#239 Ecco the Dolpin

Posted: 13th April 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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503rd played so far

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Genre: Action/Adventure
Platform: Sega Mega Drive
Year of Release: 1993
Developer: Novotrade International
Publisher: SEGA

Ecco the Dolphin is a game that has been in my conciousness for some time – at first reading about games I didn’t think I’d ever get a chance to play, when it sounded amazing – large levels set in a sea world with storytelling that (two decades ago) sounded amazing.

It did fade for a while, being filed in ‘action games that sounded awesome at some time’ but not something I’d chase as much (games like Powermonger being described at the same time coming closer to a game I feel I’d enjoy). I was still happy to see it on the list, a good reason to try it.

For his birthday, Peter got a Mega Drive and this game happened to come with it (not through explicit setup, just something that happened as I tried to get him some good games). Still, I can play it properly even now.

Our Thoughts

I’ll be honest, our first impression of this game wasn’t helped by me accidentally stumbling into the warp area and skipping to the second level, which left off some tutorial stuff and meant we were figuring things out on our own for a while (together with a lack of manual). It’s actually quite good we got through it after a bunch of attempts.

The game’s concept is interesting. Not quite a platformer, the easy up and down movement you get from swimming adds a lot of freedom and space, creating levels that feel so much larger. A bunch of interesting more scripted interactions are added to this, which means you frequently have to use your sonar on crystals to get hints, unlock doors and so on.

It’s also still pretty hard in places, the first level getting me stuck because I couldn’t make my first jump out of the water. Even then that feels gigantic, large cave systems that require you to find rare air pockets (which usually come at the last moment when you really need it).

Despite its age, the game is still a beautiful game, using some colourful graphics and making the sea seem like a place of wonder. There are plenty of odd creatures around, not all aggressive, but most adding their own challenge.. It all works together that well, feeling like it pushes the machine’s graphics where it can.

Final Thoughts

Ecco the Dolphin is a pretty game that plays well. There’s something freeing about exploring the big sea areas, which are signposted enough to make sure you don’t get lost, but still feel like they span large areas. The challenges are good, in part because it’s not just about simple damage (easily solved once you locate some normal fish) but more about surviving the area, finding air to breath and solving the puzzles. A great sea adventure.

#615 Rollercoaster Tycoon 3

Posted: 9th April 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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1

502nd played so far

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Genre: Management Simulation
Platform: PC
Year of Release: 2004
Developer: Frontier Developments
Publisher: Atari

We love our management simulations. There’s something simply enjoyable about games without violence or rapid action, just trying to keep things running, improving and expanding where you can. We also still enjoy our theme parks (when we have a chance), and administering your own is just fun.

After Theme Park, Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 is another treat for us (although one I’m less familiar with), another game to jump into and have fun with for a while. We did have to do this while dealing with some late Sunday tiredness, but we got to really play with the game in the end.

Our Thoughts

The main thing about Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 is that I know it already, building up a theme park being something we’ve already covered and having covered a bunch of management simulations already (and having played many more at other times). Designing a park is fun, trying to balance needs and making sure it looks fun, and then including all the rides that look cool and you have to get in there.

The real fun, however, is with the rollercoasters. They can be custom built, and not only have the standard pieces as we saw in Theme Park, but includes all types of twists, loops and other fun parts that you see in real life coasters. The game keeps track of the physics – do you go fast enough and do the forces match up – to see whether the coasters are safe and how much your visitors will enjoy them. And possibly the most fun part is riding them, seeing how they work and see your park moving around you as you do. Of course, there are prebuilt coasters as well (useful if you’re short on money) so you don’t have to guess what will work.

And thankfully, the game has sandbox mode – no time or money limitations, just create a park you’ll love. It’s something that really ought to be in more sim games – being able to play with the more interesting systems that you enjoy with the level’s restrictions keeping you from really playing them.

Final Thoughts

Management simulations are often good fun, and theme parks work well as a theme for them – fun surroundings, a lot of joy and while complex enough, most of the game just makes sense.

Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 does this well, having perfected a lot and making something great out of rollercoasters (and other track-based games), giving you the option to do as much as you want with the game.

#880 Reset Generation

Posted: 5th April 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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2

501st played so far

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Genre: Puzzle/Strategy
Platform: PC
Year of Release: 2008
Developer: RedLynx
Publisher: Nokia

Now here’s a catch. I’ve mentioned before that Reset Generation is the impossible game for any sane person. Available as online and N-Gage game only, the online version was pulled within a year of us starting the blog, while the N-Gage has always been dead, its second generation included in phones that might have sold okay at the time, but never made for a compelling platform. Even then, the N-Gage store is not functional anymore either

It took a while, then, to set up our way of dealing with it. That sounds more complex than it is – I bought a properly N-Gage 2 compatible phone, and managed to load the game on with some technical trickery. Perhaps not the proper way, but at the same time there’s no real other solution at the moment. So here we go then, at long last, and as our halfway treat – Reset Generation!

Our Thoughts

One of the risks of a game like this is that you start building it up in your mind. We’ve focused a bit more on how Reset Generation plays than many other games, simply because we didn’t know whether we ever would, and Youtube would have provided with an alternative. Even without that, however, Reset Generation, as a puzzle/strategy game, is the sort of thing we like.

Add to that the setting, characters or whatever you want to describe it, and it gains a dimension. For a video game aficionado, a game using and parodying its characters is a bit of a treat on its own, although I can’t say it always worked for me.

Your objective is to catch another hero’s princess while protecting your own, using items and your own powers to move around the board and stealing parts to speed up your travel and slowing down others.

It’s a fun concept with a lot of promise – a lot of elements are available to increase strategy, between heroes, items and puzzling. The only downside is that the difficulty was a bit too high for me, relying on some randomness but also, it felt, a strategy the developer wants you to take (especially in earlier training levels) that aren’t always clear. There were some levels that I bashed my heads against a bit much. Even so, the main annoyance from that was that I couldn’t play more, not that it was so difficult (oh, and some conversations repeating slightly too often, making it hard to just jump back in).

Final Thoughts

Was this game worth the wait? Yeah, it was. It wasn’t excellent, still seeming a bit flawed, but something that was nice to get into. I’ll keep the phone around to play more often anyway, even if we can’t play it multiplayer anymore.

50 Game Round Up: 451-500 (Jeroen)

Posted: 3rd April 2016 by Jeroen in Round-Up
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I’m not sure I would have expected to write this five years ago. Five hundred games in, we’re nearly halfway there, and the list becomes a lot more manageable – as much behind me as there is ahead.

I don’t think I could answer all of these questions for a full 500 – I’ve been asked about the best game more than once, something that’s only becoming more difficult to define.ย  I’ll just stick to the 500 then… plenty of choice in that.

Best Game I Had Not Previously Played

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I’m sure I say this every time, but it feels like the games we’re playing are still getting better. I do feel this is in part experience – FPS games sometimes feel better simply because I’m better at them and shoot ’em ups like Gradius V feel better because I’m more adept at them. This feels like it shows especially in one of the candidates I had listed here – Dwarf Fortress. It’s a game that’s impenetrable to anyone not used to the likes of Nethack, using ASCII graphics for an intricate simulation at least as deep as Nethack‘s is for a dungeon crawler.

Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends on the other hand, is a genre I know well that really hit all the right parts for me. Just another good game.

My real winner, the best game of the 50, however, isn’t either of those. Shenmue might not necessarily have looked like the best game, but it continued to occupy my game thinking ever since, making me want to play it a lot more. It has a compelling story as an adventure, with some interesting exploration, but the minigames and extra features just add so much more to the world. One of the big shames about the game is that there’s just not more to explore, you want to keep going.

Worst Game

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There have been a few worse games in this set. Mario Golf felt disappointing – it felt like golf had been done better at the time, while all other trappings felt out of place.

No game has ever had me swearing and ranting at how bad it was than Resident Evil Code: Veronica however. The controls were terrible, directives unclear, and the struggle wasn’t with tension, it was with ill chosen gameplay mechanics. I just didn’t want to play more than I already had, and I tried. The fact that save games were so limited that I basically had to restart the game on every death was just the brown icing on top.

Most Surprising Game

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On some level, it feels like more surprises are coming around – so many good games are coming in. Even several where I was unsure when starting turned out to be great. Other games, and Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes is a good example of this, are games that I was expecting to enjoy, but that turned out to be even more addicting than that.

Ultima I, however, did both. As an old RPG, I was expecting something more dreary and simple, basic dungeon crawling without much to it. Instead, the slow start I was expecting wasn’t there and I just had to keep playing a little bit more. What I was expecting to be okay turned out to be addicting.

Biggest Disappointment

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Looking at the list, there were two games that felt more of a disappointment. Giants: Citizen Kabuto seemed like a fun game. A strategy/FPS hybrid is an interesting idea that could lead to some interesting gameplay. It did not, however, came together for me, both due to difficulty and control issues. It’s a shame, really, but this seemed to have been intended.

More disappointing, however, was Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders. I enjoy LucasArts adventures and haven’t been disappointed by them before, so to see this on the list is such a shame. The setting and puzzles didn’t work, the graphics aren’t there, and it really is an early game of a company that did greater things later on. It didn’t seem worth it.

Best Blast From The Past

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I’ve come back to a few good games. Arkanoid is a very recent game that was still fun – something I feel I’ve written about very recently.

Even so, the best game to come back to was Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, the fourth generation Pokemon games (and most recent when the first edition of the book was published). It feels lik the most interesting region the games had, as well as balancing the gameplay best – not too few Pokemon, not too many on the inital run. It is, however, mostly the world that impresses, feeling the least artificial of the Pokemon game regions, without any areas forced in or too neatly laid out. I feel the need to get back to it most of the time.

Games We Kept Playing

Railroad Tycoon 3-03

There’s just one clear candidate here. We started playing Railroad Tycoon 3, we continued playing Railroad Tycoon 3, and even now we have a level in progress. Some of the more puzzley levels feel a bit unnecessary, but when it’s doing its normal thing, it’s a lot of fun. I don’t expect to really stop playing it any time soon.

#1 The Oregon Trail

Posted: 1st April 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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0

500th played so far

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Genre: Edutainment
Platform: Various
Year of Release: 1971
Developer: MECC
Publisher: Broderbund

Do you see that number up there? Game 500 indeed. This more or less marks the halfway point – there’s a bit of wiggle room from expanded lists and the one part of 1001, but we have pretty much made it there.ย  It feels like a major victory, and a sign we’re going to be able to do this (but more on that in four days time).

So for the halfway point, we’re playing a game we’ve reserved for this spot from the start. As explained before, Pong is game two on the list – it mostly made for a catchier title and started our trend of not doing a game on the same time as its list-assigned number. The Oregon Trail, today’s game, is that first game (although it’s mostly known from later rereleases with graphical and other updates anyway, so perhaps that’s a good enough reason?). It still predates Pong by a year, and everything else by five, so with its basic concept, The Oregon Trail is clearly the first.

Our Thoughts

So I was told this game would probably take a few attempts to beat. As with the real life trail, there were plenty of dangers, and it would be difficult to make it through. So yeah, I made it through first time – only two of my travellers survived, so it’s not exactly a great success, but I felt I at least managed. Not bad for a first try!

Even so, The Oregon Trail makes for an interesting simulation. I don’t think I’ve worked out all the variables yet, but it all felt sensible, how the game is meant to fit together. From that, it feels vaguely balanced and mostly a lot of fun.

The game’s graphics can’t really be discussed here. The original would have been text only, even if our version had them (which presumably helped me play anyway). I do wonder whether other changes happened – balance changes and such – but the core seems to stand, and that’s what is fun enough. Each step offers plenty of options, choices of routes, and plenty of risk vs reward gambles.

The edutainment aspect is possibly (the book claims) limited to its planning elements, as the actual trail isn’t quite as accurately represented. There’s probably some overlap, and might give some indication of what happened, but it isn’t fully there. It still feels like a pretty entertaining way of educating.

Final Thoughts

The Oregon Trail is a good game. Having been working on this list for five years now, it’s something I’ve been coming up with – both by Peter’s comments and because it was the game I did some trial runs on to see whether things were working okay. Even then, this will really make the top of our list go entirely green and done.

Soon: The summary of the past fifty… and then the next 500!

#107 Arkanoid

Posted: 28th March 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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0

499th played so far

ArkanoidCover

Genre: Action
Platform: Arcade
Year of Release: 1986
Developer: Taito
Publisher: Taito

Arkanoid! A game I’ve been looking forward to, as I remember playing it when I was younger (using cheats to advance a bit further than I could reach on my own – I was an impatient kid). Breakout inspired, it ups the stakes by adding a bunch of features and enemies that adds challenge and variety. All of this I know already – I just want to play it again.

Our Thoughts

It still holds up – both the game and my shameful lack of skills (the latter being surprising considering how many clones I’ve played in various indie games and experiments). And as much as Breakout‘s simplicity might be an advantage from time to time, all the added touches feel like they make the game better. Different shaped playing fields already up the variety of the game immensely, encouraging more trick shots, and powerups alone are a saving grace for me. They really change the course of a level – whether it’s juggling more balls or having a different sized paddle – while still staying the ‘nice to have’ category, not mandatory at any point.

The enemies are a small extra goal, adding on to the point bonus, but the game having a definite end, with a boss battle, makes it more interesting. It’s not a focus and the game would take long enough to make it worth your quarters in the arcade, but it’s some story at least (based on, well, a few starting screens).

It’s really about the variety the additions offer, that’s where Arkanoid really gains its longevity over Breakout.

Final Thoughts

Arkanoid is a lot of fun, even if, as you can see above, so much of it comes from the comparison to the original. Still, Arkanoid does it better, and where Breakout has the name, you see that anyone playing with the formula starts off at Arkanoid – regardless of whether it’s copied wholesale or just takes elements like powerups or more dynamic level design. It’s still more than just breaking the same row of bricks, and it feels like that counts for a lot.

#36 Choplifter

Posted: 24th March 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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0

498th played so far

choplift

Genre: Shoot ‘Em Up
Platform: Various
Year of Release: 1982
Developer: Dan Gorlin
Publisher:ย  Broderbund

It seems to have been a while since we last did a game in order and it felt like a good idea to put one in. We are, of course, still behind on Shoot ‘Em Ups, so making up some time there with it wouldn’t be a bad idea anyway.

Choplifter is one of those games that I’ve sort of heard of, but never spend time with (that I’m aware of – I can’t remember the names of a lot of those childhood games I played with friends). All that I can do is jump in here.

Our Thoughts

This game almost immediately reminded us of Desert Strike. Not in full gameplay, although if you replace its 2D landscape with a 1D flat (platformer-like) world, you’re already closer. Add to that that you need to land to rescue hostages and bring them back and you immediately get a decent idea of how the game plays.

Beyond that, shoot things, and make sure you don’t get the hostages killed as you do. It’s a pretty simple gameplay mechanic on its surface, but the addition of hostages basically ups the stakes and makes for a far more interesting shooter than you’d otherwise get. Landing to pick up the hostages adds a bit of a challenge, but is a lot more forgiving than other games make it – no need to adjust your speed too much or be that precise.

As silly as it sounds, it also makes your objectives feel a little bit more worthwhile. Normally, just shooting wave after wave of enemies just happens, here it’s the means to an end – it’s about the rescue. Enemies also become more numerous the longer you take, creating more tension.

Final Thoughts

This is probably one of the better old time shooters that we’ve played recently, in no small part because the hostages add so much more to the game. You can’t shoot indiscriminately and kill everything, you have to be careful and make sure protect the hostages as you leave. One of those games where it really has been fun to play for a while.

#846 Let’s Tap

Posted: 20th March 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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497th played so far

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Genre: Music
Platform: Wii
Year of Release: 2008
Developer: Prope
Publisher: Sega

The biggest game in our big box of games to play has been Let’s Tap for a while now. Rather than coming in a standard DVD or CD case, or something else of that size, it comes in a bigger, double sized cardboard box. This is because you need a box to play the game properly, and the European version gives you one.

It’s a game I wanted to get out of the list for that reason alone, but it would be nice to get a music game in as well, and this is just weirdly instrument focused enough for today.

Our Thoughts

Let’s Tap is really a collection of minigames that use tapping as the control mechanism. Tap to make a character run, with harder taps causing a jump, or tap along to the music, Guitar Hero style. They’re pretty good fun, simple in how colourful they are, and as an exploration of an unconventional mechanism, the game is pretty smart. It’s fun to play – not high praise exactly, but I can see why its interesting aspects put it on the list.

My favourite minigame actually didn’t do as much with rhythm, and far more with controlled taps. The idea is simple, somewhat like Jenga. You have a stack of discs and select one that you need to slowly pull out, the other blocks shifting in response. Fast taps take the block out faster, but shift the tower more than gentle taps that slowly remove the block. Getting your angle right and picking the right block isn’t a really tap based challenge (and uses a ‘wait for the right moment’ spinner style thing to control), but the pulling feels satisfyingly visceral.

It’s not a game that will lose you hours of your life – the different modes have enough options that they’ll keep you going for a while, but the game feels like it works best in smaller chunks, before your fingers get exhausted and your tap strength feels off. For those chunks, with the small setup it really requires (any right surface that vibrates will do) it’s a good game to pull out occasionally.

Final Thoughts

Let’s Tap is a great collection of minigames that shows how effortlessly you can make the different control system work. It’s not great for menus, selections or the like – mostly using taps and double taps – but once you’re in the game it feels natural, a far nicer way of controlling games than the usual alternate button presses, even if that’s all you’re actually doing in the game. Let’s bring this in for all those Olympics sports games, yeah?

#354 Snake

Posted: 16th March 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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496th played so far

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Genre: Puzzle
Platform: Various
Year of Release: 1997
Developer: Nokia
Publisher: Nokia

Ah, Snake! Of course, I knew this as Nibbles, the Q-Basic game that came with DOS installations that was similar to the game. It’s Snake, Nokia’s implementation for most of their mobile phones (and others) that really caught people’s attention and is probably the early time waster that led to the many games people play on their phones now.

Our Thoughts

Snake is pretty simple. The graphics are, the controls are. And as a puzzle, there isn’t much to it – just how to avoid getting your tail getting in the way. It then becomes a game of reflexes – can you get the dot right next to the wall, can you fit in to get it and get through just as the tail disappears.

It makes for a pretty fun diversion, but nothing that feels notable – other than getting a fun diversion on a phone that makes for a great game.

Final Thoughts

When there’s a game that emulates Pong with its graphics – the only other game looking as simple that I can think of is One-Dot Enemies – and it works solidly as an addictive game. Worth playing from that perspective, but that’s about it.

#488 Golden Sun

Posted: 12th March 2016 by Jeroen in Games
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0

495th played so far

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Genre: Role-Playing
Platform: Game Boy Advance
Year of Release: 2001
Developer: Camelot Software Planning
Publisher: Nintendo

How often can you play a game before you really know it? I’ve played Golden Sun several times before and although I haven’t memorized all details even now, only on this most recent playthrough did I learn about the monster’s abilities and stats. How elemental stats differ per monster and aren’t just simple multipliers, for example. How item drops are complicated. All that sort of stuff.

It happens in a lot of RPGs, but Golden Sun gripped me more somehow than so many others. Maybe it’s because it’s one of my first JRPGs, or perhaps more has happened. It’s certainly something I could try to unwrap.

Our Thoughts

The bright and anime-esque graphics certainly help draw you into the game. I don’t think they’re often listed as a high point of the game, but the game looks lovely, especially with some gorgeous background art that was great to watch on its own.

The story itself, though starting off as fairly standard “save the world” plot, is greatly enhanced by the world. The basic idea of alchemy of a living force, released in part at the start of the game, is fairly in depth and ties into proceedings really well. More importantly, the game mechanics tie into this set up, with several gameplay elements being based not just on this division, but also being explained by the story events.

The problem with the story is that it isn’t finished. The game’s story ends halfway through, and is continued in the sequel Golden Sun The Lost Age, together with some additional bonus content. It’s supposedly due to some constraints, but feels a bit wrong.

The charming characters help. Aside from the silent protagonist (switching roles between series) the characters all see quite a bit of development, and even the protagonists see a bit of it. There’s some railroading going on there, with other characters saying how you responded, but some otherwise non-meaningful yes/no responses allow you to add a bit of personality.

Combat is partially standard turn based stuff, with magic called psyenergy. The real difference comes in through djinn. Small creatures released at the start of the story, you collect them as you play through the game. While nominally giving you stat boosts – especially notable when you stick to each character’s default element – equipping djinn of different elements changes your character’s class and adding new abilities – your physical attacker may gain additional healing, or your main spellcaster gets more defensive power. This also changes the spells you have access to, and in one case even adds a required field abilities. Djinn can also be used in battle, each having a more powerful ability, but lowering your stats and possibly changing your class again. When used, they can be used for the most powerful summons as well, giving you an interesting trade off between general strength and single large attacks

The field abilities are the other interesting part of the system. Not only does your psyenergy have an effect in battle, but they can also manipulate objects in the environment. Starting off by moving things, later you can put out or light fires, create platforms by freezing puddles of water and more. In part they add barriers to progression, but more often they add puzzles for optional objectives, getting you access to djinn and powerful items. It’s a pretty fun way to play, encouraging further backtracking and making what would be simple dungeons otherwise a lot more interesting by encouraging you to explore further.

Final Thoughts

Golden Sun is a decent JRPG, with a pretty good story, but for me lifted by the world and sheer amount of exploration it encourages through its different abilities. Sure, you’d want to pick up both games now to make sure you can finish the story (with an onerous save transfer system), but at least it plays well once you do. Absolutely a game worth sinking your teeth into.

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