Blogcritics Category: Gaming: Game Boy

The Skeptic's Guide to Violent Video Game Studies

Nathaniel Edwards — Fri, 7 Nov 2008 15:05:39 EST

Why you should doubt what you read about the effects of violent video games.
A few days ago, The Washington Post published an article entitled "Study Links Violent Video Games, Hostility" that combined some fairly old American research with two new Japanese studies that claimed there is "conclusive evidence" that violent video games are a "public health risk". I propose that researchers who say they have conclusive evidence...

Retro Corner: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

Chris "UZ" White — Sun, 3 Aug 2008 15:02:31 EDT

The first handheld Zelda is one of the best examples of an early era Game Boy game in the market.
Retro games are a hot commodity. With the Xbox Live Arcade and Wii's Virtual Console, it's quickly becoming a prolific segment of the industry. Blogcritics is going to start looking at gaming's generally under-appreciated past in a different way.Teaming up with classic gaming database Digital Press, Blogcritics will be presenting some...

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Nintendo GBA Review: TMNT

Matt Paprocki — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 13:46:59 EDT

After leaving an era of classic after classic, the Ninja Turtles video game career collapsed into a mess of sloppy ideas that failed to capture any of the magic from the arcade and 16-bit titles. That trend has continued with TMNT on the home consoles, yet this little unnoticed Game Boy Advance effort changes the rules. It’s one step shy of regaining the Turtle’s full glory.A smart mix of NES cult classic River City Ransom and the unforgettable Turtles in Time, this heavily detailed short romp is the beat-em-up gamers have deserved for years. Mechanics are strong, with an acceptable array of combos and attacks to keep the game fresh. Gorgeous sprite animation drives the game, and the enjoyable juggle system leads to heavy combos that keep a constant need to one up your previous number with something higher. Enemies drop money through the all-too-brief seven levels of play. This can be taken into a semi-free roaming area to purchase extra lives, weapons, or increase stats. While in the shop area, there are special sections with foes waiting to be taken down and sporadic challenges from other characters with a chance to earn extra funds. When you’re ready for the next fight, you simply head back to the easily accessible sewer dwelling and the next stage begins. Occasionally, there’s no choice as to which of the four members TMNT squad you’ll play as. It’s dependent on the story. However, when you are choosing, you’ll also pick a partner who can jump in and perform joint attacks to make the fight easier. By using the same team members, you can build up the bond between the turtles to increase stats when they’re used together in combat. Sadly, there’s no multi-player of any kind. This brings down the intensity that made the old time favorites special, and it doesn’t feel like a Turtles title without it. In true arcade fashion though, cheap difficulty spots rear their ugly head, leading to unavoidable hit traps that can only be escaped by losing a life. Thankfully, there’s more than enough action to go around. Backgrounds are littered with destructible objects, and small secrets scattered throughout are wildly fun. Also, even though the lead characters have their trademark weapons in tow, you can still pick up dropped enemy weapons, adding another boost to this titles variety. This is the type of game that was developed by a crew who loved their source material, and had fond memories of the crowded beat-em-up genre back in the early ‘90s. TMNT is a rare surprise for Game Boy Advance which is rarely anything else anymore than marketing material for a variety of cheaply constructed licensed junk. Kudos to the team for this fine and guaranteed to be overlooked gem. TMNT is rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older) by the ESRB for Cartoon Violence. This game can also be found on: GameCube, Nintendo DS, PC, PS2, PS3, Wii, and Xbox 360.

Matt Paprocki is the former reviews editor for Digital Press. The deep game collection, which spans nearly 30 systems and 2,000 games, lines his walls for research purposes. Matt strives to bring credibility to video game journalism, and to aid the industry in becoming respected with all forms of entertainment media. He currently freelances for GameArgus.com and MultiPlayerGames.com.

Nintendo GBA Review: Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis

Rob Faraldi — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 01:29:17 EST

Sonic the Hedgehog made a major impact on the videogame industry way back in 1991. Regardless of what you think of his adventures since then, any character that can last 15 years is special; or at the very least is "respectable."Nintendo got me into gaming but Sega and Sonic made me stay, Sonic made me a hardcore gamer. I love many of Sonic's games so much that I plan on getting a Sonic the Hedgehog tattoo. It won't only honor my favorite videogame character, but also stand as a sort of monument to my commitment to gaming. Do you remember the moment you "went hardcore?" When Sega announced they were bringing the original Genesis version over to Gameboy Advance (GBA) I was overjoyed. One of my favorite games coming to one of my favorite handhelds! This is a win-win right? WRONG - Not only is Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis (Sonic) a horrible port, I'll go there: this version is the worst game ever made. Where do I start? When you power up the GBA the first thing you'll notice is the background music has been changed. Sonic's famous "jingle" has been reinterpreted. Just about every sound effect (if not everything) has been re-recorded as well as the background music. This wouldn't be an issue if the soundtrack and effects sucked, but this is Sonic. The original soundtrack and effects are iconic and didn't deserve to be altered... but at least they fit with this mess. I preferred to play with the sound low, the "new" compositions made my eardrums burst. Bone shards stabbed my inner ear, blood spilled everywhere - maybe I'm being a little dramatic. If you look at Sonic in screen shots it looks like a pixel for pixel port of the original (besides some cropping). I wouldn't expect anything less from the GBA. The little system that could has handled breathtaking sprite heavy 2D (including the fantastic Sonic Advance series), so why but not a 15 year old Genesis game? This game looks like the landmark Genesis original but it doesn't move like it. It's obvious all the bugs weren't worked out of the game engine, there are few moments where the frame rate doesn't drop to ensure maximum lag. Sonic feels like he's constantly moving underwater. Most stages can still be conquered easily until you make it to the Labyrinth Zone where you're actually underwater part of the time. Thanks to the harsh graphic flaw, Labyrinth Zone 1-3 is far more difficult and frustrating than it should be. Graphics aren't everything, but this incredibly flawed engine is the chief contributor to this ports flaws. Had Sega released the original Sonic in this state no one would have bought it. What else? The enemy patterns have been altered too, for the worst of course. When you're a good five seconds into the game you have the ability to jump on a hidden "bumper" in a tree. It launches you in the air so you can collect extra rings. In the Genesis original, you're free to bounce off this bumper several times. In this shit version the second time you try for the bumper an enemy is waiting below. Unless you move you die. There are several annoying instances where this happened.Why do you hate Sonic Sega? Are you intentionally trying to murder your cash cow... err... hedgehog? The title controls well for the five seconds the engine runs correctly. Sega made it a point to mention the inclusion of the spin dash move (first appearance was Sonic 2), which is cool. It should be noted that this isn't the first time a Sonic the Hedgehog port featured the spin dash. Sonic Jam for Sega Saturn holds the distinction of being home to the first Sonic port with the spin dash move! Sadly when the engine slows down the controls seem to be "altered." Maybe it's me, but 99% of the time the title controls like shit. Do not mistake this as a mere misstep. No, this disturbing collection of thoughtless code represents the ongoing disarray at Sega. If Sonic the Hedgehog (1991 Genesis) represents Sega at their peak, this horrendous port, this clear contrast, represents Sega's current state perfectly. Bottom line, even the hardest-to-the-core Sonic fans (like me) must stay away from this game. We need to send a clear message to Sega that we're not going to take this shit anymore. Hopefully they'll listen and turn things around. If not, don't count on Sega or Sonic being around for another 15 years. To Sega: you disgust me. Through your lack of care for one of the greatest games ever you've engineered a new low point in gaming. Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis is rated E (Everyone) by the ESRB.

GBA Review: Capcom Classics Mini Mix

Matt Paprocki — Sun, 15 Oct 2006 05:12:53 EDT

Contained on Capcom Classics Mini Mix is a roster of three NES titles. Each becomes memorable for its own reasons, and those who grew up playing them fondly remember them. At a price of $20 though, it's nothing short of absurd.Bionic Commando, Strider, and Mighty Final Fight are the titles emulated on this cart. These are the NES versions, so Bionic Commando and Strider are widely varied from their arcade counterparts included on Capcom's other compilations. Mighty Final Fight is the obscure one here, a widely changed version of the arcade classic beat-em-up, and one of the best the NES has to offer in that genre.Strider is a unique standout, offering some innovative-for-its-time trial and error gameplay. While the action remains the same, travel plays a key role in progression. Strider earns various power-ups, which eventually enable him to overcome various level-blocking obstacles. It's a far cry from the pure action of the arcade game, but still fun in its own right.Bionic Commando is more of a classic for the designers call to eliminate jumping from the game completely. All of the platforming moves are handled with a segmented robotic arm, a great change of pace from the standard run-and-gun shooters of the era. Difficulty is definitely set to fiendish, and newcomers will be stunned to learn how much skill was required to complete something this simplistic.Mighty Final Fight was a late release on the NES, and as such, not many have seen it. It follows the same path as the 16-bit Final Fight, only with deformed characters and less action. It's a single player only affair, and there's a max of three sprites on screen at once. All the moves are here, giving the game a superb sense of variety. Boss fights don't start before some enjoyable taunting from both sides. It's a lost favorite, and it's great to see it getting another shot at increasing its reputation.According to early previews, Mini Mix should have the option to adjust the screen to the original aspect ratio. That's not included. There's no save feature, staying in pure form. Some flicker problems have been addressed (especially in Mighty Final Fight), but slowdown occurs where it would have on the original hardware.With the only real additions being an emulator and a title screen, it's only natural to wonder where all the free memory went. While many of Capcom's early NES games were licensed out (including a great line of Disney related properties), there are plenty of choices out there waiting for a release on this set. Any of the Mega Man Game Boy games (which were set to be released in their own compilation before that product was cancelled) are the obvious missing links, and brutally difficult Street Fighter 2010 would fit here too. Actually, the NES Mega Man games seem to fit here as well, regardless of whether or not they've been released on the home consoles.All three of the original carts for the games included could be picked up for the same price as this compilation. While not as cheap as Nintendo releasing even earlier NES titles for $20 each on the GBA, this is a slap in the face to fans who were anxiously awaiting the Mega Man Collection. This is a lost chance for something special in the Game Boy Advance's final days. Capcom Classics Mini Mix is rated T (Teen) by the ESRB for Blood and Gore and Mild Violence.

GBA Review: Drill Dozer

Matt Paprocki — Tue, 8 Aug 2006 09:41:50 EDT

From here on out, every video game should let the player take hold of a drill. While not all games will use it in the same innovative fashion as Drill Dozer, the pure satisfaction of wiping out walls, enemies, and entertaining boss characters is unmatched by any gun or sword. Drill Dozer's entire gameplay revolves around this simple mechanic, and with finely tuned level design, it's one of the best titles the Game Boy Advance has ever seen. Creating a superb cast of characters done in a quirky, 2-D lighthearted style, players control a band of thieves after a precious red diamond. Their means of theft is pretty straightforward: drill through anyone or anything in their way with a bi-pedal machine, complete with oversized drill attachment. Walls, platforms, background objects, and other hazards are no match.The drill serves other purposes aside from cartoon violence too. It can be used to reach higher platforms, push the player backwards at a high speed, or find secret areas hidden in walls. This leads to a plethora of innovative puzzles that are required to advance. It also creates some irritating and endlessly frustrating sections too. The sign of a great game though is whether or not you continue on regardless of how difficult things become, and Drill Dozer has a great hook to convince you keep playing. By collecting cash during the missions, you'll be able to unlock new levels, extra health bars, a stronger drill, and secrets. This creates an entirely new set of levels when the game is supposedly beaten since most are unavailable until after the credits roll. Even with its addicting levels, Drill Dozer's greatest asset is pure satisfaction. No matter how many levels you run through, the drilling never becomes repetitious. This is done by making sure the player (while always using the same buttons) is always drilling in different ways. While you may need it to defeat enemies, a few minutes later the drill is used to turn a switch. The game does take a few turns that feel cheap, like taking away power-ups at the end of each level, and inserting them in obvious places when visiting the next (the drill special bits, up to three levels of power, are required to clear every stage). This is an easy way to keep the player out of areas they're not necessarily ready for, but also feels restrictive. While an obvious gimmick, Drill Dozer uses a rumble feature. It's not the strongest vibration in a video game, though it can have a gameplay effect. When switching gears to power-up the drill, the three levels of vibration let you know when it's time to switch. While there is also visual confirmation of the timing, you'll quickly learn the vibration does a better job than an on-screen meter. Couple all of its positive aspects with a classic soundtrack that sounds like it was ripped from one of many early Mega Man games, and Drill Dozer earns what will undoubtedly be cult classic status. This is a dying breed of video game, and the only reason you need to justify keeping your Game Boy Advance. This is a system selling title. Drill Dozer is rated E (Everyone) by the ESRB for Cartoon Violence.

GBA Review: Need for Speed Most Wanted

Matt Paprocki — Wed, 21 Jun 2006 05:52:23 EDT

Trying to set a new world record for a single game release across different platforms, we have eight different versions of the latest Need for Speed, and that's not counting the Collector's Edition on a few of them. The task of taking a game released for the Xbox 360 launch and shoving it into a Game Boy Advance cart is likely one of those "development hell" scenarios. For spending some time in the pits of game design though, the developers have pulled off a surprising piece of technology, along with a decent game to go with it.All of the personality from the home versions is gone, and it's a little jarring initially. The concept is still the same. You'll take a street racer up the ranks of a list of 15 higher rated racers until you get a shot to take on the number one guy, Razor. To challenge each new opponent, you'll need to complete various racing tasks like elimination races, time trials, and police evasion.Without even so much as a digitized photo, you're not so much racing against a person as you are their car. The storyline, as meager as it was, is also transparent. What the player is left with is a series of races, and nothing else.This is not a major problem given the impressive graphics engine. Full 3-D textured polygons are stunning to look at on the GBA screen. It's a shame we may never see what the console was truly capable of, but Most Wanted surely must be close. The frame rate takes a small hit when you use the behind-the-car viewpoint. Use the bumper cam, and it's a smooth, sometimes slow ride through these original courses. Without an entire city to run through, tracks are far more confined. Shortcuts are nearly impossible to miss, and show up clearly on the map in the lower left corner of the screen. They feel more like part of the course than shortcuts. As is the norm for the franchise, you can upgrade or purchase new cars as the game progresses. You'll earn specific amounts of cash depending on where you finish, and the simplistic store has various engines and brakes available. As expected, it's toned and dumbed down enough so that it resembles the other ports just enough (barely) to earn the name. The biggest loss is the intensity of the gameplay. Police chases (which somehow earned a "T" on the home systems and a "E" on the GBA) are toned down drastically. While multiple cars can still tail you, specific challenges only require the player to dodge spike strips. Losing means nothing, not even a fine.While not a replacement for the current or next-gen console versions, this simple substitute carries some nifty technology that makes it worth a look. The concepts are here no matter how watered down, and when at full speed, it offers up decent thrills for the hardware. Most Wanted has only a few minor issues because of the translation, and fans of 3-D gaming may still have a few reasons to hang on to their GBAs.Need for Speed Most Wanted is rated E (Everyone) by the ESRB. This game can also be found on: Nintendo DS, PC, PS2, PSP, Xbox, Xbox 360 and Mobile Phone.

Nintendo GBA Review: Mario Golf Advance Tour

Matt Paprocki — Sun, 27 Jun 2004 23:39:42 EDT

Mario Golf is a wholly underrated sports series. Given life by the Nintendo 64 and later the Game Boy Color, the game managed to draw a cult following and many believe the GBC rendition was more playable. Now Mario Golf has been updated on the Gamecube and Game Boy Advance. Though the Gamecube version has the obvious graphical punch, the gameplay on the portable is arguably more engrossing thanks to a minor RPG mode and tons of extras.Taking the role of either a male or female, players will compete to become the best golfer of all time and hopefully be able to take on Mario and the crew should you become good enough. Your main rival is "The Kid," the former great who is just returning from an injury. You'll compete in various mini-games, on different courses, and against various opponents in a wide variety of play modes. Gameplay is easy for even non-golf fans to get into with simple, meter-based controls and superb tutorials that are disguised as mini-games. Putting spin on the ball is done by double tapping the A or B button when the time comes. Various clubs will also affect how the ball plays. Should everything be too complicated, you can always use the auto swing feature, but it is not always guaranteed to be accurate.The actual story mode of this game is actually weak and uninteresting. It's almost completely unnecessary to walk around in the overhead mode since almost everything except the mini-games can be accessed from the main menu. Of course, if you don't actually take a walk through the games world, you won't be able to find any power-ups.Power-ups come in various forms from new sets of clubs, power drinks, and level-ups. Gaining a level will let you increase your stats but everything needs to be equal or certain aspects of your game will decrease if ignored for too long. You'll also have to distribute points to your partner too since doubles is a large part of the game. Your AI partner is surprisingly intelligent, as long you power him/her up enough. It's not always perfect, but they can certainly help out in some clutch situations. Likewise, your AI opponents will make some stupid plays, sometimes repeating the same one over more than once. As you progress through the games RPG mode, various aspects and challenges will become unlocked. These become increasingly difficult as the game progresses and some of these are nearly impossible. Some of these will keep you playing well over the 12 hours the story mode lasts. The courses start off normal enough with the usual hazards, but each course also has a "star" course that adds large groups of hazards from various Mario games. Cha-Chomps will eat your ball costing you a stroke, floating blocks will reject your ball, and lava pits replace the water hazards. There are nine full courses not including a brutal Elf course that is truly brutal and more of a side game. Even after the story ends, you can continue to build your character. Sadly, unless you own a Gamecube and a link cable, you will never unlock everything since linking the two is required to get everything out of the game. Certain characters will remain a mystery until you shell out the cash for a Gamecube, copy of Mario Golf for the system, and a link cable. In other words, it will cost you at least $170 to be able to access everything not including the price of the Game Boy Advance itself. Good marketing? Yes. Fair for the gamer? No. Excellent multi-player modes are also available which allow you to either take your own characters against each other or any of the unlocked characters. Numerous modes of play from the wacky club slots (where your clubs are determined by a slot machine before each hole), to standard match play are available. You can even trade clubs between carts. The graphics package included here is strong and comes from the same people who created the well-respected RPG series "Golden Sun." The mode-7 courses look great form a distance, almost polygonal at times. Up close, they obviously reveal nasty clumps of enlarged pixels. The rendered character models after every hole are quite impressive and the special Star courses are a treat to die-hard Nintendo fans.The sound on the other hand, is disappointing. The music tracks sound great, but their short length means they repeat themselves multiple times on one hole. Character chatter is represented by simple beeps, a Camelot trademark. Any voice work comes through clear and concise and the characters have some minor quotes as well.Mario Golf is one of those games that will not catch on with the masses, but the die-hard who attach themselves to it will be talking about it, not to mention still playing it, years from now. Though the story mode blows by and is a bit of a disappointment, their really is no real end to the game and your sure to get your moneys worth...that is of course as long as you have a Gamecube, link cable, Mario Golf GC, and Mario Golf Advance Tour.