Up For Air: A Xenoblade Chronicles Progress Report…

Posted on April 11, 2012 by geelw

Well, so far, Xenoblade is… pretty good. Like any game this big, careful poking around reveals it’s flawed, but quite impressive nonetheless. Of course, I’ve played far too many RPGs from all over the world (and too many JRPGs) since the late 80’s to throw down any absolutes about how it stacks up against my favorites, but it’s quite well done. I do have a few issues with some things I’ll go over in more detail in my review, but it’s nothing too dramatic.

OK, stop turning blue in the face – I’ll spill a few gripes here. Stuff like not being able to enter too many buildings, the hard to find quest givers that you need to get items back to, a tiny bit of unsympathetic writing after a major incident and a few other quibbles that won’t really affect my overall score. That said, if you’re a Wii owner and/or a JRPG fan looking for a fine game to eat away the hours as it pulls you into its story, you can’t go wrong with Monolith’s best game to date. A proper review is incoming, most likely this weekend…

Xenoblade Arrives… Off To The Diving Board, I Go!

Posted on April 10, 2012 by geelw

Nice, GameStop actually delivered! I’m still quite surprised that Nintendo hadn’t figured out that having a Premium RPG line for the Wii might actually have been a good thing for their PR among JRPG fans if as many of the games they craved were being released without the need for online petitions and the usual bean-counter hand-wringing about whether or not these game will sell at all. Anyway, no changing things now, right? The art book is lovely, but how is the game, you ask? Well, give me time folks, give me time. off to crack that shrink wrap and get to it. Back in a bit with some impressions.

As Kid Icarus Flies Into (And Out Of) Retailers, Nintendo Has Its Fingers And Toes Crossed…

Posted on March 24, 2012 by geelw

While continuing to drop gameplay videos left and right, of course. The reviews are pretty decent to really good so far, but I’m not too sure I want to be playing a handheld using a special stand. That’s my sole worry about this one, as I knew from the first trailer that it was going to be special. Nintendo is no doubt keeping a good eyeball on this weekend’s sales figures, but hopefully, they’ll also have an “evergreen” strategy for the Kid that keeps this one at the top of the charts for a while…

Kid Icarus: Uprising How To Play (Part 2): Multiplayer Massiveness

Posted on March 23, 2012 by geelw

Hmmm…. I’m not a huge multiplayer fan, especially in a game such as KI: U where the story should be the big focal point (after all this time away from the gaming scene, it should be grand and thrilling, right?). However, the temptation of hundreds of weapons (loot!) is something that may have some solo players out there handing out Friend Codes like water in the desert. Or buying a 3DS at some point if they don’t own one yet so they can play this game. I’d also imagine those who fall into the latter category will also want to check out a few other games, as buying a system just for ONE title is a bit goofy (especially as the 3DS library has a number of fine games for nearly any type of gamer)…

Kid Icarus Uprising Update: The Kitchen Sink Approach In Full Working Order

Posted on March 18, 2012 by geelw

Anyone worrying about whether or not this game will do well (or be any good) hasn’t been paying attention to all those videos Nintendo has been posting on YouTube. by packing the game with cameos from franchise familiars and in this latest trailer above, showing off how well the game plays, it’s practically guaranteed that Kid Icarus will be at the top of the 3DS charts for some time. That, and it also shows the 3DS isn’t going anywhere anytime soon (which is also a good thing)…

Kid Icarus: Uprising Video Update: Nintendo, You Just Hate Me, Don’t You?

Posted on March 10, 2012 by geelw

Really, now – tossing all these Kid Icarus: Uprising TV spots and videos up on YouTube all on the same day. I know you guys like coverage, and coverage you’ll get, but I’m sticking them all in a single post instead of spreading them out. Not because I’m lazy, mind you. It’s just because I have a REALLY busy day tomorrow (well, later today) and I won’t be around until much later in the evening or early Sunday morning at the latest.

Normally, I’d have spread the videos out over the weekend, but I also have two reviews to write and some other things to attend to that aren’t gaming-related. Yeah, I actually do stuff besides play video games all day. Well, sometimes…

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Kid Icarus: Uprising “Medusa” Trailer Isn’t Mythologically Accurate To Some…

Posted on March 8, 2012 by geelw

Wow. Some people are a bit too stuck up, biased, stupid or just have WAY too much time on their hands. Despite the amazing work done on this trailer, I’ve actually read criticisms of the voice acting and Nintendo not following Greek mythology to a T in a video game whose original installment also didn’t. Geez, can’t people enjoy a game for what it is and stop bashing it for what it doesn’t do? You want “actual” Greek myths? Go read some in a real old book you got at the library (and not on an e-reader or other tech, as if you’re THAT hardcore about your source material, you MUST kick it old-school).. As for the voice acting… grow up, already. It sounds fine to me and hell, this isn’t supposed to be some SERIOUS game with everyone sounding fresh out of a master Royal Shakespeare class. Lighten the hell up folks… or just get another hobby, I say (it’s just more fun games for me that way).

Xseed Games Bringing The Last Story To Wii (And You’d BETTER Buy It, Grrrr!)

Posted on February 22, 2012 by geelw

Fans of many Japanese games (in particular, JRPGs) can be a persistently prickly bunch often to the point of working themselves up into a frenzy if they feel slighted in the slightest bit by a publisher they feel isn’t working hard or fast enough at localizing certain Japanese games (no matter how niche). However, that’s actually a good thing when we all benefit from a publisher like Xseed that can make the magic happen. One example of this is today’s surprising news that Xseed has picked up the publishing rights to Hironubu Sakagushi’s The Last Story, one of the best current-gen games on the console that has a lot of people very excited. You can ogle some more video info on the Mistwalker-developed title over at the Nintendo Direct channel (just skip ahead to 10:11 in the video and prepare to be awed).

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Kid Icarus: Uprising Three Sacred Treasures Trailer (Try Saying That Three Times Fast)

Posted on February 17, 2012 by geelw

Nintendo’s biggest (or at least most wanted by many) first-party 3DS game of 2012 is soaring toward its release – here’s the latest trailer bound to get fans thrilled (and me wanting to see an sequel on the Wii U). Of course, I’d also love a new 3D Metroid game at some point, but I guess we’ll have to see what’s what at E3 this year…

Nintendo Announces Wii U To Ship By Holiday 2012

Posted on January 26, 2012 by geelw

Of course, we all knew this was coming at some point, but Reuters has the official word (if not an official release date). Nintendo President Satoru Iwata noted that the Wii U would be launched in the United States, Europe, Australia and Japan for the 2012 holiday season. No price point was announced and yes, you’ll need to wait a bit for the launch lineup. However, this means that E3 this year will be PACKED with Nintendo fanboys (some disguised as otherwise reputable games journalists) piling atop each other to tilt and whirl themselves into a feeding frenzy, followed by press events in a few spots including here in NYC.

Now, if I can actually get an invite to one of those events like I used to before Nintendo forgot I existed, I could do a better job of covering the upcoming console that doesn’t require me to hang around the Nintendo World Store here and ask all sorts of questions to assorted employees (he said, only half-joking)…