Five Things I Thought About Super Smash Bros for Wii U.

Well, it’s been about a month now since Super Smash Bros. for Wii U was released and I finally feel like I’ve finally played enough of the game to be able to write my style of review for it. As you can probably expect, I am a fan of the series and I really enjoyed, and will continue to enjoy, this new Smash Bros. game. The following are just some of the things that stuck out to me the most while playing the new game.

1. The Graphics Are Spectacular

Not very surprisingly, the first thing that stuck out to me about this new installment was just how beautiful it was. The graphics in this game are wonderful. The characters are expressive and are modeled well, the stages are all expansive and detailed, and the additions of some visual cues during the fights really help make this game both amazing to look at while not being too hard on the eyes. Though in Smash Bros. for 3DS I would once in a while lose track of my character, I didn’t have this happen during any of my fights on the Wii U version despite the amount of detail present in every stage and the sheer size of some of them. Simply put, the game is just beautiful all around.

2. There’s So Much To Do!

There are a lot of things to do in this game. Aside from doing matches with your friends in local and online multiplayer, you can take on challenges, collect trophies, take on Master or Crazy orders, play Classic, Event, and All Star mode, and so much more. My personal favorite mode of the bunch is Event Mode as most of the challenges are fun and some are kind of difficult, especially if you go for the special reward on all of them. Regardless, clearing each Event feels like an accomplishment and it’s nice to get a little reward (whether it is equipment or a trophy) after each one. I also like that you can play many different modes with two players, which only doubles the fun. Though the 3DS version left you with a lot to do, this version really seems to top its portable predecessor in all the various ways you can play.

Five Things I Thought About Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire

Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire have been out for almost two weeks in North America and I’m still playing the games as much as I can trying to explore every nook and cranny of the new and improved Hoenn region. The game’s been a lot of fun and it’s no surprise that I’ve really enjoyed playing it. The following is a general review of the game that goes over five key things that I thought while I was playing the newest installments in the Pokémon series. Don’t worry, if you haven’t played the newest games yet, this “review” of sorts is free of any major spoilers.

1. The Graphics Are Wonderful

It’s funny how seamlessly Game Freak managed to transform the look and style of the R/S/E Hoenn in these new 3D games. If you played the original games, you’ll have no problem recognizing all of the familiar areas despite the graphical leap forward. Everything looks so classic, yet so new at the same time. Tiny details, like the waving of the grass, the Pokémon in the overworld, and the wide array of colors used to give life to the world really go a long way and fans of the older games will really appreciate it. Aside from just the overworld, though, the 3D trainer models look great and even better than they did in X and Y. Their movements and expressions are fluid and expressive and really add a lot to the experience. Speaking of the trainers…

2. Every Character Has a Distinct Personality

Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire truly stand out in terms of character development. Each unique character you meet from your rival to the Elite 4 all have distinct and memorable personalities that are only enhanced by their expressive faces and movements. True standouts in this department are the previously flat characters of Courtney (she in particular I found to be both creepy and awesome at the same time), Tabitha, Matt, and Shelly. While the Magma/Aqua admins were never super memorable in R/S/E, they really stand out here. They not only have more interaction with the player and involvement in the story, but Game Freak really went out of their way to make each of them unique. The same can be said for your two rivals, Brendan/May and Wally, as well as the gym leaders. It’s unfortunate many of the gym leaders don’t do much but battle you, but even in the short time you see them, they make their impression. The gym leaders and Elite 4 also each get their own cinematic introduction that really helps get you hyped for each battle. Special props to the introduction and battle with Norman in particular which set the stage for your dramatic fight against him perfectly. I hope future games take as many steps as these ones did to help establish their characters because I think it’s something that fans young and old can appreciate.

5 Things I Thought About Super Smash Bros. for the 3DS

So, it’s finally here! Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 3DS is out world-wide and we finally have the ability to play the game that we’ve been anticipating for months. I’ve been playing the game myself over the last few days and, I’ll say it up front, so far I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s a great game and if you’ve liked the previous entries in the Smash Bros. series, you’ll very likely enjoy this one.

Like I did for Tomodachi Life, I’ll provide you with five key thoughts about the game in lieu of a traditional review that will give a broad, spoiler-free opinion on the game and its features.

5. Being a Handheld Game Has its Pros

I typically don’t have a preference either way when it comes to handheld or home consoles, though I know some games are more suited to being portable than others—like Pokémon main series games, for example. One of the first things people thought of when they heard Smash Bros. would be coming to the 3DS was whether or not it would work. Simply put, it does. The game’s graphics still are crisp and detailed, the animations are smooth, and the game overall runs pretty quickly without any super long loading screens or anything of the sort. Another pro is the fact that the game’s portability gives you the chance to link up to someone and battle from anywhere there’s an Internet connection. Truthfully, the Internet connection can be not-so-great at times and lag during matches is very annoying, but I’ve had only a few instances in which I noticed significant slow-down. Most of the time, everything ran smoothly and quickly and I had no problems and the issues people have been having with their connections may solved over time. And even if you don’t to go on the Internet and do a traditional match, many of the games modes are set up so that they can be played quickly and in short spurts. A round of Classic Mode takes about 10-20 minutes, Smash Run takes about 5-7 minutes, and the mini games such as Home-Run Contest and Target Smash are short and have a mobile game feel when they’re being played on the 3DS. However, even with all these pros it’s important to keep in mind…

4. The 3DS Screen is Kinda Small

The hardest thing to get used to for me was the size of the screen. Since there is so much detail and a lot going on all at once, the screen size may make it hard to play the way that you’re used to playing on a television. Thankfully, the game has features like the outlines around the characters and the damage percentages being moved to the bottom screen in order to help. These features do their job, but the game really benefits from a larger screen. If you’re having a hard time seeing the action on the smaller 3DS screen, I recommend trying the game on a 3DS XL if you can and seeing if your experience improves there. The game is frequently showed off on the 3DS XL and for good reason. It definitely benefits the game, though if you don’t have an XL and you aren’t planning on getting one, the game is still playable on the smaller screen, it just takes some getting used to.

Five Things I Thought About the Latest Batch of Pokémon ORAS Trailers and Screenshots

Since I’m a little to the game with my thoughts and opinions on the latest Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire trailers and screenshots, I thought instead of analyzing everything in super detail I would just give this the “Five Things…” treatment instead so you can see what I took from the latest batch of reveals. If you want to check all the latest reveals out for yourself I suggest you check out the official Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire website which not only has the screenshots, but the trailer, and some select tidbits of info about each newly revealed item too that I’ll be referencing throughout this post.

5. Those Cosplaying Pikachu-

First off, I have to say that I love that their official name right now is the Cosplaying Pikachu. I think that’s so adorable and it’s so fitting because that’s exactly what they look like! Second, though, I’ve been hearing some fans say that the five Pikachu we’ve seen represent the five contests types from Hoenn—Smart, Beauty, Cool, Cute, and Tough—and as soon as I heard that I couldn’t believe I didn’t notice that right from the start. This seems to indicate that there’s almost no doubt that contests will return to ORAS in some fashion, it’s just the details that seem a little fuzzy. The screenshots/video shows you playing with the Pikachu in Amie, so you’ll probably end up with these Pikachu at some point, but how? Are they just regular Pikachu in outfits? Will all Pokémon be able to dress up or just some (like say a select few, like the ones who would typically be allowed in Amity Square or something like that). Will you be given these Pikachu as a prize for winning a contest? It’s so hard to say at this point, but I’m definitely intrigued.

4. Expressive Character Models-

When I saw the Gym Leader and Elite 4 trailer for the first time, the thing that stuck out to me the most was their expressive faces that each of them had. You can especially notice this on Flannery. When she enters into battle she has this really funny expression on her face that perfectly captures how she’s trying to act like a tough gym leader. Wattson looks super happy and Roxanne really looks like she means business when she starts the battle. X and Y had great 3D models for the characters, and their faces did show expression sometimes, but they never looked this good. Seeing how much heart is being put into these games just makes me all the more excited for their release. Is it November yet?

5 Things I Thought About Tomodachi Life

Here’s my first game review of sorts. Recently, I’ve been playing with Tomodachi Life for the 3DS, a life simulation game of sorts that lets you play with various Miis in order to create a wacky, but lovable world. Instead of giving a straight-up review, though, I want to try something different and just give you 5 key impressions I had about the game. These can be things I liked, complaints, criticisms, expectations, and even hopes for the game. For now, though, since I quite enjoy the game, today’s entry is going to focus mostly on what I liked about the game.

Without further ado, here it is!

1. The Humor- This game has some genuinely funny moments that really made me laugh out loud. Some of my favorites came from just ordinary dialogue, but there’s a lot of quirky humor that you’ve probably seen advertised and talked about on other websites. There’s some weird stuff going on sometimes, but I love it. It really keeps the gameplay fresh and unique every day.

2. Collecting- Like most games, Tomodachi Life doesn’t give you everything right up front. A lot of items and collectibles (which there are a lot of) need to be earned and others just aren’t available right away. The stores on your island will change inventory every day meaning that you’ll need to come back a lot in order to find the items you need. Much like Animal Crossing, it’s mostly up to luck what you get, but it’s always fun to go see what’s available each time you start up the game.