A Flicker of Hope

Jon here.

Nintendo fans have endured a lot over that past 3 generations. Long software droughts ailed the N64. The Gamecube was ruthlessly ridiculed as a toy and for “kiddy” software. The Wii’s lower horsepower compared to its contemporary systems caused it to get half-assed ports of multiplatform games, if any at all. But the Nintendo faithful are a resilient bunch, firmly believing that Nintendo’s first party software will deliver in unique and satisfying ways that other software does not. The latest test of the Nintendo fan’s resolve comes not from waning third party support or internet trolls or lackluster software. It’s the lack of software. This latest test comes from Nintendo’s refusal to localize games confirmed or out in other territories.

But Nintendo’s fans are rallying, refusing to take this latest blow from a company whose games we’ve spent countless hours playing and anticipating. The support around Operation Rainfall is incredibly uplifting. The ability of the fans to come together around a common cause is restoring my faith that we’ll be able to play games like Xenoblade Chronicles and The Last Story and Pandora’s tower. I’ve never been more proud to be a Nintendo fan or a gamer. This is a once-in-a-generation movement. So follow the blogs, comment on the Nintendo facebook updates, write the letters and emails. I have. We can change things.

So now it’s your move, Nintendo. Operation Rainfall cannot be ignored for long. Your philosophy for your next home console is one that is inclusive to both casual gamers and core gamers – the party games alongside the deep single player experience. This last holiday for the Wii will set the groundwork for the Wii U. Your strategy begins now.

Fuck NoA

Jon here.

I’ve got some thoughts on Ocarina of Time on the site which you can read by following the link here. Here’s the short version: it’s not the best Zelda game ever, but it’s one of the most important games ever. Speaking of the site, I apologize for its appearance again. We’re still working on a concept and the method for executing the concept. It’s functional, but not very attractive.

We also could use some more contributors, specifically some that would be able to consistently churn out some reviews for the PS3 and XBOX 360. If any aspiring writers and multi-platform owners are interested in participating in getting a gaming site off the ground, one that’s being built from scratch, then shoot me an email at jon@gamersunanimous.com.

But today I really wanted to talk about (again) the lack of games coming to the Nintendo Wii. This has been an open wound for me ever since E3 and I apologize for going on about it yet again. But if I can’t vent on the internet, but rage will consume me. I was still holding out hope that core games like The Last Story, Pandora’s Tower and Xenoblade Chronicles would come to North America, but now it’s looking less and less likely that it will happen. Here are some details:

Xenoblade Chronicles did get announced from Europe with English and Japanese voiceovers and subtitles in a variety of languages. Nintendo of Europe did have a presence that this year’s E3, but were not allowed to show Xenoblade Chronicles because NoA didn’t want them show games that NoA isn’t planning to sell. To make things worse, a special classic controller will also be available for the game. That’s awesome for you guys in Europe, it really is. But for us Wii owners in NA, it’s salt in the wound.

And this wouldn’t be the first time NoA decided what we should and should not play. Early in the Wii’s life cycle, an adventure game called Disaster: Day of Crisis came out to mixed reviews in Japan and Europe. NoA decided that the game was not of high enough quality to release. No big deal, there was plenty of other software around.

Again, another game with drew a fair amount of attention was released in Japan and Europe, but not NA. Another Code was the sequel to the well-regarded DS adventure game Trace Memory. It was a bigger disappointment than not getting Disaster: Day of Crisis to not get this game since these type of adventure games only come a few times in a generation. The pure adventure game is a genre that’s all but dead – but that’s a topic for another time.

Perhaps the most egregious omission from NoA’s release schedule was Fatal Frame 4. The game reviewed fairly, mostly due to a strange control scheme. But gamers in NA wanted to play this game. Demand among the Nintendo faithful seemed high for Tecmo’s latest installment in their horror franchise. The ball was in NoA’s court to publish it in NA, but again they thought that we’d be better off not playing it.

How about this, NoA? Let us decided what games we want to play with our wallets. They put up this façade that they have our best interests in mind when not localizing what they deem is low-quality software. Have some faith in your fucking products and some faith that your fan base will buy them. That’s what it really comes down to: they don’t think the sales will be high enough to justify the release. They could be right, but we’ll never know for sure. And in the meantime, those of us who would buy Wii software have very little to buy for rest of the year. That money will be going to your competitors, NoA.

This latest development with Xenoblade is making me seriously consider having my Wii hacked to be multiregional.

So what I really need is for someone to talk me off the ledge here. I’m not about to stop playing Nintendo games altogether, but I can’t help be feel cheated out of some good gaming experiences. I’m also getting the feeling that before the Wii U comes out, I’ll be cheated out of a few more. My optimism for seeing Xenoblade, The Last Story and Pandora’s Tower before the end of the year is fading fast and I can’t seem to find any reason to believe it will come back.

Podcasts

Jon here.

I’ve been hitting Ocarina of Time on the 3Ds as much as possible when I’m not at work. It’s fun to look back on it with a more refined sensibility than I had 13 years ago. The game is still awesome – much faster paced than more recent Zelda games. Especially as Young Link, the dungeons are smaller and discovering the next area to explore takes far less time, even compared to Majora’s Mask. The 3D looks great, but I have it shut off most of the time to save battery life. I’ll have some more in-depth thoughts later this week, but so far, I’m really digging it.

Today, I wanted to talk mostly about some of the different podcasts that I’ve been listening to for a while now. Here at IGN, there are some great podcasts. Some of the editors have a tendency to talk over one another more than others, but they have a good track record of delivering quality content and have a good time doing it.

The only other current gaming podcast I listen to is the weekly GoNintendo podcast. It’s my go-to podcast for a roundup of the week’s Nintendo news. They also have an official Pokemon for each show that coincides with the number show they are on (the 1st show – Bulbasaur, etc…). It’s a clever idea and I wish I thought of it first. They don’t really incorporate it into the show much, other than reading the Wikipedia entry for the Pokemon. After recapping the week’s news, they move onto what each of the podscast crew has been playing, and that’s usually when I stop listening. The podcast host, Raw Meat Cowboy (Kevin Cassidy) brings a lot of energy to the show, but does not get much backup. It’s a good show for Nintendo fans. I also download an old episode of Idle Thumbs every once in a while, which is a great show featuring some guys that work in the gaming industry. Unfortunately, they aren’t making any new podcasts. They discussed a lot of current (at the time of recording) topics, so it’s often a little dated. But it’s a fun show to listen to nevertheless.

I keep up with a couple of movie podcasts worth recommending as well. The weekly /filmcast (pronounced “slash filmcast”) is a good show that sometimes run a little long. The three main podcast members also play video games, so sometimes a crossover occurs in their discussion. They always review a new release (in theaters) movie and dissect the week’s film news. But they begin by talking about what they’ve been watching, and sometimes go on for a long time. It’s not unusual for them to go on for 30 or 45 minutes before getting into the actual show. They usually have interesting things to say about their feature review, so it’s worth listening to. The weekly Filmspotting podcast is one for more ardent film lovers. They also pick a current film to review, but often wax intellectual about films that are not… let’s say mainstream. It’s a great show, but definitely not for everyone. The Scene Unscene podcast is similar to the Idle Thumbs podcast – great, but not they’re not recording anymore.

There’s a lot of sports podcasts out there, but I’m partial to the BS Report with Bill Simmons. He talks about different sport with guests, whatever sport is hot at the moment. He’s a little irregular with updates, so it’s good to supplement it with other shows. Baseball Today is a good baseball podcast that records 4 or 5 times a week. I’m a Red Sox fan, so I also download the Officially Unofficial Red Sox podcast, the Original Red Sox podcast and the Boston Globe Red Sox podcast. Since all but the later only update once every few weeks, subscribing to all of them is a requirement for all Sox fans.

I’m starting to branch out and listen to different types of podcasts. I tried listening to the Mysterious Universe. They talk about a lot of supernatural and extraterrestrial and unexplained phenomenon, but they’re a little to fixated on conspiracy theories for me. I just downloaded but have not yet listened to StarTalk, which bridges the intersection between pop culture and pop science, covering subjects like space travel, extraterrestrial life, the Big Bang, the future of Earth and the environment, and other breaking news from around the universe. Or at least that’s what the description says. It’s hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson, who has been on the Daily Show representing Science Now numerous times. I’ll keep everyone posted.

Looking Back on Link's Awakening

The original Legend of Zelda brought an epic adventure of exploration and discovery out of the imagination of the father of modern gaming onto television screens. In Link’s Awakening, Nintendo faced the challenge of bringing such as deep experience onto their handheld system. They succeeded in creating a memorable Zelda adventure so much so that they decided to make the game twice, the second time in color. The later version, Link’s Awakening DX for the GBC is now available for download on the Nintendo 3DS.

Even on such limited hardware, Link’s Awakening delivers an authentic Zelda experience: on open world to discover (provided you find the proper tools), eight dungeons to conquer, an arsenal of tool and weapons to utilize, and secret caves to delve into.

After navigating a vicious storm, Link awakens (see what they did there) in the home of the inhabitants of an island where he washed ashore. His ship is lost, and the only way to escape is to awaken the Wind Fish – the supposed guardian of the island. To revive the Wind Fish, Link must gather the eight instruments to awaken him, hidden in eight different dungeons. The narrative is pretty straightforward, but the direct approach is probably best for working with the constraints of the GBC.

Link has a good variety of weapons and tools to solve clever puzzles and defeat powerful bosses. He has his standard sword and shield, as well as bombs, a feather to jump, Pegasus Boots to dash, and some optional weapons like the mostly harmless shovel and powerful bow. All of Link’s weapons can be obtained before going to the sixth dungeon, and the final dungeons make clever use of all of Link’s acquired skills. Link finds his trusty Hookshot in one of the dungeons, one of my personal favorite weapons and one that became a mainstay in Link’s arsenal.

Link’s tools allow him to access new places on the map and further explore familiar places. There aren’t many heart pieces to find, most of them are rewards for defeating dungeon bosses. But it’s fun to walk around the island, finding all the little nooks and crannies and what lies within.

Link’s Awakening is a memorable handheld adventure, with a particularly memorable trade game and song: The Ballad of the Wind Fish. It’s a must-play for any serious gamer, and now it’s easier to play than ever. On the 3DS, the backlight makes it easier to play, and having it stored in the internal memory makes is easy to play anywhere.

A Week with the eShop

I’m in love with the 3DS eShop. And all it took was Link’s Awakening and Super Mario Land. The former satisfies my need for an epic adventure on a small scale. The later gives me a quick pick-up-and-play game for a few levels. It’s been a long time since I played Link’s Awakening and it’s amazing how deep an experience it is and how creative the level designs and puzzles are within the limited hardware of the GBC. Mario Land isn’t bad either. It’s obviously not as impressive as its console counterparts, but Nintendo was able to successfully translate the Mario formula within some very limited constraints. It’s a shame that it remains unchanged.




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Nintendo did give Excite Bike a 3D makeover. It’s the exact same NES game from over two decades ago in widescreen and with the 3D depth the 3DS offers. It’s another good game for a quick pick-up-and-play and it’s available for the low low price of: absolutely free. I don’t think that Nintendo has quite come up with a winning price structure for their other Virtual Console games. Four bucks for Mario Land is a little silly. One or two dollars makes a lot more sense, but it’s still only four bucks. It’s not that bad unless you compare it to some games on the iPhone that are only a dollar or even free that have a lot more to offer than a relic like Mario Land.

The robust offering of DSiWare games gives the 3DS a good backlog of games to browse through. Nintendo beefed up with browser, offering more ways to search for games and a much better interface. Since I never bought a DSi, I’ve never been able to download any of the software. I decided to start with some of the games from WayForward, who are quickly becoming one of my favorite developers. I picked up Mighty Flip Champs, Mighty Milky Way and Shantae: Risky’s Revenge.




From the incredible praise Shantae received when it came out, you’d think it was the second coming of Jesus – only this time he has a flamethrower and fights werewolves. Don’t get me wrong, Shantae is a solid action/platformer with a lot going for it. It’s a game with enough depth for a retail release. The puzzles are rewarding and the 2D sprites look great. But the map lacks details and is almost useless. Furthermore, the environments use a lot of the same assets. When you’re in a forest, don’t expect a large variety of trees. Most of that is due to the size limit of the games rather than a lack of creativity on WayForward’s part.

File size limitation is a subject for a later date, but I think it favors smaller independent developers.

Mighty Flip Champs is also another worthy download for the fans of puzzle/platformers. Of the three DSiWare games that I downloaded, I like Mighty Milky Way the best. It’s a basic “get from point A to point B” puzzle game that makes good use of enemy placement and gravity to offer a good challenge to fans of the genre.

I also took pictures of my wife in her bikini for Photo Dojo. She had no idea what I was doing at first, but go a huge kick out of recording her voice clips and watching herself beat up… herself. It’s a really fun application/game and it’s only two bucks, making it one of the best values available on the eShop.

Last but not least, I grabbed the Pokedex application and was really surprised by how detailed it is. It gives the level a Pokemon evolves and when it learns different moves, as well as a wealth of other information. It’s a shame that the only way to fill out the ‘dex is to connect wirelessly to other 3DS owners with the application downloaded as well, but it is what it is. It’d be cool if Nintendo had some WiFi or in-store download events to get more Pokemon in the Pokedex.

All in all, I’m having a lot of fun with the eShop. I’m looking forward to downloading more GB and GBC games as well as checking out more of what DSiWare has to offer. I hope Nintendo decides to put some GBA games on the eStore since I won’t be able to pop a great GBA games in unless I decide to carry my DS Lite everywhere along with my 3DS. But there’s not much point to carrying my DS Lite anymore. With the eShop and some great retail software on the way this month, the 3DS will be taking up a lot of my time for the next couple of months. It’s awesome to have so many games in my pocket without having to switch out cartridges.

E3's Winner

So this post will be almost entirely dedicated to my obligatory pick of who “won” E3. And I’m not going to say “gamers won E3” because that’s a lame way of not picking sides.

A couple of days ago, Iwata told David Ewalt of Forbes that the Wii and Wii U will coexist for a little while before the newer hardware takes solo control of the reins. That’s nice of him to say, but I think well all know from Nintendo’s press conference that they already no longer support their current home console. Skyward Sword and a new Kirby game (while awesome) are not nearly enough to make the Wii’s last holiday a vivacious one.

Microsoft had an impressive showing of core software – all the usual suspects showed up: Call of Duty, Madden (and the rest of the EA crew) and that douchey Kudo Tsunoda guy. He just rubs me the wrong way. They also had a healthy showing of exclusives (some from last year) in Gears of War, Forza and Mass Effect. But their big emphasis was on Kinect and try to push core software for it. Choosing lines of dialogue by speaking in Mass Effect seems lame, but using voice commands to give advancement orders to your allies is fucking awesome. Ghost Recon was also a mixed bag of Kinect “controls”. The gun smith gesture and voice commands blew my mind, but my excitement deflated a little when I saw how much the controls lagged in actual gameplay. Kinect seems awesome for the customization of weapons, but not for the use thereof. And why the fuck did Microsoft bring Sesame Street and Disneyland to E3? Super lame. Overall, a solid show with a few down notes.

Sony did exactly what they needed to do and addressed the PSN right off the bat. Their statements were both humble and reassuring. They also had a solid showing with core exclusive games. Uncharted and Resistance look great, as does their new TV/PS3 monitor. Although, it is a little strange that Tretton said it could display either HD or 3D. I’m wondering if that means it won’t display both at the same time. No matter. That’s easy choice anyway. The NGP also looks cool with a modestly outrageous price (oh yes, I just coupled those two words together). Another solid show from Sony.

But I can’t pick against Nintendo for best in show, despite my outrage at the lack of Wii software. Several quality first-party games will his this year, including Mario Kart, Kid Icarus, Star Fox and (the surprise of the show) Luigi’s Mansion. Fingers crossed that we’ll be stomping goombas in tanooki suits later this year too. The Wii U looks both innovate and traditional and may finally strike a balance for the casual crowd and core gamers. Nintendo fans are sure to be pleased as well. The Zelda HD tech demo look spectacular, and although it is not a confirmation of software, I’m looking forward to Link’s first HD adventure with great anticipation. In addition to high-end HD graphics, the Wii U’s tablet controller opens up the possibility for great creativity. Nintendo did not confirm any first party software, but showed several solid third-party games for their new hardware.

But how awesome would it have been if just before the end of their conference, Reggie came out and said, “But we haven’t forgotten about the Wii,” and then proceeded to show Kirby, The Last Story, Xenoblade, Pandora’s Tower and one or two other core games. And then confirmed those for this year. It would have been the perfect way to cap off a great show, the best of E3.

Wanted at E3: Microsoft

With E3 quickly approaching, we all have some ideas about what will be there and expectations about what the Big 3 will bring. But we also have our pipe dreams: our best-case scenarios about what will show up at the event. Over the next three weeks, we at GU will post what we’d most like to see out of Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft at gaming’s highest-profile expo.

I usually only post on Tuesday and Friday, but I wanted to get this list up before E3 actually started.

In about 12 hours, Microsoft will kick off the E3 festivities with their press conference. Last year, they had a solid lineup of software and debuted their re-branded motion/camera controller. This year, the usual of suspects of Call of Duty and the like are sure to make a big splash at their conference. However, Microsoft will need to show off some of their exclusive software to stay memorable throughout the expo.

Exclusives

It would be great to see more of a couple of Microsoft’s 2010 exclusives that did not make it to release this past year. I don’t expect Kojima to briefly give an on-stage high-five and exit or Metal Gear Solid Rising to show up at all this time at Microsoft’s show.

Gears of Wars 3’s four-player co-op has me super stoked for the game and chomping at the bit to see more. More of Mircosoft’s own first-party Forza Motorsport would be most welcome as well. It will be interesting to see how it stacks up to Sony’s own first-party racing simulator. I’d like to see some new original software from Rare, maybe an action/platformer like the old-school Banjo-Kazooie.

Kinect

The major hits on Kinect have been casual-friendly sports and dance titles. These games are a nice distraction for core games, but it’d be awesome if a MechWarrior/Steel Battalion style game used Kinect’s gesture-based controls. Combating mechs online, controlling them with hand motions a la Minority Report would be mind blowing.

June Begins

Jon here.

Started up yet another run through of Heart Gold for this month’s installment of Gotta Train ‘em All. You can check out my full written thoughts on the previous team on the site: here. We also spent about 15 minutes breaking them all down on our last Nintendshow podcast, which you can listen to here.

We’re still working on a solution that will help the vocals sound less… cavernous... and hopefully we’ll have that worked out by the end of the month for our next show. As far as getting the site off of the basic template we’re using… I’m not sure how long that is going to take. It’s (at the very least) functional the way we have it now, but our goal is to have a more attractive, intuitive layout by the end of the summer. For now, we’ll tough it out. You can also download the show on itunes if you wanna completely avoid the blight of the internet that is GamersUnanimous.com for now. I exaggerate. It’s not the ugliest website ever, but I’m not happy with it.

I wanted to start the next team early because of the deluge of quality software on Nintendo systems this month. By the middle of the month, I won’t have much time to spend on Pokemon. Wes and I are using Abra, Machop, Ghastly, Geodude, Krabby and Skarmory this time around, which is a nice mix of monsters I use frequently (Abra), ones I have not used in a long time (Ghastly, Geodude, Krabby) and ones that I have never used (Machop, Skarmory).

I may be able to convince Wes or Carlos to review a game or two on the 360 and/or PS3 at some point this month, but (aside from review a few movies) I’m not stepping outside my Nintendo bubble at any point in June, possibly not even until The Last Guardian comes out. I’ll definitely be reviewing Ocarina of Time and RE: Mercenaries on the 3DS and (if I have the cash), I’ll be picking up Mystery Case Files (for the wife and me) and Wii Play Motion. The Wiimote+ alone makes it a worthwhile buy, since I’ll need it for Skyward Sword.

Kind of a boring post today, but it’s gonna be the first really exciting month for Nintendo fans in what seems like a long time.