Yooka-Laylee ToyBox Thoughts

Playtonic Games has finally released their first reward for backers of their Yooka-Laylee Kickstarter, and it’s a pretty great one! It’s the Yooka-Laylee Toybox and Toybox+!

What is the Yooka-Laylee Toybox? Basically, it’s something of a demo of the game, but features no direct levels or elements from the final game, other than Yooka, Laylee, and some of the game basics spread throughout a small, sandbox world. In short, it’s a test area for players to get a feel for how the game plays. Hence, it’s a toybox.

The Yooka-Laylee Toybox does not disappoint. Though the visuals don’t look quite as sharp as a number of the more recent screenshots of the game, it still looks pretty darn impressive, considering it uses Yooka-Laylee’s pre-alpha build.

Though the Toybox can be played with a keyboard, the game advises against it. This is a 3D platformer, after all. Using a keyboard to play a platformer just feels like a perversion of nature, really. Thankfully, the Toybox supports both PS4 and Xbox One controllers, so I broke out my PS4 controller and got right to it. And my word, the game feels so great to control!

While the Toybox limits Yooka and Laylee’s moveset from what is to be expected from the final game, their every last movement and ability feels incredibly fluid (even if some moves feature as-yet unfinished animations). Many of the characters’ actions are what you would expect from a game drawing inspiration from the early 3D platformers of the late 90s – high jumps, gliding, and a special method of movement that somehow gets you up steep slopes among them – it all feels fine-tuned and polished to the point of feeling brand new again.

As a means to avoid any potential spoilers, the Toybox takes place in an incredibly simplistic zone comprised of geometric shapes with basic colors, as opposed to any segment from the main game. The goal is to simply find 100 quills and then collect the “Pagie” that appears once every quill has been found. It definitely works as a fun little playground to get a hang of the game’s basic mechanics, though I do have to admit the simplistic shapes and colors of the environment actually made some of the platforming a little difficult in some areas, particularly a spiraling hill in which Laylee needed to roll Yooka up its slopes. The perspective just got a little tricky, but thankfully I can see this problem being relegated to this Toybox, as the main game already looks to have easily discernible areas that should make the platforming a more solid experience.

The simple task of collecting the quills was pretty fun, with the best thing about it being how much exploration it encouraged. There were times when I got stumped as to where I could go to find some of the missing quills, leading me to play with the camera and find more hidden paths and areas that required a little bit of out-of-the-box platforming to reach. On top of that, you can uncover some hidden areas that exist purely to show off some game elements – like a room full of different colors on the ground, each making a different sound when stepped on to reflect different surfaces like snow, water and metal, and a hidden chamber that displays some of the game’s upcoming particle effects (complete with a robot NPC who’s a nut on the subject).

"Those particle effects though..." — “Those particle effects though…”

The Toybox also includes some displays of the upcoming game’s sense of humor. The aforementioned robot NPCs are constantly fighting the urge to exterminate organic life, while simultaneously begrudging the developers for trapping them in this limbo-like sandbox. Meanwhile, the Toybox’s single horde of enemies are captained by a goon wearing pants on his head. It’s small touches like this that only begin to show off the personality Yooka-Laylee could display in the final game.

While the Toybox is admittedly an all-too brief experience, it does show a lot of promise for what is to come from Yooka-Laylee. If such a bare-bones display of what Yooka-Laylee has to offer proves this much fun, then my excitement for the final product has just reached new heights.

Bonk’s Adventure Review

*Review based on the Wii U Virtual Console port of the TurboGrafx-16 version*

Though Bonk isn’t exactly a household name these days, there was a time when he was a relatively prominent mascot character for the TurboGrafx-16 console. The system would see no less than three different Bonk titles in its lifetime, the first of which was 1990’s Bonk’s Adventure. Though it may not be one of the best platformers of the 16-bit era (admittedly a difficult feat to accomplish), it still has a charm of its own, even if it hasn’t aged particularly well.

Bonk’s Adventure stars the titular Bonk, a young caveboy with a comically large head that’s as hard as a rock. Bonk is on a mission to save a dinosaur princess, and will have to use his thick noggin to take out enemies.

Whereas most platformers of the time simply had players jumping on enemies to defeat them, Bonk instead uses a headbutt as his signature attack. Bonk can headbutt enemies on the ground, or jump in the air to perform a diving headbutt. In a fun twist to platforming norms, Bonk’s regular jumps can only damage enemies if they are above him, as his head is harder than his feet.

Bonk has three hit points to start with, which can be replenished in increments by finding fruits and vegetables, while small hearts will replenish an entire hit point, and large hearts refill all of Bonk’s health. Meanwhile, two blue hearts are hidden in the game, and will increase Bonk’s maximum hit points by one.

Additionally, Bonk can find pieces of meat, which serve as power-ups. Finding one piece of meat supercharges Bonk, who can use his diving headbutt to stun all on-screen enemies (defying all logic, this includes enemies in midair). Finding a second piece of meat when powered up will send Bonk into a temporary invincibility. You can even skip the stacking and go straight to invincibility if you find a big piece of meat.

The core gameplay is decently fun, though it must be said that Bonk’s movements and jumps feel slower than those of Mario or Sonic. If you’re used to the more popular platforming heroes of the era, then Bonk’s relatively slower controls have noticeably aged.

Another downside is that the levels are incredibly basic. While there are some platforming challenges to be had, the levels really come down to little more than going from one end of the stage to the other. There are some fun ideas in terms of environments (including the belly of a dinosaur in an early stage), but the level structure never comes anywhere near the creative heights of Super Mario World or Sonic the Hedgehog.

Visually, Bonk’s Adventure still holds up, with the graphics and animations possibly being the game’s highlight. The character designs are simple but colorful, and the environments are fun to look at. Best of all is Bonk himself, who has some hilarious animations. Bonk’s transformations when grabbing the aforementioned meat, as well as his death animation, are both done in a Looney Tunes-esque cartoony style. My personal favorite animation is when Bonk climbs steep walls, which he accomplishes by biting them with his teeth.

Bonk’s Adventure also features some cute and catchy (if not entirely memorable) music. Once again, it can’t match many other platforming soundtracks of the time, but it fits with the game’s tone and simplistic nature.

Suffice to say that Bonk’s Adventure hasn’t aged as gracefully as many of its 16-bit platforming peers. Though it’s not necessarily bad, either. It simply lacks the depth and creativity that platformers of the 90s were quickly becoming adept in, which ensured their timeless appeal. Today, Bonk’s Adventure may be a good place to start for younger gamers and platforming newcomers to get a taste for the genre. But for platforming veterans, it may feel a little too vanilla.

4

Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures Review

*Review based on the Wii U version*

The Angry Video Game Nerd has been reviewing bad retro games to the amusement of viewers for well over a decade now. Though many fan games based on the character have existed for some time, it wasn’t until 2013 that an official AVGN video game was released in the form of Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures, which sought to not only replicate the humor of the web series, but also the games it has featured over the years (within legal limitations, of course). But does Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures live up to the entertainment of the series, or is it as bad as the games that have tortured the Nerd for so long?

Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures uses an appropriately retro look, with pixellated, 2D gameplay reminiscent of the Mega Man games. The Nerd is equipped with an NES Zapper, which he uses to shoot pixels at enemies. The Nerd’s health is measured in beer bottles, power-ups can be found, and a few hidden characters can be unlocked. After an introductory stage, eight levels can be selected, once again referencing the Mega Man games, with a final stage being unlocked once all eight have been completed.

In that sense, it’s a really simple game. The way the levels pay homage to episodes of the web series and a number of games (both classic and not-so classic) gives the game a fun sense of fan service. The game even replicates the Angry Video Game Nerd’s brand of humor, with a level of swearing and raunch that would make Conker the Squirrel blush. In fact, the game crosses so many lines that Nintendo had to disable its Miiverse functionality on the Wii U version, in order to keep Miiverse more family friendly. This is a game strictly for mature audiences.

On the downside, the game emulates at least one element of the Nerd’s experiences that may not be so welcome. The game is ridiculously difficult, as a means to replicate the nature of many of the infuriatingly difficult games the Nerd has reviewed over the years. At first, it’s actually pretty funny how the game stacks the deck against the player so excessively. But there comes a point when the joke starts to wear off and it all just becomes exhausting.

The game has three difficulty modes from the start, Easy, Normal, and Old School, with three additional, super difficult modes being unlockable. Though even when played in Easy mode, the game is still ridiculously difficult, with things only being made more tolerable with more health (6 bottles of beer in easy, 3 in the others), and the benefit of unlimited lives. Playing through the game on Easy mode will only have you wondering how masochistic one must be to play on the harder difficulty settings, where you only have so many lives and continues before you need to start the whole game over.

While much of the game’s platforming and shooting action provide some great challenge and fun, the trollish difficulty can sometimes become overbearing and hamper the experience. Mercifully, checkpoints are incredibly frequent, and come in the form of the Nerd’s iconic NES/toaster hybrid, the Nintoaster, making things a little smoother.

This is all a great shame, because Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures has some genuinely innovative platforming going for it. If it focused a little more on polishing on what the game does have in its corner, and placed less emphasis on its punchline of turning the player into their own Angry Video Game Nerd, this would have been a great platformer. But the joke gets in the way of its more honest gameplay, preventing the experience from reaching its full potential.

Still, the game does provide some good fun for fans of the series and its unique brand of humor. The three additional characters and different themed stages add a little bit of variety to the experience, and longtime AVGN fans will probably get a good dose of nostalgia out of it. Perhaps best of all is the game’s soundtrack, which is downright awesome!

It may be a bit of a novelty act a little too often, but when it is actually working as a genuine game, Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures provides some good (if not raunchy) fun. It may not be perfect, but at least it’s not – as the Nerd would say – total ass.

6

Top 5 Games of E3 2016

So another E3 has come and gone, and overall the show was…okay. There were some games that looked great, other games that everyone but me thought looked great (isn’t that right, Days Gone?), and the heart-crushing disappointment of Paper Mario: Color Splash being revealed to be everything we feared it would be.

Anyway, it was a so-so show, made a bit more lively by the few games that really stood out. As far as I’m concerned, the following are the five games I’m most looking forward to after this year’s event.

Oh, but I’m doing things just a little differently this year. Since my overall reaction to E3 this year was just lukewarm, I’m comprising my top 5 games from the event whether they were present at the show floor or not. Just what ever tickled my fancy this year, as long as it was featured or announced at the event.

I may do a few additional E3 awards later, but it all depends on how many Pixar-related posts I get around to (my “Pixar Month” has been surprisingly only slightly Pixar-y thus far).

So anyway, here are my top five most anticipated games coming out of E3 2016.

5: Crash Bandicoot Remastered

"If I saw that thing in my yard, I'd break out the compact bow..." — “If I saw that thing in my yard, I’d break out the compound bow…”

I was so excited when I heard the Crash Bandicoot theme on-stage during Sony’s conference. After years and years of rumors that Crash was coming back (some said under developer Naughty Dog), I thought all my wishes would come true.

And then they casually announced that they were simply remaking the first three Crash games on PS4 and that Crash Bandicoot is in the new Skylanders game, and I was a bit less excited.

After having some time to let it soak in though, I’m really excited for these Crash remakes. For one thing, the original Crash Bandicoot trilogy by Naughty Dog is still the series’ highpoint, and while the second and third entries have aged pretty darn well, these remakes have the chance to iron out the kinks they do have and bring them a more modern fluidity, while also having the chance to fix the largely outdated elements of the first Crash Bandicoot (seriously, fix the save feature!).

Not only that, but this might be the best way to reintroduce Crash to the world, after being passed around to developers like a game of hot potato, with none of the subsequent studios really getting the Naughty Dog’s formula right, and then having the IP go dark for eight years.

Who knows, maybe if the Crash remakes go well enough, it will sway Naughty Dog to get back into the platforming game.

4: Insomniac’s Spider-Man

Insomniac tends to make good games. Spider-Man is in serious need of a good game. Let’s hope Insomniac gets their peanut butter in Spider-Man’s chocolate…or something. It sounded better before I typed it. I don’t know why I’m not going back and changing my analogy.

Anyway, this new Spider-Man looks promising, and it could be the first great super hero game in years not to have the word “Arkham” in the title. Just please, somehow get J.K. Simmons to reprise his role of J. Jonah Jameson. Please! This goes for the Marvel Cinematic Universe as well!

3: The Last Guardian

"A boy and his dog...thing..." — “A boy and his dog…thing…”

HOLY CRAP IT HAS A RELEASE DATE! And it’s only months away! Dreams do come true! We will get a new Crash Bandicoot from Naughty Dog! Paper Mario will go back to its RPG roots! Capcom will start making Mega Man games again!

Okay, I might be getting ahead of myself. For now, I’ll just be happy that the almost mythical The Last Guardian is actually happening. After years and years of delays, disappearances, and vague re-appearances, the follow-up to Shadow of the Colossus is finally happening. Here’s hoping it lives up to both its predecessor’s, and its own, reputation.

2: Yooka-Laylee

"Yooka and Laylee arrive in Arendelle." — “Yooka and Laylee arrive in Arendelle.”

Yooka-Laylee’s slight delay may be a little bit of a bummer, but my oh my, is this game shaping up to be something beautiful. It really does look like it’s going to be what Playtonic Games promised, and more.

From it’s likable cast of characters, colorful visuals and stunning locales, Yooka-Laylee is already looking like the true successor to Rare’s N64 heyday.

It’s been too long since collectathon platformers were a thing, but Yooka-Laylee looks to carry the torch so well that it’s like they never left. It’s shaping up to be the follow-up to Banjo-Tooie that we’ve waiting over sixteen years for (Gah! I’m old!), and a proper modernization and evolution of the genre. I simply can’t wait to see everything Yooka and Laylee’s world has in store (I’m guessing googly eyes are involved).

Hats off to Playtonic. Hats off.

1: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Sony may have had the best presence at E3, but Nintendo had the best game. After years and years of Zelda trying to tweak its established formula, we finally have a Zelda that seeks to reinvent it.

From what I’ve heard so far, Breath of the Wild looks to be one of the most open-ended games I’ve ever seen (you can fight the final boss right off the bat!), and Link’s abilities and items look unlike they have before. And finally, FINALLY, Link can jump. Yes, Link finally joins the likes of Mario as one of Nintendo’s jumpers.

I’ve seen many people already claim that Breath of the Wild is basically Nintendo’s equivalent to Skyrim (though I would argue that Breath of the Wild actually looks fun. Oooooh!), and that’s not too far off, as far as its open-endedness is concerned. But it also looks to draw inspiration from Zelda’s very first entry, Team Ico games, and even the films of Hayao Miyazaki (oh come on, the Guardians are totally inspired by Castle in the Sky’s robots).

Breath of the Wild really looks like its going all-out with its “breaking of series conventions,” and it only has me more and more interested to see what else Nintendo ends up doing with the game. Breath of the Wild is shaping up to be a beautiful swansong for the Wii U, and a fantastic introduction to the NX.

The only real question now is, what will Nintendo do with the next Mario?

Good News and Bad News for Yooka-Laylee

There have been a lot of major updates regarding Playtonic’s spiritual successor to the Banjo-Kazooie series, Yooka-Laylee, as of late. Today, we got some really good news, and a bit of bad (or more accurately, disappointing) news.

To get the bad news out of the way, Yooka-Laylee has been delayed until Q1 of 2017. Now, I suppose that’s not entirely bad news, since it just means Playtonic has a few more months to polish the game, and unlike a certain other Kickstarter-funded spiritual successor, Yooka-Laylee seems to be shaping up really nicely and really quickly. Plus, this also means Dark Souls 3 and Uncharted 4 have that much less competition by the time my 2016 video game awards roll around.

As for the good news, check out this amazing trailer for Yooka-Laylee! It will have you crying tears of joy (as opposed to simply crying like an anime fan on prom night).

Like I said, Yooka-Laylee is really shaping up nicely. It basically looks like everything that Nuts & Bolts should have been, and then some. The wait for 2017 is gonna kill me!

Kind of/Sort of Hyped for E3 2016

It’s hard to believe it’s almost time for E3 already. Where the heck has 2016 gone? As the year continues to speed by, we are fast approaching 2016’s E3 event, where we’ll surely get some huge news in the world of video games and such. And I’m… kind of excited.

Look, E3 always gives gamers something to talk about when all is said and done. But usually I feel incredibly hyped to see what the event has in store. This year though, I’m looking forward to the event, but I’m also not exactly counting down the days.

Perhaps I’m a bit biased, since I once again will be unable to attend E3 this year. After having attended E3 from 2009 to 2014, not going can only end up feeling like a sting. But even if I were going, there’s not exactly a whole lot that’s been announced for the event that has me jumping (fingers crossed for some meaningful surprises).

For one, Nintendo basically relegating their presence at the show to Zelda hype alone is a huge bummer. I know some Zelda diehards think Zelda is enough to sustain Nintendo’s presence, but I’m not one of those people. Even if they don’t have them at the show floor, I want to hear what’s in store with Mario’s platforming and karting ventures, or what long-dormant Nintendo franchises are making a comeback, or even the reveal of a new IP a la Splatoon (I’m also apparently the only person who wants Retro Studios to make a third Donkey Kong title). Not to mention with Nintendo’s next console on the horizon, the fact that Nintendo has already announced that they won’t even talk about it at the event is more than a little confusing.

I suppose my selfish side is snickering a little bit, since I won’t be attending E3 I also won’t experience the lack of Nintendo-ness first-hand. But from a more objective point of view it’s still a bummer.

"You're useless, Tails!" — “You’re useless, Tails!”

Outside of Nintendo, I also just don’t see myself jumping with excitement for any other announced games aside from Yooka-Laylee (not that I ever really jump with excitement, but you know what I mean). I suppose if they end up talking a bit more about The Last Guardian, that’s another bonus.

Maybe they’ll reveal the inevitable Frozen level in Kingdom Hearts 3, which would be awesome for how big of a Frozen fan I am, but would also inevitably lead to me pointing out all the things the game gets wrong. Plus, it’s kind of hard to get too interested in a series like Kingdom Hearts, seeing as its small army of “spinoffs” that were released on various different platforms are all part of the main story, only further confusing the already convoluted plot, and that none of them have improved on the gameplay established in the 2002 original.

A lot of the announced games sound good, but I just don’t feel the same sense of excitement as I usually do for E3.I’m hoping the show can deliver a host of worthwhile surprises, and kick some life into the event. As it is, I see myself as being more excited for whatever info comes from Yooka-Laylee out of the event than for the event itself.

Hopefully, all my reservations are proven wrong by the time E3 rolls around, and the show will provide gamers with a ton of titles to look forward to. But as things go for me personally, I almost feel like I’ll be viewing the event out of obligation more so than interest. Here’s hoping all my skepticisms are for naught.

Zelda Wii U. All Alone at E3.

I love The Legend of Zelda. I really do. It’s one of gaming’s best franchises, and certainly one of the most consistent. But Nintendo’s decision to dedicate the entirety of their E3 presence this year to the new Zelda for Wii U and the upcoming NX is a bit baffling, to say the least.

When I first read the news that Zelda Wii U/NX would be the sole playable game on the show floor, I was a little disappointed, but I was under the impression that they would still have a video presentation showcasing other future games, so I wasn’t too bummed. But then I heard that Nintendo wasn’t even going to have a special edition of Nintendo Direct, as they’ve done the past three years, and instead just have a live stream solely dedicated to the new Zelda title, I was really disappointed, and more than a little confused.

Look, I understand that Zelda is one of the most beloved series of all time, and holds a special place in the hearts of many gamers. But for one new entry to be the entire focus of Nintendo’s presence at one of the biggest gaming events of the year just isn’t enough.

I can respect the delay for the release of the NX. Although missing out on the holiday season may be yet another bummer, but you can’t rush a product before its finished, and the delay means it won’t be launching in direct competition with PSVR and the newer edition PS4s and Xbox Ones that are supposed to hit by year’s end. But to not even make the NX a subject at E3 in any capacity is ridiculous. This is Nintendo’s new home console and, if rumors are true, their new handheld as well. Even if they don’t have it on the show floor, shouldn’t they want to use E3 as a means to get some early buzz for the platform?

At the very least, couldn’t we at least get word on some games to expect on NX? They wouldn’t even have to go into great detail with them. They could just list off “a new 3D Mario,” “Pikmin 4,” and “Super Mario RPG 2″ (let me dream!) will be hitting NX in the future” and that would be enough to get some extra interest and investment going. I mean, sure, Mario coming to NX is an inevitability, but early confirmation would help nonetheless.

Of course, the most disappointing aspect of this news isn’t even in regards to NX, but Wii U. The Wii U was Nintendo’s least financially successful home console, so I kind of get why it won’t be a focal point for E3 now that it’s entering its twilight (it was still a great system, damn it!). But to not give the people who own the console a last wave of release dates and reveals at E3 is more than a little bit of a sting. I’m not even saying they need to be major announcements, but surely there’s enough time left between now and the NX launch to give Wii U owners a game or two to look forward to.

Frankly, I feel like Nintendo is putting all of their eggs in one basket in regards to their near future and Zelda Wii U/NX. The game definitely looks great, and its promise sounds quite interesting. It could wind up being the best Zelda ever by the time it’s released. But as it stands, Zelda Wii U/NX just enough for an E3 showing. Not when they’re leaving Wii U owners high and dry and keeping those who are excited for NX guessing. Even if Zelda’s showing at E3 is phenomenal, Nintendo’s won’t be.

Star Fox Guard Review

Star Fox Guard is the complimentary tower defense title that comes bundled with Star Fox Zero. Though Star Fox Guard doesn’t have the depth to stand on its own, its innovative execution does make it a worthy companion piece.

In Star Fox Guard, players take control of a new employee at mining company owned by Slippy’s uncle Grippy (who are the primary characters you’ll encounter in the game, though the rest of the Star Fox crew do make cameo appearances). As it happens, Grippy’s mining facilities have been getting repeatedly attacked by robots, and it’s your job as the new recruit to help control the facilities’ defense systems and prevent the robots from ruining Grippy’s business. You do so by keeping focus on the facilities’ camera systems, and firing at the robots with lasers. Where the game turns this simple tower defense setup into something more unique is how it uses the Gamepad to create a more unique take on the genre.

The TV screen presents the action through thirteen different screens, with twelve of them presenting what’s currently being captured by each camera, and the central screen being whichever camera the player is currently focused on. Players switch which cameras they’re using by tapping on buttons on the Wii U’s touchscreen, which shows an overall map of the current stage. The idea of switching between cameras has been compared to Five Nights at Freddy’s, but Star Fox Guard seems to have more gameplay and a tone that’s less desperate for attention.

It may all sound a bit simple, and in essence it is, but the game can pack on quite some challenge (and even a little stress) once the robots begin showcasing their variety and begin showing up in bigger waves.

There are two different categories of robot enemies: Combat and chaos. The combat-based robots are the ones who are trying to get to the core of the facility to destroy it, and destroying a set number of them will complete the level. The chaos-based robots will mainly serve to get in the way of your defenses, as they try to destroy your lasers and disable your cameras in a variety of ways.

Each stage has a different setup, as well as multiple mandatory missions and the more fun and challenging optional ones, which may throw a unique twist into the mix (like limited ammo, or a time limit). After completing each mission, a friendly robot built by Slippy, called the Re:Bot, will collect the metal from every robot you destroyed, which will add to a cumulative score that will ultimately unlock the aforementioned optional missions, as well as upgrades and power-ups for the cameras and lasers. Players can even see how their scores rank against other players online.

That’s all there is to it, really. Again, it’s not exactly a hefty game, but it is a great and fitting companion piece to Star Fox Zero. The visuals somewhat charming, though a bit underwhelming, and the same could be said of the musical score. But the core gameplay remains fun and surprisingly addictive, with the only real complaint with it being that the buttons on the touchscreen are a bit too small, meaning that you may often lose precious seconds as you double check to make sure you’re hitting the buttons on the touchscreen.

So Star Fox Guard may not exactly be a fantastic addition to the Nintendo family, but if Nintendo decides to make similarly smaller (and presumably less-expensive) games to bundle with their bigger adventures, I’m certainly not going to argue with it. Many great movies are accompanied by delightful and often charming short films that add to the appeal of the feature. If Nintendo wants to produce more big game/little game combos that create a similar dynamic, as they’ve done here, then count me on board.

6

Star Fox Zero Review

We’ve had to wait nearly twenty years for it, but Star Fox 64 finally has a proper follow-up in the form of Star Fox Zero on Wii U. The on-rail shooting, arcade-style gameplay the series is known for makes a long-awaited return. Zero brings the series back to its roots, dropping any and all baggage that came into the series in the post-N64 era. So in many ways, Star Fox Zero is something of a dream come true for longtime fans of the series. Unfortunately, not all is well in Star Fox Zero, and despite being a stellar effort in many ways, some technical problems do prevent it from becoming the Nintendo classic it might otherwise have been.

The core gameplay is exactly what we’ve been asking for for nearly two decades. That is to say it’s an expansion of what Star Fox 64 accomplished. Players take control of Fox McCloud, who pilots a variety of vehicles: The classic Arwing is the most common of such vehicles, and serves as the basis for the game’s shooting action. Though a twist from the unreleased Star Fox 2 has been integrated into the Arwing, as it can now transform into the Walker which, as its name implies, brings the action of the Arwing to the ground. Meanwhile, 64’s Landmaster Tank returns with a transformation of its own, and can in certain levels become the Gravmaster, which fittingly takes the Landmaster gameplay to the air. Finally, a new vehicle called the Gyrowing makes its debut, which has less emphasis on combat and more emphasis on deploying robots to hack into computers.

The vehicles, as well as their transformations, give the gameplay a nice sense of variety. Unfortunately, while the essence of the gameplay recaptures what Star Fox should be, the controls can often feel overcomplicated, and can hinder the otherwise entertaining experience.

Star Fox Zero utilizes both the screen on the television and the screen on the Wii U Gamepad to showcase the action, with the former giving a traditional Star Fox style viewpoint, while the Gamepad displays the action from Fox McCloud’s cockpit. The Gamepad’s motion controls are used to aim the targeting reticle, and that works well enough, so I kind of wish Nintendo and Platinum Games had kept the Gamepad features there.

Focusing on both screens can become distracting, especially during segments that take on an “all-range mode” and certain boss fights. What’s worse is that at times the game will require the player to switch their attention to the Gamepad screen exclusively, without really informing the player of such. It can be a bit jarring, especially in instances such as cinematics, which are displayed on the television screen while the player is still controlling the action through the Gamepad. Though some aspects of the controls feel more natural as you grow accustomed to them, other control elements are just too convoluted. I appreciate Nintendo for trying new things, but there are times when a more traditional route can be more beneficial (look no further than the Wii U’s own Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for proof of just that).

The often awkward controls are what ultimately prevent Star Fox Zero from becoming the definitive Star Fox experience. But on the plus side, the shift back to an on-rails shooter puts the series back in the right direction.

Much like Star Fox 64, Star Fox Zero’s adventure can be completed in a few short hours. But also like Star Fox 64, Zero presents players with multiple alternate routes to traverse the game, giving it some replay value, which is taken to another level here.

Star Fox Zero manages to trump 64’s replay value by adding additional levels and routes after you beat the game. Alternate routes can similarly be unlocked by replaying a completed level at certain points. Additionally, each level contains hidden medals, which can be found tucked away within the level itself or achieved by performing certain requirements, as well as high scores that the player can shoot for. To top it all off, Star Fox Zero includes a “Training Mode” which, despite the name, is more akin to a challenge mode, giving player’s something else to shoot for.

If Star Fox Zero has any other drawbacks, it’s probably in its overfamiliarity to Star Fox 64. From locations, character banter and even some boss fights, the game teeters very closely to being more of a remake than a sequel. If video game remakes worked the same as movie remakes, with the same story being retold through a modernized vision, then Star Fox Zero would in fact be a remake. The story is a reboot of star Fox 64’s (and, as an extension, a reboot of the original SNES Star Fox), which is fine, but perhaps a few extra original beats may have helped Zero build more of its own identity.

Still, I’m reminded that Donkey Kong Country Returns played very much like a modernized Donkey Kong Country, and it opened the door for the bountiful ideas of Tropical Freeze. If Star Fox Zero can relaunch the series as successfully as DK did, then we should look very forward to what the future has in store for Fox McCloud and company. Online multiplayer would definitely be a desired addition in a future installment (hint hint Nintendo).

Star Fox Zero also shines on the aesthetic front, with gorgeous, vibrant visuals and a great soundtrack that revives old tunes and introduces a few memorable ones of its own.

Despite the familiarity and cumbersome control issues, Star Fox Zero is a welcome return to form for the series in many ways. It provides a fun adventure with loads of content and some nice replay value. But perhaps its biggest achievement is that it remembers what it means to be a Star Fox game. Its issues may hold it back from being a Nintendo classic, but as it stands, it’s just kind of great to have Star Fox back and doing what it does best.

6

Zelda Wii U Delayed Again!

Good news and bad news. The good news is Nintendo has announced a rough release date for its next home console, codenamed NX, as being March of 2017. The bad news is that the new Legend of Zelda, which is now officially confirmed to be an NX title as well as a Wii U one, will be launching simultaneously on both consoles around that same time, meaning that it has been delayed yet again.

Now, part of me is a little relieved to hear this news, with that part of me being my wallet. But I also can’t help but feel a little disappointed that Zelda Wii U is delayed once again. It’s been delayed so many times it’s gone from a recurring joke to no longer being funny…

It’s also a bit sad to hear that NX won’t be making it for 2016’s Christmas season, which has been the case for a number of Nintendo’s past consoles. But you can’t force something out of the gate when it’s not ready, I suppose.

The real downer to this news is that it confirms that the Wii U is the only Nintendo console to not have a dedicated Zelda title. Though at the very least, I suppose it has seen the best versions of Wind Waker and Twilight Princess, so the brand new Zelda will make it the only home console to house three distinct Zelda adventures, even if they remakes and multiplatform titles.

I suppose I can’t be too disappointed, however, since a delay only means there’s extra work being put into the game. I’d rather have a great game than a rushed one (though I guess at this point it would hardly be considered rushed). And I’m not one of those silly gamers who claims to have “bought a Wii U just for Zelda” and have seldom been disappointed with any of the console’s major releases (Tropical Freeze alone guarantees that I could never, ever regret getting a Wii U).

Hopefully Zelda Wii U/NX can live up to the hype. And maybe we can get a new 3D Mario on NX to go with it. Just for good measure. Please?