Console Coverage I: Microsoft Xbox

"Unlike most reviews, I won't be grading this, but simply shed my two cents on consoles I've tried in my gaming life."

My first ever Console Coverage deals with the predecessor to a console I own: Microsoft Xbox. Hearing the name, I wasn't a fan of it originally. And it wasn't until I owned the Xbox 360 that I warmed up to it. Here's the rundown as to say my feelings for the console.

Console: Lest I remember, the original Xbox only had one color that was sold in stores (the default Black with Green center), but it was revealed that there were others released as editions, with very few of them sold in various parts of the world. By looking at it, I could assume it weighed more than the bulky PlayStation 2, who it was trying to compete with. Though it was already a principle for some consoles, Xbox had a built-in internal Hard Drive, much like how it is for PlayStation 3 today. And seeing as how it was made under Microsoft (who worked on the Windows CE OS integrated in the Sega Dreamcast), I was not very surprised at it's other features, primarily of which happens to be the Xbox Live (this I'll get into later.) First hearing the name, I was expecting it to be a cross between a game console and a PC, and with that, I wasn't TOO far off seeing as how it was their own DirectX team that pioneered the idea for a Prototype gaming console based off Windows. The OS was a custom version composed of traits from Windows NT and the widely used Windows XP. The hard disk drive, normally used for PCs, was like a gaming successor to the built-in battery backup of systems like Sega Saturn, add-ons like the Sega CD (for the Sega Genesis), and even a few games like Nintendo's Legend of Zelda for their NES. With this, the use of memory cards wasn't that necessary, despite it being still used as an accessory for it. Like the Nintendo 64 and Gamecube, it featured 4 controller ports by default, allowing people to plug in and play without needing a device, like Sony's PS2 Multitap, to enjoy 4-player gameplay.

Controllers: If anything, this was the prime reason for my dislike of the console. It doesn't mean much now since I am owner of the X360, but to me, the controllers were unbearable. Looking at it, I could tell it was a pain for me to hold, which it was. My main offender of the few controllers was the original "Fatty" one that came with the console. While others condemn the D-Pad of the current console, I can honestly say I found that of Xbox's original MUCH worse than that. At least with X360, it LOOKS like a D-Pad, Xbox's was a garbled mess, something I can omit from third party Gamecube/Wii controllers. In fact, I'm suspicious as to whether or not GigaWare had a hand in that, because if it wasn't hinted enough, that's what Xbox's Fatty D-Pad reminds me of. I guess over time they noticed their flaw and released another called Xbox Controller S. I guess the S stood for small, which it was compared to the other, and featured a more refined D-Pad that looked and felt like one. It didn't bother me as much, as the Sega Genesis' Turbo controller, and that of Saturn had the same amount, but Xbox had 6 face buttons on both their controllers, not including Start and Back Buttons (I assume Back was their version of Select): A, B, X, Y, and Black and White buttons. At the time, the Black and White buttons threw me off. Despite that the other 4 buttons were also colored, I felt I should question the features of the other 2, but I didn't. Playing it, it was actually buttons that could be used in game. It also featured Analog triggers (named Left and Right Triggers) as well as 2 analog sticks. At first, I questioned the placement of the left analog and the D-Pad, but I surmised that it most likely didn't want to be a replica of the PlayStation 2's Dual Shock 2. Thus, I assumed they wanted to make the Left Analog the primary moving device (though Nintendo Gamecube had already done this.) Maybe they thought it up to be different, or to honor Dreamcast (the system they assisted development with), but like Dreamcast, both Xbox controllers featured 2 accessory slots to input Memory Cards, as well as other add-ons released for it.

Games: Like Sony's PlayStation, they implemented the DVD-Rom format for the games. To distinguish itself from the former, they did minor tweaks to the graphics, among other small areas. After being countered by Sony's release of more exclusive titles, they hit back with the Xbox Live service, with launch titles like MotoGP and Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon. Formerly one of their exclusives, Xbox found themselves other titles like Grand Theft Auto III, after the first two was bound to PS/PS2 with Take-Two Interactive's deal with Sony (which was amended). Other developers would soon follow, as they made games side-by-side for the Xbox and PS2 platforms, often released in stores the same day. The Microsoft-exclusive Halo title is by far the most recognized of the Xbox games, seeing as how they didn't have that many exclusives. Halo 2 became a killer app for Xbox Live in 2004, while EA made a deal to release the Madden NFL games for the Xbox, discontinuing their short lived NFL Fever series. Call it a matter of irony or whatever, but the last game released for this happened to be Madden NFL 2009, which was also released for the successor: the then-young Xbox 360. Despite that Madden NFL 2009 released in August of 2008, the console itself was no longer in production years prior, and with X360 taking over as the flagship console, the original was put on the back burner. Refurbished, very few units are still around, but the fanfare has all but died out. The games themselves saw digital ports in Xbox Live for the X360, and until years ago, some of the CDs under Xbox were backwards compatible. Games like the first Halo was remade to fit the control scheme of the X360 (released as Halo Anniversary), while games that was released on there saw successions on X360, as was the case with Team Ninja's Dead or Alive 3 for Xbox, succeeded by the Xbox 360 title Dead or Alive 4 (both of which are from one of Tecmo Koei's primary series products.)

Media: As with most game consoles, starting from Sega CD on up, Xbox could play and rip audio CDs, being stored in the hard drive. But since it also featured the DVD-Rom, DVD movies could also be played on the console, similar to PlayStation 2. Content downloaded from Xbox Live, and even the gamer profiles assigned to the console can be managed and moved. Speaking of, the Xbox was the second console to feature initial online gameplay without the means of an external adapter. The first to feature this was Sega Dreamcast. One-upped again by Sony, Xbox was losing due to the surge of High Definition gameplay some PlayStation 2 games had with HDTVs. Microsoft had no answer to that prior to X360's development, when they decided to feature 2 cables for HD: the component cable, and the HDMI wires, in addition to using HD DVD format discs for the games, trying to compete with the Blu-Ray discs of PlayStation 3.

Xbox Live: Xbox Live is the online service still active today as part of Xbox 360, the Windows Phone, and the soon-to-come Windows 8 OS. It serves as a means to play and interact with gamers the world over who uses the same console. Now, and even back then, it was known by most to be suitable for online shooters, though the games used for it is diverse. Combined with HDMI, it is now butting heads with PS3 to be the ultimate online gaming experience. Every so often, there is an interface upgrade, which is a free downloadable, and consoles created after the released interface will be more up to date. The downside is that, compared to PS3, it's the only one that charges for online multiplayer, but it also has different means of playing. As opposed to credit cards, one can buy Microsoft Points from stores, which serves as the currency to buy online content. Games for Xbox Live can be purchased in store as well in forms of cards, and almost every X360 game features an Xbox Live feature. Same was true for a number of the original Xbox titles as well. Achievements for games can contribute to their Live Gamerscore, which accumulate by doing various achievements for various games, similar to PS3's trophies. It is more than just games however, as it adapted to using well known video streaming and social network applications, such as Netflix, Hulu Plus, Skype, and Facebook. They also go by subscription on Xbox Live, and depending on which one you have, certain features are available to you. Xbox Live gives you two types: Xbox Free, which back them was called the Xbox Silver Subscription, and it's generally a free service that allows you to browse and download games, and game content. The other is Gold, which you have to pay for, but they give you options for that as well. As stated you can choose to pay by Credit/Debit card, or you can by a subscription card and input the code to upgrade that way. With Gold it opens up much more features, even online multiplayer. Normally, it is saved within the console, but people can save them into the memory units to take with them to use for any console.

Last Words: I wasn't fond of it, but over time, I did respect it, though my dislike for the Fatty controller will most likely remain. Remembered for the old games, I'm guessing the console itself didn't leave much of an impact after production ceased. Even so, Xbox had its moments, despite falling short to PS2. We can only imagine what they do next with the rumored 360 successor.

Game Review XXI: Sonic Generations

It's been a long time since our friend in blue, Sonic the Hedgehog, came out with his self-titled game back in 1991. Since then, we were given 20 years of him: the pros being his speed, new abilities, and attitude, down to the cons, consisting of a bad fanbase, voice actor changeups, and bad reviews. Even so, he still pushes strong, and last month's release of Sonic Generations is proof of that. (This review has a spoiler content, so if you don't wanna know in advance who you're up against, keep it moving... I repeat, there are a few spoilers.)

The story begins when he and his friends celebrate Sonic becoming the big 2-0. From out of nowhere, a menacing creature kidnaps all of his friends, sending them to parts unknown. Now he must find where his friends have ended up, but this time around, he's going to get some unexpected help... from himself.

Ever since the remade Green Hill Zone seen in Sonic Adventure 2 / SA2 Battle, I kinda figured they'd redo other past stages, but not like how it turned out. Before we get into that, though, let's look at who we control. Common to the majority of titles, we assume control of Sonic as usual. I'd say that's all, but you're controlling TWO versions of him. This game is where past meets present. Most of Sonic's friends appear as well, but like Sonic, Tails meets his past self, and so does someone else. Even though they're the same character, both versions play differently from one another. The short-spined, chubby one retains his core classic controls, solely 2D platforming with the use of the Jump, Spin Attack, and Spin Dash. This time around though, the Spin Dash is also mapped to a button for easy access. The taller, darker, and talkative Sonic follows his modern gameplay from Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Colors, invoking abilities like the Homing Attack, Boost, Sliding, and Wall Jump. Much like the aforementioned games, his Boost can knock away enemies, and actually change the stage music the longer it's in use, and reverts back to normal when you stop using it.

The stages sort of act like the way Zones were broken up in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, consisting of 2 acts per stage. Act 1, which you play as soon as you hit New Game, uses the 2D Platforming style of the Genesis/Mega Drive, while Act 2 plays like his recent adventure titles, going fast on breakneck speed. Every 3 Stages are part of a specific era, each with reimagined acts for each hedgehog, as well as a few rival and boss fights. Just because you are familiar with them, don't be fooled into thinking you can beat them the same way. They are as follows:

• Genesis/Mega Drive Era

1.  Green Hill (Sonic The Hedgehog [1991])
2.  Chemical Plant (Sonic The Hedgehog 2)
3.  Sky Sanctuary (Sonic The Hedgehog & Knuckles)
   Rival: Metal Sonic at Stardust Speedway - Bad Future (Sonic CD)
   Boss: Death Egg Robo (Sonic The Hedgehog 2)

• Dreamcast Era

1.  Speed Highway (Sonic Adventure / SADX: Director's Cut)
2.  City Escape (Sonic Adventure 2 / SA2: Battle)
3.  Seaside Hill (Sonic Heroes)
   Rival: Shadow the Hedgehog at Final Chase (Sonic Adventure 2 / SA2: Battle)
   Boss: Perfect Chaos (Sonic Adventure / SADX: Director's Cut)

• Modern Era

1.  Crisis City (Sonic The Hedgehog [2006])
2.  Rooftop Run (Sonic Unleashed)
3.  Planet Wisp (Sonic Colors)
   Rival: Silver the Hedgehog at Crisis City (Sonic The Hedgehog [2006])
   Boss: Egg Dragoon (Sonic Unleashed)

The musical score for each act has been redone, as have the stages and enemies themselves. The more popular of these remixes was the Classic version of Sonic Adventure 2's City Escape, done by the same people who did the score for the original song. The majority of the "Classic" remixes are more techno-like, while the "Modern" remixes had more emphasis towards rock primarily. In addition, if you collect red star rings and musical notes from challenge gates, you could hear and use other songs from other games, including Free from Sonic Free Riders, and the original Green Hill music. Some of these hidden tracks have also been touched up a notch or two.

Controls and Gameplay are alright. Sega and Sonic Team listened to the fans concerns, as they warned players of dangerous areas. From time to time, I still end up flying off, but the problem isn't as bad as fans make it to believe. The game also has a skill system, and though you can't upgrade the skill points you can use, you can buy new ones with points gathered in game, and you're given 5 slots for both Sonic versions, so you can customize them to play your way. Voices heard are the same ones spotted in both Sonic Free Riders and Sonic Rivals 2, with even Classic Tails getting a voice (but not Classic Sonic, unsurprisingly...) Another bonus is that if it was pre-ordered ahead of time, you would get a minigame stage made from Sonic The Hedgehog 2's Casino Night Zone. But as an actual stage, the 3DS port may feature this, along with other stages from other games. Boss and Rival battles have been redone to fit the current gameplay in the console port (with the exception of  Metal, who you must actually defeat this time), while the 3DS port follows a play style for the battles similar to Sonic Rivals. The 3DS version also features different bosses, which I'll review in the future.

Sonic has had quirks over the years, but this is a good way to relive those 20 years of supersonic speed. Sonic Generations scores: as a Sonic game, a perfect 10, but as a game in general, a 9 of 10. Long live the speed of the spiky blue hog with attitude!

Game Review XX: Marvel Vs. Capcom series

Oh, this is a treat. By now, some of you may have heard of, or tasted the fame that is Marvel Vs. Capcom. Originally a CPS2-type game, it stands as a famous entry in the Capcom Versus series, shadowing both Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom and Capcom Vs. SNK. This series has a total of 6 games under its belt, and it's still popular today with the more recent entry debuting this year. Let's go through time to see how it became one of the big ones in the fighting game world.

1996: X-Men vs. Street Fighter
The year 1996 was a good year for Capcom. Around this time, they tried their hand with making Marvel-licensed games, and succeeded already with 2 games that released before this time, those being X-Men: Children of the Atom, and Marvel Super Heroes. The first instance that something big would come from it was the fact that Akuma, a Street Fighter character, was a secret character in X-Men: Children of the Atom, accessible by code. The combo system, which was kind of complexed in that game, was more simplified came the release of Marvel Super Heroes. Once more, there was a hidden one there, but this one due to leftover code, most likely. The character in question was Anita, who usually accompanied Donovan, and hails from the Darkstalkers series. However, unlike Akuma, she was incomplete, with a few attacks sometimes using his sprite, and that she features no name on the lifebar, no ending, and uses Thanos' portrait if somehow selected.

While Children of the Atom was published overseas to the US under Acclaim, that, and any title succeeding this would retain the Capcom label. After those two were released and played out, it was time to mix things up a little. This would mark the official premier of Marvel's universe matching up against Capcom's own Street Fighter universe. In this year, they released a coin-op arcade title X-men Vs. Street Fighter, which took elements from the two Marvel games, and blended it with tag team gameplay and Street Fighter flair. The sprites on X-Men's side used their Children of the Atom style, while Street Fighter's sprites were taken from Street Fighter Alpha, a game released around the same time. In addition Cammy White  would appear in Shadaloo-style clothing as a playable character on the Street Fighter roster, before her appearance in Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold, and it's successor Street Fighter Alpha 3. Super moves were retained from both, while Infinity Counter of Marvel Super Heroes was replaced by Variable Counter, which uses a super bar and wears down a player's guard, but has their partner attack. Variable Combination
is basically 2 Hyper Combos in one and uses 2 meters. Another pro is that if the player doesn't obtain damage during this, the character they use switch with their backup character. Lastly, the game would usually end when the boss, in this case Apocalypse, is defeated, however, an extra battle occurs against your partner, and you control the character who finishes Apocalypse off.

They were released the following year for Sega Saturn, and the year after for Sony PlayStation, though the tag feature for the 1998 release was canned, due to memory issues. Only the Arcade and PSX port ever saw daylight in the US.

1997: Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter
Reprising what was done, and seeing how much of a hit it was in the arcades (yet only decent to negative in the PSX port), Capcom tried again with Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter. This time around, the majority of the X-Men cast was swapped out in favor of more characters from the Marvel universe in general, essentially resulting in using sprites from Marvel Super Heroes. All the same, Capcom also had a few shifts on their side, dropping Charlie and Cammy for Dan and Sakura. The system was also tweaked a little, but was essentially similar to the previous game. Apocalypse returned as the main villain, but he wasn't alone. Alongside him was a mechanical-enhanced version of Akuma, dubbed Cyber-Akuma, made by Apocalypse, and is the final boss of the game. Featuring a variation of the Raging Demon, Shining Goku Shock, this move is one reason why everyone hated fighting him, for it works on ground and in mid air. There are also secret characters which are more so palette swaps of others, such as U.S. Agent and Shadow. For the first time, and perhaps the only time in the series, the game featured a neutral character Norimaro as a Japan exclusive character, representing neither side. Modeled after a Japanese comedian, his attacks are perceived just as ridiculous as his sprite movements. Unless someone emulated, or got the Japan-region copy and system, Norimaro was never introduced officially on US soil.

Like it's predecessor, the game was released for Sega Saturn in 1998 for Japan, while released for Sony PlayStation in 1999 for Japan, US, and the PAL regions. The Arcade was also widely released. While it retained the positive reviews of the previous titles, the PSX port received mixed reviews, gaining better fanfare than the PSX Port of X-Men vs. Street Fighter.

1998: Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes
Succeeding this was the release of Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes. Published by Capcom and Virgin Interactive, there were many changes that took place this time. Roster wise, the Capcom side became more mixed, bringing in characters from series such as Darkstalkers, Mega Man, and Cyberbots. The Marvel side saw some changes too, with War Machine debuting in a Capcom vs. title. There were also 4 pallete swap characters. However, mechanics this time were altered. As opposed to the off-screen partner assisting the point character in a fight, a randomly chosen assist character instead fills that role, but for only a certain number of times. Switching is still possible, but only after one gets knocked out, which tags the other member in automatically, or when they use the new feature Duo Team Attack, which has both members attack their opponent, making devastation combos and damage. Afterwards, the summoned partner is now the point character.

The Assist Character was a role that was similar to Rival Schools: United By Fate, a game released a year before, around the same time as Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter in the arcades. X-men villain Onslaught appears as the antagonist, which has two forms the player must defeat. However, he can also be a secret character to use when all others are unlocked. As cheap as he is, the player gets access to both forms once saved to the VMU. While he also summons in-game characters, he uses Sentinel as a special move, which would make him an NPC, but never the less, a character premiering in the series. Moreover, in lieu of Ken and Akuma being absent, Ryu had a different playstyle, where he takes on the attributes and movesets of those two upon certain button combinations.

It hit arcades in early 1998 for both Japan and US. Console-wise, It was released on both the Sony PlayStation and the Sega Dreamcast, the successor to Sega Saturn. Moreover, the release was for all available regions, US seeing the Dreamcast copy in 1999, and PSX in 2000. However, as before, the PSX version, called Marvel vs. Capcom EX Edition in Japan, dealt with sacrifices due to memory limitations. However, it had it's exclusives. While the tag feature was nearly absent in its entiretly, a crossover mode was set, in which a character the first player chooses becomes the partner of the opposing player. To add, an art gallery and ending collection were added, and upon beating Onslaught with him, Mega Man had access to Magnetic Shockwave, which was teased in his ending.

Again, praised highly in the arcades, it was matched with the Dreamcast release's superb reviews as well. PlayStation's, however, still retained their rather lackluster score like the other two, that is to say it was mixed to negative.


2000: Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes
Featuring 3-on-3 battles, a bigger character roster, simplified controls, and a jazzy soundtrack, the sequel Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes was the big one. The fourth member of the MvC series, it was released around the same time Capcom vs. SNK began their run in the Capcom vs. series. Using the NAOMI arcade platform, it was the only game to use 3d polygon imagery at the time, though retained the usage of character sprites. While it supposedly has a story of its own, this game does not have character specific endings like the others, and regardless of the members of your team, everyone gets the same ending.

Using 4 attack buttons, the last 2 are for the character assist. there are in total 57 characters to choose from, making one of, if not THE largest cast in the MVC series, in which 56 are playable. The assist feature also saw some changes, as there was 3 types you can choose from, labeled Alpha Type (α), Beta Type (ß), and Gamma Type (Γ), and the moves assigned are predetermined via the developers. Switching out had no limit, and like before, those tagged out can recover their health, but only for the amount left by the red area in their life bar. Aside from the usual Hyper Combos, players can use them all at once, but takes away most if not all of the Super Meter in order to pull it off. While majority of the characters are from well known series, there were a few originals this time around, starting with the main character Ruby Heart, SonSon (who's a relative of another Capcom character with the same name), and Abyss, also exclusive as the main antagonist. Returning characters consists of most of those who appeared in the MVC series up to that point, with the inclusion of those that never made it before (examples are characters as Iron Man and Cable on the Marvel side, while two of Capcom's debuts are Servbot and Dan.)

The game was high in demand, but limited in release in 2002. As they were released for arcades, they also saw a Dreamcast release the same year it debuted. In 2002, there were limited ports for Sony PlayStation 2, with the port to Microsoft Xbox the following year, mainly due to Capcom losing the Marvel license. For the first time, Sony gained a good review for their port of the game, while it was merely decent for Xbox, even with it being backwards compatible with its successor, Microsoft Xbox 360. Due to bugs and software slowdown in that version, their port lost to Sony's, but they still fell under in comparison to Dreamcast's port, said to be the most faithful due to their similarities to the NAOMI system. It saw a re-release as a downloadable for Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade, and Sony PlayStation 3's PlayStation Network in 2009, both of which getting generally good praise. With the downloadable release came changes. The attract movie was dropped, all characters were initially available, it supported online play, and the sprites had filters. I say this was done to get people hyped for the next chapter...

2011: Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds & Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3
It was ten painful years for MvC fans before the next chapter was made. At last, Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds emerged as a title straight to consoles. Not much changed from the previous game and retained the 3-on-3 format, but some characters were excluded, with others debuting, such as Albert Wesker and Dante on Capcom's side, while Marvel featured the likes of Super Skrull and Deadpool, among others. Furthermore, every character appeared in 3D form, featuring rendering similar to the young Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars. In addition, Level 3 Hyper Combos had special animations to them, stopping an opponent during its animation if connected. Other features included X-Factor, which increases damage, speed, and regenerates health. Due to the last bit, I thought of it as similar to the Blood Heat mode of unrelated novel fighter Melty Blood: Act Cadenza.

The antagonists this time around was revealed to be the joint partnership of Doctor Doom and Wesker, with the final bad guy being the oversized planet destroyer, Galactus. Plenty of character tweaks were made since MvC2 to prevent any broken characters. However, as usual, there were ways around this with some of them, and it takes a real expert to find them out. The 2-button Light and Hard Punch was canned for a 3-button set up, making it akin to that of TvC. Music was also revamped, as it went back to having character specific themes, made more modern and techno-like. Assists carried on like the last game, and before selecting your team, two things happen: for starters, you can choose to have normal, or simplified controls, though choosing the latter limits your moveset. You can also have set reserve units, basically teams you frequently study and fight well with. For fan service, character endings return, even one for Galactus should you end the game after losing to him.

Released for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, it was hailed as a great title overall. DLC included different costumes as well as 2 characters: Shuma-Gorath returning from MvC2, as well as Jill Valentine, though she features a new look and moveset to complement her Resident Evil 5 appearance. More DLC were confirmed, but due to the tsunami that took place in Japan, they went with plan B: much like how they did it for the Street Fighter IV series, the said DLC were released as another standalone debuting this month: Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, which wil be a rerelease for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and next year will be a launch title for PlayStation Vita, Sony's new handheld. This features even more character tweaks and the debut of more characters, like Hawkeye and Rocket Raccon for Marvel, and Vergil and Phoenix Wright for Capcom.

Even with its flaws and gains, Marvel vs. Capcom is a name to respect and fear in terms of competition. Whether you're a causal player, or a die-hard pro, any player is welcome to play, but it may not be to everyone's liking. Still, as a series overall, a 9 of 10. Even with its few flops back in the early days, Marvel vs. Capcom will seemingly become a timeless series.

Game Review XIX: "Street Fighter The Movie"

If you're like me, then you have heard about the live action movie of Street Fighter, the one with Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia. It was brought to my attention a year ago that a game was made from this. Now I see this as a paradox, because we're talking about a game that was made based off the movie, which was based off the game series. Let me explain in detail.

As you may know, the film has eye-catching differences, such as Guile being the lead character overall (which stands over the signature characters Ryu and Ken), and because it was live action, much things were changed, such as the absence of Guile's staple mop-top hairstyle, a different take on the origin of Blanka, and the lack of much of the powers the game constantly feature. Even with it distributed by Universal Pictures and Columbia Pictures, made in their studio, the movie is undoubtedly a Capcom product.

The same is somewhat true in regards to the games, but there was something different in regards to those as well. Even though they're both named Street Fighter: The Movie, and feature similar, if not the exact same mechanics, they are 2 different games, much like how it is for Tekken 5 and Tekken 6 and their respective counterparts, and somewhat akin to how Mortal Kombat 4/Gold was treated. The first was a coin-op game, like the ones found in arcades (or places like Dave & Busters, if you couldn't find the aforementioned place.) Now, these days, developers can just simply take the material data used for the arcades and fine tune it to be a home port game title. However, this perhaps the only time I recall that they didn't do such a thing, and even though it was made with the same footage and mechanics, it was released as a standalone title instead of a port. Here's a good rundown on what it has, but I'll try not to keep you. Some have bashed this game, saying it's almost as bad as the film. I can sympathies, but feel free to skim through if you don't want to know. Nobody will blame you.

FEATURES:

Because it's a movie based fighter, players take the roles of digitized sprites of the characters from the films. I honestly have no clue when game companies thought of this ideal, but for making game adaptions, the practice is somewhat common, given you have those in the games based off the Spider-Man trilogy with Tobey Maguire, and more of them in the game port of Dragonball Evolution. 

The character roster was among it's key differences. Some characters were exclusinve to one version, while another was fulfilling different roles between the two. Characters Blade and Sawada were exclusive for the movie, and didn't appear, nor were they mentioned, in any other game, since they aren't part of the general storyline. Other characters, like Akuma, had no part in the film, but were protrayed by an actor much like the rest in both versions. But in his case, he was available in one, and somewhat unplayable in the other (save through means of a cheat.) Much like how it typically was for him in MOST of the Street Fighter games, Akuma was hidden in the home port, and unless you used a code, an NPC you had to fight when conditions were fulfilled, yet in the coin-op game, he is initially available as a full character on the roster. Coin-op characters Blade and the palette-swapped Bison Troopers aren't seen in the console port, and are somewhat replaced by exclusives Dee Jay and Blanka. Sawada is featured on both, but with different specials exclusive to one another.


GAME MECHANICS (COIN-OP VERSION):

The mechanics for this game differed greatly from the others in the series as well. While almost absent in the film, each character retained their special movies, granted when saying them, some tend to sound kind of silly. In addition, those with close quarter specials, like Zangief, Balrog, and Sawada, could reflect projectiles. I don't know if this was true for both versions, but I have seen that was possible, but still unbelievable (though 'Gief using his 360 spin to bypass projectiles is believable and useful.) Each game bore different gameplay traits as well. The coin-op arcade version emphasized more on the juggling system. Baffled that the idea even existed, players can mix up basic fighting with specials, even cancelling a special to follow up with another, keeping the opponent in air. Now back then, this was a pretty huge deal, but nowadays, it's a no-brainer for most fighters out there (that has yet to be considered for Virtua Fighter.)

The game also had a Super Meter, and as with Super Street Fighter II Turbo, allows the player to use a Super Combo on the opponent. Should the match end with it, the lifebar of the opponent breaks apart. One of the other traits included Interrupt Moves, a quick action performed after blocking an attack, and would later return in the Street Fighter Alpha series as Alpha Counter. The second action would be Comeback Moves, which features moves that could only be used when one's health is in the danger level. While these moves did not have a meter of its own, this would later return in the Street Fighter IV series as Ultra Combos, which featured its own meter that builds upon receiving damage or absorbing them during Focus, and was changeable starting with Super Street Fighter IV. The last one is the Regeneration Move, which refills a portion of a players life, but sacrifices a whole Super Meter. I heard it was possible in the third game of Arika's Street Fighter EX series, but a better example of this would be seen in Street Fighter III, with the game's boss Gill, who revives himself after being knocked out when his super meter is full (though it's proven you can stop how much he gains.) Aside from the 14-character Arcade Mode, a hidden Tag Mode was also in the game.

GAME MECHANICS (CONSOLE VERSION):

The Console version also has uniqueness from its coin-op counterpart, aside from the roster. While both retain a few instances from Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo, the home console port is based from that. Featuring the Super Combos and Special Moves it already had, Super Specials was put in there as another means of attack. Using part of the Super Gauge and the input of a direction and TWO attack buttons would make the player use a powered up version of a Special Move. When the gauge is full, it's use is unlimited until they use the Super Combo. This was seen as the ES Specials of Night Warriors (Darkstalkers series), and would later surface in Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact as EX Moves, a mechanic people thought the game gave birth to, but was actually a more toned down version of the system.

Adding to this, the game also featured different modes. Movie Battle is a Story Mode-like game mode where the player assumes the role of Guile, and branches off into different routes. Your choices in this mode is reflected to how many opponents you'll face before reaching Bison. An arcade-style mode, Street Battle, is essentially the arcade version of the game, but unlike the Coin-Op version, has you facing 12 characters, with the spots of Zangief, Dee Jay, Sagat, and Bison set in that order as your last 4 opponents (which differs from Street Fighter II's Balrog, Vega, Sagat, and Bison format.) There's also a Versus Mode, and a Trial Mode, which you compete for a high score. These were released for Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation, both CD-platform consoles.

VISUALS/SOUND

People would look at it, and right away, some would think about the first 2 Mortal Kombat games. In fact, some of the poses look clearly adapted from that series. Another way they would see that deals with the background in some of the stages. However, the team that did do that game, which was formerly Midway, had no part in its development, yet resembled their work somewhat. It was also weird the first time seeing this. That said, I couldn't seen digitized versions of actors doing standstill shocker moves, launching fireballs or doing spin kicks and what not. While it's a fighting game, and was least prominent in the earlier games, they have no defining personalities for each character as they do in the later games, and much like the older titles, has the player get into the fight almost immediately. With any game, it has a win counter, shown as a Shadoloo/Shadowlaw insignia beside the name, stating the rounds won. In the background, there lie some stages with cameos of characters in-game, and another stage that features a crowd. The stages were but so few, the music even fewer, so there was much to be desired, yet some stages also featured inaudible clips from the actual film.

The mantle was stepped up a bit when the console port came into play. They tried to make more similar to the namesake game series, with newer voice acting, more music, different stages and different visuals of the moves performed. The Psycho Crusher, which was a staple Bison move, was still absent from the game. In all, the game was improved, but not by much.

DEVELOPMENT

The development team differed between the two. For starters, the Coin-Op version was developed under Incredible Technologies, who was a coin-op game company much like Sega, Midway, and Williams, but wasn't a threat to those 3. In fact, they had almost nothing under their belt in terms of fighting games, the only exceptions being this and Bloodstorm. I guess sometime after the coin-op release of the game, development was turned over, or said to be primarily Capcom's doing, but under different publishing for the console ports. In Japan, publishing rights were still under Capcom, while in US, Europe, and Australia, publishing was done by Acclaim, the successor to the ridiculed LJN, and the company that first brought us Mortal Kombat, NBA Jam, and early WWF titles. However, because some understand the origins, few have credited this as another LJN title, which has been mainly bashed by consumers in terms of gaming.

VERDICT

I know I have yakked on and on about this game already, but I'll end it with these. The game in general is kinda bad, but it was a stepping stone mechanic wise to what we have today, so in general, both games get a 5.5 of 10. I wasn't expecting the games to be successful, but much like the movie, it had hope, but that's it. Until next time.

Game Review XVIII: "Sonic CD"

In light of its return to the gaming scene, Sonic CD was a chronologically questioned title. Aside from being the only good game on the not-so-innovative Sega CD adapter for the Sega Genesis, this game introduced the characters Amy Rose and Metal Sonic. Outside of emulators, the Sega CD, or the Sonic Gems Collection on Nintendo Gamecube (and Sony PlayStation 2 in other areas), not many would know, let alone play it, so those who missed out, making its return as a downloadable game for consoles and mobile phones is a big deal for Sonic fans.

Things would be so much calmer if not for the exploits of Dr. Ivo Robotnik/Eggman. Once again, Sonic sets out to stop him. This time, he sees the fabled Little Planet, alongside a pink hedgehog named Amy Rose. But they see the planet chained down and covered in metal, and this has Robotnik's name all over it. Furthermore, Amy gets kidnapped by the metallic blue doppelganger bent on destroying him. Now Sonic must traverse through new zones and collect all 7 Time Stones, jewels capable of bending time itself. He'll need these to rescue Amy, crush Metal Sonic, and stop his nemesis' plans once more.


Sonic CD goes back to the solo gameplay of Sonic the Hedgehog, though you have at your disposal as well the Spin Dash and the Super Peel Out, a Sonic action new at the time, and that would later return in the Sega Game Gear title Sonic Chaos. The additional gimmicks this time around were signs that could allow you to travel to the past or future. Once you flip a sign, if you can build up enough speed nonstop, you could travel through time. In addition, there was a special ramp seen at the beginning of the level, in addition to various switches found in specific stages. The original shield of Sonic 1 returns, alongside the very common (but now seldom used) Speed Up and Invincibility power-ups. By collecting Time Stones, you can have a good or bad future for whatever Zone you're in. As with Sonic The Hedgehog, your means of getting these stones is by completing Special Stages, and to access them, you must have 50 rings minimum, and jump in the giant ring at the end of the zone's act. Each Zone consist of 3 acts, with the 3rd one being the boss stage, and its appearance will vary on if you made Good futures or not, as well as if you possess the Time Stones. The historic battle would take place on the 6th Zone, with Metal Sonic making more appearances afterwards, even as an enemy in the title Knuckles' Chaotix, which was a game on the brother adapter for Sega Genesis, the Sega 32X.

It was also the first Sonic title to ever utilize internal memory, stored via built-in RAM. Its re-release to consoles gives it a place in the Sonic timeline: following the ending teaser from Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1, Metal Sonic was hinted as the returning bad guy for the next installment. With this fact in mind, Sonic CD will serve most likely as a prequel to Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2. The trailer, released by them not long ago, clearly shows that Sonic CD will most likely follow Sonic 4: Episode 1 storywise. The re-release will have the same visuals as the original game, but built around a new engine, with tweaked Spin Dash animation from Sonic the Hedgehog 2. The changes comes as a surprise, since they're transitioning from the 2.5D graphics of Sonic 4, to back to the 16-bit era of Sonic 1. In addition, because they went back to the solely 16-bit game, the Homing Attack, which was in Sonic 4, may not be featured in it. In fact, I'm almost certain that will be absent, since it wasn't there to begin with.


Sonic CD was hailed as the only good game in terms of the Sega CD addon, and given what I have seen based around that, the statement is REALLY saying something, given that the graphics, compared to the other games on that, looked somewhat primitive visually. Another heads up is that re-release will feature the original soundtrack from its Japanese port. Whether or not the American soundtrack will be there is questionable, but since they said "featured", I'm gonna leave that as a possibility.

Sonic CD's relaunch is another way they kick off  years of Sonic the Hedgehog, even though there's still the release of Sonic Generations happening next month, which happens to be the main celebration. Back then, I would perfect grade this title, but the fact that it was the only good game on that specific platform, that would be overdoing it. For now, I say an 8.4 of 10 For Sonic CD, but I'll see just what they do with the relaunch.

Game Review XVII: Mega Man: The Power Battle / Power Fighters

By sheer chance, what was to happen if the classic Mega Man franchise turned to the arcade outlet? Well, back then Keiji Inafune and Capcom tried this with Mega Man: The Power Battle. In a rough sense, this was essentially a boss rush-type game dealing with Mega Man 1-7, the graphics taken mostly after Mega Man 7, though enhanced somewhat.

Protoman vs. Iceman

The first game had a system where you could battle according to these formats: One mode could let you face bosses from the first 2 games, the second dealt with Mega Man 3-6, and the third gave you bosses from Mega Man 7. The player could choose from either Mega Man, Protoman, or Bass, all of which fights virtually similar. To add, two different heroes can co-op against the boss. But, it's problem is that even though it was boss rush-like, it was relatively easy, which is a huge statement considering it's side scrollers are usually challenging at best. In any case, the music for each boss was remixed, though some of those didn't have their appropriate themes. This is one aspect that I, as a gamer, couldn't criticize so much on, mainly that, especially for the first 2 games, not every single track from them was remixed. The bosses were selected via roulette, so you couldn't have a say in who you wanted to fight next. Because of this, it was by sheer luck you get to face a boss that was weak to the weapon you just obtained. As with all games in the franchise, every boss had their weaknesses, which you could adapt upon beating the one beforehand. The move sets consisted of the basic buster arm and Charge Shot, and they could dash, which differs by character. Depending on what mode you selected, you face a certain mini boss, and finally Wily. Each character also had an epilogue at the end of their playthrough, even if Wily manages to escape after defeating him.

Even with its supposed flaws, it saw a sequel called Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters. For the most part, it was essentially the same game, but with a few changes and additions. For starters, Mega Man 8 was incorporated with the addition of Duo, a NPC (non-playable character) protagonist from that game. This would perhaps be the only time in the US he was actually a playable character. Next the "stories" were rearranged, so you weren't limited to the game-specific bosses of the first game. Instead, because of the new story format, some bosses were mixed in with others from different games, but still had a weakness to compensate for it. Plus, you can actually choose who to fight this time. Like before, you can play with a friend, but this time, it's a matter of who can beat the boss first. While both players got the weapon at the end in the first game, now it goes to whoever manages to get the weapon capsule first after the boss is defeated. The music score this time was remixed as well, but taken from the Rockman Complete Works tracks, which were standalone re-releases of the games for PlayStation. But again, not all characters had their appropriate music scores. Another addition, but perhaps a forseen one, is that each character had an extra move they could use on top of their initial abilities: when they obtain a certain powerup midway through the game. Two of these moves, the Mega Upper (Mega Man) and Cresent Kick (Bass), were incorporated from the Street Fighter franchise, as they are essentially the Shoryuken (Ryu) and Flash Kick (Guile). Certain powerups were also obtainable by battle, namely Rush for Mega Man, Beat for Proto Man and Duo, while Bass had Treble. The Wily Castle battles are similar to its predecessor, but the mini bosses were different. The epilogues were more closer to the games themselves, with the co-op epilogue varying by characters selected. It was thanks to this that we saw an insight on Bass' conception and the link to Mega Man X's character Zero, a matter that was never truly bridged chronologically.

Duo and Bass vs Diveman

Both games would see US limelight as bundled in Mega Man Anniversary Collection alongside the first 8 classic series games, commemorating 10 years of Mega Man at the time. In history, these would be the only Mega Man arcade titles of its time, but in terms of the franchise itself, it stands as perhaps one of, if not THE weakest link. I won't say it isn't enjoyable, but unless you're a die-hard fanatic, fanfare for these two can come and go pretty easily, there fore scoring a 6 of 10 overall.

Game Review XVI: "Megaman Network Transmission"

I know that it has been an eternity since I've done another game review. This is only because I've found more anime to speak of then the games for a while. Nevertheless, let's get to it with Megaman Network Transmission. Not many people liked this title, and I can see why, but... all I can say is that of all the games out of it's respective series, this is one of the two titles that were unique.

Vs. Gutsman.EXE

It starts off after the net heroes Lan Hikari and Megaman.EXE finished vanquishing World 3's Life Virus, created by Mr. Wily. In a sense, this is pretty much after the first game, Megaman Battle Network. However, instead of rest, all awaiting for the duo is another conflict. It is soon reported that the Zero Virus (yeah, I know, something you've heard in Mega Man X5) is affecting the Personal Terminals, or PETs, thus infecting other netnavis other than Megaman. After confirming this with Dr. Hikari (his father) Lan hears later that Mayl and Roll.EXE are being attacked by a corrupted Fireman.EXE, and is trapped in the internet because of it. By smashing it and talking to his net operator Mr. Match, he learns that the supposed vaccines are actually doing the damage. Confirming this with his father Dr. Hikari, Lan and Megaman set out to crush the virus, stop the distribution of the false vaccine, and save the world once again.

Fireman.EXE intro

Now for the game itself. Essentially, you can call this Megaman Battle Network 1.5 in terms of plot, but it's gameplay sets it apart from the others. This is the first game that you don't have the overworld control seen in the GBA titles, resulting in a click-and-go-like gameplay. As for the in-net gameplay, it retains the RPG elements of the Battle Network series, yet plays akin to the classic Mega Man games, in which he runs in the traditional side-scrolling form, and takes a few moves from the Classic and MMX series: From the Classic Mega Man series, you can use ladders, use the buster during the stage, and the slide feature returns; from the Mega Man X series, you can use a grappling item for rails to bypass certain  perils. Like the Battle Network series, health and strength are upgradable, and special attacks are made though the use of Battle Chips. He cannot change colors nor forms, but through the chips, he can utilize the boss' weaknesses, or even moves from the boss itself. Like the GBA, chips are gained via the Custom Screen, and by default, there's 5 to choose from, with each chip limited in quantity. You are also able to edit your chip folder so that much stronger chips can be used. As it is derived from Battle Network, all the enemies/allies are reminiscent of their Classic counterpart, save for Zero who's from Mega Man X.

Now the contents behind it. The game was released on Nintendo Gamecube, makring Battle Network's only appearance on the home console. Even though it's readable in English, the voices were Japanese (English voices didn't happen until the DS release of Megaman Battle Network 5.) The game was made by Arika and published by Capcom, a partnership seen in Arika's previous series, the Street Fighter EX games. The game is single player only, and has no link-up feature. Graphics were done in a mix of 2D and 3D cel shading graphics, aiming to give off a more anime-like feel. As this was a new concept at the time, it was criticized somewhat. Difficulty was from high to unbalanced, according to critics. Overall the game's recpetion was rather mixed in general.

In all, I say that the game wasn't necessarily a miss, but for its concept, it was early, I suppose. I call it a 6.7 of 10.

Game review XV: "Sonic Colors"

Sonic Colors perhaps maybe the closest thing to a game done right, according to fans of the franchise. While I tend to agree a little, there was something significantly different about this one. Either way, this game had good feedback from what I understand.

The plot this time around deals with the release of an amusement park up in space. Of all people, this park was Eggman's idea. Suspecting something sinister behind it, Sonic, as well as his right hand buddy Tails, goes to investigate. Much to his suspicion, Eggman was indeed plotting something, involving an alien race called Wisps, and their hyper-go-lucky energy. The heroic duo, alongside the unique Wisp, Yacker, set off to foil his plan, and free every last Wisp.

The game was released for both Wii and the Nintendo DS, with each version taking after their respective predecessors:

Sonic Colors Wii

• WII: Sonic Colors featured 2D to 3D gameplay seen in the preceding Sonic Unleasehed, even though its gameplay relates more to the PS3/X360 version of it. The game could be played with 4 different controls: The Wii Remote (with/without the Nunchuk) the Classic Controller, or the Gamecube Controller. It had more acts compared to the DS version, each stage bring vibrant visuals.There are 8 Wisps in this version, but here's four you'll see in both versions: The White Wisp can fill your boost gauge, Cyan Lazer can give Sonic the ability to zip through power lines and bounce off surfaces in quick speed. Orange Rocket can make Sonic launch straight upward to different areas, and the Yellow Drill can let you dig underground, and effectively swim. Be wary, though that if you revert while still underground, you will lose a life.
  
  There are 4 exclusive Wisps in this version. Pink Spike transforms Sonic into a spiky creature that can cling to even the ceilings, while also accessing a spiky variation to the signature Spin Dash. Green Hover allows you to temporarily hover to higher areas, which is highly needed for some stages. Blue Cube can crush nearby enemies upon impact to the ground, and can switch blocks to access different areas. Purple Frenzy is a Wisp unlike the rest. Already tainted with negative energy by Eggman, these Nega-Wisps are destructive. By contacting one, Sonic transforms into a beast that munches anything in his path, growing bigger in size until the gauge is depleted.

Sonic Colors DS

•  DS: The DS version of the game is reminiscent to the Sonic Rush games. While he still uses the Spin Dash at will, there are fewer wisps, and each park only has 3 key acts. The controls are more or less akin to the set up from Sonic Rush, with transforming being the Y Button. Also, like Sonic Rush, it has the special stages that utilize the stylus and the bottom screen. To add, while this isn't true for the Wii version, the DS version hosts missions that include cameos from other characters. Adding to the few differences were the reduction of animated cutscenes.
  
  While Green Hover, Purple Frenzy, Blue Cube, and Pink Spike are absent, the DS versions do have their own exclusives. Red Burst gives Sonic endless double jumping ability as long as there's energy in the gauge. Burst can also power certain gimmicks to get to different areas. Lastly, Violet Void works in the same fashion as the Purple Frenzy: being a Nega-Wisp, it allows Sonic to swallow everything in it's path, and expand its size.

Interesting to note that the Wii version allows Sonic to access his super form during the stages, something rarely done in the next gen titles. DS, on the other hand, has an extra boss that uses Super Sonic's form, further relating its gameplay to Sonic Rush. Another noteworthy trait was the change in cast, as all the characters (save for Eggman) feature a new voice, no longer done by the casting crew of 4Kids (Mike Pollock, however, retains his role as Eggman). All in all, Sonic Colors is a grand title indeed, with expectations running high for the upcoming Sonic Generations game. Sonic Colors, BOTH versions, gain a respectable 7.9 of 10.

Game Review XIV: "Sonic Unleashed"

Ah, yes. Sonic Unleashed was made originally as the 3rd Sonic Adventure title, hence being called before Sonic World Adventure. However, it doesn't succeed the Sonic Adventure games, therefore being an entirely different title.

Made with the Hedgehog Engine, Sonic travels through areas around the world, which if you look close enough at them, resembles that of our own. The premise this time is that Sonic is foiling Dr. Eggman's schemes once again, this time bringing the hurt as he transforms into Super Sonic during the opening at some point. Just when he thought he had the deranged doctor beaten, Eggman pulled a fast move, and Sonic, even in super form, gets caught. Extracting the energy from the Chaos Emeralds (cancelling Super Sonic in the process), Eggman fires a laser towards Earth, which awakens the sleeping beast of destruction Dark Gaia, therefore breaking pieces of the Earth apart. While this is going on, Sonic experiences an unwelcome change. He becomes more beastly, perhaps under Dark Gaia's influence, turning him into the slow, but powerful Werehog. After being ejected by Eggman, along with the now power-drained Emeralds, Sonic is sent flying to Earth, which he encounters a small animal named Chip, who suffers amnesia after nearly being crushed by Sonic. The adventure begins as soon as the sun rises.

Playstation 3 / Xbox 360
Day Stage

Sonic Unleashed is a solo-player title, with the character only utilized being Sonic. Despite this, Tails and Amy appear as well, with Tails providing traveling across the broken world. As Sonic already has all 7 Emeralds in possession, his purpose is to go to the various temples in order to restore power to them, thus returning the continent back into place. Interesting to note that this is the 2nd time the Chaos Emeralds were drained of power, the first being Sonic Adventure, where despite Chaos taking the negative power (which gave them color), Sonic still manifested the powers to transform. This isn't true for Unleashed's case. Fitting to the trailers, the differences were between night and day, as you play differently between the two.

Playstation 2 / Nintendo Wii
Night Stage

In the day stages, you face Eggman's robots normally, using the boost function provided by the Hedgehog Engine, along with another new functions, Stomp and Wall Jumping. The returning arsenal of moves included the Homing Attack, Light Dash, and Grinding. Using the Boost granted faster speed, and can be further increased by leveling them up. The stages themselves were a mix of 2D and 3D visuals, giving a bit of variety. In contrast, the night stages were slower and more action oriented. Sonic, in Werehog form, has an arsenal of combos to throw down Eggman's robots, as well as Dark Gaia's minions, and can be further enhanced upon upgrades as well. To compensate for the severe reduction in Sonic's speed abilities, he utilizes combos with both left and right attack buttons, and can carry items. Certain gimmicks, like switches and polls, can be used in this form as well.

Playstation 2 / Nintendo Wii
Day Stage

Now for the version differences. This title was released for Playstation 2, it's successor, Playstation 3, the Nintendo Wii, and the Xbox 360. As usual, PS3 and 360 were more or less advanced than the other 2. They only had one save file, but the stages were vibrant, and a lot more moves were offered. In addition, the next-gen versions had overworld gameplay, where you can interact with people, something seen in both Sonic Adventure and Sonic The Hedgehog (2006). As it was for those two consoles, there were additional acts that were downloadable. When the player can decide to change it from day or night, there was a loading animation that showed his transformation. In contrast, PS2 and Wii had watered down gameplay. The boost gauge only went to 5 small bars, as opposed to being one large one, and the boost itself couldn't be held down for continuous use, something done on PS3 and 360. Adding to these changes were temples that utilized the sun and moon tokens. The 2D to 3D gameplay I mentioned before were broken up into separate acts. While it's still possible to interact with others, the overworld aspect was cut from the PS2 and Wii versions, despite them having more save files. Finally, in terms of moves, Sonic's was also watered down in that department, and there were stages that were non existent in the PS2 and Wii titles, even though there is a temple and cutscene from one of those omitted areas.

The Werehog function gained many dislikes, though I feel that Sega was trying to get back on track. The PS3/X360 versions gains 8 of 10, while a 6.5 of 10 goes to PS2 and Wii versions,

Game Review XIII: "Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1"

Okay, here's a brief rant before I go into the game in question. "I have heard a lot of bashing concerning this title, claiming that they didn't do it right. Well guess what: after years of making 3D titles for the franchise, I wouldn't think they would go back into the classic 2D graphics we remember so well. I'm not trying to blast the classic days, I'm just saying to quit being a b**ch, crying about going back to the classic days. They did, it's out, another is being planned, a mix of present and past is in the making, grow up, shut up, deal with it, and goodbye!"

If you had to read that, then I apologize. That was a rant meant for these Sonic the Hedgehog "fans" who cried about how Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 turned out. For one thing, Sega and Sonic Team went back to the days of old, I'm guessing after numerous whines from purists who are die hard 2D Sonic fans, thinking awful about the modern day games of the same character. Now to the game itself. As stated, it's called Sonic 4, made as the long-awaited successor to Sonic 3 and Knuckles (Sonic the Hedgehog 3 + Sonic and Knuckles). Like the first 3 games, it's a 2D platformer, but immersed with 3D graphics, making it technically a 2.5D, I guess. The game pretty much features him going solo, like Sonic 1. In fact, in the beginning levels, some of the badniks, and even the first Eggman Boss are rehashed versions of  Sonic 1 and Sonic 2 enemies and boss. The story this time around is that Angel Island finally returns to the sky after Eggman's defeat on Death Egg. Seeing as how things are returned to normal, Sonic parts with Tails and Knuckles to roam new territories.

Of course, staple bad guy, and eternal foe Eggman survives the fall, with dreams of creating Eggmanland, as usual. Changing animals into robots once more, he searches for the Chaos Emeralds needed to make his plans a reality. As always, our blue, spiky friend is the only obstacle in his way, which is where we come in. Like the games before it, we have to clear stages, collect the emeralds, and crush Dr. Eggman for good.

Comparison:
Sonic 1 Green Hill Boss to
Sonic 4 Splash Hill Boss

Note that the title is Sonic 4: Episode 1. As it is a downloadable title, there wouldn't be very much in the game. There are 4 main Zones, a final boss level, and a special stage area to venture through, and each Zone consists of 3 acts and the Zone Boss making 4 different acts to play in. The special stage is reminiscent of Sonic 1, and is accessible when you bring at least 50 rings to the goal, jumping in the giant ring afterwards. Gameplay is like the norm(Jump attack, Spin Attack, Spin Dash), with the inclusion of the now-staple Homing Attack. Aside from the usual powerups and gimmicks, there are some new ones, such as a traveling deck of cards. And this makes the first Sonic game in a while to utilize Super Sonic at will during the stage, with the pressing of the transformation button, though obviously it's no use if you don't have all 7 emeralds.

Splash Hill Zone gameplay

My only complaint is the running, as Sonic would initially build up much more speed when he continues running. In Sonic 4, he has a slower start, and players sometimes relied on the Homing Attack to gain momentum. In a sense, Sonic Advance was also guilty of this, but it wasn't as big an issue as it is here. . The music is fine, as they went back to the beats used in the Genesis era, with a new melody to it. The boss fights are the same as we remember from Sonic 1 and Sonic 2, though they have something extra every now and then. Everything is nearly as good as the classics, but the game itself is rather short, so I doubt that everybody would enjoy much of it. An Episode 2 is in the works, but due to so many feedback on this one, it's future is uncertain.

Sonic 4: Episode 1 gets a 7 of 10. I applaud them for going retro, and am waiting to see what they do with this project onwards.

Game Review XII: "Sega Channel"

Okay, before I get into the topic of this post, I'm sure some of you are looking at me like: "Wolf, you're gonna talk about a game called Sega Channel?" If you don't know what that is, be patient for a sec. Now, have you ever dreamed of a game that had a lot of games packed in one cartridge or disc? Well, there was one of the sort for both the NES and the Sega Genesis called Action 52, which had 52 games packed in one cartridge. Sega Channel is sort of like that, but different. Let me explain...

Sega Channel Adapter
(Scientific Atlanta model)

Sega Channel kinda succeeded Action 52 in a sense. While Action 52 was unlicensed and multi-platform, Sega Channel was developed by Sega. Some fees had to be paid to use it, consisting of a one time activation fee of $25.00, and a monthly $14.95 to continue using it. With this, players had access to 50 games each month, with changes in the titles available. Of course, this was later reduced to 35 games in a two week cycle, which had nearly 70 games available each month. The access to these games were unlimited, as long as it was available in that period.This qualifies as an online service, though the external connection used both the Sega Channel Adapter and a cable cord, perhaps that of the TV. That said, it was obviously bigger than the standard Genesis Cartrige, something that the lock-on game Sonic and Knuckles couldn't compare to, in spite of its uniqueness.

Sega Channel Adapter
(General Instrument model)

Two versions of this was made. The original, which looked like an overly bulky adaption to the Genesis, was created by Scientific Atlanta. It was needlessly heavy that if you were to connect that to the other two adapters: the Sega CD and the Sega 32X, what was already a mess will look like even more of one. And with it's own AC adapter to connect to it, it's just one of those things that it's a pain to set up. There was another version made my General Instruments (no affiliation with General Electric, or GE) In any case, it was heavy, a bit pricey, but it was worth it. The service in general only lasted for about 5 years, which is a pretty good run on the Genesis.

Mega Man: The Wily Wars
(one of the 12 exclusives)

Aside from featuring games already released in the US, 12 games released in the PAL regions were put on here as exclusive titles for Sega Channel. Among which includes games such as Pulse Man, Golden Axe 3, and the 16-bit 3-in-1 game Mega Man: The Wily Wars. Of course, like many before it, the games (including the region exclusives debuting on Sega Channel) became emulated, both legal and not, on various platforms. Even so, I still believe that during it's 5-year run, Sega Channel did one hell of a job.

I can't exactly call it a game, as it was a hash of them in a bulky cartridge, but Sega Channel gets a 9 of 10 overall. Yeah, but to say that it's that good is an understatement for us nostalgic players.

Game Review XI: "Sonic Heroes"

Sonic Heroes was a completely new title, which decided to take a multi-platformer approach, and was released for Playstation 2, Xbox, PC, and Gamecube (shown at right). Despite some faults here and there, the game passed at least in that aspect alone. Like Sonic Adventure 2, the team is of 3 members, however players uses all 3 teammates in one stage, giving players different playing styles. Each member of the team represents a certain attribute, which the player can access by having that character as the leader.

The character in the blue, wind-like snapshot is the Speed Formation leader. With Speed Formation, players can access fast speed and abilities like the Homing Attack, and the debuting Rocket Accel. Selecting the character in the yellow, thunder-like snapshot puts you in Fly Formation. In this formation, all characters hang on to the leader, who is up top. Apart from flying, you can access the debuting move Thunder Shoot, which can take down airborne enemies. Choosing the red, flame-like snapshot puts you in Power Formation. Power Formation has the teammates on each side of the leader, as the Power leader brings a world of hurt to their foes. This formation is also capable of destroying steel containers and natural elements in the way. The teams are as follows (in Speed/Fly/Power format) as well as difficulty:

• Team Sonic: Sonic/Tails/Knuckles (Normal)
• Team Dark: Shadow/Rouge/E-123 Omega (Intermediate)
• Team Rose: Amy/Cream/Big (Easy)
• Team Chaotix: Espio/Charmy/Vector (Mission-Based)

Team Sonic in cutscene before
Grand Metropolis

For those who are unfamiliar with a few of the characters, here's a brief summary. Big returns from Sonic Adventure as the Power member for Team Rose. Shadow, from Sonic Adventure 2, barely remembers anything after finding himself in Eggman's Lab, only to be freed by Rouge. Around this time, newcomer and final entry of the E-100 series, E-123 Omega, emerges with ill intent of destroying his maker's robots, in which he initially attacks Shadow. Vector, Charmy and Espio are more so known in the Archie Comics-made Sonic the Hedgehog comic books. They did appear in the Sega 32X title Knuckles Chaotix. Espio is a chameleon with exceptional ninjutsu skills. Charmy is a small bee who can be a tad scatterbrained, but has a painful sting under that adorable nature of his. Vector is the leader of the Chaotix Detective Agency, always seen sporting headphones as an accessory. He and Knuckles go back, along with Espio and Charmy, as the original Chaotix, originally a 7-man team. Upon Vector starting his detective gig, only Espio and Charmy serve as the returning members. Cream the Rabbit is younger than Tails, debuting in Sonic Advance 2 as the first character Sonic rescues. Cute and polite as she is, she can be trouble to foes if she sends her mini Chao, Cheese, to attack them.

Team Rose grinding

Everyone plays the same stages, which is somewhat reminiscent to the Zone format seen in the classic games. To put it short, the original Sonic the Hedgehog consisted of zones with 3 Acts. Sonic Heroes sort of follows this by having a similar format: 2 stages that relate to one another, and a boss to accompany that. The total stage count is 14, and players must find the Chaos Emerald upon completing the second stage before each boss. Unlike the original, you must have a key to enter the special stages, but it can be easily lost should the leader suffer any damage or lose a life. Gimmicks like the rails and springs return, along with newer ones like the bobsleds. The abilities of each member can be boosted to a max of Level 3. If Speed is level 3, the Homing Attack gains a wind property. If Fly is level 3, the Thunder Shoot can damage, possibly destroy airborne enemies in a single hit. If Power is level 3, the final B button combo can explode and destroy surrounding enemies.

Team Chaotix gameplay

Some characters have virtually the same moveset, while the majority has variations that can be used the same way. There are a few that are character specific, such as Espio's invisibility and Amy's hovering after a jump. Every team has a desperate move known as a Team Blast. Once the Team Blast gauge is filled, players can activate it to take out numerous enemies and deal a good deal of damage to bosses. With the remaining energy, certain bonuses are gained, or factors are set in place until the remaining energy depletes itself. All 4 teams are after Eggman, running into each other along the way, while a mysterious, yet somewhat familiar figure works in the shadows to shake up the game's plot. Each team had a vocal theme, with Crush 40, the group that did the game themes for both Sonic Adventure games, cover the game's intro and insert boss themes.

Sonic Heroes wasn't the greatest by a long shot. The design and voice acting left a good area to improve from, but it was good in its own right. The game gets a 7 out of 10.

Game Review X: "Sonic Adventure 2"

Alright, this one is perhaps my favorite of all the 3D Sonic titles thus far, and it's quite old too: it was the final Sonic title to be released for the Dreamcast, and, ironically, the first to be picked up by Nintendo as Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, perhaps a popular name on Gamecube so far. Like Sonic Adventure and SADX, SA2 and SA2B had their differences in graphics and features. However, when it came to fan reception, both names were known as the greatest rendition to 3D. Some people still take pride in playing that today, and personally, I am lucky to have it again. SA2B was my premier game when I got the Gamecube, and man, did I love it!

Alright, let's talk about the game itself first. To the core, gameplay is left almost intact. The Gamecube's controller had a mild resemblance to Dreamcast's controls, so it's enough to say that any title Dreamcast had were right at home when it transferred to Gamecube, despite the difference in the controller shapes. The transition from SA to SA2 chaged quite a bit, even as far as the adversary's name. Note in the last review, I typed Ivo Robotnik/Eggman. while the name Robotnik still floats in SA2, the mad doctor purposely refers to himself (i guess officially at this point) as Dr. Eggman. The abilities undergone some changes, and there were even a change in Knuckles' punch combo. To add, Sonic was now able to somersault and grind (the grinding would later make itself staple in future titles), and Knuckles was now able to swim. The biggest change in terms of gameplay was Tails, who used the Tornado 3 for his shooting stages. FYI, the Tornado was a red plane seen in games even prior to Sonic Adventure, followed by a blue transformable successor, Tornado 2, in the same game. Tornado 3 was built to be like the second, though it bore a fighter mech transformation called the Cyclone, and a vehichle form for driving stages. These three would be the members of the Hero Story. Their foes, the members of the Dark Story, consisted of Eggman, who rivals Tails' gameplay with his Egg Walker, the so-called clone of Sonic, Shadow, and the treasure hunter Rouge the Bat. To mix things up, while elements in stages were similar, no character played the same stage like in SA. To add to Sonic's troubles, thanks to Shadow's deeds, as well as the resemblance between the two hedgehogs, G.U.N., who at the beginning managed to capture Sonic, is after him, not knowing that the person responsible was the jet black Shadow. The plot in the game overall goes beyond the misunderstanding if one was to play the Dark Story. The plot itself ultimately ties to Shadow, who harbors revenge for what took place 50 years prior to the game's events.

Now for the differences. Initially, the difference comes through the graphics. Nintendo ran an ATI graphics card in their consoles, with Dreamcast running an 100 MHz PowerVR2 CLX2 card. This technicality caused both games to look significantly different from one another. This is true for both SA and SA2. Chao Garden, returning from the first game, also faced some differences. To keep in theme with the game itself, 2 gardens were introduced as well as 2 types of Chao: the angelic Hero Chao, and the fiendish Dark Chao. While both SA and SA2 had Chao Race, SA2B introduced the comical Chao Katate, where various Chao (Hero, Neutral, Dark) face each other in a tournament of sorts. To add, there were also special Chao received when a circumstance is filled. Chao abilities are raised by Small Animals, Fruit, and Chaos Drives, dropped after beating a G.U.N. enemy. The biggest difference between DC and GC is the title sequence. Dreamcast lacked such for SA2's opening, only featuring an animation of the logo itself, following a background photo of Sonic and Shadow. Gamecube had a title sequence using the game's graphics, introducing briefly the playable characters, using a variant of the games theme, Live and Learn. The title and menu screen featured an endless rising photo involving all 6 characters and the 3 different Chao.

Each stage has five missions to do, with the first mission initially done during the story. The game is hinted into playing two sides, hinted earlier, as opposed to each character having their own story. The character vocal themes returns, though the majority is remixed from its SA counterparts. Adding to these is Eggman's theme, making his first vocal theme. To accompany this are Shadow's and Rouge's themes. Despite not being playable in the game's single player mode, Amy, as well as her theme, returns as well, though her theme is left generally intact. The 2P mode of both games has the 6 initial characters, as well as characters that play of the like. Every extra character played like their main counterpart in the DC Version, while the GC Version tweaked the extra characters. These tweaks affected movement as well as movesets. Mecha Sonic, used as the action racing extra alongside Amy, is the main example of those tweaks. As opposed to the other 3 having special movies, Mecha Sonic had a shield to repel those same moves, perhaps to compensate for not having any of his own. Omochao acts as the guide this time around, and is seen everywhere. One can even interact with him my picking him up, or damaging him.

Sonic Adventure 2 is a game to remember. I can't grade the DC version right now, but it's GC remake gets an 8.

Game Review IX: "Sonic Adventure"

Been a while since I covered something different. To me, these are oldies but goodies, and I'm doing this since Sonic the Hedgehog hits 20 years right about now. While Mortal Kombat II was the first game I legitimately played in my youth (yeah, a little boy playing a MK game), Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was the first one actually had to myself, and is a rather key memory of my childhood. Obviously, I jumped for joy when I found out he was going 3D on Sega Dreamcast, but only got as far as to playing the demo to one of them. Over time, though, I did end up owning and playing both via Nintendo GameCube.

To start, I'll introduce the first game, Sonic Adventure. To my knowledge, this was technically the first true 3D action title, as the before released Sonic 3D Blast had an isometric view, and Sega Saturn's Sonic Jam, a compilation title, made subtle changes that would be staple to future titles. Sonic Adventure introduced many firsts into the franchise, as it was the first game where characters had eye color and voices. The Homing Attack, introduced in Sonic 3d Blast (or Flickies' Island), was available initially in the beginning of the game. As well, everyone else had new and old abilities as well. Upon getting power up items, the abilities of one character can be enhanced, or it can introduce a new move entirely, such as Sonic's Light Dash.

Gameplay was somewhat of a variety. While everyone plays the same stages, they don't all play the same way. For starters, Sonic and Tailshas for the most part the same stages, but differ in gameplay. Sonic's stule is reminiscent of Sonic 2, where one player can control briefly Tails, and Tails is usually racing either Sonic or Eggman. Knuckles, who can now punch enemies, has a 3D Treaure hunter-style gameplay to him, where he finds pieces of the Master Emerald he was destined to guard, which serves as part of the game's plot. Amy Rose, an originally non-playable character from Sonic CD, is perhaps one of the more drastic changes to a character, apart from Eggman himself. She can't Spin Attack/Jump like her crush Sonic, but has a bammer she can do damage to enemies with. Apart from this, she is generally slower, and most of her stages require her to find a balloon to escape Zero, all the while using any place to hide in to confuse him. The new playable character Big the Cat is self explanatory he's huge, as in his name, but within his immense strength, he's generally kind. His game centers around his hobby: fishing, which is more or less vital when trying to get hsi pollywog pal Froggy. E-102 Gamma is another new face, created by Eggman, but goes against his creator. Gamma's gameplay is a 3D Shooter stage, where he hunts down his brothers of the E-series. Tikal is a non-playable that acts like a guide to the characters, though she herself is another member of the story;s plot. Once more, like any Sonic game, Ivo Robotnik/Eggman is the recurring enemy, but is accompanied by his E-series robots, and a fluid being of the Master Emerald, named Chaos.

Cut-scenes are animated, and have voices. That aside, you can navigate through the city before each stage to talk to people. You can even pick up items, some of those you'll need to advance. The game also introduced the baby-like creatures named Chao, which you can take care of. It's staple features were its use of its many gardens, plus the fact that you can use the portable VMU to raise it. When Dreamcast folded, Nintendo took it up by releasing the graphic enhanced follow-up: Sonic Adventure DX Director's Cut for the Gamecube. Like the original sequel's remake, the VMU's feature was remade to work with the Game Boy Advance (with assist of the GBA/GC Link) and, in this case, the GBA game Sonic Advance 2, which had a Chao Garden feature. It also bore a Mission mode, where the 6 characters complete missions. Doing so will earn them emblems, normally gotten during the action stages or found through the overworld. In addition, SADX also had games from the Game Gear that were unlockable, starting with the handheld Sonic the Hedgehog. Recently, both games were remade and packed as a downloadable title for both Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, with the graphics intact for each. A DX upgrade was later released, giving the game the feel of Gamecube's remake in terms of graphics and features. Another thing to note, and while it isn't the first game to do so in general, the game had a vocal theme in general, followed by vocal themes for most of the characters. The only one that lacked this, playable wise, was Gamma, who had more of an instrumental, slightly electronic feel to its theme.

Sonic Adventure gets an 8, granted I played the original's demo, and a 7.5 for Sonic Adventure DX. I cannot grade the one rehashed for the next gen consoles yet, but I'll update this upon doing so. Next time I'll cover what is right now it's only sequel: Sonic Adventure 2.