Another decent sized update so here we go...
This holiday season was a lot better to me before Christmas then during admittedly, but that was all my fault since I went out and bought every damn promising game out there, including a few new Dreamcast titles. Regardless, it was a happy holiday season and here is what has been stuffed in my game consoles the past week or so.
Chu Chu Rocket (DC): It\'s a neat little puzzle game and although it\'s getting on about three years old now, it\'s still a fun 4-player game. I picked this one up for $3.00 in a used bin at EB. What\'s three bucks to a good 10 hours of fun? I can\'t even get into movies for that cheap and those last a mere two hours.
Virtua Tennis (DC): This is actually just a replacement copy since the one I had incured a scratch, through no fault of my own I might add, that rendered it useless. The replacement was a mere $5.00 in yet another EB bin of some sort of which i was happy to liberate and give a nice home.
Virtua Tennis 2k2 (DC): Everyone who pays me a visit for 4-player gaming parties and whatnot knows that Virtua Tennis is an absolutely superb title and this holiday season I decided to bite the bullet and buy the sequel to the original. Although it is incredibly good and much like the first with a few graphical upgrades, the game feels a whole lot slower and a lot more realistic. I actually hated it from the start, but after an hour or two, I was in a formidable smashing groove. It\'s yet another beautiful Sega sports multiplayer title.
Marvel Vs. Capcom (DC): I\'ll admit it: I never bought this game when it came out. In fact, not too long ago, I absolutely loathed all the Vs. fighters by Capcom (with the exception of Capcom Vs. SNK [1 and 2]), but my heart softened up to Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 so I gave it\'s predecessor a run. It\'s decent just like Marvel Vs. Capcom 2, but I picked this one up moreso to complete a collection than anything else.
Street Fighter III: Third Strike (DC): Altered would kill me if he knew I never had a copy of this, but I\'m willing to take the chance. For starters, this game is dissapointing in some respects. What used to be state of the art animation is now pale in comparison to the likes of the beautiful Guilty Gear X and XX, but almost all fighters do these days. I like the classic Street Fighter gameplay, and the parrying system is still absolutley beautiful, but the lack of a speed option turns me off big time. I like my games fast and furious and it\'s poor when Capcom does not include that option at all.
Power Stone (DC): I played this game more at my friends house during parties than any other and picking it up only seemed logical. Although it has yet to be played by my more immediate friends, it\'s still worth the $7.00 I paid for it.
Power Stone 2 (DC): Much like the first but with more options and more characters. I haven\'t really got into it all that much, but like I said, it\'s more of a party game then anything else.
Grandia II (DC): I played this game a long time ago and was very impressed with the battle system, but before I could pick up a copy, it was otherwise discontinued and the copies were snatched up. Now, it seems, lots of people are dumping their Dreamcasts for some quick credit so to the victor goes the spoils.
Hitman 2 (Xbox): This is quite possible one of the best Xbox games out there. It has great control, awesome open ended missions, in a sense that you can complete each one in a variety of ways, and graphics that I have no complaints about. It just works very very well on the Xbox and I\'m glad that it does. In my opinion, I\'d rather have this then Splinter Cell.
Guilty Gear X (PS2): I have the Dreamcast version already, but since GGXX is going to be out on the PS2, I figured it would be nice to have the pair. Now all I need is a replacement DVD case since the one it came in is all tore up.
Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 (PS2): I picked this one up for the sole reason of better control. I have the Dreamcast version already, but the D-pad wears my thumb down to a nub and I\'m sick of it. The Dreamcast version has a much better resolution, faster loading time, and much more vibrant sound, but when it comes to me saving thumb, I\'ll take it.
Mario Party 4 (GCN): Though not technically mine, I bought it for Rya and her sisters, I still had a go at it at our Christmas party. It\'s absolutely hilarious in a lot of ways, but I admit that I can see where the game gets boring and why people don\'t like it. If it weren\'t for the company, the game would suck to no end.
That just about rounds out all the new games this holiday, but what would an update be without a couple of reviews?
Hot Wheels Velocity X (GBA)Hot Wheels Velocity X (GCN)NASCAR: Dirt to Daytona (GCN)To wrap up this update, I want to do something new and point out a good game that people probably missed that they should pick up right now just for the sake of having a good time. This weeks pick is none other than:
Bangai-O (DC)It\'s an absolutely amazing shoother that no Treasure fan should be without. My initial impression of this game when I first got it was that it was ass. In fact, I thought it was one of the worst Treasure games to date, that is, until I played Stretch Panic. However, after reading a bit more about it, and rediscovering why I hated it in the first place, I gave it another go. The control default is hideous, no, beyond hideous. It\'s a deformation super mutated form of hideous. If you pick this one up, change the controls to the ABXY format right away and enjoy all the glory of battle, explosions, and beauty from the shooting geniuses at Treasure.
There\'s just something about the insane difficulty in shooters and the Treasure simplicity\\hair trigger control that just appeals to me like no other. Don\'t take my word for it though, trust the reviews posted
here and
here and
here.
That\'s it for this update. Happy New Year everyone!
