Remake or Continuation of Classics IV

ADVENTURE ISLAND
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It's another great edition of RCC. This week we're taking a look at a platformer which I first played in the arcades and then on my home console and now a days in my emulator: Adventure Island.

Now, I believe this game first made its appearance in the arcades but I remember seeing it on the NES more frequently. In any event, it was part of the big trend back then which was 'platformers.' Given the success of our beloved plumbers: Mario and his green attired brother (sidekick nobody), many games tried to capitalize on the success of a platformer and so the platforming cow kept giving and giving whilst companies kept milking and milking.

Pictured: the source of Chocolate Milk, nice and fresh!

Unlike the treatment of cows now-a-days (fuck you Activision), back then companies knew when enough milking was enough, but I digress. Adventure Island was what it said: an adventure...on an island. You took control of a leaf/hula skirt, shirtless, cap wearing dude whose feet were in constant motion. You didn't really get any 'plot' which was common with platformers at the time. You basically (as a gamer) knew that you had to from left to right and that was the idea. Plus the cover was like many NES covers: very demanding of your imagination and very good at sucking you into buying what 'seemed' as a great game...in this case it was.

Just look at it: you, on a dinosaur with a boomerang...with sea creatures, UFOs, volcanoes...I want this game!

Published by Hudson Soft, this game was indeed a fun filled adventure. Again, like many others of its time, its difficulty level wasn't for n00bs. Without access to the internet back then for tips, walkthroughs, or strategies there was nothing left to do but take the game like a man and just keep trying. As seen in the footage, the object of the game wast to get to the end of the level before the health meter ran out of juice which you could replenish along the way by eating the different fruits you came along. Your primary weapon was a hammer/rock thingamagig which could later be upgraded to shoot out more per throw. You also could stumble upon boomerangs which in my opinion were the better weapon.

You also had the chance to obtain a skateboard in some levels...yes, a skateboard on an island, NICE! With it you could move quicker obviously but as soon as you got hit or stumbled on one of the many rocks in your path (which could be destroyed w/upgraded hammers/boomerangs). It took practice but if you could master the skateboard you could practically ride it all the way through (like your mom).

And so, this first installment was so good (I presume) that they released a sequel for it on the Godly SNES.

Wow, now it's 'SUPER'...mine carts, tiki men chasing you, dragons, more boomerang...shit, I want this one too!

Once again, Hudson published this installment and in the arcades it was such a success...at least, the arcades I played it at, which was back in Home Country.

Me back in home country...break dancers aint got shit on me

I remember as a kid the amount of tokens the locals had to spend the first time a group of them played the game through entirely...it was a lot. However, once they saw all levels once, it was a matter of time before secret levels, lives and shortcuts were discovered. As far as the gameplay, I could play the game over and over. I'll admit that after beating it a couple of times, the levels seem 'short' but it's so much fun that it doesn't matter. The story, which this game did have unlike it's predecessor was your typical "rescue the damsel":



As you can see, the graphics for the time were nice and colorful, but in my opinion it was the music that really made the game great.










Yes, it was relevant to show the whole game in it's awesomeness and yes, our friend does get some luvin as any hero would...except for Link.

'nuff said

So in closing, Adventure Island is something that we or I, would like to see redone or continued. Now a days there's not that many platformers so it wouldn't have too much competition. Personally, I think we've gone into a trend where now a days it's all about shooters and iterations of same shit in new packages (fuck you again Activision). The game has so much random crazy things that result in an overall fun experience. As seen in gameplay vids above, the guy eats fruit to stay alive, and whilst skateboarding he wears protective gear...food, safe skating, what else do mothers want from a video game? Please mothers, don't answer that.

So yeah, this game gets my Chuck Norris Thumb of Approval!

Amigo's Review: Fat Princess

Ok, so here's my first video game/movie/what have you review...

Last Thursday, July 30th, 2009 the Playstation Network released the long awaited (by those of us 'informed' gamers) "Fat Princess." Seen at E3 and hyped for a good reception, this long awaited download can simply be described as: Fun, Addictive, Hilarious, Cheesy, Frustrating, and overall: "lol." Yes, I know 'lol' isn't really an adjective but in my opinion (which is the one that matters in this site), the term suits the game very well. So, let's get started.

Premise: Fat Princess is basically a simple "Capture the Flag" game but with twists...and you don't have to do any physical exercise which is a plus. Anyways, you're assigned to either the Blue team or the Red team (you can switch teams after each match if you so desire). As far as the scenarios/settings go, you can start off in a typical wooden area, a shipwrecked beach stage, a hot lava/volcanic stage, a rocky cliff stage, a simple meadows stage, or a deserty stage (I'm sure there are others but I can't recall them). Teams start opposite each other inside their castle walls. When you start, your avatar (which is customizeable) is guided (by you) to pick up any of the hats lying by their respective machine workshops:

Worker

This guy is the resource gatherer (wood and stone), he makes it possible to upgrade other characters' classes as well as the one who makes it possible for you to build your castle gates (or repair them), your catapult (which in some stages flings you right to the opposing castle), bridges (that only your team can cross), and ladders (used to get into enemy castle). He can later upgrade into a Pyro/Bomber who carries infinite bombs and useful when fully charged. (Fully Charged attacks are performed by holding/charging the square button).

Warrior

Your muscle and power land attacker. Warriors are quick, agile and very responsive to attacks/blocks. You begin with a warrior bearing shield and sword but later on you can upgrade them to a warrior that carries pike and shield. Though pikes deal more damage, they are slower and take longer to charge for a heavy attack.

Mage

Mages or Wizards as you may call them, are your 'mass control' units. When charged, they deal damage to opponents that are within their circle of reach. You begin with a fire mage who can later get upgraded to an Ice mage who is great in slowing down opponents, especially when escorting your troop(s) that are carrying the princes(sses).

Archer

Archers are obviously your long range unit (However, mages too can shoot long range though with weaker attacks). Archers have the longest reach and can later be upgraded to Gunmen who sport an old school musket that when fully charged for a heavy attack deals 3 shots at once in a "<" pattern to cover more area.

Priest

Priests are the healers in your team. They can either heal individually (great as a backup when leading an attack), or when fully charged they heal comrades within their reach circle. Later on they can be upgraded to what I call a 'Dark' priest who leeches health off the enemy individually or within his circle reach when fully charged.

The Princesses

These are the 'flags' of the game. You begin with the opposing princess in your castle cell/dungeon. To wint the game you need both princesses in your castle: one in the throne and one locked up. Whilst you upgrade your stations/classes andt try to infiltrate the enemy castle, you can have any team member grab a slice of cake and give it to the enemy princess who will down it with much hunger (like your mom). The more cake you feed her, the more difficult it will be for the opposing team to carry her fat ass over to their castle.

And that pretty much sums up the set up. As far as gameplay, it is extremely fun even with bots who are actually quite good, but overall games can last upwards of 30min-1hr unless it's set up to a certain time limit at which point the team with the most points wins. Here's a sample walkthrough:



As you saw, it can get quite gory, but in a fun way. Though you can do a single player 'campaign' it's best suited for online. There's no option for 2 player or co-op play but I doubt you need it. The game makes it so that it is essential for teammates to communicate as they play. You can't just rush in since the opposing castle doors are usually well defended and take a while to knock down. Also, it's important that not everyone chooses a non-worker class since without workers you can't upgrade and you can't repair. Along the way to the enemy castle are outposts/towers which can be captured by either team. Usually an unattended outpost will become your teams outpost if you stand by it and wait for the meter on the outpost to fill up in your team's color. Outposts can then be used as a place to hit enemies from or to heal if you sit on them long enough.

The game ends (as mentioned) when one team has both princesses. When a team gets the second princess and sets her (either on the throne or in the cell), a timer begins and if the timer ends with the princesses still in the castle, the game ends. Upon the game ending you can see scores of all players and even vote for what stage you want to play in next.

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Pros:
+Addictive online multiplayer: the more players the better, though bots are quite good
+Voice chat with teammates: best to help organize attacks
+Variety of classes
+Variety of stages
+HD visuals: game looks beautiful
+Audio: everything from the game sounds to the phrases said by the characters (enemy princess often says 'cakey please!' lol...or by the announcer/narrator. (in 1 game which our team lost, the announcer said "you got pwned" LoL)

Cons:
-Getting connected to online: online is fun but it takes several attempts (3-5) to find a game and it's not because there's no games out, it's just the server gets glitch (which Titan studios has already addressed will get patched up).
-Respawn counter sometimes gets delayed. (I've sometimes gotten knocked off cliffs and it takes a while to register my player's death).
-Occasional lag: you'll hit enemy players who will remain untouched and then kill you but then they die as your attacks catch up

Overall, the game is extremely fun. And for 15 USD, it's quite a purchase. The hype was sure worth the 'weight' and its cost is well worth it. As mentioned, the only main issue is joining an online game which gets frustrating after 5 attempts or more, but otherwise once you're in you can go at it for well over an hour (as with your mom).

This game gets 4.5 out of 5.0 of my mexican rocking beans