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Showing posts with label Wii U. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wii U. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 21, 2017
Tuesday, June 20, 2017
Post-Mortem: My 20 Favorite Wii U Games, Part 1 (#20 - #11)
Here are the twenty main reasons why I think so. (I mean, ten. This is only part one, after all.)
EDIT: Click here for part two.
Thursday, April 27, 2017
[REVIEW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch)
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Played on: Switch
It has become commonplace over the last few years to refer to The Legend of Zelda as formulaic, but the franchise is no stranger to sweeping change. From Ocarina of Time's 3D revolution to the touch-based DS experiments, Nintendo's flagship adventure series has tried quite a few bold new directions, with varying levels of success. None of those experiments, however, were as comprehensive as Breath of the Wild. And, it can be argued, none of them were ultimately as fantastic.
Tuesday, January 3, 2017
[REVIEW] The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD (Wii U)
Played on: Wii U
I never owned a Wii or a Gamecube, as both those consoles were released during an extended break I took from console gaming. So when I got the backwards compatible Wii U in 2013, as a huge Zelda fan, one of the first things I did was to get Wii's Twilight Princess. Halfway through the second dungeon, I gave up, as I simply couldn't stomach playing through a 3D Zelda with motion controls. Twilight Princess HD, then, was a very welcome way for me to cover this particular hole in my Zelda backlog.
Monday, January 2, 2017
[REVIEW] Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE (Wii U)
Played on: Wii U
Initially announced as Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem, Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE is an Atlus JRPG that mixes several elements from those beloved franchises. Luckily, the result is a game that's very much its own idea.
Thursday, November 10, 2016
[REVIEW] Axiom Verge (Wii U)
Axiom Verge
Played on: Wii U
It's ironic that Axiom Verge was released on Wii U on the same day Metroid Prime: Federation Force hit the 3DS. That's because, while Nintendo's own portable title largely failed to entice those clamoring for more Metroid, Thomas Happ's indie homage to Samus Aran's adventures is nothing short of a masterpiece.
Friday, September 23, 2016
[REVIEW] Mighty No. 9 (Wii U)
Mighty No. 9
Played on: Wii U
By: Comcept / Inti Creates / Deep Silver
Monday, June 20, 2016
[REVIEW] Chronicles of Teddy: Harmony of Exidus (Wii U)
The indie game scene has become pretty much the only place to get your fix of 2D metroidvanias, with quite a few excellent titles in the genre released over the past few years. Chronicles of Teddy, the latest of them to reach Wii U, is an interesting game to review, as its absolute excellence in adventure design is almost matched in intensity by the numerous development problems that used to plague the game upon release.
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
[REVIEW] FreezeME (Wii U)
FreezeME
I'm not sure why 3D platformers have fallen so out of favor with the mainstream, but I sure wish it wasn't so. Thankfully, more and more indie developers have been taking up the mantle in recent years, and the lastest result of that effort is FreezeME, a fun title that has genuinely surprised me.
Saturday, April 2, 2016
[REVIEW] Xenoblade Chronicles X (Wii U)
One of my most anticipated titles of this generation, Xenoblade Chronicles X is certainly not your everyday game. It's a massive sci-fi RPG, with probably the largest open-world I've ever seen. All of its charms, and even its flaws, come from the fact that this is an enormously ambitious undertaking, presenting players with a huge playground of a planet that is ripe for adventuring and exploration.
Monday, February 1, 2016
[REVIEW] Yoshi's Woolly World (Wii U)
Yoshi's Woolly World
The
original Yoshi-based adventure game, Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's
Island, was an excellent late surprise in the SNES library. Released as
Nintendo's focus was already shifting to the Nintendo 64, it was a
breath of fresh air with its highly innovative platforming mechanics and
fresh pencil-like art style. Yoshi's Woolly World takes that game's
legacy and runs with it, and while it doesn't offer a lot of innovation
this time around, it's the kind of sequel fans of the original game
would undoubtedly sign for.
Friday, October 16, 2015
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
[REVIEW] Super Mario Maker
Super Mario Maker
That Friday, I went to work knowing it was gonna be tough to get through the day. Whatever day job tasks I had in front of me, I could only focus on one thing: the Mega Man-themed level I was going to make when I got out of work, bought my shiny new copy of Super Mario Maker, and scurried home. That's the kind of thing Super Mario Maker does to you: the very idea of such a game-slash-development-tool, a first in the Mario franchise, and quite likely the defining Wii U gamepad-centric title, is enough to inspire obsession.
Saturday, August 8, 2015
[REVIEW] Watch Dogs
Watch Dogs
Nintendo has a well known modus operandi, choosing to pave its own way rather than follow industry trends. For the most part, this is precisely what has kept me so interested in the brand over the years, although there is a particular trend I wish they'd show more interest in: open-world gameplay. Sadly, Wii U has seen only a few such games, meaning the existence of Watch Dogs, which is supposed to be Ubisoft very last non-casual offering on the platform, is welcome.
Monday, July 6, 2015
[REVIEW] Splatoon
I have something to confess: I'm not big on online multiplayer. The lack of face-to-face interaction generally means I simply don't have as much fun as when I gather friends on my living room to play, for example, extended sessions of Super Smash Bros. What I am big on, however, is great gameplay, and in that regard Splatoon made me a believer. Thirty-five hours in, I'm utterly enthralled by its endless stream of addictive three-minute ink-shooting matches, and I'm convinced this new franchise is going to be a massive player in the Nintendo IP roster going forward.
Monday, June 8, 2015
[REVIEW] Don't Starve: Giant Edition
Originally released for PC two years ago (and, subsequently, for the Playstation 4 and Vita), Don't Starve is a gem of a game that stands as one of the most unique titles in the Wii U e-Shop. From the get-go, it drops the player into a Tim Burton-esque fantasy wilderness filled with resources, animals, monsters, and what seems like an endless string of open-ended gameplay possibilities. Your goal is to find a way survive, one day at a time, and perhaps some day build your very own one-man empire to rule these lands. Before that, though you'll die. A lot.
Monday, May 11, 2015
[REVIEW] Donkey Kong 64
Donkey Kong 64
The epic adventures of the Kong family were Nintendo's last trump card for the 16-bit generation. As such, it was pretty obvious they would eventually get a 64-bit outing. Rather than rest on its laurels, though, developer Rare decided to take the series into a bold new direction, and the result is probably the most hardcore 3D collect-a-thon game there ever was. Given that collecting stuff in video games is a passion first instilled in me by the Donkey Kong Country series on the SNES, the prospect of an open-world, 3D, fully explorable DK Isle with collectibles galore sounds like heaven. A few significant flaws aside, that's exactly what it felt like throughout my adventure.
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
[REVIEW] Elliot Quest
Elliot Quest
Recently, I decided to give another try to Zelda II: Adventure of Link, the NES game which took the beloved series in an interesting new direction. Sadly, I realized there was a small detail I had forgotten since I played it as a kid: the game is frustratingly, unfairly difficult, even with the advent of save states. I still love its structure, however, so I was quite pleased by the announcement of Elliot Quest, a game directly inspired by Link's second 8-bit outing. After playing it for much longer than I anticipated (over 20 hours), I was left pleasantly surprised by the sheer quality of its design.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
[REVIEW] Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble
The third Donkey Kong Country game for the SNES is truly the end of an era. This is because it's not only the final entry in this beloved series up until Donkey Kong Country Returns on the Wii, but also the last major first-party release for the SNES, in an era when Nintendo's (and Rare's) attention was finally shifting to the N64. It follows in the footsteps of its predecessors when it comes to pleasant and challenging platforming, but also introduces neat new ideas to the formula.
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