Welcome, you either came from Smashboards, Gamespot, or ...somewhere else? Facebook? Ha!
Anyways, these are reviews I'm dumping on here from my previous areas, so enjoy!~:
Ocarina of Time:
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Short Summary:
I think the smartest thing to do before I even give this review out is to give out some background information. There are usually three types of reviews: fanboy, flaming, and good reviews. The third is always the rarest to find, especially with games like this. This game is a very delicate and special classic, so I feel its review should be handled with care.
That being said, I can assure you I am the third category. Though I think Zelda is an amazing series; I never played Ocarina of Time until this summer. I played it for the sole sake of having it done to play Majora's Mask, and honestly I have only heard praise from this game. I do tend to believe the latest DS releases of Zelda show examples of games "riding the titles", however I do not believe this game was the case. Placed in the 1998 setting and technology, this was a example of beauty created by man, and a game I could easily play and enjoy a few months from now yet again...
Storyline:
Typical Zelda storyline is to thwart Ganondorf's evil ambitions. The game itself includes being a child and finding your way to the temple of time, as well as being an adult to confront the final battle. Along your journey you meet several friends, several hardships, and gain several ambitions. By the end of the game your desire to see Ganon fall in his own failure rises to a climax no other game of that decade could deliver. The power of the story (no pun intended) brought the N64 into competition in terms of games, and probably helped seal the deal of Sega's demise.
Gameplay:
The most notable thing would be the gameplay. A new feature was added where you can hold three items on display, which until streamlining was recently brought about, this was still the item section used in Twilight Princess. It looks a little bit like this:
Take a look at the item section on the Northeastern section of the screenshot. Those item selections allowed up to three items to be displayed, a very valuable addition.
Being 3D the gameplay was also vastly upgraded. Now you could grab onto ledges, and the environment was much more real and not just placed to be there. The game itself not just ran well, but made an excellent transcend into 3D.
On top of that, it also had various good sidequests and minigames aside from the main game itself. The gameplay is what makes or break the series, and Ocarina of Time was not short on the deliver.
Aside from channges and expectations, the gameplay brought back several classics. Items like Hootshot, the Bow, Slingshot, and Bottles were brought back with additions like an Ocarina, a Horse, and cloths/sword upgrades. The new additions as well as the old being rebirthed made the Zelda feel as great as ever. The gameplay is what makes or break the series, and Ocarina of Time was not short on the deliver.
Graphics:
If you play a 1998 game and expect 2010 graphics, you're obviously a fool. If you are mature and/or capable of playing the game with a 1998 mindset however, the game is stunning. The transcend to 3D could be rivaled as more outstanding than the gameplay. When I saw my mother play this among others, we all were wowed with Cinematics and Cutscenes that never really existed in the Zelda series. This game not just ushered these to be repeated in the future, but set the bar for how lush and expansive the games would appeal and be. Now you could run through Hyrule Feild and see the day change to night while riding a horse, and it's all in the 3D.
Sound:
I can't really post any clips of the sound to attest to it's success, but this is by far one of my top five soundtracks. Only rivaled by Nobue Umetsu's success with Final Fantasy, this soundtrack can stand alone. All of the songs burn in your heart, especially the temple access songs. You will spend hours trying to find these songs on playlist, and even longer finding the soundtrack. I'm not usually picky about music, but I'm rarely impressed, and this knocked me off my feet.
Everything Else:
Controls are fine, as mentioned in gameplay. If games had value like art, I'd say it's priceless. I can't add much more, except if you haven't played this play it, it easily gets a 10.
The Facts:
10/10 100%
Rank: S (S/A/B/C/D/F)
Crash Bandicoot: Warped
He is back and better than ever.
Short Summary:
This game was the peak of the Crash series. 1 and 2 were good games, nothing I have yet to complete yet, and everything after Warped spiraled downhill to the point where the games today are jokes.
That aside, this game was a perfect platformer, and a must have for anyone who loves that line of games.
Storyline:
Cortex is back again for one final attempt at world domination with the evil mask's help. You must get all the crystals again and defeat them both to final solve this trilogy like storyline. Well written in a comical way, but nothing special.
Such a creepy little man.
Gameplay:
Very good gameplay. It is a basic definition of platforming/sidescrolling, and will give you something to do for hours and hours. There are time races and gems for getting all the boxes; so in a sense there is a sidequest factor of this game. The time races come in 4 time trails, two of them being possible and required for 105% The last two are merely for crazy people (I obtained 105%, but the last 2 are mad-crazy-hard)
Sound, Graphics, Controls, and pretty much everything else:
Sound: The Soundtrack for Crash Bandicoot is the kind of soundtrack you'll listen too, but you will not remember the music. It's not bad, it's okay.
Graphics: For it's release the graphics were great. It was never a problem, and there were very few graphical glitches.
Controls: Note that my previous two reviews did not cover controls. It's because games like the ones I reviewed they are never a problem. PS1 games have been noted to have bad controls though, as well as N64 games. I can reassure you though the controls were fine. My only complaint was brief lag every here and there, but it was so few and far between it didn't bother me.
All in All:
8.5
It can't beat Mario, it just can't. It does come close though.
What held it back from a perfect score was mainly the lag here and there, as that annoys me, and the length.
It appears to be a long game, but without trying I got 105% in two days, playing casually. You may say, 8.5 is harsh for only two notable flaws, but I hate lack of length.
Pokemon Platinum:
Pokemon is the only rpg I know that is truly the master at being subtle. There are at least three layers of Pokemon. Pokemon for children, Pokemon for older people, and Pokemon for competitive people. That being said, this 4th generation game is quite possibly the best yet. (Until Gold/Silver remakes) The graphics are the best the DS can offer so far, and the music is the same nostalgic tunes that have been played since the R/Y/B days. The gameplay is of course, the same to Diamond/Pearl, and it all fits the same old pokemon mold. So what makes this game so great? Well if you're a kid your going to love the Pokemon aspect, 'nuff said. If you are an adult or a competitive, you are going to love the in depth aspect of how well this rpg truly is. Look up IV, EV, nature, anything, and you'll see just how amazing and indepth this game is. I could write a multiple page report just on how this game functions, if I were to try. Most games are not that complex, so I'd say the rpg aspect even surpasses that of the almighty Final Fantasy series. I've been a Pokemon and Final Fantasy fan all my life, so I'm allowed to say that! Really though, there is nothing else to say about this game, if you like rpgs you'll love it, and if you want something that is deep, you'll like it even more. If you're looking for storyline though, it's a waste of time. Lack of storyline and the fact other forme pokemon (Deoxy's att/deff/speed, Rotom, Shaymin Sky forme, etc) can't be used in online play is my reasoning for 9.5
Calling all trainers, get this game!
A lot of reviews were lost along the way, but expect these upcoming titles:
Drakengard
Final Fantasy XII
Metroid: Other M
Metroid Prime Trilogy
Pokemon: Soul Silver (4th gen tie up)
Majora's Mask
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