Super Mario Galaxy [Wii]

Features

• Join Mario as he ushers in a new era of video games, defying gravity across all the planets in the galaxy
• Players can run, jump, and battle enemies as they explore the many planets
• Press buttons, swing the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers, and use the Wii Remote to point at and drag things on-screen
• Perform mind-bending, low-gravity jumps across wild alien terrain
• For 1 to 2 players

Description

Every hundred years a comet passes over the Mushroom Kingdom and rains down stars and stardust, and as Princess Peach andthe citizens of the kingdom are celebrating the centennial event, Bowser and his legions attack by launching asteroids at the Mushroom Kingdom and crystalizing the Toads! Knowing that Bowser is after Princess Peach, Mario runs to save her. Things go awry as Bowser summons a massive spaceship, abducts Peach’s entire castle and hits Mario with a massive magical attack. The next thing he knows, he finds himself on a mysterious moon high above the Mushroom Kingdom! Navigate Mario through a bevy of exciting new worlds and the depths of space, with all new enemies, power-ups and attack skills, as he collects the Stars needed to save Princess Peach! Two player functionality ESRB Rated RP for Rating Pending

Mario returns and takes his next adventure into space. Follow him as he travels from planet to planet bending the rules of gravity. Players experience perspective shifts as they run upside down through alien worlds. Meet challenges like surfing on a ray in an ocean in the clouds, rolling a ball through a treacherous garden, or floating in a bubble over a poisonous swamp. Control Mario with the Wii Remote and use the Nunchuk to perform his special moves. A special co-op function allows a second player to collect star bits for Mario or take care of enemies in his way. This title also includes opportunities to change Mario into a Boo or a bee.

Reviews

Decent fun. But not Mario enough

Introduction
I love Mario games. Mario is probably my all time favorite hero, next to Ryo from Shenmue. I’ve played and finished probably all mainstream Mario titles. Frankly, I’m always a bit ticked off that Nintendo focuses more on Zelda than Mario. It always seems like they barely get one Mario title out the door with each console. The new releases of Mario, New Super Mario Bros. & Super Mario Galaxy, were disappointing in the level of challenge they presented compared to previous games.
I’ve finished the game with 96 stars. What’s left are some of the purple comet levels, some hidden stars, including a green one. I was borrowing the Wii from my brother and I had to return it and I have more games to play that need to finish during my vacation. I feel like I have finished that game though and what’s left is extras that, if I wanted to play, would have fun doing so.

Story
While the Mushroom kingdom is in celebration, Bowser shows up in Airships, taken from Super Mario Bros. 3, and starts bombing the ground. Then a flying saucer lifts the castle into space with Mario still on it. When they get into space, a Magikoopa knocks Mario off and he falls on a small planet orbiting outside of Earth, or whichever planet the Mushroom Kingdom belongs to. It is there that you are given the power to spin by Rosalina, which is your main attack and will allow you to travel through space via Launch Stars. Wind them up and they boost you to a predestined location. When you find your first Grand Star, it takes you to a space station called the Comet Observatory and you speak again with Rosalina, the keeper of the observatory.
The story’s main focus is on Rosalina, the newborn stars that populate her observatory called Lumas, and how her Comet Observatory came to be. It is told to you in chapters when Rosalina reads the story to the Lumas in the library room. New chapters become available after a certain amount of stars are collected. The usual Mario story still applies, but there is significantly more focus on explaining who all these new characters are.
Mario Galaxy is different from other Mario games in that it seems to be more mature. The soundtrack sounds less goofy. There is a story attached to it that tries to provoke emotion. Even the ending seems to give some deep insight. Also, when you die, it’s kind of graphic: Mario looks like he’s reaching for the win with his last bit of energy. This feels almost too different at times, but it does give a new dimension to Mario games and makes me wonder how far they’ll take it in the next Mario.
Sometimes, it’s just way overdramatic. When Mario gets a grand star, he does all these special flips in the air and flies around with the star as if he’s in flirting with it. It looks stupid and stands out from the rest of the image the game presents. Speaking of things that are overdone, Mario Galaxy also has too many menus when you want to enter a galaxy. You have to be pulled by a Pull Star, then you have to choose a galaxy, then you start flying to it, then you choose a star, then the star spins, and finally you fly to the galaxy. Why can’t I just enter the room, select a galaxy and a star in the same screen, and then fly to the galaxy? At least there are no loading times.

Gameplay
Mario Galaxy is played using the Wiimote. Flicking your wrist makes Mario spin. The other major use the Wiimote provides is as a pointer to collect Star Bits and to make Mario navigate through Pull Stars, which you can use to pull Mario across space. The Wiimote doesn’t contribute anything exceptional to Mario Galaxy.
It looks like they were trying to experiment with new ways to play with the Wiimote as well. You’ll see this in very rare occasions. Nintendo forces us to use the Wiimote in a non-intuitive way. And it’s frustrating when I kept dying, because I knew I could do it with the analog stick, which is generally used to move Mario, but it just sits there doing nothing.
Controlling the camera is very limited, which I guess isn’t too bad because I have to readjust my hand to reach the camera controls anyway. But it sometimes makes controlling Mario difficult. I think a lot of the difficulty of the game stems from the weird camera angles that make it difficult to judge exactly how you’re supposed to move.
Just like every new Mario game, there are new power-ups. This time there is: Bee Mario, which allows you to fly like a Bee for limited amount of time; Rainbow Mario, a limited time power-up that functions like the star in other Mario games; Boo Mario, which turns him into a ghost allowing him to go through certain walls; Ice Mario, which lets Mario turn any water he touches into a platform of ice; Fire Mario, which allows Mario to throw fireballs (a little awkward with the Wiimote); Spring Mario, which allows him to jump really high, and it looks cute. And there is also a secret power-up that isn’t mentioned in the book. But I think you can only use it in two areas of the game, which is a shame.
Instead of a castle as in Mario 64, Galaxy takes place in the Comet Observatory, which is made up of a number of small observatories, each with a theme. Each observatory has five galaxies associated with it, each with a sub-theme. Each galaxy has a certain number of planets in it depending on its design. Basically, each Galaxy is a level. Inside each galaxy there could be a bunch of small planets or there could be one big planet and it may have a few small planets around it. Most galaxies start out with three stars to collect, although the count will increase later as you complete it.
While some people think that these sphere levels are revolutionary, I don’t. It’s been done before, creates camera and control issues, and makes it difficult to see where you’ve been and where you’re going because you can only see a portion of the level at a time.
Galaxy never got boring from beginning to end as there were always new things to see and do. But it did start out slow for me and I wasn’t impressed. It was too easy and jumping from tiny planet to tiny planet was just unfulfilling. It was very linear and hardly required any exploring. After about 20 stars or so the game introduced much more challenging level deigns and more exploring was needed and it became more fun, but never surpassed the fun in Mario 64.

Other Thoughts
The in-game graphics, generally, met my expectations and sometimes surpassed them with how much attention to detail was. For instance, when Mario is underwater, he looks like he’s holding his breath. I don’t remember more examples, but did notice more of these that made Galaxy seem more like a living breathing universe.
The only way they could improve the in-game graphics is to have higher resolution rendering, implement some much needed Anti-aliasing to smooth out those edges everywhere, and clear up some color banding that appears in some levels. They could also improve the (Full Motion Videos) FMVs. They try to look like in-game cut-scenes, but seem foggy, looking almost as bad as the FMVs in Super Mario Sunshine. And the beach levels have too much bloom, giving them an unnatural look.

Conclusion
Super Mario Galaxy is the successor to Super Mario Sunshine, but touted as the true successor of Super Mario 64. While it did return to the formula of Mario 64, I must say that I enjoyed Super Mario Sunshine more. And I don’t mean that in the capacity that Mario Sunshine didn’t score very high, so Galaxy must be a bad game. My personal taste was that Mario Sunshine was a good game and so is Super Mario Galaxy. It just feels like there something missing from Galaxy, yet I don’t know what it is. What I do know is that I’m not fully satisfied with Galaxy as a Mario game. But Galaxy is still a good game that can last you for hours of fun.

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed [Xbox 360]

Features

• Confront and associate with familiar faces from the Star Wars films, including Darth Vader in addition to new adversaries such as fugitive Jedi and Force-sensitive Felucians
• Unleash and upgrade the Secret Apprentice’s four core Force powers - Force push, grip, repulse and lightning - throughout the course of the game, and combine them for ultra-destructive, never-before-seen combos.
• Examples of unleashing the Force in ways never thought possible: Secret Apprentice won’t just Force push enemies into walls - he’ll Force push enemies through walls, and will Force grip them in midair, zap them with lightning, then drop them to the ground
• Visit locations such as Episode III’s Wookiee homeworld Kashyyyk and the floral Felucia, the junk planet Raxus Prime, plus an Imperial TIE fighter construction facility
• Decisions made by players throughout the game will determine the path of the story, including multiple endings that will rock Star Wars continuity as they know it.

Description

The next chapter in the Star Wars saga, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, tells the story of Darth Vader’s Secret Apprentice, a mysterious figure trained by the menacing Sith Lord, to hunt down the last of the Jedi. Set in the dark times between Episodes III and IV, the story is both a continuation of the prequel trilogy — exploring the aftermath of Order 66, which called for the immediate execution of all Jedi, and focusing on the continued rise of Darth Vader — and a direct bridge to the Original Trilogy. The Force Unleashed will forever change the fate of the Galaxy and explain key plot points that directly lead into events in Star Wars: A New Hope. With The Force Unleashed , LucasArts not only introduces a new chapter in the Star Wars saga, but also two completely new and innovative technologies — Digital Molecular Matter by Pixelux Entertainment and euphoria by NaturalMotion Ltd. These groundbreaking technologies combine with Havoc physics to create true next-gen game play and the Force like it’s never been seen or experienced before.

Puzzler Collection [DS]

Description

We’re putting a whole new twist on your favorite puzzle games! Experience the classic Crossword, Sudoku, Word Search, and Fitword puzzles you love with all-new, interactive video game play. With over 2,000 puzzles and three difficulty levels. Puzzler will wrack your brain as you try to solve them all! Take your games on-the-go with the Nintendo DS.

Features

• Over 2,000 puzzles for ultimate variety and replay value. Unique game modes include Quick Blast-beat the clock and Fast and Fun-complete as many puzzles as possible in a row without running out of time or making an error.
• Try the Tournament game mode for a series of randomly selected puzzles of each game type. Play against a friend in Head-to-Head mode - two different multiplay games keep friends coming back for more.
• 3 difficluty levels create fun for players of any skill. Create up to 4 profiles to track your performance and monitor your best times.
• The Stop & Save feature allows you to continue challenging puzzles next time you play.
• Navigate through games and menus simply by using the Nintendo DS stylus and touch pad

Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day! [DS]

Features

• New Activities! The title is a series of minigames designed to give your brain a workout. The 17 new, engaging activities are all designed to help work your brain and increase blood flow to the prefrontal cortex. Whether you’re playing simple songs on a piano keyboard or monitoring the photo finish of a footrace, you’ll love your new mental workout!
• Keep training! When you start a new game, you will take a series of tests and get a score that shows how old your brain is. This number is called your Brain Age. With daily training over weeks and months, you can improve your mental acuity and lower your Brain Age. Progress is charted in graph form.
• Expanded multiplayer! You can keep up to four save files on one game card. Sharing a game allows you to compete in a picture-drawing quiz or a word challenge with family and friends. You can also use DS Download Play to send a demo to friends or compete with up to 16 players in one of four fun modes.

Description

Hot on the heels of Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!, the brain training phenomena grows with Brain Age 2! Seventeen all new, engaging activities designed to help work your brain and increase blood flow to the prefrontal cortex. Whether you’re playing simple songs on a piano keyboard or monitoring the photo finish of a footrace, you’ll love your new mental workout!Features

• 17 brand-new activities
• Keep training: Up to four save files keep track of your improvement
• Expanded multiplayer: Compete with family and friends

What is Brain Age?

Brain Age acts like a treadmill for the mind! Brain Age 2: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day for Nintendo DS is a fun, rewarding game that helps you flex your mental muscles with quick activities that help keep your brain in shape. Brain Age is inspired by the research of Dr. Ryuta Kawashima, a prominent Japanese neuroscientist. His studies evaluated the impact of performing certain reading and mathematic exercises to help stimulate the brain.

On your first day of exercise, you will take a series of tests and get a score that determines how old your brain is. This number is called your DS Brain Age. Perform daily exercises just minutes a day over weeks and months to get better at the exercises and lower your DS Brain Age!
Why is brain training good for you?

We all know as we grow older our bodies change and it becomes important to regularly exercise to maintain health and fitness. Our brain is no different. That’s where Brain Age comes in.

Dr. Elizabeth Zelinski, dean and executive director of University of Southern California’s Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, says games like Brain Age can help keep older generations of Americans’ minds active. “Americans can do a great deal to maintain and even improve their mental abilities,” Zelinski explains. “Aging is about taking on new challenges for our minds. Nintendo’s Brain Age is a great way to do that.”
How does Brain Age work?

The Nintendo DS Touch Screen lets you write your answers with a stylus, just as though you were writing on paper. Plus, the Nintendo DS’s voice input identifies particular words you’ll speak during games like the Stroop Test. Brain Age tracks your progression through each exercise with easy-to-read line charts. Use Brain Age each day to open new exercises to test your ability.

Brain Age includes a fun calculation competition for friends and family—it’s a snap to download this minigame to as many as 15 DS systems using only one Brain Age 2 game card!

Challenge yourself and find ways to stay sharp. With the simplicity of the Nintendo DS, and Brain Age’s challenging and rewarding exercises, baby boomers and test-prepping kids alike can stimulate their brains!

Reviews

Brain Food

This game consists of a daily brain age test, daily brain training and sudoku. I play it almost every day for approx 15 minutes per day. I’m able to take my brain age test and train in that time. After you complete your brain age test and brain training you receive a stamp for that day on your calendar. My brain age was very low at first until I got the hang of it.
The brain training games include numbers and words training. It scores you by your speed and number of items correct. This game is fun right now, I can see it growing tiresome after a few months. I’m sure they will come out with a brain age 4, 5, etc to keep things fresh. I recommend this game, worth the money.

Brain Age

I really enjoy my Brain Age game. I take it with me when we travel and any time I get a chance I “train”. I just wish there were more training exercises.

Brain exercise is good for you too.

Once you get the hang of how to do the games, they’re less frustrating and you can improve. The only bad thing is that sometimes my writing is mis-read, and then I get marked wrong, even though I had the right answer. Fun game.

Mario Kart DS [DS]

Features

• Race and battle with up to 4 karts at once — or enjoy 8-player multiplayer action through your Wi-Fi Connection
• Tour courses from classic Mario Kart games — as well as brand-new tracks and arenas
• All the crazy items and frantic speed players have come to expect

Description

Mario Kart DS lets you race and battle your friends all over the world. Get on the Internet via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, racing up to race 8 friends wirelessly with only a single Game Card!

Reviews

Great game on the go.

This game is essential in the DS library. Being able to take this game on the go is phenomenal.

Fun Game

I got this for my 7 year old son and he loves it. I would say it is his second favorite game to play on his DS. It isn’t a complicated game which makes it a good starter game for kids who are just starting out playing a DS. The only reason I gave it four stars instead of five was because he beat the game faster than I thought he would. With that said he still enjoys playing it and always has a blast when playing multiplayer with his friend who also owns it.

Great for Grown-ups Too

Just to add another perspective to the many reviews, I’m over fifty, and I’ve never played a racing game before — or any of the classic Nintendo video games, for that matter. I bought this one only because of the high ratings and rave reviews. And I’m glad I did!

I’ve never been much into real-time games, frankly, but I’ve always liked having one around as a change of pace. Back when home computers were a novelty, I found the occasional Red Baron (a WWI flight sim) game refreshing after many hours of playing chess or turn-based games like Civilization.

That’s just why I bought Mario Kart — as a periodic change of pace from turn-based DS games like Advance Wars, Chessmaster, and Age of Empires. And it fills the bill perfectly. Maybe a little too perfectly, since Mario Kart is often my first choice nowadays.

I was worried that my aging reflexes might not be up to a game like this, but it turns out I can handle it. There are three speeds to choose from, and the slowest is challenging but quite manageable. I’ll never master the game, but I can keep my cart on the track most of the time, and I’ve enjoyed my share of victories.

The race itself is spiced up with various items you can use to either enhance your own performance or interfere with your opponents’ progress. And I find this a nice balance. You don’t always have the speed or agility to win a straightforward race, but you can sometimes use the items to triumph anyway. Yeah, it’s “dirty pool,” but it’s all in fun. And I think I’d probably lose interest in a straightforward racing game.

The variety of drivers, carts, and tracks (some of which have to be unlocked via skillful play) make for long-term enjoyment. This game does not soon get to where you feel it’s the same thing over and over again. Some of the tracks are very challenging indeed, especially at higher speeds.

Anyhow, Mario Kart is lots of fun for young and old alike. One of the best purchases I’ve made for the DS. No regrets.

Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures [Wii]

Features

• Swim, climb, and shimmy
• Use a variety of weapons from the environment
• Use Indy’s signature whip as a multi-purpose tool
• Unlock more than 60 playable characters
• Mix-and-match lego parts to create unique characters

Description

LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures takes the fun and creative construction of LEGO and combines it with the wits, daring and non-stop action from the original cinematic adventures that enthralled audiences everywhere (Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade). With a unique tongue-in-cheek take on the original adventures, LEGO Indiana Jones follows Dr. Jones escapades through the jungles of South America to the mountaintops of India. Fans can build, battle and brawl their way through their favorite cinematic moments, from Indy’s entanglements with snakes to his dashing boulder run.Of course, pop culture’s most iconic archaeologist will whip through all the classic moments with the help of a host of supporting characters including Marion Ravenwood and Short Round. Players can also mix and match the body parts of more than 60 playable characters to create new heroes just as they could in the best-selling LEGO Star Wars games.

Customer Reviews

Challenging but super fun!

We are having a great time playing Indiana Jones! At first it is a bit challenging, learning both remotes and all the moves. We are still learning and trying to figure out a lot about the game, however, it is great fun and very addicting!

Great fun for grown ups too!

My husband and I rented Lego Indiana Jones to play on our Wii. I haven’t played the Star Wars Lego yet, so this was my first experience with a Lego game.

I have been pleasently surprised! We are two adults who are fans of video games, especially games we can play together. But it is difficult to find entertaining and challenging games that are light-hearted, but not violent or graphic. Lego definitely fit the bill. I was worried it would be too childish, too simple and easy. No, it doesn’t take rocket science to get through the levels or find all the secret hidden areas. But it does take a little thought and extra effort to uncover extra secrets.

Plus, the game has a little extra bit of humor… the ability to poke fun at itself and the movies. I laughed out loud at a couple of the little movie clips!

I’ve enjoyed this game so much that I bought it (and returned the rental version), ordered Star Wars, and pre-ordered Batman! Thanks Lego for a fun game for kids and the kids-at-heart.

Worth buying but Star Wars is better

If you haven’t bought Lego Star Wars yet - buy that. Don’t get me wrong, Indiana Jones is fun and I like that there are more puzzles in this Lego version but the biggest issue I have is the length of the levels. In Star Wars the levels are much shorter. Sometimes playing Indiana Jones you’re stuck having to continue and continue playing to finish the level as you can’t save in the middle. As the characters don’t bring diversity - seemed in Star Wars they had several unique and different characters to unlock. In Indiana 95% of the characters are the same minus a different hat or something minor. I guess Star Wars was so great that Indiana had lots to live up to - but on it’s own it’s still a good game and fun to play.

New Super Mario Bros [DS]

Features

• Run, jump, and stomp your way through raging volcanoes, tropical islands, snowcapped peaks, and unimaginable challenges!
• Grab a Mega Mushroom and grow to incredible proportions, or smash through your foes in a blue Koopa shell!
• There are two multiplayer modes in New Super Mario Bros. — Mario vs. Luigi and Minigames. In Mario vs. Luigi mode, it’s brother vs. brother in a race for Stars.
• New Power Ups! You’ll find classic power-ups like the Super Mushroom and the Fire Flower in the game, and there are some all-new power-ups that let Mario explore the Mushroom Kingdom like never before.
• New Moves! New Super Mario Bros. expands Mario’s arsenal of moves to include some very powerful advanced techniques. If you want to uncover every secret in the game, you’ll have to master them all.

Description

New Super Mario Bros. for the DS lets you play an updated version of the classic Super Mario Bros. world, with all-new moves taken from other hit Mario games. When Mario and Princess Peach are taking a walk, a bolt of lightning hits Mushroom Castle. Mario goes off to investigate, but he returns Bowser has kidnapped Peach! He’ll track down Bowser on the classic, original Super Mario Bros. map with all the moves he’s picked up in the other games. Throw turtle shells, butt-stomp to crack open floors — you can even use the tanooki suit from Super Mario Bros. 3. Use the DS dual screen to see where you are on a map & play fun minigames. Also includes a two-player mode where Mario and Luigi race and compete for coins.

Reviews

great for kids

I have two daughters, 8 and 10, that love video games and have really enjoyed this one. The DS Lite system is great for trips or any time the kids are stuck in a place where they need to keep quiet for a little bit.

Good stuff

My son plays this non stop. But as with all of these types of games eventually they get tired of it. I would recommend it, it is fun and entertaining and my 6 year old loves it.

Fun Game, But I Really Bad Mistake From Nintendo!!

I did enjoy this game (I beat it three times already). My friend recently purchased the game on his DS Lite (I have a original DS). My friend and I were playing “Mario Vs. Luigi” and we had a blast. We weren’t actually fighting in the mode we where just walking around trying to find secrets and glitches!! I was playing as Luigi and got a Fire Flower… I was really angry, Luigi’s Fire Balls were RED!! Why not Green?? Nintendo made a big mistake for a fan of Luigi (like me). But I didn’t return the game in oh no never. Playing the real game was fun but too easy I found myself beating the game in less than 4 hrs. . Out of this whole game I would say “Mario Vs. Luigi” is the funnest Mode, Playing the real game adds some backup and was pretty fun!!

Love it - Old game is reborn.

Addicting, addicting, addicting. I find myself staying up all hours of the night playing this game. The other mini-games included are also amusing and a nice change to the pace when I need to take a break from the actual game. Highly recommended. A “MUST” for any Mario Bros. fanatic.

Final Fantasy IV [DS]

Features

• Witness the dramatic and thrilling story of this mythical game world brought to life through astounding 3D graphics, gorgeous CG cutscenes and top-notch voice acting
• Create a versatile party using the all-new Augment System - a dynamic system that allows the player to assign special abilities to characters
• Dive into the first RPG to incorporate the innovative Active Time Battle system, now further enhanced and refined for the Nintendo DS
• Navigate effortlessly through the game with Nintendo DS Touch Screen functionality and stylus-driven controls while receiving vital assistance via the dual-screen presentation
• Train and customize Whytkin by playing a variety of mini-games and challenge another player to head-to-head battle via local wireless connection

Description
The dark knight Cecil, stripped of his command of the Red Wings, set out for the distant Valley of Mist. Together with Kain, commander of the Dragoons, he would pursue a faceless quarry―and a chance for redemption. The advent of the airship had marked the realization of mankind’s most ancient dream. But man is a creature seldom sated, and he was quick to dream anew. With the unparalleled might of the Red Wings, Baron’s military soon reigned supreme. Why, then, does its king now seek the Crystals? And why have fearsome monsters suddenly begun to overrun the once calm land? If the Crystals know, they share no answers―only their pure and silent light.
Final Fantasy IV for DS is a must-play for those looking to jump into the best-selling RPG franchise in the world. Four elemental Crystals, each possessing awesome power, lie scattered throughout the realm. However, men are quick to covet things that offer strength, and easily corrupted by the might that they possess. Seduced by the promised power of the Crystals, the kingdom of Baron begins employing unprovoked force to seize them from peaceful nations. The dark knight Cecil - Lord Captain of Baron’s elite force, the Red Wings - is ordered by his king to obtain the Crystals, but soon begins to question the monarch’s motives. Stricken with grief at his own actions, yet burdened by his loyalty to his country and his personal sense of honor, Cecil at last decides to turn from the path of darkness and destruction. Enraged, the king accuses him of disloyalty, strips Cecil of his command, and sends him off to slay a mysterious beast that lurks in the nearby Valley of Mist. Cecil embarks on a fateful journey that will bring trials, betrayals, friendship, loss, and self-discovery. Train and customize Whytkin by playing a variety of mini-games and challenge another player to head-to-head battle via local wireless connection

Customer Reviews

Great RPG for the DS

I have never played Final Fantasy IV, so I imagine I am missing the point of this remake in many ways. But as a pure RPG, the type which is not coming out that often nowadays, on any system, this game is really good. The script is good, the combat is smooth and fast paced, and the storyline is genuinely interesting. The typical Square DS production values are all here, with full CG, voice acting, and a high quality music score (just use headphones!). My only minor complaint might be the 3D graphics, which look good and run smoothly - but the DS is not a 3D powerhouse and it shows.

The one thing I will say is that it is very challenging. It’s clearly designed for the FFIV fan who knows the game thoroughly. But even as a non-fan, as long as you are careful and use strategy you should be fine.

Still a great game with sme interesting new features

When this game was first released here in the states a group of us got together and powered through it over the first 24 hours (give or take) of having. We’d each take turns playing for a couple of hours. Eventually everyone else fell asleep and I kept on playing. By dawn the next morning I was in the last dungeon marching through the multitude of mini-boss battle to the final boss. Some great memories there.

Now I get to play this awesome game again, just at a more leisurely pace this time. One of the reasons to take more time with the game is the inclusion of mini-games for you Eidolon Whyt. These mini-games are pretty fun, reward you with items, and increase the strength of Whyt when you summon it for battle. Also new to the game is some nice cut-scenes and voice acting. It brings the game up in the epic feel while still retaining everything that the great offered when it first came out.

If you are an FF fan and a DS owner you probably don’t need these reviews to know the game is worth buying, but if you are on the fence rest assured the game is definitely worth buying.

One of the Best Final Fantasies Reborn

Pros:

+Impressive Visuals
+Fantastic soundtrack
+Very likeable characters
+Augment systems helps gameplay along
+Fast paced battles
+Good storyline

Cons:

-A very difficult game, even those who mastered Final Fantasy IV previously will have a hard time if they don’t go about battles right

In 2006 Square-Enix released Final Fantasy III on the Nintendo DS. It got by in America mainly because the game never had a prior release. The success of the game was such a surprise to Square that they decided to redo Final Fantasy IV. Unlike Final Fantasy III, though, Final Fantasy IV has had several releases. The original Super Nintendo, the Playstation version and recently, the Gameboy Advance. With so many versions out there already, Final Fantasy IV DS will need more than just a face lift to make it worthwhile, and it manages to do so. At its core its still the same classic game you’ve played before, but there are some additions that make the DS version worth playing, even for those who completely mastered previous releases.

The story of Final Fantasy IV is a classic and still holds up well more than fifteen years later. The game opens with Cecil, the leader of the Baron Red Wings. He has just completed a mission for the King of Baron to secure a powerful Crystal, but feels it was the wrong thing to do. When he returns and questions what has gotten into a King, the King strips him of his duty and orders him to deliver a ring to the town of Mist. Something has gotten into the King of Baron, and now Cecil questions his loyalty to the crown and ultimately decides he must do something about it. His journey will lead him not only to do what’s right, but to eventually save the world.

The story is told through on screen text that’s been redone to give the game a better feel as well as some dramatic cutscenes. There are even moments of voice acting in some of the games more dramatic moments. The voice acting and fantastic cutscenes help to flesh out the characters, who remain some of the most memorable in the series.

Battling is one of the best parts of Final Fantasy IV. It uses the ATB battle system, which means that the flow of battle is fast paced. Every character has an ATB gauge that must fill up before they can take an action. Every character also has unique standalone abilities to help you out. Tellah can use his “Recall” to cast spells he’s forgotten, Rosa can pray and heal allies, Rydia can summon beasts. There are a ton of characters who join you, each with their own unique ability. However, when characters depart (as several will come and go throughout the story) they’ll leave behind Augments to teach characters their abilities. Unfortunately you can only teach it once. Once a character learns it, they can’t forget it or teach it to another character. Augments are more than just abilities departing characters used. There are also augments for standalone abilities like Auto-Potion and Counter. It’s a good system that really forces the player to consider strategy. And you’ll need to keep your wits about you, as Final Fantasy IV is a very hard game.

Final Fantasy IV has often been said to be one of the hardest RPGs ever made. Apparently Square-Enix took pride in that, as Final Fantasy IV DS is even harder than the original game. There’s a strong need for strategy throughout Final Fantasy IV. The bosses in particular are brutal. Even those who mastered Final Fantasy IV time and time again will find this game to be very challenging. If you began with later installments (in particular, the Playstation games), Final Fantasy IV is a rude awakening.

When not battling, you’ll be trumping through dungeons. The bottom screen of the DS displays a map of the dungeon. Uncover all of it and you’ll get a reward. Usually an item that can be used. Final Fantasy IV also allows you to roam around using the stylus, but it feels like an after thought.

There’s a lot of new stuff in Final Fantasy IV. The game has new secrets, new sidequests and new optional bosses for the gamer to tackle. It also has a new unique summon for Rydia called Whyt. Whyt, when summoned, basically takes Rydia’s place in battle and uses the abilities learned by all the characters in your party. You can’t control Whyt, however. You can raise Whyt’s stats by participating in a series of mini-games, most of which are simple, but they’re also not a whole lot of fun. It’s necessary to bring out the best in Whyt, however. One neat thing about Whyt, however, is that if you power him up enough, you can go and battle friends online and see who has the stronger one.

Visually, Final Fantasy IV is easily one of the best looking games on the DS. The towns and environments all have the same layout as the original game, but they all look better than ever. The monsters in battle are equally impressive as are the games many cinematic moments. Some of the game looks a little pixelated in some spots, but it doesn’t separate from the fact that its amazing looking. Final Fantasy IV DS is a visual masterpiece. If there was anything about the graphics to gripe about, it would be that the character models look a little too cute. This is especially strange when one considers the dark story and mature themes that Final Fantasy IV tackles. Regardless, it’s still a beautiful game.

In addition to that, much of the music is reworked and sounds better than ever. Most of the voice acting is quite good. The voices themselves really fit for the characters. There are some instances where the voice work isn’t as good as it could be, but it’s still very memorable.

Final Fantasy IV DS is how an old school Final Fantasy should be done. It’s old school charm comes out a lot (particularly in the difficulty), but at least Final Fantasy IV gets more than just a facelift. With new quests, story sequences, an ability system and a refined script, Final Fantasy IV is worth picking up even if you played the original to death. This is how Final Fantasy IV was meant to be played. If you haven’t played Final Fantasy IV, this is a good version to pick up. If you have, it’s worth reliving again.

NCAA Football 09 [Xbox 360]

Product Description

Whether you’re at the helm of a collegiate powerhouse in Dynasty mode or dominating the action with the easy-to-use control system in all-new EA SPORTS Family Play, life on the college gridiron jumps to life like never before with NCAA Football 09. Challenge friends and family on an even playing field and call your favorite plays from a simplified playbook, then take your game to the next level by delivering big hits with the help of all-new action icons. You can even field two teams of mascots in the hilarious Battle of the Mascots mode. With arcade-influenced gameplay bringing out all the fun and excitement of Big Play Saturday, and the accessibility of EA SPORTS Family Play, it’s never been easier to pick up and play NCAA Football 09. An all-new Wii-exclusive moves system featuring simplified Wii Remote-based controls makes NCAA Football 09 the most accessible college football game ever. Call plays on both sides of the ball using a simplified playbook featuring 40+ plays or call plays like a pro with the full playbook. When the pressure gets to be too much, hand things over to your head coach and have him call the plays for you. All-new action icons tell you when to tackle, evade defenders, swat the ball on passing plays, and more—all while the play is playing out. A fun, arcade-style presentation throws you into the action faster than ever. With the removal of non-interactive scenes, gameplay begins at the line of scrimmage, and players can join a game on the fly with a press of a button. Hype the crowd with user-controlled celebrations to gain a momentum boost, or taunt friends and rivals after every big score.

Customer Reviews

awesomeness

awesome game, played last years title as well and this year is even better, better graphics and animations, just awesome game overall. highly recommend it to any fan of the series.

Been playing it for a couple days and I am VERY impressed so far!

First of all, I have been an EA sports gamer for a while now… ever since Madden and NCAA football has been developed. If you look over my past reviews I have written, you will see that I don’t hold my opinion back any in regards to hammering a game title. Personally, I feel EA in regards to XBOX360 has gotten cheap and lacked quality over the years. So read this review taking that into account.

As for this game, I have to say, “ABOUT TIME!” EA’s NCAA football is finely getting back to the level of its glory days in regards to quality and new inventive game options. For example, there is a new bluff option in the game. Usually when you pick a play and your team is on the field, you want to check what that play looks like before you snap the ball. The problem with doing that is the other team knows what you are calling right before you snap. The new bluff feature allows you to show multiple bluff plays on the field - both runs and passes. You can show multiple bluff plays and throw in your real one to see what it looks like and still not totally give away what you are doing… GREAT ADDITION TO THE GAME!!! The recruiting in the game is a lot better also. This game allows you to now pick and choose what you want to do in regards to recruiting and let the computer take care of the rest. It provides options for people who want a little assistance to allowing the computer to do it all.

The game play finely is smooth again. Running the ball seems more realistic and passing is more fun. I think the game programers of today have finely started to catch up to the XBOX360’s technology… finely. The past games just didnt feel right to play. Newer gamers (People who started playing this game in 2006 to now) probably wouldnt notice this however if you have played this game and Madden forever, you’ll notice.

About the graphics… the xbox360 has always done pretty well with graphics, however, this year it looks even better. I have to stress one thing though. Having a quality TV makes all of the difference. For example, I have an older model HDTV 27inch that I played this game on and it looked nice, however, when I played this on my 52inch 1080p LCD HDTV… this game is AWESOME!!! Regardless the game is fun no matter what TV you have.

Well I will probably be adding to this review as I play more. So far I have not experienced any freezing moments or glitches in the game, however since the game only came out yesterday, I may change my attitude about that topic. I havent played it enough to give a totally valid opinion. With that said nothing so far.

Daniel

Great game but…

Ok I was all hyped up to get this game and told myself buy it when the price goes down. I couldn’t wait!! I got and rushed home to play it and upon playing I was awwed by the stunning graphics on both HD and regular TV’s. The game play was just phenominal, the online dynasty is what I’ve been waitng for, etc. etc. I could go on but let’s keep it short and simple. So why the 4 star rating if this game is so awsome? There is alot of repetative things again like commentary I mean c’mon I get tired of hearing Lee Corso ramble on and on about the same things I have been hearing for the last 5 years (Gooo with the option!) I mean c’mon change it up a little bit for pete’s sake… Heck for our sake!

Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo’s Dungeon [Wii]

Features

• Beautiful visuals create an incredibly vivid Final Fantasy atmosphere on the Wii for the first time.
• Chocobo, a venerable icon from Final Fantasy, can learn familiar jobs from the Final Fantasy franchise (White Mage, Black Mage, etc.) Unlock more jobs as you progress through the game.
• Unlock the Job Change function and change jobs as you adventure through dungeons.
• Famous Final Fantasy monsters and creatures appear as enemies to be battled in the dungeons.
• Secret unlockable dungeons.

Product Description

Final Fantasy mainstays Chocobo and Cid find themselves in a mysterious town. Whenever the clocktower bell rings, people lose their memories. . It’s now up to Chocobo to journey into the dungeons and retrieve people’s memories. But Chocobo is well-equipped for this task, as he is able to train in any number of classic jobs from Final Fantasy games. Chose the right job for each task, and level up to defeat the evil that dwells in the dungeons.

Reviews

In the end, it’s still a good game

A few people remember the dungeon adventures Chocobo had nearly ten years ago. This time around, treasure-hunting companions Chocobo and Cid find their way to Lostime where the people have been losing their memories as a result of the periodic ringing of the clocktower bell that looms over the town. This sets up the game’s premise, in which you must enter and fight your way through a series of dungeons in order to reclaim everyone’s lost memories. While not the most engaging concept for a story out there, Chocobo’s Dungeon for the Wii fondly pays tribute to the roguelike series of games, a genre that honestly is not for everyone.

Despite the dreamlike storyline that tends to border on overly cutesy and childish, the main star of the game is first and foremost its emphasis on dungeon exploration. Though the battles you encounter with enemies are in fact turn-based, the various floors and the treasures, items, and traps that await you in them are all randomized. The enemies match every move you make in the dungeon, making for a little strategy involved when it comes to making dire decisions. Die in the dungeon and lose everything you have obtained. After gradually building up your character’s strengths and discovering more abilities and attacks, you will soon be able to get into other aspects of the game such as implementing the job change system and even getting to play mini-games unlocked from further dungeon grinding.

The controls for the game are relatively simple. You can utilize the Classic controller or play it with the Wii remote, upright or sideways for a more traditional feel. No one should have any trouble controlling Chocobo, and the menus are very easy to navigate through. The sound of the game is a real hit and miss, however. The game’s dialogue and text comes complete with pretty annoying voice-acting, as well as certain sound effects (particularly Chocobo’s attack) that can become grating to your ears after a while. Luckily the musical soundtrack is filled with many familiar tunes from the Final Fantasy series, which are very nice faithful rearrangements to the originals. The graphics aren’t anything to go crazy over and some people may wince at the drab washed out finish of the visuals, but the orthodox cartoon appearance of its worlds is actually quite perfect for the entire theme of the game.

I wouldn’t get Chocobo’s Dungeon because 1) it looks cute, or 2) it has the Final Fantasy name attached to it. The game requires the player have a certain level of devotion since it comes rife with some rather extensive dungeon crawling. For some, this might turn out to be a worthwhile adventure while to others it may be a repetitive bore. The developers of the game stated that they designed the game to be simpler and easier in order to appease to more players. The game’s difficulty is relatively low compared to other games of its kind, which could disappoint and upset the hardcore elite wanting a deep roguelike experience. I do applaud the fact that they want to reach a greater demographic and introducing more people to this type of game. Chocobo’s Dungeon isn’t the best role-playing title for the Wii, but for anyone who just wants a decent adventure to tide them over for a little while then look no further. Take it for what it is, and just have fun.

Chocobo is good for what it is but isn’t good for everybody

Chocobo’s Dungeon for the Wii is a bit of an odd duck as far as RPGs go, especially RPGs targeted towards children. Chocobo’s Dungeon is one of the best professionally produced “rogue-like” titles that I’ve encountered. If you’re wondering what a “rogue-like” title is, I recommend a light bit of reading on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roguelike).

To put it bluntly, Chocobo’s Dungeon is a niche title based off of an extremely old formula dating back several decades since the dawn of computer RPGs. It doesn’t deviate far from the formula: random dungeons, random monsters, random treasure, random… you get the idea. Each time you take a move in the dungeon each of the monsters can do the same, so it requires a fair amount of strategy. Each dungeon consists of several levels each of which ends with a boss battle. If you die in a dungeon you lose all of your equipment except for the items you have equipped. If that sounds harsh, consider the fact that old-school rogue-like games typically deleted your save file when you died and Chocobo’s Dungeon seems pretty merciful in comparison. The game has also deviated from the traditional rogue-like formula by allowing you to switch job classes (knight, black mage, white mage, ninja, etc). All in all, it makes improvements on the formula while staying true to the concept. The problem with this is that the rogue-like formula is probably either too slow paced or too hard for most children to come to grips with (and many adults). If you like rogue-like games though, I recommend it.

Here’s where the appeal to rogue-like fans tends to drop a bit. The game falters in the storyline department. I will not lie when I say that the storyline presentation is generally fairly terrible. The basic premise and concept for the storyline is actually pretty sweet but then some overpaid write at Squaresoft decided that a huge portion of the storyline had to center around a baby. So you get to run around as a big chicken and help a baby save people’s memories by diving into their minds and… I’m sorry… I can’t go on. My eyes rolled into the back of my head and I just started skipping most of the story elements.

Pros:
+++ It’s a professional grade, high-quality rogue-like game.
+++ Dungeon graphics and monsters are well designed
+++ The music is pretty much completely amazing with brief exceptions. Some of the best music I’ve heard in any video game for a long time.

Cons:
— It’s a rogue-like game. A majority of people really won’t have patience for it. This alone will make you love it or hate it.
— The backgrounds in the town often look downright ugly because of a poorly implemented depth-of-field blur effect.
— A decent story concept that was butchered.
— The controls are really unintuitive unless you use the Classic Controller.

So, I just spent several paragraphs pretty much harshing on this game, stated that most people probably will not like it, but I still gave it 4 stars. Why? Because, despite it’s flaws, the game is an excellent rogue-like title and I have a lot of fun with it. Don’t expect a traditional Final Fantasy title or a kid-friendly action game. That would be like going to see Tiger Woods play golf and then complaining that it wasn’t as exciting as the Super Bowl. Most rogue-like games don’t even have stories OR graphics, so this game stands out. If you enjoy rogue-like games I recommend this title despite the painful storytelling, but if you aren’t sure or are unfamiliar with the genre I recommend renting it first.