This week in gaming

Don't mind me, just trying something. Just because it's called "This week in..." doesn't mean I'll make one every week, okay? I just thought I'd talk a bit about the games I've played and the games I want to play. On the agenda for this week (again, this doesn't imply there will be an agenda next week) is Ghost Trick, PokePark Wii, Pokemon HeartGold, Pokemon Black/White, the 3DS, LittleBIGPlanet 2, and Donkey Kong Country Returns. I don't anticipate to have so many different random games to talk about every time, but this one turned out rather long, so there you go.


Probably top on my list is that I recently picked up Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective. Haven't put a lot of time into it yet, but I must say, it is rather enjoyable so far. I have more to say, but Mo won't forgive me if I divulge anything. (Really, the approximate length of the game is not a spoiler...) So I'll talk more on it another time. What I will say is that game stores really don't want you to find this game. Future Shop didn't have it on display anywhere; I had to ask someone to find it. I think ti was hiding somewhere in the back room. I was at Gamestop the other day too, and I didn't see it anywhere. Now, I'm no marketer, but this doesn't seem like a good marketing strategy. More on the actual game later.

Other game I bought recently was PokePark Wii. Now, usually I don't buy into Pokemon spinoff games, and this one in particular seemed aimed at the youngest of young children, but I decided to buy it anyway. As expected, it was super easy, and the gameplay leaves a lot to be desired, but it is a rather adorable game, and I still had fun with it despite its flaws. Playing "co-op" mode (two people holding the same controller) was fun too. Best part of the game was playing "Chase" with Slowpoke.

Been playing Pokemon HeartGold for a while now. Haven't gotten every badge yet, but I'm working on raising a team of Pokemon, specifically a team of Typhlosion, Ampharos, Mamoswine, Gengar, Slowbro and Quagsire. I won't go too far into the details, but it's been a slow and boring process, breeding and EV training. 4/6 are fully EV trained, but I've been stumbling with Typhlosion and Ampharos since I want them both to have Hidden Power Grass. I lucked out with Mareep and got one in the first batch, but I've bred far too many Cyndaquil, to no avail. I did get one that can learn Hidden Power Ice, which I may settle for if this goes on for too much longer. I can start EV training Mareep though, joy!

Pokemon Black/White are soon to be released, yay. Many have expressed disdain that the new batch of Pokemon are the worst yet, and I'm not inclined to disagree. (Although, the third generation was also not so great.) However, there are some new ones that I am interested in. Particularly, #567, Archeos, is rather intriguing, with abnormally high base stats. It has high speed, and unnaturally high attack and special attack, however its ability causes both attack stats to be halved when its HP drops below half. It learns a lot of good physical moves and would make a great physical sweeper, so I've decided to raise one. This one and probably (read: definitely) the fire starter are the B/W Pokemon I've decided to raise so far.

Some new details on the 3DS have been announced. Official release date is March 27, and the cost is 250 USD. Now, I've never been one to fuss about paying a lot for video games, (My game collection is a testament to that...) but I'm disappointed with the 3DS. Not over its price, no, but it's release titles. This is a list of the known release window titles for the 3DS, and not one of them is a game I am interested in playing. So basically, the 3DS has turned from a definite first-day buy to a "will buy when a good game comes out" system. It seems to me like Nintendo is rushing to get the 3DS out the door. With waning Wii and DS sales, and their fiscal year ending March 31, I think they're making a last-ditch effort to pad their bottom line and look good to investors. With that release lineup though, I'm willing to bet that a lot of people will be on my side and wait for an actual good game to come out before buying it. Kid Icarus, Zelda, Metal Gear Solid, Paper Mario, Mario Kart., Professor Layton, Star Fox. All of these I will buy. None of these will be out before June.

That's enough depressing news. Got the chance to see a bit of LittleBIGPlanet 2 at Kyle's place the other day. Definitely worth looking into if you liked the original, because not a lot of the core gameplay has changed. There are new platforming elements, sure, but it appears that most of the change was in the level creation, which is not something I've ever gotten into, but if that's your thing then definitely get it. Plus, it has this song. If that isn't reason enough alone to get this game, then I don't know what is. Haven't had enough time with it to judge it properly, but it looks like all the good stuff is in there. I loved collecting all the prize bubbles in the first and I'm sure I will again in the second, when I get around to buying it. (Probably after Ghost Trick.)

I've been procrastinating on finishing Donkey Kong Country Returns. I love this game, and I want to play it to completion because it's so nostalgia-tastic (not a word, I know, shut up) but it's so hard that I can only stand it in small doses. I plan to put more time into it this weekend. I'm at the end of world 6 right now so I don't think I'm far off. I don't think this is a game I'll be returning to for 100% though.

I'm sure there is more I can talk about, but that's all I can think of right now. I'd say that I'd do this every week but I don't want to tie myself down to anything. I'll say stuff when I have interesting stuff to say. When and how frequently that is remains to be seen.

That is all! Later, fellow gamers.