Written on 11:51 AM by DRV
Demon's Souls (PS3) - 9.0
Definitely a surprise. Though the game plays like a glorified dungeon-crawler (I'm not a big fan of dungeon crawlers), the story and the challenging and unique gameplay is what will keep you in. A triumphant pat on the back for Atlus.
Dissidia: Final Fantasy (PSP) - 9.0
Let's admit it. They are plenty of likable and unlikable main characters and villains in the Final Fantasy games. This game finally brings them all together to make a hell of a brawler.
Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (DS) - 8.0
Every bit as good as The Curious Village with an even better story.
Madden NFL 10 (Wii) - 7.3
More of the same, with a better online mode.
Madden NFL 10 (PS3, Xbox 360) - 8.3
Lots of changes in Madden have resulted in a slower, but more realistic game of football.
Space Invaders Extreme 2 (DS) - 6.9
Pretty much the same game as the first.
Nerf N-Strike Elite (Wii) - 6.8
The cool thing is the Nerf gun that comes with the game. Other than that, it'll keep your kids busy.
Hasbro Family Game Night 2 (Wii) - 6.6
Wanna play board games but don't wanna shell out the $30 each? If you have a Wii, this might be a good stocking stuffer.
Tekken 6 (PS3, Xbox 360) - 8.2
"The Year of the Fighter" comes to a close with a strong entry into the Tekken series.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii) - 8.7
Probably the most fun you'll have with any friend(s) this year on the Wii.
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Written on 1:13 PM by DRV
First, I'd like to apologize if my last blog sounded a little moody. But hey, that's what happens when you're used to being busy all the time.
Here are a few links to a few editorials I got done over the passed few weeks.
HANDS-ON - Dissidia: Final Fantasy (PSP)
Dissidia is a fighting game developed by Square Enix that features both heroes and enemies found in just about every Final Fantasy (flagship) title that's been released. The PSN demo features The Onion Knight, Terra, Cloud, and Sephiroth as playable characters.
REVIEW - Little King's Story (Wii)
Little King's Story is like Pikmin, but more dark, unpredictable, and addictive. Because of its cartoonish nature, it will fall under the radar. Don't let that happen. This game just might be the Wii Game of the Year. 9/10
REVIEW - Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor (DS)
Atlus' critically appraised SMT series makes its debut in style with Devil Survivor. While it may have its similarities with The World Ends With You, it's not like that game was bad anyway. 9.1/10
REVIEW - The Legendary Starfy (DS)
Nintendo has a new series on their hands that's been in Japan for quite a while. Resembling Kirby but being as deep as Mario, The Legendary Starfy is a perfect game with playability on a long road trip. 8/10
REVIEW - Flower, Sun, and Rain (DS)
Developed by the same folks who brought us classics like No More Heroes on the Wii and Killer 7 on the GameCube and PlayStation 2, Flower Sun, and Rain is the port of a bland PS2 game. 4.6/10
REVIEW - Knights in the Nightmare (DS)
An extremely complex game that includes reflex-challenging controls in the form of an isometric Strategy RPG. There is no game quite like it, but at the same time--it's not for everybody. 8.7/10
REVIEW - MySims Racing (Wii, DS)
A kart-racing title that will resemble Mario Kart despite vague differences. Good for a rental. 5.1/10
REVIEW - The Sims 3 (PC, Mac)
I hardly even play PC games, but this was probably the most fun I've had so far this year. 9.4/10
So if you're bored, give those a read! Thanks.
- D
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Written on 10:14 AM by DRV
It's summer time. Since then, I've only had five days off. I worked out on four. I'm considering doing it today, but the weather is a little gloomy. I'll probably still go out anyway.
So what's best to do when you're staying home? Aside from being productive and doing chores, there's video games. It's been a while since I've played a game for the sake of my own enjoyment. It was last year when I beat Final Fantasy VII in preparation for Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII--which I also beat. I've also been playing Pokemon Platinum, and I'm nearing the Elite Four. Maybe I should beat this game first.
But aside from that, here's my entire gaming backlog at first glance.
If you don't know what a backlog is, it's a set of games that own but have never finished. A lot of them I've never even started.
Here we go!
PlayStation 2
- Final Fantasy X
- Final Fantasy XII
- Jak 3
- Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
- Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3
- Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4
- Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner 2
GameCube
- Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem
- Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
- Star Fox Adventures
- Star Fox Assault
Wii
- MadWorld
- Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
- Okami
- Punch-Out!!
- No More Heroes
- Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn
DS
- Chrono Trigger
- Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride
- Pokemon Pearl
- Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor
- Fire Emblem: Dragon Sword
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Written on 12:09 AM by DRV
I've added another member to my electronic family today.
Over the passed 12 months, I've picked up the Wii, another PlayStation 2, a second DS Lite due to the first being broken, a crappy prepaid cell phone, and an iPod touch. Add a MacBook to that list.
I see this investment as something I'll really cherish. It's just that the timing was quite questionable. The biggest problem with my first laptop, the Dell Inspiron 1501, was that it was oftentimes unresponsive. Why? Because it only had 512 MB of RAM. When I found out that was an issue, I bought two 1 GB RAM cards to update it to 2 GB. Huge difference, and the Dell is a better laptop because of it.
But whatever, the battery is still lame. It's my fault since I kept the thing plugged in, but still. 3 minutes? Hardly worth anybody's time.
This MacBook already comes equipped with 2 GB of RAM, a hard drive that's double the size of my old Dell, and it just gives me more options quite due to the fact that it's a Mac. Why does it give me more options? Because now, I have two laptops of opposing operating systems. I wouldn't be surprised if I bought a Unix system soon--just kidding.
I'll leave you guys with a few pics of this happiness. But if you're my friend on Facebook, you've probably already seen them.
There it is, first being open.
Talk about green packaging.
Here's one more look at the POS1501.
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Written on 5:51 PM by DRV
Sorry for the lack of updates. I've been very busy with both school and the things I've been doing with Akbayan. It's been a pretty crumby week so far with my car's battery dying, and Dancing with the Seniors not being as great as I had originally planned and hoped.
Anyway, here are a couple reviews I've had published at Gamer 2.0.
The first is a review of Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride. It's a remake of an SNES classic that wasn't released in the United States--so unless you're a hardcore Dragon Quest fan, odds are this will be a new experience. It's actually really good game that arguably might be the best RPG on the Nintendo DS. (It's definitely up there with Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy IV).
Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride Review
The second is a review of Blue Dragon Plus. Blue Dragon was an RPG that was released on the Xbox 360 a couple years ago but had lackluster reviews because of its apparent dedication to old-school gaming--which necessarily isn't a bad thing. Actually, I think Blue Dragon was a solid Xbox 360 game. Other than that, Blue Dragon Plus is a very different experience because it's a RTS in the same vain as Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings. While Blue Dragon Plus is pretty solid, it's really not worth buying at full price, especially with games like Big Bang Mini, Dragon Quest V, and Fire Emblem already out this year.
Blue Dragon Plus Review
My next review will be on Legacy of Ys: Books I & II, also a remake for the Nintendo DS.
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Written on 1:30 AM by DRV
Another extremely addictive Fire Emblem game has been released, but this time, it's a remake of the original game--something we didn't get here in North America. Much to the pleasure of others, the game stars Prince Marth (of Super Smash Bros. fame) as he attempts to save his sister and his kingdom.
You can read my review here.
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Written on 2:02 PM by DRV
I wrote a couple handheld reviews, and they have just now been published at Gamer 2.0. Check them out when you get a chance.
PSP Review - Star Ocean: Second Departure (8.2)
DS Review - Big Bang Mini (9.3)
Both games were released in late January and have received favorable scores from me. I've never given a 9.3 in a couple years, so Big Bang Mini is definitely worth some big bang for your $20. Buy it as soon as you can afford it.
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Written on 1:17 PM by DRV
Sorry for the lack of updates. But as anyone can tell, I've been more active with the blog as of late. If you didn't notice, this is a brand new layout. While I didn't make it, I just found it kind of cool. It's also easier to navigate than it was before. Yeah, there's ads now, but hey--it's not like we're not all trying to make a little extra money on the side.
I haven't been doing much as of late because I have a pretty bad cough. I've been OD'ing on Robitussin, DayQuil, and NyQuil, but nothing seems to be working. Hopefully I can get passed this cough soon though.
I've just been catching up on old-school gaming... if you can call it that. I've been playing Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES and the original God of War on the PlayStation 2, because I've never gotten around to them. I've also been pretty addicted to Big Bang Mini on the DS (which I should have a review up on Gamer 2.0 within the week).
Starting today, I'll be working four straight 4-hour closing shifts at H&M. Seems like a drag, but money is money.
Anyway, to the real reason this blog was posted. Check this video out; it's the trailer for the new Street Fighter movie. It's starring Kristin Kreuk (from Smallville fame) as Chun-Li. I know she's been in a FEW action scenes in Smallville (I stopped watching), but it's a little alarming to see her taking the role of Chun-Li.
Whatever, I might watch it anyway. Why? Duh. Who doesn't love Kristin Kreuk? I personally hope they have as much fan service as possible. 8-)
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