Official Site: http://projectmgame.com/en/
Source: Youtube Channel Project M
Super Smash Bros. Melee is really popular. It's actually super popular. It's so highly regarded by fans of the series that play competitively that Melee tournaments are still held over Brawl. Fans of the series wanted the fast, balanced and competitive play of Melee in Brawl but didn't get it. Thus, a group of modders banded together to start Project Melee (Project M) which is a mod of Super Smash Bros. Brawl that bring in elements from Super Smash Bros. Melee into Brawl while having a major overhaul on the game's mechanics, character balances, custom stages, and bringing back older characters such as Mewtwo.
To many Smash Bros. fans, Melee is king of the series and people were really hoping to get more of that in Brawl. Unfortunately, the game went in the opposite direction in hopes of making it more casual. The goal of Smash Bros. was to be a fun party game that anyone could enjoy. Through the strong community and fighting game enthusiast behind Super Smash Bros. Melee, the game became a much more competitive and serious game than what the developers had intended. With slower gameplay, tripping, and such in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, it was simply not viewed possible for competitive play. Despite that, people tried and realized that the characters have vast advantages over others when played competitively. Meta Knight never left the spot of the highest tier in the game since the game first came out and remains to be the top choice for competitive play.
With the team behind Project M, they wanted to break that balance barrier and create whole new possibilities with all the characters in the game so that there would be more variety in competitive play. One great example is Sonic the Hedgehog.
Source: Youtube Channel Project M
I was very excited to hear Sonic being added to Super Smash Bros. Brawl, but was very disappointed with how he played when I finally got the game. I didn't mind that he deals very little damage due to this advantage in speed, but a lot of his attacks have charged up time, a long recovery delay, and a dive kick that can't be canceled that leaves him open or sends him straight down to his death. Another problem is that he doesn't have many options for finishers. His Back-Air has a long start-up and his forward-smash is very short ranged. This makes both of them very situational and not very reliable. What Project M wanted to do with Sonic was shorten charge up times, shorten recovery delays, give him more options for smashes, and possibly fix priority shots because every character in the game seriously has priority over all his attacks.
The mod has been created so that you don't need a hacked/cracked Wii to play it. You just need a working Wii with Super Smash Bros. Brawl and an SD Card that doesn't exceed 2GB. Still, I don't feel very confident about modding over my original game and hope that there will be alternatives such as being able to use the disc and mod files on PC instead. But I understand that the team behind Project M wants to continue to support Nintendo and the those behind Brawl by preventing piracy, so that's commendable.
I've been playing Melee and Brawl again as I've missed the game very much and am very much excited for the new Super Smash Bros. that's in development at the moment. I'm just hoping to be able to play Project M until the release of the Wii U and 3DS Super Smash Bros. comes out. If you're done with Brawl and like what you see in Project M, click on the top link, go to Download and learn how to safely install the mod to your Nintendo Wii. Project M Version 3.0 comes out on December 9th, 2013.
Showing posts with label Fighting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fighting. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Monday, November 18, 2013
NewNews - Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate Arcade Announced for Japan
Official Site:
http://teamninja-studio.com/teamninja/doa5/ultimate/
Source: Youtube Channel KOEITECMOofficial
Namco Bandai has announced Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate Arcade, a version of the game specifically for arcades in Japan. With that, they added one new character to the 29 character roster: Marie Rose. She is absolutely adorable and is a practitioner or systema, a Russian martial art. From what is shown, she might be a grappler (grabs and reversal throws) of sorts. I don't like playing grapplers in fighting games, but she's so cute that I might not care! The problem at the moment is that no confirmation for Marie Rose being brought to the West or even consoles has been made. Team NINJA did leave a message on their Facebook page saying:
http://teamninja-studio.com/teamninja/doa5/ultimate/
Source: Youtube Channel KOEITECMOofficial
Namco Bandai has announced Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate Arcade, a version of the game specifically for arcades in Japan. With that, they added one new character to the 29 character roster: Marie Rose. She is absolutely adorable and is a practitioner or systema, a Russian martial art. From what is shown, she might be a grappler (grabs and reversal throws) of sorts. I don't like playing grapplers in fighting games, but she's so cute that I might not care! The problem at the moment is that no confirmation for Marie Rose being brought to the West or even consoles has been made. Team NINJA did leave a message on their Facebook page saying:
"Fighters! We see that you’ve discovered our newest character, Marie Rose for the upcoming Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate Arcade. Although this game is a JP exclusive title, we haven’t forgotten about our overseas fighters in the World."
So there's a chance Marie Rose will be released on consoles in the West as a DLC. I really do not like DLCs, but I'll seriously consider it if it's for this one character. Japan will be getting DoA5U Arcade sometime this Winter with the addition of Marie Rose.
Sources:
-Shoryuken - Team NINJA Hints at Possible Console Release for Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate Arcade’s Marie Rose
-Dead or Alive Wiki - Systema
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
GameLight - Chaos Code
Official Site: http://www.fkdigital.net/chaoscodeps3en/
Source: Youtube Channel PlayStationAsia
Another overseas fighting game has made its way to North America as a downloadable game on PSN. Chaos Code is a 4-button 2D Fighter with a lot of modern mechanics such as air-dashing, double-jumps, invincible frame dodges, specials, grabs, and cancels. If I were to compare it to any fighting game, I'd say it's closest to The King of Fighters series with a bit of Melty Blood. I'm not sure what to think of the game by looking at it, but it is $11.99 so I might try it out. Honestly, I think Phantom Breaker looks a bit more interesting, but no release date for that game has been made yet for North America. Chaos Code is available for download at $11.99 on the Playstation Network for the Playstation 3. Keep in mind that the game doesn't have online play at the moment, but will possibly feature it in the future as the developers patch it in.
Source:
-Shoryuken - Chaos Code Now Available on PlayStation Network in North America
Source: Youtube Channel PlayStationAsia
Another overseas fighting game has made its way to North America as a downloadable game on PSN. Chaos Code is a 4-button 2D Fighter with a lot of modern mechanics such as air-dashing, double-jumps, invincible frame dodges, specials, grabs, and cancels. If I were to compare it to any fighting game, I'd say it's closest to The King of Fighters series with a bit of Melty Blood. I'm not sure what to think of the game by looking at it, but it is $11.99 so I might try it out. Honestly, I think Phantom Breaker looks a bit more interesting, but no release date for that game has been made yet for North America. Chaos Code is available for download at $11.99 on the Playstation Network for the Playstation 3. Keep in mind that the game doesn't have online play at the moment, but will possibly feature it in the future as the developers patch it in.
Source:
-Shoryuken - Chaos Code Now Available on PlayStation Network in North America
Friday, August 23, 2013
NewNews - Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition for $8
Site: GreenManGaming - Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition (Steam required)
Source: Youtube Channel Machinima
The trailer is of the console version of the Komplete Edition
It's been barely 2 months and GreenManGaming has already offered us an awesome deal of $8.16 for Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition on PC (Steam) from its retail price of $29.99. To do this:
-Click the top link and click "Buy Now"
-Go to check out and log-in/Make a new account
-Enter "GMG20-KCDKK-H4TPB" into the voucher box to get the price $8.16
-Pay for the game through your desired method
-Copy and Paste the code into your Steam account and download the game
If you haven't activated a game in steam before, it's really easy:
-Click the "Games" Tab on your Steam client
-Click "Activate a Product on Steam..."
-Click "Next", Agree to the Steam Subscriber Agreement, and enter the code
-Click "Next", download the game, and then start playing
Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition is the newest Mortal Kombat in its series and has really changed a lot of how combat mechanics work with a much more technical and competitive concept than its previous button-mashing predecessors. Along with the base game is every DLC they've ever released implemented into the game already. Although Mortal Kombat has gone through many iterations and spin-offs, it's still an ultra-violent fighter that fans can enjoy.
Personally, I didn't have much interest in Mortal Kombat (9) at first when it was on consoles as my PS3 has very limited space and fighting games took up a lot of Hard drive space. Also, I guess it's just that I've played so much Mortal Kombat in the past that I kind of got bored of it. Then I got to try it once at a friend's house and was surprised by how the game played compared to past iterations. Because of this, I wanted to give the game a try and decided to do just that when a Komplete Edition was announced for the PC. I heard there was a story mode, and hopefully they have more modes to keep me busy on this game. If they bring Injustice over to PC and give us an awesome deal like this one today, I'll give that game a chance too.
Source: Youtube Channel Machinima
The trailer is of the console version of the Komplete Edition
It's been barely 2 months and GreenManGaming has already offered us an awesome deal of $8.16 for Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition on PC (Steam) from its retail price of $29.99. To do this:
-Click the top link and click "Buy Now"
-Go to check out and log-in/Make a new account
-Enter "GMG20-KCDKK-H4TPB" into the voucher box to get the price $8.16
-Pay for the game through your desired method
-Copy and Paste the code into your Steam account and download the game
If you haven't activated a game in steam before, it's really easy:
-Click the "Games" Tab on your Steam client
-Click "Activate a Product on Steam..."
-Click "Next", Agree to the Steam Subscriber Agreement, and enter the code
-Click "Next", download the game, and then start playing
Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition is the newest Mortal Kombat in its series and has really changed a lot of how combat mechanics work with a much more technical and competitive concept than its previous button-mashing predecessors. Along with the base game is every DLC they've ever released implemented into the game already. Although Mortal Kombat has gone through many iterations and spin-offs, it's still an ultra-violent fighter that fans can enjoy.
Personally, I didn't have much interest in Mortal Kombat (9) at first when it was on consoles as my PS3 has very limited space and fighting games took up a lot of Hard drive space. Also, I guess it's just that I've played so much Mortal Kombat in the past that I kind of got bored of it. Then I got to try it once at a friend's house and was surprised by how the game played compared to past iterations. Because of this, I wanted to give the game a try and decided to do just that when a Komplete Edition was announced for the PC. I heard there was a story mode, and hopefully they have more modes to keep me busy on this game. If they bring Injustice over to PC and give us an awesome deal like this one today, I'll give that game a chance too.
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
GameLight - Skullgirls on Steam
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/245170/
Source: Youtube Channel margherita0141
Skullgirls is an indie developed fighting game that has received really good responses from the fighting game community with its release on consoles last year. It took a bit of time and money for the team to do it, but Skullgirls is about to finally release on PC/Steam. Pre-purchases went up a few days ago and those that grab it now will get beta access as well as a color palette DLC pack. Now I generally don't care about color palette for characters in fighting games, but I was convinced to get the game and started playing the game and noticed some interesting color combinations. Apparently, there are a LOT of references of other characters from comic, games, and animé in the color palette for the fighters. Seen in the video up above is a list of referenced characters from X-Men, Madoka, The King of Fighters, Guilty Gear, and many others. It's a really cool color palette option and one I'm glad I got.
As far as the game goes, I am impressed by it so far. Controls are tight, animation is fluid, and combo mechanics flow naturally from one attack to another. Along with that is an in-depth and comprehensive tutorial that explains and teaches all the fundamentals of a fighting game as well the game specific mechanics within Skullgirls. In that sense, beginners to fighting games can learn all the most basic concepts of fighting games such as poking, blocking, countering, and performing combos. The game currently has 9 characters and we can hope to get more in the future as the game's popularity grows.
To note right now, Beta access opens up Arcade mode, Training, and Versus local. Story and online mode is disabled for now as the game finishes beta and officially launches on August 22. I heard that the story is actually pretty decent for the game, so I'm looking forward to playing that. Skullgirls can be pre-ordered on Steam for $14.99 and will launch on August 22.
Source: Youtube Channel margherita0141
Skullgirls is an indie developed fighting game that has received really good responses from the fighting game community with its release on consoles last year. It took a bit of time and money for the team to do it, but Skullgirls is about to finally release on PC/Steam. Pre-purchases went up a few days ago and those that grab it now will get beta access as well as a color palette DLC pack. Now I generally don't care about color palette for characters in fighting games, but I was convinced to get the game and started playing the game and noticed some interesting color combinations. Apparently, there are a LOT of references of other characters from comic, games, and animé in the color palette for the fighters. Seen in the video up above is a list of referenced characters from X-Men, Madoka, The King of Fighters, Guilty Gear, and many others. It's a really cool color palette option and one I'm glad I got.
As far as the game goes, I am impressed by it so far. Controls are tight, animation is fluid, and combo mechanics flow naturally from one attack to another. Along with that is an in-depth and comprehensive tutorial that explains and teaches all the fundamentals of a fighting game as well the game specific mechanics within Skullgirls. In that sense, beginners to fighting games can learn all the most basic concepts of fighting games such as poking, blocking, countering, and performing combos. The game currently has 9 characters and we can hope to get more in the future as the game's popularity grows.
To note right now, Beta access opens up Arcade mode, Training, and Versus local. Story and online mode is disabled for now as the game finishes beta and officially launches on August 22. I heard that the story is actually pretty decent for the game, so I'm looking forward to playing that. Skullgirls can be pre-ordered on Steam for $14.99 and will launch on August 22.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
GameLight - J-Stars Victory Vs
JP Site: http://www.bandaigames.channel.or.jp/list/jump45/pc/index2.html
Source: Youtube Channel nbgi
Another Jump Super Star game is about to release and the Western market is probably not going to get it again! Yay.....Still, it's pretty cool to watch the teaser for it and see what they're doing for this game. Instead of being released on a Nintendo portable (first two were released on NDS), the newest Jump Super Star game is going to be released on the Sony PS3 and PS Vita. Rather than looking like Super Smash Bros. like they have in the past, the game is looking more like Street Fighter, or rather more of a traditional Fighter. But the video doesn't accurately portray the actual gameplay, so I'm not exactly sure how exactly the game mechanics will be. I was able to play the first two games because NDS didn't have region lock, but I don't think I'll get the chance to play the newest Jump Super Star anytime soon. The game is set to release sometime this year.
Source: Youtube Channel nbgi
Another Jump Super Star game is about to release and the Western market is probably not going to get it again! Yay.....Still, it's pretty cool to watch the teaser for it and see what they're doing for this game. Instead of being released on a Nintendo portable (first two were released on NDS), the newest Jump Super Star game is going to be released on the Sony PS3 and PS Vita. Rather than looking like Super Smash Bros. like they have in the past, the game is looking more like Street Fighter, or rather more of a traditional Fighter. But the video doesn't accurately portray the actual gameplay, so I'm not exactly sure how exactly the game mechanics will be. I was able to play the first two games because NDS didn't have region lock, but I don't think I'll get the chance to play the newest Jump Super Star anytime soon. The game is set to release sometime this year.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
GameLight - Divekick
Official Site: http://divekick.com/
Greenlight: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=132842911
Source: Youtube Channel gamespot
Mentioned two weeks ago, Divekick was played at EVO 2013 this year and has been greenlit on Steam to be released soon. Divekick is a crazy, two-button, 2D-Fighter where players try to Divekick their opponent to win the round. The game looks ridiculous and I think that's part of the charm to why it's talked about so much. There's a lot of jumping and dive kicking and it seems kind of bland in that sense. But what the developers want to capture in this game is the feeling players get in fighting games when both players are down to the last hit and desperately try to get that last hit in there. So when it comes down to it, it's all a mind game. Trying to lure your opponent into attacking with your own jumps and kicks while keeping safe and looking for openings and mistakes that your opponent makes is a fundamental in a lot of fighting games when trying to bait and punish, and that's all that Divekick is about. The developers also wanted to provide a fighting game without complex mechanics that players would have to practice religiously for just to be able to compete. So what's left is a comprehensible fighting game that any and all players are capable of playing.
I didn't think too much of the game after watching a few gameplay videos, but watching it in action at EVO and seeing how there's 14 characters with a story mode has attracted me. Story in fighting games has always been a nice addition that I enjoy, even if it's a short cut-scene presented at the end of an arcade mode as I generally don't play competitively. I look forward to Divekick and hope others will be able to enjoy it too.
Greenlight: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=132842911
Source: Youtube Channel gamespot
Mentioned two weeks ago, Divekick was played at EVO 2013 this year and has been greenlit on Steam to be released soon. Divekick is a crazy, two-button, 2D-Fighter where players try to Divekick their opponent to win the round. The game looks ridiculous and I think that's part of the charm to why it's talked about so much. There's a lot of jumping and dive kicking and it seems kind of bland in that sense. But what the developers want to capture in this game is the feeling players get in fighting games when both players are down to the last hit and desperately try to get that last hit in there. So when it comes down to it, it's all a mind game. Trying to lure your opponent into attacking with your own jumps and kicks while keeping safe and looking for openings and mistakes that your opponent makes is a fundamental in a lot of fighting games when trying to bait and punish, and that's all that Divekick is about. The developers also wanted to provide a fighting game without complex mechanics that players would have to practice religiously for just to be able to compete. So what's left is a comprehensible fighting game that any and all players are capable of playing.
I didn't think too much of the game after watching a few gameplay videos, but watching it in action at EVO and seeing how there's 14 characters with a story mode has attracted me. Story in fighting games has always been a nice addition that I enjoy, even if it's a short cut-scene presented at the end of an arcade mode as I generally don't play competitively. I look forward to Divekick and hope others will be able to enjoy it too.
Monday, July 15, 2013
VGCulture - Fighting Game Terminology
Reference Site: Wiktionary - Glossary of Fighting Games
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
This was an awesome weekend of watching EVO 2013 through Twitch TV. One of my favorite matches was uploaded today by IGN with Justin Wong vs. Chris G on Marvel vs. Capcom 3. There was emotion, excitement and hype, but there were also a lot of words I didn't understand. I'm not a hardcore fighting game fan, but I do love fighting games so I'll understand typical terms like DP = Dragon Punch = Forward-down-forward punch attack or a "Combo". But when I started words like "vortex" or "punish", I wasn't sure what they meant exactly though I had an idea. Luckily for me, there is a whole page worth of terms used often in fighting games that's linked above. You don't have to understand all the terminology or know all the advanced techniques of a fighting game to enjoy watching pros go at it, but it does give you a deeper sense of appreciation for every little thing that happens within a match. Although, watching pros play and not knowing a lot of the advanced techniques makes it that much more amazing and exciting to watch. I remember the first time I started learning about how pros played Super Smash Bros. Melee and realized the plethora of strategies and abilities that characters could utilize in the game. It was like opening a whole new part of the game up for me to see and understand. I'm not a hardcore fighting game fan or player and I don't plan to become pro, but I think learning something as simple as the terminology used in commentary and analyzing a match in a fighting game would help me appreciate the game, the players, and the community that much more. If you didn't watch EVO through the streams this weekend and you're a fighting game fan, look up some of the matches online because they were really good this year. For non-fighting game fans, look up matches for Super Smash Bros. Melee or Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as those are most flashiest and mesmerizing games to watch.
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
This was an awesome weekend of watching EVO 2013 through Twitch TV. One of my favorite matches was uploaded today by IGN with Justin Wong vs. Chris G on Marvel vs. Capcom 3. There was emotion, excitement and hype, but there were also a lot of words I didn't understand. I'm not a hardcore fighting game fan, but I do love fighting games so I'll understand typical terms like DP = Dragon Punch = Forward-down-forward punch attack or a "Combo". But when I started words like "vortex" or "punish", I wasn't sure what they meant exactly though I had an idea. Luckily for me, there is a whole page worth of terms used often in fighting games that's linked above. You don't have to understand all the terminology or know all the advanced techniques of a fighting game to enjoy watching pros go at it, but it does give you a deeper sense of appreciation for every little thing that happens within a match. Although, watching pros play and not knowing a lot of the advanced techniques makes it that much more amazing and exciting to watch. I remember the first time I started learning about how pros played Super Smash Bros. Melee and realized the plethora of strategies and abilities that characters could utilize in the game. It was like opening a whole new part of the game up for me to see and understand. I'm not a hardcore fighting game fan or player and I don't plan to become pro, but I think learning something as simple as the terminology used in commentary and analyzing a match in a fighting game would help me appreciate the game, the players, and the community that much more. If you didn't watch EVO through the streams this weekend and you're a fighting game fan, look up some of the matches online because they were really good this year. For non-fighting game fans, look up matches for Super Smash Bros. Melee or Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as those are most flashiest and mesmerizing games to watch.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
GameLight - Yatagarasu Attack on Cataclysm
IndieGoGo Campaign: Yatagarasu Attack on Cataclysm
Source: Youtube Channel NyuMedia
Yatagarasu is an indie fighting game developed by 3 former SNK / King of Fighter Staff members and has launched a funding campaign to continue working on expanding the game. The original was set to launch on the 3DS eShop and PC, but it seems the team wants to go one step further and add new characters, update the game with new commentary, improve the graphics, and localize it in English for the rest of the world to enjoy on PC by Nyu Media. I'm still not very convinced by the game's trailer just yet, but I do like the character designs and I would like more fighting games on PC. The problem I have with Nyu Media right now is that the games they localize take a very long time to get onto Steam. The game is available in Japanese Arcades only as far as I know, but is set to launch on PC for $15 when Attack on Cataclysm is done. Their goal date is February 2014, but projects like these may take more time than that. They are currently asking for $68,000 in funding and have made $2800+ so far with 45 days left. I wish them the best of luck and look forward to seeing what they have in store for us.
Source: Youtube Channel NyuMedia
Yatagarasu is an indie fighting game developed by 3 former SNK / King of Fighter Staff members and has launched a funding campaign to continue working on expanding the game. The original was set to launch on the 3DS eShop and PC, but it seems the team wants to go one step further and add new characters, update the game with new commentary, improve the graphics, and localize it in English for the rest of the world to enjoy on PC by Nyu Media. I'm still not very convinced by the game's trailer just yet, but I do like the character designs and I would like more fighting games on PC. The problem I have with Nyu Media right now is that the games they localize take a very long time to get onto Steam. The game is available in Japanese Arcades only as far as I know, but is set to launch on PC for $15 when Attack on Cataclysm is done. Their goal date is February 2014, but projects like these may take more time than that. They are currently asking for $68,000 in funding and have made $2800+ so far with 45 days left. I wish them the best of luck and look forward to seeing what they have in store for us.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
NewNews - Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition for PC
Official Site: http://www.themortalkombat.com/
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
Mortal Kombat 9 was released for consoles 2 years ago and has since then accumulated a number of DLCs. The Komplete Edition of Mortal Kombat was released for consoles and now has been confirmed to have a port of it for PC. I've never been a huge fan of Mortal Kombat, but I did enjoy playing it whenever I got the chance. Seeing how my PS3 suffers from lack of Hard Drive space due to all the fighting games I have installed on it. So I skipped out on purchasing Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition despite it being at an incredible price of $14.99 on Amazon. But now that it's coming out on PC, I might consider getting it for my computer since I have over 12x the space that my PS3's hard drive does. My PC is also lacking in fighting games lately considering how much I played in college. I just hope it doesn't require going through Games for Windows Live or Origin. It'd be nice if it was available for Steam and just goes through that. Also, I'm still waiting for Skullgirls to get on PC.
Source:
-Joystiq - Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition konfirmed for PC in July
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
Mortal Kombat 9 was released for consoles 2 years ago and has since then accumulated a number of DLCs. The Komplete Edition of Mortal Kombat was released for consoles and now has been confirmed to have a port of it for PC. I've never been a huge fan of Mortal Kombat, but I did enjoy playing it whenever I got the chance. Seeing how my PS3 suffers from lack of Hard Drive space due to all the fighting games I have installed on it. So I skipped out on purchasing Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition despite it being at an incredible price of $14.99 on Amazon. But now that it's coming out on PC, I might consider getting it for my computer since I have over 12x the space that my PS3's hard drive does. My PC is also lacking in fighting games lately considering how much I played in college. I just hope it doesn't require going through Games for Windows Live or Origin. It'd be nice if it was available for Steam and just goes through that. Also, I'm still waiting for Skullgirls to get on PC.
Source:
-Joystiq - Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition konfirmed for PC in July
Monday, May 20, 2013
NewNews - Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- gets announced
YT Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/arcsystemworks
Source: Top Link
I knew another Guilty Gear game was in the making, but I wasn't sure what to expect. This little trailer took me by surprise when it revealed that the new Guilty Gear will be featuring 3D models utilizing the Unreal Engine rather than 2D hand-drawn sprites. I have to say that it looks incredible in that it's clean looking and still has the smooth animations of a 2D fighter. I am elated to hear Daisuke Ishiwatari taking the position of the Director once again and continuing a great series I thought would be lost forever (lost rights to Guilty Gear but eventually bought it back). Guilty Gear was a game I avoided when it first came out because it looked so dark. What got me into the series was listening to Dizzy's Theme "Awe of She" and instantly falling in love with the music for the game. I eventually tried out the game and really liked the mechanics of air-dashing, combos, and unique specials for characters and became a fan of the series. I am very impressed with the trailer and am looking forward to the release of the newest installment in the Guilty Gear series.
Source: Top Link
I knew another Guilty Gear game was in the making, but I wasn't sure what to expect. This little trailer took me by surprise when it revealed that the new Guilty Gear will be featuring 3D models utilizing the Unreal Engine rather than 2D hand-drawn sprites. I have to say that it looks incredible in that it's clean looking and still has the smooth animations of a 2D fighter. I am elated to hear Daisuke Ishiwatari taking the position of the Director once again and continuing a great series I thought would be lost forever (lost rights to Guilty Gear but eventually bought it back). Guilty Gear was a game I avoided when it first came out because it looked so dark. What got me into the series was listening to Dizzy's Theme "Awe of She" and instantly falling in love with the music for the game. I eventually tried out the game and really liked the mechanics of air-dashing, combos, and unique specials for characters and became a fan of the series. I am very impressed with the trailer and am looking forward to the release of the newest installment in the Guilty Gear series.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
GameLight - Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate
Official Site: http://teamninja-studio.com/doa5/us/top.html
Source: Youtube Channel GamesHQMedia
I never did pick up Dead or Alive 5 when it released. I was really happy that it came out for the PS3 and was going to buy it, but I had built up such a large backlog on my PS3 that I decided to cool it with buying games for it until I clear some of the backlog up first. In the past month, I've been eying Dead or Alive 5 on Amazon for $20 but kept resisting. Then just these past 2 weeks, it was revealed that Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate (PS Vita version) was going to be released on consoles as well. This means more levels, more modes, more characters, and more content with the possibility of a $40 price tag. A trailer was released on Gametrailers today (but I couldn't find the embed so I grabbed another alternate on YT) and it shows the arrival of Momiji from the Ninja Gaiden series. It won't be released until Fall, so I guess I'll do a bit more waiting before picking up the game. Hopefully I'll have finished some games before then.
Source: Youtube Channel GamesHQMedia
I never did pick up Dead or Alive 5 when it released. I was really happy that it came out for the PS3 and was going to buy it, but I had built up such a large backlog on my PS3 that I decided to cool it with buying games for it until I clear some of the backlog up first. In the past month, I've been eying Dead or Alive 5 on Amazon for $20 but kept resisting. Then just these past 2 weeks, it was revealed that Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate (PS Vita version) was going to be released on consoles as well. This means more levels, more modes, more characters, and more content with the possibility of a $40 price tag. A trailer was released on Gametrailers today (but I couldn't find the embed so I grabbed another alternate on YT) and it shows the arrival of Momiji from the Ninja Gaiden series. It won't be released until Fall, so I guess I'll do a bit more waiting before picking up the game. Hopefully I'll have finished some games before then.
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
NewNews - PC Players Get SFxT DLC Characters
Official Site: http://www.streetfighter.com/us/sfxtk
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/7178/
Source: Youtube Channel CommunityGame
I bought Street Fighter x Tekken on Steam about 2 months ago thinking that I would never get to see the 12 additional characters on it not to mention the PS3 exclusive characters. To my surprise, I saw a special deal on Steam today that just happened to be just that. The 12 DLC characters that has long since been out for consoles and PS Vita has finally made it out on PC without any warning from the media as far as I know. To make this even better, the DLC pack is 75% off for only $5 from now until February 20th. There probably aren't a lot of players for PC, but I had bought the game mainly to play single-player and to play locally with friends so the deal I got for the game and the DLC characters is still cheaper than paying for the original game on console. I just have to deal with Games for Windows Live. As for the additional Characters, here's the roster:
Street Fighter:
Sakura
Blanka
Guy
Cody
Elena
Dudley
Tekken:
Lars
Alisa
JACK-X
Bryan
Christie
Lei
I haven't touched Street Fighter x Tekken for a month now. I think this is a good time to play it again.
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/7178/
Source: Youtube Channel CommunityGame
I bought Street Fighter x Tekken on Steam about 2 months ago thinking that I would never get to see the 12 additional characters on it not to mention the PS3 exclusive characters. To my surprise, I saw a special deal on Steam today that just happened to be just that. The 12 DLC characters that has long since been out for consoles and PS Vita has finally made it out on PC without any warning from the media as far as I know. To make this even better, the DLC pack is 75% off for only $5 from now until February 20th. There probably aren't a lot of players for PC, but I had bought the game mainly to play single-player and to play locally with friends so the deal I got for the game and the DLC characters is still cheaper than paying for the original game on console. I just have to deal with Games for Windows Live. As for the additional Characters, here's the roster:
Street Fighter:
Sakura
Blanka
Guy
Cody
Elena
Dudley
Tekken:
Lars
Alisa
JACK-X
Bryan
Christie
Lei
I haven't touched Street Fighter x Tekken for a month now. I think this is a good time to play it again.
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
GameLight Review - Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3
Official Site: http://www.marvelvscapcom3.com/us
Source: Youtube Channel Acrofan
Developer: Capcom, Eighting
Publisher: Capcom
Platforms: [Playstation 3], Xbox 360 / PS Vita
Release Date: November 15, 2011 / February 15, 2012
Genre: Fighting
Pros:
+ A massive roster of 48 characters + 2 DLC characters
+ 12 new characters from the original MvC 3
+ Heroes and Heralds mode changes up the game a bit
+ Heroes and Heralds mode has over 100 cards to collect to use in battle
+ Character balances have been made
+ You can play Galactus in one of the modes
+ It's better released as a standalone rather than a bunch of DLCs
Cons:
- No new levels, only new characters
- No new endings like Super Street Fighter IV had for Street Fighter IV
- Was released in the same year as the original
- The 2 DLC characters are still locked and must be bought
- Doesn't carry anything over from the original game
Recommended: Absolutely, this is what Marvel vs. Capcom 3 should've been like when it first launched.
I was disgusted when I heard that "Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3" was coming out when I had bought the original just a few months prior to its announcement. What eventually won me over was the announcement of Phoenix Wright being added to the roster. Some character balances were made to the game, but other than the 12 extra characters and new mode, there isn't anything else added that makes it that different from the original. Putting that aside, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is the definitive version of the game and offers much to the casual and hardcore fighting game fan. The free DLC Heroes and Heralds mode allows both single-player and online multiplayer options for a unique take on the game where cards can be collected and give different advantages to the player. The game is very fast-paced and incredibly enjoyable with all sorts of team compositions the player can put together. There might not be as much single-player content as other fighting games, but there is much to offer when playing against a friend.
Aesthetics
Art Style: 3D graphics played like a 2D fighter
+ Despite being 3D, animations are still fast and fluid
+ Great conversion from 2D to 3D on a lot of the new characters
+ The animations and effects relative to the cards in HaH are really cool
+ Still easy to distinguish things on screen despite things flying everywhere
+ A clean, sleek, and comprehensible user-interface
+ Music for the new characters are great
Aesthetics: 10/10
Buttons
Controller: PS3 controller or Fightstick
+ The new characters still have the basic moves so it's easy to pick up
+ Some characters play and control style is very different offering variety
+ Controls are tight, fast, and responsive
+ If played using a PS Vita, shortcuts can be used
+ Much like other 2D fighting games, there's a challenge mode to teach combos
Buttons: 10/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Reduce the life bar down to zero on all 3 opponents each match
+ Arcade mode has new endings for the new characters
+ 12 additional characters have been added to the roster totaling 48 characters
+ Heroes and Heralds mode was added
+ Certain characters offer a very different play style from most
+ In addition to team combinations, HaH mode offers different ability combos too
- No new levels corresponding to the new character
- Original characters have no new endings
- The 2 DLC characters are still locked and must be paid as DLCs
- Information from the original game doesn't carry over
Concept and Content: 6/10
Duration
+ The 12 new characters offers new endings in Arcade mode
+ There will always be 7 stages in Arcade mode, not too short or long
+ Heroes and Heralds mode is the best single-player option for the game right now
+ Replay value mostly relies on Offline/Online versus mode, but has a lot to offer
- You can't move anything when the game is saving or loading
- Lots of saving and loading in-between menus, especially in HaH mode
- Other than HaH, Arcade, and Challenge, there isn't much to offer for solo play
Duration: 6/10
Fun
+ I was really happy with the new characters, especially Phoenix Wright
+ Heroes and Heralds is a fun concept with replay value
+ The 12 additional character definitely offers more variety in team composition
+ I like the new and arranged songs for the new characters
- I'm still not very happy about spending $100 all on the same year for the game
- Nothing carried over from what I did in the original in terms of save files
Fun: 7/10
Overall
There is no doubt that Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 is a fun game and a solid fighter, but as an expansion it did a lot to hurt those who bought the original earlier in the year. Had I known (and for many others) that an Ultimate version was going to come out, I wouldn't have bought the original at all and waited just a little longer. Because of this incident, it has prevented many fans of Capcom to with hold their decision to get Street Fighter x Tekken in anticipation for a more definitive version as Capcom had announced prior to its release that there were still 10 characters on its way. For those who didn't buy the original MvC3, UMvC3 is a great fighter to play with friends over or to play against others online. It doesn't offer that much in terms of solo play, but versus can be a lot of fun with other people because of the many combinations that can be created. In the end, I would definitely still recommend this game to any fighting game fan. Overall: 7.8/10
Source: Youtube Channel Acrofan
Developer: Capcom, Eighting
Publisher: Capcom
Platforms: [Playstation 3], Xbox 360 / PS Vita
Release Date: November 15, 2011 / February 15, 2012
Genre: Fighting
Pros:
+ A massive roster of 48 characters + 2 DLC characters
+ 12 new characters from the original MvC 3
+ Heroes and Heralds mode changes up the game a bit
+ Heroes and Heralds mode has over 100 cards to collect to use in battle
+ Character balances have been made
+ You can play Galactus in one of the modes
+ It's better released as a standalone rather than a bunch of DLCs
Cons:
- No new levels, only new characters
- No new endings like Super Street Fighter IV had for Street Fighter IV
- Was released in the same year as the original
- The 2 DLC characters are still locked and must be bought
- Doesn't carry anything over from the original game
Recommended: Absolutely, this is what Marvel vs. Capcom 3 should've been like when it first launched.
I was disgusted when I heard that "Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3" was coming out when I had bought the original just a few months prior to its announcement. What eventually won me over was the announcement of Phoenix Wright being added to the roster. Some character balances were made to the game, but other than the 12 extra characters and new mode, there isn't anything else added that makes it that different from the original. Putting that aside, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is the definitive version of the game and offers much to the casual and hardcore fighting game fan. The free DLC Heroes and Heralds mode allows both single-player and online multiplayer options for a unique take on the game where cards can be collected and give different advantages to the player. The game is very fast-paced and incredibly enjoyable with all sorts of team compositions the player can put together. There might not be as much single-player content as other fighting games, but there is much to offer when playing against a friend.
Aesthetics
Art Style: 3D graphics played like a 2D fighter
+ Despite being 3D, animations are still fast and fluid
+ Great conversion from 2D to 3D on a lot of the new characters
+ The animations and effects relative to the cards in HaH are really cool
+ Still easy to distinguish things on screen despite things flying everywhere
+ A clean, sleek, and comprehensible user-interface
+ Music for the new characters are great
Aesthetics: 10/10
Buttons
Controller: PS3 controller or Fightstick
+ The new characters still have the basic moves so it's easy to pick up
+ Some characters play and control style is very different offering variety
+ Controls are tight, fast, and responsive
+ If played using a PS Vita, shortcuts can be used
+ Much like other 2D fighting games, there's a challenge mode to teach combos
Buttons: 10/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Reduce the life bar down to zero on all 3 opponents each match
+ Arcade mode has new endings for the new characters
+ 12 additional characters have been added to the roster totaling 48 characters
+ Heroes and Heralds mode was added
+ Certain characters offer a very different play style from most
+ In addition to team combinations, HaH mode offers different ability combos too
- No new levels corresponding to the new character
- Original characters have no new endings
- The 2 DLC characters are still locked and must be paid as DLCs
- Information from the original game doesn't carry over
Concept and Content: 6/10
Duration
+ The 12 new characters offers new endings in Arcade mode
+ There will always be 7 stages in Arcade mode, not too short or long
+ Heroes and Heralds mode is the best single-player option for the game right now
+ Replay value mostly relies on Offline/Online versus mode, but has a lot to offer
- You can't move anything when the game is saving or loading
- Lots of saving and loading in-between menus, especially in HaH mode
- Other than HaH, Arcade, and Challenge, there isn't much to offer for solo play
Duration: 6/10
Fun
+ I was really happy with the new characters, especially Phoenix Wright
+ Heroes and Heralds is a fun concept with replay value
+ The 12 additional character definitely offers more variety in team composition
+ I like the new and arranged songs for the new characters
- I'm still not very happy about spending $100 all on the same year for the game
- Nothing carried over from what I did in the original in terms of save files
Fun: 7/10
Overall
There is no doubt that Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 is a fun game and a solid fighter, but as an expansion it did a lot to hurt those who bought the original earlier in the year. Had I known (and for many others) that an Ultimate version was going to come out, I wouldn't have bought the original at all and waited just a little longer. Because of this incident, it has prevented many fans of Capcom to with hold their decision to get Street Fighter x Tekken in anticipation for a more definitive version as Capcom had announced prior to its release that there were still 10 characters on its way. For those who didn't buy the original MvC3, UMvC3 is a great fighter to play with friends over or to play against others online. It doesn't offer that much in terms of solo play, but versus can be a lot of fun with other people because of the many combinations that can be created. In the end, I would definitely still recommend this game to any fighting game fan. Overall: 7.8/10
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
GameLight Review - BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend
Official Site: http://us.playstation.com/games-and-media/games/blazblue-continuum-shift-extend-ps3.html
Source: Youtube Channel jourdal
Developer: Arc System Works
Publisher: Aksys Games
Platforms: [Playstation 3], Xbox 360
Release Date: February 14, 2012
Genre: Fighting
Pros:
+ Lots of unlockable content
+ Rebalanced characters and difficulty
+ "Almost" everything great about the series so far put together in one
+ Extra stories that delves deeper into the lore of BlazBlue
+ The addition of Relius Clover
+ Another mode added for those who like playing single-player
+ Optimized online gameplay
+ The in-game money and level system is great for single-player play
+ Abyss mode adds some light RPG elements great for single-player play
Cons:
- An expensive DLC for those who own the original and 3 of the DLC characters
- Legion mode is not present in this "supposed" definitive version of BlazBlue
- A lot of the English voice actors have been swapped out
- Public online community is pretty dead
- Honestly, it's only one extra characters
- Odd typos and weird dialogue problems in conversations
Recommended:
*Yes: If you've never bought any of the BlazBlue or you're a big fan
*No: If you've bought Continuum Shift with the 3 DLC characters
I was hesitant about purchasing Extend as it was mainly 4 new characters for me for $40 (it was 1 new character for those who paid for the 3 DLC characters before Extend released). But I got a really good sale discount, there were new modes, new story lines, new characters, and I really liked BlazBlue. I liked the addition of Abyss mode, which was ported from the handheld editions, and the currency/level system as it gave me an incentive to keep playing to unlock more content much like Calamity Trigger was like. I had never played the 3 DLC characters before, so it pleases me that all 3 turned out to be really fun to play. The exclusive Relius Clover for the Extend edition is okay, but I can understand why a lot of people who bought Continnum Shift and all the DLCs didn't want to buy an entire expansion just for him. The additional story arcs were great and quite moving on some of them. What I really didn't like that made me upset was that some of the voice actors were different. The main problem is that they're mixed in with the original voice actors so some attacks just sound so odd when it's a totally different voice. It was also saddening to hear it in Story mode as it no longer captures the essence and being of that character anymore as well as being inconsistent. There was also some very odd typos where words are misspelled, words didn't match what the voice was saying, and weird dialogue changes in the middle of a conversation where some characters suddenly have the Japanese voice actors speak and then go right back into English voices. This expansion seems rather rushed and unpolished in terms of content quality, but the core gameplay is still very solid and a lot of fun.
Aesthetics
Art Style: 2D Hand-drawn sprites with multi-layer hand-drawn backgrounds
+ Slight changes to UI, certain animations, and graphics to make it smoother
+ New content in gallery and new CGs for story
+ As usual, the music is incredible and new songs have been added
+ Additional levels have been added
- Typos in texts and voice overs not matching to texts or fluctuates to Japanese
- Changes to English voice actors is disappointing and jarring in-game
Aesthetics: 7/10
Buttons
Controller: PS3 controller or Fightstick
+ Nothing has really changed for the controls. Still easy to navigate the menus, character moves and skills are still solid and response time is very tight.
Buttons: 10/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Classic 2D Fighter
+ The new story arcs are pretty well written and has the same great quality
+ New modes like Unlimited Mars and Abyss Mode are great additions for solo
+ The 3 DLC characters with Relius Clover is added to the roster
+ Currency and Leveling system adds more replay value and incentive to the game
+ A LOT of unlockable content such as pictures, unlimited characters, and voices
+ Online play is optimized and runs much smoother
- Legion Mode was taken out
- For competitive players, not much new was added
Concept and Content: 9/10
Duration
+ Replay value for solo play has been "extended" significantly
+ More stories means longer play time
+ Lots of content to unlock so there's incentive to play more
+ Abyss Mode has 4 tiers and has light RPG elements for more "depth"
Duration: 9/10
Fun
+ I like the currency/leveling system a lot, that progression for solo play is great
+ I really like the RPG elements within Abyss mode
+ The additional 4 characters are really fun and unique
+ Relius Clover has the coolest and most intricate Astral Heat
+ The stories for the new characters and side stories were rather moving
-The lack of polish in texts, voice actor changes, erratic language voice overs was a disappointment and I hope this doesn't happen in Chrono Phantasma
Fun: 9/10
Overall
Despite the lack of polish in bringing it over to the Western Market and disappointments with voice actor changes, the sheer amount of solo play content that was added more than makes up for it (but still makes me sad). BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend is the definitive version of the series thus far with all the characters up to date, all the stories including Calamity Trigger, and all the different modes excluding Legion mode. The expansion is quite an expensive payment for those just wanting Relius Clover in their roster, but a worthwhile one if more single-player content is what they seek. For those who really like the series other than just solely on the competitive scene or those who have never even bought the game, BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend is a great buy for any gamer remotely interested in the 2D Fighter genre. Overall: 8.8/10
Source: Youtube Channel jourdal
Developer: Arc System Works
Publisher: Aksys Games
Platforms: [Playstation 3], Xbox 360
Release Date: February 14, 2012
Genre: Fighting
Pros:
+ Lots of unlockable content
+ Rebalanced characters and difficulty
+ "Almost" everything great about the series so far put together in one
+ Extra stories that delves deeper into the lore of BlazBlue
+ The addition of Relius Clover
+ Another mode added for those who like playing single-player
+ Optimized online gameplay
+ The in-game money and level system is great for single-player play
+ Abyss mode adds some light RPG elements great for single-player play
Cons:
- An expensive DLC for those who own the original and 3 of the DLC characters
- Legion mode is not present in this "supposed" definitive version of BlazBlue
- A lot of the English voice actors have been swapped out
- Public online community is pretty dead
- Honestly, it's only one extra characters
- Odd typos and weird dialogue problems in conversations
Recommended:
*Yes: If you've never bought any of the BlazBlue or you're a big fan
*No: If you've bought Continuum Shift with the 3 DLC characters
I was hesitant about purchasing Extend as it was mainly 4 new characters for me for $40 (it was 1 new character for those who paid for the 3 DLC characters before Extend released). But I got a really good sale discount, there were new modes, new story lines, new characters, and I really liked BlazBlue. I liked the addition of Abyss mode, which was ported from the handheld editions, and the currency/level system as it gave me an incentive to keep playing to unlock more content much like Calamity Trigger was like. I had never played the 3 DLC characters before, so it pleases me that all 3 turned out to be really fun to play. The exclusive Relius Clover for the Extend edition is okay, but I can understand why a lot of people who bought Continnum Shift and all the DLCs didn't want to buy an entire expansion just for him. The additional story arcs were great and quite moving on some of them. What I really didn't like that made me upset was that some of the voice actors were different. The main problem is that they're mixed in with the original voice actors so some attacks just sound so odd when it's a totally different voice. It was also saddening to hear it in Story mode as it no longer captures the essence and being of that character anymore as well as being inconsistent. There was also some very odd typos where words are misspelled, words didn't match what the voice was saying, and weird dialogue changes in the middle of a conversation where some characters suddenly have the Japanese voice actors speak and then go right back into English voices. This expansion seems rather rushed and unpolished in terms of content quality, but the core gameplay is still very solid and a lot of fun.
Aesthetics
Art Style: 2D Hand-drawn sprites with multi-layer hand-drawn backgrounds
+ Slight changes to UI, certain animations, and graphics to make it smoother
+ New content in gallery and new CGs for story
+ As usual, the music is incredible and new songs have been added
+ Additional levels have been added
- Typos in texts and voice overs not matching to texts or fluctuates to Japanese
- Changes to English voice actors is disappointing and jarring in-game
Aesthetics: 7/10
Buttons
Controller: PS3 controller or Fightstick
+ Nothing has really changed for the controls. Still easy to navigate the menus, character moves and skills are still solid and response time is very tight.
Buttons: 10/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Classic 2D Fighter
+ The new story arcs are pretty well written and has the same great quality
+ New modes like Unlimited Mars and Abyss Mode are great additions for solo
+ The 3 DLC characters with Relius Clover is added to the roster
+ Currency and Leveling system adds more replay value and incentive to the game
+ A LOT of unlockable content such as pictures, unlimited characters, and voices
+ Online play is optimized and runs much smoother
- Legion Mode was taken out
- For competitive players, not much new was added
Concept and Content: 9/10
Duration
+ Replay value for solo play has been "extended" significantly
+ More stories means longer play time
+ Lots of content to unlock so there's incentive to play more
+ Abyss Mode has 4 tiers and has light RPG elements for more "depth"
Duration: 9/10
Fun
+ I like the currency/leveling system a lot, that progression for solo play is great
+ I really like the RPG elements within Abyss mode
+ The additional 4 characters are really fun and unique
+ Relius Clover has the coolest and most intricate Astral Heat
+ The stories for the new characters and side stories were rather moving
-The lack of polish in texts, voice actor changes, erratic language voice overs was a disappointment and I hope this doesn't happen in Chrono Phantasma
Fun: 9/10
Overall
Despite the lack of polish in bringing it over to the Western Market and disappointments with voice actor changes, the sheer amount of solo play content that was added more than makes up for it (but still makes me sad). BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend is the definitive version of the series thus far with all the characters up to date, all the stories including Calamity Trigger, and all the different modes excluding Legion mode. The expansion is quite an expensive payment for those just wanting Relius Clover in their roster, but a worthwhile one if more single-player content is what they seek. For those who really like the series other than just solely on the competitive scene or those who have never even bought the game, BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend is a great buy for any gamer remotely interested in the 2D Fighter genre. Overall: 8.8/10
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
GameLight - BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma
Wikia Site: http://blazblue.wikia.com/wiki/BlazBlue:_Chrono_Phantasma
Source: Youtube Channel PhoenonX
A new BlazBlue is on its way! Arc System Works is keeping themselves busy announcing a new BlazBlue while launching Persona 4 Arena just yesterday for the PS3 and Xbox 360. Chrono Phantasma will be a new chapter to the BlazBlue series rather than an add-on (much like Continuum Shift 2 and Extend were) with redone sprite work, three new characters, and some new mechanics. BlazBlue is a 2D Fighter with very unique play styles to each individual character, an incredibly in-depth story, and the genius work of Daisuke Ishiwatari on composing the music. Fighting games has changed quite a bit throughout the decade, and BlazBlue takes traditional mechanics mixed with new ones to create a game that's easy for anyone to pick up but make it so detailed and in-depth that it's viable for the most competitive players. For one, it's a lot easier to perform combos and specials compared to other fighting games, and those who want a bit more than just the combat aspect will enjoy the story mode. The music is what got me interested in BlazBlue as well as its style of art, but it's the characters and story that got me hooked to the game. The story ranges from humor, to drama, to action, to some of the most emotional scenes in a fighting game. A lot of the writing is better than what you'll experience in RPGs. BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma should hit Japanese Arcades this Winter and come out for consoles sometime next year.
Source: Youtube Channel PhoenonX
A new BlazBlue is on its way! Arc System Works is keeping themselves busy announcing a new BlazBlue while launching Persona 4 Arena just yesterday for the PS3 and Xbox 360. Chrono Phantasma will be a new chapter to the BlazBlue series rather than an add-on (much like Continuum Shift 2 and Extend were) with redone sprite work, three new characters, and some new mechanics. BlazBlue is a 2D Fighter with very unique play styles to each individual character, an incredibly in-depth story, and the genius work of Daisuke Ishiwatari on composing the music. Fighting games has changed quite a bit throughout the decade, and BlazBlue takes traditional mechanics mixed with new ones to create a game that's easy for anyone to pick up but make it so detailed and in-depth that it's viable for the most competitive players. For one, it's a lot easier to perform combos and specials compared to other fighting games, and those who want a bit more than just the combat aspect will enjoy the story mode. The music is what got me interested in BlazBlue as well as its style of art, but it's the characters and story that got me hooked to the game. The story ranges from humor, to drama, to action, to some of the most emotional scenes in a fighting game. A lot of the writing is better than what you'll experience in RPGs. BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma should hit Japanese Arcades this Winter and come out for consoles sometime next year.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
VGCulture - Watching Tournaments & UMVC3 EVO 2012
Official Site: http://evo.shoryuken.com/
I generally don't keep up with gaming tournaments or professional game players, but once in a while I'll run across some videos of those tournaments and enjoy watching some of the techniques that the top of the elites do and have my mind blown. In the past, I have watched tournament plays for Street Fighter 3 & 4, Super Smash Bros. Melee, World of Warcraft, Halo, and League of Legends. I've even had the chance to watch an actual tournament live at BlizzCon 2008 for Warcraft 3 Frozen Throne and Starcraft 1. You might notice that there are tournaments across an assortment of genres such as Fighting games, Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG), First-Person Shooters (FPS), Real-Time Strategy games (RTS), and Massive Online Battle Arenas (MOBA). There were even dance game tournaments before there was "Just Dance" and "Dance Central" around (Dance Dance Revolution by Konami). Videogame tournaments are so fun to watch sometimes because pro players perform techniques that you may normally never see in regular matches. Be it a consecutive tech block chain, moving lightning fast with a heavy character, overwhelming an opponent within 5 minutes of a match, or beating impossible odds in a 1 v 3 fight, tournaments between the most elite players of the world shows a side of a game that is rarely ever seen.
Anyways, I came across some Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (UMVC3) tournament videos of those qualifying for this year's EVO event. EVO is an annual convention where professional fighting game players around the world get together and test their mettle against each other in some of the most competitive environments the gaming community has to offer. Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Street Fighter X Tekken, Soul Calibur V, Mortal Kombat (9), King of Fighters XIII, and Super Street Fighter II Turbo are among the games with tournaments. I'm sure there will be other fighting games that are non-tournment orientated there such as BlazBlue, Melty Blood, and who knows, maybe we'll get to see some of Tekken Tag 2. I came across two videos of the qualifying matches for UMVC3 with a player I've never heard of before: (remember, I don't keep up with pro players) ChrisG in both videos.
Source: Youtube Channel teamspooky
For this match, the "must-watch" round is the last one at 6:39. Tourney player Mihe had found a way to exploit Zero's ground dash and lightning dash and cycle through it against a side to stun-lock ChrisG into a combo he couldn't get out of. ChrisG had only 2 chances to get out of it: 7:04 and 7:26. Mihe left little to no room for him to get out of it and left the match untouched with a perfect. Watching the other rounds, ChrisG performs moves and techniques I never would have imagined doing with Morrigan and Doctor Doom. He's able to utilize his tag partner to create openings, use Morrigan's image to cause unblockable damage, and keep his opponent from a distance while still doing damage (which I find very difficult to do in UMVC3).
Source: Youtube Channel teamspooky
This video is between famed Street Fighter Pro player Justin Wong against ChrisG. Again, ChrisG performs some phenomenal attacks, combos and stun-locks against his opponent and was even able to solo it out with Doctor Doom. That infinite stun-lock Mihe performed was questionable shenanigans, but what Justin Wong does at the round on 9:47 is frightening. As long as he was able to lead in with one attack, his opponent was stun-locked. Another round worth watching is at 11:17 where Justin Wong just so happens gets caught in an Air-combo with his support out and loses two characters within that combo. With only Storm left, he...well, just watch it (don't want to spoil anything). I've never seen Storm move so quickly in the game before. I am absolutely terrible with her doing no damage, moving incredibly slow and losing health faster than a broken faucet spouting water. This was a very entertaining match to watch.
It is matches like those that blow my mind away. I love fighting games, but I play very casually. I play so casually that I don't even play online. When you play online, you'll sometimes go against pro players and be completely shut down. Maybe I'll play online one of these days, but I'll practice against my very easy to medium level computers before then.
I generally don't keep up with gaming tournaments or professional game players, but once in a while I'll run across some videos of those tournaments and enjoy watching some of the techniques that the top of the elites do and have my mind blown. In the past, I have watched tournament plays for Street Fighter 3 & 4, Super Smash Bros. Melee, World of Warcraft, Halo, and League of Legends. I've even had the chance to watch an actual tournament live at BlizzCon 2008 for Warcraft 3 Frozen Throne and Starcraft 1. You might notice that there are tournaments across an assortment of genres such as Fighting games, Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG), First-Person Shooters (FPS), Real-Time Strategy games (RTS), and Massive Online Battle Arenas (MOBA). There were even dance game tournaments before there was "Just Dance" and "Dance Central" around (Dance Dance Revolution by Konami). Videogame tournaments are so fun to watch sometimes because pro players perform techniques that you may normally never see in regular matches. Be it a consecutive tech block chain, moving lightning fast with a heavy character, overwhelming an opponent within 5 minutes of a match, or beating impossible odds in a 1 v 3 fight, tournaments between the most elite players of the world shows a side of a game that is rarely ever seen.
Anyways, I came across some Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (UMVC3) tournament videos of those qualifying for this year's EVO event. EVO is an annual convention where professional fighting game players around the world get together and test their mettle against each other in some of the most competitive environments the gaming community has to offer. Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Street Fighter X Tekken, Soul Calibur V, Mortal Kombat (9), King of Fighters XIII, and Super Street Fighter II Turbo are among the games with tournaments. I'm sure there will be other fighting games that are non-tournment orientated there such as BlazBlue, Melty Blood, and who knows, maybe we'll get to see some of Tekken Tag 2. I came across two videos of the qualifying matches for UMVC3 with a player I've never heard of before: (remember, I don't keep up with pro players) ChrisG in both videos.
Source: Youtube Channel teamspooky
For this match, the "must-watch" round is the last one at 6:39. Tourney player Mihe had found a way to exploit Zero's ground dash and lightning dash and cycle through it against a side to stun-lock ChrisG into a combo he couldn't get out of. ChrisG had only 2 chances to get out of it: 7:04 and 7:26. Mihe left little to no room for him to get out of it and left the match untouched with a perfect. Watching the other rounds, ChrisG performs moves and techniques I never would have imagined doing with Morrigan and Doctor Doom. He's able to utilize his tag partner to create openings, use Morrigan's image to cause unblockable damage, and keep his opponent from a distance while still doing damage (which I find very difficult to do in UMVC3).
Source: Youtube Channel teamspooky
This video is between famed Street Fighter Pro player Justin Wong against ChrisG. Again, ChrisG performs some phenomenal attacks, combos and stun-locks against his opponent and was even able to solo it out with Doctor Doom. That infinite stun-lock Mihe performed was questionable shenanigans, but what Justin Wong does at the round on 9:47 is frightening. As long as he was able to lead in with one attack, his opponent was stun-locked. Another round worth watching is at 11:17 where Justin Wong just so happens gets caught in an Air-combo with his support out and loses two characters within that combo. With only Storm left, he...well, just watch it (don't want to spoil anything). I've never seen Storm move so quickly in the game before. I am absolutely terrible with her doing no damage, moving incredibly slow and losing health faster than a broken faucet spouting water. This was a very entertaining match to watch.
It is matches like those that blow my mind away. I love fighting games, but I play very casually. I play so casually that I don't even play online. When you play online, you'll sometimes go against pro players and be completely shut down. Maybe I'll play online one of these days, but I'll practice against my very easy to medium level computers before then.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
GameLight - Dead or Alive 5
Official Site: http://teamninja-studio.com/doa5/top.html
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
Dead or Alive is that fighting game with beautiful women and beefy men who deliver strikes so hard that they fall off mountains, break walls, and shatter bones but get right back up to continue fighting. The game continues its legacy with its fifth installment as the fighting game with breathtaking graphics and powerful physics engine (in one way or another) returns with a surprise.
So many fighting game fans of the Dead or Alive series and Virtua Fighter series are getting excited with announcements and videos of VF's iconic character Akira Yuki joining the roster in Dead or Alive 5. I grew up playing the Virtua Fighter series but never really got too much into it. Dead or Alive I played even less of just because no one else had it or played it. So as many fans of both series are overjoyed with the crossover, I found it to be sort of boring for an announcement of a crossover. I like Virtua Fighter, but Akira was one of the more boring characters for me. I liked more of the faster combo characters like Sarah Bryant and Aoi Umenokouji or some of the more obscure characters like Kage-Maru.
What I'm more excited about is that Dead or Alive 5 will be available for Playstation 3 as well as the Xbox 360 rather than making it exclusive to one console as they've had for the past two iterations. One of the other reasons why I played Dead or Alive so little was because it was always on consoles I didn't have. With the inclusion of being able to play on the Playstation 3, I might consider picking up my very first Dead or Alive game (if not for the 3DS). Though I have to consider all the other fighting games coming out as well (BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend, The King of Fighters XIII, Soul Calibur V, and Street Fighter X Tekken). I don't have to worry about it too much at the moment as the game is set to launch in the 4th quarter of this year. If I do end up getting a 3DS sometime in the summer this year, I'll probably pick up Dead or Alive Dimensions.
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
Dead or Alive is that fighting game with beautiful women and beefy men who deliver strikes so hard that they fall off mountains, break walls, and shatter bones but get right back up to continue fighting. The game continues its legacy with its fifth installment as the fighting game with breathtaking graphics and powerful physics engine (in one way or another) returns with a surprise.
So many fighting game fans of the Dead or Alive series and Virtua Fighter series are getting excited with announcements and videos of VF's iconic character Akira Yuki joining the roster in Dead or Alive 5. I grew up playing the Virtua Fighter series but never really got too much into it. Dead or Alive I played even less of just because no one else had it or played it. So as many fans of both series are overjoyed with the crossover, I found it to be sort of boring for an announcement of a crossover. I like Virtua Fighter, but Akira was one of the more boring characters for me. I liked more of the faster combo characters like Sarah Bryant and Aoi Umenokouji or some of the more obscure characters like Kage-Maru.
What I'm more excited about is that Dead or Alive 5 will be available for Playstation 3 as well as the Xbox 360 rather than making it exclusive to one console as they've had for the past two iterations. One of the other reasons why I played Dead or Alive so little was because it was always on consoles I didn't have. With the inclusion of being able to play on the Playstation 3, I might consider picking up my very first Dead or Alive game (if not for the 3DS). Though I have to consider all the other fighting games coming out as well (BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend, The King of Fighters XIII, Soul Calibur V, and Street Fighter X Tekken). I don't have to worry about it too much at the moment as the game is set to launch in the 4th quarter of this year. If I do end up getting a 3DS sometime in the summer this year, I'll probably pick up Dead or Alive Dimensions.
Monday, February 13, 2012
GameLight - BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend
Official Site: http://us.playstation.com/games-and-media/games/blazblue-continuum-shift-extend-ps3.html
Source: Youtube Channel jourdal
I'm both excited and disappointed with the release of BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend. I'm happy that there will be two new modes to play, all DLC characters added into the roster, a story mode for all characters, and the extension of some story paths from Continuum Shift. The problem is that story mode will be the return of Calamity Trigger's Story and Continuum Shift's Story. I was hoping that they'd reveal the next chapter of the universe of BlazBlue in their next game but it's pretty much a slight continuation of Continuum Shift and minor improvements here and there. If you happened to have NOT played any BlazBlue games but have some interest in it, this next iteration would be a great purchase. With a full roster of 19 characters, full story mode from both previous games for each individual character, 2 new modes with the 5 existing ones (Arcade, Versus/Network, Challenge, Legion, and Story), and a fair price of $40, BlazBlue Continuum Shift is a great purchase for anyone new to the series. For those who own one or both of the first two iterations, it'll be more of an upgrade. As I've discussed before in older posts on BlazBlue, I got into the series because of Guilty Gear and absolutely love the music done by Daisuke Ishiwatari. What I didn't expect out of the game was how uniquely designed each individual character played and how deep the lore got when playing Story mode. Story mode has had moments where it made me laugh, cry, angry, excited, and shocked. It went far and beyond all expectations I had about the game and has become one of my favorite fighting games. The combat system can be a bit tricky, but a beginner's mode allows even the least experienced of gamers to pick up the game and figure out how to do crazy combos and amazing abilities. The game can get quite technical and challenge even the most elite 2D fighting game players at tournaments like EVO (recently added to the list of games played there). BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend releases tomorrow February 14th, 2012 for $40. I highly recommend this game to fighting games of all experience level and encourage those who haven't played fighting games before. I think it's become a better starting game for most beginners than Street Fighter is (Street Fighter has become very technical).
Source: Youtube Channel jourdal
I'm both excited and disappointed with the release of BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend. I'm happy that there will be two new modes to play, all DLC characters added into the roster, a story mode for all characters, and the extension of some story paths from Continuum Shift. The problem is that story mode will be the return of Calamity Trigger's Story and Continuum Shift's Story. I was hoping that they'd reveal the next chapter of the universe of BlazBlue in their next game but it's pretty much a slight continuation of Continuum Shift and minor improvements here and there. If you happened to have NOT played any BlazBlue games but have some interest in it, this next iteration would be a great purchase. With a full roster of 19 characters, full story mode from both previous games for each individual character, 2 new modes with the 5 existing ones (Arcade, Versus/Network, Challenge, Legion, and Story), and a fair price of $40, BlazBlue Continuum Shift is a great purchase for anyone new to the series. For those who own one or both of the first two iterations, it'll be more of an upgrade. As I've discussed before in older posts on BlazBlue, I got into the series because of Guilty Gear and absolutely love the music done by Daisuke Ishiwatari. What I didn't expect out of the game was how uniquely designed each individual character played and how deep the lore got when playing Story mode. Story mode has had moments where it made me laugh, cry, angry, excited, and shocked. It went far and beyond all expectations I had about the game and has become one of my favorite fighting games. The combat system can be a bit tricky, but a beginner's mode allows even the least experienced of gamers to pick up the game and figure out how to do crazy combos and amazing abilities. The game can get quite technical and challenge even the most elite 2D fighting game players at tournaments like EVO (recently added to the list of games played there). BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend releases tomorrow February 14th, 2012 for $40. I highly recommend this game to fighting games of all experience level and encourage those who haven't played fighting games before. I think it's become a better starting game for most beginners than Street Fighter is (Street Fighter has become very technical).
Thursday, February 2, 2012
GameLight Review - BlazBlue Continuum Shift
Official Site: http://us.playstation.com/games-and-media/games/blazblue-continuum-shift-extend-ps3.html
Source: Youtube Channel banjoparapanyo
Source: Youtube Channel banjoparapanyo
Developer: Arc System Works
Publisher: Aksys Games
Platforms: Arcade , Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Playstation Portable, Nintendo 3DS
Release Date: July 27, 2010
Genre: 2D Fighter
Pros:
-Breathtaking visuals in both environment backdrops and character sprites
-Beginner mode makes it more inviting for new comers
-The combat mechanics leaves a lot of room for creative combos and competitive gameplay
-Gameplay is smooth, stylish, dynamic, and fast-paced
-Story mode isn’t just a repeat of Calamity Trigger, but a follow up
-Daisuke Ishiwatari once again graces us with his genius music compositions
-Legion and challenge mode changes up the pacing from the usual arcade mode
-All characters play very uniquely and have their own play style
Cons:
-DLC characters a $7 each, what a rip!
-Last boss: Hazama of Arcade mode is stupidly hard to beat even at the easiest difficulty level
-The new character selection graphics aren’t as good as the CT, but that’s a preference
-Players who have gotten so used to Calamity Trigger might have to readjust for this one
After playing BlazBlue Continuum Shift for about 1.5 years, I’ve come to love it more and more. The game just keeps getting better the more you play it. BlazBlue has one of the most definitive stories to go along with a fighting game. It’s so deep, moving and intricate that it just pulls the player into the world and change the ways one might feel about each individual character. Characters become more than just toons that fight each other, but they all have reasons and agendas that coincide or conflict. What’s more, Continuum Shift is a continuation of the events of Calamity Trigger rather than a simple update as most other fighting games seem to do. The game itself is fast-paced, very stylish and a lot fun to perform all sorts of combos, skills, and special abilities, but having the story completes the package. The changes from Calamity Trigger has added new specials for all characters, an optional beginner’s mode, some tweaks to how burst works, etc. to make the game more balanced and dynamic. This would be one 2D fighter that I would recommend to those who don’t generally play fighting games as its intriguing story mode is like a game of its own while the beginner mode option makes it easier for one new to fighting games to ease into it while definitely recommending it for hardcore, competitive players as it has all the factors that make it challenging.
Aesthetics
The main reason why I decided to buy the game was because the music was by Daisuke Ishiwatari and is developed by the same team who created Guilty Gear. It was sad to hear that they lost the rights to Guilty Gear and was no longer able to continue the series, and so I wanted to support them with the purchase of BlazBlue. Sure enough, the music was amazing the first time I heard it and more so when I hear it now; however, the visuals shocked me. I was expecting BlazBlue to be similar to Guilty Gear as characters from BlazBlue seem to look similar to those in the GG series. The graphics were dynamic with beautiful backdrops with lighting effects, moving sprites, and a sort of 3D-ish feel to them. The character sprites are a lot sharper and clean cut compared to what the team did for GG. The animations are incredibly fluid, flashy, and stylish, making combos, specials, and attacking feel really good. I have to admit that I was annoyed by some of the voice acting in both the English AND Japanese, but as I played the game more I began to adore the talents of both languages and their portrayal of the characters in the game. The biggest treat for me was the Story mode, which convinced me to play through Calamity Trigger before I started on the story on Continuum Shift, as it became a major factor to what made the whole game come alive. Story mode changed how I felt about each character and encouraged me to even play characters I generally wouldn’t choose. My biggest complaint on the game’s aesthetics would probably be the main menu. All modes and options are laid in one long list which makes it overwhelming and cluttered when most of them could have been collapsed into sub-categories and menus for an organized look. Besides that, I can complain a bit about some of the cinematics having odd animations and character design that doesn’t match up to the rest of the game’s art style, but it’s not that big of a deal either. Everything about BlazBlue Continuum Shift in terms of Aesthetics (Still images, sprites, backdrops, animations, cinematics, dialogue, voice acting, music, story, etc.) was very well thought out and meaningful. BlazBlue turned out to be a much more polished and carefully developed fighter than I would have every guessed. Aesthetics: 10/10
Buttons
The controls of the game are both easy and hard at the same time. There are essentially 4 buttons to utilitze: light attack, medium, heavy, and a special attack that differs between all characters. Players can easily perform combos by mashing light->medium->heavy and mix them around a bit; however, the combos and delays vary between each character. Even with beginner mode on, a player may not be able to land all their hits in time and can be countered if the opponent is skilled. Other times, combos are so easy for certain characters that even the most novice player can combo lock an opponent into a string of attacks that they can’t get out of. This is why the controls are both easy and hard at the same time. The mechanic of using three main attacks and a special key has been utilized in other games such as Melty Blood and now even Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 as it is much easier to understand and handle to single-action attacks from fighting games like Street Fighter or King of Fighters. It makes it much easier to learn and perform combos and utilize special attacks into them. Compared to most fighters, the leeway time between each attack for combos is rather lenient. The difficult part in learning how to play each character when not in beginner mode is finding the flow and pacing of each character and knowing which abilities can be chaining to each other. Some skills can still be difficult to execute, even with the use of a fight stick. For the most part, the game’s controls and battle mechanics was easy to understand if given the patience and time to learn them. Challenge mode helps a little, but rushes into the difficult techniques a bit too quickly. Buttons: 9/10
Concept and Content
I was disappointed at first when I got the game and realized how very few characters the game seemingly had; however, I changed my mind about that as I played through story mode and saw how deeply involved each character was to the story of the BlazBlue as well as how distinguished each character players. To give some examples: Bang Shishigami focuses on counter-attack, grapples, and dashes; Iron Tager excels at knock-backs, wall bounce hits, grabs, and pulls; Rachel Alucard requires the use of all her special abilities and the use of wind influence to make the most out of all her attacks; Taokaka is quick and so can perform a long string of attacks in a small amount of time; etc. This idea of different play styles favors those who play in a certain way or ones who seek variety in their fighting games. The additional challenge mode to the existing arcade, training, legion, and story mode is a good tutorial into more advanced techniques, but it isn’t entirely exciting. The concept of story mode playing like a visual novel is both easy for the developers to continually create more in a short amount of time and providing a lot of insight to events, characters, and background history for the player. The continuation of the story from where Calamity Trigger left off is the biggest treat in Continuum Shift. Three additional characters were eventual available for DLC, but cost $7 each and doesn’t include their story modes. Also, those who didn’t play Calamity Trigger will have a lot of unexplained events in the story of Continuum Shift. It seems that upcoming release of BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend will remedy all these with stories of the first and second in one game, all the characters released so far, and a brand new mode. Continuum Shift further extended the concepts and gameplay mechanics of Calamity Trigger, but seems to have been lacking in content that should have been there such as the additional 3 characters. Concept & Concept: 9/10
Duration
The game as a whole doesn’t have a distinct flow, but Story mode is presented differently from Calamity Trigger. Story mode starts off with an introduction as usual and then allows only the choice of playing Ragna the Bloodedge’s story rather than allowing the player to choose any character in any order. After finishing Ragna’s story, 5+ or so opens up and then gradually unlocks more character stories as to keep a sort of flow to each one of them. The game can last a very long time as I’ve had the game for 1.5 years and am still playing it. Continuum Shift provides: Arcade , advanced tutorial (not available in Calamity Trigger), Challenge, Legion, Training, Online, and Story. For those who play casually only for the fighting, arcade mode and legion mod will probably the main modes to play. Those who like stories and learn more about the world of BlazBlue will play story mode and some arcade. Competitive and hardcore players will play online mode a lot. A good fighting game should have incredible replay value and provide something for the player to keep coming back for more. BlazBlue Continuum Shift seems to fulfill those criteria. Duration: 10/10
Fun
Honestly, my first impression of BlazBlue: Continuum Shift was kind of bad. I loved the visuals and the music, but the voice acting annoyed me, the character selection felt very limited, and the last boss, Hazama, was so difficult and unfair (silly me thought I could handle the game right off the bat on normal mode, everyone else was alright other than the last boss) that it just left a bad impression for me. I seldom went back to play it once in a while just because I loved the rest of the game play when I’m not fighting Hazama and because of the music. The game was fast-paced. Performing long combos felt good. It was fun, but it was hard getting back into it everytime I had to face Hazama. Eventually, I got a copy of Calamity Trigger and started playing story mode. For me, I love fighting games because of the story and how all the characters have some sort of relationship with each other in some way or another and I would play each character to see their character endings and see what their story is about. BlazBlue went far and beyond that with story mode as it expands long dialogues, history, backgrounds, and even multiple paths to go by to provide a rich and intricate world for the player to explore. I got really hooked onto BlazBlue ever since I started playing story mode and have begun to play the game a bit more seriously with training and challenge mode to become more familiar with certain characters. The only mode I’m reluctant to play anymore is Arcade because of Hazama. Fun: 9/10
Overall
What started as a curiosity of music and the history behind the developers turned into a game I can fully appreciate and have fun with. The fighting mechanics might be a bit confusing for those who are used to Street Fighter, King of Fighters, or Mortal Kombat at first, but those with patience to sit down and get to know each character will find a very gratifying 2D fighter that is so unique in many ways that it will be hard to put down. BlazBlue’s eccentric, yet loveable characters draw one in as story mode unfolds their endeavors and agendas. The many modes will keep game play fresh and entertaining after hundreds of rounds and continues to get better the more one plays it. If you have never played any of the BlazBlue games, I recommend picking up BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend which releases on February 14th, 2012 as it will contain the entire story mode from both Calamity Trigger and Continuum Shift as well all the characters released thus far with all returning modes and extra modes such as Abyss mode and Unlimited Wars. This version of Continuum Shift was great with certain aspects lacking, but “Extend” will be the complete package worth a 10/10. Overall: 9.4/10
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