2018
See, the issue with Ultra Smash was never the gameplay. It was solid as is… but the content around it being shallow as dog water was.
Thankfully, Aces is pretty much the redemption arc for that game: The same gorgeous visuals with similar gameplay as before, now with new funky cool mechanics that ramp up the ante in a match. Like characters being able to pull a Quicksilver and go slow-mo to feasibly catch up with balls at a distance or insanely fast ones, special shots from Power Tennis return packing a kick to the groin, even letting you aim your stupid powerful shot after each character busts out a cool animation unique to them, there are higher stakes now your tennis racket can get shattered to pieces if your timing against powerful balls is slipping too often on its face, and it all just feels slicker, more frantic and more challenging than before. A few worthy sacrifices for the loss of the last game’s main one-off gimmick of “character go beeg for 40 secs weeee”.
And, more unique courts! I like these, with the context in the Adventure mode where Mario and co. head off to this dedicated island just for tennis antics. A few fun locales with cute gimmicks that just add to the chaos factor during a match… but we don’t talk Savage Sea.
It’s still somewhat lagging behind Power Tennis’ treasure trove of single-player content, because once you’re done with a neat Adventure Mode and a measly three Tournament cups, that’s pretty much it, you unlocked everything. It would’ve been awesome to select the mini-games exclusive to Adventure mode (like the Panel and Rally challenges) through the main menu, with the option to play as anyone from the goated roster in these, and add some replayability, y’ know? Same for the boss fights (I’m still processing a tennis game has these, but y’ know what, it works)! Or even some of the courts only found in Adventure Mode that, for some inexplicable reason, can’t be selected in Free Play mode.
… ok, lemme b*tch about Savage Sea for a sec. The ship’s mast being right in the middle of the damn court will be your worst enemy, and the Rally Challenge with Kamek on this court?… y’know that snotty kid from Barnyard that bullied cows by pushing over them? That’s what this stupid pole almost drove me to. 0/10, worst part of the game, would rather get slapped by a fish going turbo at 80 mph. Other than that… is a fun game!
Thankfully, Aces is pretty much the redemption arc for that game: The same gorgeous visuals with similar gameplay as before, now with new funky cool mechanics that ramp up the ante in a match. Like characters being able to pull a Quicksilver and go slow-mo to feasibly catch up with balls at a distance or insanely fast ones, special shots from Power Tennis return packing a kick to the groin, even letting you aim your stupid powerful shot after each character busts out a cool animation unique to them, there are higher stakes now your tennis racket can get shattered to pieces if your timing against powerful balls is slipping too often on its face, and it all just feels slicker, more frantic and more challenging than before. A few worthy sacrifices for the loss of the last game’s main one-off gimmick of “character go beeg for 40 secs weeee”.
And, more unique courts! I like these, with the context in the Adventure mode where Mario and co. head off to this dedicated island just for tennis antics. A few fun locales with cute gimmicks that just add to the chaos factor during a match… but we don’t talk Savage Sea.
It’s still somewhat lagging behind Power Tennis’ treasure trove of single-player content, because once you’re done with a neat Adventure Mode and a measly three Tournament cups, that’s pretty much it, you unlocked everything. It would’ve been awesome to select the mini-games exclusive to Adventure mode (like the Panel and Rally challenges) through the main menu, with the option to play as anyone from the goated roster in these, and add some replayability, y’ know? Same for the boss fights (I’m still processing a tennis game has these, but y’ know what, it works)! Or even some of the courts only found in Adventure Mode that, for some inexplicable reason, can’t be selected in Free Play mode.
… ok, lemme b*tch about Savage Sea for a sec. The ship’s mast being right in the middle of the damn court will be your worst enemy, and the Rally Challenge with Kamek on this court?… y’know that snotty kid from Barnyard that bullied cows by pushing over them? That’s what this stupid pole almost drove me to. 0/10, worst part of the game, would rather get slapped by a fish going turbo at 80 mph. Other than that… is a fun game!
1995
One has to scratch their head and ask why Nintendo never re-released any Virtual Boy games on the 3DS. Yeah the console itself might’ve been hot doodoo, but this lovely piece of kit had the stereoscopic 3D to improve at least a few of its games by a landslide, purely on the merit of not having to play ‘em on an actual Virtual Boy, ironically.
Heck, I’d take this over Mario Tennis Open on the same handheld, cause at least the VB game isn’t automated to the point of tedium.
Heck, I’d take this over Mario Tennis Open on the same handheld, cause at least the VB game isn’t automated to the point of tedium.
2016
Thanks to this game’s unlockable comics, the world can now rest knowing what Qbby is up to when not busy saving the world, with a trillion boxes then shattered… he beefs with the rectangle dude for the affection of his love interest, has vengeful exex who will make his life hell if the opportunity presents itself, and naively invaded Kirby’s bedroom and closet (to which I can only presume they then fought to the death before clearing the air over a jolly afternoon eating cake)
1999
These character models are too charming to say no to, I love ‘em, but dear lord, why does Donkey Kong look like he got thrown into a pencil sharpener then stung by a bee—
2013
A chicken lays out an egg onto a well in this game.
You get to control said newborn while still contained in its egg, falling at high speeds in this well for it to land on water, trying to prevent its untimely death by accidentally bumping into a slice of pizza that magically emerges from a stone wall, or a flying biscuit in said well.
And that’s just one of the ten objects you can throw into the well. Y’all ain’t ready for the lore behind the single water droplet.
You get to control said newborn while still contained in its egg, falling at high speeds in this well for it to land on water, trying to prevent its untimely death by accidentally bumping into a slice of pizza that magically emerges from a stone wall, or a flying biscuit in said well.
And that’s just one of the ten objects you can throw into the well. Y’all ain’t ready for the lore behind the single water droplet.
How is it that playing Alpine Skiing is oddly relaxing, and in what universe can I get my hands on an endless runner version with pre-generated tracks ala Minecraft worlds?
Do you think there’s a possibility that Cream is secretly not cool with Vector having a crush on her mom, and this is the main reason she applied to be a referee in the Olympics?
or am I just thinking too hard about the logistics of a 6-year-old cartoon rabbit being handed a gun for athletic events—
or am I just thinking too hard about the logistics of a 6-year-old cartoon rabbit being handed a gun for athletic events—
This game will NOT fuel the angry gamer’s rage-o-meter to the point of smashing their controller at the nearest unfortunate wall, not even close. Peach Showtime is not a difficult game, which isn’t bad by default, but you might crave a challenge here and there in the later plays. That said… dude, Peach bakes giant cakes with glee during a zombie-ish apocalypse? She lifts and UFO’s with her bare hands and throws ‘em like dodgeballs? And she has boss battles as a figure skater on ice?? Those are only SOME of the crazy fun scenarios Peach finds herself in at this theatre’s many plays, and there are others I’m actively holding myself back from spoiling to friends who might wanna play this game. It kind of has the spirit and “expect the unexpected” factor of a Kirby game on that front
I’m not sure how much a theoretical second playthrough would be compromised without that initial surprise factor, but at least on a first playthrough, Peach Showtime is very much carried by it’s charm, spectacle and presentation. So much so, I’m still mentally processing that I had more fun in the 2 hours of Peach’s short detective gig, than I had in the 12 hours that Detective Pikachu snatched away from my life. I’m serious—
I’m not sure how much a theoretical second playthrough would be compromised without that initial surprise factor, but at least on a first playthrough, Peach Showtime is very much carried by it’s charm, spectacle and presentation. So much so, I’m still mentally processing that I had more fun in the 2 hours of Peach’s short detective gig, than I had in the 12 hours that Detective Pikachu snatched away from my life. I’m serious—
2008
To its credit, it IS more functional than Sonic Free Riders. But I’m also the same madman who beat Sonic Free Riders’ campaign as a naive silly 9-year-old
1994
What dark magic did the fellas at Nintendo summon to craft a game this buttery smooth and ridiculously fun to control on what’s essentially a portable NES—
There are even Crash Bandicoot-like death animations for Mario here; such as my man getting flattened like paper then hovering for a bit— this doesn’t feel real and I’m so giddy that it is
There are even Crash Bandicoot-like death animations for Mario here; such as my man getting flattened like paper then hovering for a bit— this doesn’t feel real and I’m so giddy that it is
2012
Never did I imagine the Kid Icarus Uprising 3DS stand ever being summoned for help beyond the one game it was made for, until my left hand started feeling clunky halfway through Stage 3 of Liberation Maiden
I say that, yet I’m bummed they never made at least 10 sequels to this
I say that, yet I’m bummed they never made at least 10 sequels to this
2015
If Qbby is a cube, and Qbby can generate insentient cubes at will, does that mean those cubes are lifeless clones of Qbby
2023
For as long as I can remember since joining the Internet circa 2011, Geno pretty much became synonymous with this game anytime either one or the other was brought up for discussion. And yeah, Geno is indeed pretty neat…
But the universe sidelined the precious gift to the world that is Mallow so hard, man— Tell me this man doesn’t have one of the most adorable smiles you’ve ever seen, and I’ll fling 3 copies of The Little Panda Fighter on DVD right at ya
But the universe sidelined the precious gift to the world that is Mallow so hard, man— Tell me this man doesn’t have one of the most adorable smiles you’ve ever seen, and I’ll fling 3 copies of The Little Panda Fighter on DVD right at ya
There is a lot to appreciate in here and the original Abe’s Odyssee, from the delightfully somber art direction to the ingenious conglomerate of gameplay styles in one package (namely stealth, puzzle and 2D platforming), from Abe’s adorkable face to the dystopian commentary on real-world problems still prevalent to this very day.
But having a dedicated fart button is just one of those things you don’t take for granted in life, even if it’s only ever useful for a grand total of 10 seconds
But having a dedicated fart button is just one of those things you don’t take for granted in life, even if it’s only ever useful for a grand total of 10 seconds
2012
Going into this, I was expecting a relaxed, quirky little puzzle / job simulator game about sorting luggage at an airport. Level-5 also published Attack Of The Friday Monsters and the Professor Layton games, two IP's partially known for their quirky yet chilled vibes, so what could possibly go wrong?
- 2 hours and a half later -
Turns out, my buns got kicked harder here than in Sonic Frontiers' Final Horizon DLC, and the faceless manager is a natural at suplex-ing your confidence into mush, simply so through cold text bubbles of disappointment and frustration.
Would play again for the exhilaration and thrills.
- 2 hours and a half later -
Turns out, my buns got kicked harder here than in Sonic Frontiers' Final Horizon DLC, and the faceless manager is a natural at suplex-ing your confidence into mush, simply so through cold text bubbles of disappointment and frustration.
Would play again for the exhilaration and thrills.