pilgrim vs the World?  You can buy and download it on Xbox Live.  If you don't have Xbox Live Points, you can always either buy them on Xbox live or get the game cards you can find either online or in stores.

By the way, need Xbox live points, here is a 4000 point card I found at Amazon you might like:
 








  

New Super Mario Bros Wii Death Montage - World 1



You know, I recently bought New Super Mario Bros Wii for the Nintendo Wii and learned that there are lots of ways Mario, Luigi and Toad can die in this game.  In this video, I shared above, it showcases some hillarious ways Mario and his buddies can lose.  By the way, I found that the game is much easier on one or 2 player mode over 4 player mode, though 4 player mode can be much more humorous. By the way, you know what is interesting about this video is that all of the deaths seem to take place in World 1, and the game does get progressively tougher as you advance each world, with worlds 7 and 8 being the toughest.  It will be interesting to see if the players in this video make it all the way to the end (btw, I beat the final boss myself).

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Top ten funny things you can do on Red Dead Redemption

In case if you don't know, I've been doing a replay through Red Dead Redemption, this time as an outlaw (the first time through John Marston was more of a good guy), and I have found some pretty funny stuff you can do.  By the way, I shared some youtube videos about people doing these funny stuff.  I hope you like the twisted humor in this blog post.


1. Robbing random people.  If you want extra money in the game and want to cause some trouble, you can always use your weapons (like your pistol) to try and extort money from unsuspecting citizens. Of course, some citizens will try to resist and may even report you to law officrs.


2.  Bribing people - sometimes when John Marston commits crimes, not only can he bribe witnesses, but he can also bribe the police officers, which can allow John to get away with a good multitude of crimes.  Of course, it does take a good toll on his honor ratings.


3) Fighting hordes of cougars -  If you have been playing in the multiplayer mode, I found a glitch in Tall Trees where if you go near a cabin, your guy will be attacked by packs of hungry cougers, and one hit can prove to be fatal for John Marston.  Also, whenever you set up bait to try and catch random animals, sometimes cougars will come out and attack you.  Pretty funny.


4) Going on an arson spree.  While John is on the Mexico missions, he acquires motogav cocktails that he can through and cause fires.  Nothing is funnier than going through towns in the game, throwing the motogov cocktails at random places and having the villiagers going screaming.  It is also funny when that move backfires too as you hear John screaming whenever he gets hit by the fires he starts.



5) Playing with dynamite.  You can also get dynamite on the Mexico missions as well, and it is all to tempting to throw them at random people or even cook the dynamites (where they explode in John Martson's hand) if you are trigger happy.


6) Kidnapping people and running around with them.  When John Marston acquires the lasso, he can hogtie random people and do as he pleases.  Of course, if you do that move in towns, cops are bound to come after John.  By the way, you can always execute your victims too (by the way, if they get hit by trains, you get the "dastardly" achievement).


7) Jumping off cliffs.  Nothing is funnier than having John Marston jump off a huge cliff out in the middle of the desert.  By the way, John can't swim, so if he goes in the water, he is toast.


8) Suicide by wolves.  Perhaps the most annoying animal enemies in the game are wolves.  They like to chase after you in packs and bark.  Of course, they can easily be killed by a shooting them with bullets.  Of course, if you want to be funny, you can let John Marston become a martyr.


9) Trying to cheat at poker.  Yes, if you have the "elegant suit" you can try to cheat at poker.  Of course, more often than not, your fellow poker players will catch you cheating and challenge you to a duell.  Win the duell, you cna loot him/her and lose some honor points. Of course, if you lose, it's game over.


10) Going on rampages.  Want to make things interesting?  You can always pull out your trusty gun and start shooting at random people, animals, etc.  Of course, your wanted meter is bound to go up, leading you into countless battles with cops, marshalls, etc and they do get tougher as your bounty goes up.  By the way, you can always surrender and watch John spend a few nights in jail (pretty funny).
 Have you had any funny moments in Red Dead Redemption?

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Started a game on Scott Pilgrim vs the world

Hey guys, I thought that I would share with you all that I have downloaded my copy of Scott Pilgrim vs The world via Xbox live yesterday and started playing through the game (in fact, I have already beaten the first 3 levels in the game).  Here is a gameplay video I found on youtube that shows off the first level in the game.


Scott Pilgrim vs the world is pretty similar to Castle Crashers (assuming you are familiar with that game), where it is an arcade style beat em' up (similar to X-men, Simpsons, Ninja Turtles, etc) game where you play as either Scott Pilgrim, Ramona Flowers, Stephen Shields, or Kim Pines in their quest to defeat Ramona's 7 evil boyfriends in hopes of Scott winning Ramona's heart.  In the game, you will go through at least 7 colorful levels that you get to via the map and go through endless waves of thugs, monsters, and even many epic boss battles along the way, and like Castle Crashers, your characters level up and you get more moves, health and powers along the way (in Scott Pilgrim, the game assigns the new abilities and powers for you, saving you from having to decide where to allocate your level up points).   Personally, I decided to play through the game in order, starting with Scott, and then playing as the other characters as I go along. 

Foods for thought:

1) I have never seen the movie, nor red the books, so I don't have a clue on the storyline of the game.  Perhaps once I have beaten the game, I will go to Blockbuster or rent the movie on comcast on demand.

2) Can't you imagine the insanity of Scott's mission?  He meets a girl he likes (Ramona) and when he tries to make a move on her, she asks him to beat up all 7 of her ex boyfriends as a condition of them going out.  Reminds me a bit in games like Grand Theft Auto 4, Bully Scholarship Edition, and Red Dead Redemption, where the game's protaganist pretty much becomes an errands boy for others, doing their dirty work (in Scott's case, he pretty much has to go out and beat up all of Ramona's former boyfriends).  Imagine you were in Scott's situation (from a guy's perspective of course), and you start crushing some lady you meet at your school, and when you do get the guts to make your moves on her (if you know what I mean), she asks you to go around and beat up her exes before she can go out with you, would you do it?  Personally, I am not sure if I would or not as I doubt I would be able to take on all of them.  What would you do if you were in that situation?

That is all for now.  I will post a review about this game after I have beaten it as all 4 characters.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Red Dead Redemption - Top 8 Ways to Kill Yourself



Here is a video I stumbled across on Youtube about John Martson killing himself on Red Dead Redemption. Pretty funny video if you ask me.


Are there some funny deaths you have seen in the game?







Friday, April 15, 2011

Information about Mega Man 9 Part 1

Watch a short gameplay video about the game:


Do you remember the good ol days back in the 80's (long before the Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, and the PS3 came to the scene), when the classic NES system was a major hit and you got all of those classic old school games, such as Mario Bros, Mario 3, Mega Man 2, the classic Contra game, and so fourth?  Mega Man 9 (and later Mega Man 10) bascially brings back the 1980's style look to the Mega Man series (despite the 3 game gap where the games had the next gen graphic, such as Mega Man 7, Mega Man & Bass, as well as Mega Man 8) and has a Mega Man 2 feel to it. 
Storyline:

The game takes place sometime after events of Mega Man 8, and this time, evil robots are appearing all over the world with the goal of global domination, and this time, Dr Light is implicated in the plot (yes, this is another one of the games wher Dr Wily uses someone else as a cover in his evil schemes), while Dr Wily acts like he is innocent.  It is up to Mega Man to stop Dr Wily's schemes and save the day once again as well as clear Dr Light's name.  In the Xbox 360 verison, you play as Mega Man by default, though it appears that there are expansion packs you can download that lets you play as Protoman (which becomes mainstream in Mega Man 10).

Characters:

Mega Man - this is the series' protaganist.  He was created by Dr Light and is out to stop Dr Wily's latest schemes and save the day once again.  In Mega Man 9, suspects Dr Light's innocence when his robot masters go corrupt and aims to get to the bottom of the mystery.  Of course, we all know that Dr Wily is behind the latest events as always (a bit deja vuish of Mega Mans 4-6, where Wily uses someone else as his cover).

Dr Light - he is Mega Man's creator, along with Roll, Protoman, Rush, etc.  In Mega Man 9, he is being framed for creating robots that try to take over the world

Dr Wily - Wily is the series' antagonist and aims to take over the world, and comes up with more and more devious plans as the series progresses, only to be stopped by Mega Man once again.  It's even gotten to the point where Mega Man has even threatened Dr Wily for his continuous attempts at world domination, though understandably, Mega Man has yet to follow through on his threats to kill Dr Wily (the death of Dr Wily would probably spell the end of the classic Mega Man series).   Countless times, Dr Wily has created one schem after another, only to have it fail miserably.  He has even created a high level cronie named Bass (and later on, Zero who ironically becomes X's closest ally in the Mega Man X series) to try and kill Mega Man as well, but even Bass has yet to defeat Mega Man as well. In Mega Man 9, Dr Wily initially stands in the sidelines as Dr Light is implicated in the latest batch of robot masters that aim at world domination, though in reality Dr Wily is behind the latest scheme (he pretty much bribed the robot masters to joining his side).

Protoman - he is basically Mega Man's brother and one of his closest allies.  At one time, Protoman was more of a neutral character (and prior to Mega Man 4, he seemed to have some ties to Dr Wily, though those ties were severed in Mega Man 5 when Wily tries to frame Protoman).

Rush, Roll and the Mechanic Robot (not sure what his name is) - these are the support characters in the game.  Roll is basically Mega Man's sister, though she seems to have a crush on Mega Man.  Rush is Mega Man's dog and aids him in his missions.  The Mechanic Robot sells Mega Man the supplies and parts he needs (such as upgrades, powerups, extra lives, e tanks, etc).

This article is too long to do in one post, so be sure to stay tuned for part 2, where I give the full review of hte game.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Metroid Prime 2 - Emperor Ing boss fight video



As you know, I recently beat Metroid Prime 2 and I thought I would share a video about Emperor Ing, the 2nd to last boss in the game (the final one is Dark Samus 3 and 4). What do you think of this battle. By the way, I actually beat the game on the Wii version, though most of the videos come from the Gamecube version.

Mega Man 9 and 10...just like old times.

Mega Man 9 and 10...just like old times

Here are 2 more games I have recently beaten recently - Mega Mans 9 and 10.  I downloaded both of them via Xbox live (first Mega Man 9 and later Mega Man 10). 
MEGA MAN 9Mega Man 10 (23)

Mega Mans 9 and 10 definitely reminded me of the classic NES days back when games were only 8 bit and all, and it was definitely a big change for me considering that the last Mega Man game I played was Mega Man X8, which is all in 128 bit with alot more graphics, voice acting, and all, along with the fact that X is not the only character you can play as since you can also use Zero and Axl as well.  Mega Man 9 takes place sometime after the events of Mega Man 8 and this time around, Dr Wily decides to frame Dr Light and it is up to Mega Man to clear Dr Light's name and to defeat Wily.  In Mega Man 10, a new virus known as robonenza breaks out and causes other robots to go maverick and try to take over the world (a foreshadowing of the X series?) .  A fun thing with Mega Man 10 is that you can also play as Proto Man. 

I will post more details about the two games later. 

By the way, I've heard rumors about Mega Man X9 and there is talk that it will likely be a 16 bit game, though personally, I think they should keep the next gen feel with the X series.  X8 was awesome and they should keep that template.

Metroid Prime Corruption Trailer and Commentary

Metroid Prime Corruption Trailer and Commentary

Hey everybody, just fyi, I got the Wii back a few months ago and finished playing through Metroid Prime 2 (beat the final bosses on Monday) and started a game on Metroid Corruption.  Here is a short trailer of the game I found on youtube you might like.


Information about the game

I started playing through Metroid Prime Corruption on Tuesday and find it pretty interesting.  The game takes place sometime after the events of Metroid Prime 2 and Samus joins forces with the Federation to take on the latest threats posed by the space pirates and other hostiles (don't know the full synopsis yet, but will share more info as I play through the game).  The game is definitely a bit different from the first two Metroid Prime games since 1) you now play on multiple worlds as opposed to 1 world as is the case in the first 2 games, 2) there are more cut scence and there is voice acting, 3) there are more things you can do with your ship (in the first two games, you won't really need the ship until the end of the game, but in Metroid Prime 3, you will be doing more traveling with it, and plus you do get to see the cockpit of the ship), as well as plenty of other stuff.  You also get to encounter some old foes as well, such as Meta Ridley as well as Dark Samus again.  I will plan on sharing more about this game as I get further into the game. 

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Started playing through Mega Man 9

mega man 9 poster


Hey everybody I thought that I would let you know that I decided to buy Mega Man 9 via Xbox live and have started playing through the game.  The game seems to remind me a bit of Mega Man 2 with some obvious differences.  Considering that the last Mega Man game I played through (besides the Aniversary collection) was Mega Man X8 (a 128 bit title), going back to the 8 bit graphics is definitely taking some getting used to for me, though the the 8 bit games seem to be a new trend for the classic Mega Man series.  By the way, I've seen rumors around the net that the next Mega Man X game will be 16 bit format (I can't confirm it one way or another since I don't work for Capcome obviously), though personally I think that they should retain at least the 32 bit look of the next Mega Man X game since I thought that they were much funner that way (playing as Zero is pretty fun too.