Next Pokemon Game

Nintendo, I love you. I love you very much. But no love is without fault and Nintendo has made mistakes that no-one can really justify. But here's the thing, Pokemon is almost universally loved by many gamers and only 13 year old COD try-hards can really put it down. But for the next Pokemon game, there are things I would very much like to see Ninty. Very much.

Nintendo; we want Pokemon that look like this...NOW!

For starters...graphics. I know that these don't make the game, but seriously. The 3DS has moar powah than the Nintendo Wii for god's sake, so make it happen. All we want is for us to fell as though our pocket monsters are real. Remember Pokemon Colosseum? And Gale of Darkness? Those changing camera angles and reactive Pokemon movements were just great for their time and really shook up the landscape and that made going back to Pokemon Emerald very hard. But even so, take a look at Pokemon Battle Revolution. Although it's basically just a glorified tool to let Pokemon fight each other on the big screen with glorious graphics, that was on the freakin' Wii. IT LOOKED AMAZING AND YOU STILL HAVE NOT GIVEN US A 3DS POKEMON GAME THAT LOOKS BETTER! 

Think about it Nintendo. People love graphics, even if they don't change gameplay. You give us a Pokemon game that looks anything like Battle Revolution on the 3DS and people will buy. When Black and White came out, it was expected that these would be the final games for the DS to usher in a new era of Handheld gaming. And then with the release of the 3DS, everyone was expecting the next Pokemon game to appear on it. All of a sudden, Black and White 2 for the DS. You can imagine the groans. Still, these are great games with the addition of Pokemon from older generations which make large improvements over the designs of 5th generation Pokemon which is the main reason I didn't like the game as much. I grew up with all Pokemon up 'till Shinnoh and those are the Pokemon with the best designs. Black and White introduced some really poorly designed Pokemon, but by adding in cool Pokemon like Growlithe and Riolu, the problem is pretty much solved. For the next Pokemon game, give us the Pokemon we want with the graphics we want and of course, do the smart thing and really push triple and rotation battles (which was the best part of Black and White)

Or you could always make another Mystery Dungeon game...please?

Top 5 Nintendo Villains

Number 1: The one, The only, Demon Lord Girahim.

Yes, a non final boss villain is at the number 1 spot. Why?

BECAUSE HE WAS FREAKING COOL. the way Girahim's character was presented was absolutely brilliant. I had an everlasting fear that Girahim would jump out at me every time I opened a door.

The battles with him, all three of them, were just brilliant. The first made you feel significantly out gunned. the second made you feel a little more confident, and the third, weeeeeeeeeeeeeellll, he becomes invincible. but the method in which you damage him is just... well, I'll put it like this.
's Beautiful

's Sublime

's GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD

Top 5 Nintendo Villains

Number 2: Ganondorf from OOT

Ganondorf. the gerudo king. While he wasn't physically present through the whole game, he had the dark, looming presence, especially in the adult world. You get to see what happened to your childhood friends at the hands of The Evil King. And if that didn't create a burning rage in you, then... umm... welll... I don't even is my only reaction. 

Top 5 Nintendo Villains

At number 3: Zant. Yes, Zant, the userper king. Now we get to the big guns. Zant does not have the problem of bowser, demise and the TP version of Ganondorf. He is there from the start and he ACTUALLY DOES STUFF TO YOU TO MAKE YOU WANT TO TAKE THE MASTER SWORD AND SHOVE IT UP HIS fish helmet... yeah... fish helmet.... 
He was a villain that we all wanted to take on. And his boss fight was, while not the most epic, very diverse. 

Top 5 Nintendo Villains

At number 4, the new kid on the block, Demise.
Once again, why is he here? Well, because he's got the same problem as Bowser. He just shows up at the end of the game. Although he has more of a presence in the form of the Imprisoned. But it was more of a nuisance rather than a dark presence. 

Top 5 Nintendo Villains

How about this Nintendians?

At number 5: Bowser.
I'm sorry, what's that? the original Nintendo villain at the bottom spot on the list?
well its because while he IS the O G villain, he's just not as good as the others on this list. he feels like the necessary final boss at the end of the game. But, he has lived up to his potential in the past, which is why he's here. 

Pokemon's Best Locales #1: Relegram Tower

Ever played Half Life 2? You should. Ever been to CIty 17? Try and avoid it if you can. 

In City 17 of Half Life 2, you are always graced with the presence of a large tower hulking in the distance with immense size and power. That's the sort of feeling you get with Realgam Tower in Pokemon Colosseum. The first time you go there, it will be a wreck of construction materials and junk with workers telling you "It't nearly finished, we've just got a lot of cleaning up to do" Cool man, I can wait. At the very end of the Game you finally go to Realgam Tower and Holy MOTHER OF GOD!!!! Without a doubt, Realgam Tower is the most impressive spectacle in all of Pokemon with long elevators taking you up and up to face more challenges. And the sheer design of the place is just...wow. It's the sort of place that could be seen in a sic-fi movie. In Gale of Darkness, it's less impressive, because the place had been turned into an amusement centre. 
Realgam Tower: Give it a visit someday!

Pokemon's Best Locales #2: Citadark Island

There are not one, but two Volcanoes in Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness. Both of which you fight on. Me personally, I was always worried whenever somebody used the move dig...

Anyway, Citadark Island is a fabled place of merry wonder and joy without anything evil or bad going on, aside from the criminal organization Cipher using it as a base and a place to create Shadow Pokemon. This is where you will face a whole bunch of Cipher Peons, as well as every boss in the game on top of four new ones, including the fabled Pokemon XD001. This is such a climactic, dangerous and atmospheric place that it does so well as set the stage for the end of days.

Pokemon's Best Locales #3: Pallet Town

Home. Home is a place no-one else can describe. It belongs to few people the true experience of being home. One person's home is simply theirs. Coming home always feels relaxing don't it? As soon as players enter the game, they are treated to their very own bedroom and home equipped with their own mother (where does she sleep?) Eventually, you wander around the small Pallet Town and talk to people who give you some easy and early advice about the world of Pokemon. The music is suitably quaint and has a nice homey feel to it. But there are only two houses, yours and your rival's. What's up with that? Oh, and there is of course the famous Oak Laboratories where you acquire your first Pokemon and begin your Journey. This place has been spiritually emulated across all Pokemon games in the forms of Littleroot Town, New Bark Town and various others, but Pallet Town was the first and although there have been improvements in the whole world of Pokemon, there is nothing quite like Pallet Town.

Pokemon's Best Locales #4: Phenac City

The City of Water is by far one of the prettiest places in all of Pokemon. It;s shiny, it's watery and it makes you want to live there. One of the many reasons this place is so well loved in Pokemon Colosseum is because it's almost like a safe haven. The rest of the Orre region is desert and waste (with a few exceptions) but this is a sparkling place with mostly friendly people and... just looks at it man...
Ever tried to describe water? That's how hard it is to describe Phenac City.

Pokemon's best locales #5: Pyrite Town

Pokemon is such a happy and colourful game with many happy memories to take from places such as Pallet Town, Petaburg City, Goldenrod City and New Bark Town. All such wonderful and happy places to go with happy people to talk to and things to do with nice old women and children and...




What is this? WHAT IS THIS!?!/ A Shanty town in Pokemon? Pyrite Town is the strangest place to go to in Pokemon pretty much ever. When you arrive, you're greeted with a dark tune and gritty character designs. These are basically thugs, criminals and although this isn't new to the Pokemon lore with such foes as Team Rocket and Plasma, but these ones are nowhere near as colourful. Pyrite Town is like a Pokemon Redfern. This town also involves corruption, kidnapping (of Pokemon) and even a form of Gambling. Whoa man, gotta catch em all? A strange change of tone from the other Pokemon games makes Pyrite Town one of the best Pokemon Locales ever.

The Top 5 Nintendo Heroes

5.) Kirby.

Kirby

The pink blob, marshmellow thing has been on many adventures throughout his life, never losing his childlike charm and cuteness, even when devouring the bodies of his foes and stealing their souls. This little guy has seen a lot and has done some pretty epic things throughout his life such as blowing up a giant galactic robot and fighting a dark wizard. Yep, this guy is up there, rubbin' elbows with the great. (if he had elbows)









4.) Samus Aran.

Samus Aran

People get mixed up about this bounty hunter. Firstly, her name is not Metroid and she is in fact a girl. That came as a huge surprise to gamers when they discovered the truth, but it was kinda cool. Samus has been through so much and on just so many wild adventures with interesting and varied experiences that you almost wish you could be her (not really because her parents are dead) She's tough, cool and has a lot of epic journeys. Samus Aran...willing to save the planet, even if there's back tracking involved...











3.) Mario

Mario

The Italian Plumber has done it all! He's an adventurer, an acrobat, a golfer, a Kart Racer, a Tennis player, as Basketball player and avid partyer. Yep, this one his been with us for son long, not having him around would be like losing a friend. He's always there, knowing that he has another game right around the corner is so satisfying that it feels like he's your buddy. He adds a bit of theatricality to everything, making his endeavours all the more enjoyable to play through. HERE WE GO!










2.) Link

Link

The time weathered hero has saved the world countless times, without hardly saying a word. His skill is unparalleled and he has been in some of the greatest games of all time, including the highest critically acclaimed game of all time "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" and my personal favourite game: "The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword" There are almost no occasions where this hero doesn't shine, and those where he hasn't are never spoken of. He's such a cool character, with a great sense of heroism about him. He is truly: AWESOME! There is only one greater...








1.) Red

Red.

The King of Kings. The Lord of Lords. The Master of Masters. Pokemon Trainer Red. The most powerful trainer in the whole of the world: Red's sole purpose is to train, and to win. He has never met defeat. It is rumoured that he has a brother by the name of Ash, someone who is nowhere near as talented as he is however. From the beginning, Victory was always his. He never lost a single battle, training his Pokemon to perfection. He has given up the normal life us normal people take in favour of gruelling power that can only come from true dedication. He is perfection.(turns out, he taught Batman how to play Pokemon)
While the other Pokemon Protagonists prefer to smile and laugh, Red prefers not to screw around with pointless socalizing. He is power in it's purest form, ready to win whenever the opportunity presents itself.
Red. The Pokemon Master.

The Doctor rants: Black and White 2

OOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH Boy! What happened here. OK  now black and white 2 are far from being bad games, they're actually better than the originals, but it does something so unforgivable, so irritating that i had to talk about it. Pokemon black and white 2 have a hard mode. now I bet you thinking, 'it does?' yes they do. but my gosh its an effort to get. for starters, its only unlock able in black 2 after you beat it. OK hold up. its only unlock-able in black 2 AFTER YOU BEAT THE GAME? AFTER? WHY? WHY IS IT AFTER I BEAT THE GAME? AND WHY ONLY BLACK 2? Really bad choice on gamefreak's part. seriously. if you going to put a hard mode in your game, make it available from the beginning, unless your going for replay value. which is fine, and fair enough if thats why they did it. BUT WHY ONLY FOR BLACK 2? WHY DO THE PEOPLE WHO GOT WHITE 2 GET EASY MODE? you could say that pokemon's style is to make players interact with each other. BUT DON'T MAKE DIFFICULTY EXCLUSIVE! IT ADDS NO REPLAY VALUE IN THIS CASE! 
aaaaand dont you dare get me started on the 4th gym. ITS A LINE! A STRAIGHT LINE! ITS BORING ITS GENERIC IT SUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCKS! WHERES THE ORIGINALITY? THE 4TH GYM WAS A ROLLER COASTER! IT WAS AWESOME! WHY DOES THE NEW ONE BORE ME TO TEARS?

http://www.scenicreflections.com/ithumbs/Pokemon%20Red%20vs%20Blue%20Wallpaper__yvt2.jpeg
when pokemon games look like this, then you have my permission to die

gamefreak, next pokemon game you make, consider this. if your going to add a hard mode, dont make it game exclusive. And if your going to have an easy mode, make it available from the start for less experienced players. and most of all COLLUSEUMGRAPHICZ I'm sorry that was uncalled for. old wounds guys. old wounds 

Black and White 2

Alright Nintendo. You've released the first true sequel to a Pokemon game and that's fine...but seriously; put the next Pokemon game on the 3DS. That will literally make sales skyrocket as well as give us gamers what we really want; HD pokemon that feel like they're alive. The 3DS is more powerful than the Wii and the gamecube and you know what; Pokemon Battle revolution looked spunky as anythingl so please Nintendo. GIVE US WHAT WE WANT!!

Still going to buy Black or White 2 anyway...

The death of handhelds

The GBA

Remember the days of the Game Boy and the DS? The times when we brought our precious devices with all through right and rain, through thick and thin to conquer all 8 gyms and save the mushroom kingdom while getting the fastest lap time? Those days may be gone with the soon to be "death of the handheld console"

The Nintendo DS

The whole point/advantage of a handheld was that it was a device that you could carry around with you to game, whenever, wherever. In fact, some games like Pokemon or Animal Crossing were better suited to the handheld console because of their pick up and play nature. It also had a great appeal to the more casual gamer including children. It was cheaper than your standard console and served as entertainment wherever you went. The small screen and low costs of handhelds led to causal, yet fun games (sometimes) But that's all about to change.

With the introduction of smartphones, there aren't really any place for handhelds in the market left. The smartphone is a phone, Ipod, news channel and a gaming device all in one. It's just convenient to have one device that does all this than a handheld console to play the games. Thanks to the smartphone gamer audience, the casual, kid friendly games have shifted away from handhelds and have pretty much left the stage destitute. Soon enough, handhelds will be gone. So, a moment for all the fun times we had on these devices, for they won't be around for much longer. They're not dead yet...but you can see it from here.

Whazzis? Playstation...

Companions in Zelda games

Ever since Ocarina of Time, the Zelda games have consistently introduced a helper or companion to assist the player with their exploits. Whether it be direction or Z targeting, these guys have always helped...or hindered your progress throughout the games

First up, we have Navi. The infamous fairy Navi. If there are any claims against Ocarina of Time's perfect game status, it's that Navi is in it. She flies around your head and spouts useless advice half the time. What's that Navi? I need to get to Death Mountain? Well, seeing as I'm two feet away from it, I really appreciate you helping me. I would have never found it otherwise! Thank you Navi!! 
As well as being useless, she also cries out the ever annoying "HEY!" or "LISTEN!" or "WATCH OUT!" After hearing this a few times, you feel like tearing your ears out. On top of all this, Navi is not an interesting character at all, with no story or likeable qualities. 

Next up, Tatl the fairy from Majora's Mask. This companion was a step up in every way from Navi. Instead of being allied with you at first, Tatl is actually part of the Skull kid's crew, until he abandons her. She works with link to reunite with her brother Tael. Geddit? Tatl Tael? Tattle Tale? Ahem...
This companion was interesting as she would often antagonise Link for his slowness or just because she didn't like him. Eventually, the two warm up to each other and become friends. Her advice wasn't great, but it wasn't completely useless as Navi's was. The most refreshing thing though was the bell sound she made in place of Navi's "HEY!!"



Ezlo from Minish cap was an interesting one. As you can see, he's a hat. This allows for Link to shrink down to reach small places. It also made the normal enemies you fought as Link become giant bosses as mini Link. Ezlo didn't offer as much advice, but his banter was enjoyable seeing as link was talking to...well, a hat.




Midna from Twilight Princess is an imp with many secrets. She reluctant;y joins Link for mysterious reasons which you go along with because you want the same goal, but she still doesn't like you that much and often berates you. So, right from the get go, she makes the game a blast to play. She has the most interesting story out of any companion as she is, in fact, central to the plot. Her backstory is slowly revealed to the player throughout the course of the game and she too warms up to Link and the two form a relationship that conquers most evil. The advice she gives is a little pointless, pointing out things you already know or could figure out within moments, but she's not too bad. Her laugh is a little annoying, but it hardly ever gets on your nerves, because you like Midna and want to find out more about her.

Ciela is the Navi-esque companion in Phantom Hourglass. Like Navi, she too is a fairy that often yells out "HEY!" (with much less frequency) But luckily, to prevent this from being a complete disaster, Nintendo took inspiration from the story they told with Midna and gave a story to Ciela that was interesting and made you want to know more about her. Ciela is also a likeable character and becomes essential to the plot as well. Towards the end, she even provides an extra grunt to your abilities which is always nice.



Zelda from Spirit Tracks was certainly different. Throughout all Zelda games, she was mostly a distant figure, someone who you wanted to save, but never really knew that well. This time, Zelda's Spirit follows you around giving advice and story elements. Actually, her advice is non existant. She barely provides any useful information, but you know what? It's so good to travel with her. She is a well thought out character that once again, is useful to you. When in the Tower of Spirits, you can make her take control of a Phantom, helping you solve puzzles and fight. Her inclusion in the game was great and something I wish more Zelda games would do more often.

The most recent companion in a Zelda game: Fi. Fi is part of the sword you have and is sent by the Goddess to assist you on your quest. She speaks with a strange auto-tuned voice and has no understanding of human emotion, yet loves statistics. She may not be the most interesting companion story-wise, but she has great advice. In fact, you can choose which type of information she gives you from her menu. She is nice to have as a companion and in truth is actually kind of funny with the way she acts around the world.

Really? Every time?

If your unsire what im talking about, allow me to elaborate. at the start of each and every pokemon game, excluding the first and second gen games, there is a pokemon catching tutorial. you know the ones, the really boring UNSKIPPBABLE battles that you arent even taking part in. now while this is helpful to newer players, its almost usless to veteran pokemon masters. skip buttons. get them in the pokemon games gamefreak. think about the veterans and not the newbs. (newbs as in new players, not noobs as in terrible gamers).

Pokemon Black/White Review

Pokemon has had many incarnations during it's successful franchise. The main series has been acclaimed for it's array of RPG elements and addictive training/catching system while some of the spin-offs have been liked and disliked. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon was fantastic in my opinion as well as Pokemon Colosseum and Gale of Darkness, but others like Pokemon Dash and Pokemon Channel are obvious cash ins on the franchise. Back in 2011, Pokemon Black and White were released (to the joy of many) and throughout that time, I was itching for a chance to play it. Eventually, in 2012, I was granted with this chance. I played through the game and beat the Pokemon League and began writing a blog post about it. Here are my thoughts: 

To begin, the graphics are easily the best in the series. The new camera angles used and designs are fantastic, but where these improve the game a lot, they also prove to be the biggest downfall. When battling, the camera zooms in on Pokemon, and thanks to the DS' weak processing power, you can clearly see the pixels used to build the Pokemon. This would have been fine if it was on the 3DS, but instead, we are greeted with ugly Pokemon. And these Pokemon are indeed ugly for more reasons than just the camera. The design of some of these Pokemon are absolutely stupid and dumb. I laughed out loud when I saw some of them and how stupid they were. Most of them are really disappointing, but there are some which are very cool such as the starters, the legendaries and Gigalith. I love you Gigalith. The other downside to the presentation is the music. It's nowhere near as memorable from the ones in Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald (which by far had the best music) and pretty much fails to capture.

See what I mean about stupid Pokemon?

The story on the other hand is a lot more interesting thanks to Team Plasma. This time, they're not just some goons waiting in a warehouse for you to beat them up. Same with the gym leaders. Both are involved in the story and add more characterisation and flavour to the whole game. Not as much as Colosseum, but at last I feel as though what I'm doing actually matters in the grand scheme of things.

Gameplay still consists of capturing Pokemon, training them into stronger Pokemon, battling everyone and their mothers as well as beating every gym leader ever. Same old same old. But things have improved. Once again, there are more moves and pokemon, but at the same time, you can now re-use TMs. FINALLY!! Pokemon Centres and PokeMarts are now in the same building and there is a new centre for multiplayer battles as well. The new C-Gear allows for much greater functionality with the internet and wi-fi battles and trading. And you can now trade directly from your PC box and that makes things sooooooooooooo much better and overall more functional. So with all these new features, why doesn't Pokemon Black/ White stack up as well against the other games? Well, gameplay wise, it's actually better than the originals as somebody at Nintendo finally decided to stop forcing us to walk around in caves for hours and the pointless HM's have been removed, so what lets is down are the Pokemon. You really feel cheated when you see the promise of 150 new Pokemon and the majority are so stupid. If you've never played Pokemon before, you will love it and if you have, you will still have a great time, but overall, I personally feel as though it couldn't measure up to any of the others. 

I <3 u Gigalith!!!!!!!!

The truth about Kirby

Originally designed as a weapon by the star warriors, Kirby was intended to be one of the most powerful beings in the galaxy. He was meant to be an unstoppable force that would destroy anything in his wake. However, he was awakened on dreamland millions of years before it was intended. He is merely a shadow of the weapon he intended to be. Yet, look at the power he has. The things he's done and the abilities he possesses. Imagine that power, multiplied by thousands, or millions. He has a power unlike anything else, the power to replicate and change DNA. So...still think Kirby is that adorable pink ball?

Check it out Gentlemen.

It has come to our attention that Nintendo has been awful quiet as of late, so if you would kindly visit our other blog so that I don't seem like some idealess person...(At least I'm not" So check it out:
The other games blog

R18+

At long last Australia has the go ahead for an R18+ rating for video games. Without the constant opposition of ONE PARTICULAR POLITICIAN!! us aussie gamers can finally revel in the luxury of having an adult rating. This means the really serious gamers of legal age can enjoy games without having them censored or nerfed or even banned in Australia. This isn't really a problem for Nintendo as they don't really release games that are adult, but for the whole world of gaming as a collective, the leap forward is almost monumental. The rest of the world has had am R18+ rating for ages, so once again Australia has finally caught up.

Odd don't you think?

Most games go for an attempt at realism as we know. Some retain their focus on being crazy fun, but overall most games do this. After all, it's why we want graphics to be good right? That way we feel as though the world we've stepped into could be real. Metroid, Zelda, even Pokemon all maintain some sort of realism that we all imagine to be part of a living breathing universe. In a game, we want to feel as though we are performing the action done on screen to make us feel like we have a footprint in the world. So, as games strive to be realistic with smooth controls, appropriate worlds, believable characters and graphics, one game that consistently breaks this trend is Mario. There is almost nothing realistic about it! The graphics are cartoonish, the story is beyond simple, the level design looks like a game and not like an actual world, so why is it so fun? I have trouble answering this question myself. Mario is one of my favourite game series and yet it is so strange in how it is made. My only answer is that maybe for the Japanease the stuff that goes down in Mario's world is actually Hyper Realism. Maybe...

3DS games

New games regarding Nintendo at E3

Pokemon and its weirdness 2

PaTROLLING the waters of Pokemon Emerald, I am challenged to a girl who says: "I'm wearing a bathing suit. Where do I keep the Pokeballs? Tee-hee, Woman's secret"

uh...


Has anyone noticed a few weird things about to supposedly kid-friendly game? Like, how this game teaches you about dating a girl. Pokemon rewards you with a girl's own phone number if you beat up her pet and take her money. Hardly suitable life lessons. 
Pokemon also teaches us that catching animals and locking them in PC's for the rest of their life is acceptable, when it is not so by any standards in a humane video game. BTW, how does storing an animal in a PC actually work? Twelve bucks to anyone who tells me.

In Gold, they introduced the day and night system. This was meant to make the world feel real and like your adventure was progressing a long time and not just over the course of one never ending day. But, most of these people in the world remain in the same place. Doesn't anyone sleep? Like, I'm pretty sure it's necessary for human survival...right?


Professor Oak: "Don't go into the grass, it's too dangerous!" However, Oak doesn't protest when you go and take on a criminal organisation like Team Rocket. These guys are anything but clever. They are supposed to be mean, lean fighting machines who can best any foe through their sheer power...using Rattata and Zubat. And speaking of Zubats (attacked by Zubat in cave) there sure are (attacked by Zubat in cave) a lot of them. It's (attacked by Zubat in cave) like they're everywhere. You can't (attacked by Zubat in cave) take (attacked by Zubat in cave) a (attacked by Zubat in cave) single (attacked by Zubat in cave) STEP WITHOUT MEETING ONE. (attacked by Zubat in cave)


When you really think about it, those Pokemon are darn cute. Bulbasaur, Chikorita, Mew, even Magby. But do you ever stop to think; of the only animals in the world are Pokemon...what are you really eating for dinner?

Moar Wii U stuff

The original controller has been redesigned and called the Wii U Gamepad, while adding in another controller type called Wii U Pro.
The Wii U will also have a social networking style thing called a Miiverse. Players can talk, ask for hints and more without exiting their play session.
The Wii U Gamepad can act as a TV remote and can control an internet browser system built into the Wii U.
The Wii U is said to be at least 50% more powerful than current generation consoles.

That's all until E3 (tomorrow) folks.

Give us some ideas!

I have asked this before. Would you, our readers, like for us to do a lets play of a game?
 I got barely no response to that.
But now, im asking you again. 4ever has made a youtube channel. Would you like to see some gameplay videos? or maybe some other stuff? please dont be shy, your suggestions are valued.
also, please watch the videos that 4ever has put up so far.

anyway, back to the gameplay, what games?
maybe some co-op mario bros wii? or perhaps some amnesia? (i have the demo, not the full game so dont expect much from that) would you like some darksouls: prepare to die edition gameplay?
PLEASE LEAVE COMMENTS AND GIVE US SUGGESTIONS!
WE NEED THEM

Wii U updates

New things quickly.
The Controller has added two small buttons and instead of the circle pads, has replaced them with actual thumbsticks. 
The price will not be revealed at E3.
The launch games can be bought as downloads as opposed to discs. 

Drawn to life...

Ah yes, drawn to life. one of my personal favourite DS games. of course, im not talking about the spongebob one... because that never existed...
im talking about the original drawn to life game, a game that promised the ability to CREATE YOUR OWN CHARACTER

THE STORY: so the story of the original drawn to life game is simple at first. a small village inhabited by creatures known as the raposa is slowly being consumeb by darkness. the only hope left in the village lies with Mari, the only raposa who still believes in the Creator, the raposa's deity. The creator recognises Mari's faith and so creates a hero that will bring the village out of the darkness.
 
Heres where you come in. The game makes you do two things. Draw, and platform.
whilst drawing, you are basically given creative freedom on what you draw. however, you are prompted to draw what youve been told to and sometimes are given a template to stick to.
When creating your character you can either use a guide or create a character from scratch. because my drawing skills on the DS are not amazing, i went with using a guide and changing up the colours.
WE'VE ALL DONE IT! 

Gameplay: other than drawing, this game makes you platform. now, while its not a hardcore platformer like supermario bros or super meat boy, it can still present a challenge as you can spend ages looking for that last component to finish a level.
that reminds me, to finish a level, you must do three things. 
1- clear all of the darkness from the stage (rub with stlus)
2- rescue all the raposa in the stage
3-find the pages of the book of life
the last of these three can be troublesome.

Finally, The game contains incredibly catchy musci that you will find yourself huming along to. ah yes. how can we forget that catchy boss music.
the only downside is that the boss music is used for three of the four main bosses in the gmae, just played with different soundboards.

so yeah, PLAY THIS GAME CAUSE ITS AMAZING... in my opinion
 

Pokemon and its weirdness

Admittedly, Pokemon is a weird game, I mean, the concept is sending a young kid out into the wild with no food, no water and only a little animal to protect him. In top of that, these kids are encouraged to make their little animals fight. Not only that, but these kids will stand still in one spot for days and days. Some of them are so cruel that they refuse to take their Pokemon to the Pokemon centres. They just stand there...motionless. So, aside from that, these trainers are a bit weird. At one point, I was derping along and a trainer challenged me to an intense battle, but not before stating "I like shorts!" Did I really need to know that? Did I really? Another time, a trainer said "I'm a cool guy! I have a girlfriend!" My respect for the man was instantly raised. Back to the shorts; a kid said "You're not wearing shorts! What's wrong with you?" I don't know. I just don't know. 
Trainers also ask for your phone number which you MUST give them. They continue to call you with information that "I lost a battle" or "My Rattata is really strong" My Moltres is trembling, trust me. 

Out of everything in the Pokemon universe, the strangest would have to be Gary Oak. For one, that might not even be his name. At the start of the game, Professor Oak comes to you and says "Here's my grandson! Errm, what's his name again?" Gee, that would suck. Your own grandfather not remembering your name. Also, he has no parents, only his sister. When he becomes Pokemon Champion, nobody cares and when you beat him, his Grandfather comes to congratulate you. Sadness!


Clearly, Pokemon takes place in a post war world. Face it, there are orphans everywhere (you and gary) and no places of entertainment, just gyms and hospitals. Kids train at the age of ten to fight and LT Surge (the third gym leader) says electric Pokemon saved him in the war. Lest we forget the brave soldiers and Pokemon who died for their country.

Review scores

When games are released, there are companies who make money by reviewing them (also all the guys on youtube but I think they make less monies) and most of the time, reviewers give them scores. Why have scores at all? Well, there may be some reasons for and against scoring games in reviews. For a positive, it's easier to tell which games are better. A reviewer that doesn't use scores may say that two games are good, but the readers may not know whether its better than a certain game or not. On a negative side, most reviewers use different score types, whether it is out of five or twenty. If all scorers had a universal scale, it would be fine, but think of it this way. A scorer gives a game 3 and a half out of five. That's pretty good, but change that to a scale of 10 and you get 7 out of 10, which doesn't seem as good. Change  that again to a score of 20 and you get 14 out of 20. Seems a lot worse than 3 and a half out of 5. Change it for a last time to a scale of 40 and you get 28 out of 40. So, different scores may make it harder to find a universal average for games. Scorers also have to review that full game. Super Mario Galaxy may be one of the most spectacular games ever made, but its not perfect, thus the reason we can't give it 10/10. Why isn't it perfect? Because of two things. The camera (but that's minor) and the storybook room. MY GOD THAT PLACE IS LIKE HELL ON EARTH! Basically, you get a boring tale of Rosalina and the lumas that you can't skip. But oddly enough, you don't ever have to go in there if you don't want to. So why not only take points off the final score for the camera? Well, you have to review the game as the package. You can't say "this game is perfect except for this one thing, but just ignore it" You have to take the whole package. But since its optional, no-one will really go in there, meaning that those people who never went in there would have more than a 9.5/10 experience. So, anyway, should our blogs go to scoring or keep it as it is? And what scoring should be used?

New Super Mario Bros 3DS comes out in August this year!!

Get your wallets.
Well, I should probably elaborate further than just that. As we all know, the New Super Mario Bros franchise began on the Nintendo DS as one of the early titles. It was a reboot of the original Mario Bros with slicker graphics and new power-ups and levels. The first one was pretty good, but New Super Mario Bros on the Wii was where I felt the series hit the peak. While keeping the traditional Mario, yet bringing in new things, this game, the Wii Mario was awesome. Also, you can't go wrong with Mario Multiplayer, I just wonder if this new version will be different enough than the other ones. I hope you get multiplayer this time, but thankfully not on the same screen.

A tad early perhaps?

Pokemon Black is awesome. Try to argue and face my wrath. However, while playing the game, this thought keeps running through my head. What if we'd waited? The 3DS came out a few months after Pokemon, so what if Nintendo had waited a little longer and put their Pocketmonsters on the 3DS? For one, 3D Pokemon battles would have been sweet, but even better would have been the graphics. The whole new perspective of the game focusing in on the Pokemon looks bad because they're so pixilated. 3DS would solve that easily. Nintendo could stop being so lazy and GIVE US COLOSSEUM GRAPHICS!! Back on the gamecube, Pokemon colosseum was awesome because of the way you saw the Pokemon. They looked so real, and now the 3DS is more powerful than the Wii, which had Pokemon battle revolution on it and that looked sexy. So, Black didn't quite have the graphical prowess, but there's no denying it's fun. Next Pokemon game had better give me what I want or there will be trouble. 

Trouble indeed

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Pokemon's complexity

Pokemon...yeah

What appears to be a simple game upfront is actually very deep and complex, yet accessible. The base idea is simple; make those little Pokemon fight until they get stronger and you can challenge the bosses.  But, each Pokemon is different. Each one has different statistics in the category of HP, Attack, Special Attack, Defence, Special Defence and Speed, each affecting how it performs in battle. This opened up opportunities to give Pokemon weaknesses. Fire is weak to water, water is weak to grass and grass is weak to fire. But it doesn't stop just there; Psychic is weak against dark, dark is weak to fighting, fighting is weak to flying, flying is weak to electric and..well, you get the idea. Each Pokemon can learn four moves, some which is learns naturally or some through technical machines and each one is different. Each move has its own element like fire or ice which are strong and weak against opposing types. Each move also has a power rating, determining how powerful it is and an accuracy rating, which determines how accurate it is. Each move also has PP, which shows how many times it can be used. Strong moves have low PP, whereas weaker moves don't. Some moves affect stats, like attack or defence and some inflict conditions like paralysis, freeze, burn, poison, sleep and confusion. Convinced it's Pokemon's deep yet? What's that? You said yes? Well I heard no so I'll keep writing. Each Pokemon has its own ability. These range from upping water type moves when HP is below a certain point, to being immune to ground attacks, to giving the opponent's the status condition it has, or eating a berry early. By the way, Pokemon can use items. Potions heal HP and other stuff like elixers restore PP and full heals take status conditions. There are also held items to give effects like small healing or increasing the power of a certain type of move. Pokemon evolve when they hit a certain level which improves their stats, but means they learn moves slower and some don't learn them at all. And all this merely affects battle, I haven't begun to talk about exploration, the financial aspect, breeding, the story or the Pokedex. Really, Pokemon is quite deep and has had a lot of work put into it. Each game may keep the basics, but only because the basics are so good and thoughtful. COD on the other hand...BANGBANGBANGDEAD! Effort? What's that? 

Pokemon; awesome, amazing and acclaimed

Oh Pokemon how I adore thee. Ever since a young age I have always loved playing these games. Choosing my starter, training up a team of Pokemon, beating the Gym leaders; bliss. I think Pokemon has a great game plan going. Hook kids in when they're young and seal the deal with surprisingly complex RPG gaming. AWESOME!!! Pokemon Blue Version was the first game I ever owned and played and I spent a lot of time on it, but not as much as I would playing Pokemon Ruby, which was the next one I owned. I'd played Pokemon Silver and Crystal, but only on a plane. Pokemon Ruby...oh the memories. I played the hell out of that game. It was only natural to then play Pokemon Fire Red and soon after that, Pokemon Emerald. Those games have embedded memories into me which I will never forget. Anyhoo, Diamond came next and then Platinum, these two have left me with fond memories. And now POKEMON BLACK IS IN MY HANDSS!!!

Doctor Who RPG

Special credit goes to "Me" for finding this.

Wii U will be a success?

Maybe not. Nintendo's unreleased new system has already achieved a small cult following, but will it sell to the masses? There are no announced IP's for one, making this just another option on the marker, with no pull. The controller may look cool for some, may scare others away. Admittedly, it looked big in the trailers, but when you take a closer look, it's pretty small. But, the biggest problems with this are the graphics. Some rumours are going around that it isn't as powerful as the current PS3 and with the next Xbox right around the corner, what will people do when they find a console with super graphics as opposed to dated ones. With Nintendo, it's always been quality of games over graphics, like the N64 compared to the Playstation or the DS compared to the PSP, but in a gaming landscape where graphics are a major pull these days, if the Wii U doesn't have the graphics to match the games, what happens? Even I'm not that excited for the console, but if some awesome games come out for it, then sure I'll grab it. But I guess only time will tell how well it'll sell. 

Skyward Sword vs Skyrim: Bosses

Skyward Sword: Bosses in his game are huge and I mean huge! From giant flaming monsters to flying whales to tentacled monsters. Most of these bosses are defeated by using items you acquired in the temple before you fight them, but some rely almost purely on swordplay and shielding. Each boss has at least two stages to beating them. You have their initial stage where you fight them using the item you acquired, but then the stage will change, or they'll raise their defence, of they'll change tactics, forcing you to rethink your strategy. These fights are awesome and are accompanied with fantastic music to suit. Never has hacking away at a gigantic eyeball seemed so appealing. Also, I must add that most of these fights are more challenging than ones in previous games. Chug those health potions. 


Skyrim: The bosses in Skyrim certainly look great, but most of them play out like the normal enemies. Okay, so you rush through a cave filled with frostbite spiders and risk life and limb to get to the obvious treasure at the end. Before you can reach the chest, you come across a slightly bigger spider which does slightly more damage and is slightly harder to kill. That's the boss. There are a fair few more though, like Trolls, but they aren't exactly tough...Giants and mammoths are huge, but all you have to do is keep away from them and blast them with frost and you should be fine. Werewolf boss was...brief. However, hands down the best bosses are the dragons. WOWOHMIGOSHFREAKINDRAGONSPLZDONTEATME%
These guys fight so differently to anything else in the game and are so much fun to engage. Also, they breath fire/ice. Hell yes! 

Twilight Princess haters?

Ah, Zelda games. Each one I've played holds a special place in my gaming heart. What can be said about these games that hasn't already been said. They're fantastic. They're awesome. Most of the are masterpieces. Course, there was one game involving crossbows...
Aside from that, the Zelda franchise has been highly influential and critically acclaimed. Who doesn't like these games? The series has even built up a huge fan base to go along with mainstream success. Take a look at Twilight princess. It Sold around 6.5 million copies. With good reasons the game was...AWFUL?
What the hell? Awful? Who thinks this game is awful? Well, a few people... Some hate this game. They think the storytelling in this game is mediocre at best and that the level design was terrible. Also, the haters claim that this game tried too hard to be dark. I disagree. This game was plenty dark. Not in the same way as Majora's Mask, but it is still pretty unnerving at times. Especially at the end where Midna...no, we don;t speak of that. Anyway, the puzzles, motion controls and story are better than any of the other Zelda games I've played (except for Skyward Sword) Perhaps the only reason that Twilight Princess wasn't as acclaimed as Ocarina of Time or Majora's Mask is because they came first. The three dimensional Zelda games are the best ones, however after Ocarina of Time, they began to follow a formula. After the 2D ones changed from stuff like the Minish Cap to Phantom Hourglass, it became a very different style of game. The 3D ones didn't change to drastically after Ocarina of Time. Sure, Majora's Mask had a clock and Masks to wear, but still fairly similar. Wind Waker brought in a boat and an ocean which made things different, but Twilight Princess strayed closer to Ocarina of Time more so than the others, which (for a series with similar but different games) might not have been the best idea. Twilight Princess may have done it better, but it didn't really differ enough to have the same critical reception. Put it this way, if Twilight Princess was the first 3D Zelda game instead of Ocarina, it probably would have been considered the best of all time. Anyway, I love Twilight Princess more than my own children...uh...
It is a great game, and I just don't see where the hate comes from