VC Weekly 376
Posted 29 May 2016 at 14:40 by Sam C Gittins
Welcome to VC Weekly, N-Europe’s guide to the wonderful world of Nintendo’s download service. Written by Sam C Gittins
I'm not really sure anyone was expecting Nintendo to start releasing SNES titles as VC releases for the New 3DS & XL consoles only but these are still welcome additions to the ever-expanding Virtual Console library helping to provide alternative ways to play... at a price. Anyway enough from me and on with the games!
Available for download this week we have...
War, huh! Yeah, what is it good for? Turn based strategy apparently. The award winning series returns for its third incarnation...
Story-wise the plot is reasonably straightforward "A few months after the war on Macro land (Cosmo land before that) Orange Star along with assistance from other nations managed to successfully drive back and defeat Sturms forces. War from the evil Black Hole army has now arisen in a new land. (Omega land) The combined forces of Orange Star, Green Earth, Yellow Comet and Blue Moon have formed the "Allied Nations" and have vowed to defeat the opposing evil in its new more sinister form."
However initially simplistic the plot may seem, it doesn't merely set the scene and then rest on its laurels taking a back seat for the rest of the game, on the contrary it deepens with each mission, filling in blanks while creating more in the process only to be explained later on. CO's (Counter-Operatives) grow with experience and their story lines intertwine all the while keeping you hooked and drawing you in.
It's the gameplay where the game brings out the big guns; this dual screened incarnation thankfully remains faithful to the flawless formula created by its predecessors. In fact, it's this faithfulness to the roots of the series which makes Advance Wars: Dual Strike more of a spiritual successor sequel rather than a mere carbon copy clone. Although the underlining principles have remained unchanged however, there have been a few subtle changes including some tweaks to the gameplay.
I think we know which side's going to win this battle.
The main noticeable addition - as denoted by the prefix -is the "Dual Strike" feature, this allows you to choose from a plethora of CO's - including some long serving commanders as well as some raw recruits - and swap between two different CO's mid battle in order to build up two meters simultaneously leading to a dual strike. For example; Use Grit's mastery of long range units to rain death from a distance, before switching to Max and taking an army of tanks in to finish the job next turn, it's a really well thought out mechanics which further elevates the level of enjoyment to be had while upping the ante on the tactical side of things as well.
In the way of new units this incarnation doesn't disappoint, far from it in fact, new additions to the ever expanding armory include Pipe Runners which although being rather limited in movement makes up for it in firepower and range. Other units include Stealth Bombers which unlike regular bombers have the option of hiding like a Submarine; Last but by no means least by any stretch of the imagination is the formidable Mega tank, the name speaks for itself really, it's a tank and it's mega... oh and it can destroy virtually any existing ground based unit; but you knew that already.
These gameplay enhancements allow for much greater scope than was previously available in past releases of this groundbreaking franchise, new content doesn't end with just mere enhancements either, just as the game doesn't end with its campaign mode as a whole arsenal of modes are now at your disposal. Most welcome - perhaps controversial though - is battle mode which takes the AW rulebook and obliterates it by way of taking the turn-based system away and replacing it with real-time strategy.
The battle animations are as charming as ever...
Due to the sheer wealth of modes, you may be forgiven for thinking that each one is relatively short but fortunately this isn't the case, Campaign mode alone proves this effortlessly as it easily has 20 hours plus of gameplay for veteran and rookie players alike, amicably setting the standard. Also making a welcome return is the map editor, as the name suggests this mode allows you to design and edit your own maps from scratch as well as providing a substantial number of basic maps preloaded for you to play/edit/remake should you so desire.
Needless to say the possibilities of the map editor alone are potentially limitless, as for the game as a whole there's just so much to do (almost too much) that it'll take weeks just to max out one CO, let alone the entire cast. Then there's all those other modes in which to while away months; to see and do everything within this game could actually take a lifetime, which is great from the point of view of longevity but it does make the game feel a little overwhelming at times.
Basically if you're a fan of Advance Wars, buy it! And if your not, buy it! The game is THAT good; it is of such unsurpassed quality. Everything that is so enjoyable about the previous GBA prequels has been built upon, enhanced and taken to the next level; even if you like strategy games or even if you don't, this truly is one of the most absorbing, rewarding and epically constructed games on not just the DS but any system.
...Even so, it's still all out war so, blast 'em out of the sky Sami!
One main thing though, it is only on one system, the DS. And if you don't own one and you are aware of this games existence and you STILL don't own one and if you're STILL reading this, you would be well advised to go and buy one and a copy of this game, now. Then lock yourself away in a bunker and prepare to lose a considerable part of your life; the best bit? You won't want it back...
Of course with the recent Virtual Console release this fantastic title now IS available on another console, the Wii U. Even though it's not possible to have any of the original multiplayer modes which originally required multiple systems aside from Hotseat Multiplayer which is at least perfect for Gamepad play, or indeed the map-sharing abilities - though you can post screenshots on Miiverse to "share" them - it's still worth more than the price of entry just for the single-player offerings alone and the advantage of being able to play it all on a larger screen, indeed when I think back to playing the original Advance Wars, hunched over my GBA original screen with no backlight, it's actually really amazing to think how far the series has come though I do wish that Intelligent Systems would make a new entry on the 3DS because as much as I enjoy Fire Emblem, Advance Wars will always be the series which resonates most strongly with me personally.
War, such a terrible thing... Now if you'll excuse me i'm off to Omega land to go and nuke the hell out of the Black Hole army.
Verdict : Advance Wars: Dual Strike is without a doubt the finest DS game in existence to date.
Nintendo may have taken their sweet time but Earthbound has now finally been released in Europe, originally the game came out on the SNES in 1995 but only for America and Japan, it didn't even sell phenomally well at the time though it's still a classic RPG developed in-house, it's one that we never got over here so it has become something of a cult classic over the years; most people wanting to buy a physical copy of the game would probably have shyed away from it due to the high price-tag as just the cartridge has been known to sell for around One hundred pounds or more. You would have thought that knowing this Nintendo might have released the game sooner than this on the Wii VC but apparently there were several barriers in place, for whatever reason though we now have this fabled game which can now be purchased for a very reasonable price, indeed I'm sure many of you will have already downloaded the game - and rightly so - but the big question now that it's available is not 'is it any good?' but instead 'just how good is it?' read on to find out just how much our patience has been rewarded.
Perhaps the most striking thing about Earthbound is that it's set in a gloriously historically inaccurate, warped version of modern-day Earth but what makes it even more brilliant is that it's all seen from a Japanese viewpoint which makes for some particularly amusing cultural references; you consume junk food to replenish HP for example, if one of your party falls in battle you have to pick them up from the local hospital. All these things might seem very small but the more you play it becomes apparent that this is a truly one-off RPG, for instance you will suffer from the usual status effects but I don't think I've ever encountered a game where you can catch a cold before; the whole thing plays out as a parody of the genre, this is expressed regularly through the dialogue which is often extremely humorous making you want to explore everywhere so that you can appreciate all that it has to offer.
Indeed exploration is integral to Earthbound as you set off from your home-town of Onett in Eagleland - the main country in the game where you'll be spending the first half of the game - you are always encouraged to look everywhere, note that this is optional but you will 'want' to as each area, cave, city or town is full of life with lots of interesting things going on as the NPC's seem to quietly go about their everyday lives. Of course you have your own quest to complete which I won't spoil but needless to say it does revolve around saving the universe from a hostile alien threat, in order to advance further in the storyline though you will need to talk to many people, engage in many battles, defeat a range of strange but powerful bosses, acquire astounding psychic abilities in addition to assembling your formidable team of four including Ness, Paula, Jeff and Poo... or whatever you decided to name them at the start during the games initial near interrogation where it asks you to name all of the main characters, your dog, favourite food and favourite thing.
Welcome to EarthBound, where you can travel the world, see the sights...
Battling is handled brilliantly as on the face of things what you have is a turn-based system which works really well, you see the enemy over a rather phychedelic background along with some text boxes but that's it, your party only appears outside of these encounters; you can opt to 'Bash' if you have a melee weapon equipped or 'Shoot' if using a projectile-based weapon, this will be your default attack whereas your more special abilities will come under 'PSI' which refers to the phychic abilities which your characters have. These tend to include elemental attacks plus pure psychic ones including an attack in particular which will be named after your favourite item, each of these attacks will start out dealing a standard amount of damage but as you gradually level up your characters will tend to learn new attacks in addition to upgraded versions of existing ones which the strength of is denoted by 'Alpha', 'Beta', 'Delta', 'Sigma' and 'Omega' symbols, which is a rather refreshing way of doing things.
Other in-battle options include 'Goods' which as you'd expect allows you to use various items - including a few joke ones - which can be useful, you can also opt to 'Defend' if things are dire or 'Run Away if you really have no other option; curiously there is an 'Auto-Battle' command which will allow the game to fight for you which can be very handy indeed if you simply don't wish to fight yourself when grinding for exp or if you just want to explore different tactics, even better than that though is the way in which you can bypass a battle completely if you are significantly over-levelled for the area as the screen will cut to a green tint and you win automatically! Perhaps most impressive of all is the 'Rolling HP Counter' which ticks down slowly so if you are unfortunate enough to take a critical hit for example, if you are able to heal before it counts down to zero you can avoid fainting, it's an extremely unique feature that I've not seen anywhere else before, further demonstrating just how different this title is.
As you travel between the varying locales you will be able to take in some of the most simply striking visuals perhaps ever used in a 16-Bit era RPG, not because they are the most detailed but because they take on all of that lovely presentation from the original NES game which then simply takes advantage of the improved hardware, adding in simple but effectively used touches here and there while creating quite a bold colour palette meaning that wherever you are in the game you won't find any two towns looking the same; this is an example of consistent art-style winning out over flashy visuals. The soundtrack is nothing short of spectacular either featuring a broad range of tracks ranging from marverlous melodies which feel wonderfully uplifiting, to quite solemn sounds for more 'serious' parts of the game, along with other pieces which are just plain odd even though they still have plenty of charm; there are certainly many memorable, musical moments throughout the adventure and when you couple these with some very nicely sampled sound effects, you have an amazing journey which stands out aesthetically in addition to being immensely playable.
...and relax in... whatever... that stuff... is. Erm, yay for Mr. Saturn!
Getting around is made very easy thanks to precise eight-way directional control as this is another area where the game should be praised, for the best experience I would recommend using the SNES classic controller if you're lucky enough to own one but if not then using the Gamepad or even the Pro Controller works very well indeed with the off-screen play being a nice bonus too. Saving is made rather simple as you just call your Dad in the game via any phone, these can be found in every town along with some places you might not expect, of course taking advantage of the save states is also advised as this will no doubt save you some time should it all go wrong in battle; your cash is all stored in your account so you'll need to make use of the ATM's inside the shops which is a nice touch, also you'll need to be on top of your item managment as you only get fourteen spaces per party member to store everything which can make things rather interesting later on.
Earthbound is a genuinely amazing RPG that anyone would be wise to invest in, not just because its release in Europe was delayed for so long but more for just how well it has aged in that time or in this case hasn't aged, it's a timeless adventure which will remind you of your childhood while keeping you gripped from start to finish. If you have become tired of the genre in recent years then you really owe it to yourself and Nintendo as a gamer to buy this classic game as I will guarantee you now that this is as original an experience you can get from an RPG; quite simply nothing else compares, it never will, so please don't hesitate in downloading this charming title as it's well worth the asking price and has most certainly been worth the wait as Earthbound deserves a space on your Wii U - or even on your New 3DS now - and in your heart.
Verdict : One of the finest RPG's that I have ever had the pleasure of playing.
There have been many Mario games since the original but few have the same legacy that Super Mario World has spawned since its original release, it's almost hard to believe now that it was a launch title for the SNES as if you didn't know then you could safely assume that it was produced near the end of the console's life as it was easily one of the best platformer's of its generation but even today it still stands tall as one of the best games in existence. Mere hyperbole you say? Clearly you've yet to play this masterpiece then as everyone I know who has played the game at some stage in their lives all agree that it represents either an important game from their childhood or just an amazing achievement for Nintendo at the time for those who went back to play it years later; playing it today I can quite honestly say that this is one Mario game that not only has 'stood' the test of time but it has proven to be completely immovable and with good reason too.
Nintendo could have chosen to just follow the template set by Super Mario Bros 3 but instead they decided to go beyond that, creating something that would eclipse everything they had made before, the only real element of predictability comes from the fact that you're tasked with rescuing Princess Peach once again but everything else is a rather pleasant surprise right from the very start as being that this adventure is set in Dinosaur Land the first enemy you stomp on won't be a Goomba; indeed the enemies are extremely varied but still of classic design providing the perfect level of challenge. In its entirety there are a total of ninety-six exits spread across the sprawling map which is broken down into multiple worlds, naturally you won't be able to get to all the secrets right away but they are handily marked on the map as red dots denote alternative exits, having the ability to go back and revisit past stages is brilliant as you can return to say a very early level with the Feather power-up which will grant you the ability to fly up to higher areas which may have been out of reach before.
It's Yoshi's house! I hope he got planning permission from the Mushroom Kingdom!
Of course the most significant addition to this game is Yoshi as Mario's green dinosaur companion changes the game completely as riding on his back is not only amazing but it allows you to really experiment with everything the game has to offer as he also has several ablities including consuming enemies, spitting fireballs, carrying objects and even flying on certain levels, in fact he's so integral to the game that you won't be able to reach some of the hidden areas without him; at a certain point in the adventure if you're skilled enough then you'll be able to rescue all the multi-coloured Yoshi's which is well worth your time. Each course in the game has been designed to such a high standard that it really isn't very long at all between each genuinely amazing level, certain Mario games of today may have been very good indeed but there's no denying that when it comes to complete mastery of the platform genre, it's defintiely Super Mario World that you'll find perched firmly at the top.
Visually there is an amazing amount of detail in those gorgeous 16-bit graphics, even at the very release of the SNES it's clear that the console was really being pushed as this title served as much more than just an example of the machine's power at the time, each pixel is a lasting testament which goes to show that Nintendo really were at the very top of their game at this very pivotal point in their history, it's impossible to not be drawn to this title's fantastic visuals even in the age of HD graphics. Naturally the music is also truly top-tier stuff featuring some of the best music ever committed to a video-game, from the cheerful opening levels, to the frantic piano playing or even the haunting theme of Bowser's Castle, everything is of such an amazing standard but then, being that the composer behind this magical score is none other than the legendary Koji Kondo, this will perhaps come as little surprise but one thing is for sure, everything that you hear in this title is nothing short of an aural delight; even losing a life, it's hard to frown when you're 'played off' so brilliantly by a piano.
The underwater environments are particularly perilous.
Super Mario World is such a ground-breaking title for many reasons but to put it quite simply, if you have yet to experience it for yourself then you really should buy it now and ensure that you devote a significant amount of time not just to completing it but enjoying every moment, I genuinely envy anyone experiencing this game for the very first time on the Wii U because not only do you get to enjoy one of the greatest Mario/games/of all-time - delete as applicable - but you also have the option of sharing your experience to Miiverse where a fantastic community of gamers will be waiting on your every achievement or failure, spurring you on to get past 'that one level' or simply congratulating you on finding 'the final exit' or simply just sharing a great memory; it might sound like a simple thing but it can make all the difference. Regardless of whether you choose to use Miiverse or not though, you really can't ignore one of Nintendo's finest masterpiece's, even if you merely haven't played the game in a while and feel like a trip down 'Star Road' one more time, just go forth and purchase as even in today's climate a classic Mario game for just over a fiver is a bargain however you look at it. Is paying four pounds extra and having to buy the game again on your New 3DS worth it? I'll leave you to decide but personally I think you can't put a price on portability and even though there is a price barrier here, it's more than worth it.
Verdict : The greatest Mario title that this world will ever see.
That's it for another installment of VC Weekly which will return again soon. So until then, enjoy the rest of the week and Game On!
