A Winner Is You! (2012)

[MrMatthews]

15. Ducktales (GameBoy): This game was not nearly as hard as I remembered. I remember struggling with this one a lot when I was younger, only managing to beat it once. Picked it up tonight for the first time in 20 years and played right through it. I guess in my old age I've developed the mad skills to pay the bills.

[Melf]

#6.



Alisia Dragoon is an awesome, awesome game. The ending was a bit poor, but overall this is an excellent action title with excellent visuals and gameplay. Game Arts at its finest.

#7.

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I downloaded this ages ago on the Wii VC and decided to go through it again in anticipation of the upcoming MW collection. I haven't played the MS one in years, so I don't know how better or worse it is, but I enjoyed the hell out of this one. Lots of secrets and bonuses that make you think, bosses that are cool and have challenging patterns, and a really awesome world in general make me sad that Sega left it off the set we're getting next month. This game has really aged quite well.

[QuickSciFi]

4. Vay - Sega CD


It was a neat RPG. Unlike many reviewers out there, I actually found it very well balanced. I'm a hardcore grinder, and I can tell you that this isn't a tough game in which to level-up; which you are able to do so flawlessly most of the time (It is not very difficult to find a good spot to, either, level-up or make money). Like with any RPG, grinding is always necessary. It was a long game, and grinding-happy at times, so I'm very satisfied. The only bad thing about it was the minimalistic aspect of the cut-scenes (I couldn't tell half the time who was whom when they showed anime versions of each character. They all looked the same to me, tall and skinny blond girls, the lot of them). The actual core of the story is actually carried in the writing for NPCs and other such dialogs amongst the main characters. The writing did seem aimed more at 12 year olds at time, but that is not the same as saying the writing was childish. It was actually very well written. Which has always been my favorite aspect in RPGs. One could say the graphics are sub-par if compared to, say, Phantasy Star IV (the whole game actually feels like a rushed, budget version of Phantasy Star IV; which goes to show just how much more awesome PSIV could have been on the Sega CD). It sure does have its funny moments (which reminds me, my tolerance for comedy in RPGs is fast-dwindling ). Overall, a very enjoyable game.

[Melf]

You're a better man than I am. I only got to the last dungeon and couldn't take the absurd encounter rate anymore.

#8.

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I just wanted to try it out, but there's a walkthrough, and the game isn't all that long. I ended up beating it in one sitting. To be fair, I basically did only what was necessary to finish, and there were a lot of conversations and animations that I didn't see. Overall, the game is great for Lum fans and boasts some of the best animation work on the Sega CD. I'll have a review up on Sega-16 in the next couple of weeks.

[goldenband]

14. Beach-Head (Atari 8-bit)

Played via emulation on the Dreamcast. I'd beaten difficulty level 1 a few weeks back, and sat down today and ran through levels 2-4 in about an hour.

Fun game! I would've loved it as a kid -- too bad I didn't have anything like it for the CoCo when I was growing up. It'd have been a great choice for a 1980s math class, since calculating the artillery distance on the fly gives you a huge advantage if you can do the mental math quickly.

I guess I'd give it about 7/10, since it's a well-balanced game with nice variety that's just a bit too short.

[QuickSciFi]

You're a better man than I am. I only got to the last dungeon and couldn't take the absurd encounter rate anymore.

That final dungeon on Draktyr (I think that's how the flying island is called) is the easiest part of the game. You start with the notion that you have to be careful, but there are multiple rooms that have a life pod tile thing that will instantly recover all your characters' HP and MP by stepping on them. You can move through that area with confidence (you can even safely choose to 'run', even if you get hit a couple of times; since there are a ton of 'life pods'). Then as you reach the final boss room, the enemies are all gone. You get a bunch of chests to open with extra goodies. Just use Sandor and Thyxall him with your magic characters. The final boss is one of the easiest bosses.

[MrMatthews]

16. Sakura Samurai (Nintendo 3DS): This was a download from the eShop, and it was probably the best $7 I've spent on the system so far. The game is, in essence, a very, very tiny action/RPG. If you stuck purely to progressing through the game and didn't fart around like I did, you could probably blow through it in about two hours. That would be a disservice to yourself and the game, though.

The combat is highly reminiscent of Punch-Out!!, in that you face-off with enemies, waiting for their tells that indicate what kind of attack they are going to use, then dodging out of the way and counter-attacking with your sword. It's a simple combat system, but very satisfying. Your character automatically upgrades his life-bar as your progress through the game, and you have the option to upgrade your sword multiple times. In towns you can play a number of mini-games for cash or prizes, and several bonus challenges are unlocked outside of the game as you work your way through the main campaign.

The art design is absolutely beautiful and the music is charming. Controls are spot-on and gameplay is simple enough to be intuitive while still nuanced enough to remain engaging all the way through the end.

I can't recommend this game enough to anyone with a 3DS. It's not a long game by any means, but it's very replayable and well-worth the asking price.

[InternalPrimate]

#6.



Alisia Dragoon is an awesome, awesome game. The ending was a bit poor, but overall this is an excellent action title with excellent visuals and gameplay. Game Arts at its finest.

#7.

cover_large.jpg

I downloaded this ages ago on the Wii VC and decided to go through it again in anticipation of the upcoming MW collection. I haven't played the MS one in years, so I don't know how better or worse it is, but I enjoyed the hell out of this one. Lots of secrets and bonuses that make you think, bosses that are cool and have challenging patterns, and a really awesome world in general make me sad that Sega left it off the set we're getting next month. This game has really aged quite well.

Love both games! It's sad that these types of games don't come out anymore.



I FINALLY finished Mass Effect 2. I finished all the loyalty missions (except for Legion's) several months ago, but wanted to fully explore everything else the game had to offer before taking on the Collectors. Of course, me being me, I began other games in the meantime, and let Mass Effect 2 sit to the side.

I loved Mass Effect 2. I didn't make it through the final dungeon unscathed, and I lost one very important member of my team. It stung seeing this character that I had grown so accustomed to die because of my actions. I contemplated loading up my previous save, but though "isn't this the whole point of the Mass Effect series?" Sure, I lost a good character, but my journey is unique because of that.

After finishing the game, I immediately booted up Mass Effect 3. Already impressed by how much better it looks than Mass Effect 2 (which was a gorgeous game itself). Looking forward to sinking my teeth not only into the single player, but the multiplayer as well.

In the meantime, I'll be finishing Resident Evil Revelations soon

[M4R14NO94]

Virtual Cameraman Vol. 3 (3DO)

Got to stage 3. I'm not sure if it counts as actually winning the game but I'm pretty sure that's it, plus I already did the same with both Vol. 1 way back when and Virtua Photo Studio, so what the hell!

[MrMatthews]

16b. Sakura Samurai (Nintendo 3DS): Beat this game again, this time on "expert" mode. I would love to see this game fleshed out as a full retail release. I'd pay $40 for it in a heartbeat.

[goldenband]

15. Legend of Wukong (Genesis)

Beat this today. I'm still mulling over what I think of the game, but I'd put it in the 6/10 range, and might crack 7/10 if I'm feeling generous (or sink to 5/10 if I were feeling stingy).

It has a lot of objective faults, most of which boil down to a lack of variety. But OTOH the game isn't annoying or cumbersome, and among RPGs that counts for a lot: I've played games that eventually start feeling like a total pain in the ass, and for the most part, this wasn't one of them. I like the chapter-based structure, too.

(Disappointing ending, though.)

[QuickSciFi]

^I recommend Defenders of Oasis on the Game Gear.

[goldenband]

Thanks for the recommendation -- I noticed your high praise, and put it on my mental list of Game Gear games to check out. I don't bust my GG out very often, but if I get an EverDrive for the system that may change!

[Melf]

#9.

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A digital "choose your own adventure game" with some instances of touch controls, you play as Shane during the lapse between when Rick got shot and he and Lori leave Atlanta. I liked the game a lot, but it's literally about 7 minutes long (it's free though, and requires Adobe Air to run). At least you can got back a few times and play it with different choices. I would have gladly paid for it had it been longer.

[M4R14NO94]

Lumines (PC)

Finished Classic Mode. I already did that back when I got the game a few weeks ago, but some fatal error erased all of that progress.