amphibious_ReViews

As Mario 's first polygonal-3d adventure, and one of the earliest games to take advantage of such technology on this scale, there were so many ways that Nintendo could have messed this up. Luckily, they didn't, and Super Mario 64 quickly earned it's place as one of the best 3d adventure games ever made. I personally still prefer Mario 's later 3d escapades, but I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this title. As Mario , the game tasks you with exploring a surprisingly large amount of sandbox-style levels in order to collect power stars. Each level hides seven, but there are an additional fifteen that clever players can find while exploring Princess Peach 's castle. These power stars are used to open up new areas, eventually leading you to a final battle with King Bowser himself. As I made my way through the castle and the worlds hidden with it, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed exploring the same levels over and over in order to collect each of their stars. I wo

  Pilotwings brought impressive flight simulations to the SNES , with realistic physics assisted by pseudo-3D graphics that pulled the whole experience together. Unfortunately, it just wasn't very fun. Nintendo incorporated bonus rounds that were far more fantastical than the main gameplay, but it all still ended up feeling like I was performing a simulation instead of playing a game. The variety in challenges was nice, and it was an interesting experience when piloting each vehicle/character, but I often felt like I had to force myself to play this over other games. The gameplay loop of Pilotwings revolves around completing different challenges in order to achieve higher levels of your in-game pilot license. You'll have to demonstrate your skills with a plane, a jetpack, a hanglider, and a parachute in the main stages, which make up most of the experience. If you achieve a secret goal while completing one of the regular challenges, you'll have the opportunity to earn ad

As the first Picross game to make it to the west, this title didn't do nearly as well as Nintendo was hoping, leading us to be without a new Picross game until the DS . Although the franchise was doing well in Japan, westerners just weren't ready for these clever logic games. I think part of the issue was that this was advertised as a Mario title, but that aspect of the game boiled down to his face in the corner of the screen and a small number of related puzzles. Despite the poor reaction upon release, I found this to be a really enjoyable title. Some of the rules implemented in future entries, such as the inability to fill in a space that you've marked with an X, are sorely missed here. However, complaints like those don't really undermine the fact that this game is loaded with solid puzzles and is a delight to play. If you're familiar with other Picross  titles, you'll be right at home here. If not, the game does a great job of easing you into the nonogra

Donkey Kong Country is one of the most memorable games from my childhood. I have vivid memories of passing a GBA back and forth with my brothers as we worked on our quest to defeat the evil King K. Rool. Back then, I was hugely impressed by the crisp platforming and the variety in level design mechanics. Revisiting the game today, those opinions still stand strong. There's a reason why this franchise grew how it did, and the entry title demonstrates that wonderfully. DKC is full of clever design choices that make it feel unique and ensure that it's a joy to play all the way though. The backbone of the gameplay comes in the form of the titular character and his bud Diddy. Throughout the game, you'll play as both Kongs, switching between their different abilities as you progress. If given the choice, I probably would have played as Donkey Kong the whole time, as he has the power to defeat larger enemies that just laugh at Diddy, plus, a bit v he has the destructive ground

Utilizing the fancy Super FX chip in the game cartridge, Star Fox brought true 3D to a system that shouldn't have been capable of it. For that alone, this game is novel and exciting. The next console generation brought native 3D to the table, and with it a quasi-remake of this game with the same story and massive gameplay improvements. However, there is a strange magic to playing something three-dimensional on the SNES . Star Fox is an on-rails space shooter where you play as an anthropomorphic fox attempting to stop an evil mastermind and save the galaxy. Each level is pretty straightforward, tasking players with dodging obstacles, defeating enemies, and protecting allies before taking on a large robotic boss. The game mixes things up a little by providing players with different levels depending on the difficulty they choose, so you have to be skilled to see everything. I definitely found the game to be challenging, but I thought it was well-balanced as a whole, and the environ

Easily the definitive NES entry in it's series, Super Mario Bros. 3 improves upon just about every aspect of it's predecessors. Sprites have gone from obvious blocks of pixels to something resembling actual drawings. New powerups and a wider range of enemies provide more variety to the gameplay. An overworld provides a unique level of control over the adventure, which has an improved plot with new kingdoms to save and additional antagonists to defeat. I also found myself smiling at how clever some of the levels were designed, which I hadn't really done with Mario's other 8-bit adventures. Functionally, Mario 3 has a lot in common with the first game in the series, and players who are used to stomping on koopas or picking up mushrooms will feel right at home here. However, the designers seemed to have a full grasp on the capabilities of their hardware by the time this game was made, and it shows. No longer are there only four levels in each of the eight worlds, as m

Being pretty much THE reason to own a Nokia phone in the 90's, Snake  has truly earned itself a place in gaming history. When it comes to the gameplay, the mechanics are simple; you are tasked with directing a moving snake around an enclosed arena so that it can eat and grow without running into a wall or its own grotesquely long body. The game starts out pretty easy, as the snake is short enough to be very easy to dodge. However, as it progresses, more strategy is required to avoid hitting the snake's tail while still traversing the small playing field. That mechanic is what I think makes Snake  unique amongst other arcade-style games. Games like Tetris or Pac-Man  force players to act faster by increasing the game's speed. Snake  forces the players to act faster by punishing their success with a longer snake. The speed never changes, but the playing field effectively shrinks. I never really spend a lot of time playing Snake  in any one play session, but the intelligent

Final Fantasy IV  is absolutely the perfect follow-up to the original trilogy. It improved upon the story-building of the third , the character-swapping of the second , all while maintaining the charm and motifs present since the first . It faltered a bit in that it felt incredibly linear, limiting opportunities for exploration and discovery. However, that linearity also almost completely removed the need to grind for levels, and I would consider that a worthy trade-off. When it comes to the Final Fantasy  series, I have the tendency to play until about the halfway point, lose interest for a while, and then come back to beat the game with the same vigor that I started with. It's not the most ideal way to play a game, but it stops me from being to burnt out by repetitive mechanics. However, FFIV was the first in the series to keep my attention the whole way through! I credit the story for my engagement. The game is broken down into segments that almost feel like levels, introducin

Starting its life on the Gameboy , Link's Awakening  offered a full Zelda  adventure on the go. Now, its remake for the Nintendo Switch  offers the same, and so much more! My first experience with the game was the DX  edition on the Gameboy Color . I had a lot of fun with it, and the introduction of Mario  characters to a canon Zelda  title felt impossibly delightful. However, the limitations of the console did cause the first two releases to suffer in a way that the remake remedied nicely. The Switch  version offers the same quirky atmosphere as the original, and it faithfully recreates the island of Koholint and its inhabitants, while also adding content that deepens the experience, making it worth the investment for new and returning players alike. The world that was (re)crafted in this game holds so much to enjoy. The interactions between characters range from heartwarming to comedic, the puzzles are never easy, but always rewarding, and the story is unique within the franc

Although I wouldn't consider it my favorite Final Fantasy  title (that place is held by FFII ,) it isn't hard to see how Final Fantasy III  was a game-changer for its series. Although it is quite similar in structure to the original , FFIII  is the originator of the job system, allowing (and requiring) the characters in the party to change roles throughout the game in order to perform different attacks, use different weapons, have different magical capabilities, and more! Although the interactivity between characters and the depth of the story suffered in this entry compared to its immediate predecessor, the world was opened up so much more. New magic and new jobs meant new opportunities for players to explore both the overworld and dungeons in ways unprecedented for the series. Unfortunately, save for the final tower, I feel as though the dungeons were still far more linear than in FFII , removing a lot of challenge and excitement from each of those sections. I also

I have recently been screwing around a bit with the "twin-stick shooter" genre, and then realized one of my childhood favorites was not only part of the genre, but also an amazing addition to it. I was always familiar with the classic arcade version (thanks to Midway Arcade Treasures Vol. 1 ), but I decided to try out the SNES  version just before this review, and it was quite the joyride. As a little bit of background, Smash TV  is a twin-stick shooter, meaning the character is controlled with one joystick, and shooting is controlled with the other. You play as a competitor in a deadly game-show in which you move from room to room defeating waves of enemies, powering up, collecting loot, and hopefully make it out alive. The game can be played alone, but the difficulty suggests that a second player might be helpful, as well as adding to the fun of the competition. Trying to out-score your partner can add an extra challenge that is worth every life. Besides the fact that

I find that Mario Kart is always a top contender for playing with a group of friends, and Mario Kart 64 is where that really started. Sure, Super Mario Kart  was amazing, and it was definitely a pioneer for the racing genre, but it was only for 2 players tops, compared to MK64 's 4 player races and more exciting maps. But enough comparing; MK64  is an amazing experience, both with friends, and alone. The tracks are intelligently designed, and the game is simple enough that anybody can jump in and enjoy the ride (or battle, if that is what you are into). Although some courses can feel a bit redundant , they still manage to be a good time, and worth the 6 minutes of flattening your thumb on the A Button. It should come as a surprise to nobody that this game is fantastic. Although it may be a bit harder to come by than most of the other titles in the series, I believe that it still stands as one of the best. My final words here probably aren't surprising either, but I feel

This is my all-time favorite kind of multiplayer FPS action. There is a goal, and the only way to get to it is a wild, chaotic mess of flying bullets and a fast-paced, shoot-die-respawn-repeat experience. It brings me memories of Halo: Combat Evolved online split screen, but with a class system perfectly eased into the experience, giving each player an important role in guarding flags or leading the carnage. But one of the most redeeming qualities is the incorporation of player-made maps, textures, and other oddball additions to each and every server, allowing for a new adventure every game for server-surfers like me. This game can be picked up for only $5 on Steam, so if an exciting online onslaught of shooter madness is something you are craving, I can barely recommend anything higher than this. Unless of course you have the Halo: Master Chief Collection , in that case give Combat-Evolved online a fair share of your time as well. The game can be bought at this link (as of 4/

A great start to my journey down a long road of games I have to play, The Oregon Trail by MECC (The MS-DOS version in my case) is a thrilling adventure, and requires a mixture of skill, strategy, and luck. In my infinite pride, I must brag a little bit that I made it all the way to Oregon on my first try, but it was no cakewalk. I lost a daughter to typhoid, wasted months on the road hoping our collective health would improve, and shuddered every time a river crossing came within view. I played as a carpenter, so I had just enough money for a frugal trip, ending with a solid $6.00 of the $800 I left home with. Overall, I am glad to say that I have endured the experience, and I feel like I am a better gamer because of it, but I don't plan to revisit this one for a long, long time. I recommend that anybody with an hour to burn gives this adventure a shot, but it definitely isn't for those who want to put relaxation and casual-gaming together. The version I played can be