A Dark Review

The Darkside resides within all of us, lingering below the surface, waiting, preying on our sanity. It is fueled by sights you wished you could un-see, actions you wish you could un-do and memories you wish we could forget.  
Our greatest mistake as humans is thinking only evil men do evil deeds because the potential to become what we are fighting is in all of us.

The telltale signs of fatigue can appear in the foundations of men stronger than you and the only way forward is through the darkness and into a past more terrifying than ever. Because this time around, you know whats coming.

Resident Evil Darkside Chronicles is a light gun or rail shooter game for Nintendo's Wii.  It acts as a sequel of sorts in the "Chronicles" series and follows 2007's Umbrella Chronicles.  My memories of Umbrella Chronicles are not all that fond.  While the game revealed some hidden parts of the Resident Evil story that I had been curious about, the game ultimately flopped in a number of areas.  Horrible soundtrack, iffy game play, and average story telling.  So, did this years "Darkside Chronicles" pass it up, meet similar results, or suck even worse?

First off, this game stars Claire Redfield and Leon Kennedy.  Already, in case you are not familiar with the franchise, let me tell you that this is one heck of a recipe for a good game.  Darkside Chronicles covers the parts of the RE story left untold from Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil Code Veronica, and Resident Evil 4.  Because of the inclusion of an extra chapter of 4, that means you get to see a little more back story involving Jack Krauser who, as you may know, is a villain in 4.  In Darkside, however, he acts as Leons partner in the all new south American chapter.

As far as the rail shooter game play goes, Darkside is leaps and bounds better than Umbrella Chronicles.  This is mainly due to the fact that the co-op is also a heck of a lot more fun, and is highly recommended.  Though I must admit, I have a love hate relationship for the shared ammo pool.  I love it, because it forced me and my partner ( my lovely girlfriend Nicole) to work together a little tighter, but I hated the fear of losing all my ammo without personally ever firing a shot.  

Darkside is also loaded with content and thus, re playability.  You would not believe the amount of bonus content that is loaded onto that game disc.  My goodness, I am going to be playing this game for a long, long time.  From nicely acted voice files, to character and enemy profiles, to text and movie files, to dozens of alternate costumes and more, there is tons to unlock and discover.  Oh, and I should mention that these hidden bonuses are found by shooting certain objects in the games levels, resulting in that re playability mentioned earlier.

The games story is head and shoulders better than Umbrella Chronicles simply in the way it was told.  The outstanding voice acting and breathtaking musical score actually evoked tears on a number of occasions throughout the game.  Bosses were fun and decently innovated, though brutally hard if playing by yourself, yet far too easy when playing with a partner.  Darkside is also loaded with humor, from Steve's hilarious dialog to the bonus "Tofu Mode" in which players find themselves, in control of Claire, fighting off hordes of Zombie Tofu in Raccoon City.  

Funny is all well in good in Resident Evil, but what about the scare factor?  Well, for a Resident Evil game, Darkside is not all that scary, but for a rail shooter, I must say that I was surprised with the amount of times I found myself "jumping" out of fright.  I just can't picture a game being all that scary when presented as a rail shooter, but hey, I still have Dead Space Extraction to play right?  

The only real beef I found with Darkside Chronicles was the graphics.  The game was touted as being the prettiest game on the Wii with the only difference between it and a PS3 game being "The lack of an HD display." I disagree with this statement heavily.  Like, what the hell were they thinking when they said that?!  The pre rendered cut scenes were beautiful, no doubt there, and the in game environments were also decently pretty.  However, object in the environment, such as baskets of fruit or even characters ( such as when your partner is on screen)  look mighty awful in my opinion.  Due to the fact that this is a rail shooter, I kinda find these horrid graphical over sights hard to ignore.  However, I must admit to the fact that they were not so bad that it took me away from the game, or un-immersed me so to speak.

Darkside Chronicles is at its best when you look at all the bonus content, which is only interesting if you are a fan of the series.  Because of that, I would not recommend this game to anyone who was not already a mighty big fan of Resident Evil.  If you are a fan, however, this game is a must buy, no doubt in my mind.  Due to the fact that I am a big RE fan, this has become one of my favorite games of the year by far.  It is very polished, very fun, very emotional, and there is tons and tons of stuff to discover.  I think this may in fact be one of the best games available on the Wii, and is beaten only by a select few titles.  Because of this, I feel justified in awarding such a great game:

Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles: 9.5/10

Super Mario Galaxy Trading Card Contest Winner!

Well, it is December 1st, so that means the Mario cards have been one by someone!

Here are the Awesome Points results!

Inazuma: 12

Ike: 1

Tomorrow3mma: 18

Seismic: 3

That means that Tomorrow3mma is the winner!  The cards will be sent, or rather, hand delivered to you next time I see you, since, well, I know you and all!  Thanks everyone for participating.  Keep in eye out for the next contest, which is going to have an even better prize, and a few different rules and such.  Keep commenting!  I like talking with you all!  

Review for All!!!

 

I am on one heck of a Phoenix Wright kick right now, lemme tell you!  About five minutes ago, I finished my play through of Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney, Justice for All.  If you read two posts back, you can find my review of the first game in this series.  You will notice that I praised it quite highly, and I'm gonna be honest with you, expect similar praise in this post!  I won't be going over most of the game play detail though, as Ace Attorney, Justice for All, plays very similarly to the original Ace Attorney, minus the DS feature touting fifth case.  Ugh, I hated that case.  But alas, onto my Justice for All review!

 Justice for All takes place where the last game left off, and thus spoilers will be abundant in this review.  Keep that in mind if you ever plan on playing these games.  I will, however, try to be decently vague.  

As the first case begins, you are without your normal assistant, Maya, as she left to go train and hone her Spirit Medium skills at her home in Kurain Village.  This first case, which acts like a tutorial of sorts to those who have not played the first game, also introduces a new feature to the series.  You may now present peoples profiles as evidence, allowing for a crap ton of extra scenarios in the court room.  This is fun, yet difficult to keep track of if you are used to the last games system of only presenting items in the court record as evidence. 

During the second case, one more new aspect to the game is introduced.  You get an object from Maya in Kurain village, (yay, she came back!) that allows you to see peoples lies.  That may sound weird, so let me explain.  When someone lies out side of the courtroom, chains wrap around their body, and locks, called "Psyche-Locks" appear.  Each lock represents a layer of defense the person has over their lie.  each lock must be shattered by means of proving the suspects lies as what they are.  After all the locks have been removed, the person under scruttany will reveal the truth behind the chains.  It should be noted that, if you fail at breaking locks, you lose health, which is also restored upon a successful "Unlock." Oh, thats right, you now have  health bar!  gone are those 5 "!" marks in the top right of your screen.  You now have a green bar that represents 100% health.  If you screw up during a Psyche Lock challenge, or make a mistake in court, you lose a certain percentage of health.  The bigger the slip up, the bigger hit you take.  Some mistakes will completely wipe out the bar!  If the bar is depleted, its game over.  This is much nicer than the previous 5 strike system, as it is more challenging (the bar does not refil unless you finish the case or beat a Psyche Lock Challenge, where as the last game replenished your "chances" between segments of the trial) while at the same time giving you more chances to slip up.  It is an interesting and refreshing change to the series.  

Justice for All is also much more story based, despite the first game already having many plot points.  You may recall that Edgeworth "chose death over being a Prosocuter" at the end of the last game.  This fact comes back, along with an extremley intense scenario involving Maya getting kidnapped in the final case of the game.  Out of the 9 cases in the series so far ( 5 in the first, 4 in the second) this is by far the most dramatic.  Phoenix is forced to make some unbelievably morally gray choices, choices that will surely make the player question their own motives in the game.  It was very impressive how deeply the game makes you understand the weight of your choices in the final case, and I must commend the creators as there were points where I stared at the options screen for up to half an hour, debating a choice.  Whats more, the choices you make are not pre-determined, as there are good, and bad endings to this game, both are interesting and should be checked out.  The good ending, however, brought tears to my eyes, and is one of the best endings I have experienced in recent memory.

The game maintains all the humor of its predecessor, and brings back a few old characters, as well as introducing new ones.  The game, despite having one less case than the last one, is quite long, and thus gives a lot of play time, making it worth the money you would pay for the game.  

This game is a must buy for the DS, though I highly recommend picking up the first Ace Attorney, as it is pretty important to understanding a lot of the story elements in Justice for All.  Still, if I could suggest any game that a DS owner just has to play, it is this one.  Ace Attorney, Justice for All, is probably the second best game I have played on the DS, second only to the unbeatable and outstanding "Lost in Blue." Don't Object to this one, please, give Phoenix Wright a chance, and I promise you shall not regret it!  

See you soon for my Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney, Trials and Tribulations review!

But for now, I suppose I should give this AWESOME game its score...

Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney, Justice for All: 8.5/10

... I hope to get that 4th piece of evidence soon ...   

Commenting

As of posting the Phoenix Wright review below, commenting should be a bit easier for everyone!  You can now comment without logging in to blogger, and you no longer have to do that stupid word verification thing!  Just make sure that if you are posting as a guest, you write a user name in the post, or a name, or something, so I know who to assign the "Awesome Points" too!  

Phoenix Wright is Guilty of Being Amazing

The first game in the Ace Attorney series was originally only released in Japan and on the GBA!  It was not until the DS was released in America that we were lucky enough to get this title, and with a bonus level unique to this DS version!  I had always been interested in this franchise, especially when its popularity began to grow in Japan, and than in America.  Before I knew it, three games were released in the US, and I still had not bought even one of them!  One day, GameStop had a sale on a bunch of games, and I was fortunate enough to find all three Phoenix Wright games for under 30 dollars!  That is one heck of a deal!  Last summer, I played through and beat the first game in the series, and am currently playing through the second and thoroughly enjoying it!  Today, however, I am only talking about the first game, Phoenix Wright, Ace Attorney

Ace Attorney is similar to a text based adventure, straying only slightly from the genres roots.  You assume the role of, guess who, Phoenix Wright, a defense attorney and a very wacky court system.  The game is presented in a chapter format, giving the players 5 cases to solve.  Each case is separated by a few weeks or months in the story line.  Throughout the case, the player goes through two main types of game play: Investigation and Trial.  During the Investigation, the game plays much like a point and click mystery, like Myst on the PC, or other games similar to that.  During this portion of the game, you investigate crime scenes via the touch screen, and interrogate suspects and witnesses.  Once enough evidence has been collected, the "Trial"phase of the game starts.  This is probably my favorite part of the game, and it involves cross examining witness testimonies, presenting contradictory evidence, and doing whatever it takes to prove your client innocent.  

As the court system in fictitious, many of the cases can get quite zany, and thus pretty hilarious.  All of the characters have very colorful personalities to match the strange crimes that can be committed.  Anything goes in this game, from harassing the judge, to badgering witnesses.  Its pretty crazy, and pretty fun.

What is particularly interesting about the Ace Attorney game, and the franchise as a whole really, is the fact that it is deep.  The characters all have complicated back stories, and intriguing personalities.  The on-going story that unfolds in the background of all the cases is equally deep and provides unity to all the characters.  This game was by no means meant to be a one time court simulation.  Rather, it was carefully designed to be a long franchise with characters interesting enough to truly care about.  This allows for some intense scenes, and moments where the game even jerks a few tears from the player.

The music matches the fun, and sometimes epic feel to the game.  If anyone knows where I can download this soundtrack, let me know, as it is awesome.  it can be funny, sad, intense, or epic depending on the scenario. 

The downside to this first Ace Attorney game is the DS only 5th case.  Regrettably, it is a bonus that should have never been created.  As it is unique to the DS, many of the objects in the case are presented with 3D animations, and the puzzles utilize the DS's unique function like the microphone and the touch screen.  While these are interesting, they feel tacked on and gimmicky like the DS's launch titles in 2004.  Not only this, but this case is rather uninteresting compared to earlier cases, and it is the longest in the series, making it very difficult to complete.  The previous 4 cases took me roughly 2 weeks to complete, though I was playing through very slowly.  The fifth case took and additional 2 weeks by itself!  I am amazed I ever managed to get through it. 

This leads me to my final point.  As Ace Attorney is about reading, and more reading, it should be played in small sittings, or when the player is in the mood for what essentially is a novel.  As each line of text can prove vital in saving your client, you must be attentive.  Phoenix Wright is, by no means, an action title, so make sure you are aware of that.

The Ace Attorney franchise has always been an interest of mine, and now that I am almost done with the second game, I can tell you that I see a bright future for the series and I.  It is very fun and hard to put down.  Pick this title up if you want a fun, lengthy game that will make you laugh, fall in love with new characters, and challenge your wits!  Its super cheap at most game stores, so check it out!

Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: 7/10

Note* This review was originally more in depth, but my computer decided to restart itself without informing me first...  I was much to lazy to re-type the entire thing...  So there you have it.

Mario Galaxy Trading Card Give Away!

In order to perhaps gain a little more interest in this blog with friends of mine, and people I do not even know, I am going to start giving crap away!  Heck yeah!  Since this first give away will most likely not spread out past my group of friends, it is a tad small.  HOWEVER!  As I continue to give junk away, each time it will be a little bigger and grander than the last item!  

I plan on having one a month, and the give away will last the entire month.  I will normally post the new give away item on the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd day of the month, and the results from the last months contest on the last day of the month, or the first of the next month.  

I have some fancy rules though!  Here is how it goes down.  You are automatically entered JUST for commenting on one of my blog posts here!  For every comment you post, you get one point.  OH!  I should name these points!  Okay, we are gonna call them, "Awesome Points" cuz that is just, well, awesome.  Anyway, for each comment you post with a time stamp dated anytime AFTER the giveaway post is dated, you earn one Awesome Point.  This can be a comment on any blog, no matter the contents, even the blog that the giveaway is listed in!  So comment away!  The winner is the person with the most "Awesome Points" at the end of the month, on the last day, at 11:59: P.M.

One last rule, if you tell someone else about the competition, anyone really, and they post a comment here, you can earn 2 awesome points!  All that user has to do is post a comment and type who referred them anywhere in the post!  People who were referred by someone cannot refer who referred them.  Wow, thats a lot of refers.  This "refer system" resets after each giveaway, so feel free to exploit it and work together with your friends.  

Oh, and when commenting, make sure it is slightly relevant.  Any comments that could be considered "spam" or anything like that will not be considered.  

LASTLY, if I do not know you directly (and I am hoping to eventually get support from people I do not know) make sure to post an e-mail address or something that I can use to contact you if you win, or e-mail me privately at:

coconutman1616@yahoo.com

I hope this works out well for everyone!  And remember, each month there will be a new prize, and I promise it will be a little bit bigger and better than the last!  If lots of people play, I will keep doing this for who knows how long!  The prizes could get huge!!!!!  Let's all have fun!

This months prize is a pack of Super Mario Galaxy Trading Cards.  The cards have never been open, and still remain in their original package!  Granted, this is a small prize, but like I mentioned earlier, I am testing this contest stuff out, and dont wanna give a freaking console away to the one kid that comments...  Play, and next month, the prize will be bigger and better!  

Good luck to all that enter!  Please have fun!

Sometimes in Fallout, _____ Floats

I thought about adding these gems to my Fallout 3 review, but thought it best to seperate them into their own post.  Anyway, these are a few of the non-game crashing glitches I discovered while roaming the Fallout world.  Sorry about the bad quality, they were taken with a DSi.  

Enjoi

Sometimes in Fallout, doors float independently from walls!

Sometimes in Fallout, weird frog people float!

Sometimes in Fallout, mountains float!

Sometimes in Fallout, trees float! 

Sometimes in Fallout, dead bodies float!

And last but not least, sometimes in fallout, your Pipboy screen floats without a pipboy on your wrist!!!

Oh and how many more glitches I stumbled upon....