Summer Game Challenge 2013 - Begin when ready!

[Violent By Design]

The oddest thing about Tomb Raider is how Lara Croft basically became the mainstream face of gaming for the bulk of that entire generation.

Why is that so odd?

[AppleQueso]

The oddest thing about Tomb Raider is how Lara Croft basically became the mainstream face of gaming for the bulk of that entire generation.

Why is that so odd?

Maybe "odd" isn't the right word. The ubiquity of the character was a tad eyebrow raising though. She was everywhere.

[AppleQueso]

The oddest thing about Tomb Raider is how Lara Croft basically became the mainstream face of gaming for the bulk of that entire generation.

I think she was the official Sony mascot for a while, along with Crash Bandicoot.

Sony never had an "official" mascot afaik. Naughty Dog was hoping that Sony would officially adopt Crash, but they never quite did that.

Tomb Raider wasn't even an exclusive, but it was strongly associated with the Ps1 anyway.

[prfsnl_gmr]

1. Hotel Dusk: Room 215 (DS)
2. Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land (GB)
3. Ecco the Dolphin (GBA port)
4. Wario Land 3 (GBC)
5. Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door (GC)
6. Nectaris: Military Madness (PS1)
7. Return Fire (PS1 port)
8. Guardian Heroes (SS)
9. Galactic Attack (SS)
10. Decathlete (SS)

Three down, seven to go!

Hotel Dusk: Room 215 (DS) was a hit-or-miss for me. I though that the "Take On Me" art direction was spectacular; all of the characters were well-realized, and the dialogue was very well written. The puzzles, however, were either: (1) entirely too easy; (2) non-sensical by even adventure game standards; or (3) both. Moreover, the plot pushed the suspension of my disbelief over a cliff, killing it. On particularly infuriating example:

Late in the game, the protagonist is locked into an air tight room, and he mentions the need to escape from it before he runs out of air. There are various objects in the room for you to examine, and you would think that the goal would be to escape the room. You would be wrong. The goal is to combine various items to turn on a computer whose only apparent function it to reveal the secret identity of one of the other characters. At you accomplish this - and despite the fact that if you take too long, the main character will suffocate and die - someone randomly comes along and lets you out of the room. I was both relieved and furious when I "solved" the puzzle.

That said, the game pulled everything together for a satisfying ending, and I may try importing the sequel at some point. If it corrects some of the issues that I had with Hotel Dusk, it could be a really good adventure game.

Next up...Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land. (I recently picked up an ugly - but still functioning - copy of the game for $1, and since I am trying to play through the entire Wario Land series, this game replaced Shining Force II (GEN) on my list.)

[SpaceBooger]

Classics
1. Ducktales (NES)
2. QuackShot (Gen)
3. Adventures of Batman and Robin (SNES)
4. Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (PC) Finished 6/29
5. Wonder Boy in Monster World (Gen)
6. Star Wars: KOTOR (XBOX) In Process 20hrs
7. Streets of Rage (Gen) Finished 6/16
8. Streets of Rage 2(Gen)
9. God of War (PS3 HD) Finished 7/15

Not Classics that I want to beat before summer ends
10. Spider-Man Shattered Dimensions (PS3)

Beat God of War last night. The level escaping Hades was rough with all of the spinning logs/columns full of blades. The final boss fight with Ares was not as hard as the level the proceeded it, but challenging.
I played a lot of GoW "clones" and enjoyed them, I do have a problem with this game though - I strongly dislike quicktime events. For what ever reason I can not mash the O button fast enough for them unless I hold my controller in a different way. This became a problem during the final boss fight where you had to mash the one button then quickly change to a different combination of the other buttons almost seamlessly. Other than the quicktime events, I enjoyed the story and combat.

[BoneSnapDeez]

The oddest thing about Tomb Raider is how Lara Croft basically became the mainstream face of gaming for the bulk of that entire generation.

the face isn't the body part people associate with Lara Croft

Yeah most people are looking at her........... triangles.

[dsheinem]

Classics
1. Ducktales (NES)
2. QuackShot (Gen)
3. Adventures of Batman and Robin (SNES)
4. Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (PC) Finished 6/29
5. Wonder Boy in Monster World (Gen)
6. Star Wars: KOTOR (XBOX) In Process 20hrs
7. Streets of Rage (Gen) Finished 6/16
8. Streets of Rage 2(Gen)
9. God of War (PS3 HD) Finished 7/15

Not Classics that I want to beat before summer ends
10. Spider-Man Shattered Dimensions (PS3)

Beat God of War last night. The level escaping Hades was rough with all of the spinning logs/columns full of blades. The final boss fight with Ares was not as hard as the level the proceeded it, but challenging.
I played a lot of GoW "clones" and enjoyed them, I do have a problem with this game though - I strongly dislike quicktime events. For what ever reason I can not mash the O button fast enough for them unless I hold my controller in a different way. This became a problem during the final boss fight where you had to mash the one button then quickly change to a different combination of the other buttons almost seamlessly. Other than the quicktime events, I enjoyed the story and combat.

As much of a landmark/classic title as it is, the first GoW is probably my least favorite in the series (I've played all of them). QTEs are handled much better in later installments and are, to my recollection, less frequent. You should try out GOW2 soon, which many see as the best in the series.

[graffix_13]

As much of a landmark/classic title as it is, the first GoW is probably my least favorite in the series (I've played all of them). QTEs are handled much better in later installments and are, to my recollection, less frequent. You should try out GOW2 soon, which many see as the best in the series.

Really? The first GoW is hands down my favorite of the series. In fact, I'd put GoW in my Top 3 All Time. I'd put GoW 2 as probabaly the 3rd best in the series (I really liked Ghosts of Sparta).

But to each their own. Either way, I recommend GoW 2 for sure as well.

[noiseredux]

(reserved for awesome comeback)

EDIT:

UPDATE:

http://racketboy.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... 15#p777415

[pierrot]

Oh, man. I had banners and streamers set up for this, but I started to lose hope, so I threw them away--.

Congratulations on a right solid rounding, noise!