That's the thing about kids and glass...
9 years ago
Friday, September 25, 2020
Tuesday, September 22, 2020
The Big Journey Review (NSW)
Written by Patrick Orquia
Title: The Big Journey
Developer: Konstructors Entertainment
Publisher: Nestor Yavorskyy
Genre: Platformer, Adventure
Number of Players: 1
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Release Date: 31 Oct 2019
Price: $4.99
It seems a long time has already passed since I enjoyed playing a cute little game called LocoRoco (and its sequel) on the PlayStation Portable aka PSP. It has simple game mechanics, wherein you only press the shoulder buttons to tilt the world left or right and make the ball-like protagonist jump and collect bugs and whatnot. And it has an even cuter, catchy soundtrack. Writing about it make me miss it now. I have to play that game again soon.
Flash forward to the present, we now have LocoRoco ported on the Switch! Wow… er… except that it is not LocoRoco, nor a sequel to it. The game is The Big Adventure, and it probably is the closest the Nintendo Switch will ever get close to having the Sony-exclusive in its ever-growing lineup of games.
But fret not! The Big Adventure comes with most of the game mechanics and overall charm of LocoRoco. I can even probably say that this game is a spiritual successor to LocoRoco, but I rather not, to be fair to the developers of the game. They probably didn't spend countless hours to make such an amazing game only for it to be compared to an old game, whether as a compliment or not. Game mechanics cannot be patented after all, as far as I know. So yeah, the game plays like LocoRoco, but it is not LocoRoco. So I will shut up now about it, and just review the game and give it the merit it deserves.
This game has amazing visuals and sounds from beginning to end. The characters are well designed and illustrated. The game is divided into 5 chapters, and each has five levels each. An extra set of 5 optional levels, referred in-game as belonging to Wonderland, is also in the game, bringing the total number of levels to 30. The environment is lush and vibrant, and vary from level to level. Each chapter has a distinct design/biome motif, such as forest, desert, cavern, etc., and the 5 levels therein follow it. And to wrap eveything together is the amazing soundtrack. Upon booting up the game, you get to hear a nice ukulele-based music that puts you on a happy, relaxed mood right away. The rest of the tunes are as catchy and relaxing, and at times like this, are what anyone would need.
In this game, you get to control Mr. Whiskers, a ball-like cat who is searching for Mr. Choo, who makes the world's best dumplings, or so Mr. Whiskers claim. One day, Mr. Choo disappears, and Mr. Whiskers becomes worried and off to a big adventures he goes in search for his friend.
To control Mr. Whiskers, tilt the world left or right to make him go to either direction. You do this by either pressing the left or right directional buttons or the analog stick, or utilize motion controls. The latter gives a more precise movement, but can be a bit disorienting, but it will depend on you which one you prefer. Anyway, to make him jump, you can press any of the face buttons (A/B/X/Y). Each level can be finished within 10 minutes, and a ranking is given to you depending on how you accomplish the prescribed goals. In each level, you get to collect dumplings and bugs and a few obstacles and enemies meet you along the way. Some enemies can be defeted by jumping towards them, while some cannot be defeated at all, and all you can do is avoid them. If an enemy touch you, a dumpling may get dropped, and if you let enough time before getting it back, it will disappear. Now, whether you collect all of the dumplings, some of them, or none at all, it doesn't really matter (same with collecting bugs) in finishing levels and progressing in the game, but again, levels are ranked, depending on the number of dumplings and bugs collected, and the amount of time it takes you to complete them. I personally went for 3 stars for most of the levels, but if you don't care about that, that's completely fine, though you will miss out some of the unlockables.
Aside from Mr. Whiskers, you also get to meet other cats in world, which you can then choose to play as in the next levels. You also get to meet non-playable animals, which provide nothing but fun dialogue bits to encourage you in your adventure. Some of these cats and other animals require that you complete certain levels or accomplish certain number of stars, which is again how levels are ranked. You don't get anything extra from collecting all these characters, but it is a goal that you can aim for if you are a completionist.
Overall, this game is so relaxing and enjoyable to play. It does throw a few curve balls on some of the latter levels, but in general, it is overflowing with cuteness and adorable charm. Yes, this game came out a few months ago and has been available on the Switch eShop since then, but I'm quite thankful to have played it now during quaratine lockdown due to the Covid 19 virus because it lessend my anxiety and fears and I think eveyone should also do the same. The game costs only $5, which is quite cheap, and it gives you about 3-5 hours of play time. Not bad at all. So go ahead, jump and roll and collect all of them tasty dumplings and sweet candies and have a jolly good time.
REWATCH VALUE: High
PROS
- Uber-cute and charming visuals
- Amazing soundtrack
- Excellent level design
- Simple game mechanics
- Lots of hidden areas to discover
- The difficulty of the game gradually goes up, but doesn't get too hard for anyone to get through
- Very good use of HD Rumble
- Ideal for handheld gaming
- Good price point
CONS
- Unlocking all animal characters doesn't unlock any additional levels or challenges
RATING: 4.5/5 Great tasting dumplings
An Invitation from Senator Bennet
|
Monday, September 21, 2020
The Dread Rocket Raticate
Mount Moon is an interesting place. Located in northern Kanto, it's notable not only for its wealth of Pokémon Fossils, but also its extraordinary rate of meteorites per year. I spoke with Gym Leader Brock about it before leaving Pewter City and learned that it was somewhat a rite of passage for Pokémon trainers heading out from western Kanto to the eastern plains. There were certainly easier ways to get to Cerulean City and Saffron City, but Brock assured me that if I was serious about Pokémon training, Mount Moon was the best way to go.
Mount Moon is an arduous climb and littered with numerous interlocking caves that weave beneath the peak. It was not for the faint of heart, but it would be a chance to bond with my Pokémon in the wilderness. I used some of the winnings I earned at Brock's gym to stock up on food, potions, and a handful of Pokéballs before setting out down Route 3 toward the famous landmark mountain.
Along Route 3, I battled a very enthusiastic Shorts Appreciation Fan Club. Delightful young trainers eager to challenge Brock and head off on their own through Mount Moon, but mainly obsessed with shorts. It was along this route and among these youngsters that I first heard the name Team Rocket whispered. According to these young campers and hikers, Team Rocket had set up an operation of sorts at Mount Moon and their presence there was deterring a lot of trainers from passing through.
Back then, Team Rocket was an organization to be feared. They had a lot of influence over everyday life in Kanto, and very few people had the courage to stand up to them. However, as a newcomer to the Kanto region, I was truly clueless at the time. I could see that the kids were unsettled by the thought of Rocket grunts lurking in the caves of Mount Moon, but I was incapable of understanding what this threat meant to them, or what it would come to mean to me. I pressed onward down Route 3 hoping to reach the base camp and Pokémon Center at the foot of Mount Moon before nightfall.
Along the way, I managed to catch a Spearow who I gladly added to the team. I named him Shakespear. Shakespear would come to serve me well inside the dark tunnels of Mount Moon. He needed some training before we entered, so I set to work using the base camp as our new base of operations. Shakespear proved to be a formidable bird and was not unlike Kiwi in his ability to grow quickly adept at fighting and training.
While we were training in the shadow of Mount Moon, Lucky developed a powerful psychic attack that had the potential to inflict confusion upon his opponents, and I noticed Nibbles able to inject a bit of poison from the tip of his horn with some regularity. I was certainly impressed in the team's progress. It was time to start our trek through the underbelly of Mount Moon.
 |
| The Zubat was one of the easier Pokémon to sketch, due largely in part to their huge colony within Mt. Moon. |
As we methodically made our way through Mount Moon, I was determined to get Vesper up to par with my other traveling companions. He would often open up a battle with other Zubat, or with the occasional trainer we found along those winding paths, only to be replaced with Shakespear who was an absolute terror in those tunnels.
Shakespear earned his place on my team as the number one Zubat deterrent on Mount Moon. He could out-perform them at every turn, pecking them out of the sky and sending a message that we were not to be trifled with by other Zubat. Those other Zubat did not get that message, however, and continued to plague us the entire time.
Among the outer caves of Mount Moon, I ran into a wide variety of trainers. As Brock had mentioned, it truly did seem as a thoroughfare for aspiring trainers to test their resolve against both the forces of nature and each other. In this particular case, Mount Moon served to test young trainers against a never ending onslaught of territorial Zubat. There were young boys and girls, among them a bug catching kid who wandered too far from Viridian Forest, I presume. I passed and challenged the occasional hiker and a science enthusiast. None posed much of a problem for my team and the pain of losing Rascal felt like it was passing somewhat.
In the heart of Mount Moon, I finally encountered members of Team Rocket. As I approached in the darkness, I heard them talking. Another young trainer had passed through quite recently and dealt them a severe Pokémon beating that still had them upset. Instead of keeping him out of their operation, he had apparently just blown straight through them and their Pokémon without hesitation. When they saw me lurking in the darkness, eavesdropping on their conversation, well they decided to take out their frustrations on me.
Although most of them were weakened by this previous trainer to a point where they couldn't even muster a Pokémon to participate, there was one trainer in that dark tunnel I will never forget. He was the champion of their little operation under Mount Moon, and he would make me pay for wandering where I wasn't wanted. He only had one Pokémon to face my five, but it was enough. I was lucky he didn't have any more.
This Rocket Grunt had an absurdly powerful Raticate, an evolution of my previous Pokémon, Rascal. I knew I had to be careful and so I threw out Lucky to face him. Lucky had recently learned to harness particles on its wings into powerful toxins, and so I had Lucky blow a debilitating sleep powder onto the Dread Rocket Raticate as I would come to call it. As expected, the Raticate dozed off gently and opened itself up to tormenting psychic attacks from Lucky.
What I did not expect was its incredible resilience to Lucky's powerful psychic ability. This ability had taken down numerous thick skinned Geodude along the tunnels of Mount Moon, but the Raticate was formidable. I could tell it was almost defeated, but just as Lucky was going to incapacitate it, Dread Rocket Raticate woke up. It quickly evaded the next attempt to spread a sleep powder. Then it bit down and it bit down hard on Lucky. It was a blow so devastating that Lucky was indeed lucky to not pass out from the strain. I had to switch.
I took a moment to collect myself with all the other Rocket grunts gathered around to cheer on their formidable leader and his terrible Raticate. I knew his Raticate was on the verge of defeat. It would only take one more solid hit to knock it out of the fight and claim a victory. Vesper was still useless. Kiwi and Shakespear were valid candidates, because of their speed and agility. But of all my Pokémon, Nibbles had the most solid defense with his very thick hide, so I felt if any of them were going to survive that devastating hyper fang it would be Nibbles.
It would be short lived. Kiwi came out and could sense my distress. He launched a brutal quick attack on the Dread Rocket Raticate and ended the fight in a single decisive blow. Team Rocket was not amused, but they were out of Pokémon and wouldn't dare lay a hand on me with my trained Pokémon at my side ready to defend me.
I carefully excused myself from whatever nefarious plot they were hatching in that large cavern. They allowed me to pass on my way without any more provocation. They probably said a bunch of intimidating junk that those gangster types like to say, but honestly my heart was sunken deep into the ground. I wouldn't have heard anything they said. Although probably meaningless to them, I had failed Nibbles and now we would part ways forever.
Speaking honestly, I had high hopes for Nibbles. He was so small and weak when we met, but he had the heart of a champion. I thought Nibbles would be with me on Victory Road, facing down the Elite Four and the Indigo Champion. I thought we would take on the world together, but these foul Team Rocket hooligans put an abrupt end to that fantasy.
I nursed Nibbles back to good health in some quiet corner of Mount Moon and spent our last remaining moments together just appreciating the company. Much like with Rascal, I tried to explain to Nibbles why it was important to me that he lived out the rest of his life here on Mount Moon (and I could truly think of no better place for him) and why I would have to press on without him. I shed a few tears and gave Nibbles a careful hug, avoiding his poisonous horn. He seemed to understand and with a final look at me, he scampered off into the darkness.
I soldiered on for Rascal and Nibbles. I pressed on to Cerulean.
Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.
Tuesday, September 15, 2020
Monday, September 14, 2020
Saturday, September 12, 2020
Epic Imperial Guard Baneblades
Not painting much these days what with the heat, but I did finish tidying up the base colors recently.
I was getting tired with the lack of perceived progress while painting the entire army though, so switched gears and just started painting the Baneblades. They just need a clear coat and flock at this point. Onto to something else next week.
My Hero Ones Justice 2 Free Download
The Fight for Justice gets Bigger, Badder, and More Quirkier!
The battle for justice continues, but this time the fight gets bigger, badder, and more quirkier in MY HERO ONE'S JUSTICE 2.
Based on the hit anime series, all of your favorite characters return in this 3D arena fighter that pits heroes and villains in the ultimate test for righteousness.
MY HERO ONE'S JUSTICE 2, the over-the-top follow-up to the smash hit 3D arena fighter MY HERO ONE'S JUSTICE, makes its heroic debut! Make full use of characters' Quirks as you clash head-to-head in epic battles across huge arenas!
GAMEPLAY AND SCREENSHOTS
♢ Click or choose only one button below to download this game.
♢ View detailed instructions for downloading and installing the game here.
♢ Use 7-Zip to extract RAR, ZIP and ISO files. Install PowerISO to mount ISO files.
My Hero Ones Justice 2 Free Download
INSTRUCTIONS FOR THIS GAME
➤ Download the game by clicking on the button link provided above.
➤ Download the game on the host site and turn off your Antivirus or Windows Defender to avoid errors.
➤ Once the download has been finished or completed, locate or go to that file.
➤ To open .iso file, use PowerISO and run the setup as admin then install the game on your PC.
➤ Once the installation process is complete, run the game's exe as admin and you can now play the game.
➤ Congratulations! You can now play this game for free on your PC.
➤ Note: If you like this video game, please buy it and support the developers of this game.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:
(Your PC must at least have the equivalent or higher specs in order to run this game.)
Minimum:
• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: WINDOWS 7, 64 bit
• Processor: Intel Core i5-750 / AMD Phenom II X4 940
• Memory: 4 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 / AMD Radeon HD 6870
• DirectX: Version 11
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 12 GB available space
Recommended:
• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: Windows 10, 64 bits
• Processor: Intel Core i5-3470or AMD FX-6300
• Memory: 4 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660or AMD Radeon HD 7870
• DirectX: Version 11
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 12 GB available space
Supported Language: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Polish, Czech, Russian, Hungarian, Dutch, Danish, Portuguese, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish, Korean, and Simplified Chinese language are available.
• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: WINDOWS 7, 64 bit
• Processor: Intel Core i5-750 / AMD Phenom II X4 940
• Memory: 4 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 / AMD Radeon HD 6870
• DirectX: Version 11
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 12 GB available space
Recommended:
• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: Windows 10, 64 bits
• Processor: Intel Core i5-3470or AMD FX-6300
• Memory: 4 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660or AMD Radeon HD 7870
• DirectX: Version 11
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 12 GB available space
Friday, September 4, 2020
Tuesday, September 1, 2020
Important Message from Senator Bennet on the 2020 Census
|
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
