Super Metroid (Super NES, 1994)

Best game ever? Possibly

My 2012 Metroid Crusade rolls on with what is almost undisputably the best Metroid game. It's on plenty of shortlists for "best game ever". It scored the lofty #1 on the now-defunct (or is it?) Electronic Gaming Monthly's "Top 100 Games of All Time". It's the game that I got an SNES for in 1994. This is Super Metroid, one of the SNES's crowning moments and one of those games that helped the SNES bury the competing Sega Genesis.

Wild Guns (Super NES, 1994)

Today I'm taking a quick look at a forgotten SNES game. It has achieved slightly mythical status in the last couple of years due to a number of high-profile members of the internet singing its praises. It's... surprisingly great.

Batman Returns (Super NES, 1993)

This was, hands-down, the best Batman game ever made before the Arkham games started coming along in the past couple of years. In other words, this was the best Batman game in existence until the late 00's.

Tactics Ogre, Part 1 - March of the Lune Knights

In a word, it's vibrant

Change of pace today, as I'm looking at a PSP game. "Let Us Cling Together" is is a remake of Tactics Ogre for the Playstation, a game I have fond memories of from 1998 or so. What are my thoughts on this game so far? Read on to find out.

Metroid: Zero Mission (Game Boy Advance, 2004)

The 0th Mission

Last month, I reviewed the iconic original Metroid (http://www.coronajumper.com/2012/07/metroid.html). Now I'll be taking a look at the 2004 remake. This game improves on the NES version in numerous ways, but (debatably) loses some of its charm. The big question is... why didn't Metroid 2 get the remake treatment? Graphic-wise it has aged even more than the original game and would be a perfect candidate for a solid remake.

Metroid (NES, 1986)

"Wait, you mean The Metroid is a girl?"

Now that Paladin's Quest is over with, it's time for me to change course and look at something a bit more iconic: the Metroid series. The first Metroid I played was Metroid 2: Return of Samus in 1993, but I soon heard legends and tales that an earlier game existed in the then-duology. To say I was captivated by the idea of an NES Metroid would be an understatement, but unfortunately for me I never got to play this game until I eventually got an NES in 1999. I recently revisited the game for the second time for the purposes of this post. This is one of the best (and most difficult) classics to be found on the NES. Read on to see my thoughts as I play this fine work of game design.

Paladin's Quest Finale: Bring Down The Sky

I know how they feel. We have George W Bush.

Paladin's Quest, Part 8: Back in Time

...of the penis.

Paladin's Quest, Part 7: Chezni's Mom... Has Got It Goin' On

"Sophie can't you see? You're just not the girl for me! I know it might be wrong but I'm in love with Chezni's Mom!"

Paladin's Quest, Part 6: Zaygos

He may be the lord of destruction, but this makes him sound like an unkempt hippie.

Skyblazer

Sony and Nintendo's Obscure 1994 Marvel Team-Up

Skyblazer is one of the forgotten gems of the SNES era. It went largely unnoticed at the time of its release, overshadowed by big-name fare like Super Metroid and Yoshi's Island. It also went unnoticed in stores, probably because of the awful box art. That's unfortunate, because it's a really good game. If it weren't for Nintendo Power devoting a couple of pages to it, I never would have known it existed. What is Skyblazer? Read on.

Paladin's Quest, Part 5: Machine Gun Punch

Previously on Paladin's Quest... the fearsome Chill forcibly kicked beloved children's clown Fastjo out of the party. It was horrible.

Paladin's Quest, Part 4: Everything is Purple

The journey continues, as Saskout Mime Troop 13 begins their quest to fit in. See how they mime!

Paladin's Quest, Part 3: Sure Shot

Previously on Paladin's Quest...

...Chezni drank purple bird wings. It was pretty bad. Animal Control got called, and our hero ended up getting tased.

Paladin's Quest, Part 2: Trip With Pastels

NO! NOOOO!! WHY, FRITZ? BY GOD TELL ME WHY!!

Paladin's Quest, Part 1: Whiskey Dick

A Game For The Ages

Paladin's Quest is a 1993 RPG for the Super NES. Originally called "Lennus" in Japan, this is a fairly underrated classic with a unique world. They made a second game, Lennus 2, but it was never released outside of Japan. This series is similar to Dragon Quest in terms of how it plays, with a higher than average difficulty that is, at times, brutal. Join me for this look at a game that almost no one played. For these posts, I'll be calling the game "Lennus" - the original name of the game. The one that means something.

Movie Review: The Hunger Games

An original concept, to say the least

Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson

Directed by Gary Ross

It has been #1 at the box office for four straight weeks now. This highly-hyped movie is based on the first installment of a book series by Suzanne Collins. It tells the story of a young woman who is thrust into the spotlight in a bloodthirsty, imperialistic society that has lost its moral fiber; if she survives long enough, she may well be the catalyst for change that could bring the whole thing crashing down.

The Rest of Highlander: The Source

The Worst Movie I Watched This Year

Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh.

Hagane (SNES)

Jungle of Massacre

Today, I'll be talking about an SNES game that is actually really good, one that I played a few years ago. Unfortunately, almost no one else played it. Chances are, you've never heard of it. Hagane is, in a way, the spiritual successor to the old NES Ninja Gaiden games. It's the closest the SNES ever got to Ninja Gaiden 4 (or more likely, "Super Ninja Gaiden 4"). It's unfortunate that it didn't have the NG name to boost it to prominence.

Game Review: Mass Effect 3

March 2012

PC, XBox360, PS3

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: Bioware

Time to Complete: 35-40 hours

Mass Effect 3 is, thus far, one of the most eagerly-awaited games of 2012 by far. The first two Mass Effects are among the most beloved sci-fi action-RPGs of all time, and expectations for the third installment were running high for months in advance of release. Luckily for the players, the finale to this epic trilogy manages to meet most of the expectations set forth by the playerbase. It has a bit of a slow start, but once it gets going it is as epic as its predecessors.