Games Beaten : 2011

[Flake]

1/11 Guardian Heroes (SAT)
1/14 Sonic Adventure (GCN)
1/17 Marvel vs Capcom 2 (DC)
1/17 X-Men vs Street Fighter (SAT)
1/22 Dragon Ball Z Budokai (GCN)
1/24 Street Fighter III - The New Generation (DC)
1/24 Street Fighter Alpha 3 (DC)
1/25 Mega Man X (GCN)
1/26 Dragon Ball Advanced Adventure (GBA)
1/31 Tatsunoko vs Capcom (Wii)
2/1 Megaman X2 (GCN)
2/2 Marvel vs Capcom (DC)
2/3 Megaman X3 (GCN)
2/3 Megaman X4 (GCN)
2/4 Megaman X5 (GCN)
2/5 Megaman X6 (GCN)
2/7 Gundam SEED: Never Ending Tomorrow (PS2)
2/8 Jojo's Bizarre Adventure (DC)
2/9 Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors Dreams (PS2)
2/9 The King of Fighters XI (PS2)
2/11 The King of Fighters '99 Dream Match (DC)
2/13 SNK Gals Fighter (NGPC)
2/16 The King of Fighters '98 (Wii)
2/17 The King of Fighters '96 (Wii)
2/17 Metal Slug (Wii)
2/17 Metal Slug 2 (Wii)
2/18 SNK vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium (NGPC)
2/19 The King of Fighters '97 (Wii)
2/19 Street Fighter II' (Wii / VC)
2/22 Metal Slug 3 (Wii)
2/25 Super Street Fighter IV (PS3)
2/27 Capcom vs SNK 2 (DC)
2/27 Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3)
3/3 Mega Man II (GB)
3/5 Super Street Fighter II: HD Remix (PS3)
3/6 Mega Man III (GB)
3/11 Mega Man IV (GB)
3/13 Mega Man: Powered Up! (PSP)
3/14 Garou: Mark of the Wolves (DC)
3/15 Street Fighter III 3rd Strike (PS2)
3/15 Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold (PS2)
3/15 Street Fighter Alpha 2 (PS2)
3/15 Street Fighter EX 3 (PS2)
3/15 Real Bout Fatal Fury Special (PS2)
3/16 The King of Fighters R2 (NGPC)
3/16 Project Justice: Rival Schools (DC)
3/17 Capcom Fighting Evolution (PS2)
3/20 Zone of the Enders (PS2)
3/21 P.N.03 (GCN)
3/21 Super Puzzle Fighter II (GBA)
3/27 Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition (3DS)
4/10 Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 (GCN)

I played Budokai 2 on the PS2 many years ago and remembered it being a fun and quirky entry in the series. I decided to give it another go through on the GCN because this version has updated graphics and extra 'stuffs'. This game stands out among the rest of the DBZ games for its 'what-?' approach to the storyline. It was fun to play the game in a way where I could change elements of the story in small but satisfying ways.

[SwooshBear]

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Ps3)
Soul Caliber 3 (Ps2)
Super Mario World 2: (Snes)
Warioware, Inc (Gba)
Half Life 2 ep. 1 (Ps3)
Half Life 2 ep. 2 (Ps3)
Super Mario Land 2 (Gb)
Resident Evil 5 (Ps3)
Radiant (iPod)
Space Invaders Extreme 2 (Ds)
Ginger's Hidden Adventure (Fresh steps mini game) (PC) 
Dark Nebula Episode 2 (iPod)
Angry Birds (iPod)
Call of Duty Black Ops (Ps3) *NEW*

Total: 14

Borrowed Black Ops from a friend. I though it was good, not as enjoyable as the Modern Warfare campaign but it did bring a lot of new elements to the table. Much better than WaW IMO. The story was better that I expected, lots of twists and turns. It felt shorter than a usual cod game (took me two nights) but it was still enjoyable. It didn't feel like a call of duty game, it felt more like it's own fps series. I like how the new element blended in nicely with the traditional elements (diving being my favorite) The only thing I didn't like was the "story" that went with Zombies. JFK, Nixon and Castro fighting together? Not likely. I've never been a big fan of the Zombies mode anyways. Next up is hopefully a ps2/gc game, since I'm trying to clear out my backlog...

[AmishSamurai]

Dragon Age II
Half-Life 2

[emwearz]

Plants Vs Zombies - PC
Halo 3: ODST - 360
Enslaved: Odyssey To The West - 360
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - NDS
Unreal Tournament 3 - 360
Dead Space - 360
Harms Way - XBLA
Starfox Assault - GC
Cut the Rope: Holiday Gift - IOS
The House of the Dead: Overkill - Wii
Fallout 3 - 360
Peggle Extreme - PC
Half-Life 2: Lost Coast - PC
Marvel Vs Capcom 3 - 360
Portal - PC
The Great Gatsby - Browser
Kirby Super Star Ultra - NDS
Bulletstorm - PC
Half Life: Source - PC
Probotector - NES
Fable III - 360
Perfect Dark - N64
Crysis 2 - 360 *NEW

Total Games for 2011: 23

Thoughts on the Game(s)

I thought Crysis 2 bettered Crysis in almost every way, stronger story, more weapon upgrades as well as new suit upgrades, faster paced action scenes with a slightly more cinematic approach. Sure people complain that the graphics are not as good as the first, because they dumbed them down due to the console releases, but that's fine by me, I thought because of this I would play it on the 360 and it is easily one of the best looking, if not the best looking game on the console. The only thing I didn't like is how useless the suit upgrades where, most were worse than the original upgrade you got in its place.

I really enjoyed it and a great example of how a sequel should be made.

[Rocketman]

Halo: ODST
Halo: Reach
Call of Duty: Black Ops
Half Life 2: Episode 2*new*

I've only completed four games in four months this year... I need to up the ante, and maybe throw in something that isn't a generic FPS. (Although HL2: Episode 2 was great!)

[hashiriya1]

Just beat Pilotwings Resort for 3DS. 100+% on all missions, collected all items for free flight mode. This game is a toughie if you want more than perfect scores.

[dsheinem]

Metal Torrent- DSiWare
Kirby Super Star Ultra - NDS
DoDonPachi - PS1
Cruis'n USA - N64
Cruis'n World - N64
DonPachi - PS1
Cut the Rope - iPhone
Cut the Rope: Holiday Gift - iPhone
Mass Effect - 360
Galaga Remix - Wii
Tatsunoko vs. Capcom - Wii
Mushihimesama Futari 1.5 - 360
DoDonPachi Dai Ou Jou - PS2
DoDonPachi Resurrection - iPhone
Triggerheart Exelcia - Dreamcast
Heavy Barrel - Wii/Arcade
Tetris (Rev A and Rev B) - Game Boy
Street Fighter IV - iPhone
Killzone - PS2
Dead Space 2 - PS3
Marvel vs Capcom 3- PS3
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess - PSP
Killzone 3- PS3
Lost Planet 2 - PS3
Star Wars: Dark Forces - PC
Nemesis - Game Boy
Space Invaders Extreme 2 -NDS
Kirby's Dream Land - Game Boy
Mass Effect 2 - 360
Mass Effect 2: Shadow Broker - 360
Mass Effect 2: Kasumi - Stolen Memory - 360
Kirby's Dream Land 2- Game Boy
Ginga Fukei Densetsu: Sapphire- PCE-CD
Soul Calibur - Dreamcast
Dragon Age II - PS3 *new*

Total: 35[/b]

The fact that I am up at 3:00 in the morning should tell you most of what you need to know about Dragon Age 2: it is damn good, and it holds your attention. I had my doubts early on as it does indeed depart from the first Dragon Age in some significant ways. Overall, it isn't a better game - but it is still excellent. If the first Dragon Age was a 9/10, Dragon Age 2 is an 8/10.

It seems like for every thing they added to this, they took away something else. Overall I ended up enjoying most of the changes to the system, but lamenting the "Origins" component of the first game. The story in the first game seemed more epic, but the story in the second game was better told. The environments and characters were more interesting in the first game, the graphics and party member relationship management was better in in the second game. Overall, it was a thoroughly satisfying 35 hours and change, and I am glad to have played through it. I am now eagerly anticipating DA3, as there are plenty of interesting possibilities for where they can go with this story and this world...

If you are on the fence about this game, and liked the first one at all, you should definitely pick it up.

That makes three Bioware RPGs so far this year, so I think I am basically done with them until Mass Effect 3 in late in 2011.

[alienjesus]

Donkey Kong Jr. e-Reader
Riviera: The Promised Land GBA
Super Mario Bros. 2 Wii
King of Fighters R2 NGPC
Golden Sun: Dark Dawn DS
Metal Slug 2nd Mission NGPC
Pocket Tennis Colour NGPC
Metroid GC
Super Mario Bros. 3 Wii
Probotector 2 Game Boy
A Boy and his Blob Wii
Pokemon White DS
Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa VC
Kirby's Dream Land 3 VC
Bomberman '93 VC
Super Probotector: Alien Rebels VC
Wonder Boy in Monster Land VC
Pilotwings Resort 3DS
Deja Vu Casebook 1: A Nightmare Comes True GBC
Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg GC
Starfox Command DS
Sin and Punishment: Successor of the Skies Wii
Deja Vu II: Lost in Las Vegas GBC *NEW*
Virtual On Cyber Troopers Saturn *NEW*
Total: 24

Deja Vu 2 was unremarkable. The story was slightly better than the first Deja Vu, but i still felt the game controlled a little cumbersomely, and some of the puzzles felt a little obtuse - especially the final solution. I wrote a little more about it in the Together Retro thread.

Virtual On was fun in it's own way, but it felt a little stiff to control. I was using the pad, so I wonder if it'd be better with the twin sticks. The robots seem rather mismatched - I was really enjoying playing as a mech called the Viper 2, but when I came up against one opponent, one of his attacks (which he used a LOT) took half of my health off if it hit - and as a long range, homing attack that moved rather fast, it proved very hard to dodge. I had to switch robots to beat the game, because all the others could take at least 2 extra hits from it. In the end, I beat it as the speedy Fei-Yen mech, who had very weak attacks, but moved really fast.


I also couldnt find a control scheme I liked. The default has weapon 1 and 2 as A and C, and for some reason, the 2 handed weapon as Y. I kept hitting B trying to use it. In the end, I swapper B and Y's functions about, but by then i was sort of used to the other scheme, so I kept dashing instead of shooting or vice versa no matter which way round I arranged them.

Overall, I enjoyed it, but it doesn't seem like the classic I heard it was to me quite yet.




Next Up: Athlete Kings, Guardian Heroes, Panzer Dragoon, Discworld - Saturn stuff basically, I'm on a bit of a Saturn kick.

[MrHealthy]

Red Dead Redemption (PS3)
Demon's Souls (PS3)
Dead Space: Ignition (PSN)
Dead Space 2 (PS3)
Costume Quest (PSN)
Blueberry Garden (PC Download)
Donkey Kong (NES)
Donkey Kong 3 (NES)
Donkey Kong Jr. (NES)
Golf (NES)
Mega Man 2 (NES)
Mega Man 4 (NES)
Kororinpa: Marble Mania (Wii)
Mega Man 6 (NES)
Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard (PS3)
Tomb Raider Underworld (PS3)
The Conduit (Wii)
New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii)
Red Steel (Wii)
Puzzle Agent (PC Download)

*New*Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean (GCN)

My god. I rarely finish RPGs, I find them too time consuming and usually get bored. So the fact that I actually spent over 50 hours with this game means a lot. What a ride. I could go on a long time about what I did like about the game, from the story, to the combat, to the characters, etc. So I feel it is easier to just go over the much shorter list of what didn't work and say I loved the rest. So here goes:

Voice Acting:
The actual acting itself is decent enough. Its no masterpiece but its your basic B level acting skills. What kills this is the atrocious compression that Namco decided was needed. It leaves all the voices sounding tinny, like they are talking into a metal can or something. Its a common complaint, and if it bugs you enough you can turn it off, though I did not. I've been told that Nintendo did a much better job at this for the prequel Baten Kaitos: Origins, so I look forward to that.

Combat could drag out:
Many enemy encounters took anywhere from 10 to 15 minutes to pass, bosses often took 40 minutes to an hour. Since the combat is fun trying to link combos together while managing defense and health it never really bothered me too much, except sometimes I knew I didn't have enough time to take on a boss. The actual cause of the length is simply the animations are a tad too long. Each could have been shortened by a few seconds I think and this would have gone by much faster. Yet despite the length of combat the battles still feel fast and action pack due to the way you have to select cards on the fly.

Overworld animation was slow:
Just like the combat animations, a lot of the overworld animations could have been speed up. This is most notable in cutscenes which tended to drag when characters felt they needed to gesture at things.

Pre-rendered backgrounds were not perfect:
While some of them were beautiful, many seemed poorly designed and ugly. I often found myself running to a house in the background and it taking forever because the camera angle on the render doesn't show the distance properly. Other times the textures on the ground were nearly identical for areas I could walk on and areas I could not, so I often found myself getting stuck while trying to navigate to a chest. The game also could have been more clear on where things where in regards to height. I often was confused as to wether something was at the same level or above me.

These are all minor complaints that can be worked through rather easily. And apparently the prequel addresses most of them (all but the backgrounds I think). Its still a great game and a must play for anyone who is a gamecube or RPG fan.

Total: 21

Up next?
After a long game like Baten Kaitos I will probably do something a bit easier. I'm most likely going to start and finish Hamsterball on PSN in the next few days. As well, I am doing another achievement run of Portal in anticipation of Portal 2 next week.

2010 Games

[G-Darius]

Today -Atic Atac (Zx Spectrum) -with all 3 characters
13th March -M.U.S.H.A (MD)
11th March -Super Turrican (Snes)
9th March - Halo Reach (360)
6th March - Mega SWIV (MD)
4th March - Haunted House (A2600) all 9 games
3rd March - Toki (MD)
31st March - Adventure (A2600) completed all 3 levels and found secret hidden room containing the designers name. (Warren Robinett)
29th March - Outrun 2019 (MD)
20th Feb - Bruce Lee (Zx Spectrum) gone back around 3 times
19th March -The Hobbit (Zx spectrum)
28th March - Out Of This World-[Another World] (Snes)