Games Beaten 2015

[J T]

8. From The Abyss (DS) (decent game)

Belts are not pants. Belts hold up pants. Belts, themselves, are not pants. I don't care if you have two of them.

[Sarge]

The belts are just there to hold things on, like that sword. She's wearing... underwear, I suppose. Leather underwear. Yeah.

[Damm64]

Those are very tiny pants guys. You don't know how fashion works now.

[Ack]

1. Renegade Ops (PC)(Multidirectional Shooter)
2. Borderlands 2 (PC)(FPS/RPG)
3. Gunpoint (PC)(Puzzle Platformer)
4. Robotrek (SNES)(RPG)
5. The Tick (SNES)(Beat 'Em Up)
6. Alien vs Predator (SNES)(Beat 'Em Up)
7. X-Kaliber 2097 (SNES)(Action Platformer)

In the US release of X-Kaliber 2097, Psykosonik did all of the music. I'm telling you this up front, because they did ALL THE MUSIC. Get used to techno beats...though I admit, they did create a pretty awesome soundtrack. I wish they could have given this soundtrack to the guys making BioMetal instead of the 2 Unlimited track we got...

Anyway, X-Kaliber 2097 features a grim future of gritty crime, a mystic sword, and aliens from another planet...which would have been demons, but that got either censored or mistranslated when the game was brought over. It doesn't really matter much, as you have a sword and a thumping bass beat by which to put the hurt on. It just sucks that you apparently get tired and have to pause after pretty much ever attack, because otherwise this game could have been a lot of ridiculous fun. But no, instead you have a split second of downtime for your medium attack and several seconds for your big projectile. Still, levels are fast and frantic, and I had a lot of fun rushing through them.

And then I would fight a boss. And that is where the trouble lies. The bosses are a mixed bag; some are pretty easy to figure out, and some are impossible and require a lot of luck. And prayers. Tattoo and Dr. Blast in particular come to mind. I want whoever designed how they fight to experience pain. Terrible, hideous physical pain. Really, they're awful fights, mainly due to just how random they seem to be. There are no patterns to learn, no real tricks to master. It just seems you have to get lucky to get a hit in edgewise. And that's unfortunate because the other bosses don't feel that way. That's not to say they're easy, but they're consistent and fair.

And unfortunately those rough patches bog down the rest of X-Kaliber 2097, to the point that I really don't want to ever spend time with it again. It's not a bad game, but it is certainly frustrating, and even with the pulsing music, the cyberpunk world, and the rush of the levels, I can't bring myself to say I like the overall game right now.

[dsheinem]

Games Beaten 2015

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call - 3DS
A Bird Story - PC
Quake - PC
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare - PS4
Quake: Scourge of Armagon - PC
Quake: Dissolution of Eternity - PC
Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis - NDS
Painkiller - PC
Gungrave: Overdose - PS2
Adventure -Atari 2600 (PS2)
Auto Racing - Intellivision (PS2) [1979]
Boxing - Atari 2600 (PS2) [1980]
The Count - TI99/4A (emulated) [1981]
Dragonstomper - Atari 2600/Starpath Supercharger (emulated) [1982]
Enduro - Atari 2600 (PS2) [1983]
Diablo III - PS4
Front Line - Atari 2600 (emulated) [1984]
Gertie Goose - The Lost Eggs - C64 (emulated) [1985]
Ocean Commander - Wii *new*
Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance - PS2 *new*

Total: 20

Previously: 2014 | The First 400 Games

Taking a break from alpha-by-year for a bit...

Ocean Commander has a lot of good ideas and plays like a strange mix of a twin stick shooter, a shmup, and a light gun game...but still manages to be easy, shitty, and boring.

I had never played MK:DA and I was quite impressed with it. In addition to completing arcade mode on limited credits (no 1cc 'cause fuck Moloch), I spent a lot of time with all the characters checking out their "on the fly" style swapping and I think that it may be my favorite MK game post MK2 . That said, I haven't played all the post MK2 games and I intend to play much more of this series over the next few weeks and months culminating in the TR time we have set aside for it (and/or with MKX's release).

[J T]

Dsh, have you played Mortal Kombat: Deception (PS2)? I picked up a cheap copy recently and was surprised at how many bonus options it had, including a puzzle game, MK Chess, and an adventure mode. It also, from my brief trial play, seemed to have pretty solid gameplay and graphics. It was a happy find.

[tomspy77]

^^^ Just got this in a seven dollar six game lot with DMC, GTA-Liberty City a Harry P title and two throw away Guitar Hero discs.

WAY better then I remember Deadly Alliance being on the GC way back when and the Konquest mode is way better then DA as well.

I agree, it is one of the better and deepest MK games.

[dsheinem]

Dsh, have you played Mortal Kombat: Deception (PS2)? I picked up a cheap copy recently and was surprised at how many bonus options it had, including a puzzle game, MK Chess, and an adventure mode. It also, from my brief trial play, seemed to have pretty solid gameplay and graphics. It was a happy find.

Nope, it is on the agenda. Good to hear

[Exhuminator]

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon has the best Konquest mode. It does away with the simplistic tutorial fight missions from Deadly Alliance or the time specific quests and missions from Deception that players weren't even guaranteed to discover. Instead, Armageddon takes a couple of pages from the popular spin-off title Shaolin Monks, providing a linear exploratory adventure while introducing two new characters. It also has Create A Fighter. Make fighters that look like people you hate and beat their face in. Good times. Armageddon is in top three MK games for me.

[Ack]

The 3D Mortal Kombats were interesting, but I found it way too easy to cheese with Scorpion. Start in Hapkido, hit your opponent with your spear, go through the full combo that switches your style so you end up using your sword, and then juggle twice. Congrats, half your opponent's health is gone.