Animal Crossing: New Leaf

"New Leaf" builds upon old tricks

In its GameCube debut, "Animal Crossing" showed the world that Nintendo can contend with the best when it comes to the life simulation genre.
A laid back atmosphere, colorful NPC interactions and simple, yet addicting gameplay helped the title become popular despite competition with games such as "Harvest Moon" and "The Sims." Since the original game's release, there have been three more installments, and even after four iterations and 12 years little has changed in the wild, creature-filled game that is Animal Crossing.
As "New Leaf" is much of the same, it makes more sense to speak about what sets it apart from the rest of the Animal Crossing games.
Will this game's additions set it apart enough to give it a distinct personality, or will the new elements even make a difference to a series this popular?
The first obvious change players will notice is the role he/she will take within their respective towns. Upon arrival, villagers will greet players as the town's mayor. Although it takes a few days to begin mayoral duties, it doesn't take long to learn how to fulfill your duties. As mayor, public works projects and ordinances can be built and enforced to personalize the town to the player's liking. For example, towns only start with one bridge to cross the river that splits the city into two. The player can then start a public works project to build another bridge. Lamp posts, fences, store upgrades and many other projects can be taken on in the same way to create a more advanced town. Project funds are acquired by a donation system that can contributed to by players, NPCs or visiting players. The system is a small detail, but what is Animal Crossing but a bunch of fun, tiny details that create a game filled with personality?
Ordinances allow the player to create laws that change the town specifically to suit his/her needs. The "beautiful town" perk cleans the town up in many ways, including getting rid of cockroaches, eliminating all trash in the ocean and river and lowering the chance that flowers will wither. These ordinances are wonderful additions because they allow the player to interact with their town in the way they choose. If a player works an early morning shift in real life they can create an ordinance that allows them to enjoy "New Leaf" when they have more free time. Again, it's a small change, but it shows the developers want to give players more bang for their buck, and these changes definitely do just that.
A new mechanic brought to "New Leaf," comparable to fishing and bug catching, is swimming. By wearing a wetsuit, players can take a dip in the ocean and dive for underwater treasures such as seaweed and sea stars. These items can be given to the museum to display and can also be sold to the store for a few extra bells. While it might not be the most fascinating mechanic, it's something for players to do when they get tired of the same old song and dance that previous games offered.
Speaking of the same old song and dance, "New Leaf" has at least expanded upon the number of fish and bugs that can be caught by 12 respectively. Veterans and newcomers can both appreciate an update like this, even if it is just a couple extra bug and fishy faces added to the mix.
Last, but not least, the museum is a facet of Animal Crossing that has always added extra challenge to the game. In "New Leaf," the museum can be given a second floor after certain conditions are met and a specific public works project is presented to the player. Once the second floor is built, players can then display items of their own choice, so when other players visit their museum it will have its own unique feel, and no two museums will be the same. "New Leaf" may not be a major series overhaul, but in this case why fix something that isn't broken? Players are given more options in the latest Animal Crossing installment, and despite how small those options are, they assist "New Leaf" in being the most wholesome title to date. If gamers enjoyed other entries in the series there is no reason they shouldn't give "New Leaf" a try. It's just as addictive, personal and enchanting as the rest, with a few new touch-ups to boot. So grab your bug net, fishing rod and shovel, and get ready to be bell hunting for months to come in this have-it-your-way game.
This game get an 8 out of 10.

Retro Review: Tomba!

Silly sidescroller hindered by obscure interactions

With the advent of the Playstation 1 and Nintendo 64 came 3-dimensional graphics and a whole new world of possibilities in gaming. Titles like "Spyro," "Banjo-Kazooie" and "Crash Bandicoot" soared into popularity with their immersive environments and 3-D modeled characters. Even Mario received an upgrade in all of the madness and made a new appearance with his video game "Super Mario 64."
However, despite the success of these "evolved" titles, there were still some games that stuck to the platformer formula made famous by the iconic plumber years ago.
"Tomba!" is a great example of a game that used 2-D and 3-D elements to craft an original experience worth the time of any gamer in the late '90s and maybe even today.
The game starts rather abruptly after a short hand-drawn cutscene where the main character, Tomba, a pink haired, primitive-looking boy, has his golden bracelet stolen by some evil pig henchmen. "Tomba!" takes no time to set the wacky tone it would have throughout that it maintains through the combination of dialogue, environment and story line. The rest of the game is spent controlling Tomba as he makes his way through the world in search of defeating the seven evil pigs that are responsible for the theft of his golden bracelet.
While the game may create its own personality in the zaniness that is "Tomba!," it also creates problems for gamers as they struggle to determine which clues are fact and which are there to be funny. For example, during one part of the game a plant that is oddly shaped like a human's backside must be used to shrink a pig foe to a smaller size with the fumes it expels. First encountering the plant, a player might laugh and move on, forgetting it as nothing more than a joke, but as the game progresses it turns out the player must return to the plant if he/she wishes to progress the story line. It's not a huge problem to deal with, it just makes an already odd experience unnecessarily cryptic.
This leads players to wonder "where is my mission list?" A mission list skips the confusing bits of dialogue and gets right down to brass tax ... in most games. After a player realizes the mission list is not located in the normal start menu, but rather by pressing select, they can see just how unhelpful this menu is. When Tomba needs to gain experience to grab a special item or open a gate the mission list will often state general facts such as "collect AP points for something special" or "find the Jewel of Fire to unleash the hidden powers from within." The game automatically assumes the player will know how to obtain AP points or how to get the specific experience to pick up the Jewel of Fire. Although it does give added difficulty, it's an unnecssary difficulty players will have little patience to move forward from, and it will leave gamers asking themsleves what their drive is to complete the game.
Despite the often limited guidance "Tomba!" offers, there are many facets the developers should be proud of. First off, the game controls beautifully as Tomba can run, jump, swing and swim his way to victory. There are some small points in the game where controls can be a bother, but for the most part "Tomba!" offers fluid movements to players that take little to no time to master. The comforatbility created by this ease gives way to many unique interactions that feel rewarding when conquered. Weapons and other items control just as smoothly and help diversify the experience gamers will have as they make their way to the final boss fight.
The presentation of "Tomba!" matches the tone set by the first cutscene in that it is a colorful, goofy landscape filled with evil pigs carrying pitchforks, a forest covered in what looks like Dippin' Dots and mushrooms that can cause a sudden burst of happiness or a profound sadness. The world is just big enough to have variety, but small enough to make players feel cozy, and most everything in the game is hand drawn, and even though character models can often overlap, it appears a great deal of time and effort went into creating the wonderous world of "Tomba!". Although cutscenes add to the game's story line and personality, their presence is far too few and far between leaving the player begging for more. Even the game's final cutscene is less than a minute, which is a shame considering how great the cutscenes look and how much they liven up the game. Emotion through scenery is conveyed well through the soundtrack. When Tomba is in a cave the player knows whether or not it is a scary cave by the dark and mysterious melodies the specific area is characterized by. While this does ring true for the soundtrack, there are multiple background noises that are frequently repeated, which not only annoys the gamers but detracts from the uniqueness developed through backgrounds and character design.
Despite confusing missions and overplayed background noises "Tomba!" is a pleasant, little game with a story line that doesn't call for too much thinking. Hand-drawn environments and funny interactions give way to a relaxed feeling that gamers will come to appreciate as they realize how intense and involved many games of this generation have become. "Tomba!" is an interesting blast from the past that old and young gamers alike should give a chance to. Although it hasn't exactly aged like fine wine, "Tomba!" still puts a smile on the face and challenges gamers to overcome obstacles to reach an ultimate goal, so what more can you ask for?  The game can take more than 20 hours to complete, and players will most likely turn to guides as some of the quests in "Tomba!" require more than just a strong intuition and willpower to complete. This PS1 classic can be purchased on the Playstation Network and gets 7 evil pigs out of 10.

'Metro: Last Light' review

Small details help 'Last Light' shine bright 

                In a day and age where first-person shooters are a dime a dozen, it can be difficult for developers to create games in the genre that stand out from the pack. Many shooters use big explosions and even bigger bad guys to cover up a weak story line, and most of the time copies still fly off of store shelves. Developer 4A Games released “Metro: Last Light” and proved that it doesn’t take the grandeur that FPSs are known for to make an immersive, memorable experience.

                While “Last Light” doesn’t exactly turn its nose up to over-the-top theatrics, the most standout moments come from subtleties such as NPC background dialogue and wiping a mask off to clear a player’s field of vision. It’s in these details that drive the game forward and give it the rough personality people will recognize it for.

                “Last Light” is a sequel to “Metro: 2033” and follows Artyom, the original title’s main character, in his quest to rescue the last survivor of a strange species known as the Dark Ones, a race of creatures Artyom helped destroy in “2033.” He has to compete with Communists and Nazis (because it’s not a true shooter without Nazis, right?) in order to get to the young Dark One and attempt to rescue the remaining humans that reside in the Metro with its unknown abilities.

                The game handles like any other shooter, so Call of Duty and Halo players will immediately feel at home with the controls. What sets this game apart, though, is the survival horror elements it integrates into the experience, which demands players act sharp to stay alive. For example, there are environments in the game that require the use of a gas mask. If the mask is damaged too much or the player runs out of filters for the mask, Artyom dies. This proves to be quite a task to take on when a pack of giant, mutated rats are gnawing on your face.

                This is where stealth comes into the game. By staying in dark places, crouching or flanking enemies, certain sneak attacks can be used to quietly subdue foes and generate no attention. Most areas offer means to outwit or avoid baddies, so the clever player will always be rewarded.

                Other small steps that need to be taken for survival include regularly charging your flashlight, switching badly damaged gas masks and wiping your mask when blood or mud spatters onto it, which obscures vision.

                While being frustrating at times, these fine adjustments add a sense of realism and urgency to “Last Light” that future survival horror shooters should take note of. “Last Light” finds a pleasant balance with these mechanics and adds just enough difficulty without making the game feel like one big chore.

                Gun selection is limited, but the weapons available can be customized in numerous ways such as laser sights or adding a silencer. These customizations can either add firepower or make it easier to remain unnoticed among many enemies. Guns can also be scavenged from fallen foes, and any customizations on a foraged gun will be displayed before it is taken. Players can carry up to three guns with them at a time, and an array of side weapons, such as grenades and throwing knives, bulk up your inventory.

                On “Last Light’s” normal difficulty, certain parts can be a challenge, but is never too easy or hard. Ranger mode offers heightened difficulty and can be purchased on the PS3 store for five USD. “Last Light” takes about 10-13 hours and awards players for exploring areas with extra ammo, filters and story line notes to be collected.

                Enemy intelligence is nothing to write home about and in a few times during my play experience an enemy failed to spot me when I was in plain sight, only inches away from them. Glitches can also be found in both enemies and environment but they are small and infrequent enough to forgive.  

                Presentation in this game is incredible and takes the small details enforced by the gameplay and gives them a place in both the environment and story line.

                One of the most impressive aspects of this lies within NPC interactions, whether it is between Artyom or the NPCs themselves. A few times in the game Artyom will be taken to a city. Here players can buy ammo or guns and can customize the weapons they already own, but the real draw comes from the inhabitants of these run down places. Upon entering these cities a loud bustle of conversation can be heard, and when Artyom walks close enough to NPCs they can hear, in detail, what the people are saying. These interactions aren’t mandatory for the game, but they can offer clues that will help players in their travels or can offer insight into “Last Light’s” story. Conversations can go for three minutes and beyond, which shows how much effort 4A Games put into this game’s voice acting.

                Other environmental details such as howls in the distance, screams coming from a room over or skeletons on a crashed plane create an eerie vibe that builds in intensity as the game progresses. The music is minimal, but adds to the creepy wasteland and tunnels being traversed. Sounds move along the game more than anything, which helps build the realism founded by the gameplay early on.

                The story line is interesting and has a few twists and turns that players will have mixed feeling about. A variety of dreams, flashbacks and assorted visions give a surreal feeling to players but leads to a fulfilling ending that can be seen in one of two ways.

                In all, “Metro: Last Light” is much more than your average shooter. Obscure interactions help fill the game with personality and puts players in Artyom’s shoes. Some minor glitch issues, average AI and a small weapon selection take away from the game, but the positives far outweigh the negatives.

                 “Last Light” proves that shooters don’t have to be all about the guns and uses realism to draw gamers down into the gritty underbelly of the Metro.

                This game gets an 8.5 out of 10.

This article can also be seen on powerupgaming.co.uk.