The Challenge- An Anecdote about friendship

A friendship all started with a shirt and a fighting game.

I was starting as a GRD at Virginia Commonwealth University, a GRD is the hall director equivalent at VCU (it was at the time), and walked into my building Cabanis Hall. I had on a shirt. It was a dope Street Fighter II shirt. Nothing super special, but those in the know would appreciate it. This shirt was purchased back when Hot Topic was the only place you could buy video game shirts. it would be years before we start seeing this type of clothing at Wal-Mart and other vendors.

 

 

At Cabanis, 24 hour security would sit at the front desk. So I walk in, brand new and this red headed dude is sitting propped up behind a desk facing the door. He has a red security shirt on. He looks at me inquisitively and says “I like your shirt.” I respond with great fervor, “Yeah.” Powerful stuff I know, but I can tell this crossing of paths is going somewhere.

He then asks if I “played”. At this point, I’m thinking “Of course I play, red.” I wouldn’t wear the damn shirt if I didn’t play the game. I wasn’t some punk ironically wearing a shirt about something old that I didn’t understand. So I politely responded, “Yes, I play and maybe I’ll teach you how someday too…” OOHHHHH SNAPPPPP SON! BROKE IT OFF IN RED’S ASS! Don’t play me, don’t play James. I been playing Street Fighter since before Blanka was green!

 

Luckily, Ian smiles this off and let’s me continue to my room. At this point class hasn’t started yet and I am just gaming with my door open to my apartment. Ian stops by my apartment one day and challenges me to a game. This is big time, now I must prove myself. This friendship hinges on my ability to play Street Fighter at an adequate level. Also, I needed to see if Ian was fo’ real or just talk. The stage was set.

We played a couple of matches, I think we were both going easy on each other. I would win, then Ian would win….then I think I would win more but I’m biased. Then I realized, whoa…we have been playing for hours. This guy is awesome and I want to play games with him for the rest of my life. Thus began the most epic rivalry of our time! Ian was good, and I proved that I knew my way around a fighting game or 2 myself. We would end up spending most of our time playing King of Fighter, as any real men should. And that’s how Ian became one of my best friends ever.

My Favorite Fighting Games (A List)!

With the re-emergence of the fighting game scene on the backs of Street Fighter 5 and Pokken Tournament, I wanted to talk about some of my all-time favorites. I am awaiting Pokken Tournament to show up on Friday and I will buy SF5 when it is actually complete and worth purchasing.

 

Any time a new Street Fighter comes out it signifies a re-birth of the genre. Street Fighter is the tent pole. People in the FGC can argue about why that is and how it should be some other deeper game, the reality is that Street Fighter sets the stage.

I have loved fighting games my entire life. I played local, single player, and dabbled in a few tournaments and local meet ups in my hey day. There is something so pure about learning the mechanics and battling an opponent that is as skilled as you. For me, fighting games are the closest thing gaming has to sports. The rules are set, the athletes are constant, and their is a clear winner. No judges, no scoring. A health bar that depletes will tell you everything you need to know.

What do I like in a fighting game? I love frenetic action. Speed is everything for me. Crazy visuals, fun special moves, and scale. I like the spectacle of fighting games. I know some people really get off watching footsies and technical play, but for me…nah. Give me flashy lights and fireballs and shit. Street Fighter 4 was cripplingly slow for me. I loved the game, but it was moving in molasses. I fell in love with Street Fighter 2 Turbo where the 99 second clock was a joke, I never saw a match time out. For me playing a fighting game should feel like driving a sports too fast around a corner and just hoping the grip on your tires does it’s job and physics doesn’t leave you in a ditch. That feel of mastering technique that people think you are just button mashing until the match is over and you’ve won. The games below gave me these feels.

Super Street Fighter 2 turbo HD Remix- The perfect game. Everything I loved about SF2 Turbo but multiplied by 20. The sprite work is amazing, and the game is silky smooth. The net code was great. The game has this unpredictability about how much life a hit might take off the life bar. There was a sense of mystery to every fight. A combo that will normally clear out a health bar may leave a slither of life…now what? It’s perfect.

King of Fighters (’98, 13, and many others)- So many characters, so many moves and the sprite work is gorgeous. KOF holds a special place in my heart because in grad school I had some friends that were very into these games, and we had endless battles. My favorite thing about KOF is that you can play it competently without a clue of entire layers of moves and then you discover them and it’s a brand new game. Also, a lot of black characters have quietly been in the series to little fanfare.

Samurai Shodown (2, 5, and 2 for Neo Geo Pocket)- Brutal. Fast. Death. One second you are poking back and forth the next second a heavy slash literally chops you in half. The game revels in this idea of a death tournament, and not in the crazy way Mortal Kombat does but in this sinister way. A young female can get her torso lopped off as easily as the giant with the wrecking ball. It’s amazing. (the 360 version, the 3D game…one of the worst fighters I have ever played)

Pokken Tournament- Great cross between Tekken and a Naruto fighting game. It’s a 2D game at one phase and a 3d brawler at another. Very seamless, roster is too small. The problem with this game is that it immediately makes you want more, it makes you want your favorite character. All the great things it does (amazing single player, multiplayer is super smooth) is overshadowed by the want of more.

Street Fighter x Tekken- I know the gem system sucked…but you could avoid it. This game is fast and beautiful and it’s everything I wanted out of 4 and more! The roster was dope, it was awesome controlling the Tekken fighters in 2D. People were very hard on this game and I think unfairly so.

Saint Seiya Soldiers Soul- This game is amazing, it’s perfect fan service (not in the big titty way). I love this anime. The game has every special attack in it that the characters from the show have. The show is interesting because the cloths (armor sets) dictate power and moves. The game has every evolution of cloth and move set for every character. The single player plays out in a great way, if you want to watch the anime story in a condensed way this game is perfect. Graphically it looks like a cartoon. The fighting system is admittedly a little shallow but it makes up for that with style and lots of play modes.

Powerstone (Series)– I love this series with friends, but not one I have spent a ton of single player time with. This game was a great looking 3D fighter. It’s more of a 3D brawler, not a 3D fighter in the sense of Virtua Fighter but more like Smash Bros. in a 3D plane.

 

SkullGirls – This game is beautiful but the lack of charge characters in the initial roster was a deal breaker. I was impressed with the story mode though, it did not get enough press. The tutorials are a master class in teaching fighting game mechanics. The 50’s theme is awesome, they really commit to kind of an art deco style (I think?) and it’s a cool mix of watching steam boat willie and a Looney Tunes cartoon all in one.

Killer Instinct (1, 2, Ultra, New)- Focusing on the newest game, I must say that I hate guest characters in established franchises but the characters in KI are so bogus that it doesn’t matter and Rash fits in perfectly!!! I love the combo system in this game. Beautiful things happen on accident all the time. The stage combos and ultra combos are nuts. The single player content is good. This game is the first “games as service” that has delivered in spades. Try it. It’s free.

Eternal Champions- mediocre fighting game, vile death scenes. Cool black character but WTF she got impaled!!!! Game was nuts….

Marvel Vs Capcom 2- Best roster ever. Period. Wildly unbalanced, wildly fun.

Clash of Fighters SNK v Capcom- The first crossover game, and a neo geo pocket classic. It plays great, looks great and sets up a lot of dream match ups that I thought would never happen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Justice League Task Force- I bought it on sale at Blockbuster. I was young. It sucks. BUT it taught me how to find special moves and who Darkseid was…so instant classic? The animations were good but it’s always off when Superman doesn’t just win.

 

Tekken 3- Bowling, Volleyball, Sidescrolling brawler, oh and a fighting game. Beautiful game with a full roster. This game perfected the Tekken style. The cut scenes are awesome and there are tons of things to unlock.

Soul Calibur- Best launch game ever.

Mortal Kombat 3- Jax.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Street Fighter Alpha 3- ROSTER! SPEED. So much speed. This game makes the other Alpha games look like slow motion. The animations are awesome, and there are so many options for specials.

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom- One of my favorite fighting games of all time…is on the Wii. It’s an amazing mash up that is worth checking out. Cel-shaded graphics have aged well, simple gameplay and awesome combos. Very fast paced. In my opinion this is the last proper VS. game and it’s a great way to learn about some amazing anime.

Blazblu- The sprite work is great and this game is closest I have ever been to the Guilty Gear series. It’s a lot of fun, I love Iron Tager. The story was deep and interesting long before Mortal Kombat too.

Dead Or Alive 4- Boobs and Masterchief. Need I say more?

 

 

 

 

Those are my favorite fighting games! Thanks for reading! Peace!

GameBoy Micro- The Medium is the Message

What always fascinates me about media is how important the delivery is. I think this is something that is not taken into account nearly enough. Read To Kill A Mocking Bird on a Kindle, then read the physical book. Reading the book feels better, it hits the eye better and frankly, it makes the experience. See a Michael Bay movie in the theater. You’ll be blind and deaf in 3 hours. See the same movie at home. Not the same experience. Video games are very much the same.

When McLuhan states, “The medium is the message” he looks at factors that go deeper than purely technology and content. A television did more than just have people sit down and take in sitcoms. The value of the medium is usually judged by content but television also shaped our national identity. It re-imagined how the family would come together at night, it changed the way the Presidential election process was approached. Seeing California is different than hearing about it. Seeing black people hosed down in the South was more impactful than reading about those events, and television made that reality. The television also became an extension of self. Being able to change the channel gave people power and control over their entertainment in a way they never had.

 

(As a side note, it really brings up a lot questions for VR. Not in the sense of, do people want to be closed off in a helmet but assuming people adopt VR what will it do culturally to normalize people closing off in a helmet to get their entertainment. What will social interactions look like at that point? Families sit around a TV, only one head fits in a helmet.)

When I look at the Game Boy Micro in comparison with other handheld gaming devices it becomes clear to me that it does more than just “take gaming on the go!”. It feels like a natural extension of the body and the imagination. It’s so compact and easily managed that pulling it out and carrying it with you is not an issue. The small screen and high resolution make things look better. I think the cultural difference this system was alluding too is that it is the precursor of the eventual cell phone boom of mobile games. It says game anywhere and don’t be ashamed by it. People are gamers (my wife) and don’t even realize it because playing Puzzle and Dragons or Jet pack Joyride for hours all day at work or on the bus doesn’t fall into the national discourse around what it means to be a gamer.

I love handheld media. Obviously, I spent a lot of time on this blog gushing about the Neo Geo Pocket Color and for good reason. Something about having complete control over where you can sit or lay playing a game, how close the screen is to your face, and the freedom to play anywhere you want make handheld gaming perfect for me. I love console gaming, but the handhelds just provide the best experiences for me. I say all of this to say that the Game Boy Micro is a masterpiece. I have played my Game boy Advance original, and then SP for countless hours. Those same games on the GB Micro feel different and feel better.

The form factor for the GB Micro is so small and magnificent. It discreetly fits in a pocket. The screen is smashed down in a way that makes games look less pixelated and sharper. It’s like having a really small OLED screen. The D-Pad is perfect. It’s a cross D-Pad that is smooth and perfectly placed left to the screen. It makes playing Street Fighter II or Alpha 3 easier than on other machines.

Another reason the Game Boy Micro works so well is because the GBA era of handheld games felt complete and fully realized in a way that handheld games never did before. Much like the Neo Geo Pocket games, GBA games take advantage of their hardware. Tons of Mode 7, and really sharp 2D and 3D foregrounds and backgrounds working together.I think many series peaked during this era; Mario Kart Advanced, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, Pokemon Sapphire, handheld racing in general peaked with the GT Advanced Series, F Zero, Final Fantasy Tactics Advanced, all the Super Mario remakes, Super Puzzle Fighter, Street Fighter 2, even Tony Hawk was good on the GBA. Mario Golf was best on the GBA, and there are so many more examples. The system library never feels dated like the original Game boy library does.

The GB Micro is what happens when hardware iterates itself into perfection. It’s what I thought the PSP Go would be (wrong, i was wrong.). If I could play every game on it, I think some games would shine in ways that they don’t right now. People can buy a SteamLink to play their computer games in their living room. It doesn’t change the games themselves but where you play a game matters. I wish I had a SteamLink equivalent for the Game Boy Micro. This system proves that changing the medium can make old games feel fresh. 

 

 

Oh and you can change the faceplates on it……soooooo dooooppppeeeeeee. Thanks for reading. Peace

A Valentine’s Day Poem

Roses are red

Violets are blue

Since Roselia is a 

I choose you

AND my first video game crush was Momoko from KOF (sooo cute!).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Valentine’s Day (week-end)!

To my wife- I love you, thanks for supporting me and reading my blog!

Final Fantasy Explorers (3DS)-Monster Hunter Arcade

Monster Hunter. I tried to play a Monster Hunter game for Wii once. I was extremely excited. The idea of a boss rush, that involves hunting and updating gear was awesome. The thought of utilizing on-line co-op was even better. I imagined myself hunting with my friends, taking huge monsters and being awesome.

Sigh…. that was the dream. The reality was a boring slog of a game that had me doing bull shit side quest for hours while it tried it’s very hardest to not teach me the rules. I want to battle bass ass bosses, Monster Hunter has me swatting flies……for hours. Fetch quests…for hours…I quit. It was awful.

If Monster and myself had a first date, it would be considered a disaster. Luckily, Final Fantasy Explorers took me out to dinner and then put out after the salad! I will describe my first hour in FF Explorers. I create my guy (suuuppeerrr black, lots of choices, nicely done), I pick a “job”, buy weapons and gear. Do 3 or 4 tutorial quests that take no time. Go to main quests and then immediately start fighting HUGE Beautiful bosses from the Final Fantasy Universe!!!!

This game lacks all of the nuance that Monster Hunter has but it makes up for it by giving me what I want in spades. With all that said, here is the review!

Graphics- It is abundantly clear that is an older 3DS game (2014 in Japan). The environments look detailed and good enough. The character models….work. The art style is great and when the Eidolons (the main monsters, based on summons from previous Final Fantasy games) are highlighted it is pure magic.

Gameplay- This is an action RPG(!?) but without the deep story and character progressions come from gear instead of leveling. This game is set up like Monster Hunter. There is a hub world, you pick a mission and you embark on a quest to kill monsters. You can choose jobs that effect which magic and weapons you can use. Each Job feels unique and the game really wants you to try different things. There is no penalty for trying new gear and jobs. The combat is not deep in the same way a monster hunter is, Monster Hunter is more about pattern recognition and understanding how to time you strikes. FF Explorers is more about using your buffs and spells and mashing those buttons as best you can. It’s engaging.

Story- There is a story about finding crystals and beating monsters. It is not very entrenched in the gameplay but it keeps things moving moving forward.

UI- The menu system is such a call back to older Final Fantasy games and I love it. The look of the menus is great and they are not super convoluted. The only thin I find tough is using potions in battle, that menu and process is not well thought out (press Y I think, and then just scroll through the potions and items….in battle….).

Multiplayer- Perfect. It is so easy and seamless to create a room and find a room. I have had no problems connecting. This game is the dream for me. I would never have local friends to play this game but finding randoms on-line is easy and great. The only issue online is that 4 people shutter the frame rate at times in a big way.

Intangibles- It should be a grind, and it should be boring. It shouldn’t hold my attention. The entire game comes together in this really fun way. This game falls somewhere between an old school beat em’ up like Street of Rages and Monster Hunter. It’s so forgiving, it just wants you to play it and have fun!

Use of Final Fantasy License- I have been wanting to get back into Final Fantasy for years but have not played a game proper since FF7. This game gives me all of the Final Fantasy I want without the JRPG game I haven’t been into lately.

Social Justice- This game has a surprising amount of diversity. The character creation screen has an unreal amount of shades for brown. Very nice. I also feel like they had hair styles that a black person could have (an anime black person…). The game also allows to turn into old Final Fantasy characters such as Cloud, Lightning, and Yuna. There is something really cool about being a male character that becomes immensely stronger when turning into a female.

Final Thoughts- Try it. It’s not Monster Hunter. It’s not Phantasy Star Online. It’s a cool take on a tired genre. I love Gods Eater Burst and this game probably has more legs for me. Gods Eater Burst had a better story but it lacks the charm and freedom that this game gives. I would recommend it. Peace

 

E-Sports: Why is this so hard to make work?

I am a die hard sports fan. I am a die hard video game fan. So e-sports should be my holy grail of media combinations! Right!?!?! Eh….not so much. ESPN just announced their new e-sports coverage initiative, and Activision just bough MLG so it feels like we are at a fever pitch of e-sports becoming a thing. ESPN is the holy grail of sports media coverage and them taking a sport seriously means it is hear to stay. With that said, why do I not follow e-sports and why has it had such a hard time latching on to societies sports obsession?

1. Regional affiliations are not strong in e-sports (outside of international competitions)- I love the Cleveland Browns. Not the Browns. Not Cleveland. The Cleveland Browns. It matters to me that the Browns are in the midwest. It means a lot to me that these men represent Ohio wherever they go. When the Browns beat the Steelers, it’s more than football. It’s Cleveland beating the city of Pittsburgh. E-Sports doesn’t have that. When you watch a fighting game tournament you are watching Chun-Li and a person controlling Chun-Li. Chun-Li could be fighting another person controlling the same character. The Browns will never play the Browns in the same fight. I think I would enjoy watching the Dayton Drillers League of Legends team play the Chicago Cables team. That gives an affiliation to care about. Or! they need to prop up individuals in the same way tennis and golf do. I think that presents its own challenges. As much as nobody wants to say it, we love Cam Newton and Sue Bird because they represent a peak in physical ability. They look great, they are in great shape and are easy to market. Video games doesn’t seem to have that yet. It’s usually really skinny guys in backwards hats or chunky guys in backwards hats. I like backwards hats.  
2. No major governing body that is easy to follow- You want to watch football? NFL. Basketball? NBA. Golf? PGA. MOBAs (DOTA 2, Heroes of the Storm, League of Legends) on PC? uh….well Twitch.tv, or buy the pass to watch League matches through their separate space. There is no unity on that front. I want to watch the best Street Fighter matches ever! I would watch Evo. Evo is a tournament but there are thousands of tourneys that exist. Which ones matter? Who defines that? MLG tried to be that unifying force but separate games superseded them and made their own platforms to watch and experience their leagues. 
3. No consistent rules or even games- If you have been watching Star Craft or Hearthstone from the beginning as e-sports you know they have changed dramatically through patches and nerfs to characters, etc. At one time Starcraft 2 defined e-sports and now it’s League of Legends. Small rule changes happen a lot in the NFL or NBA but the game is still the same and easy to follow. If I used to love watching Counter Strike but now the new hotness is Hearthstone there is no overlap there. It’s not even obvious what the conditions to win are to an observer. I have a hard investing time and resources into following a game that is an “e-sports game” because it might be obsolete in 3 years or less… what happens the company releases a sequel? If I love Halo 2 and Halo 3 comes out now what? Are the same guys pros? There are just too many questions right now.
4. Do you follow the character or the person controlling the character? Who is the star?- If you are a Ryu fan, do you just cheer for Ryu when he fights regardless of who is controlling him or do you follow Daigo and don’t care who he uses. In other pro sports I follow individuals. I am watching the Super Bowl to see Cam Newton. I don’t care about the Panthers. I would watch Cam play anywhere in the league. That said, I also root the Browns no matter who they have.
5. Too much influence by developers and publishers on the actual sport itself– That’s actually on par with current sports entertainment…. FIX! Moving on…
6. Lack of highlights– What constitutes a highlight in league of legends to an observer? What is their equivalent to the slam dunk or the stiff arm? This is the closest I have seen to an e-sports highlight and it’s not recent… Highlight culture, Vine culture is huge in sports! Few e-sports game lend themselves to these moments. Just some thoughts! Thank for reading! Peace

Game(s) of the Year 2015

LET’S DO IT!

Black Game of the Year- Need for Speed (2015), Manu is played by Howard Charles in the cut scenes. He is awesome. I think he’s black?!? Regardless, he is what I want in a minority character in a game. His race does not define him, he’s a street racer who happens to be black. On top of that, he’s respected as the leader of the group and is very intelligent and spiritual. I think he shines in what he not. He is NOT a criminal. He is NOT the hot head who is trying to make a name for himself in spite of his bad attitude. He is NOT a jock or athletic hyper talented freak who just needs guidance. He’s a dude who races. It’s dope. Nicely done, NFS!

Sports Game of the Year- NBA Live 16. This series keeps improving and nobody seems to notice or care. The shooting, the A.I., the presentation are all top notch once again. The only place lacking is the single player MyPlayer mode but the Ultimate Team Mode more than makes up for it. Pro-Am is one of the best ways to play multiplayer basketball on consoles or PC. This game is underrated and I will shout out it’s merits from the rooftop every chance I get.

Action Game of the Year- Transformers Devastation. Platinum Games rarely fails and they hit the mark again with this gem. Transformers: Devastation is the game fans have deserved for years but never got. The art style is amazing. It looks like you are playing the cartoon. The characters are great and this was a budget title. It was never a $60 affair but the replayability and combat are second to none. I loved this game. Every time I think the stakes have peaked another massive boss shows up. You also play a version of Galaga in this…perfect.

RPG of the Year- LBX: Little Battlers eXperience (3DS). This is the only RPG I played…so it won! It’s a really fun game. I like the anime anyways and this game plays directly from the show. Scenes are taken from the tv to your DS in a pretty impressive way. It plays like custom robo. Open environments with fully 3D robots fighting. There is tons of customization. The other elements feel like Pokemon. This game is the RPG Nintendo should have propped up instead of Yo-Kai Watch.

Hidden Gem of the Year- Mad Max. Honestly, fans of the game have been loud. The game took a lot of unfair criticism because it came after the amazing Mad Max: Fury Road. This game is not Mad Max: Fury Road the game, it’s Mad Max the open world game. it’s a paint by numbers Assassin Creed-like open world game but the Mad max skin makes it compelling.

Game that came out last year or further back that I played this year- Divinity Dragon Commander (also dabbled in Sunset Overdrive). This game is nuts. You fly a dragon in the RTS mode, you get to sleep with a skeleton all while making decisions about health care and gay marriage. I’m serious. Play it. It’s on steam. Sunset Overdrive is funny, colorful, and plays amazingly smooth.

Best Game I Didn’t Pay for- Divinity: Original Sin. Wife gave it to me, and it’s such a cool game. I love this game, I love her. This game has depth I never expected in it. Every nook leads to a new story path. Everything can be interacted with. It’s so highly polished. Very fun game.

Best Racing Game- Forza Horizon 2. Huge vistas to drive through, beautiful cars, great car selection. This game is a masterpiece, and the addition of rain just added to that. ForzaHorizon 2 is the game where Forza lets it’s hair down. Fun, laid-back Forza is a game I like.

Best Always On-line game- The Crew Wild Run. Love the update. This update made an unplayable mess into a great racing game. The update added some cool stuff that I detail in a previous post.

Honorable Mentions- Madden 16, Broforce, Life is Strange, Marvel Puzzle Quest- Madden is great but didn’t sink it’s teeth into me like last year. Broforce is a hilarious masterpiece that people dismiss as not having any strategy but it has a lot of depth in it’s life system and how they delegate the characters to you. Life is Strange is the only adventure game I would ever play. Marvel Puzzle Quest is crack.

Least Favorite Game of 2015- The Escapist. Game was straight butt. This game was boring. It had no tutorials, the mini games sucked, and I hated it. Honestly, this might have come out last year but I hate it so much I am keeping it right here.

Best Toys to life game- Skylander’s Superchargers. You like Mario Kart? This did that. You like platformers? This did that too. You like colors, fun, and magic? All here in spades.

Retro game of the year- Shock Troopers. This is the game I always wanted to Metal Slug to be. It’s a bullet hell game with the freedom of a 2D shooter.

Overall Game of the Year- Saint Seiya: Soldier’s Soul. This is a 3D fighting game in the vein of the Naruto games. I won’t detail too much about this game because I am going to cover it more but man this game is fun. It’s relentless quest to be accurate to the source material is amazing. The game looks like the anime, all of the attacks from the anime are there, and there is so much content in this game. This one caught me off guard in a big way. You have story mode which has 4 separate story arcs to play through and then you have the gold saint mode where you buy torches and fight high level battles….THEN you have the Galaxy Wars where you fight through tournaments with increasing difficulty. It’s amazing. Play it.

A sample of what I played this year- LBX, The Crew Wild Run, NBA/Madden, Saint Seiya, Mad Max, Need For Speed, Broforce, Divinity Original Sin (XBONE), Life is Strange, Borderland Handsome collection, Tranformers Devastation, Skylanders Superchargers, Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell, Puzzle Dragons/Mario, The Escapist, Xeodrifter, Titan Souls, Freedom Wars, Marvel Puzzle Quest, various Pokemon, Samurai Warriors 1-5, Super Meat Boy, Sunset Overdrive

Happy New Year! Peace

 

The Crew: Wild Run: A Story of Resurrection and Redemption (XBOX ONE)

I tried The Crew when it first came out. It was supposed to be the an always on-line street racing game that spanned the entire country. It was going to be the natural successor to the Test Drive Unlimited (the game that saved my life, a story for a different time). The Crew did not deliver. People talked about the connection problems and internet issues but honestly I never got to those. The game’s controls were hot garbage. Some of the stiffest, least responsive controls I have ever encountered. I stopped. I put the game down and never looked back, grabbed Forza Horizon 2.

The reviews for The Crew were middling. People were tired of the Ubisoft formula that became stale with Assassin’s Creed’s “people tread the open world, progress to a tower to see more activities” motif. Reviewers also disliked the graphics a lot, and didn’t know what to make of the handling in the game.

Clearly, The Crew did itself no favors. But do you believe in new beginnings?

I think this is funny…. yea? no? Ok…

The Crew: Wild Run hits the refresh button in a big way. I picked up CWR (Crew Wild Run) again and was immediately floored with 2 things. 1. It was raining. 2. The handling was…good! Wild Run added all of my favorite things to The Crew. The handling is much more predictable. I put the game on hardcore handling mode and felt like I was playing an actual racing game. The Crew Wild Run also improved the graphics immensely. Water pools on the road and the rain effects in the cockpit view are awesome.

The Crew Wild Run also added a whole new mode. It’s called The Summit. It is a hub for a tournament that is asynchronous multiplayer. The Summit consists of new events Drifting, Monster Truck Mode, and Drag Racing. These modes are a welcomed addition.

Drifting is basic, mash e-brake, feather accelerator and get a score. Chain it together, high score wins.

Monster Truck mode takes you to a Hot Wheels-esue playground where you drive around jumping and driving through loops to gather point icons. High score wins.

Drag Racing is a fun mode where there a bunch of Mini-games to prep the car for its run and then you shift manually. It’s extremely rewarding and probably my favorite mode.

All these modes happen during “The Summit” competition. You create an aggregate score and receive prizes based on this score.

Things I love about The Crew: Wild Run- random events on long drives that help level cars, fun accessible multiplayer, fast and furious single player story, beautiful representation of the USA, fun drifting, monster trucks, the game gives you a competitive car when needed.

Things I don’t love about The Crew: Wild Run- The menus, the amount of time it takes to find multiplayer opponents, progression of car mods is confusing, no state lines on US map, league ranks and progression (also confusing), cars/bikes and upgrades are very pricey unless you spend real money (I haven’t)

The biggest issue with the Crew wild run is that some of the qualifying events for the summit are locked behind “crew events”. You have to be part of a crew to join some of the challenges and I was in one and fell out…now I can’t find a new one and if I don’t I won’t be able to qualify for the next summit. That is poor design that hurts your single-player players.

While it’s not a main focus of the game, the single player is compelling. They have a nice crime drama, revenge tale. It’s Fast & Furious “lite”. I like it. The main character Alex is trying to find out who killed his brother. He works for a “minority” woman on the force named Zoe. She has “badditude” with no time for Alex’s bull shit! But she might also have a softer side…. Alex meets a lot of cool characters and criminals through out the game. He inevitably meets a sexy blonde and a black guy who we think is a crook but is he? It’s a lot of fun. it gives you good excuses to level up your ride and drive across America!

Another fascinating thing about The Crew is it’s approximation of the US of A. They don’t model every city but hit all the majors regions; Chicago, New York, LA, The South and the Mid West. As you drive across the US you can feel the landscape changing. It really is beautiful and well done. The details of each region are awesome. It snows in the mountains of Colorado, the nothingness of the Nebraska, to the skyline of New York. It’s worth checking out.

It’s All There!

Overall, Wild Run is to The Crew as Taken King is to Destiny. It changes the game in the best ways. This game is the arcade racer I need. I think you’ll like it too! Peace

Thanksgiving Special- Black Characters I am Thankful For: Keith David (Saints Row Series)

What I am most thankful at this time of giving is that their is a generation of kids who will only know Keith David from his work on Saints Row not knowing he is one of the most prolific black actors in Hollywood.

Video games have celebrity voice acting all of the time and usually it’s mediocre at best. You see games are not taken as seriously as movies and when high class actors slum it in the game space the results are usually pretty shit. Not Keith David. He respects the medium and delivers his lines with the utmost of sincerity and hilarity.

I love Saints Row and I will never forget when Julius Little (Keith David) asks me, “You ready for this, playa.” Yes! A million times yes Keith, I am ready. Julius Little was the original leader of the 3rd Street Saints back when Saints Row took it’s story seriously (it was better then, series peaked at 2, went a little off the rails at 3 and was self parody at 4).

Keith David was perfect for Saints Row. When the first game came out it was competing in the same space as Grand Theft Auto. How do you make a crime drama seem legit in the face of the biggest series in gaming? You add a legit presence to lead your protagonist into the gang war that is Saints Row.

In the second game, Saints Row 2, Julius Little is used as the moral compass of the series. At one point, Little is done with the gang violence and tells you the player that your gang is no better than the other gangs…. you’ve become a sociopath.

Julius Little: “Don’t you get it? The Saints didn’t solve a goddamn thing. Drugs were still being pushed, innocent people were still getting killed…all we did was turn into Vice Kings that wore purple…”
The Protagonist: “Jesus Christ you sound like a pussy…”
Julius Little: “I sound like someone who’s not a sociopath…”

— Julius Little and The Protagonist discuss the events of Saints Row in Saints Row 2 during “Revelation“.

This scene doesn’t work with anybody less than Keith David in the role.

Even when the series goes off the rails in Saints Row 4, Keith David plays himself as the vice president of America and is self aware and hilarious.

Example: Keith David “reading” a…. magazine and commenting on robotics.

When you are on the spaceship in 4 (no spoilers) you can initiate sex scenes with anybody but Keith David. He always has a witty retort as to why y’all can’t bang at that time. It’s awesome (jump to the 2:10 minute mark).

 

It’s great to see an accomplished talent such as Keith David involved in my favorite medium. I am thankful for Keith David. Thank you! Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Random Lists!- Favorite Mario Kart Clones and Competitors

I love Mario Kart and I hate it all the same. It’s a series that is a pinnacle or refinement. The tracks are perfectly designed, the balance is wonderful and the music is legendary. BUT the blue shell literally ruins the game and battle mode has been neutered seemingly by the game since Mario 64. There a lot of things worth stealing from Mario Kart but in my mind other games innovated and move passed the series.

Before we move into what other I like better than Mario Kart lets sets some constant parameters that we can compare these games on, and I will start with Mario Kart Advance because I think it’s the best one.

Mario Kart Advance-

Graphics– This game looked amazing on the platform. It utilized almost Mode 7 like effects for the 3D and it really immersed players into the game. It looks more detailed and real than MK64 yet still stayed true to the SNES roots. I love the bright color palette as well.

Sound– The sound is great. The rev of the Kart, the cling of the coins, and all the voice acting is intact. The little details of the sound that have been consistent throughout the series make it feel like a homecoming every time you slam through an item block.

Control– The controls are best in MK Advance. Never has drifting been better or made more sense. In Mario kart you drift and build boost and it feels effortless in MK Advanced.

Tracks– The track are where this game shines. This is objective, but I think the mix of classic and new tracks in MK Advance has left me disappointed in every game sense. You beat the 8 new courses and cups then you unlock the retro courses. It’s an unreal amount of content. It updates and presents some of the best SNES tracks in the series. Koopa Beach should be in every game. Every track should be in every game at this point, why not?

Fun Factor– Mario Kart Advanced is the most balanced Mario Kart game. On 150cc, the game still feels fair and it doesn’t shame you and punish you for being in first place. Skill matters in MK Advance while other games punish you for success. The battle mode was also amazing! You could race and battle with only one cart. You would all be different colored Yoshi but it was an awesome way to let everyone get in on the fun!

Blur-

Blur is my favorite on-line racing experience. It was the first game I ever “prestiged” and unlocked all of the content in. I love the balance and thoughtfulness in this games design (In multiplayer, in single player the game is actually belligerently hard). Blur sold itself as the “cooler” version of Mario Kart. It was! It was so cool that it put Bizarre out of business…. but it really was a great game. Mario Kart with real cars.

Graphics– Blur is a beautiful blend of realistically cars and cities that have an almost hyperrealism to them. Lots of blurring and lighting effects. The water reflections and crash details are very solid.

Sound– The cars sound ok, and the music is forgettable. Where the sound shines is that every weapon has a unique sound. You can hear what is coming at you and counter it.

Control– The cars are very drift heavy. You have cars that are more handling focused but to be competitive, you need to drift. The cars feel weighty but fun to control. The weapons are where the controls shine. You can easily shoot backwards, and every weapons counter everything. This game has the anti-blue shell. Countering is key and it works. Mario Kart 8 finally added a horn to counter the blue shell but it’s a rare pick up.

Tracks– There are some varied beautiful locations in Blur. The rural mid-Western farm is as memorable as the high ways in fictional Tokyo. All the tracks feel intentionally designed and work well to make the races frantic.

Fun Factors- This game is so fun. The races feel fair. Skill is rewarded because you can counter attacks. It feels like a thinking man’s Mario Kart.

Crash Team Racing-

The proverbial Mario Kart Clone. This game took Mario Kart from a game series to a genre. Against all odds CTR turned out to be an amazing game. Everything Mario Kart did this game did better. Races? yup. Karts? yup. Tracks? yup. Battle Mode? Fuuuuck yea. The only thing Mario Kart has on this game is the characters, although Tiny is a dope character.

Graphics- Look above this sentence. See that? It’s real ass 3D. Not like the pre-rendered Karts of Mario Kart 64 these sprites are the truth. The colors, the 3d, it all came together incredibly well in CTR.

Sound- All Good. Nothing memorable. I listen to Mario Kart music when i am bored, I have never done that with Crash Team Racing.

Control- CTR aped Mario Kart with the jump drift system. The carts all handle very well. I think the different feel between how carts handle is limited though. I always felt like larger characters handled just as well as smaller ones.

Tracks- The tracks are amazing. You drove through open world levels to get to new cup races and challenges. It was like driving through your favorite Crash Bandicoot levels. At the time, that was a cool thing to do.

Fun Factor- The battle mode is super fun, the championship mode progression is amazing. There is no blue shell equivalent in this game and frankly the weapons are kind of a second thought. It’s a racing game first that happens to have weapons when needed. The weapons shine in battle mode though because is a nice mix of shields and missiles to grab.

Skylanders SuperChargers-

Skylanders Superchargers is the Kart racing Citizen Kane. I’m playing, I’ve never even seen Citizen Kane but I heard it was kinda good. Skylanders Superchargers is absolutely kinda good! It’s actually very good. This game is a mix between the classic diablo-style gameplay of previous Skylander’s games and a Kart racer. Half the game is played on foot, while the other is via Kart. There are air, land, and sea vehicles. All of which are fully realized. The cars feel like Mario Kart, the boats feel like Wave Race, and the planes feel like Ace Combat. It’s a beautiful thing.

Graphics- This is the only current gen game on the list, and it shows. This game looks amazing. It’s like playing a Saturday Morning cartoon. The water looks incredible. The details on the cars are stunning. The fire on the tires and the exhaust flames….eye candy.

 

Sound- The sound is great. The game is fully voiced. The music is catchy and appropriate for what is happening on screen. Otherwise it’s nothing super memorable.

Control– The racing controls for all vehicles are amazing. The battle control for the cars are awful because they have you at a weird camera angle and the controls keep shifting. It makes battle arenas super hard. Otherwise the karts handle great, they have a drift button to drift to gain a boost. The carts feel good.

Tracks- The tracks are so immersive. Each one is a set piece. One track you are going under water around a temple. The next track has you driving up a dragon’s back. The tracks are a little too long at times but they are so interesting and fun to navigate that you never get bored.

Fun Factor– This game is very fun. The racing is interesting. You don’t collect items and shoot them. The item box auto deploys as soon as you hit it and each cart has it own weapon it can shoot. It’s a cool system. No blue shells. It feels like so many different games with all the vehicles. This game is what Diddy Kong racing wanted to be.

Sega and Sonic All-Stars Racing-

This game is a love letter to everything Sega. Each track is a reference packed with Sega history. As a Saturn/Dreamcast owner this game was made to appeal to me. There are Sonic Adventure tracks, Samba De Amigo tracks and Nights is flying around too. The colors are vibrant and head exploding bright. This game is a playable epileptic seizure.

Graphics- Just look at this game…

So….beautiful….

The game is just gorgeous.

Sound– The sound is a cornucopia or Sega goodness. Sonic sounds are everywhere. The music is amazing. The soundtrack is vast and you can choose your music track.

Control– There is no brake. You let off the throttle or hit the drift button. It takes a lot of getting used to but it’s a lot of fun. The carts all handle differently. It’s a lot of fun and feels fair. The weapons are great with no blue shell equivalent.

Tracks– Beautiful and are basically memorials for the games they represent. Each track is a crash course in whatever game they rep. You drive down the notation bar from Samba De Amigo! It makes the rainbow road look like a dirt road.

Fun Factor- This game is very fun. It is better than Mario Kart in every way. I just miss the brake…. This game and it’s sequel are amazing. Check em out!

Ones that suck– Diddy Kong Racing. Game was dumb. Peace!