Sin and Punishment 2

Nintendo announced some new titles today in San Francisco. The one I am most excited about is Sin and Punishment 2.

I downloaded S&P for my Wii's Virtual Console, mostly because of the heavy intrigue the game gave me. It was released for the Nintendo 64 in Japan only, and being available on VC was our first chance here in the states to see what was up.

This game is crazy. This game is fun. This game is crazy fun. So much happens on screen, and the fact that you are shooting everything, watching lasers fly around and bombs exploding, adds to the chaos. Freaky things go on, like the main character transforming into a monster, and playing a mission where you float through the air and do flips and barrels rolls on a giant hunk of debris (seen below).


The hardest part about playing S&P on VC is that I am limited to using the Gamecube controller. It is awkward when the Z button is mapped to the L button, and my left index finger is not use to shooting whereas all games (ALL GAMES) use the right shoulder button for the firing weapons. It would be far easier to control with the original N64 controller, allowing movement with the d-pad and aiming with the joystick.


But there was another thing I thought about control-wise: this game would work perfectly with Wiimote and Nunchuk controls. Point and shoot aiming would dominate and would not put so much stress on my hands while playing (or my brain for trying to remember which buttons do what controls.

Thankfully Nintendo responded to the giant number of gamers who downloaded and played S&P, and took these ideas into consideration while making a sequel for the Wii.

"After we saw how many people downloaded it on the Virtual Console, we got the message that North America wants Sin & Punishment as well. In 2009 you're going to be playing... and you're not going to have to import it," says Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo's chief of sales.

Now for the trailer, courtesy of IGN.

Round 1 Wrap-Up

It took over three months to get through the first round, when it should have taken me three months (or less) to get through the whole thing. Enough complaining.

So the first round is over with. What once was 32 games has been narrowed down to 16. Another step closer to determining what is my favorite videogame. Here is the list of all games, broken up by bracket, with the winners in bold. A summary appears after each listing.

-----

Bracket A
1. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
8. Pokemon Blue
4. Killer 7
5. Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
3. James Bond 007: Nightfire
6. Metroid Prime
2. Tetris
7. Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic

The 1 seed was a clear victory in the opening match of the tournament, and higher seeds 2 and 3 also conquered their opponents. However, in the second match, the first underdog emerged. All respect goes to Pokemon, Killer 7, Metroid Prime, and Knights of the Old Republic, but the superior games were Link to the Past, Super Mario RPG, Nightfire, and Tetris. Things are already heating up.

-----

Bracket B
1. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
8. Chrono Trigger
4. Super Smash Bros. Brawl
5. Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
3. The Legend of Zelda
6. Syphon Filter
2. NHL ‘94
7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Arcade Game

The most recently released game on the list, MGS4, was an immediate 1 seed and (easier than it should have been) defeated Chrono Trigger. Higher seeds SSBB and NHL '94 removed Fire Emblem: PoR and TMNT 2, respectively. However, the biggest upset came in this bracket, when Syphon Filter overcame The Legend of Zelda. That was exciting. The first match for the next round will be a good one.

-----

Bracket C
1. Resident Evil 4
8. Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
4. Final Fantasy VII
5. Golden Sun
3. Super Mario Bros. 3
6. Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow
2. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
7. Super Metroid

In one of the hardest matches for me, the 4 v 5, I went with a handheld RPG over one of the most well known and popular games ever made. Opinions differ my friends. All other top ranked seeds had it easy, but what would you expect from RE4 and GH3? SMB3 is one of those games nobody, especially myself, should look down on despite being a 3 seed.

-----

Bracket D
1. Tales of Symphonia
8. Halo 3
4. Contra
5. Metal Gear Solid
3. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
6. Diablo II: Lord of Destruction
2. Fire Emblem
7. Kirby’s Adventure

Well, alas, the final bracket. This grouping was the only one that had all higher ranked seeds win their match ups. The closest match, as always, was the 4 v 5. One of the most interesting and most fun match up to write about was the 1 v 8; Tales vs. Halo 3. A lot of good memories came back to me, and that really helped in comparing the titles.

-----

The first round is officially done. Onto the second round! This will be referred to as both Round 2, and more interestingly, the Super 16. Super is an obvious reference to the SNES, and is more befitting that "sweet" in this instance. The competition will resume this week. The more organized brackets are as follows:

Bracket A
1. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
5. Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
3. James Bond 007: Nightfire
2. Tetris


Bracket B
1. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
4. Super Smash Bros. Brawl
6. Syphon Filter
2. NHL ‘94

Bracket C
1. Resident Evil 4
5. Golden Sun
3. Super Mario Bros. 3
2. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock

Bracket D
1. Tales of Symphonia
4. Contra
3. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
2. Fire Emblem

Also, a new design will be implemented for the Super 16. Yeah boy!

Flying is For Droids (Officially!)

Round 1 - Bracket D - Match 4

2. Fire Emblem

Vs.

7. Kirby's Adventure

This is it. We have finally made it to the end of round one. Fire Emblem blends amazing strategic gameplay with a very deep story in the first game of the series to see North America. Kirby's Adventure is a wonderfully imaginative game with the giant pink ball that can inhale virtually anything and absorb its power. Incredible.

-----

I loved playing Advance Wars on my GBA, so when I saw previews for Fire Emblem I got really excited. I was not let down. FE is hundreds of times better than AW. There was no need to capture cities and fund your army in FE, instead you had all of your characters ready to fight and move instantly. There were not different classes of units, instead every character was different. A Commanding Officer was not in charge off-site, but a lord commanded everybody and fought along side of them.

FE included three such lords: Lyn, Hector and Eliwood. If they die, then game over. If anyone dies, then they are gone for good. This added a whole lot of strategy to the game, since you did not just have to take out the enemies, but you had to keep your guys alive too. The fact that it was also an RPG made it better. Your characters earned experience from fights and leveled up. The stats we all randomly upgraded, and at a certain point you could upgrade a character's class to give them a boost in every category.

Along with the Golden Sun games, Fire Emblem is definitely a wonderful reason to own a GBA. It offered so much depth and strategic gameplay for a handheld game. This game should rank toward the top of my favorites because it gives me a majority of things I want in a videogame: character development, story, challenge, replayability, customization, etc. Why did it take so long for FE to reach America!?

-----

Kirby's Adventure was one of those games I could play as a youngling and adore. It was simple and friendly and (something I really love) colorful. Kirby must retrieve the Star Rod from King Dedede, and it takes him all over Dreamland. With the ability to inhale the enemies, Kirby could steal their powers and use them to advance. The coolest one was probably the cutter; it gave Kirby attitude.

Kirby's Adventure got easier as I got more experienced as a gamer. I can totally beat the game at 100% in about an hour. The bosses were pretty sweet (I do love boss fights) and the inclusion of having a Boss Rush mode was awesome. Of the sequels and remakes that this game has spawned, none are as good as the original. (Well, in the remake for the GBA youo could play the game as Meta-Knight, that was baller).

I consider this game a favorite because, as a gamer, I always have to return to my roots. Kirby's Adventure was one of the earliest games I was able to play, and play well. It is also so damn cute and adorable. Sometimes games do not need depth to be good, and Kirby is a great example.

-----

So, if our main characters from these games decided to fight, who would win? That could sort of be seen in Super Smash Bros., but unfortunately, Hector was not a playable character. Lyn is an assist trophey though, and Eliwood is kind of bland when compared to Marth or Ike. This is not even close to the topic at hand, so I will just end this abruptly and leave the conclusion for the Round 1 wrap-up.

Winner: Fire Emblem

Mega Man 9

One of the truest tests of a gamer is his ability to beat a Mega Man game.

My test is being administered this week, seeing as how I purchased Mega Man 9 on my Nintendo Wii this afternoon. Immediately I felt overjoyed for finally putting some of my Wii points to good use (weeks after Super Mario RPG, mind you) and I was feeling that nostalgia which comes with a game that looks as if it had been designed 15 years ago.

I love the direction the producers took with this game. Going with the retro look and feel is cool, and it leaves very little room for disappointment. Right away, fans know what they are getting into; Mega Man 9 looks, feels and plays like Mega Man 2. Simple controls literally take you back to the days of only two buttons: jump and shoot. What more do you really need?


My favorite part about the game is the soundtrack. 8-bit music never sounded so good. The tunes are catchy as hell, and throughout the deaths and pitfalls, I cannot ever get really upset because the music just raises my spirits back up.

But the one point I need to address the heaviest is the difficulty. Mega Man games have unforgiving enemies that will relentlessly repeat the same attack pattern. The ones on edges will hit you and send you backwards, resulting in a freefall to your death, whether it be onto spikes, into liquid hot magma, or to oblivion.


Playing for an hour and a half this afternoon, I only reached a boss fight twice. Twice. There are eight levels to start with, and I could only reach the end of said levels on two separate occasions. Of the two, I was only within my power to defeat one, Galaxy Man. His level was very innovatively designed and fresh, and his battle was maybe the easiest of the bosses I have faced thus far. However, it takes a lot of me to say that a Mega Man boss was easy.

What have I gotten myself into? Downloading a game the day it comes out? Spending 1000 Wii points for a game that was not made for the N64? Well, I must say I do not regret it. Mega Man 9 is truly a challenge, and not many games today are this challenging. In gaming, in order to find out where we are going, we must first look at where we have been. Mega Man 9 is a great throwback to the NES days, and I strongly recommend gamers who want to challenge themselves to download this. (It is available on Wii, PS3 and Xbox).

Round 1 - Bracket D - Match 3

3. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

Vs.

6. Diablo II: Lord of Destruction

Let us look at two games that took big steps up from their predecessors. What Metroid Prime 3: Corruption did was keep the stunning visuals and awesome gameplay from the first two MP games and included larger worlds and the best Wii controls (and best FPS controls) for any game. Diablo II gave players a much more expansive world as players couold choose from more character options and fight more demons. More on this later.

-----

I waited months after getting my Wii for Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. I wished that it had been a launch game, and I think it was supposed to be at first, but it was pushed back about a year. Thus, the first week of my sophomore year I bought it and played it and loved it. Right away I knew it was wait, for it was far better than MP 1 and 2.

What improved? Well, movement was not all that great in the first two, because in typical FPS control schemes, both analog sticks are utilized for movement and aim. MP had more of a Goldeneye control, since Samus needs to jump and shoot contsantly. MP3 made that much better by allowing movement to the joystick and aiming with the Wiimote. Shooting was mapped to A and jumping with B, which I think worked, and the weapons were layered, so there was no need to switch back and forth (and none of that pesky ammo to worry about).

This game is worth getting a Wii for. It truly is one of the best adventure games on the market. MP redefined what a FPS could be, and Corruption just improved on the same formula. The story was deeper than the first two, which was great with the voice acting and videos; there was not a heavy reliance on the lore as the first two had. My biggest gripe was searching for the power cells or whatever they were. Slowed the pace down, and we all know MP games are paced wonderfully.

-----

The first Diablo was pretty interesting. A very different game than what I was used to. Although I am not a heavy PC gamer, because I never had a gaming quality PC and probably never will (I play games Half-Life 1 and Diablo II for crying out loud). But Diablo was a very intense game based mostly on the scenery. A very dark and cramped area with demons and beasts around every corner, who never show remorse and do not think twice about wanting to take your head off.

Diablo II: Lord of Destruction improved on one thing that I wanted most: the ability to run. Gameplay moved quicker by running, and having to backtrack did not seem so tedious. The environment was opened up, no longer confining the player to the depths of a church which led directly to hell. Locations opened up to plains and deserts and forests. Dungeon crawling was still an essential element to the game, but it was not the only element.

Diablo II might as well be my favorite Blizzard game, probably because I never played any Warcraft games and I am awful at Starcraft. More than three character classes allows even more replayability within the game; there are seven to choose from with the expansion. Going online and playing with other demon slayers is pretty cool too; the worlds always change and there is never the same map twice. Plus, something that all RPGs should let you do: level up. Diablo II is one of those games where you can do nothing but still make a lot of progress with your character.

-----

Both of these games make great examples of how to improve what is already great for the sequel. Sometimes gamers are disappointed with a subpar sequel, but both of these games are the best of their respective series. Although Diablo II could be my favorite PC game (strictly PC, not ported or remade, etc.) Metroid Prime 3 is higher up there for me. A little less aggrivating to paly, maybe not as rewarding, but a whole lot of fun to explore and play around it.

Winner: Metroid Prime 3: Corruption