After some half-assed attempts and many instances of being on the fence about the whole thing, I decided to do a full-on, hour-long Twitch stream of me live building some Lego sets. Unfortunately, the VOD didn't save, so if you missed it, I apologize. Regardless, I wanted to share my thoughts on the experience. Before we proceed, though, here I am on Twitch: twitch.tv/16N1K4 Firstly, I'm no stranger to live streaming. I've done Periscopes before where I build Lego sets or create my own Lego shit live, but the main thing is: I don't speak. I found it strange to talk to myself at home (especially when my family can probably hear my bullshit), so I resigned myself to silence for these early streams. This naturally made watching a replay utterly boring, so for my latest attempt, I decided to try my hand at some commentary. It certainly felt awkward to initiate a conversation with nobody, but after a while, commenting on the build started coming a little more naturally. I stumbled on my words an embarrassing amount of times, but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it with more practice. If I can manage to write somewhat coherent blog entries, I'm sure I can figure out commentary, right? With that said, it would really help to have someone in the chat to talk with, because there's only so much I can say. In terms of my stream setup, it straight up sucks. I'm using the Twitch app's "Go Live" feature, so I'm stuck filming with my phone camera. I had to jury-rig a phone cradle (out of Lego, no less) to hold it in place, and I had to place it on top of a stack of objects to get the right view of my workspace. Not elegant at all, and definitely at risk of me knocking it over. It was also positioned in such a way that I had to lean over to the right, so not only can I not see the chat, I won't know if what I'm building is even in the shot. My workspace also left a lot to be desired. I did all my work on the bed, with me sitting on the floor, which was not the most comfortable position to be in. I'll make sure to work on a proper table next time, and have a more organized layout that isn't just me scattering pieces all over the place. As for the content of my stream, I'm satisfied with building Lego sets/custom creations as my niche. Sure, it's not the most popular thing in the world, but I love doing it. I'm definitely not against streaming me playing games, but unfortunately, you need a capture card to record gameplay of the Switch, and that shit costs like $200. Overall, that first stream wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible, either. There were missteps, sure, but it's nothing I can't find a solution for. Hopefully you, dear reader, will see me off in a future stream. If not, well, you can always watch the replays, which I'll upload on my YouTube channel (pls subscribe).
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Nintendo just streamed its latest showcase of indie games coming to the Switch, and I thought it'd be a cool idea to write down some thoughts for each announcement. There are so many amazing indie games coming out these days, and I need to start keeping track of the ones that pique my interest. If you haven't caught the Nindies Showcase, go watch it below: Nintendo went in guns blazing, covering game after game, so I decided to do some blow-by-blow coverage as well:
There was a sizzle reel of indie games near the end of the showcase that went by so fast, I missed a bunch of them. The games are as follows:
Nintendo also announced an indie news channel for the Switch. I like this a lot, because it means there's one definitive place for news on Switch indie games, and I'm sure Nintendo will do feature pieces that'll get me into even more indie games. The showcase ends with the announcement that Into the Breach comes out today. It looks like a fun strategy game, so I might check it out. Overall, this was a solid Nindies Showcase, having both big indie titles, and new, unheard of games that'll surely turn some heads. The most hype announcement for me was definitely two Supergiant Games titles (Bastion and Transistor) coming to the Switch. The future is bright for indie game developers on Switch, and I hope to see even more amazing indie games in the future!
- end - The final free content update for Hollow Knight, named Godmaster, has just come out, which means I have good reason to get back into the game. I've already put 75+ hours into Hollow Knight; what's another couple of hours, right?
BACKGROUND: Hollow Knight is one of the best Metroidvania games I've ever played. I picked this game up on a Steam sale last year, and easily became one of my top 3 games of 2017. Its vast, varied locales, fascinating, albeit esoteric lore, and outstanding gameplay cemented its place as one of my all-time favorite games. If you're looking for a game with tons of shit to explore and combat that poses a formidable challenge, this game is right up your alley. While the base game is substantial by itself, Team Cherry (the developers of this game) have been steadily putting out content updates for free. These updates, while not an outright new campaign, further expanded Hollow Knight's already massive world, adding new bosses, items, and bits of lore with it. Godmaster is the fourth and final of these updates, with Team Cherry promising that this update has the most content out of all of them. WHAT'S NEW? Primarily, the Godmaster update adds the realm of Godhome to the world of Hallownest. Inside awaits perhaps the greatest challenge any Hollow Knight player will face: a boss rush mode. There are five boss rush challenges (called Pantheons), each with a different roster of bosses. The bosses you will face will be the ones you've defeated throughout your journey, along with a few brand-new bosses that will absolutely wreck your shit. In addition, there's a sort of "hall of fame" showing every boss you've encountered in the game, and you can fight them again individually if you want to. You can face each boss in three difficulties: Attuned (the fight is as it was when you first encountered the boss), Ascended (the boss takes more hits, deals double damage, and there are additional changes that'll throw you off), and Radiant (like Ascended, except any damage you take kills you instantly). It's good practice for the Pantheons, and beating every boss in Radiant ought to be a worthy challenge for the gluttons for punishment out there. There are other, smaller changes throughout the world here and there, but none of these changes seem to be of note (as far as I can tell). If you were hoping for a significant amount of new items, lore, or places to explore, this update may not be your cup of tea. The Godmaster update is mostly there for the post-game challenge, so if facing bosses again in a harder setting doesn't appeal to you, I understand not going out of your way to check out this update. VERDICT: Hollow Knight's Godmaster update makes for excellent post-game content, but seeing as it's incredibly difficult, most people may not be able to (or want to) experience all of what it has to offer. Personally, I'm gonna try my hand at some of these boss rushes, but I likely won't stress myself out trying to 100% everything. I love this game, and I cannot recommend it enough, so go buy the game if you can. It's on both the Nintendo Switch and PC, and it's on sale right now (as of this writing)! Here it is on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/367520/Hollow_Knight/ - end - Today, I want to write about Hiragana Pixel Party, which is not a typical game. Playing it is less about the game itself and more of what you pick up from playing it, which is learning Japanese characters. While I'm not on the level of being able to play the Japanese version of Monster Hunter yet, I've played enough to be able to cover the usual bases, which is what this blog entry is all about.
BACKGROUND: I only learned about this game via this article over at ComicBook.com. I already had an interest in learning Japanese because I do a lot of origami, and sometimes the diagrams aren't clear, and there are no English instructions. It's a pretty affordable title to pick up, so I waited until I had some extra cash to buy it on the Switch. PLOT: You're in the wrong neighborhood if you think an education-focused game is going to have any sort of plot. PRESENTATION: As the name implies, Hiragana Pixel Party opts to go the classic pixel art route for its visuals. The backgrounds look vibrant and colorful, but as it will become clear in the next section, you won't be spending your time in this game taking in the visuals. The music is where this game shines. There's a good assortment of toe-tapping chiptune tracks that'll get your head bopping. If you like chiptune music like I do, Hiragana Pixel Party has it in spades, and if you're a big retro gamer, a lot of the tracks will remind you of video game soundtracks from the NES/SNES era. GAMEPLAY: Hiragana Pixel Party is a rhythm game, i.e. hit buttons at the right time, don't fuck up. It's not as much of a sensory overload as other games in the genre (where you just get bombarded by an avalanche of notes, and you 100% cannot rely on visual cues), but the balancing act of learning an entirely new alphabet and completing the song is where most of the challenge lies. In total, there are 384 levels (192 teaches you the hiragana syllabary; the other half teaches you katakana), each with a sort of three-point ranking system (think the star ratings for Angry Birds). Earning points will unlock later levels, so if you're really committed to learning hiragana/katakana, you'll want to do well when playing these levels. Thankfully, Hiragana Pixel Party doesn't incentivize getting "perfects" when hitting a note (like most rhythm games do), so all you have to worry about is not missing notes. Retrying levels to get a good rank is actually a good idea in this game, as the repetition helps you retain the information. Each level falls under one of four categories of missions: standard (recites the syllable and displays it in its English form, hit the corresponding Japanese character), memory (shows you a sequence of Japanese characters, hit the correct ones), inverted (displays the Japanese character, hit the corresponding English form of the pronunciation), and audio (recites the syllable with no visuals, hit the correct Japanese character). Depending on how quickly you learn, you may find one mission type harder than others, but making mistakes or failing isn't necessarily punishing, as you learn after every attempt. The game eases you in at first, introducing new characters and their corresponding pronunciations near the beginning of the level, but things will escalate quickly. The characters are not locked to one button (i.e. they swap around), which forces you to memorize the character's appearance instead of remembering its corresponding button input. The game gets hectic as you progress, with tempos going faster, character sequences getting longer and harder to memorize, and the game adding other Japanese characters to throw you off. You'll need a quick eye to figure out which button corresponds to which character in time to actually press the button, and a good memory to recall that string of five characters the game just rattled off at you. Important disclaimer: this game will not teach you the Japanese language. It'll only teach you how to read hiragana and katakana characters. You won't pick up any sort of vocabulary or grammar in this game. If you're dead set on becoming fluent in Japanese, you'll need more learning tools than Hiragana Pixel Party. VERDICT: It's a tad more challenging than most other "learn a language" games or apps, but if you're looking to begin your journey to Japanese proficiency by learning hiragana/katakana, Hiragana Pixel Party is worth a look. The game will keep you engaged with its many levels, neat visuals, and awesome music, so learning won't feel much of a chore. If rhythm games aren't your cup of tea, I'll understand any feelings of apprehension, but I do insist giving the game a try before writing it off. The game's official website has a PC demo you can check out right here, so see for yourself if the game is for you: http://hiraganapixelparty.com/Download.html The full PC version is on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/417310/Hiragana_Pixel_Party/ The game is also on iOS, where it's free to download (however, in-app purchases are required to unlock everything): https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/hiragana-pixel-party/id517578891?mt=8 If you're here for the game's soundtrack, sample some of the songs on the game's album over at Bandcamp: https://springloadedgames.bandcamp.com/album/hiragana-pixel-party - end - Death, taxes, another NXT Takeover event delivers. The saying holds true once more as SummerSlam weekend kicks off with Takeover: Brooklyn IV. Previous Takeovers at Brooklyn have had iconic moments, and the fourth installment is no different. Read on for my thoughts on each match on the card.
I beat Okami HD today! I've been playing this game for the better part of the past week, and I enjoyed it immensely. For today's blog entry, I'll be covering the usual bases and talk about what I love about this game.
BACKGROUND: The "HD" subtitle may give it away, but for the uninitiated, Okami is a game that's been around for a while. It came out more than a decade ago for the PS2 and the Wii, and is one of Capcom's most recognizable titles of the 2000s. Why I never got around to playing it despite owning both of those consoles is beyond me. If it's any consolation, I was planning to buy the Wii version to play on my Wii U a couple of years ago, but then they announced the HD version was coming to the Switch. PLOT: The game is set in Japan as it is depicted in mythology, and you play as Amaterasu, the Shinto sun goddess, in the form of a wolf known as Shiranui. The lengthy opening cutscene shows the legend of Orochi, an eight-headed demon who was slain by Amaterasu and a legendary hero named Nagi. Right off the bat, it feels like Japanese mythology in game form. You start playing a hundred years later after these events take place. Some idiot has released Orochi from his prison, and now the bastard is free to wreak havoc on Japan. Your quest revolves around gathering abilities in order to defeat all the demons that terrorize the land and restore everything to its former glory. On the way, you'll meet all sorts of weird but wonderful characters, and face off against menacing enemies. I'm not as knowledgeable in the tenets and stories of the Shinto religion as I am with other religions, but I know enough to be able to say that Okami pays homage to its source material well. Everything from the architecture you see in the many locales you visit to the reverence characters show towards nature is very reminiscent of Shinto's many key characteristics. From what little I've read, many characters and events are based off of actual Shinto stories. It really feels like you're in the Japan of old, except you're a wolf. PRESENTATION: The one thing that will catch your attention when you first hear about this game is its art style. Okami has a cel-shaded, watercolor-looking aesthetic that is heavily inspired by the ink paintings and calligraphy East Asia is known for. While it looked striking in 2006, the HD treatment makes the art look even more gorgeous. With nature being one of the focal points of the game, it's no surprise there's plenty of settings to look at. You've got coastlines, verdant fields, snowcapped mountains, and more, and the art style makes them all look amazing. Okami's a painting come to life, and I found myself gawking at the TV just taking in the scenery, The character designs also call back to the Japan of the past, with most people wearing traditional garb. Enemy designs are reminiscent of artist depictions of oni and other similar demons of Japanese mythology, and they either look badass or downright horrifying. Everything about this game is a love letter to Japanese culture, and I found myself having a deeper appreciation for it. The music complements the visuals effectively, with tunes that are evocative of a nature setting. Though my familiarity with classical Japanese music is minimal, one can tell that the soundtrack takes heavy inspiration from those works. GAMEPLAY: Okami's gameplay is essentially akin to a 3D Zelda game (like Ocarina of Time). You have a world to explore, dungeons to crawl, bosses to beat, and abilities to unlock, which allow you to explore even more and progress the story. If you've played Twilight Princess, you'll feel right at home. While you can just go and focus on beating the story, there's a good amount of sidequests to keep you occupied, plus it'll earn you money or useful items. Most importantly, completing quests earns you Praise, which are like skill points that allow you to upgrade various things, like your health or wallet capacity. Combat is a little different from Zelda games. Instead of a bunch of enemies strewn about the place, battles are encounter-based (think your typical JRPGs like Pokémon). When you get into a battle, you're locked into a small arena where you have to kill every enemy to leave. In this sense, combat is like a conventional hack-and-slash action game like Bayonetta, or Devil May Cry. Enemies, while varied, aren't that much challenging, with only a few taking some elaborate strategy to take down. There are three types of weapons you can use in combat. Reflectors, which are the base weapon, can be equipped in the sub weapon slot, which then grants you a shield. Rosaries are whip-like weapons that hit multiple times and grant you projectiles when equipped as a sub weapon. Glaives are basically swords that you have to charge up to use, making them slow, but powerful. Each weapon has varying damage outputs, and can be upgraded with Gold Dust to further increase damage. Some weapons in particular have elemental attributes, too. Bosses, much like Legend of Zelda, aren't all too difficult. The tried and true "look for the weakness, stun the boss, then wail on it mercilessly" formula is alive and well in this game. Thankfully, all the bosses look cool and the manner in which you stun them is more creative, than, say, aiming an arrow at the large, glowing eye. Of course, we can't talk about Okami without covering its defining game mechanic: the Celestial Brush. Activating the Celestial Brush pauses gameplay and brings up a canvas where you can paint on the screen. There are 13 unique Brush Techniques in the game, each useful in their own right (either in puzzle solving, combat, or exploration), and you have to draw them on the screen to use their respective powers. This mechanic is easily the most fun part of the game, especially with the Switch's motion controls (or touchscreen, if you're in handheld mode), and the wide variety of applications the powers have. I always looked forward to unlocking the next Brush Techniques and finding their respective upgrades. VERDICT: Both the stunning visuals and the absolutely fun Celestial Brush put Okami right up there in my favorite games list. Boiled down to its fundamentals, it's certainly derivative of games that came before, but Okami does more than enough to stand out on its own merit. It's a lengthy game with a good amount of lore and plenty to do, so if you've got time, this is a solid game to put on. While you can play the originals on the PS2 and the Wii (plus the Wii U, because backwards compatibility is wonderful), the HD versions can be played on every current-gen console. Okami HD is on Steam as well: https://store.steampowered.com/app/587620/OKAMI_HD/ - end - The Smash Ultimate hype train chugs along with the latest Smash-centric Nintendo Direct, and holy fuck did it deliver. Go watch it below if you haven't already, and read on for my (hype-fueled) thoughts on the new info.
Overall, I was satisfied with this Direct. Awesome reveals, all sorts of cool new shit... what more could one ask for? My only complaint? I need this game now. Like, right now. Four months is too long a wait, but I'm sure there'll be more reveals to tide us over until December 7th.
- end - Even though I've only played a few hours of Dead Cells, I was blown enough away to be compelled into writing this latest blog entry about it. Apologies if this may not be as comprehensive as usual, but I just really have to sing this game's praises right now.
BACKGROUND: Dead Cells was one of those games I spotted in my Steam recommendations sometime last year. I had every intention of buying it during the summer sale, but alas, it was Windows-only (at the time). I cursed the fact that I owned a Mac that day, digressed, and picked up Hollow Knight instead (which ended up being one of the best gaming decisions I've ever made in my entire life). News broke earlier this year that the game was coming to consoles, including the Switch. I knew I had to get this game, so I kept a close eye on the eShop and immediately jumped at the chance the moment pre-purchases opened. PLOT: From what I can tell, the game is set in a kingdom overrun by the "Malaise", which has seemingly killed damn near everybody. You play as the Prisoner, an aimless immortal who, apart from a few quirky gestures, is a silent protagonist with no clear motivation. The overly esoteric nature the story is presented is bound to draw some comparisons to Dark Souls, which seems to be the go-to game reviewers these days call upon when they need to compare a game to another game. In an effort to avoid falling into that same trap, this will be the only instance I will directly address this comparison. PRESENTATION: The art style goes for the classic pixel art look, but jacked up to 11. Imagine a Genesis or SNES game, but with significantly more detail, more impressive shading/lighting, and much smoother animation. If you're one of the people who doesn't like retro-looking modern games (why?), fret not, because this is not one of those games. Similarly, the sounds aren't retro by any means, either. The sound effects really add to the exciting action, and the music complements the eerie, bleak environments you'll find yourself in. I need to play more to get a real sense of the music, but I'm enjoying what I've heard so far. GAMEPLAY: The reason I was initially drawn to this game was it looked like a Metroidvania. It seemed to have the sprawling maps, exploration, and secrets the genre is known for, so I was sold with that alone. In this respect, Dead Cells delivers wonderfully, but that's not what blew my fucking mind when I first sat down to play the game. What I did not know is that Dead Cells was also a rogue-like. That means you've got the trademark randomly-generated map and enemy layouts and permadeath in addition to the Metroidvania shit. This game marries the best of both worlds masterfully, which is good news for me, because rogue-likes and Metroidvanias are two of my go-to game genres. I initially thought the two genres would clash in some aspects, especially in terms of progression. Thankfully, none such issues have come up, with permanent upgrades pushing you further along the world a little at a time. Another thing that really impressed me was the combat. You can find a wide assortment of different primary weapons that fit different playstyles, secondary weapons that mix things up in fascinating ways, and upgrades that give you all sorts of bonuses and perks. There are also mechanics that borrow heavily from the souls-like genre (e.g. dodge rolls, parries, to name a few), and all of these elements combine for an action experience that isn't all too common in a side scroller. Enemies come in all sorts of horrible, each with their own tells so you can avoid getting hit. You'll also encounter massive bosses that'll absolutely wreck your shit, so you better git gud. VERDICT: The fact that I'm writing about Dead Cells this early without having played a whole lot of it should speak to how amazing it is. It combines elements from three time-tested and beloved game genres to form a brilliant final product. If you're looking for a challenging platformer with some serious replay value, this is the game to get. As of this writing, Dead Cells has only come out for all current-gen consoles today. It's also on Steam, and it's on sale until the 14th, so go check it out within this week if you want to save 20%: https://store.steampowered.com/app/588650/Dead_Cells/ - end - Since I can't seem to get past the first boss in Wizard of Legend, I decided to take a break and write about it a little. I've only played a couple of hours of the game, but I think I've played a sufficient amount of it to say that I have a decent sense of what it's about.
BACKGROUND: I knew nothing about Wizard of Legend prior to a few months ago, when it was announced that it was coming to the Switch. Long story short, I checked out some gameplay, saw it was a rogue-like, and was immediately sold. PLOT: You're a wizard (no shit) in a kingdom called Lanova. In this kingdom, there's an annual event called the Chaos Trials, where wizards from all over test their might and prove they're the top dog. It's a simple, yet effective premise that contextualizes the gameplay. There's bits of lore here and there that give the world of Wizard of Legend a little more depth, but I've yet to fully explore those threads. PRESENTATION: Wizard of Legend goes for the 16-bit aesthetic that harkens back to the SNES/Genesis days. While many gamers these days tend to shy away from modern games that look retro (citing reasons such as "cashing in on nostalgia"), I like it. I understand that it's not for everyone, but I personally appreciate games that still look great despite using the classic pixel art look. The sound and music, on the other hand, is more on the contemporary side, as opposed to the chiptunes of old that bring you back to the NES era of games. I tend to play my own music when playing these types of games, so I can't really speak to the quality of the soundtrack (not that I have an ear for music to begin with), but the sound effects are fantastic. GAMEPLAY: Wizard of Legend is a rogue-like dungeon crawler. To the uninitiated, a rogue-like is a genre of games where you traverse procedurally generated dungeons (i.e. they have random layouts, enemies, and items) and try to complete a run by beating a set amount of these dungeons. If you die, you start over from the very beginning, going through an entirely different set of dungeons. This is one of my favorite game genres, largely due to the natural replayability these types of games have. Having already played fantastic rogue-likes such as Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, Enter the Gungeon, and Crypt of the NecroDancer, new entries into the genre need to have a compelling, unique mechanic to pique my interest. In the case of Wizard of Legend, that would be the spells (called arcana in the game). Before you start a run, you can switch your loadout of spells to suit your playstyle. You get a basic spell (essentially the attack you spam, as it has no cooldown), a dash spell (mostly for movement), a standard spell (which come in all sorts of varieties), and a signature spell (i.e. your super). Each spell has its own properties and effects, and has an element attached to them (fire, water, etc.), As with most games with elemental attributes, certain elemental attacks have varying degrees of effectiveness depending on the enemy, so it's probably best to have a balanced build. In addition to spells, you can also switch around your outfit and equip one relic. Outfits give different buffs, while relics grant you additional effects. Throughout your run, you can buy additional relics to equip and more spells to use (which get assigned to auxiliary slots, and can be swapped out on the fly). It's this level of customization that I really enjoy about this game. Throughout your run, you'll be picking up a type of currency called Chaos Crystals. Once you complete a run (or die), you can spend these in the hub area to purchase relics, outfits, and spells, further expanding your arsenal. Inside the dungeons, however, you also get normal coins, which serve the same purpose as the crystals, but the items you buy with them only last until your run ends (i.e. they don't show up in your inventory afterward). VERDICT: With a wide variety of spells to play around with and the freedom to customize your loadouts as you please, Wizard of Legend is another must-play rogue-like that I'm probably going to sink plenty of hours into. In fact, I'm gonna go start a run right now. If you're on PS4 or you're a PC gamer, you can play this game, too! Here it is on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/445980/Wizard_of_Legend/ - end - My quest to amass a respectable library of Switch games continues with Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker. I've only just finished clearing all the main story maps, and I'd like to write about the game before I go and play the bonus levels.
BACKGROUND: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is actually a game for the Wii U, and it's been around for a while (a good three years, in fact). It was one of those games I had my eye on during my Wii U days, but back then, I didn't really play the Wii U as often as I play on the Switch now, so I skipped on buying this (along with a few other Wii U titles). When I heard that Captain Toad was the next in a number of Wii U games to get an enhanced port on the Switch, it immediately popped back up on my "games to get" list (which is expanding at a frightening rate given all the amazing shit that's coming/is already out for the Switch). Given that this was a budget title as opposed to the typical $60 game, I was able to pick up the game without putting a serious dent on my funds. Thus, here we are. PLOT: You play as either Captain Toad or Toadette (it depends on the level), and the general idea is that whoever you're playing as is out to rescue the other one from Wingo, a star-stealing bastard of a bird. Not much of a plot, but come on, this is a Mario game (or a spinoff, at least). That shit's not known for plot. PRESENTATION: As is expected from a Mario game, you got yourself a colorful, vibrant world to look at. There's a respectable variety of levels, so you'll be able to feast your eyes on all sorts of unique level designs and aesthetics. The music, while not exactly Mario Galaxy levels of epic, is enjoyable, upbeat, and fits the whole whimsical adventure theme the game is built around. Depending on the level you're on, you hear a different track, and each of these tracks fits the overall theme of that level (e.g. you hear eerie music on spooky ghost levels, and intense music on lava levels). If you're a seasoned Mario fan, you'll hear some familiar tunes as well. GAMEPLAY: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is an entire game built upon certain levels from the Wii U game Super Mario 3D World (aptly named "Adventures of Captain Toad"). The basic idea of these levels is that you control Captain Toad/Toadette, and must navigate through a level filled with all sorts of obstacles and puzzles in order to reach the Power Star at the end. On the surface, it looks like a typical 3D puzzle platformer, but there are a few key caveats. For one, you can't jump. Yes, you're stuck walking about on your tiny feet, and (apart from a dash that's only slightly faster) there's not much you can do about it. However, this game is less about movement and more about solving puzzles. Captain Toad can interact with all sorts of switches, pick up turnips (to throw at enemies), and find power-ups that can help him get to that Power Star. The main puzzle-solving tool in your arsenal, however, is your ability to move the camera around. In most cases, the entire level is in your view, and you can rotate the camera in all sorts of directions to get a good look of the area. Doing this not only lets you plan ahead before moving, but can also reveal hidden passages or items that would otherwise be obscured if you leave the camera untouched. You can also interact with certain objects in the level by using touch controls/gyroscope aiming. If you hate Nintendo's gimmicky control schemes, I'm really sorry, but you can't beat this game without it. If you're on the Switch, I advise playing in handheld; touch controls are way better than motion aiming. In addition to Power Stars, each level has three Super Gems for you to collect. These are often out of the way and require some puzzle solving skills to acquire. While you don't need to collect 100%, you need a bunch of them to unlock levels. Each level also has a bonus objective that's completely optional, but adds an extra challenge if you intend to replay that level. You also collect coins throughout your playthrough, and (as is tradition) collecting 100 nets you a 1-UP. Yeah, You can die in this game, believe it or not. Fortunately, the threats you encounter in the game aren't that dire, and if you die a bunch of times, the game throws an invincibility mushroom your way. The variety of levels I touched on earlier in this entry doesn't only pertain to aesthetics; each has their own set of enemies, mechanics, and gimmicks, making each level a truly unique experience to figure out and pick apart. One level, you're riding a mine cart throwing turnips, and the next, you'll be scaling a volcano avoiding a dragon's fiery breath. If you're looking for post-game content, you're in luck. There are a bunch of bonus levels that await you after you beat the 64 main levels. Some of these levels can only be unlocked if you 100% the main story, however, so if you want the full experience, you must go full completionist. VERDICT: I enjoy a good puzzle game, and Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is a worthy title in such an expansive genre. The solid number of levels, wide variety of gimmicks, and all sorts of challenges and collectibles kept me engaged all throughout. I'm probably gonna go play more after I finish writing this. In addition to the Switch, this game is also available for the 3DS. Of course, you can go play the original Wii U version if you so desire. - end - |
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