FirestormCAN

The Backyard Sports games were very near and dear to my heart back in the day. I'd play 'em every single day when I had the chance. But then Atari happened and it all went downhill. Now Hockey and Baseball 2005 were enjoyable and competent for the most part. But Football 2006 showed that they just didn't care anymore. It resembles Madden far too much, and it really doesn't add much to the series. And it's sad, 'cause it had some unique modes that could've worked had they taken the time to flesh it out. But nope, gotta release games every year, gotta do what the big guys do. It was the last game I ever played in the series before I moved on... and boy do I not regret that decision one bit. Baseball 2007 looked like a trainwreck, and so did the next few titles. Blugh.

These guys ring a bell to anyone? Seriously, I love these guys, they made so many wonderful adventure games. Despite the fact that the years have caught up with them, they've got a certain charm that I just can't help but smile at. The Backyard Sports games were the ones I went back to the most, 'cause it was like I actually was playing a cartoon, rather than just watching them on TV. If you haven't experienced HE's greatness, the adventure and arcade games are on Steam now for cheap! Give 'em a go, and if you have any, bring your kids along for the ride too.

Those of you trying to get all the Final Smash trophies in All-Star, you might want to watch out for this dick move:

Eeeeeesh. I am dreading the day I take on Classic Mode at 9.0. I've just beaten it with Pac-Man at 7.5 after two tries, but man oh man it's only gonna get worse from there. I'm gonna need to find my most reliable fighter soon...

So something I've noticed in the five days of playing the new Smash: it's got a huge fetish for sending people into the topmost killzone. You've got items like the beetle and the boss galaga that can drag you all the way up if you don't wiggle fast enough, and then Master Hands "processed cheese platforms" that are hard to avoid and can get you killed EVEN THOUGH YOU JUST KILLED THE BASTARD AND RELEASED THE GODDAMN SWARM LEAVING YOU WITH ONE STOCK--sorry, I really hate the fact that those don't disappear when a hand is taken out. I like a good camera KO myself, but I swear this game is obsessed with doing that.

We got ourselves our Xmas Wii U ahead of the rush and got both Smash Bros games to boot. I've been giving the 3DS version a go and so far so good. I've gotten Falco and Ness so far and managed 2 out of 3 on Smash Run. I've reg'd both games on Club Nintendo and the soundtrack order's been placed. Now to wait over 3 months... sigh. My brother and I should be giving the Wii U version a go tonight once everything's charged.

SNES Rainbow Road is back? HOW COULD I NOT MISS THAT? It's given me a lot of hell in MK7, I can't wait to get knocked around even more in HD! Still, the new courses are looking mightyy fine. Can't wait for more on DLC pack 2.

I am so STOKED to play Smash Bros, but what I'm waiting for outside the Wii U one is Nintendo's 3rd-person shooter Splatoon. It's a perfect idea! It's a light-hearted shooter kids should be playing instead of just jumping right into a bloody game like CoD or Battlefield. What's the choice gonna be, parents? A game rated E10+ (as worst) or M? Hmmmmm? Here's the latest trailer showing the single-player campaign:

Well keep in mind that the 3DS and Wii U are completely different systems so of course, compromises had to be made in order to get it running on Nintendo's newest handheld. But that doesn't mean you should write off the 3DS version just because the Wii U version's got a lot more to offer. The 3DS can still hold its own when you can take it anywhere and enjoy the new game mechanics, even if you don't plan on getting the Wii U version. Still, I'm getting a copy for my 3DS as well as getting a Wii U for Smash this holiday.

I'm hyperventilating over here, that Smash Bros. Direct was fantastic. Here it is for those who missed it: Stage builder? HELL YES. My brother and I liked Brawl's first attempt, but Wii U's taking steps further with that touch screen. Why can't the holidays come sooner?!

Here's an example of how NOT to do voices in games: ...yeah. Voices work for some games, but aren't all that necessary. If you want to have spoken dialogue, that's fine. Just make sure you have a voice director who actually knows what they're doing with the talent at hand.

I know people have a specific dislike for Peach and Daisy, but I don't have that much of a hatred of them. Namely 'cause of this series of fan comics that this fellow made a long while back. But there's one character from the Mario universe that drove me nuts the first time I played against him and still does to this day: motherflippin' Bouldergeist. Tentacoolio from Skyward Sword it my most hated boss out of all time, but this big douche takes a very close second. He was purposely designed to make my life miserable. Yeah, I know, once you get the pattern down he's pathetically easy, but I've had a lot of bad luck with those boos. He's ruined my runs half of the time. Rrrrrrr...

You folks might want to be careful fighting in the Living Room... these blocks aren't for play.