Sk8more67's GameSpot Friend's Reviews Sk8more67's GameSpot Friend's Reviews Sk8more67's GameSpot Friend's Reviews en-us Copyright (c)1995-2013 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved. http://www.gamespot.com 20 Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:12:43 -0700 GameSpot Sk8more67's GameSpot Friend's Reviews http://img.gamespot.com/gamespot/shared/promos/misc/gs_logo.gif http://www.gamespot.com 135 40 Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:53:04 -0800 thenickster51 reviewed Punch-Out!! for the Wii... http://www.gamespot.com/punch-out/user-reviews/786047/platform/wii/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! is arguably the best boxing or even sports game ever created. However it is not a boxing simulator by any means. It relies heavily on pattern recognition, dodging attacks, and countering them. It also includes a fantastic cast of some of the most memorable characters in any game. But after Super Punch-Out!! for the SNES was released in 1994, there hasn't been a single Punch-Out!! since. But Nintendo and Canadian developer Next Level Games is changed that. In 2009, people saw the release of Punch-Out!! for the Wii, a faithful and familiar yet fresh reboot of the series. It is incredibly challenging and overall very fun.

You play as Little Mac, a scrawny 17 year old from Bronx, N.Y. rising up the ranks to try and become the world champion with the help of his coach and the former world champion, Doc Louis. The gameplay is very simple. You get put in the ring with another fighter and box until either scores a knockout, a TKO, or wins by decision. There are 3 rounds in each fight with 3 minutes each round. Between every round, you'll likely get advice from Doc Louis, but sometimes he won't say anything helpful. During the fight, Little Mac becomes slightly transparent so that you can the opponent's arms but at the same time, you can still see Little Mac. Each opponent telegraphs when they are going to attack by such methods as saying a phrase, winking their eye, raising their eyebrow, or simply stepping back to punch. They also flash red for a split second when they are going to attack indicating that you need to dodge or duck.

Dodging and ducking in this game is essential to this game. You're not going to get very far if you don't. If you dodge an attack, you can counterattack by alternating left and right punches until they become unstunned. Where you can punch depends on the character. If you're playing against someone like Glass Joe, you can punch him in the stomach and the head when he's stunned. If you're fighting against Mr. Sandman or King Hippo, you have to dodge, counterpunch once in the head, and then go for the stomach the rest.

Sometimes the enemy will taunt you somehow. That's your chance to punch them and earn a star. When you earn a star, you can execute a powerful uppercut called the star punch which gets more powerful the more stars you have (the max is 3). You also have a heart meter which is basically your stamina. You start the fight with often a good amount of hearts such as 40 but sometimes you get very little such as 7. If your punch gets blocked, a heart goes away. If you get hit, 3 hearts go away. If all of your hearts go away, Little Mac will become exhausted, turn pink, and not be able to attack for a while. However, if you dodge an attack, your hearts will come back.

If this all sounds familiar, it should. Punch-Out!! for the Wii mimics the style of the NES game. Most of the characters from the original return, as well as 2 from the SNES game (Aran Ryan and Bear Hugger), and an entirely new character called Disco Kid. All of the characters are based off of different stereotypes based on their nationalities. For example, Glass Joe, being French, is weak and cowardly. Piston Hondo, who is Japanese, has a high sense of honor and an obsession with sushi. Great Tiger, who is Indian, rides on magic carpets, wears a turban, and has magic powers. The list goes on and on. Every character is just as memorable as they were before, especially since there are voice actors that speak their native languages. As a result, the game oozes personality.

But this isn't same old Punch-Out!!. No way. After many attempts of trying to beat the world champion (who, in this case, is Mr. Sandman) and finally beating him, you have to defend your world champion title against the entire roster again with new moves, stronger defenses, better agility, and in some cases, weak spots are covered. For example, Glass Joe examines his weak chin, so in the title defense fight, he wears headgear and tries to fake you out by delaying some of his hooks. How sad is it that after you beat Sandman, you get your ass handed to you by Glass freaking Joe?

After that, you unlock the Last Stand mode, which is like an elimination mode. In this mode, you fight against randomly selected opponents (title defense fights) and if you lose three times, you will retire, in which career mode becomes unplayable unless you start a new file. There's no way to end or restart fights either so the only way to end the game, is through the HOME menu. You do get sent back to the career menu when the fight ends and you still haven't lost 3 times, but other than that, the HOME menu is the only way out. If you win 10 last stand matches, you unlock Champions mode, which can be played via Exhibition mode.

Exhibition mode lets you pick a fighter you've fought, either contender or title defense, and fight them with the option to complete challenges. You may have to knock someone out in 5 punches, win by TKO, and so on. Champions mode is basically the same except anyone can knock you down in 1 hit.

There's also, for the first time ever in a Punch-Out!! game, multiplayer. The multiplayer is a bit modified from the rest of the game, mainly because Punch-Out!! is a single player formula, but Next Level came up with some good ideas. In this mode, the attacks are delayed so it will give players a chance to dodge. As you fight, you have a gauge that will fill up as you hit the other player. If your gauge fills up, you will turn into an oversized monster called Giga Mac. The game will then retain the single player formula, with you controlling to viewable opponent. The mode is fun, but not a selling point. And it is a little baffling that the game doesn't support online, since it would've been a good idea, as split screen does not seem right for this kind of game. The developer did do a lot of work on the online for its last Wii game, Mario Strikers Charged, so why not put it in this game as well? No online doesn't ruin the game by any means, but it could've been added.

The visuals are clever and over-the-top. The two frame animation style of the original Punch-Out!! has been swapped for a 3D cel shaded style that oozes personality. The various animations for the characters, whether they are entering the ring or winning the fight, are spot on to their character, and not to mention downright clever and sometimes funny. There are detailed painted-like pictures for cutscenes introducing the fighters that, while they feel a bit rushed, are certainly not bad.

The music is brilliant. All of the classic themes are back with some awesome remixes, some of which are redone in a style suiting the opponent's nationality or personality when you're fighting. Von Kaiser's fighting music sounds like a big war band. Disco Kid's music sounds like a disco. There is also voice acting which is superb. Every voice sounds fitting for the character and every character speaks their native languages. My only problem with the voice acting is that Little Mac doesn't have any full-on dialogue. He only has a few grunts. This is a shame because the voice acting made every character come to life, even Doc Louis. Mac just seems lifeless.

The quality of the controls depend on what setup you use. The game allows you to use the Wii remote alone, the remote and nunchuck combination, or the Wii balance board in combination with either of the previously mentioned options. The balance board is bad. Really bad. It's supposed to be used for ducking and dodging, some of the most important functions of the game. It won't register any of your movements and is overall horrible. The remote and nunchuck are ok, but the motion controlled punches don't feel that fast. So, since the game mimics the NES design, the game is best played with the remote by itself, held sideways like an NES controller. The 1 and 2 buttons are used to punch left and right, respectively, left and right on the D-pad dodges, down on the D-pad ducks, up on the D-pad blocks, and holding up on the D-pad while punching punches in the face. The remote controls are very good and feel fast and responsive, especially since this is a game that requires very fast reflexes and almost split second response on the controller. Just don't waste your time with any of the other options as they don't work as well as the remote alone.

Punch-Out!! on the Wii is a fantastic revival of one of Nintendo's most cherished franchises. The game oozes personality, the visuals are amazingly clever, the music rocks, the voice acting is superb, the controls (remote) are excellent, and the gameplay is still fast and exciting. And not only is the game insanely challenging, but there are a lot of modes to blast through as well as the enjoyment of refighting every character, so this game will keep you busy for awhile. This game is essential to any Wii owner. In short, buy it.

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"thenickster51 reviewed Punch-Out!! for the Wii..." was posted by thenickster51 on Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:53:04 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/punch-out/user-reviews/786047/platform/wii/ Wed, 02 Nov 2011 22:23:36 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Sonic Generations for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/sonic-generations/user-reviews/778757/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

You might be aware of this already, but Sonic has not been doing well recently. After the Adventure titles, most 3D Sonic games have been terrible, or less terrible. In 2010, he started to regain his reputation, however, thanks to titles like Sonic and Sega All-Stars Racing, Sonic 4 Episode 1, and Sonic Colors. Now it is 2011, and Sonic is officially back at the top again. Sonic Generations is the best Sonic game in a decade.

Generations opens with Sonic's friends Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Espio, Charmy, Vector, and Blaze throwing Sonic a surprise birthday party. He is greeted with cheers, cake, and chili dogs by all of his friends. But a big purple monster called the Time Eater comes to the scene and captures Sonic's friends and traps them in past events Sonic has experienced. Sonic is thrown into limbo where he meets his younger self who was also captured by the time eater. The 2 Sonics have to relive those moments of their past in order to restore time and space, and save their friends. People should take note that throughout the game, the characters are aware of their past adventures. For example, after completing Modern Green Hill and Chemical Plant, Sonic and Tails reflect on the levels. Tails comments on the pink water in the latter as making him nervous and long-time fans should know why. However, these are rare and compared to Sonic Colors which had fantastic writing and the fact that Generations is an anniversary title makes it feel like a missed opportunity. As a result, the story itself is underwhelming. This would've been especially cool if Crisis City was reflected on.

Sonic Generations is the culmination of 2 decades of Sonic in one game - minus the parts that sucked. There are two parts to every stage. Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic. Classic Sonic gameplay is reminiscent to the Genesis titles with a heavier emphasis on platforming than speed. They evoke a feeling of nostalgia into one who grew up with the classic titles. Modern Sonic gameplay is reminiscent to newer titles like the HD Sonic Unleashed daytime levels and Sonic Colors. And like Unleashed and Colors, these stages feel like how current gen Sonic games should be. They control a bit awkward at times, though.

The real treat of this game are the levels themselves. Every level is a reimagining of a level from a past Sonic game. There's Green Hill, Chemical Plant, Sky Sanctuary, Speed Highway, City Escape, Seaside Hill, Crisis City, Rooftop Run, and even Planet Wisp. What sucks is that there are only these levels. It would've been nice to add more levels. This results in a short period of 5-6 hours of gameplay. I hope that we can get some DLC for other levels of Sonic's past.

There are also boss battles. In this game, you'll fight the Death Egg, Perfect Chaos, the Egg Dragoon, and the Time Eater. Though they are on the short side and are a bit of a disappointment compared to the overall epicness of the game. The Time Eater has to be the worst final boss in Sonic history. Your friends won't shut up about warning you,(take a shot every time they say homing shot or be careful), and it's hard to hit it because it jumps back almost every time you're near its core. And if you're going for the can't touch this achievement, then be prepared to rage.

After a stage has been completed, there are challenges for each Sonic in each stage for you to complete. Some are fun, but some including the ones with Sonic's friends are annoying. And while the completion of at least a few challenges are mandatory, there is a wide variety of choices to select from so you can just do the good ones.

Just like HD Unleashed, the game runs on the Hedgehog Engine, and let me just say that Generations is a visually striking game. It is truly a marvel to look at and it looks even better while you are in motion.

Another cool aspect of Generations is the music. All of the music are remixes of music of past games' levels. The remixes are awesome and also give one a feeling of nostalgia as they look back on the first time they ran Sonic through Green Hill. There are some weak tracks like Modern Chemical Plant, Classic City Escape, and Classic Planet Wisp, but everything else is really good. The voice acting, like Colors, is 70% less annoying.

The controls are decent but not perfect. It's not that the buttons are unresponsive, but movement can feel slippery with Classic Sonic, and stiff while boosting with Modern Sonic. For Classic Sonic, you move with the left analog stick, jump with A, duck with B, and X to spin dash. As it reflects gameplay of the classic titles, control is simple. For Modern Sonic, you move with the left analog stick, jump and homing attack with A, duck or slide with B, boost with X, quick step with the bumpers, and drift with the triggers. As mentioned earlier, the movement while boosting feels stiff when turning and bumping into a wall or such can stop the action dead in its tracks.

Even with all that said, Sonic Generations is an excellent game and is one of the best Sonic games ever made. I think the main problem of the game is the issue with control in some cases, but everything else is just a nitpick, really. It feels refreshing to say that Sonic is good again, and we can only hope he can maybe get better as he revives. To put it simply, Sonic Generations is the pinnacle of all modern Sonic games. This game is, without a doubt, one of the best things you can spend your money on this year.

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"thenickster51 reviewed Sonic Generations for the Xbox 360..." was posted by thenickster51 on Wed, 02 Nov 2011 22:23:36 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/sonic-generations/user-reviews/778757/platform/xbox360/ Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:57:03 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped for the PlayStation... http://www.gamespot.com/crash-bandicoot-3-warped/user-reviews/776117/platform/ps/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

Before 2.5D platformers were made (New Super Mario Bros.), there was Crash Bandicoot. This was Sony's attempt at a mascot to compete with Mario and Sonic, but he didn't catch on as well as the plumber and hedgehog. That's not to say his games are horrible. Far from. This game is definitely the best in the series, but it reminds me of how bad Crash is doing nowadays. This game has some outstanding level design, solid controls, fitting music, and excellent voice acting.

Following after the events of Crash Bandicoot 2, the Cortex Vortex, a ship belonging to Crash's nemesis, is falling to earth after being shot by N. Brio's laser. The ship falls onto a shrine on a Hawaiian island and destroys it. A tiki mask called Uka-Uka flies out of it laughing menacingly. Meanwhile, on N. Sanity island, the home of Crash Bandicoot, Crash, his sister Coco, and a friendly tiki mask called Aku-Aku find out that Uka-Uka is free. As they rush inside, Aku-Aku tells them that Uka-Uka is his evil twin brother who he locked away in a prison to prevent making trouble. While this is going on, Uka-Uka is yelling at Dr. Cortex for losing the 25 power crystals that he was supposed to obtain to conquer the world. The crystals were not just spread in different areas of the world, but in different time periods. With the help of an old friend of Cortex, Dr. N. Tropy, the master of time, they have created a time machine called the Time Twister to get the crystals back, and it's up to Crash, Coco, and Aku-Aku to get the crystals before Cortex and Uka-Uka do.

The Crash Bandicoot series has been known for combining 3D platforming with the linearity of sidescrollers. That's still present in here. The goal in each level is to make it to the end with a power crystal. They are found before the end of the goal. There are 25 levels with crystals plus 5 boss levels, and 5 secret levels containing only gems making a total of 35 levels. Gems are found when breaking all of the levels boxes and crates or finding a secret in the level. The crates contain either wumpa fruit, extra lives, nothing, or Aku-Aku masks. Wumpas are similar to coins in Super Mario Bros. Every 100 wumpa fruit give you an extra life. Aku-Aku masks will give you an extra hit point and 3 will give you temporary invincibility. If you have no masks, you will die in one hit.

There is a variety of scenarios in this game. Some levels will see you flying a plane, playing in a motorcycle race, riding on a tiger on the Great Wall of China, riding a jet ski and there's much more. There is not one dull objective in the game. There is also variety in the locations. There are fairy tale villages, underwater levels, the Great Wall of China levels, the Stone Age levels, tropical ocean levels for the jet ski, Arabian levels, the desert roads for the motorcycle races, Egyptian times, 1940s plane battlefields and futuristic levels. The boss fights also have different have varied locations. There is a Roman Colosseum, the Ice Ages, a clockwork arena, outer space, and a lab.

At the beginning of the game, one area with 5 levels is open. After the levels are cleared, the levels go away and a boss level appears. After completing the boss fights, you are awarded a permanent power-up, and the levels come back if you want to replay them in the future. Afterwards, a new area opens with 5 more levels to explore. These boss fights are fairly easy at first, but some of the later ones (particularly N. Gin) can frustrate you as you die again and again.

There are 5 power-ups for the 5 bosses in the game. There is the super body slam, which will replace the body slam ability with a powerful slam with a short blast radius. There is the double jump which is self-explanatory, the tornado spin, which replaces the spin attack with a longer spin attack and lets you float if you're in the air. There is the fruit bazooka which lets you pull out a launcher that can kill almost anything with a wumpa fruit. Lastly, there is the running power-up, which allows you to sprint.

Graphically speaking, wow. This is easily one the best looking games on the Playstation. The animations are fluid, the worlds are glowing with detail and color, and even the lip syncing looks very accurate.

The music is very good and is just as varied as everything else in this game. It really fits the setting of the level. The sound effects are wacky and humorous. The voice acting is excellent from people such as Clancy Brown as Cortex and Uka-Uka and Mel Winkler as Aku-Aku.

The controls are top notch quality and very responsive. The X button lets you jump, the square button lets you spin, the O button lets you crouch, the triangle button lets you see your inventory, the R1 button is the same as O, the R2 lets you sprint, the L2 lets you use the bazooka, X then O will do the body slam, O while moving will let you slide, and like Mario, he can do many moves with different combinations of buttons.

If there was one played I played the hell out of on the Playstation as a kid, it was this game. I had my fun with Spyro and especially with Crash 2, but this game brought the most entertainment. It's humorous, wacky beautiful to look at, very fun to play, and is overall a very awesome game. A must-play.

Get the full article at GameSpot

]]> http://www.gamespot.com/crash-bandicoot-3-warped/user-reviews/776117/platform/ps/ Sat, 03 Sep 2011 16:04:04 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Star Fox 64 for the Nintendo 64... http://www.gamespot.com/star-fox-64/user-reviews/773763/platform/n64/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

As a gamer, I have been a hardcore Nintendo fan since the days of Super Mario 64. I have never played the original Star Fox, but this was my first Star Fox game and so far the only one I've played. And this game is awesome. The single player alone is reason enough to buy a Nintendo 64. It's addictive, colorful, and intense. And the overall scenario of the game lets you feel like you are in a Star Wars battle.

The plot is that the Evil overlord Andross has declared war in the galaxy known as the Lylat System. It is up to Fox McCloud, Falco Lombardi, Peppy Hare, and Slippy Toad, otherwise known as Star Fox, to stop him and save the Lylat System. This is what you get when you start the game, but as you goe through various levels depending on what path you take, the story intensifies in-game giving different possibilities on what could happen during the war as Star Fox charges towards Andross's home planet, Venom. This is neat as I haven't seen any other game do this and it also doesn't interrupt the overall action.

Star Fox 64 is a rail shooter. You take control of Fox McCloud in his ship, the Arwing, on a set path and shoot every enemy you see. This may not sound like much, but it is addictive as heroin as you're trying to beat your high scores. Speaking of that, for most of every enemies you kill, you get one point. You can also use a lock-on shot that, while is self-explanatory, it can also give you more points as it has a blast radius that kills enemies if they're grouped. This adds to the number of enemies you have killed the same number minus one. While all of this is going on, your wingmen, the other members of the Star Fox team, are just going to bring you to your doom. They tend to get in trouble with enemies and they always ask YOU to help and save their sorry a****. This can get annoying but doesn't become a problem until you're overwhelmed with enemies which doesn't happen a lot when they need your help.

There are power-ups in the game such as health, laser upgrades, smart bombs, health bar increases, and extra lives. The health is also self-explanatory. The laser upgrade upgrades your green single column laser to a green dual column lasers and another upgrades to blue dual column lasers which are the most powerful. Smart bombs increase your smart bomb count. Health bar increases increase your bar by a quarter if you get 3 and 3 more get you an extra life.

What's unique about this game is the paths you can take. In about every level, there are 2 paths to take. An easy and a hard path. These paths determine what kind of ending you'll get. You want to get the hard as it is epic and more satisfying but harder to complete. When you reach the end of the level, you'll most likely find a boss. For the first time around, these bosses are difficult. After playing for a while, though, you will find some of these bosses to be relatively easy, but I still get stumped on some of the harder levels. The cool part about this is, no matter WHAT it is, it could be a bioweapon, a robot, or whatever, and this is one of my favorite parts of the game, the bosses ALWAYS explode when defeated. And I'm not talking some ordinary explosion like any other game, these, even for N64 standards, are some of the best explosions in any game ever. My favorite explosion is from the Macbeth alternate ending.

The music is awesome. There is a good mix of calm and intense war tunes. There is also voice acting in this game and for the most part, it is very well done. Except for Slippy. I want to punch him or her, whatever it is judging by the charcter's extremely annoying voice.

The controls are flawless. A is to shoot, B is to use a smart bomb, Z is to tilt the ship left, R is to tilt the ship right, C-up is to change between 1st and 3rd person perspectives, C-left is to boost, C-down is to brake, and you can use combinations of the buttons to perform all sorts of pilot moves but the controls are perfectly responsive.

One nitpick I have is that there is no level select option. If you want to play a level you like, you have to play through the beginning of the game again. Another thing is the flight restriction, especially in the Star Wolf dogfights. They will sometimes fly above you, and you can't shoot them due to the restrictions.

However, Star Fox 64 is the best rail shooter I've ever played. It has an arcade feel that makes you want to replay over and over. If you own a Nintendo 64, this game is essential.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed Star Fox 64 for the Nintendo 64..." was posted by thenickster51 on Sat, 03 Sep 2011 16:04:04 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/star-fox-64/user-reviews/773763/platform/n64/ Mon, 15 Aug 2011 20:33:30 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Bros. for the NES... http://www.gamespot.com/classic-nes-series-super-mario-bros/user-reviews/772610/platform/nes/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

Things weren't looking too good for the video game industry in '83 mostly because of the horrible E.T. and Pac-Man port to the Atari 2600. However, following the crash of '83 and ending it, came a new console from a new company called the Nintendo Entertainment System or NES for short. Along with the system was the game Super Mario Bros. It depicted an Italian plumber going through the Mushroom Kingdom trying to stop the king of the Koopa tribe from his reign of terror on the kingdom and to rescue the princess who he captured. The game quickly became the most popular game ever and was so good that the crash was over by the time the game was released. To this day it holds a special place in gamer's hearts and for many great reasons. It's the pioneer platformer and MANY games to come would try to copy the style and formula.

The plot is that a tribe of turtles called the Koopa Troopas have invaded the Mushroom Kingdom and have taken over the peaceful land. King Koopa has captured Princess Toadstool, the ruler, and taken her prisoner. An Italian plumber named Mario must go out to save her and the kingdom. This plot style with the princess being kidnapped would be a formula for all Mario games to come.

The gameplay was different than most games back then. It is a sidescrolling adventure that requires you to get to the end of the level and touch the flagpole to finish the level. Along the way, you can collect power-ups and kill enemies as well as find secrets. The enemies consist of goombas, koopas, plants, lakitus, spinies, and King Koopa. Except for spinies, King Koopa, and plants, each enemy can be killed by jumping on them. It's a simple game but it has a charm that can't be matched.

The power-ups are simple. If you get hit by an enemy, you die. The Super Mushroom lets you take another hit and makes you grow bigger. The fire flower lets you fire fireballs at enemies making it much easier to do so. What's a little disappointing about this game is that if you get hit when you have the flower, you go back to regular Mario instead of Super Mario, a trait that Nintendo would omit in future Mario games.

Super Mario Bros. is one of the best games ever and still to this day remains a piece of history and a really fun game.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Bros. for the NES..." was posted by thenickster51 on Mon, 15 Aug 2011 20:33:30 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/classic-nes-series-super-mario-bros/user-reviews/772610/platform/nes/ Sun, 14 Aug 2011 22:40:47 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Bros. 3 for the NES... http://www.gamespot.com/super-mario-bros-3/user-reviews/772551/platform/nes/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

All consoles have their signature games. On the N64, you had Super Mario 64. On the GameCube, you had Metroid Prime. On the Wii, you had Super Mario Galaxy 2. On the Playstation consoles, you had Final Fantasy VII, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and Metal Gear Solid 4. On the Xbox consoles, you had Halo 2 and Halo 3. On Dreamcast, there was SoulCalibur. Then on Super NES, there was Super Mario World. Going back to the NES days, there was the masterpiece we all know and love known as Super Mario Bros. 3. This game is incredibly huge in comparison to other NES games and has a LOT of secrets and a CRAZY variety of power-ups making it one of the best Mario games ever made and the best game on the NES.

The plot is that the 7 koopalings have stolen the magic wands of the kings of the 7 worlds neighboring the Mushroom Kingdom, turned the kings into animals, and taken over the kingdoms. Mario has to stop them and restore peace to the lands. While distracted by this, Bowser kidnaps Peach again behind Mario's back. So while Mario has his hands full, the game isn't plot heavy, but it's a NES game AND a Mario game, so who are you to complain?

The gameplay is the same as Super Mario Bros. and the Lost Levels. You get to the end of the level while collecting power-ups and coins along the way, occasionally find a secret or two, stomp on some goombas and koopa troopas, its the classic Mario formula. When you get to the end of the level, there is a box which switching 3 panels and to finish the level, you have to touch the box. When you touch the box, you get a card. A mushroom, a flower, or a star. When you get 3 cards, you get an extra life. When you get 3 mushrooms, you get 2 extra lives. When you get 3 flowers you get 3 extra lives. When you get 3 stars, you get 5 extra lives. It's not as satisfying initially as sliding down the flagpole, but it's rewarding getting those extra lives.

As mentioned before and as expected from a Mario game, there are power-ups. This game hosts some of the craziest power-ups in Mario history. You have the classic Super Mushroom and the Fire Flower. A new power-up is the Super Leaf. This will turn Mario into a raccoon and let him fly, glide, and attack with your tail. The Frog suit will let you swim in multiple directions and is a real treat to have for underwater levels as it makes them much easier. The Tanooki suit, which is supposed to return in Super Mario 3D Land, lets you do everything the Super Leaf does, but also lets you turn into a statue for a little while so enemies can't hurt you. Very weird, but very cool and useful. The Hammer Bros. suit will turn you into a Hammer Bros. and will let you kill even thwomps and boos with your hammers. This is by far my favorite in the game and is very rare and it makes it all the more painful when you lose it.

The soundtrack is memorable and one of the prototype Mario soundtracks to be used in later games like Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario 3D Land. The songs are those kinds where you just randomly start humming them out of nowhere and people look at you thinking, "what the hell?" But you don't know they think you're weird and you keep humming those songs because they are some of the best songs in a Mario game.

Super Mario Bros. 3 was one of the first games I ever played along with the first two games and 64. I thought it was awesome then and I still think it is one of my all-time favorites. The game takes a formula that was a groundbreaking success and expands it into something masterful. You are not a gamer unless you have played this game. Simple as that.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Bros. 3 for the NES..." was posted by thenickster51 on Sun, 14 Aug 2011 22:40:47 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/super-mario-bros-3/user-reviews/772551/platform/nes/ Mon, 08 Aug 2011 19:38:14 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Sonic Unleashed for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/sonic-unleashed/user-reviews/772200/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 8.0.

Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the most recognized mascots of all time next to Mario. But ever since his transition to the world of 3-D, the hedgehog just hasn't been the same. He has been criticised for having lackluster stories, controls, camera systems, and the HUGE cast of supporting characters. The hedgehog's adventure to save the world is actually quite decent. Sonic Unleashed captures Sonic's signature speed but has a SERIOUS flaw that keeps this game from being almost perfect. Nighttime.

The game opens with a gorgeous and epic cutscene that sets up the storyline. The plot is that Dr. Robotnik is at it again to conquer earth. Sonic tries to stop him in his space station but is captured while in Super form. Dr. Robotnik's machine that captured him is also connected to a laser. He reverses the power of the Chaos Emeralds that Sonic used to transform. He uses the dark energy to fire a laser onto the earth. It splits it into 7 pieces for each continent. Doing this also awakens a powerful beast that lives in the core called Dark Gaia. The dark energy also transforms Sonic into a werewolf. He is then thrown back to earth and lands on some furry creature. The creature doesn' t remember anything and Sonic decides to help him find his memory.

The gameplay is fast-paced and really fun. I, of course, am talking about the daytime stages. These are when Sonic is at his trademark speed and can actually run faster than the speed of sound. The goal for both counter-parts are to reach the goal ring. A new feature is the Sonic Boost. As long as you keep getting rings, you can constantly keep running as fast as possible. Another new feature is the quick step. You can step to the left or right without slowing down. There are also quick time interactions which can be hard to initiate at times. The daytime stages are really fun to play. These stages are short, but they are the best part of the game.

Then there's the at times fun, tedious, and long nighttime levels. Gone is the speed of Sonic replaced by a bunch a brawling sections. Now you have to fight through the levels sometimes in a style similar to games like Double Dragon. This is cool at first but its the same thing over and over again. Even the fight music, while it is an upbeat and catchy tune, comes on every time you encounter an enemy that's not a boss. You can attack using a wide range of combinations of the X and Y buttons that let you different moves. Enemies will range from minions of Dark Gaia, to minions of Dr. Robotnik. If the enemy's health is low or if they are looking away from you, you can perform a quick time interaction called a critical attack which, with quick instincts and pressing the right buttons, you will kill them instantly with style. The nighttime stages require a lot of platforming and use of the werehog's strechy arms. You can use them to climb, swing, and pull levers. While it's nice to see some variety to the regular Sonic gameplay, these stages last for more than 10 minutes long while the fun daytime stages last for only about 3 to 5 minutes. The nighttime stages tend to get really repetitive and boring after about 5 minutes.

The graphics are beautiful and detailed. These graphics could even compare to games like Super Mario Galaxy.

The soundtrack is one of the best in a Sonic game. There are different themes for each world-based level. The only problem is the fight theme for the werehog which comes on EVERY time you encounter a non-boss enemy and it really gets on your nerves after a while. The best track is the final boss theme. It is an orchestrated epic and is one of the best final boss tracks ever.

Sonic Unleashed is a great game that is underrated and deserves more praise than it got. Although those nighttime levels are dissapointing, the daytime stages are exciting and fast-paced. If you want a game with only the daytime stages and no nighttime stages, you just have to wait for Sonic Generations.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed Sonic Unleashed for the Xbox 360..." was posted by thenickster51 on Mon, 08 Aug 2011 19:38:14 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/sonic-unleashed/user-reviews/772200/platform/xbox360/ Mon, 08 Aug 2011 18:36:04 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed New Super Mario Bros. Wii for the Wii... http://www.gamespot.com/new-super-mario-bros-wii/user-reviews/772197/platform/wii/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

I bought New Super Mario Bros. Wii the day it came out, right when the store opened. I played it with 4 players and it was worth the wait. It not only increases the length and challenge of the DS game, but the co-op mode takes it to new heights.

The story is that on her birthday, Peach is kidnapped AGAIN by the koopalings. Lucky you, you have to save her. Not much to the story, but then again, when was the last time you played a Mario game just for the story? (excluding the RPG series.)

Gameplay is similar to classic Mario games. Get to the end and touch the flagpole. This is not the only goal, however. There are 3 Star Coins scattered across each level and are needed for 100% completion. New power-ups are included, such as the Propeller Suit which lets you fly in the air for a while, and the Penguin Suit which lets you throw iceballs, just like the improved and returning Ice Flower from Super Mario Galaxy, slide on ice, and have better swimming abilities. Returning from other Mario games are the Fire Flower, the Mushroom, and the already mentioned Ice Flower. The graphics were a little modest for what the the Wii is capable of. (Super Mario Galaxy comes to mind.) Although they were colorful, there could've been more detailed backrounds concerning specific worlds. The game itself was harder than the DS game but it wasn't too hard, so that's good.

The biggest addition to the game is the multiplayer. At times it can be very fun to play. But when you're being serious about getting 100%, it can be very frustrating to play. If you're serious about completing the game, play alone. If you want to just f*** around, get some friends. Its the most chaotic multiplayer experience since GoldenEye 007. There are also two other multiplayer specific modes called "Free for All" and "Coin Battle". Free for All is when you simply replay a level. Coin Battle is where you compete for coins and make it to the flag with the most coins.

All together, this game was one of the best Mario games I ever played. It has that nostalgic Mario feeling with a fresh new twist. Multiplayer is best avoided if you're serious and it is also recommended if you just want to have fun. Wii owners should give this one a go.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed New Super Mario Bros. Wii for the Wii..." was posted by thenickster51 on Mon, 08 Aug 2011 18:36:04 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/new-super-mario-bros-wii/user-reviews/772197/platform/wii/ Thu, 04 Aug 2011 21:06:13 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Call of Duty: Black Ops for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-black-ops/user-reviews/771908/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 4.5.

Other than remarkable games such as GoldenEye, Perfect Dark, and the Halo series, I'm not much into First Person Shooters. I have been playing Call of Duty games such as Modern Warfare 2 and World at War, however because my friends have them. While World at War was a good game and Modern Warfare 2 could've had more variety, Treyarch released the seventh game in the series, and it seems that Call of Duty is lacking more and more variety every entry. Black Ops is a perfect example as it lacks one very important element: fun. Multiplayer is monotonous and repetitive, the campaign, which is pretty exciting, is too short, but Zombies is where the game really shines and is the only reason i still have the damn game.

The plot of the campaign is that a soldier who is captured named Alex Mason is being interrogated for things he can't remember. Most of the time you will play as him in his flashbacks as he is being questioned. While most parts are very intense that include slo-mo breaches, crashing through windows, sneaking behind guards and knifing them, and much more, the whole experience is too short.

The multiplayer is the worst and weakest spot in the game. As there are many game modes to choose from, most of them are just recycled from other modes only with bigger or smaller teams or no respawning or spawn delay and other very small tweaks. This is very disappointing due to other great games such as Halo 3 or GoldenEye having over lots of varieties and combinations of possible multiplayer deathmatches. So after a few games, you'll be guaranteed to get bored. And when you enter a game, it's almost impossible to get a kill due to annoying other players camping or noob tubing which, thankfully, isn't as overpowered as in Modern Warfare 2.

Then there's the best part of the game and the reason Black Ops isn't a complete failure. Zombies. You grab a friend or 2 or 3 or play by yourself and engage in some major zombie a** kicking. It is boatloads of fun and is in a wave or round style. This is about the only part of the entire game that offers plenty of variety. The map's scenarios offer different gameplay styles. Kino der Toten is like a throwback to World at War, Five has the thief, Ascension has rockets, landers, and space monkeys, Call of the Dead has freezing water and a near invincible super zombie with a Thor-like hammer, Shangri-La has jungle and native-like traps and a minecart, and who knows what the new Moon will be like? Each map offers at least one new mechanic to add to your zombie slaying fun.

Bottom line: Black Ops is not what I expected it to be. I thought this game had a lot of potential that it didn't live up to. It's not a horrible game like say Superman 64 but unless you absolutely LOVE zombies, do yourself a favor and stay away from this otherwise broken game.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed Call of Duty: Black Ops for the Xbox 360..." was posted by thenickster51 on Thu, 04 Aug 2011 21:06:13 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-black-ops/user-reviews/771908/platform/xbox360/ Tue, 02 Aug 2011 19:31:57 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels for the Famicom Disk System... http://www.gamespot.com/super-mario-bros-the-lost-levels/user-reviews/771731/platform/famicomds/ ...and gave it a 9.0!

Super Mario Bros.'s popularity led it to spawn MANY sequels and spin-offs. The US first one was an adaption of on older Japanese game called Doki Doki Panic. Nintendo of America gave the game a Mario makeover and released it as Super Mario Bros. 2. It was not until recently Americans got to play the original game via Virtual Console. While the Lost Levels has that nostalgic Mario feeling, the insane and punishing difficulty prevent it from being as good as the first game and puts hard Mario games like Super Mario Sunshine look like an educational game.

The gameplay is similar to the original. Make it to the end of the level and touch the flagpole. The first difference you'll instantly see is that the 2-player mode is gone and replaced by character selections. The first is Mario Game and the other, Luigi Game. The difference between the two is that Luigi jumps higher than Mario and has poor traction like he's on ice. So if you want to make an already punishingly difficult game harder, play as Luigi.

Nearly everything from the first game is in the Lost Levels. You got the power-ups, the mushroom, the fire flower, the starman, and the 1-up mushroom. If still the game isn't hard enough, the addition of the poison mushroom will tick you off. Touching it will do the same thing as touching an enemy and you'll end up confusing it with a regular mushroom and die.

The graphics are a little bit updated from the original. The ground is more detailed and doesn't look like blocks, the clouds have eyes, and there's detail with any sudden hazards like the windstorm, which will push you back.

The main downside of the game, is that it's way too freaking hard. Overdoings with the level designs, random windstorms, hammer bros. that CHARGE you, BACKWARDS warp zones, trampolines that send you flying too high, too much use of invisible blocks, I could go on and on. But even if you are a hardcore veteran gamer, such as myself, the extreme difficulty is a pain in the a** and is hard to forgive.

Even with the brutal challenge in this game, The Lost Levels is a good game and the true successor to the superb original. If you suck badly at video games, don't bother with this one. But masters of the original and veteran players should take a look.

Get the full article at GameSpot

]]> http://www.gamespot.com/super-mario-bros-the-lost-levels/user-reviews/771731/platform/famicomds/ Sun, 31 Jul 2011 22:32:04 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Galaxy 2 for the Wii... http://www.gamespot.com/super-mario-galaxy-2/user-reviews/771616/platform/wii/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

They said it couldn't be done. People began to doubt Nintendo at E3 2009. But they took a concept that was already absolutely mind-blowing and turned it into something godly. Enter Super Mario Galaxy 2, the sequel to the critically acclaimed Wii classic. This game doesn't do anything in terms of innovation or originality, and does lack the impact Super Mario Galaxy had, but the way all of the elements of the game are presented and executed from the tight control, to the varied gameplay, to a flawless camera make it the best game on Wii, the best Mario game, the best game this generation, and is the best game since The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. In fact, it might be even better. It's that good.

The plot is kept simpler than the first game but, then again, Mario isn't really a story driven franchise, is it? It actually forgets what happened in the original Galaxy and starts all over again. Peach invites Mario to the castle to watch shooting stars. On the way there, he sees a Luma who is probably lost. He gets a liking for Mario and gives him the power to spin. When he gets to the castle, Bowser who is now the size of a planet, kidnaps Peach and carries her to space. The Lumas, who were there with Mario's Luma, make a launch star and send Mario to a space mechanic named Lubba. He has a planetoid shaped ship that runs on power stars and since Bowser stole them, it can't move. Mario found one and gave it to Lubba. In thanks, he redesigned the ship to look like Mario's face and called it the Starship Mario. Mario being the new captain of the ship must find those power stars. I know it's not much, but Shigeru Miyamoto stated himself that he wanted little story as possible.

Gameplay is similar to that of its predecessor. There's spherical worlds with gravitational pulls and black holes and star bits and launch stars and everything from the original Galaxy. The crazy, new level designs are where the game shines though. They make for plenty replay value as well as the even more varied objectives to get the power stars. Speaking of which, there are 40+ entirely new galaxies to explore with new objectives to boot. So don't fall into the trap thinking this is just a sequel. This game has way more new than anything else.

And If the new variety of objectives doesn't cut it, then the new power-ups will. first off is Yoshi. He controls better than ever and can swallow almost anything. He also gets 3 new power-ups for his exclusive use. The dash pepper lets him run at exhilarating speeds. The blimp fruit lets him float like a balloon. And the bulb berry lets him see invisible ground. Mario himself gets 3 new power-ups. The cloud flower which lets him create cloud platforms in mid-air, the rock mushroom which lets him roll like a giant boulder to crash into obstacles, and the drill which lets him dig through dirt. Some power-ups return from the original Galaxy, like the bee suit, the boo mushroom, and the fire flower.

The game runs on the same engine as the original game so you're not going to see a major difference or change in the graphics. That's not saying much though. You still can't help but to drool over these gorgeous visuals. Much like in the first game, the characters animate fluidly, there's advanced water and lighting effects, there is a ton of detail poured into even the little things. If there is one difference from the original Galaxy, the levels in this game are more colorful and vibrant. In the first game, it captured the feeling of being in space with its dark worlds. But in this one, there's less of that and more happy-looking worlds and colors and I think I like it better as it delivers more of that Mario charm.

As with the first game and every Mario game before, control is spectacular and very tight and responsive. You have traditional analog control of Mario, but at the same time, you utilize the Wii remote mainly by pointing at the screen to collect star bits and shaking to spin Mario. But this game doesn't abuse the remote like some other games on the Wii. You will use the remote in unique ways but you don't have that gimmicky feeling that the remote has been pushed upon you just because it's there.

Gone is the confusing hub world from the original game and replaced with a world map similar to Super Mario Bros. 3 or New Super Mario Bros. It's quick, simple, and it works. When not at the world map, you're bound to be tooling around on the Starship Mario. Running around getting used to the controls and walking upside-down is easier than ever.

Also from New Super Mario Bros. Wii is the Cosmic Guide. Whenever you die a bunch of times, you will have the option to have Rosalina show you and complete the level for you. She will get you a bronze star though. You have to do it yourself in order for it to count. This is helpful to newer players, but veteran players will curse themselves for having the game trying to help them beat a level.

Returning from the original is the multiplayer but receives some major and much-needed upgrades. The second person can now kill enemies ands well as grab coins and power-ups. It's still not necessary to have 2 players but it is a neccessary upgrade.

The soundtrack is also better than the original's. It is once again fully orchestrated. and it sounds amazing. It mostly contains most of the old Mario songs remixed and they sound better than ever. Even in the very last level there's songs from the original Galaxy. You also have new songs in which they all perfectly fit the mood.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 wholly exceeded my expectations and is probably my favorite game of all time. I'm not like that either. I have been playing video games for over 10 years and I tend to stick with the classics like Super Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time, but this one blew my head off. Gee, if there is a game that can be better than the greatest game of all time, it would be this. I should also note that this is the true 25th anniversary title for Mario. Unlike Mario All-Stars for Wii, this game shows the legacy and culmination of 25 years of gaming with the world's most famous gaming character in one masterful game. With this amazing package you get the perfect game with all elements nearly flawless that lasts weeks to finish entirely. It also took everything that made the original a classic and made them even better. Few games are this polished. I don't give a damn if you have to pay $199 to buy a Wii and spend another $50 on a copy of the game, but if you haven't played this incredible game, you are missing out on the ride of your life and one of the finest gaming accomplishments in the past 15 years.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Galaxy 2 for the Wii..." was posted by thenickster51 on Sun, 31 Jul 2011 22:32:04 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/super-mario-galaxy-2/user-reviews/771616/platform/wii/ Sun, 31 Jul 2011 20:22:10 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii... http://www.gamespot.com/super-mario-galaxy/user-reviews/771601/platform/wii/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

Since the launch of the Nintendo Wii, there was specifically one game that everyone wanted to play. Super Mario Galaxy depicted Mario's adventures in space. From watching demos at E3 2006, it was a game that everyone had to have. In 2007, the game was released. Super Mario Galaxy is not only one of the best platformers out there, but the new space scenario adds so many new elements to the standard star-snatching jumping and running Mario is known for.

The game begins with Peach inviting you to her castle to watch shooting stars as they fall every 100 years. Answering to this, the Mushroom Kingdom throws a Star Festival to celebrate. As Mario is walking towards the castle, Bowser along with an airship fleet kidnap her and her whole castle and drag it up to space. His plan is to create his own super powerful galaxy smack in the middle of the Milky Way. Mario tries to stop him, but is catapulted across the cosmos and wakes up on a small planet. On there, he meets an enchantress named Rosalina along with her star companions, the lumas. She watches the stars and travels across the cosmos in a ship called the comet observatory. Since Bowser took the power stars however, it is immobile. Then Mario gains the ability to spin thanks to her Luma and sets off on a journey to recover the stars.

The reason why Super Mario Galaxy is so good, is the amount of killer and creative level designs that go from topsy-turvy planets to even side-scrolling areas. The gameplay should feel familiar to fans of Super Mario 64 and Sunshine. You can triple jump, long jump, backwards somersault, wall jump, and much more. The new part is that most of the time, the rules of physics won't apply. So you can now walk upside down and on the wall. Each celestial body has its own gravitational pull and when you get near it, the gravity pulls you to the planetoid. Another new feature is the launch star. If you spin on it, it will send you flying to a new planetoid. The goal is to collect power stars. This is done by various objectives ranging from just finding it, to defeating a boss, and to solving a puzzle. Then there is even more. Sometimes you have to find silver stars, or even play little mini-games using the Wii remote which I'll get into later. This game has a wide range of things to do and it's really neat to just get out there and accomplish these goals. However it can get hard. Especially with the comet stars. Once in a while, a prankster comet will come into a galaxy and force you to do all kinds of different and unique objectives, such as speed runs, racing against a clone of yourself, avoiding faster than before enemies, collecting purple coins, and avoiding any and all damage. This prevents the game from getting stale and they throw all kinds of crazy stuff at you.

The hub world is the Comet Observatory. It is a giant ship that has a lot of rooms. When you go into a room you get access to 7 galaxies. The last one in the room is a boss for a grand star. These provide extra power for the observatory. After getting a grand star, another room opens. It can be a little tedious walking from room to room, but this is something that is easy to forgive.

The controls are spot on perfect and spectacular. It is very tight and responsive. A is to jump, B is to shoot star bits at the screen, Z is to crouch, C changes the camera angle, and you shake the remote to spin. The spin is a move that will be utilized a lot. You use it to stun enemies, use launch stars, climb vines, destroy crystals and much more. I don't want to get into the many maneuvers that Mario can do but almost the whole time, the controls will no bother anyone. This even goes with the motion controls and usage of the Wii remote. This is a platformer that uses it, but doesn't abuse it. Some titles on the Wii use too much of the motion controls and it ruins the overall game. That's not the case here. You never feel that gimmicky sense that the remote has been pushed upon you just because it is there. But then again, you will use the Wii remote in some unique ways. For example, there is a level where you have to ride atop a glass ball, and you hold the remote like a flight stick to control Mario. There is also a level where you ride atop a manta ray, and you control the animal by turning the Wii remote like a key in a lock. The motion controls that are in the game feel very and surprisingly responsive, overall.

As with any Mario game, there are power-ups. These are incredibly awesome and fun to use. We get new power-ups such as the Boo Mushroom which turns Mario into a Boo. With this, he can float and turn transparent to go through walls. If he touches light, it goes away. Then there's the bee mushroom. It turns him into a bee so he can hover for a short amount of time. If he touches water, it's gone. Then there's the ice flower. It lets Mario skate on water and fire. This is pretty disappointing. I was hoping to fire iceballs instead, but they fixed that problem in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Then there's the classic fire flower and it's not a big mystery what it does. It's also disappointing that unlike the other power-ups, the two flowers only last for a short period of time unlike previous games where the fire flower would last until you got hurt.

The soundtrack is completely orchestrated and it sounds beautiful. It is one of the best video game soundtracks I've ever heard. The music can vary from insect-like music, to swelling orchestral epic music.

The multiplayer is the game's weakest spot, though. Instead of having Luigi play at your side, the 2nd player is nothing but a pointer that can get star bits, stop enemies and make Mario jump, so it's not much of a difference if there's 2 players.

Speaking of Luigi, this game marks the first time he is playable in a 3D Mario game. After getting all 120 stars as Mario, you can replay the entire adventure as Mario's younger brother. This is a nice touch, and a good reason to keep playing till the end.

The game also has an auto-camera system that works excellently for the most part, but every so often, you'll get a camera angle that isn't ideal and it will obscure the platforming. This is just a nitpick, though.

Flaws aside, Super Mario Galaxy is an amazing game and is a must-own for any Wii owners. Mario's first adventure in space was an outstanding one and it forever changed the way 3D platformers were defined. The third best game I have ever played.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii..." was posted by thenickster51 on Sun, 31 Jul 2011 20:22:10 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/super-mario-galaxy/user-reviews/771601/platform/wii/ Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:51:14 -0700 thenickster51 reviewed Paper Mario for the Nintendo 64... http://www.gamespot.com/paper-mario/user-reviews/771449/platform/n64/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

Super Mario RPG was an outstanding game and a big leap for the plumber to jump from platforming to the RPG genre. It was almost completely different from any other Mario game by adding a deep storyline and turn-based battles similar to games such as Pokemon and Final Fantasy. Towards the end of the Nintendo 64's life cycle, a sequel, Super Mario RPG 2, later to be named Paper Mario, was released. This game takes what Super Mario RPG was and manages to astonish us all over again. This is not only the best RPG in the series, but somehow it manages to stay true to Mario's 2-D roots.

The story begins with Princess Peach inviting Mario and Luigi to her castle for a party. So they accept and get to the castle. Upon getting there, Mario starts looking for Peach and finds her on one of the higher floors. All of a sudden, Bowser's castle comes up from underground carrying Peach's and he comes in holding a magic wand. This wand is called the Star Rod, a legendary wand that grants any wish, rule-free. Bowser went up to the sacred Star Haven and steals the rod himself as well as capturing the guardians, the 7 star spirits. Using the rod for invincibility, Bowser knocks Mario out and literally throws him out. He then takes hold of the castle. Mario landed in a village where the star spirits reach him and give him energy to get up. He is then discovered by friendly goombas. FRIENDLY goombas? Did Bowser abuse them?

The game starts off once Mario wakes from his fall. This is when you start tooling around with the controls to get used to them. It won't be hard either. The control is solid and spot on. You press A to jump, B to use a hammer which gets upgraded later in the game, Z to spin which also speeds you up a little bit, C-up to view your status, C-down to use your partner's special move, C-right to switch partners, and C-left to use items. There is a lot of use to go with these control schemes and for all the functions used, it's not hard to get used to.

The gameplay is similar to that of its predecessor or any RPG. You have an overhead world where you move from place to place, and then there's combat. You get into combat by touching any enemy. That's when it switches to turn based moves. The ways you attack are utilized by simply picking and option. These options are strategy which either switch partners or run away, jump which is self-explanatory, hammer which is also self-explanatory, items, and star spirit in which each one has their own unique move which vary from healing to attacking, to just getting rid of. These moves are inaccessible until you rescue that spirit, however. Sometimes when performing jump or hammer, after upgrading, you might have to do a control scheme to add more power, such as tilting the control stick back and flicking it. You can also use variations of jump or hammer by having badges. Using badges cost badge points, however so you're limited to how many you can have on. Using these badge moves cost Fire Points. You get only 5 in the beginning as well as 10 Health Points as well as 3 Badge points. For every enemy you kill, you get Star Points. A lot of points in this game. When you get 100, your health and FP are restored and you can increase HP, FP, or BP.

After your attack, its then to your partner. At the beginning of the game, you get a goomba partner, but as the game progresses, you'll get a lot more. They are limited to attacks in comparison to Mario, but you'll find them useful, nonetheless. At times you'll come across a clear block with a blue circle inside it. If you hit it, you get to upgrade one of your partners. Doing this will not only give them more power, but they get more moves which also use FP.

Then there's items. When you think of items in a Mario game, you think of the mushroom, the fire flower, the starman, I could go on and on. This game does have these while having different effects. The mushroom restores health, the flower attacks everyone, and there's more.

While the gameplay may seen like it might get repetitive, thats not at all the case here. The game always has something new to throw at you to spice up the action. The soundtrack is one of the best in any Mario game. The graphics are beautifully colored and detailed for paper backround. And me, not being an RPG fan, found this game to be really enjoyable. This is a must own for any Nintendo 64 owner to add to their library. I'd recommend this to any Mario or RPG fan.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"thenickster51 reviewed Paper Mario for the Nintendo 64..." was posted by thenickster51 on Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:51:14 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/paper-mario/user-reviews/771449/platform/n64/ Tue, 26 Oct 2010 17:53:12 -0700 mariofreak156 reviewed Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 - Resurgence Pack for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-2-resurgence-pack/user-reviews/742451/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 5.5.

Infinity Ward is a Cheapskate. They make you pay $15 for 5 maps. That would be fine exept the maps suck.!. I'll go over the maps 1 by 1.


1. Fuel: A overly huge map in which spawns
and objectives are awful. The colors are ugly and it is a bad map. Oh.. also that rock glitch is something that Infinity Ward is to lazy to fix.

2. Trailer Park: A smaller map That has the same exact problems as fuel. Enough Said.

3. Carnival: A medium map in a Carnival setting. Spawns are bad. Objectives are bad. The only good thing about this map is the attention to detail which is great.

4. Vacant: An old CoD4 map. It is a good map. The only problem is that we have seen it before. How lazy can Infinity Ward be?

5. Strike: Another CoD4 map. Same as Vacant but the spawns are not that good.


Do I think you should get this map... No
Please Don't pay Infinity Ward for their laziness.
I hoped this has helped... Thank You

Get the full article at GameSpot

]]> http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-2-resurgence-pack/user-reviews/742451/platform/ps3/ Sun, 09 May 2010 16:21:06 -0700 mariofreak156 reviewed Tony Hawk's Underground 2 for the GameCube... http://www.gamespot.com/tony-hawks-underground-2/user-reviews/719877/platform/gamecube/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

Let me get started: This is the best Tony Hawk game ever. I was stunned when I got home from Gamestop and started playing, I said to myself: I paid 6 dollars for this ...What a deal!

Story- You are on a World Destruction Tour. You go around the world skating with the pro's and break stuff.

Graphics- These are some of the best graphics on the Gamecube. It's up their with Twilight Princess and Ikaruga, and F-Zero GX. A solid frame rate helps too.

Sound Quality- While the voice acting is spot-on, the soundtrack is the only thing keeping this game from being perfect. Only about 5 or 6 of the songs are worth listening to, the rest is just filler garbage that seems to repeat over and over again.

Controls- there's no doubt about it, this game has perfect controls.

Replay- You can replay the story on harder difficulties to unlock new characters, which is nice.

You NEED to buy this game. At the price of just 6 dollars, you will feel like you are robbing the store.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"mariofreak156 reviewed Tony Hawk's Underground 2 for the GameCube..." was posted by mariofreak156 on Sun, 09 May 2010 16:21:06 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/tony-hawks-underground-2/user-reviews/719877/platform/gamecube/ Sat, 08 May 2010 19:08:49 -0700 mariofreak156 reviewed Borderlands for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/borderlands/user-reviews/719775/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

This game is great.

Concept- mix an FPS and rpg in this masterful quest to find the alien vault, with the help of about 90 quadribilltilion guns. [Thats with 2345654321.85760 zeroes.]

Story- Your are a space travelar looking for the riches of the long gone alien societies that once lived on the planet Pandora.

Graphics- This game has great graphics, they have a cel-shading making everything look cartoony in a way. They make the drab dust dustball of Pandora interesting.

Sound Quality- The sound quality in this game is phenomenal. All of the guns have a unique sound to them. Also all the NPC's sound like they come from a place like Pandora. And by that I mean that they sound like slack-jawwed, backward hill billies.

Controls- Extremely tight FPS controls

Replay- This game has very high replay value because once you complete the game, you can start a second playthrough with all your guns and a fully leveled character.


This game is great and is a must buy for FPS and RPG fans.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"mariofreak156 reviewed Borderlands for the PC..." was posted by mariofreak156 on Sat, 08 May 2010 19:08:49 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/borderlands/user-reviews/719775/platform/pc/ Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:54:25 -0700 mariofreak156 reviewed Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition for the Wii... http://www.gamespot.com/resident-evil-4-hd/user-reviews/683302/platform/wii/ ...and gave it a 1.0.

I bought this game because i heard it had zombies and i love zombies. Also i heard it was extremely scary. I hated it. The sound was bad, the clothes did not match when the people radioed in each other. [sorry i do not remember names]
Okay here is the lo-down

Story - For such a sucky game the story is decent actually it is pretty good.

Graphics - They were okay [overstatement].

Everything else - The maps, the menus everything was so hard to use and was confusing

Controls - The controls in this game are some of the worst i have ever encountered. Whenever i aimed down sight the gun just shot up to the top of the screen.

Pro's -
1. Guns
2. Zombies [sort of]
Con's
Everything i have said previously minus the story.
This game has too many cons to write down so i am not writing them down.



Seriously do not buy this game. Spend you twenty bucks on something else!!!!!!

Get the full article at GameSpot

"mariofreak156 reviewed Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition for the Wii..." was posted by mariofreak156 on Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:54:25 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/resident-evil-4-hd/user-reviews/683302/platform/wii/ Sat, 12 Sep 2009 21:40:14 -0700 mariofreak156 reviewed Superman for the Nintendo 64... http://www.gamespot.com/superman/user-reviews/681110/platform/n64/ ...and gave it a 1.0.

Look up in Sky!
Is it a bird?
Is it a plane?
No? Its a Superman 64 cartridge with a C4 detonator on it.
Quickly run away, The remains might fall on you, turning you into a demented thing that moves like a tank and flies on a time limit.
Thats what happens after you play this game for about ten minutes.
The controls are so bad you want to take the controller and hurl it against the wall or t.v. ect.ect.
The graphics are so bad it makes your eyes melt out of your head causing your brain to leakout of your eye holes.Then your mom walks into your room and sees your death she sues nintendo creating such a bad game.
I bought this game off of ebay. o Man do i regret it.
This game is so bad it should be buried in the desert and blown up.
WARNING DON'T GET THIS GAME. IM NOT SURE IF I'V TOLD YOU BEFORE BUT IT IS TERRIBLE.
This game is so bad it is # 1 on Gametrailers.com top 10 worst games ever.
Even the cartridge art is bad.
I wish I could get my 10 minutes back that i used playing this horrible, chuncky, and smelly wretch of a game. p.s. this game sucks

Get the full article at GameSpot

"mariofreak156 reviewed Superman for the Nintendo 64..." was posted by mariofreak156 on Sat, 12 Sep 2009 21:40:14 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/superman/user-reviews/681110/platform/n64/ Sat, 12 Sep 2009 20:43:59 -0700 mariofreak156 reviewed Call of Duty: World at War for the Wii... http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-world-at-war-2008/user-reviews/681099/platform/wii/ ...and gave it a 5.5.

Why!?
Why must this game be terrible.
Everything is a step down from the other consoles.
when i first got it i L_O_V_E_D it.
I was younger and did not now what to compare it too.
I played it all day once i got out of school.
I started to get pretty good
I had a match [ wifi team death match] where i had 41 kills and12 deaths.
Then i traded my wii for a friends XBOX360 for a couple of weeks.
They had call of duty too. So naturally i wanted to play it. so i did
Everything about the game was a beautiful masterpiece, the sound, the graphics everything. And the addition of nazi zombies was awesome!!
Then the sad day came when i had to trade back consoles. As soon as i got home i hooked up the wii and started playing call of duty. I was so devastated and dissapointed. My eyes were practically burning out of my head because of the wretched graphics every since that day i have not played it.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"mariofreak156 reviewed Call of Duty: World at War for the Wii..." was posted by mariofreak156 on Sat, 12 Sep 2009 20:43:59 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-world-at-war-2008/user-reviews/681099/platform/wii/ Sat, 12 Sep 2009 20:08:31 -0700 mariofreak156 reviewed New Super Mario Bros. for the DS... http://www.gamespot.com/new-super-mario-bros/user-reviews/681093/platform/ds/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

This game is pretty good.i loved this game i played it everyday until my brother erased all of my files
This game had an awesome cheat in it [99 free lives]
also i liked that they brought back the old 2-1 warp zone.
It is an easy and fun game to play. every one of all ages will like it.
it makes a great present.also it is cool that you can play as luigi instead of mario. once in a mini game i got to level 150. That is easy which is a con.

Gameplay - This game has good gameplay its better than the old school version.

Pro's - Good Grapics, decent sound

con's - Thanks for saving me but our princess is in an other castle X 8

Graphic - = really good like most of the new mario games

Minigames - most of them are good. Some of them are not so good

multiplayer - good and fun



This game is a great game for someone who like the mario series or has just gotten a DS.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"mariofreak156 reviewed New Super Mario Bros. for the DS..." was posted by mariofreak156 on Sat, 12 Sep 2009 20:08:31 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/new-super-mario-bros/user-reviews/681093/platform/ds/