Extra History: The Sengoku Basara Way: Part 3

With Nobunaga dead, the last 2 parts of the Extra History videos cover Hideyoshi, his death and the battle of Sekigahara.  This post is going to be shorter than the other ones because, well, the videos go into a lot of backgrounds that Sengoku Basara chooses to push to the wayside for the sake of an exciting action story, but there is still a fair bit to note.

 

Sengoku Basara Retrospective: Sengoku Basara: Samurai Heroes/3

Capcom pretty much perfected the Sengoku Basara formula the first game created with Sengoku Basara 2 Heroes.  After riding that for a few years and releasing a fighting game in the interim, it was time for Sengoku Basara to evolve with the console hardware.  With a new game engine and new play style, the next Sengoku Basara game was indeed an evolution, but the most important evolution of all was that IT’S IN ENGLISH!  IT’S IN ENGLISH!  IT’S IN ENGLISH!  IT’S IN ENGLISH!

They even got T.M. Revolution to do the opening in English!  I don’t blame anyone for thinking it’s not though.

Sengoku Basara Retrospective: Sengoku Basara 2 Heroes

When Capcom makes a hit game, it’s almost a compulsion for them to also make an updated version of it later.  It’s a practice almost synonymous with Capcom and Sengoku Basara 2 follows that tradition with Sengoku Basara 2 Heroes, or at least it kind of does.

That is one of the best openings ever and it made me buy Blade Chord on the itunes store.

MDK2 Review

[Note: This review was written way back in 2011 before this blog even existed, though a few minor grammar mistakes have been changed.  Thought it might be neat to share one of the oldies.]

One thing I have always wanted out of Wiiware and the Virtual console is more games from the late 90s, the N64 era.  Being a kid raised on the system, I’ve never been bothered by their now-primitive technical capabilities, and having a game in 3D allows for better immersion and emulation of modern day games.  Unfortunately, most of the N64 games on the virtual console I either already have or didn’t really interest me, so it was a breath of fresh air to finally get the kind of game I was looking for with the Wiiware release of the 1998 PC game MDK2, and while the game certainly shows its age, it’s still a fairly enjoyable experience.

Fighting Game Camps: Mortal Kombat: Part 3 (For real this time.)

Continued from part 2.

Music

My brief single sentence describing the music in the April Fools version of this post wasn’t entirely off the mark.  Mortal Kombat’s music is extremely downplayed to the point that you may not even notice there’s music at all.  Where other fighting games have their music bombastic or energizing, Mortal Kombat goes for ambience.  In fact, in Mortal Kombat 9, there’s an ambience meter in the sound options menu.

It’s more akin to tribal drumming than the fanfare of other games.  There’s a lot of fast, looping drum beats, techno synth and long notes without any particular melodies.

Top 10 Final Battles: #7: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Like Final Fantasy, one of these final battles had to be from the Legend of Zelda series.  The franchise consistently cranks out the best bosses in gaming, almost always requiring problem-solving and good old-fashioned skill with a variety of weapons.  Every final battle in each Zelda game is memorable in its own way, with multiple phases and ever-creative transformations that make the climax to each story an epic one, barring the ones, in the words of Chris Hoffman, "in which Link looks like he chugged a gallon of drain cleaner."

The final battle of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a classic for the generations, and its ending is critical in the overall Zelda timeline, but technology has moved on and I find that the battle of Twilight Princess, arguably the second most acclaimed game in the franchise, is even more satisfying.

I'll miss you Nintendo Wi-Fi

I've been a Nintendo gamer for over a decade.  Though I've definitely invested in other consoles like the PS2 and Xbox 360, Nintendo's systems have always taken my priority.  After they established Nintendo Wi-Fi for online play, they soon also became my go-to company for multiplayer, since I don't have a PS3, my computer isn't very strong, and there's no way in hell I'm paying Microsoft's ransom just to play online.

I played online Nintendo games of all kinds and have always loved the sense of community and competition online play allowed as all my friends moved away.  When I got Modern Warfare 3 for the 360, I traded it in for the Wii version (and used the extra money to get Okamiden), I played Yu-Gi-Oh World Championship 2010 and Jump Ultimate Stars religiously, and whenever I wanted a little multiplayer fun in my lonely house/apartment, my Wii and DS always suited it.  Even without free communication, there was a special connection you could feel between how you and the other players played.  It was wonderful.

And now... We fight.

Almost all of that came to an end yesterday.