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I'm not a big fan of golf. I've watched Happy Gilmor with Adam Sandler and really liked it, but unfortunately golf just isn't the same as its portrayed in the movie. What's worse, you can't train at the mini putt with the laughing clown face. Obviously I have no experience with the sport and to only until recently used to confuse Jack Nicholson and Jack Nicklaus.
Well, today I decided to put all that behind me and have a go at NES Open Tournament Golf.
[img width=509 height=386]http://i1340.photobucket.com/albums/o736/Fleach/Titlescreen.jpg[/img]
A plumber who's off to hit the links? What could go wrong? If Fleach is on the sticks, the possibilities are endless.
Continue reading FreshNES Part 3: I'm a Gamer, not a Golfer
I am a big fan of RPG style games. I love getting immersed in the mythical and fantastical worlds these games create. From the industrial metropolis of Midgar to the Kingdom of the GreatTree, I relish the experience of guiding my band of adventurers on their quests.
It should come as no surprise that for my mission to play as many NES games as possible I'd sooner rather than later play Enix's Dragon Warrior.
[img width=700 height=388]http://i1340.photobucket.com/albums/o736/Fleach/DSCF2488.jpg[/img]
Continue reading FreshNES Part 2: The Adventure Begins
I finally purchased a tube TV to play my fabulous NES titles on. I eagerly hooked up the console and took the time to choose a couple games. With the intension to keep things light and easy I decided on 10-Yard Fight and Blades of Steel.
I inserted the first cartridge.
Nothing. Just the nightmarish blinking red light and a steadily flashing gray screen. I was devastated.
"Not to worry," I thought, "I have a back-up NES."
I unplugged the first console and hooked up the other. Same thing, I was zero for two.
Eventually this happened:
[img width=700 height=388]http://i1340.photobucket.com/albums/o736/Fleach/DSCF2458.jpg[/img]
Surely the Internet would yield some kind of answer to my trouble. Apparently the 72-pin connector needs replacing. Alas, being impatient as I am, I continued to scour the web for a makeshift solution. It turns out that if you gentle wiggle the cart once its inside the console the connection can be improved. So wiggle I did and sure enough I was greeted by the 10-Yard Fight title scrren.
I know that this is not a real solution, but until a new 72-pin connecting comes in the mail there isn't much I can do.
OK! Time to toss the pixelated pigskin!
[img width=700 height=388]http://i1340.photobucket.com/albums/o736/Fleach/DSCF2462-1.jpg[/img]
10-Yard Fight simply put is a fun little football simulator. The player controls one of two teams. The control scheme is easy to master after a couple of minutes. While on the offense the A button initially passes the ball to the quarter back, then can be pressed to perform a long distance pass, whereas the B button executes a quick lateral pass. When playing on the defense the player first must select one teammate to control with either A or B then the gameplay begins.
What I really liked about the game were the sound effects. The players running across the field sounded a lot of horses galloping over the wide steppe. Even the rhythm resembled galloping. I also enjoyed watching the player sprites; they looked like they were doing some kind of cossack dance.
I actually horribly lost the match 21-0. I'm terrible at football. But since I'm Canadian maybe I'd have better luck on the ice.
So, I laced up my skates, I mean, fired up Blades of Steel.
[img width=700 height=388]http://i1340.photobucket.com/albums/o736/Fleach/DSCF2465.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=388]http://i1340.photobucket.com/albums/o736/Fleach/DSCF2468.jpg[/img]
I used to like hockey games growing up so I had high hopes for this one.
Video games don't get any simpler than this. Rapidly tapping the B button enables you to almost always win the face off. With the puck in your possession B is used to pass, and A is pressed to shoot. Where the game gets interesting is when the opposing team crosses the blue line the player controls the goalie. I really liked that concept.
I was especially good at the most important aspect of hockey - fighting. The gloves were off and it was fisticuffs on ice!
[img width=700 height=388]http://i1340.photobucket.com/albums/o736/Fleach/DSCF2470.jpg[/img]
When one team scores the opposing team's goalie suddenly flails his arms like an angry troll. Very cool.
Of the games played today Konami's Blades of Steel was the better of the two. It did not have any clunky animations or controls. It felt smooth and flowed nicely even by today's standards. The voice acting was entertaining, albeit repetitive. The announcer's "with the cross!"booming from the speakers every time I passed the puck did get annoying after a while. However, the simulated sound of skates slashing over the ice was pretty decent. Overall, I thought it was a good game and one that I'll return to. That says a lot as I'm not really a fan of sports games.
I don't think there is much to be said about sports games. They're fun ways to pass the time and provide a bit of healthy competition between friends. The simple gameplay mechanics are easy to grasp making them enjoyable to play.
PS - Does anyone know how to take quality pictures of gameplay in action? I used a Fujifilm EXR for these snapshots.
First off, thanks for taking the time to check out my blog. Here I'll write about my experiences with NES and SNES games. I know of the fantastic reputations of these console generations, so I'm making it my mission to finally play these awesome (and less stellar) games.
I will call this blog "FreshNES" because having never played an NES game I have a fresh perspective of them (and because I think puns are funny). I really hope that you find my pictures and ruminations entertaining.
A little bit about me... During my impressionable years in the early 1990s I was too young to fully enjoy the magnificent NES. Fortunately, I did eventually convince my parents to buy me a Super Nintendo and fond memories ensued. I vividly remember guiding Link through dungeons in Link to the Past, and somewhat ruefully recall Baby Mario's ear-splitting wails in Yoshi's Island.
From there I graduated to the glorious Nintendo 64 and it was official: I'd been bitten by the polygonal gaming bug.
Providing myself with the opportunity to truly experience and enjoy these gems is the reason I have decided to become a video game collector. The 8- and 16-bit games have great appeal to gamers young and old and have withstood the test of time.
So to get things going I picked up a bunch of these classic games. I have roughly ten games for the NES and five for the SNES so I can hit the ground running. Now, to just find a nice old tube TV. I hear these games look better on the old televisions compared to today's flat screens.
With that said, I think a trip to the thrift store is in order.
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This is Fleach's Blog.
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Role Playing games are my favourite genre of the gaming library. I feel it is appropriate to take a look at the games that have touched me in my time as a gamer and collector and share them with the community. Feel free to discuss your thoughts, ideas, and challenge my opinions. The conversation is welcomed. |
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