Hello all gamers!
NiGHTS Journey of Dreams will now launch officially on December 18th!
Well, now that I think about it, Nintendo always releases to the press the shipping date as their launch date, to where NiGHTS will be in stores December 19th...
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Monday, December 10, 2007
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
Greetings all gamers!
The newest Nintendo title that has come into my hands, is the Fire Emblem game called Path of Radiance. Path of Radiance is the third installment in the America released game (for Japan, this would be the fifth or sixth installment).
This game starts out with our hero, Ike, and his father, the captain of the Crimea (Crime-E-a, I think) Mercenaries. Now, since this is a GCN title instead of a GBA title, the guys at Nintendo, Intelligent Systems, and somewhere else, decided to take advantage of the GCN power to produce 3-D graphics. This means, that some of the storyline takes place in 3-D! With this being said, the first bit of game you see, is a 3-D battle between Ike and Greil (his dad). Now of course, Greil whips him. They are using Wooden Training swords to fight, but the Dad still knocks Ike silly, and is knocked out for quite some time. Now, right as you (Ike) get knocked out, your sister comes up and sees you on the ground. You wake up with a rag on your head, and the sister (Mist) says, "It's about time!" When you wake up totally, one of the guys from the Mercenary group comes out to the training field to see what is taking you so long. Since your a trainee, and no match for Griel, Griel says, "Good timing Boyd! (Thats the guy who just came up) You have now been elected Ike's sparring partner, because your closer to his skill." Boyd reluctantly agrees, picks up a training axe, and fights you. Now of course, this is a training axe, you can't be killed. The battle is made to where Boyd does not move, and you win no matter what happens. Boyd goes away, and your father comes back up to fight ya. You beat him (surprisingly) and he says that you get to be part of the Crimean Mercenaries. Now, that's just how it starts, there's plenty more I've played through, but I don't want to spoil it for you.
Now, I know what some of you guys are thinking. "That was way too easy! Aren't there difficulty settings that are Easy, Normal, and Hard? This must be on Easy!" Uh, no. This I actually did on two difficulty settings (long story) and they both were the same. Now, since I did this, I found out that the strategy involved in the two, is no different! Instead of the two having different strategy difficulty, the difference is, in easy, it is much easier to level up!
Leveling up is how your characters get stronger. This means that a level 4 character is probably much stronger than a level 2 character. Now, there are some exceptions. Some of the characters are all out good, and just start at level one. Like the senior deputy of the Crimean Mercenaries, Titania. She is, of course, one of the better characters. However, the game did not say that she starts at level 7 or something. Nope! It starts her out at level 1! However, she can beat most level 6s just being level 1, now that's skill and power!
Even though Titania is an amazing character, you have to take a few other things into account. The fact that I have to relate to Poke'mon, is wimpy, but its a good example. In the game Poke'mon, you have a rock, paper, scissors scenario when fighting. Water beats Fire, Fire beats Grass, and Grass beats Water. In Fire Emblem, you have the same basic thing. Axes and hammers beat Lances. Lances and Javelins beat Swords. And to complete the circle, the Swords beat the axes and the hammers.
With this being said, I can now tell you that it is a little bit easier to beat the first bosses with Ike sometimes because the first ones ALL had axes. Kind of sad that they make the game that easy, but it gives you time to make Ike a little bit stronger character. But in Easy mode, HOLY COW can you hurt those guys! With one teensy strike you have them dead! Well, after you've killed about 3 guys, your about 2 levels higher than you were, so I say, HOLY COW!! (Now I understand why Easy is for novices who know almost nothing about strategy).
There is one bad thing though. I could tell you a lot more about the game and the controls, but unfortunately I am renting this title and they did not let me have an instruction booklet. The display case didn't even have the instruction book in it! Well, there are a few ways to play.
After a few scenes, you will always have two characters that need some protecting. Soren, a wind magician sorcerer guy, and Rhys, a priest who can heal other players without an item. These two players have absolutely NO protection. So you need to keep Rhys farther back so he can come up and heal, and Soren you need to put closer but still a little farther away so he can work the wind magic from a distance (or just put him around a corner where an unsuspecting enemy will come!) (By the way, long range characters shoot diagonally a space, or two spaces in front of them). So, just keep Soren long range, Rhys just behind him, and you should be in good shape.
Another playing capability that you will have to do, is Defend. This means you can not let the enemy get to a certain space and seize what you are defending, like the Mercenary fort. The simplest thing to do, is keep one character and Rhys in the back, put Ike and Shinon ( a Bow guy) and Soren at one intrance, and Gatrie ( a lance guy) and Titania at the entrance where the bulk of soldiers are coming in. Its not always that easy, but all you have to do, is defend for a set amount of turns, then the story line kicks in and something happens to end the scene.
This amazing game, or as I call it, Chess on Steroids, is an incredible title. Now I have to warn you, I have read reviews from my favorite reviewers and my least favorite reviewers, and both have said that the new Fire Emblem for the Wii, is not something Fire Emblem fans deserve. As in, if you have Radiant Dawn, don't like it very much, just sell it and get Path of Radiance for the Gamcube off of eBay somewhere! Your friend in gaming,
CPU12 The Nintendo Freak
Good Luck.
The newest Nintendo title that has come into my hands, is the Fire Emblem game called Path of Radiance. Path of Radiance is the third installment in the America released game (for Japan, this would be the fifth or sixth installment).
This game starts out with our hero, Ike, and his father, the captain of the Crimea (Crime-E-a, I think) Mercenaries. Now, since this is a GCN title instead of a GBA title, the guys at Nintendo, Intelligent Systems, and somewhere else, decided to take advantage of the GCN power to produce 3-D graphics. This means, that some of the storyline takes place in 3-D! With this being said, the first bit of game you see, is a 3-D battle between Ike and Greil (his dad). Now of course, Greil whips him. They are using Wooden Training swords to fight, but the Dad still knocks Ike silly, and is knocked out for quite some time. Now, right as you (Ike) get knocked out, your sister comes up and sees you on the ground. You wake up with a rag on your head, and the sister (Mist) says, "It's about time!" When you wake up totally, one of the guys from the Mercenary group comes out to the training field to see what is taking you so long. Since your a trainee, and no match for Griel, Griel says, "Good timing Boyd! (Thats the guy who just came up) You have now been elected Ike's sparring partner, because your closer to his skill." Boyd reluctantly agrees, picks up a training axe, and fights you. Now of course, this is a training axe, you can't be killed. The battle is made to where Boyd does not move, and you win no matter what happens. Boyd goes away, and your father comes back up to fight ya. You beat him (surprisingly) and he says that you get to be part of the Crimean Mercenaries. Now, that's just how it starts, there's plenty more I've played through, but I don't want to spoil it for you.
Now, I know what some of you guys are thinking. "That was way too easy! Aren't there difficulty settings that are Easy, Normal, and Hard? This must be on Easy!" Uh, no. This I actually did on two difficulty settings (long story) and they both were the same. Now, since I did this, I found out that the strategy involved in the two, is no different! Instead of the two having different strategy difficulty, the difference is, in easy, it is much easier to level up!
Leveling up is how your characters get stronger. This means that a level 4 character is probably much stronger than a level 2 character. Now, there are some exceptions. Some of the characters are all out good, and just start at level one. Like the senior deputy of the Crimean Mercenaries, Titania. She is, of course, one of the better characters. However, the game did not say that she starts at level 7 or something. Nope! It starts her out at level 1! However, she can beat most level 6s just being level 1, now that's skill and power!
Even though Titania is an amazing character, you have to take a few other things into account. The fact that I have to relate to Poke'mon, is wimpy, but its a good example. In the game Poke'mon, you have a rock, paper, scissors scenario when fighting. Water beats Fire, Fire beats Grass, and Grass beats Water. In Fire Emblem, you have the same basic thing. Axes and hammers beat Lances. Lances and Javelins beat Swords. And to complete the circle, the Swords beat the axes and the hammers.
With this being said, I can now tell you that it is a little bit easier to beat the first bosses with Ike sometimes because the first ones ALL had axes. Kind of sad that they make the game that easy, but it gives you time to make Ike a little bit stronger character. But in Easy mode, HOLY COW can you hurt those guys! With one teensy strike you have them dead! Well, after you've killed about 3 guys, your about 2 levels higher than you were, so I say, HOLY COW!! (Now I understand why Easy is for novices who know almost nothing about strategy).
There is one bad thing though. I could tell you a lot more about the game and the controls, but unfortunately I am renting this title and they did not let me have an instruction booklet. The display case didn't even have the instruction book in it! Well, there are a few ways to play.
After a few scenes, you will always have two characters that need some protecting. Soren, a wind magician sorcerer guy, and Rhys, a priest who can heal other players without an item. These two players have absolutely NO protection. So you need to keep Rhys farther back so he can come up and heal, and Soren you need to put closer but still a little farther away so he can work the wind magic from a distance (or just put him around a corner where an unsuspecting enemy will come!) (By the way, long range characters shoot diagonally a space, or two spaces in front of them). So, just keep Soren long range, Rhys just behind him, and you should be in good shape.
Another playing capability that you will have to do, is Defend. This means you can not let the enemy get to a certain space and seize what you are defending, like the Mercenary fort. The simplest thing to do, is keep one character and Rhys in the back, put Ike and Shinon ( a Bow guy) and Soren at one intrance, and Gatrie ( a lance guy) and Titania at the entrance where the bulk of soldiers are coming in. Its not always that easy, but all you have to do, is defend for a set amount of turns, then the story line kicks in and something happens to end the scene.
This amazing game, or as I call it, Chess on Steroids, is an incredible title. Now I have to warn you, I have read reviews from my favorite reviewers and my least favorite reviewers, and both have said that the new Fire Emblem for the Wii, is not something Fire Emblem fans deserve. As in, if you have Radiant Dawn, don't like it very much, just sell it and get Path of Radiance for the Gamcube off of eBay somewhere! Your friend in gaming,
CPU12 The Nintendo Freak
Good Luck.
Friday, December 7, 2007
The Thrustmaster Wireless Controller
This thing is so cool! Check out this link!
http://gear.ign.com/articles/819/819888p1.html
Once your done reading, check back here and leave comments.
No! SERIOUSLY! LEAVE COMMENTS AND READ THE OTHER DECEMBER POSTS AND LEAVE COMMENTS ON THOSE TOO!!
http://gear.ign.com/articles/819/819888p1.html
Once your done reading, check back here and leave comments.
No! SERIOUSLY! LEAVE COMMENTS AND READ THE OTHER DECEMBER POSTS AND LEAVE COMMENTS ON THOSE TOO!!
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
In School Essay
This is an essay that I wrote for school. Since its about video games, I thought I might as well put it on here. Oh, and by the way, if you have read this essay before, but haven't read THIS TEXT, then that means that you saw the un-edited version. This version right here is better. Trust me.
Michael Whitlock
Intro to Writing
Three Point Essay Revised Copy
The Video Gaming Competition
The competition between video game companies is gruesome and exciting. If you have an opinion about a favorite company, this essay might change your mind. The three companies competing at the moment are Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft Xbox.
The Sony video game systems are well balanced and quite popular in the gaming world. The PlayStation 2, or PS2, is their second system and is still being sold today. PS2 brought a different view of gaming and was the turning point for Sony’s popularity. The system released after the well-accepted PS2 was the PSP, also known as the PlayStation Portable. The PSP includes internet access, movies, pictures, music, and games and has increased Sony’s status in the great competition. The latest, and some people consider greatest, system from Sony is the new and oversized PS3. This expensive system has the best graphics known today. Out of the three companies in video gaming, Sony is in third place, according to user ratings and merchandise sales.
Nintendo, the oldest gaming company around, is still on a roll with their systems. Now I have to warn you, Nintendo is my favorite company, so the way I write may be biased toward Nintendo. This favoritism is caused mostly by the fact that Nintendo has produced my favorite system, the Gamecube. The Gamecube is a system that has all but lost popularity. The Gamecube was probably the lowest point for sales of Nintendo, but the fame of the 100 something better Gamecube games, made the system popular enough, that Nintendo decided to let the games also be played on the newest system, the Wii. The Wii’s unique controller allows you to feel like you’re in the game. Nintendo has achieved this almost virtual reality by departing from the joy-pads, which use only thumbs and index fingers; they introduced a Wii-mote and Nunchuck controller, which requires you to move your body to control the game. As popular as the Wii is, Nintendo’s top seller is the handheld, double screen, laptop design, Nintendo DS. The DS has two screens, a standard LCD gaming screen and an amazing touch screen, which gives casual and hard-core gamers new ways to play, just like the Wii. Nintendo’s current placing in the gaming competition is first place.
The newest addition to the video gaming competition is the Microsoft Xbox. Their first system was just the regular Xbox. This changed the way everyone looked at the importance of graphics, combined with the fun of hard-core gaming. The second system unleashed from the lairs of the Xbox headquarters, was the huge Xbox 360. This system competes on a regular basis in graphics with the PS3, and is quite popular in the United States. The Xbox placement in the competition currently is second, and not any further. Microsoft mostly only has a strong foundation in the United States, but has a few systems sold elsewhere. Xbox is a respectable system, but cannot stand up to standards in the rest of the world (Europe, Asia, etc.).
This essay is not to force you to any particular company, just to show the facts that stand at the moment. The Video Game world of Nintendo, Sony, and XBOX can be confusing and fun. Or it can just be a nuisance that drives some people crazy because of the passion that goes into it. It is true, that Xbox does not have a strong foundation anywhere but America. In fact, Sony’s strongest foundation is also in America. These two companies do not have very strong foundations in other parts of the globe, because the user ratings-along with the sales-are much smaller than here. Even before the WII and the DS, Nintendo still had the strongest foundations worldwide. Nintendo is on top because of years of experience, and it will be nice to see what will happen in years to come, to see what skill, trial and error, along with correction, goes into the minds of those who control Sony and Microsoft. Maybe the competition will be more gruesome in years to come.
Michael Whitlock
Intro to Writing
Three Point Essay Revised Copy
The Video Gaming Competition
The competition between video game companies is gruesome and exciting. If you have an opinion about a favorite company, this essay might change your mind. The three companies competing at the moment are Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft Xbox.
The Sony video game systems are well balanced and quite popular in the gaming world. The PlayStation 2, or PS2, is their second system and is still being sold today. PS2 brought a different view of gaming and was the turning point for Sony’s popularity. The system released after the well-accepted PS2 was the PSP, also known as the PlayStation Portable. The PSP includes internet access, movies, pictures, music, and games and has increased Sony’s status in the great competition. The latest, and some people consider greatest, system from Sony is the new and oversized PS3. This expensive system has the best graphics known today. Out of the three companies in video gaming, Sony is in third place, according to user ratings and merchandise sales.
Nintendo, the oldest gaming company around, is still on a roll with their systems. Now I have to warn you, Nintendo is my favorite company, so the way I write may be biased toward Nintendo. This favoritism is caused mostly by the fact that Nintendo has produced my favorite system, the Gamecube. The Gamecube is a system that has all but lost popularity. The Gamecube was probably the lowest point for sales of Nintendo, but the fame of the 100 something better Gamecube games, made the system popular enough, that Nintendo decided to let the games also be played on the newest system, the Wii. The Wii’s unique controller allows you to feel like you’re in the game. Nintendo has achieved this almost virtual reality by departing from the joy-pads, which use only thumbs and index fingers; they introduced a Wii-mote and Nunchuck controller, which requires you to move your body to control the game. As popular as the Wii is, Nintendo’s top seller is the handheld, double screen, laptop design, Nintendo DS. The DS has two screens, a standard LCD gaming screen and an amazing touch screen, which gives casual and hard-core gamers new ways to play, just like the Wii. Nintendo’s current placing in the gaming competition is first place.
The newest addition to the video gaming competition is the Microsoft Xbox. Their first system was just the regular Xbox. This changed the way everyone looked at the importance of graphics, combined with the fun of hard-core gaming. The second system unleashed from the lairs of the Xbox headquarters, was the huge Xbox 360. This system competes on a regular basis in graphics with the PS3, and is quite popular in the United States. The Xbox placement in the competition currently is second, and not any further. Microsoft mostly only has a strong foundation in the United States, but has a few systems sold elsewhere. Xbox is a respectable system, but cannot stand up to standards in the rest of the world (Europe, Asia, etc.).
This essay is not to force you to any particular company, just to show the facts that stand at the moment. The Video Game world of Nintendo, Sony, and XBOX can be confusing and fun. Or it can just be a nuisance that drives some people crazy because of the passion that goes into it. It is true, that Xbox does not have a strong foundation anywhere but America. In fact, Sony’s strongest foundation is also in America. These two companies do not have very strong foundations in other parts of the globe, because the user ratings-along with the sales-are much smaller than here. Even before the WII and the DS, Nintendo still had the strongest foundations worldwide. Nintendo is on top because of years of experience, and it will be nice to see what will happen in years to come, to see what skill, trial and error, along with correction, goes into the minds of those who control Sony and Microsoft. Maybe the competition will be more gruesome in years to come.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Has Nintendo Changed For The Worst?
First off, has anybody been to Nintendo.com lately?
Well, I'll tell ya, IT'S HORRIBLE!!! The place is now white all over the place (it hurts my eyes, kinda), and it looks like little kids like going to this place! All the open-ness of the video gaming community! Not to mention the fact that I wanted to join the Nintendo forums. They weren't there! I searched everywhere on the site. Found "nutten." Also, the search engine doesn't have the results displayed nearly as cool as it used to. Speaking of the search engine, I tried to search GameCube games, but you know what? THERE WAS ONLY 2 GAMES FOR IT IN THE SEARCH!! NOT TO MENTION THEY WERE GAMES I DIDN'T LIKE!! The rest of the 250 results was mostly technical support for the GameCube. This means, that I can NOT search through the greatest games of all time. Does anyone know a site (that's not eBay) that might have a way to search through the games?
Also! What stinks, is that all the games, Wii and DS, have gotten WAY too easy. I mean, the first two dungeons in the Legend of Zelda The Phantom Hourglass, were in no way and by no means dungeons! The only reason I call it a dungeon, is because the text that appeared on the screen, told me that this was a dungeon. I would be disregarding even the text, if it hadn't been that there was actually small keys in there! Anyway, all the games are getting too easy. Sure the control scheme of the new games might help a little bit, but that's not the point. The only game franchise that has kept the reason for keeping the puzzles and challenges as hard as ever is the Metroid games. The DS version and the Wii version! These two games, are the only games that I know of that have kept to the hardness level of previous games. Well, okay, the games that keep the joy-pad capabilities (Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Sonic Riders Zero Gravity, Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, etc.) have probably kept their ability to be within the range of difficulty I wish for. But still, can't they make more than just a couple games for those of us who are still gamers to the core? I mean, come on, Cooking Mama?
Place Comments on what you think please! And leave a screen name or else I will probably disregard your comment!
Your friend in gaming,
CPU12 The Nintendo Freak
Good Luck.
Well, I'll tell ya, IT'S HORRIBLE!!! The place is now white all over the place (it hurts my eyes, kinda), and it looks like little kids like going to this place! All the open-ness of the video gaming community! Not to mention the fact that I wanted to join the Nintendo forums. They weren't there! I searched everywhere on the site. Found "nutten." Also, the search engine doesn't have the results displayed nearly as cool as it used to. Speaking of the search engine, I tried to search GameCube games, but you know what? THERE WAS ONLY 2 GAMES FOR IT IN THE SEARCH!! NOT TO MENTION THEY WERE GAMES I DIDN'T LIKE!! The rest of the 250 results was mostly technical support for the GameCube. This means, that I can NOT search through the greatest games of all time. Does anyone know a site (that's not eBay) that might have a way to search through the games?
Also! What stinks, is that all the games, Wii and DS, have gotten WAY too easy. I mean, the first two dungeons in the Legend of Zelda The Phantom Hourglass, were in no way and by no means dungeons! The only reason I call it a dungeon, is because the text that appeared on the screen, told me that this was a dungeon. I would be disregarding even the text, if it hadn't been that there was actually small keys in there! Anyway, all the games are getting too easy. Sure the control scheme of the new games might help a little bit, but that's not the point. The only game franchise that has kept the reason for keeping the puzzles and challenges as hard as ever is the Metroid games. The DS version and the Wii version! These two games, are the only games that I know of that have kept to the hardness level of previous games. Well, okay, the games that keep the joy-pad capabilities (Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Sonic Riders Zero Gravity, Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, etc.) have probably kept their ability to be within the range of difficulty I wish for. But still, can't they make more than just a couple games for those of us who are still gamers to the core? I mean, come on, Cooking Mama?
Place Comments on what you think please! And leave a screen name or else I will probably disregard your comment!
Your friend in gaming,
CPU12 The Nintendo Freak
Good Luck.
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