Summer Games Challenge 2014

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Skies of Arcadia (DC)
Wonder Boy In Monster World (360)
Nights...Into Dreams (SS/360)
Viewtiful Joe (GC)
Super Mario Bros 3 (Snes)
Ys (PC)
Otogi 2 (xbox)
Rocket Knight Adventures (MD)
Golvellius (SMS)
Exhumed (SS)
Castle of Illusion (SMS)

Had the Xbox out to finish off the Halo 2 game I started while visiting my parents and also finished off Otogi 2 while I was at it.

Hard one to pin down. Otogi 2 can be entrancing one minute and infuriating the next. It can make you feel like you can fly before making it feel like you're steering a sack of bricks off a cliff. It starts off fairly tranquil before ramping up the difficultly to almost teeth nashing degrees.

It's always a unique experience and one that is framed by a gorgeously ethereal (and very Japanese) audio and visual aesthetic.

That said, there is an element of its beauty hiding a fairly shallow game. The combat is only slightly deep, or at least I could beat it without learning all its tricks. Yes there are a variety of characters who have different strengths and weaknesses but it's likely you'll use the same tactics regardless of whether you're playing as the super agile Sadimatsu or the brutish Kintoki. It's that Dynasty Warriors thing where characters can look and sound very different but when placed under the player's control all become sword swinging madmen.

Like I say, there is a very sharp increase of difficultly around 2/3 the way in and some levels will take a decent amount of retries to pass. You can earn more cash to upgrade your squad by repeating certain challenges but I found that grindy element quite unwelcome.

There isn't much story to talk of. Similar to Dark Souls the actual story is very bare bones but the game absolutely drips with atmosphere. It's like a dark Japanese fairy tale.

I'm glad to have played it though. It is certainly one of the more interesting Xbox exclusives and easily one of the best games to show off the consoles overpowering graphical capabilities with.

It won't be for everyone though and will test the nerves of some players. It isn't in the same class as Ninja Gaiden (what is?) but it is a game I think desrves more attention as that rarest of things: a genuinely different Microsoft exclusive.

[laurenhiya21]

1. LoZ: Ocarina of Time (Wii VC)
2. Ico (PS2)
3. Silent Hill (PS1)
4. Super Mario 64 (Wii VC)
5. LoZ: Oracle of Ages (3DS VC)
6. Half-Life (Steam)
7. Super Punch-Out!! (Wii VC)
8. Ys I + II (Steam)
9. Gunstar Heroes (Steam)
10. Phantasy Star (GEN)

Well hey, I started Ico Saturday, and I finished it last night (I honestly thought I would derp it up somehow and take a lot longer haha)

As to what I thought about it... I didn't think it was too bad. Not great but not bad.

I really liked how pretty it looked and I honestly paused a few times to look around. I also thought that Ico & Yorda together was kind of cute? I guess I mostly felt bad about running at top speed while Yorda struggled to keep up haha (or at least, that's how it looked to me). Puzzles weren't too bad as well... I mean most of them could barely be called puzzles, but they didn't frustrate me for the most part and even when they did, most of the time it was because I didn't quite understand what Ico could do. Like how it took me forever to figure out that I needed to press O to light my stick ><; (swinging also took a while, and I thought at first that Ico couldn't swim). I probably should of read the manual before starting haha

However, those shadow things are butts. I'm going through the various areas, having a pretty good time until those guys come along :/ It's not that they're hard to deal with, but I still found them mega irritating. Especially since all I'm doing is spamming the square button, and sometimes trying to figure out where the heck they took Yorda. Honestly if those guys weren't in the game at all, I probably would of enjoyed the game a lot more.

Also, I was a bit miffed and/or confused about the ending...

I thought it would of been fine if you just see Yorda push Ico in the boat and the castle crumbling. It would of been sad, but I think it would of fit the game just fine. Finding Yorda on the beach may of ruined the ending a bit for me... I mean, I thought Yorda couldn't leave the island. Why is she now not a shadow? How did she get on the same beach as Ico? Maybe I'm just not understanding something, but it just seemed really odd to me I guess. Like someone said the ending was way too sad, so they threw together a nice happy ending super quick :/

So yeah... Not quite sure why it's considered a classic, but oh well. It was fine.

Next up... Probably Gunstar Heroes. I need to pack up my consoles soon, so if I do have some time to play something, it's going to have to be on my PC or handhelds until after I move.

[CFFJR]

Well hey, I started Ico Saturday, and I finished it last night

Nice, well done.

I'll be interested to hear what you think of Gunstar Heroes. Its one of the best games on the Genesis and I've always loved it.

[laurenhiya21]

Well hey, I started Ico Saturday, and I finished it last night

Nice, well done.

I'll be interested to hear what you think of Gunstar Heroes. Its one of the best games on the Genesis and I've always loved it.

Thanks

It looks good and I've heard a lot of praise for it... so I'm really hoping I enjoy it. I'm just hoping that it's not too difficult haha.

[BoneSnapDeez]

Alien Syndrome
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Dragon's Curse
Exile
Final Fight
Mega Man
Metroid
Ristar
Super C
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link

I'm callin' it a summer. I know the end of the season is ambiguous, but the fall weather is approaching, kids are in school, September is around the corner... Yeah I'm saying "summer" is done for me.

Plus I wanna get back to playing some RPGs.

7 out of 10 games isn't bad. I may have finished them all if I didn't have to take 5+ weeks off from gaming to move. The remaining three games will end up on my Summer Games Challenge 2015 list unless I finish them between now and May.

I enjoyed participating this year and reading all the posts.

My favorite "summer game" this year: Exile.

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Skies of Arcadia (DC)
Wonder Boy In Monster World (360)
Nights...Into Dreams (SS/360)
Viewtiful Joe (GC)
Super Mario Bros 3 (Snes)
Ys (PC)
Otogi 2 (xbox)
Rocket Knight Adventures (MD)
Golvellius (SMS)
Exhumed (SS)
Castle of Illusion (SMS)

"We had joy
we had fun
we had seasons in the sun..."

Since I haven't played Skies in about 3 weeks and since I had to put the heating on yesterday, I too am calling Summer over and ending my challenge.

This was my first year and overall I think it went pretty well. Yeah, I hated Golvellius and Viewtiful Joe but I finally got round to beating some real classics like Nights, Mario 3 and Rocket Knight which had been sitting in my collection for far too long. All of them will most probably feature on my yearly top ten as well. Great stuff.

I'm also very happy to have played Ys and Exhumed which were both unique takes on their respective genres. Seriously, Exhumed/Powerslave is definitely worth looking into if you're into FPS's.

Wonderboy was great, though not up to Dragon's Trap or Monster World IV's level of quality, and Castle of Illusion was a fun and charming 8-bit platformer. Otogi 2 I could give or take really. And I will finish off Skies sooner rather than later so I won't be saving it for next year.

Lessons for next year: Don't force ten games and start with the longest game first.

[prfsnl_gmr]

Here is my list for summer 2014:

1. Dragon's Lair
2. Flashback
3. Halo 2
4. Jumping Flash! 2
5. Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
6. Military Madness
7. Return Fire
8. R-Type Delta
9. Virtual Boy Wario Land
10. Ys III: Wanderers from Ys

I finished up Halo 2 last night. It was OK. The shooting was satisfying, but there was just too much of it. It seemed like long sections of the game involved simply moving from one room to the next shooting stuff. The corridors were much tighter than the large open spaces in Halo:CE, and it also seemed like the enemies were not as "intelligent" as the enemies in Halo:CE either. (Also, the Flood were incredibly annoying. I actually enjoyed fighting them in Halo:CE, but I dreaded encountering them in Halo 2.) Finally, I think that "dual wielding" discouraged me from using grenades strategically, something I very much enjoyed doing in Halo: CE. That said, the game did have some excellent set pieces. (Jumping off a bridge onto the back of a Covenant Scarab and staying one step ahead of the Flood in High Charity were pretty cool.) I also enjoyed playing as the Arbiter, and the most fun parts of the game generally involved assassinating enemies with my stealth camouflage and an energy sword. The ending and the final boss were disappointing, however, and while I am glad that I have completed Halo:CE and Halo 2, I don't think I will go any further with this series.

.....

Beating Halo 2 concludes my summer gaming challenge efforts for this year. Eight games out of ten is not too bad, and I am satisfied with my progress this year. (I am especially happy that I completed Military Madness and Return Fire, since both of those game haunted my summer gaming challenge lists for years.) I also still have R-Type Delta sitting next to my PS3, and although I am disappointed that I did not complete it this summer, I will beat it (likely the next time I am itching to play a shmup). Some superlatives:

Best Summer Challenge Game
Military Madness - Really enjoyed that game once I got into it. This TG-16 classic is fast, frantic, and provided an excellent challenge. (Runner Up: Virtual Boy Wario Land)

Worst Summer Challenge Game
Ys III - The game could have been really great. It has a cool setting and story, and the music is some of the best of its generation. The hit detection is awful, however, and the game is horribly linear. I am gald that Nihon Falcom remade it.

Most Difficult Summer Challenge Game
Military Madness - Military Madness and its remake/sequel Nectaris: Military Madness (PS1) were radically more difficult than Nintendo's Advance Wars games. A single stategic or tactical error often resulted in defeat and, potentially, the loss of hours of play. Although I did not beat R-Type Delta, I am confident I can do so if I spend a few more hours with it. I spent nearly four times as much time with Military Madness and Necatris: Military Madness, however, and I barely made it through the basic maps. (Runner Up: Return Fire)

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When I finished up Halo 2 recently it dawned on me that the best Halo single player experiences are probably those where the Master Chief isn't involved. ODST and Reach are just interesting enough spins on the formula to keep me engaged with the Halo style of gameplay. Halo 4 (which is a Chief story) is pretty good as well, if you don't mind the third faction being functionally identical to the Covenant and looking like they got lost on the way to Planet Zebes.

Not that you should rush out and buy those games, it's just an observation.

[prfsnl_gmr]

Not that you should rush out and buy those games, it's just an observation.

Don't worry. I'm won't (primarily because I don't own a 360).

I agree with you, however. Master Chief is a pretty dull character, and I thought that his comrades-in-arms were obnoxious. (Every time they appeared on-screen and started spouting off with their ridiculous one-liners, I would say, "Yay!!! Space 'Murica!!!") The Arbiter, however, was a relatively interesting character, and I enjoyed his story much more. I also thought that the Covenant were much more "professional" than their "Space 'Murica" counterparts.

Also...and just for my knowledge...did Bungie do away with the Flood after Halo 2? If not, are they any less annoying in the sequels?

[Stark]

I would buy Space 'Murica merchandise (hat, t-shirt, bumper sticker). But that's because I believe that the covenant is what's wrong with this part of the galaxy and we're what's right.