[img width=320 height=316]https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oErLX7bYBH8/WDOY4uHTQ_I/AAAAAAAAAoc/wyoo8vNHS78pWT2QOHJMCU7pwu1UJ_CYQCLcB/s320/Gargoyles%2BQuest%2Bbox.jpg[/img] Box art scan shamelessly stolen from GameFAQs. Someone at Capcom USA should have been sacked for turning Firebrand into a green gargoyle instead of his signature crimson.
From time to time, video game companies see fit to tinker with their intellectual properties. This may be due to creative surges within the development teams wanting to try something new. Sometimes a dev team knows the formula within a given series has become stale or rote, and they feel the need to mix things up. There are examples where changing the formula has had resounding success, such as Konami's Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, as well as instances where this approach completely flopped, as was the case with Accolade's Bubsy 3D. Whatever the reason, creative minds generally need to branch out to do different things to keep things fresh and flex their creative muscle.
Such is the case with Gargoyle's Quest from Capcom. It's sort of an off-shoot of the Makai-Mura series, better known as Ghosts 'n Goblins, or Ghouls 'n Ghosts. In Japan, the game is known as Reddo Arima: Makai-Mura Gaiden, which can be roughly translated as Red Arremer: Demon World Village Side-Story. Rather than starring the main protagonist of the Ghosts/Ghouls series, Arthur, it actually stars the "red arremer" enemy from the original game known as Firebrand. Based on the game's plot, it could be seen as a prequel to the original game, which you find out at the end.
Most people know that I am a huge fan of the survival-horror genre, particularly the Resident Evil series, so I was immediately intrigued when The Evil Within was announced back in 2013. This was a brand new survival-horror IP directed by Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami, and it promised to bring the genre back to its survival roots rather than the action-oriented approach of more recent horror games. While I still enjoyed more recent horror titles that have been given the label of 'action-horror,' the prospect of a modern title that recaptures what made the old-school games so unique and interesting was exactly what survival-horror fans had been hoping for.
It's October, so it's time for spooky games. Phantasmagoria is a point and click horror adventure game by Sierra. It was controversial due to its depiction of graphic FMV gore and adult themes and became a best seller. But is it any good?
I remember seeing the box art for this game all the time when I was a kid. Though point and click adventure was a staple of my gaming history, I had never played this game before. I've always had a soft spot for FMV as well, though this wasn't quite what I was expecting.
Jaws was one of the August community playthroughs here at RFGen and it was the first time I had played this particular game. I have to say, it's a bit of an oddity. The majority of the gameplay is non-scrolling horizontal shooter, but there are a few different mechanics thrown in to change things up a bit. On paper, the game doesn't sound impressive - an LJN published tie-in to the fourth (and arguably worst) Jaws movie, Jaws: The Revenge. But how does it play?
[img width=320 height=318]https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kAyGzRAku1I/V8G4oy90YLI/AAAAAAAAAf8/KPkZDqxY6fQNSsgQuJgFKcjOY5GbZlkMgCLcB/s320/Castlevania%2BAdventure%2Bbox.jpg[/img] Image shamelessly stolen from the Castlevania Wikia page. When I was a kid, this was the baddest looking box art in all the land when it came to Game Boy games. And by bad, I mean AWESOME.
Nostalgia can be a very powerful force. It can make adults look back fondly on all sorts of things that, viewed objectively, probably aren't as great as we remember them. For a child of the 80's, that can be almost anything. From VCRs and teased hair, to classic cartoons and our favorite movies and video games, there are times when it's hard to take a step back and look at those old favorites with a more critical eye. Sure, that one Poison album might be one of your favorites of all time, but musically, does it still hold up? What about your favorite childhood cartoon...could you watch it today without cringing or thinking it's nothing but pure cheese?
Now think about your favorite video games as a child. Sure, some of them probably stand the test of time. But for every Super Mario Bros or Contra, there's always a handful of games that we may still hold in high regard and still have much affection for. If we could set aside our own memories and youthful experiences, would we still hold those works in the same esteem? For me, one of those games is Konami's Castlevania: The Adventure on the Game Boy.
I want to take a brief break from my usual blogs about my store to talk about Mighty No. 9 now that I've had several weeks to take it all in. If this is something you'd be interested in reading about please click the link below. If not then we can't be friends......
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is a fantastic game. At the time of this writing, I have put over one hundred and fifty hours into the game and I'm sporting a completion percentage of only 70%. I would write a full review of the game if it weren't for two things. First of all, I finished the story missions so long ago that some of them have blurred in my memory. Secondly, even if I did remember all the finer details, a comprehensive review would be more than I would be willing to take on. However, I was so excited to play this game upon release that I wrote my first blog post here about playing it with the rest of the world. Since it's almost been a full year since the game's release and that article, I wanted to talk about the game's lasting effects and why I am still playing it.
Compile is well known for making excellent shoot'em ups and of all the ones I've played, Gun-Nac is my favourite. This is not a game I played as a kid. I only tried it for the first time within the past year, but I was immediately hooked and I now consider it one of my favorites on the NES.
Aside from very solid controls and a variety of weapons and power-ups, the thing that stands out most is the amazing, somewhat bizarre, environments. Each stage has a theme that's a little different than your average shmup. In one, you battle sentient vegetables, while in another you're up against currency. Boss battles that include giant robot rabbits and Maneki Neko are a nice change from battling other spaceships.
So far I've been sharing reviews of games I adore and have gushed over them accordingly. Today I thought I'd share a review of a game that evokes a lot of nostalgia, but very little love.
The original Prince of Persia is a game that was quite ubiquitous in the early 90's. Originally developed for the Apple II, it was soon ported to over a dozen other platforms. It's the NES version that made its way into my game library when I was a kid, and did it ever make me feel terrible at video games. Between the jerky movement, odd controls, and inexplicable 60 minute time limit, I never managed to get very far in this game back when I first played it. It rarely managed to stay in the console for more than a few minutes before I got frustrated by constantly dying and swapped it out for Star Tropics, Felix the Cat or solo games of Monopoly.
Give the video a watch to hear my thoughts on playing this game many years later.
When the new DOOM was revealed at E3 last year, I was not remotely interested in playing it. It looked like just another first-person shooter that seemed to be gory for no good reason. I had limited experience with the original games - I'm more of the Wolfenstein girl - so the nostalgia factor wasn't even there. Pass.
However...
Once the game released and rave reviews started coming out, I thought maybe it would be worth a look. Boy, am I glad I gave it a chance. DOOM is some of the most fun I've had with a game in a long time. The pace is relentless, the combat is satisfying, and the level design is fantastic! By going back to basics and skipping mechanics like cover, regenerating health, and having to reload your gun, id Software produced a game that feels fresh.
I was really excited to make this review and found myself writing it in my head as I played the game. Give it a watch if you want to hear some more about DOOM.
[img width=110 height=61]http://www.rfgeneration.com/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;attach=7513;type=avatar[/img] This article was authored and submitted by RF Generation's own SirPsycho. Our seasoned writer has been having computer issues as of late. Best of luck on a full recovery good sir. Boy are my hands getting tired....
For my return to reviewing, I wanted to talk about something special. You will get a review of two games for the price of one! We will journey to the dark lands of Sega's Master System and look at the Hang-On/Astro Warrior combo cartridge for a dual review.
[img width=700 height=344]https://wayforward.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/wf_thumbnail_22.jpg[/img] Image courtesy of WayForward's website.
Just under a month ago, the group from Humble Bundle brought us the second bundle for the Wii U and 3DS games with the "Humble Friends of Nintendo Bundle." Naturally, I bought it. There was a solid lineup of games from the start and for $13, I ended up with quite a selection of games for each of my consoles. One of those games being Shantae and the Pirate's Curse.
Now, I've seen the Shantae games in screenshots and honestly hadn't had a lot of experience with WayForward games aside from Mighty Switch Force. As a result, I had already sort of dismissed the game as being oriented toward girls. After playing the game, I couldn't be more pleased to have been so wrong.
The Sega CD is a somewhat underrated, or at least overlooked, console. However, it's home to a number of unique games that are worthy of attention, one of the best of which is Snatcher. Snatcher was developed by Konami and released for Sega CD in 1994, six years after its original release in Japan. It's a visual novel with adventure elements whose story borrows heavily from movies such as The Terminator and Blade Runner. The game is one of Hideo Kojima's earliest works, but it highlights his unique style - the humor in the game is often bizarre and self-referential, the influence that cinema has on the game is evident, and he loves sexy, pixelated women. Though mechanically Snatcher can be somewhat awkward at times, it is a game where the whole is definitely more than the sum of its parts.
This video review is a bit older, but I think it's one of my best and I wanted to make a strong start for my first post here at RF Generation. Give it a watch if you're interested in hearing more about Snatcher.
When I picked up Fire Emblem: Awakening in 2012, I had no idea I was about to play what would become not only my favorite 3DS game to date, but one of my favorite games of all time. I had never played a strategy rpg, but I was aware of the Fire Emblem series' reputation as both a quality franchise and also a brutally difficult one. I might not have gotten into Fire Emblem if it weren't for the controversy surrounding developer Intelligent Systems' decision to make the series' trademark permadeath completely optional.
Many modern, first person adventure games are labelled as "walking simulators," particularly the ones with a narrative focus. This term refers to a game in which players walk throughout the in-game environment without doing much else like engaging in combat or finding collectibles. It's a label that, while superficially accurate, is often applied to a game because players can't decipher much more beyond the surface characters or stories. However, more often than not that couldn't be further from the truth of what these games offer. Take, for example, Dear Esther; it features the final fleeting thoughts of its narrator as his life fades away. It's true that the gameplay only involves walking from one set piece to the next, but what makes the game substantial is the emotions and memories the narrator presents. The walking simulator is the most effective at allowing players to really get into the head of a game's character.
Firewatch, the first game from Campo Santo, is the latest inclusion in the walking simulator category. The fact is that this game offers much depth of character, narrative interactivity, and even some role-playing which can only be achieved by utilizing this unconventional and divisive genre.
MAJOR SPOILERS FOR FIREWATCH CONTINUE READING AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!
