#(especially F-Zero not so much Metroid)

[fierykitten2]

I’m bored and surfing TV Tropes (specifically the Wild Mass Guessing part which is unusual for me) and… yeah I definitely have to draw something involving DouglasxRobert and FoxxFalco (I did not realise how wrong that looks when I format it like that and insist on putting Fox first because he’s more important)

I’ve brought up the whole Falcon and Robert/Falco and Fox thing before but I love it and I also love the idea of the two ships being alternate universe versions of each other

I’ve looked up falcon and fox behaviour enough I could possibly attempt to draw Falcon and Falco behaving like falcons and Robert and Fox behaving like foxes but apparently falcons tend to show trust more than affection

[weaselandfriends]

I'm interested in your Fire emblem essay and what you said about the story being a reflection of the SRPG gameplay

Looking over the essay I have saved in my drafts, what I actually talked about was the answer to the question "Why did Fire Emblem get popular?" Fire Emblem has been around since 1990 and has been localized since 2003, but the series never took off to truly mainstream popularity in either Japan or the rest of the world until 2013, when Fire Emblem: Awakening was released, at which point it meteorically rose to become one of the best-selling Nintendo franchises.

In my essay, I posited that there were two "obvious" reasons for Awakening's popularization of the franchise, but a third less-obvious reason that was even more important. The first "obvious" reason was the introduction of Casual Mode, which removed the franchise's signature permadeath feature and made it far easier and more accessible to a broader audience. As someone who was in the trenches of the Fire Emblem fandom from 2004 to 2012, I can tell you that the series heavily attracted difficulty junkies during this time. The demographic heavily skewed male, and the most popular topics of discussion were tier lists and debates on the usefulness of various characters in certain challenge run settings (such as Low Turn Count, or LTC, runs). Casual Mode opened the doors for, well, casuals to join in on the fun.

The second "obvious" reason was that Awakening was anime. While every Fire Emblem game has had anime character designs, past titles were often fairly reserved with these designs, featuring knights in full armor whose only distinctly "anime" characteristic was green- or blue-colored hair. Awakening, however, leaned into the significantly more absurd, flashy, and/or sexualized designs that are what people far more commonly associate with "anime." It wasn't just the designs, though. Awakening also took an "anime" approach to character personalities, often giving each character one or two traits that are amplified to extreme degrees. This change is easy to spot if you compare Awakening characters to similar ones from past titles. In Genealogy of the Holy War, Arden is an armor knight who is teased by his comrades for being dull, boring, and generally stuck on sentry duty. In Awakening, Kellam is an armor knight who is so dull and boring that characters cannot even see him when he stands right in front of them. Recurring jokes involve characters thinking they're being haunted by a ghost when he talks to them, or forgetting he exists entirely, because he is so unassuming and banal. It reminds me of KonoSuba, in which characters have a singular trait that is pushed to its utmost extremities for the sake of humor; this is a style of humor commonplace in anime, especially anime that targets a young teen demographic.

My argument, however, was that these "obvious" reasons fail to adequately explain why Fire Emblem got so popular so quickly. They may have been sufficient in 2013, but the popularity of subsequent titles has called into question how much these reasons matter at all. To be clear, Fire Emblem probably doesn't become popular without Casual Mode; the accessibility is just too important. However, simply being accessible doesn't mean people will access it. There are plenty of SRPGs out there, like Shining Force, that never had permadeath, that were even localized during the 16-bit golden age of JRPGs, yet never gained major popularity. So while Casual Mode was necessary, it wasn't the change that took the franchise from the edge of Underperforming Nintendo Franchise Hell (F-Zero, Star Fox, Metroid, too many others to name) to 17 representatives in Smash Bros.

And frankly, I think the anime argument isn't a factor at all. It was a tempting argument to make in 2013, when the anime elements of Awakening were the most obvious deviation from the franchise's past, but 2019 a little game called Fire Emblem: Three Houses came out that utterly decimated the thesis. Three Houses is, of course, by far the most popular Fire Emblem title, with double Awakening's sales (1.9 million vs 3.82 million worldwide, according to Wikipedia). Notably for this argument, however, is how un-anime Three Houses is both in character designs and tone. In fact, Three Houses narratively hearkens back to much older Fire Emblem titles, with a major focus on politics and serious worldbuilding, significantly less comic relief, and relatively "realistic" character designs that avoid absurdity and fanservice. In its tone and story, it is far closer to Path of Radiance than Awakening. So if we take "more anime" to be the root cause of the revitalization of the franchise, how do we explain Three Houses?

There needs to be another explanation. Something both Awakening and Three Houses did that previous entries did not.

My argument is that what the Fire Emblem franchise did to turn itself around was change from a focus on plot to a focus on character, with innovations to the gameplay that emphasized this change. This sounds a bit more esoteric than the other explanations so let me clarify. Awakening introduced a mechanic called pair-up, which allowed two units to join together to gain large statistical and combat bonuses. On top of that, Awakening emphasized the game's support system, which had been present in older titles but much more difficult to access and inconsequential to gameplay, not only making supports easier to achieve, but central to character building and recruitment in the form of child characters. This gameplay emphasis is mirrored in the story, with Robin's character arc being rooted in the "bonds" he forges with his allies, and the child characters also having a significant role in the plot. On top of that, the more "anime" characters have livelier support conversations, as opposed to past games where many supports often boiled down to very generic "You are my friend. I will have your back on the battlefield" sorts of conversations.

With this character-and-relationship-driven gameplay/story in mind, look again at Three Houses. While lacking the pair-up mechanic or child characters, Three Houses adds a Persona-esque social link system that is extremely extensive and probably takes up about half the total gameplay. Strategic battles are deemphasized in favor of running around the monastery, talking to your allies, going to teatime or doing activities with them, finding them gifts, and so forth. The central narrative gimmick of the game is the three Hogwarts houses, which give certain groups of characters innate bonds that the gameplay then allows you to explore thoroughly. Even the aforementioned political nature of the plot feeds into these relationships; many characters are defined by the political placement of their birth, and their attempts to balance their personal goals with the goals of their station leads to intense interpersonal drama. And the plot itself boils this drama deliciously when it comes time for the three houses to go to war with each other.

This thesis of mine also extends to the less-popular installments of the franchise in the post-Awakening era. Though all these games sold decently well (likely due to install base), they don't match the success of the other two, and are a lot less well-regarded by the fans. Fates nerfed Awakening's pair-up system and lazily tacked on child characters via an absurd "baby dimension" that was poorly implemented in both gameplay and story; Shadows of Valentia was a remake of an NES game that, despite heavily revamping the story and adding some support conversations, did not change the core gameplay of the original; and Engage put in a more shallow monastery-like hub world, with much more simplistic characters, and a core gameplay gimmick that involves making one character a God instead of combining your units together.

Indeed, Fates and Engage are probably far more "anime" than Awakening and Three Houses, which most fans consider to their detriment rather than benefit. Most damning of all, however, is that the story of these games heavily revolves around a singular self-insert protagonist, with other characters having a much less important role. This narrative focus deemphasizes character-bond-based gameplay, rather than emphasizing it like the other games do.

(I'll mention that I personally think Engage is an excellent game, though this is because I am one of those spreadsheet and tier-list loving oldheads and I appreciate the excellent map design, core gameplay, and higher difficulty mode that actually seems like it was playtested. In fact, it was my love of Engage and the relatively lukewarm response from the fandom that led to me asking why Fire Emblem was popular in the first place. I had thought the fans loved all the goofy anime stuff, so why were they pissed about it now? What was Engage missing that Awakening wasn't?)

You can see how this shift from plot-based story and gameplay to character-based story and gameplay has affected not simply the raw number of fans, but the demographic makeup. In 2011, the fandom was nerdy dudes who liked to compare stat growth rates. In 2023, the fandom is far more evenly split between male and female players, and the fandom is a far more robust space for fan fiction, fan art, and other creative endeavors. It's characters who drove that change, not a more anime tone, not even a reduced difficulty. And after the relative reception of Three Houses and Engage, I'm extremely interested to see whether Intelligent Systems realizes this point, and what the next Fire Emblem looks like.

[sins-of-the-sea]

=The Far Future AU=

This is if I were to write Devil's Eye with a more sci-fi bent, leaning closer to influences from my favorite science fiction media as opposed to historical/period/pirate, and is intended for RP with futuristic muses and blogs.

The Legend of the Devil's Eye still applies as it would in the Main Story and the Modern AU, but taken further; in the far distant future, all of that is… well, just that. Legend. Pirate stories to tell your children as they are tucked in at night, and nothing more. What is not known, however, is that the Devil of the Sea not only still walks without his missing Eye, but the world has passed enough hands enough where searching for it has become fruitless… especially as sources of power in humanity's souls are starting to reach for the stars.

As such, the Devil has abandoned his search, opting to have… different sources of storing his power as it continues to grow. And these sources… well. The centuries haven't been kind to them or their humanity. The worst of mankind has taken a toll on what were once his last minions, but rather than allow them to go to waste, their essences are repurposed to be personal extensions of him… and how they are used is up to however he wants to at the time.

No matter the form the one once called "Master", he will always wear a necklace of seven pearls of seven different colors. In order for whatever power he has to be complete, he must keep all seven on his person at all times.

The Master, however, still requires to find the Devil's Eye--his original lost Eye--to be wholly defeated. But that would require returning to Earth and rediscovering the Legend that tells of how the Devil lost his Eye to begin with.

OOC, the focus muse of RP in the Far Distant AU is the Master, usually donning his Dr. Delmar Agdeppa disguise. However, this disguise is one of many, but with his power waxing and waning like the tides, and said power having to be divided up and store in seven different places instead of just two, he must be extra careful in how he uses that power. He will, then, continue to seek out souls, either to devour or enthrall.

As for La Demonia Roja and the Crew, that is up to the partner muse. One of the following sub-verses can used:

Variant A: The history of Earth has destroyed the humanity in the Seven so thoroughly, their bodies and souls can barely hold on any longer. However, rather than simply turn them into his Locker, the Master just repurposed them with what is left of their souls as they are wholly reduced to their Sins. Destroying a specific pearl on the necklace will release that soul into the Devil's Locker all while chipping away a bit of the Master's power. This is automatically this Verse's Doomned Ending, as the Sins are reduced to their vices and have lost their humanities altogether.

Variant B: Well, duh, humans can't handle the vaccuum of space, so the Master just kind of…. hid his thralls in pearls. Taking a pearl and breaking it will release that Sin, though it'll take a while for them to regain their bearings. They'll still be soulbound to the Master, however. Finding a way to free them will require the standard Voyage of the Devil's Eye storyline, just with whatever tech is available in this verse.

As for what kind of sci-fi I'm riding on, it's mostly the soft kind. It's also left underdeveloped so I can adjust to the Verse of the partner muse. Hence, I can easily fit it into Alien, Metroid, F-Zero, Treasure Planet, DOOM, Starcraft, any science fiction verse where an Earth may have existed once upon a time. Just don't ask how 'souls' are defined by that verse, lmao. That's too much a headache.

[grayrazor]

I get the sense that there’s kind of a “terminal gamedev brain,” especially among people who pioneered the field in the 70s-90s, where people see video games purely as tech demos, have no interest in story or characters, and so stop new games from being made unless they can show off some new gimmick, even if it means leaving things on a cliffhanger for decades.

That’s why Half Life 2 stopped at episode 2, why Quake never got a real sequel, why Duke Nukem Forever restarted production so many times, why StarFox, Metroid, and especially F-Zero etc. have spent so much time sitting in limbo. Gabe Newell, John Carmack, Shigeru Miyamoto, et al are all master artists of design and coding, but can’t seem to conceive the way that many people form emotional attachment to fiction, have no sense of narrative catharsis.

[athetos]

My thoughts on what movies for other Nintendo franchises would be like:

Legend of Zelda - abysmal. I have zero faith in a film adaptation characterizing link or Zelda properly. And there’s simply so much game to pack into a single movie, no matter which game you base it off of. They’d have to do an original plot, and I doubt that would go over well. If anything, it would have to be a tv show, and even then it will be pretty bad.

Metroid - sounds like it has potential, but I have a feeling it would fail. I don’t trust many people to write samus Aran. Metroid Dread would be the most likely to get a film adaptation, and it would definitely be scary and thrilling, but I feel that Hollywood would botch the execution fantastically. The EMMI designs would terrify me, though.

Fire Emblem - I feel this would land similarly as Zelda, in that there’s just so much to adapt, especially if it’s based off a more recent (and more popular) game, like three houses or awakening. Plus, with all those games having dating sim elements and player choices, plus the large casts, it would be a mess. I think a movie based off of perhaps the first game/shadow dragon would be alright, though. It wouldn’t be great if you had played the games and knew what was wrong in the adaptation, but for casual fans it would fare well.

Kirby - an animated Kirby movie would most likely underperform at the box office, but would be a big hit with fans. It would be a lot of fun, and kids would love it. You could give Kirby partner characters like Kirby right back at ya did. Maybe waddle dee would be the new minion…?

Star fox - assuming the style was aesthetically pleasing, I think this would be THE best adaptation. Fuck Star Wars, this is a star fox world now. A space opera with furries, what’s not to love? Just don’t adapt Star fox adventure, because I would be the only one to see it. Just follow the first game or Star fox 64, give us some angst and one-liners, drip feed us lore, throw in tons of Easter eggs, and set up a sequel that more prominently features Pigma or something. Easy.

F-zero - nintendo doesn’t even remember this exists.

Animal crossing - I’m sorry but this would be so boring. No matter what plot they make it would suck. I’m sure people will eat it up regardless, but I just can’t see it being fun. Am not sold.

Kid Icarus - has a lot of potential, but only if it’s animated. Would be a good movie to turn your brain off and watch while eating popcorn, equal parts laughs and “oooh”‘s. The writing needs to be fucking solid, though.

Pikmin - could be a fun family movie with jokes kids will miss that will make adults laugh. Not even in an innuendo way, but in a “makes references to stuff from the ‘80s and ‘90s” way. Very nostalgic and new all at once. Could be cozy. They’ll need to expand the cast of astronauts though, and maybe perhaps have some of the pikmin speak. Who knows.

Earthbound - I suppose the entire game could be condensed down into a single film, and I think it wouldn’t be amazing, but still good. However, it would earn hundreds of “omg this is kinda like stranger things!” Comparisons solely because it follows kids/teens in a retro world, which would make me so so mad I would turn into the hulk or the grinch or some other green beast.

Splatoon - it would be super colorful, flashy, and fun, and be a surprise hit. It could focus a lot on the lore that most casual fans are unaware of, and have a ton of original songs courtesy of the idols that would be on the radio forever. I have never played splatoon but I would see the movie the week of release.

[dascarecrow]

Build The Roster - The Next Super Smash Bros.

Hello everyone and welcome to something new! Inspired by the fantastic work of Thorgi's Arcade on Youtube, I have decided to do my own take on creating a hypothetical roster for a fighting game.

The first one up of course will be my own take on a roster for a Smash Bros. game

First up will be determining the size of the base roster with DLC coming in later.

Now it's doubtful we'll see a base roster as big as Ultimate's was, given the whole "Everyone Is Here" mantra that game embraced, but I do believe it will be bigger than Smash 4's base roster was so let's find a happy median between the two.

So let's do some math. Smash 4 had 51 fighters in the base roster and Smash Ultimate had 74 fighters so we'll do some simple subtraction to get a difference of 23. Then we'll divide that in half, giving us 11.5 which we'll round up to a nice even 12. Add the 12 to 51 and that would be a starting roster of 63 fighters.

Now that we've done the math to figure out how many fighters we'll have let's figure out just who those fighters will be. First up we'll be going over the current roster as of Ultimate and picking who will return for another round and who will be sitting it out for the next bout.

To start with we'll be cutting all Echo Fighters. They were a fun little idea but there was so little variation between the Echo Fighters and their base inspirations in terms of gameplay that they really feel just like a way to fill out the roster rather than full fledged fighters in their own rights. So no Daisy, no Dark Samus, no Ken, and so on and so on.

So onto to the actual roster selections.

Mario-He's a definite keep, being the face of the company and all that.

Donkey Kong-He's a keep too.

Link-Keep

Samus-Keep

Yoshi-Keep

Kirby-A definite keep

Fox-Keep

Pikachu-A for certain keep

Luigi-Keep him

Ness-Keep

Captain Falcon-A for sure keep

Jigglypuff-Now we arrive at our first cut character. They've been there since the beginning and are a mainstay of the series but I feel they've had their time in the sun. After all Jigglypuff's inclusion in the first Smash game was almost certainly because of it's role in the anime at the time and it hasn't been remotely as relevant for years now. So goodbye Jigglypuff.

Peach-She's a keep

Bowser-Gotta have Nintendo's most recognizable villain

Ice Climbers-I will say a very tentative keep

Sheik-They're a cut. Sheik has appeared in Hyrule Warriors but otherwise hasn't really been especially relevant in the Zelda franchise since Ocarina so they got to go.

Zelda-A Keep

Dr. Mario-He is a cut. Plays too closely to Mario and I'm hoping to get more originality for fighters so bye bye.

Pichu-Cut. Only came back in Ultimate because of the "Everyone Is Here" philosophy.

Falco-This one might hurt just a bit but cut. Trying to cut back moveset copies and Falco doesn't have much that Fox doesn't have so good day to you.

Marth-We'll keep him as the OG Fire Emblem character.

Young Link-Big cut. We're not having a different version of the same exact character.

Ganondorf-Big keep

Mewtwo-A keep seeing as he's a playable Legendary Pokémon and has managed to remain relevant throughout the years.

Roy-Probably not going to make people happy with this one but he's a cut. Most of the Fire Emblem characters won't be staying around for this one so brace yourselves.

Mr. Game & Watch-He's a keep

Meta Knight-Keep

Pit-A definite keep

Zero Suit Samus-This was a near thing but we'll make her a keep given how she plays much differently from her standard version and it helps give some more representation for Metroid.

Wario-Keep

Snake-Now I know this one is going to make people unhappy but Snake is a cut. Metal Gear is a massively popular series, Snake is a massively popular character, I get it. But given how Konami has been fumbling the ball with Metal Gear after Kojima left I wouldn't give him good odds for another return. After all he was included in Brawl in the first place because Kojima specifically asked that he be included and got to return in Ultimate because of, again, the "Everyone Is Here" motto.

Ike-He's a cut

Pokémon Trainer-Them we will keep because they are a definitely unique fighter.

Diddy Kong-Keep because Donkey Kong needs as much love as it can get

Lucas-He is a cut due to playing too much like Ness

Sonic-Well of course he's a keep

King Dedede-For sure a keep

Olimar-He's a keep given how popular Pikmin still is with people

Lucario-Another tough one to figure out but I decided to go with a keep given that Lucario is a fan favorite and also has stayed relevant throughout the years since his debut.

R.O.B.-Keep

Toon Link-Cut for the same reason as Young Link

Wolf-Cut for the same reason as Falco

Villager-We'll keep them for some Animal Crossing representation

Mega Man-He's a keep given how little attention the Blue Bomber gets from his own creators.

Wii Fit Trainer-This was another close one but I ultimately went with a cut for them. They are certainly unique but the days of Wii Fit are long gone so it feels like there isn't much sense in keeping a character that represents that game.

Rosalina-This one hurt me to do but she's a cut. Look I like Rosalina, I think her star powers are cool but despite continuing to make appearances in Mario games she hasn't really been a major part of anything since Galaxy 2 and I feel it's time for some other Mario characters to get a chance in Smash.

Little Mac-We'll keep him

Greninja-They are a cut. Popular as they are they feel like they were meant to represent the most recent Pokémon generation at the time so now that that ship has sailed we can quietly retire them from Smash.

Palutena-We'll keep her. After all Sakurai worked on both Smash and Kid Icarus games so why not keep the Goddess of Light.

Pac-Man-We'll keep him for Namco representation

Robin-Now them we'll be keeping because they don't fall into the same issues most of the other Fire Emblem characters do. They aren't primarily a swordfighter but rather a mage and they weren't included to coincide with the latest Fire Emblem game as was the case in 4 and Ultimate.

Shulk-They are regrettably cut. Don't worry if you're a Xenoblade fan as there will be representation but Shulk has had his day.

Bowser Jr.-He is a cut. His gimmick was fun but he's been played out so now it's time for him to go.

Duck Hunt-Them we will keep

Ryu-He's basically synonymous with fighting games we're keeping him

Cloud-He is a definite keep given the Remake trilogy's success and being the most recognizable Final Fantasy character

Corrin-Only got in because of when their game released so a cut

Bayonetta-Another hard one to figure out but after careful consideration I've decided to keep her. Her franchise is essentially Nintendo exclusive as is so there would probably be fewer issues getting her back in.

Inkling-A definite keep considering how popular Splatoon is

Ridley-He's a keep

Simon-He is a cut. However we will be slightly breaking out rule about eliminating all Echo Fighters by having Richter replace him as the main Castlevania rep. Why? I like Richter better is all and this still gives Konami some good representation.

King K.Rool- He is a keep because you can never have enough villains

Isabelle-She will sadly be a cut due to playing very similarly to Villager

Incineroar-They're a cut due to the fact that I don't even know why they were chosen as a Pokémon rep in the first place.

Piranha Plant-They are a cut. They were fun little goofy inclusion but I do not see a return in the future.

Joker-I know Persona is popular with people but I just don't see them getting a re-invite so this one's a cut.

Hero-Gonna make this one a cut. I know Dragon Quest is massively popular in Japan and is gaining a sizeable following in the West but this one felt like a one and done.

Banjo & Kazooie-This one will be a keep. Banjo and Kazooie are Nintendo characters in all but name, their return to a Nintendo console was long overdue and it would help represent Rare again.

Terry-He will be a cut. I know that getting an SNK fighter was a big deal but it also felt like Terry was there solely for there to be a SNK fighter so I don't see this character repeating.

Byleth-Cut for the same reasons as Corrin

Min Min-She will be cut. ARMs didn't take off quite the way that Nintendo clearly hoped it would despite an intriguing premise and it feels like she got in due to her game being a Switch launch title

Steve-They are a cut. There was a lot of technical work put into getting Steve to function in the game and it's unlikely the development team would be up for doing that a second time.

Sephiroth-He's a cut. He's a great villain character don't get me wrong but we already have Cloud for Final Fantasy and I don't foresee Sephiroth making a comeback.

Pyra/Mythra-They're getting cut for much the same reason Shulk is. Time to make way for the new kid on the block.

Kazuya-He's a cut. Tekken characters are considered difficult to put into Smash as fighters according to Sakurai and while I believe there are ones that could work rather well in Smash the fact is I don't see Kazuya getting another invite.

Sora-Now this one was a tough one to be certain but I'll be optimistic and make Sora a keep. If Nintendo was able to get Disney's approval once then they could do it again and with Kingdom Hearts IV in the pipeline some cross-promotion just might be possible depending on when we get either Kingdom Hearts IV or the next Smash Bros.

Mii Fighters-Those will stay forever so keep.

Now let's total up our inclusions and removals.

For the prior Smash Bros. fighters that will be cut we will have, minus the Echo Fighters already, 31 fighters removed from the roster.

As for the returning fighters who will all make up the base roster we will have 49 veterans.

So with 49 fighters already locked in that will leave us 14 newcomers to the base roster.

Now we can go on to the fun stuff.

So 1st up is...

Waluigi!

That's right Luigi's lean and mean but not so green evil copy is up for this personal edition of a Smash Bros. roster. If Daisy could get in as an Echo Fighter then this purple menace can easily graduate from Assist Trophy to a full fighter.

Next...

It's Tails! Decided to fill out some of the third party guest franchises with new characters because that feels like a natural progression for the Smash Bros. series and Tails is Sonic's sidekick so he feels like a natural fit for another Sonic rep in Smash.

And next...

Chun-Li! If we're expanding on third party franchises here then we have to include the First Lady of Gaming. After all after Ryu she's likely the most recognizable Street Fighter character in the world and as such more than deserves an invite to join Smash.

Up next...

Meowscarada! There should be a new Pokémon rep for each Smash game and Meowscarada not only gives us that but also provides an independent Grass type starter to complement prior inclusions Greninja and Incineroar.

Up next is...

Crash Bandicoot! There should at least be a few new third party characters for a new Smash Bros. game and Crash would be one of the biggest additions to ever happen for the series. Besides the guy deserves some fighting game love after not getting into Playstation All Stars.

Then there's...

EMMI! Metroid has a decent grab bag of characters who might be worthy inclusions for Smash Bros. but we felt this relentless mechanical menace would be the most fitting addition.

And then...

Impa! The Zelda series is long overdue for a new fighter that isn't just some version of Link and Impa perfectly fits the bill. Given her frequent depiction as a Sheikah warrior she could also as a similar yet distinct replacement for Sheik.

And then there's...

Bandana Waddle Dee! If the Zelda series is overdue for a new fighter then the Kirby series is in even more dire need of a new one and this unique Waddle Dee who has taken off in popularity and prominence over the years is a perfect fit.

Next up is...

It's a Smash Bros. tradition to include a retro character as a new addition to the roster and this bike riding hero is as good as any if not better.

Now it's...

Krystal! She's about the only Star Fox character who realistically would play completely different from Fox and the series needs all the representation it can get.

And now...

Rayman! Another big mascot type character who deserves a place in Smash Bros and would give Ubisoft some representation as well.

And now it's...

Andy! Advance Wars is a Nintendo property and while I'm not sure how they would put in a fighter from that franchise I know it could be done and would be something unexpected.

And now there's...

Jin Kazama! I think it would be fun to have a Tekken character as part of the base roster along with Street Fighter characters and I honestly think Jin would make more sense than Kazuya returning or Heihachi replacing Kazuya, especially with the release of Tekken 8.

And finally...

Master Chief! In all honesty I do see Master Chief one day joining Smash Bros. but most likely as a DLC character instead of on the base roster. That said I do think there would be one completely unexpected "never in a million years" longshot that the creators would put in just for the razzle dazzle factor alone and who better than the face of the Xbox itself to fill that slot.

Okay then we now have our base roster all set up but the fun doesn't stop there. Now we need to figure out the DLC. Ultimate had a grand total of 11 DLC fighters so we're going to bump that up just a bit to a nice odd 15. So now let's figure out who our lucky participants are going to be.

First up is...

Geno! This Mario character has been a longtime request for Smash and if Nintendo could get Disney to lend them Sora then getting Geno another game may not be impossible.

Second up...

Noah! We've got to have a Xenoblade character in Smash and with Xenoblade 3 being the most recent release it only makes sense to have the main character as a rep for that series.

Third up...

Isaac! Golden Sun is a cult classic and people want to see Isaac stop being an Assist Trophy and his earth elemental abilities would be unique for gameplay.

Fourth up...

Bomberman! He fits like a glove in the world of Smash Bros. and he would be a way to get more Konami representation in the game.

Fifth up...

Shovel Knight! Indie games need a rep in Smash Bros. and you'd be hard pressed to find a more fitting choice than Shovel Knight.

Sixth up...

Scorpion! We got more fighting game inclusions in the DLC for Ultimate so why not keep the trend going with the next game. And yeah I know there's the problem of censorship but Scorpion has appeared outside of Mortal Kombat before so it's not impossible.

Seventh up...

Lloyd Irving! The Tales Of series deserves to have a playable rep in my opinion and Lloyd is best choice for that role.

Eight up...

Spyro! If we're going to have Crash Bandicoot then we have to have Spyro in there somewhere so why not as DLC? He would definitely be a different type of fighter, being a quadruped and all.

Ninth up...

Sol Badguy! Another fighting game guest character and honestly it's surprising we haven't gotten anyone from the highly animated games of Arc System Works.

Tenth up...

Sans! To call Undertale a success is to say the sky is blue. As such it's all too fitting to have one of the most popular characters from the game as a fighter in Smash Bros.

Eleventh up...

Zagreus! We needed at least one off-kilter pick for DLC and the star of a successful roguelike perfectly fits the bill.

Twelfth up...

Dante! Wanted to put some more Capcom representation in Smash and Dante more than fit the bill for what I was looking for.

Thirteenth up...

2B! Wanted another out there pick and 2B has appeared in other fighting games before so I figured why not?

Fourteenth up...

Cuphead! I just like his cartoony aesthetic and his different finger bullet abilities, which would translate wonderfully into a moveset for Smash Bros.

And finally...

Kratos! To finish off we need a big name and one of Sony's most prominent and popular characters fits the bill perfectly. Not to mention he has a phenomenal moveset waiting to be implemented into Super Smash Bros.

And with that we have successfully created our own roster for the next Super Smash Bros. Feel free to go over this list and let me know if you agree with all of our choices or if you feel I should have made some different picks.

[transmascsonicthehedgehog]

I know people aren't as lenient, entirely, when it comes to Metroid considering it is one of the more serious and "realistic" nintendo franchises (well yk realistic as in not slapsticky or cartoony like marweewee and kirbs)

but honestly like.

They Should just bring back Ridley with a loose explanation.

Like he's just fun to fight and have. He's not even the main antagonist of the series but he is Samus' main antagonist. He's her purest rival, her arch nemesis, the amount of genuine hatred between these two aren't rivaled by any other nintendo rivalry, hell in gaming in general. Let him have some that funny nintendo magic that can bring back ganon into the canon, bowser from the literal brink of death multiple times, that same shit that made F go Zero, it's not like metroid hasn't done crazy stuff anyway lol.

He's just a cool nemesis to Samus and I think so long as the series is around, he should be there too in some way. Plus ultimate really did boost his popularity so idk lmao. All he needs is an actual voice lol

big big agree

i MISS ridley a lot he's the main antagonist and driving force behind the story ( i.e killing samus's parents, thus kickstarting it all ) it feels like something's missing without him being there in some shape or form

the chozo getting much needed attention in dread was a very welcomed treat and i adore the lore we got especially when it came to raven beak and quiet robe ( AND samus being able to speak chozo made me VERY happy ), but since there IS proof of chozo remaining in the universe it would be interesting to see whatever's left of the mawkin tribe try to bring ridley back from the dead to avenge their fallen leader. you feel?

i'd also love to see a bit more behind raven beak himself and the separation/split between the mawkin and thoha. there's just so much we DON'T know despite what dread put up on display and it makes me want more

[fluri-above-all]

Everyone who said the Nintendo Direct was "mid"....

Just no.

I'm happy for the people who want casual gaming experiences to relax to in the "ridiculous amount of farming games". First of all farming isn't a new concept in games, you're reading way to much in to it.

I'm happy for those who are feeling so much nostalgia with the N64 callbacks and remasters. A lot of people have great memories of these games. Some are going to get to play them for the first time. Support the experience.

Was not expecting Ib at all like Holy Sh*t

I'm happy for everyone stoked to see games get sequels, especially those who have been waiting for so long (looking at you Pikmin fans, pass on the love to the Metroid and F-Zero fans they need it).

Also Zelda. We are all collectively happy for Zelda. 😭

Some less fortunate fans got to eat for once, be happy for them. Don't call it "mid" and make people feel bad/ ashamed for liking these games. Have your opinions, don't buy the games, whatever floats your boat but don't go out of your way to be rude about it.

Carry on gamers.

[game-boy-pocket]

In honor of 2/22/22's day, here's my top 22 2nd entries in video game franchises.

22. Pikmin 2

21. Metroid Prime 2

20. Dragon Quest II

19. Wario Land 2

18. Zelda II: The Adventures of Link

17. Metroid 2 the Return of Samus

16. Metal Gear Solid 2

15. Splatoon 2

14. Dragon Quest Builders 2

13. Mario Kart 64

12. Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

11. Super Smash Bros. Melee

10. EarthBound

09. F-Zero X

08. Batman Arkham City

07. Donkey Kong Country 2

06. Super Mario Bros. 2 USA

05. Sonic the Hedgehog 2

04. Mega Man 2

03. Sonic Adventure 2

02. Banjo Tooie

01. Pokemon Gold and Silver

Admittedly, those bottom 4 choices are a little phoned in since it's a bit tough to think of that many 2nd entries. I didn't finish Pikmin 2 at all actually. There's some games that might have a 2 in it, like Yoshi's Island, but let's be real, it's not really a SMW sequel, it's just the first Yoshi game.

Anyway, Pokemon GS and Banjo Tooie have to be hands down my most anticipated sequels of all time, and they also happened to deliver in nearly every way. Especially pokemon, in fact I feel like every Pokemon game after GS has failed spectacularly to live up to the bar that GS set for the series. I'm surprised and saddened to hear that Banjo Tooie is such a divisive game though. Admittedly I kind of get it, Terrydactyland and Grunty's Industries can be painful to traverse, but I have so much fun exploring the world of that game that I don't really care, and I find it tough to go back to BK after experiencing Banjo's new moves and the tweaks to the old moves. Shame about the cutscenes in the Xbox version.

[verygayandverytired]

and thats metroid prime 2 refinished. god i forgot just how bad that zero suit samus model is

very fun and enjoyable game, and my first 100% in a prime game (well, more like 99% since i missed one scan SOMEWHERE????)

i think that the potential for getting 100% on an unguided playthrough with little or no prior knowledge/memory is a testament to good design for placing all the items you can get. this one is definitely a bit better at that than prime, due to much more consistently having the relevant hints placed for the scan visor to pick up. there were a few moments in 1 where you seemingly were just expected to know to use a power bomb in an otherwise innocuous place, and though i tried to be as a thorough as possible, i dind’t quite hit 100% in that one like i did here and in dread 

the bosses were overall better than 1′s as well, but a few were just painful. like the spider ball guardian. even here on trilogy, which has the morph ball jump you can do instantly rather than the slower bomb method that was the only option on the gamecube. i’m also generally not a huge fan of the large morph ball puzzles/fights, which this one had quite a few more of than 1. though i did like the spider ball boost jumping from rail to rail, that was a neat expansion on the mechanics of these puzzles. i definitely liked the emperor ing fight a bit better than the metroid prime fight, but they both have some glaring issues. the first phase of metroid prime is just “shoot the matching color” and then the second phase is just “stand in a puddle and shoot it.” emperor ing’s first phase with killing the tentacles and trying to hit at the exposed spot was a lot more fun, but the final phase leaned towards metroid primes color matching a bit too much (and in reverse). it was also frustrating any time i had to hit it with the dark beam, but couldn’t land a shot because the dark beam is so slow. i eventually realized i could use the annihilator, but by then i was almost done with the fight. the final dark samus fight was also a bit... bleh. the first half you just shoot her while she’s not got the invincibility shield going on, and then in the second half you just spend a bunch of time waiting for her to do the one attack where you can suck in the phazon you need to damage her a few times.    

gameplay wise, i did actually like the beam ammo system. i thought it gave some depth to choosing how to deal with enemies, and its a lot easier to get ammo back than a lot of people make it out to be. i also liked the selection of beams better than 1. in 1, the wave beam and plasma beam were both great, but the ice beam was even more painfully slow than the dark beam (or at least it felt like it). the charge combos were also way cooler, though still not nearly as useful as they should have been, a problem that was in 1 as well. the ice charge beam was strong, but slow and not very visually interesting and i literally never found one good place for the flamethrower. the wave buster was great though, and absolutely melted metroid prime any time it was purple. in 2, the dark burst and sun burst are way too slow to be useful most of the time, but visually they fuck so hard. especially the dark buster. i wasted so much dark ammo firing out those black holes to send enemies to super hell. the sonic boom was neat too, and actually useful since it’s instant rather than a slow projectile, but it felt a bit underwhelming? it just kind of lacked punch. also the light beam’s range was so annoying in that it was definitely shorter than it felt like it should be, but also due to the way the perspective is you also can’t really get a good look at what that range is. it functions the same as 1′s plasma beam, but i feel like the plasma beam hit like at least 1.5x further

the game was also a fairly noticeable visual upgrade over the first in a number of ways, but i could not stop getting distracted by the very low rez textures on the arm cannon for the light and dark beams, and the very framey animations they had. also just the visual designs for the cannon with each beam were a little lackluster i feel. they pretty obviously just reused the models and stuff for the beams from 1, and slapped altered textures over them, which seemed a bit unimaginative. i know that retro studios were super rushed on 2′s development, which also explains why so many of the enemies also very clearly reused models from 1, and it’s not the end of the world of course, but i feel it was a missed opportunity for some really sick looking beams. publishers and development management teams stop fucking rushing games please

[echoeternally]

Do you have any ships for other nintendo franchises like star fox, donkey kong, smash bros even if you don't play them? If so what are your favorite(s) from each series your interested in

Oh, yeah, I totally ship a bunch of Nintendo ships, lol. For the ones that I don’t play, I guess I’m not completely sure, because I’ve played a bunch of Nintendo games, but normally the most popular ones are what I think of first. 

For example, I’ve totally played a few Star Fox games, so I would definitely think to ship characters for that. But, if you were to dig in a Nintendo library for things like, idk, The Wonderful 101, then no, haven’t played, and therefore, don’t know characters well enough to ship.

But if people take a few minutes to introduce me to a bare bones build-up of the characters, and suggest potential ships, I might be swayed, or develop some based on their appearances, lmao.

I’ll list some below the cut.

(Tbh, I thought I had made a list before, but I couldn’t find one that I liked in two seconds, so I’ll make this one.)

Ok, so, I guess some franchises from Nintendo that I’m familiar with would be:

Super Mario Bros. (duh)

Pokémon (double duh)

Fire Emblem (triple duh)

Star Fox

Kirby

The Legend of Zelda

Super Smash Bros.

Donkey Kong

Yoshi (?)

Metroid

F-Zero

Kid Icarus

Now, because Smash is listed there, yes, I have some familiarity with the other franchises in the game. But, I don’t think I could list those, since, I’m not as into their franchises.

For example, I’m totally into Xenoblade Chronicles...but I only know about Shulk’s game, and the story for that one. Rex? Don’t know anything about the kid or his lady, uh, swords? Same for Animal Crossing; I could recognize characters, but I know little to nothing.

In fact, I’ll list F-Zero here first, because I just ship characters from there based on appearance. Do I know some stories of these characters? Sure. Are some not compatible after I factor those in? Yep. Don’t really dwell on it, though, since Nintendo doesn’t really dwell on F-Zero and it’s mostly about racing. Also, it would be a lot for me to run through.

On a parallel note, I don’t ship a lot in Metroid. I tried a few times when I was younger, usually thinking of Samus with other bounty hunters, but that’s the thing about Metroid: the notable cast are Samus’s mortal enemies, and the other protagonists to appear typically die or are not important. So, I wouldn’t really be a big shipper for that either.

For Kirby, I ship sometimes, but it also depends on my mood about how people view Kirby. Is he a baby? An adult? I don’t think there’s a clear answer, so it no longer feels as comfortable to ship Kirby himself as I did when I was younger. Still, I think the Helpers[/Enemies] are fair game, but I won’t get too into those, since like F-Zero, that’d be a lot.

And quick mention to Yoshi even being on this list, since, well, I don’t normally consider the franchise to be removed enough from the Super Mario franchise to be considered on its own in terms of cast and whatnot, but they are considered such by Nintendo, hence my listing it.

With what’s left, I’m just going to pull a mish-mash of pairings that I like and slap on the franchise at the end. Yes, I’ll refrain from stuffing this post with too many ships, especially from Pokémon, lol.

Mario/Bowser (Super Mario Bros.)

Peach/Pauline (Super Mario Bros.)

Yoshi/Birdo (Super Mario Bros.) (Thank you spin-offs.)

Peach/Daisy (Super Mario Bros.)

Greninja/Chesnaught (Pokémon)

Nidoking/Rhydon (Pokémon)

Machamp/Alakazam (Pokémon)

Swampert/Blaziken/Sceptile (Pokémon)

Fox/Falco (Star Fox)

Fox/Slippy (Star Fox)

Fox/Peppy (Star Fox)

Wolf/Panther (Star Fox) 

Meta Knight/King Dedede (Kirby) (Blame fan art.)

Sir Kibble/Biospark (Kirby) (Yes I have.) 

Bonkers/Bugzzy (Kirby)

Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, among others)

Link/Sheik (Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time)

Zora/Goron (Legend of Zelda in general)

Moblin/Lizalfos (LoZ in general, but probably OoT for these)

Donkey Kong/King K. Rool (DK)

Diddy Kong/Dixie Kong (DK)

Robin/Lon’qu (Fire Emblem: Awakening) (both Robins)

Dorothea/Edelgard (Fire Emblem: Three Houses)

Ryoma/Saizo (Fire Emblem: Fates)

Pit/Viridi (Kid Icarus) 

Gomar/Shioh (F-Zero)

Pico/Bio Rex (F-Zero) (one that makes no sense)

Jody Summer/Kate Alen (F-Zero) (another)

Captain Falcon/Snake (Super Smash Bros.)

Ridley/King K. Rool (Super Smash Bros.)

Peach/Zelda (Super Smash Bros.) 

That’s basically a fraction of what I could come with and ship from those franchises. Some obviously have more than others, and some are based more on appearance than character development / actual chemistry.

To list those, I guess I’d have to go into each franchise individually or something too, because I’d be at these for a while thinking of everything that I like. For example, I only listed like 4 Star Fox ships, but I pretty much pair Fox himself with nearly anyone from his franchise, since it’s easy to pair him around. (A personality that’s flexible to pretty much everyone, I guess, lol.)

If I were to look into stuff that I don’t really play, I could probably come up with pairs that I like from those too. Let’s use...Arms as an example, and a duo that I might like would be...Master Mummy with Max Brass. Stuff like that.

But yeah, I totally ship a whole bunch of different things from Nintendo’s library.

[mhall070]

MY SUPER SMASH BROS STORY

I first played super smash bros in 08, when brawl was new. It belonged to my mom's ex's nephew's friend, me my brother my mom's ex's nephew and his brother all played for countless hrs (funny with the 4 of us it really was super smash BROTHERS). Now I first played smash before I new what smash was so it was really just a fighting game with a bunch of familiar faces to it. My mane was Mr game & watch I only played him because he was visually the most impressive character (being flat and all), my brother played snake because he was a solder the nephew would play sonic and his brother would play rob cuz he looked like wall e.

Unfortenently this fun would not last for I had forgotten all about it in the 3 yrs it was absent from my life. 3 yrs later in the last month of of middle school I did not rediscover smash but it was first introduced to me. It was super smash bros 64 I fell in love instantly with its bizzar game play and mechanics, but most importantly with the characters and settings. The first character I played was jigglypuff because no one else played her and she was the only unlocked character. The connection with jigglypuff and I was strong and would be indefinite because she was so quirky and fun, I enjoyed being a nuance to my friends while having my ass handed to me. Note ssb64 is when I first met my partner so you could say smash is a love story. After a while I new I had to own this game so I asked my mom for super smash bros, yep those were my words, I never specified I wanted ssb64. On my next birth bay I received a videogame as my gift it was super smash bros brawl (in my opinion the most ambitious game in the series). As I played through with my brother we shuffled through an onslaut of options like music choices and modes like saving photos and replays it was amazing, and don't get me started with subspace emissary. The story mode was almost to much fun being so dramatic and hilarious, it really was something to behold. In super smash bros brawl there were a few more characters I found I had a great fondness for. They were Zelda & sheik, falco, marth, and the ice climbers whom I would not learn were from the previous instalment for some time and the newcomers were zero suit samus, Lucas, pit, toon link, and rob. It was also brawl that introduced me to my favorite video game franchises, like metroid, star fox, zelda, and f zero. When we first returned to the fighter select screen a memory from the past suddenly changed the way I looked at this game series. My life was suddenly just like the entangled crossover mess that was the game, it was like meeting an old friernd who had always been there, and it was then I decided super smash bros was the greatest video gaming experience of my life. Not long after completing brawl I discovered super smash bros melee instantly I new I had to own it, so I bought a copy and a GameCube cuz I didnt own one. It took me a stupid long time to unlock every character and stage (melee stages explained). I was surprised to learn that some characters in melee didn't make it to brawl, only one of wich I really fall in love with. Roy was one of many characters that were sadly cut from the next instalment. And I mean clones they were everywhere in melee and all but absent from from brawl. As for other characters I grew especially fond of the ice climbers and their gimmicky play style. Unfortunately super smash bros melee modes were a bit lackluster compared to brawl. Say for adventure mode wich was surprisingly deep, it really made you feel as if you were traversing through the games the characters belong to, unlike subspace emissary. But where I believe super smash bros melee really shines is in its game play and mechanics. It feels like a movie hopping around with explosions and lightning fast movements and it's technical input options that make the competitive scene so alluring (I'm a casual player BTW), unlike brawl wich is slow and sloppy and ssb64 wich in my opinion is worse. All things considered it is perhaps the most well put together game in the series.

Some time later super smash bros for Wii u and 3ds was announced, I was shocked, I believed ssbb was to be the last game in the series. I couldn't believe it, smash for handheld and home it was unreal. The first installment in the series I could truly enjoy the hype for, it was fun aside from being a skeptic of all the leaks that would later turn out to be true. First I shall say I accurately predicted paluteana would be a playable character, second the biggest surprise was definently pac-man (didn't think he'd  be possible), and third I was crushed to learn ice climbers would not make the cut because of the 3ds and I'd resent it for that reason. Not only that but I new the 3ds version would be inferior so I waited for the Wii u version. I stood out side the game store late at midnight to get my copy early. And I played for hrs, my favorite addition to the game had to be 8 player smash I allways wanted more action. I must say the roster of this game is one of if not the strangest with the cutting of semi clones like wolf and Lucas and the return of clones, specifically Dr Mario, of all the melee characters you'd choose to bring back why him over mewtwo, and the inclusion of dlc later. Nonetheless I did receive a few new characters to enjoy in paluteana, villager, the mii fighters, and corrin. Speaking of dlc I was not surprised by the announcement of mewtwo as dlc and I am glad both Roy and Lucas returned and Ryu I new you couldn't represent capcom with just megaman. The other game modes in Wii u and 3ds were interesting to say the least, target blast was fun but I still prefer target smash, master and crazy orders were amazing but hard, smash run was certainly the best thing about the 3ds version oh yah I did get a copy and a 3ds because I didn't have one. Oh and people, smash board isn't comparable to subspace emissary or world of light so, stop comparing them. The inclusion of amiibos really can make the game interesting but ultimately (pun intended) aren't very fun, however that won't stop me from buying all the amiibos I want. Now taking all this into account super smash bros for Wii u and 3ds allthough is flawed is also endlessly entertaining.

Then one day my partner came up to me and said, MERDY (thats my name) there's a new super smash bros game coming out. We watch the teaser and the thoughts just start rolling in, what characters will there be, what stages, what items, what modes, I was ready for all the answers but I would have to wait. I can say before the big "everyone is here" reveal I knew the ice climbers would return I also new there was no way they'd pass up another chance to add a story mode. World of light and spirits for that matter are probably the best thing to happen to smash, it's so complex and in depth it's creative and bewildering, it may not be as enveloped in worlds as adventure mode and we may not be able to enjoy the creative level design Masahiro Sakurai brought to subspace, however world of light has one thing the other two don't, customisation and the choice to play how you want, it's not as linear as adventure mode or subspace, and your fights aren't chosen for you. As for other game modes, I should first say 2 great new additions are video editing and vr mode, anyway you might as well go back and play some of the earlier installments in the franchise because ultimate leaves a little to be desired. Say for smash mode wich has lots of fun and well we can't talk about smash mode or super smash bros ultimate as a hole without mentioning it's shining star. The characters in super smash bros ultimate really make the game, I always dreamt that all the character from past installments would be in one game together. Of course I still had my predictions and surprises, first I accurately foresaw chrom, Simon, king k rool, technically hero (I really predicted erdrick only), and banjo & kazooie. Second I did not suspect, daisy, dark samus, and incineroar, although it was not a surprise ridley's presents in the game is highly appreciated for I am a huge metroid fan, BTW inkling was a no brainer. And I should mention the only new character I really enjoy playing is king k rool. Before the last section I wanna reminisce the things I'll miss about super smash bros. I'll really miss board the platforms, race to the finnish, 3d models of the characters and stages on select screens, event matches, coin launcher, boss battles, master and crazy orders, trophy rush, trophies, smash run, and good online gameplay... oh wait that was never a thing. I must state I'm sorry this story kind of turned into a critique, but super smash is first and foremost an experience and looking back now my life has be influenced by it, learning to grow strong and live big, and I can tell you super smash bros still is both a brotherly and love story for I still play with my brother and partner frequently. As for the future I can't say, ssbu is still growing and I personally believe it'll be Sakurai's last game in the franchise and video games are starting dwidle out of my life. Nonetheless it will be an unforgettable experience and I plan to continue to share it with all the world as it should be, being the largest crossover event in the history of entertainment, how can you even avoid it.

Waluigi for smash!!

 -------------------END-------------------

[numberonerandomblogger]

The Gamecube review

So, it has been 18 years since the Gamecube was released and now, with my newfound free time, I can finally review what I’ve experienced from its gaming library. First, I’d like to say that this review is only my opinion, although it might be a bit controversial since I have my own issues with it. Second, I’ll divide the games in some categories for this review.

Platformers

Gamecube had an abundance of platformers, with most of them being in 3D. It’s a bit like the N64 era, but with even less 2.5 D platformers (aside from Megaman, Viewtiful Joe, or Alien Hominid). I ended up liking most 2.5 D platformers on the console and Donkey Kong:Jungle Beat remains an amazing game, despite being very easy. Due to this oversaturation, most of them tried very hard to stand out by mixing up gameplay mechanics with something “cool” (guns, cars, etc.) to appeal to kids and I ended up not liking those too much, such as Ty, Shadow The Hedgehog, Vexx, etc. Meanwhile, the other games that stayed true to themselves became classics always considered by fans, such as Billy Hatcher & The Giant Egg, Pac-Man World 2, Super Mario Sunshine even though I don’t like that game at all, etc. While I wasn’t really a fan of the direction platformers were taking during that era, which heavily affected their quality, there are still a few diamonds in the rough.

Adventure/Role-Playing Games

The Gamecube had plenty of adventure games and, despite open-world games becoming more and more of a thing, the Gamecube had very few open-world games. Only The Incredible Hulk:Total Destruction, True Crime, or even GUN were open-world on the consoles. So, more traditional adventure games were put on the console. I really loved The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker for what it was, despite a few problems it had. Starfox Adventures was also decent, but far from great. The Legend Of Zelda:Twilight Princess tried too hard to please its “hardcore gamerz” fanbase and to look cool, so I still found the experience slightly dissapointing. At least some gameplay mechanics. The Resident Evil games were also the only source of adventure-horror games on the console aside from Eternal Darkness, which I think is a really great horror game with lots of interesting ideas. Role-Playing games on the console were also fairly scarce, especially compared to the Playstation 2. They were fine, though. Paper Mario:The Thousand-Year Door was pretty good, although a bit overrated due to some characters’ halted development and some gameplay mechanics I am not a fan of. The Baten Kaitos games look like they could have been on PS2 in terms of quality, and are really good games. I thought the Pokémon games on the Gamecube (XD, Colosseum) were really nothing special both in terms of story and gameplay compared to other RPGs despite trying to appeal to an older audience. Tales Of Symphonia was great and could compete with PS2 RPGs. So yeah, I liked the Aventure games/RPGs of the Gamecube, but most weren’t that extraordinary.

Shooters

As far as shooters go, there is a big variety of them. Even including a few 2D shoot-em-ups, although only Ikaruga is really fondly remembered. The vast amount of First-Person Shooters on the console wasn’t really that surprising and rarely did any of them try to stand out. Two titles that stood out to me were Metroid Prime 1 and 2. Rather than just focusing on killing the bad guys, there was a vast amount of effort put into exploration and, while the sight of a 3D Metroid game doesn’t instantly make me happy, that’s something I can honestly get behind. I’m glad Retro Studios took their time to create a deeper universe for Metroid. They were a few other shooters, such as Metal Arms:Glitch in the System, but I don’t think that many of them stood out on the Gamecube aside from Killer 7 and P.N. 03, but that game isn’t the best due to its unusual controls. Star Fox: Assault might not have been the best game in the series, but it was still somewhat alright to play and kept the arcade-like spirit of the franchise. Oh, and there’s also Geist, a Nintendo-made First-Person Shooter. Too bad it had a great idea that was better executed elsewhere.

Fighting games

Unlike the N64, the Gamecube got quite a few good fighting games. Sure, most of them are licensed games, but most of them were really fun. Even better is that Mortal Kombat appeared on the console in 2004. Super Smash Bros. Melee might be rushed, but it still works really well. Custom Robo can also be considered a fighting game, but it has an interesting story mode that’s somewhat darker compared to the happy-go-lucky Nintendo 64 games and can feel like an RPG due to its structure. The 90’s atmosphere is what sold me to this game. As for the licensed titles, anime games based on Naruto or Zatch Bell were fine, but they also weren’t the best fighting games in existence due to a copious amount of problems. This era saw the birth of a bunch of Power Stone clones for some reason (One Piece:Grand Battle, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, etc.), which was a good thing, in my opinion. The only bad thing about it is that Capcom still won’t make Power Stone 3 despite their formula being so successful other companies ripped them off.

Other

Despite the Gamecube not having a realistic car simulator, it had a good amount of realistic-looking racing games. Too bad I honestly do not care about any of them. F-Zero GX is a fun but somewhat frustrating futuristic racing game. Just be prepared for the mind-crushing difficulty and you’ll have a good time. Mario Kart:Double Dash!! Has some great ideas that kept me hooked for a while, but I’d rather play Mario Kart 8. Kirby Air Ride is probably my favorite racing game on the system: it uses a single button and the joystick to deliver a rather unique experience. I would definitely recommend it. Animal Crossing, on the other hand, is either something you love or just don’t care. I personally think the Animal Crossing novelty wears off after a few weeks, but I still somewhat “like” it. My favorite game on the console has to be Chibi-Robo: a cleaning/simulation/platforming game where you control a small robot that has to clean the Sanderson’s house. It’s weird, charming, and has a unique story that surprisingly ends up being very dark. Luigi’s Mansion was also somewhat dark, yet ended up really being charming and interesting thanks to its nice atmosphere and neat gameplay. As for rhythm games, we only got a few of them, including Dance Dance Revolution:Mario Mix, which only has some neat remixes. Nothing else about it is really worth the price. Speaking of Mario spin-offs, I really didn’t like some of the ones on the Gamecube. Super Mario Strikers has a single unlockable team, Mario Superstar baseball’s mechanics rarely work and the AI might take advantage of that during the single-player mode, Mario Power Tennis’s gimmicks didn’t entertain me enough to prefer the game over the N64 one, Mario Party 4’s mushroom mechanics were somewhat predictable, and Mario Party 7’s mic-enhanced minigames and overall board designs just bored me. That was the time when I stopped caring about Mario spin-offs.

Overall, I liked the Gamecube’s gaming library, although I didn’t like many aspects of it and had a much better time with the PS2 or even the Dreamcast. I think the Gamecube MIGHT be a bit overrated due to a good amount mainstream gamers growing up with it using their pink nostalgia glasses in order to complain that THEIR era was better than the current era, just like a good amount of previous Nintendo fans complaining on forums about how THEIR era was better back in 2001-2006. It’s an eternal cycle.

[msgameandcake]

Got to thinking about a Dark Smash Bros, consisting of dark counterparts to the characters present in the game. This is the best cast I could come up with, though given I’m not familiar with every series, and not every series has a whole host of characters to work with, I didn’t come up with good counterparts for everyone present. In particular, I don’t know anything about Fire Emblem at all, so if there are any good counterparts there I sure wouldn’t know about ‘em. I’m also sure Bayonetta and Snake have several good counterparts, but I don’t know enough about those games to provide any sort of knowledge about what they would be. Also, a lot of Pokemon could probably just have other vaguely related Pokemon as their counterparts, but I only put counterparts down for Mewtwo and Pokemon Trainer. Even with some characters I could find counterparts for, it may be fairly obvious I’m still not especially familiar with the character in question, such as with LoZ characters.

Mario – Shadow Mario, from Super Mario Sunshine, uses acrobatic techniques primarily from the 3D games and the magic paintbrush to attack.

Link – Dark Link, from Zelda 2/Ocarina of Time, focuses even more on swordplay/shield usage rather than Link’s other tools.

Samus/Dark Samus – Dark Samus/SA-X, from Metroid Prime trilogy and Metroid Fusion, Dark Samus uses more of her unique moveset from her boss fights while SA-X emphasizes a more slow/brute force/super armored methodology with Samus’s weaponry, giving a feeling of slow but inevitable demise.

Yoshi - Yoob, from Mario & Luigi Partners In Time, heavyweight fighter version of Yoshi

Kirby – Shadow Kirby, from Kirby & The Amazing Mirror, focuses on abilities post-Superstar such as Missile, Cupid, Magic, Animal, Metal, Bubble, Water, Leaf, Spear, Whip, Archer, Beetle, Bell, Circus, Poison, Doctor, ESP, Staff, Artist, and Spider.

Fox - Wolf, from Star Fox 64, it’s wolf! He can just still be wolf!

Luigi – Mr. L, from Super Paper Mario, uses some Paper Mario mechanics alongside his super jump, self-heal shroom shake, and of course Brobot final smash.

Ness - Porky, from Earthbound, primarily operates as his Earthbound child self, heavily focused on trickery and misdirection with otherwise low stats other than weight, sort of like if Pac-Man was heavier.

Captain Falcon – Blood Falcon, from F-Zero, most attacks deal greater damage/knockback, moves like Falcon Kick and Raptor Boost travel even further, and he even has a slightly faster run speed, but moves almost universally have greater endlag making him even easier to punish.

Peach/Daisy – Princess Shroob, from Mario & Luigi Partners in Time, pretty much an entirely different moveset based around using Shroob technology, the only real shared moves are neutral special blocking with a Shroob and maybe a move smacking people with her crown.

Bowser – Dark Bowser, from Mario & Luigi Bowser’s Inside Story, moveset mostly taken from Bowser’s Inside Story, rolling around as a ball in his shell, charging flame breath for a major burst rather than consistent flame breath, inhale attack similar to Dedede, and specials summon minions for most specials.

Zelda - Hilda, from Legend of Zelda A Link Between Worlds, uses magic associated with the various Rods rather than the various goddesses. Has a painting form to attack for her.

Falco - Leon, from Star Fox 64, another space animal fighter, probably a more vertically oriented Wolf.

Ganondorf - Yuga, from Legend of Zelda A Link Between Worlds, uses moves from his boss fight.

Mewtwo – Shadow Mewtwo, from Pokken Tournament, uses moves lifted directly from the fighting game.

Meta Knight – Dark Meta Knight, from Kirby & The Amazing Mirror/Kirby Triple Deluxe/Kirby Star Allies, slower than Meta Knight, some attacks can be extended to summon large swords that stab into existence from nowhere, similar to Bayonetta’s added bullets to her moves, doing so increases his endlag, neutral special changed to stabbing sword into the ground to create a tornado column that slowly moves forwards while he remains immobile, down special changed to summoning four large sword to stab into existence around him.

Pit/Dark Pit – Dark Pit, from Kid Icarus Uprising, Dark Pit’s weapons have been switch around to match the weapons he uses in his dedicated chapter, the Silver Bow, EZ Cannon, Violet Palm, Ogre Club, and Dark Pit Staff. His usage of these weapons will fundamentally alter his playstyle to be almost entirely different.

Pokemon Trainer/ Squirtle/ Ivysaur/ Charizard – Rival Silver/ Chikorita/ Quilava/ Feraligatr, from Pokemon Gold/Silver, these three pokemon will just fundamentally fight differently, as the rival chooses the type that beats your choice, Silver has the stage 1 Grass type Chikorita to beat stage 1 Water type Squirtle, stage 2 Fire type Quilava to beat stage 2 Grass type Ivysaur, and stage 3 Water type Feraligatr to beat stage 3 Fire type Charizard.

Lucas – Masked Man, from MOTHER 3, heavy PSI Love usage is consistent, though rather than PK Fire, PK Freeze, PK Thunder, and punches/kicks/a stick to attack Masked Man uses his laser sword, blaster, and heavily damaging though tough to connect lightning strike to fight.

Sonic - Shadow, from Sonic Adventure 2/Shadow the Hedgehog, equally fast as Sonic with the same side special spindash and neutral special homing attack, but with chaos control teleport as an up special and chaos spear projectile as down special, alongside a generally different set of standard attacks.

King Dedede – Shadow Dedede, from Kirby Triple Deluxe, uses an axe rather than a hammer, has equal move speed to standard Dedede, but better frame data allowing him to complete attacks much faster, alongside some arcing energy projectiles from his Dark Matter stomach rather than gordos, new attacks tend to move him around the stage a good deal such as a forward smash where he swings forward lunging a good deal across the stage simultaneously.

Olimar - Louie, from Pikmin 2, Louie is slower and lazier than Olimar, he returns with the ability to have 5 Pikmin at once, but is entirely helpless without them, they die much more easily, and plucking pikmin takes him more time.

Mega Man - Bass, from Mega Man 7/Mega Man 8/Mega Man & Bass/Mega Man 10, uses the Bass Buster which automatically fires, can have five shots simultaneously, and can be aimed in all eight directions, but Bass cannot walk while shooting and each shot does less damage, not even a full 1%, special weapons are all taken from 7, 8, MM&B, and 10,  with weapons like Water Shield, Wheel Cutter, Chill Spike, Ice Wall, Tengu Blade, Magic Card, Copy Vision, Homing Sniper, Thunder Claw, Flame Wheel, and Noise Crush getting a chance to shine, with Treble Boost acting as a recovery and/or Final Smash.

Little Mac – King Hippo, from Punch-Out, similarly incapable of fighting in the air like Little Mac, but now with more weight and even greater super armor, literally no recovery capabilities.

Palutena - Medusa, from Kid Icarus, moves taken from her boss fights and some altered Palutena techniques

Pac-Man – Spectral Fiend, from Pac-Man World 3, uses Pac-Man World butt-bounce, rev-roll, pac-dot bomb throw, backflip kick, and punching combos, can summon Spectral Monsters as a hazard/projectile.

Shulk - Egil, from Xenoblade Chronicles, primarily uses projectiles such as missiles and summoning mechon, can activate certain auras to change his stats a little, and can also change the enemy’s stats with debuffs applied to his projectiles.

Ryu/Ken - Akuma, from Street Fighter series, standard Akuma stuff here, raw power with little in the way of defense/recovery.

Cloud - Sephiroth, from Final Fantasy VII, REALLY long sword, uses various spells from FFVII.

Inkling - Octoling, from Splatoon/Splatoon 2, essentially the same as Inkling, but the weaponry associated with each move is swapped around, such as a dynamo roller down special for flicking the roller rather than rolling with it, and a charger neutral special for a powerful long-range shot, ink debuff mechanic is retained

[videogame1up]

Will the Nintendo Switch be a resurgence for Nintendo franchises?

                  There’s no denying that the Nintendo Switch is doing well. With 32 million units sold by the end of 2018 with no signs of slowing down due to a year packed full of game releases such as Luigi’s mansion 3, Animal Crossing, FE three houses, Mario Maker 2, Links Awakening, Yoshis crafted world, Pokemon Gen 8, countless Final Fantasy games, Dragon quest, etc etc. And keep in mind these are just the games announced so far for 2019. It’s possible Nintendo may have a couple of more releases up their sleeve this year. I think it’s safe to say Nintendo’s strong sales with the Switch will continue through 2019. The switch has enjoyed great sales, especially when you compare it to it’s older brother. The Switch has so far sold 32 million, whereas the Wiiu for it’s entire life sold just 13 million. Looking at these sales numbers, and announced games for the Switch i believe we will get a resurgence of franchises on the Switch. And it’s all thanks to the switch sales.FE was on the Gamecube, Wii, DS and 3DS. but it skipped the Wii U. you could argue that was due to low sales for the FE series. But that’s not true, FE awakening made the series popular again back in 2012 which sprouted two sequels for the 3DS. But not one for the Wii U.But sure I’ll concede, FE maybe isn’t that popular of a franchise. But what about Animal Crossing? A series that got it start in Japan on the N64, but truly found life on the Gamecube. That continued it’s life on the DS, Wii, and 3ds. With the Wii U simply getting a party spin off game. There’s also metroid prime 4. The prime series is a beloved series that found life on the Gamecube and Wii but as we all know, skipped the Wii U. It’s instead finding it’s way to the Switch. Why did it skip the Wii U. Nintendo knew how excited fans would have been for this game. Well Nintendo could probably think of 13 million reasons why. Switch seems to the be the console all these games are coming home to, including Pokemon. For the first time a main series Pokemon title is coming to a home console. Although the Switch sales can’t be the reason why, if it was just sales why not on the Wii? Well aha! Allow me to get to my second and probably more important note. Sales I’m sure is a nice incentive for Nintendo to bring these franchises that skipped the Wii U over to the Switch. But there’s one more major reason, and it’s in the numbers of Animal Crossing. I know, numbers aren’t fun, but allow me to get this out real quick. The Wii was a major hit for Nintendo selling 101 million units. The 3DS (including all models) sold an impressive (but ya know, not as impressive) 74 million. Animal Crossing on the Wii (the much better selling console) sold 4 million units. Animal Crossing on the 3DS sold 12 million. Some Nintendo franchises just lend them selves to portability. Animal Crossing is one of these series. Fire Emblem is one of these series and of course Pokemon is one of these series, which is why we are for the first time getting Pokemon on a home console.Then there’s titles like F-Zero. Which not only skipped the Wii U but also the Wii. I feel a wind is changing, we will get an F-Zero game on the Switch. It probably won’t be this year. But with the insane install base the Switch has garnered and seemingly forgotten franchises such as Metroid Prime finding it’s way back (slowly, but it will get here guys) we will get a new F-Zero game on the switch. And Pikmin 4, and Star Fox (I know, Star Fox zero. But i mean a Star Fox game fans will like) This feels like a new era for Nintendo, and the Switch feels like a system Nintendo is putting everything into.      Thank you so much for taking time to read this. I would love to hear what you guys think, let’s get a discussion started. Do you think we will be getting seemingly forgotten franchises back? If so what do you want to see return to a Nintendo console? And hey if you reallllly liked it. Feel free to follow me for more post like this and game reviews (currently playing through KH 3 with a fair amount to say, so i should be writing a review up for that sometime in the near future)

[aion-rsa]

15 Hardest Nintendo GameCube Games of All-Time

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The GameCube arguably marks the end of the infamous “Nintendo Hard” era of Nintendo’s game design philosophy. As the company (and their partners) explored new technologies and new ideas, developing absurdly difficult games simply became less of a priority.

However, that doesn’t mean that the GameCube’s library lacks truly difficult games. If anything, a select few developers saw advancements in the medium as a chance to advance the art of difficult game design and rose to the occasion by creating titles that would make even the most hardcore old-school gamers blush as they try and try again to beat them. 

They may not be as ridiculous as the hardest games of the 8 and 16-bit eras, but the hardest GameCube games ever made prove that the spirit of that time was very much alive at the start of a new generation. 

15. Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem

Eternal Darkness isn’t the hardest game in GameCube history (obviously), but it is one of the most uniquely challenging experiences that the beloved Nintendo console has to offer.

Eternal Darkness’ sometimes awkward combat system and fiendishly challenging puzzles keep the game’s difficulty level relatively high at all times, but what puts this one over the top is the impact of its sanity system. Having to balance your character’s sanity just so you don’t trigger one of the game’s mind-bending effects adds a layer of complexity to this underrated survival horror classic that is sure to keep even genre veterans on their toes.

14. Super Smash Bros. Melee

As much as I sometimes miss Super Smash Bros. Melee’s surprisingly generous single-player offerings, it has to be said that many of the game’s campaign battles and optional skill challenges were shockingly tough. Just try cranking this game up to “Hard” or “Very Hard” and tell me how far you get. 

Of course, if you really want to see how hard Melee can be, just try challenging one of the gamers who haven’t stopped playing this GameCube classic in the 20 years since its release…

13. Tales of Symphonia

Some fans will argue that Tales of Symphonia is more “complicated” than “difficult,” but that argument won’t mean much to you when you’re staring at the screen and wondering if you’re somehow much worse at RPGs than you thought you were.

Even after you learn the basics of Tales of Symphonia’s somewhat strange combat system, you’re still going to regularly find yourself in the middle of fights that feel unwinnable. You can level grind your way to success in this ARPG, but even that won’t save you if you’re bold enough to try beating this game on its highest difficulty settings. 

12. Resident Evil Zero

The definitive “middle child” of the GameCube Resident Evil games isn’t nearly as brilliant as Resident Evil‘s remake and Resident Evil 4, but it does happen to be absurdly difficult.

Even on Normal mode, Resident Evil Zero’s brutal combination of limited resources, instant death scenarios, frustrating puzzles, and enemies that can often stun you mid-battle are enough to make this arguably the hardest game in franchise history. At higher difficulty settings, though, you can safely remove the “arguably” part from that conversation.

11. Alien Hominid

The GameCube version of this former Flash game is essentially a reskinned Metal Slug. That’s really just another way of saying that Alien Hominid is a retro arcade action experience complete with all the one-hit deaths and absurd odds that we often associate with that genre.

Alien Hominid’s sense of humor takes some of the sting out of its most punishing sections, but this game’s frequent use of absurd “bullet hell” style sequences will absolutely test the patience of all but the most skilled genre fans.

10. Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader

Few games have aged better than Rogue Squadron II. From its visuals to its gameplay, no other title in this genre released since (especially Star Wars-themed spaceship combat titles) has come close to matching this game’s graceful balance of intense set-pieces and airtight controls.

Unfortunately, Rogue Squadron II is also just as tough as it was when it was released nearly 20 years ago. Some of this game’s difficulty can be attributed to its occasionally confusing structure, but this is honestly just a white-knuckle action title that was clearly designed to test your reflexes. 

9. Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

While you could argue that every Metroid game offers a higher than usual degree of difficulty, Metroid Prime 2 feels like Retro Studios’ attempt at seeing how high they could crank up the difficulty without chasing everyone away.

Just in case this game’s brutal boss fights, limited resources, and shockingly durable “normal” enemies weren’t enough to make you rage quit, Retro Studios decided to throw balance to the wind and add in a Dark World damage mechanic that makes some areas of the game feel like a trip through Dark Souls’ Blighttown. 

8. Baten Kaitos Origins

I’m a big fan of this game’s CCG-style combat system and JRPG visuals, but I’ve always found it difficult to recommend it to people simply because it is so…err…difficult.

Some of Baten Kaitos’ boss fights and enemy encounters are difficult to the point of arguably being broken. To make matters worse, there are times when you’ll essentially be “locked-in” to a battle, which means that it’s nearly impossible to grind some extra levels to make things easier. It’s why most players maintain several save files whenever they play this frustrating gem.

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7. Super Mario Sunshine

If you told me that you think 2D Super Mario games are harder than 3D Super Mario games…well, I’d have a hard time arguing with you. However, I will say that Super Mario Sunshine is the closest Nintendo ever came to making a 3D Super Mario game that feels as consistently challenging as 2D Super Mario games.

Sunshine’s platforming obstacles would be tough enough in a “normal” Mario game, but when you consider how many of them also require you to master this game’s strange water jet mechanics, you’re left with a game that no other entry in this franchise can properly prepare you for.

6. Mega Man Network Transmission

To be honest with you, the only reason this game doesn’t occupy the top spot on this list is that it’s so frustrating and cheap that I don’t feel like it should be rewarded with that “honor.”

Mega Man Network Transmission is best described as…awkward. It’s difficult in the ways that a lot of classic Mega Man games are, but its RPG and strategy systems mean that there’s a surprising degree of “randomness” to the whole thing that sometimes makes it nearly impossible to overcome the game’s often cheap enemies based on skill and reflexes alone. 

5. Viewtiful Joe

Much like Alien Hominid, Viewtiful Joe is essentially a throwback to retro arcade games and their gloriously absurd difficulty levels. Unlike Alien Hominid, Viewtiful Joe adds a few twists to its chosen genre that make this side-scrolling brawler closer to a bullet hell shooter.

The result is a title that’s as difficult as it is stylish. This game’s unique combat system forces you to consider the trajectory of incoming attacks in a way that’s difficult to learn and somehow harder to master. Thankfully, this game is so good that you probably won’t mind navigating the learning curve.

4. Chaos Field

Chaos Field is an odd game. It’s essentially a vertical bullet-hell shooter that consists entirely of boss fights. Basically, it’s a bullet hell shooter that takes you from the hardest part of an especially hard genre to the hardest part of an especially hard genre with not much room to breathe in-between.

This certainly isn’t the best bullet hell shooter ever, but it is one of the genre’s most unforgiving entries. This absolutely relentless title has long been a badge of honor for any GameCube owners bold enough to think they have a chance at beating it.

3. Super Monkey Ball 2

Some of the hardest games are the ones that no other game can quite prepare you for. While the original Super Monkey Ball obviously set the stage for its sequel, even that game’s biggest fans weren’t quite prepared for this game’s difficulty spikes and Master stages.

Do you know those moments in the Portal games when you enter a new room and think “How am I supposed to do this?” Super Monkey Ball 2 is filled with those moments, but the big difference is that you not only have to find the optimal path forward but flawlessly execute the mechanics required to reach the exit. It’s that combination of brain-teasing and mechanical mastery that makes this one stand apart. 

2. Ikaruga

If Ikaruga isn’t developer Treasure’s greatest work, I’d say it’s the game I can point to whenever I’m trying to show someone what separates that legendary studio from nearly every other developer that’s ever graced this industry. It’s a masterpiece of a bullet hell shooter that combines lightning reflexes with a puzzle-like dodging system that forces you to think on your feet at all times.

While Ikaruga is clearly challenging, I’d never go so far as to say that the game is unbalanced. It is instead designed to put you in that “zone” that fans of difficult games are always chasing whenever they take on another seemingly impossible challenge.

1. F-Zero GX

I know that F-Zero X ranked high on our list of the hardest N64 games, but compared to F-Zero GX, I’d go so far as to say that game almost feels fair.

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While the absurd aggressiveness of F-Zero GX’s A.I. opponents is enough to make it a contender for the top spot on this list, the truth is that F-Zero GX would arguably be one of the GameCube’s toughest games if it was just you and the track. It is possible to master this game to the point that you’re able to make “perfect runs,” but most players will need to learn to recover from seemingly unwinnable scenarios in order to have any chance of beating this game’s brutal story mode.

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