Archile's Grab-bag: Compulsive Buying in 2017 Edition

 It's a new package! Which means more games and more debt!

 Suikoden III: I'm not very familiar with the Suikoden franchise, mostly because it's pretty expensive, but I did play a bit of 3, so I've been meaning to give it another whirl for a while. I'm expecting this one to be good.

 The Hobbit: I played this one all the way to the end on PC. I actually... liked it a fair bit. I must've been rather young, as the consensus is that this game kinda sucks. Regardless, I hope I get to enjoy this one as much as I once did.

 Twisted Metal Black: So I've admitted that I don't like Twisted Metal during my 2017 awards, so why oh why did buy TM Black? The reason is two-fold. A) I used to own this game and B) This game's savefile unlocks a costume on the fantastic War of the Monsters. And you may even add C) It was five bucks cheap.

 Transformers - Devastation: I'm not much of a fan of Transformers, seeing how I grew up with Beast Wars, but this game looked fun. It's made by Platinum, and the gameplay looked very flashy, which is something I can get into.

 Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam(DS):No, I do not mean to play the entire portable Tony Hawk offerings, because I'm pretty sure they are gonna be washed down games at best. But, but, Downhill Jam isn't your average Tony Hawk game, this game seemed, to me, perfect for a on-the-go game, which is why I wanted to get it. But I also wanted the full experience, which is why I also got it on PS2.

 Gekido - Urban Fighters: I used to own this game, and I remember being very hyped about it... but the end result disappointed me. I want to give it another chance, because this game should be right up my alley. I hope I can finally get into this game, I hope I can enjoy it because it seems like my kind of game.

 Tony Hawk's American Wasteland: Another Tony Hawk game! This was the last game on the Ps2 hardware and it introduced Bikes into the mix. I've seen some reviews and it seems reception is mixed: It's either the best or the beginning of the end. I like Underground 2 so much that I think, I think I'm gonna love this one.

 Koudelka: I remember watching this game trailer somehow. I think the game's introduction came bundled as a demo with another game? Regardless, ever since I saw that CG opening I fell in love with Koudelka and have been meaning to play it for a looooong while. I hope it's good, and I hope I can get into the rest of the Shadow Hearts franchise this year.

Review #365: Battle Arena Toshinden 3

 Clunky, wonky, stuffy, stiff... and somehow still fun!

 Enter Toshinden, one of Playstation's first original fighting game series as well as one of the first weapon based 3D fighters. Battle Arena Toshinden 3 is the culmination of Eiji's story, featuring the most characters, stages and mechanics yet!

 The game offers the usual suspects when it comes to modes: Arcade, VS CPU, VS Player, Survival and Practice, which is fair for its era. The Arcade ladder is a bit long, consisting of over 16 battles! At the start of the game you can pick any of 14 fighters, but as you play you will unlock more for a total of 32 characters! To be fair, most of the remaining 16 fighters are clones of the main cast, so they are not wholly original, and a few of these characters look like generic no-personality throw-away designs, like Leon or Tau. Still, there's a ton of characters, and unlocking everyone is sure to take you a while.

 Battling is done with the four face buttons, Square and Triangle are used for weak and strong slashes, while X and triangle do weak and strong kicks. Double tapping up or down, or using L1 and L2, will let you roll into the background, a feature which I found useless most of the time, as block, by holding back on the D-pad, works just fine. As a 3D fighter, combos in this game are performed by juggling your opponent using both attack strings as well as command special moves. I felt like the controls were a bit unresponsive when trying to pull off moves, and it doesn't help that characters feel very stiff when they move, but regardless, it was kinda fun, the game's engine allows for some pretty spiffy combos.

 Above your health bar lies a a small gauge, when filled, by dealing and taking damage, it will begin to blink as it runs out. While it lasts you can pull off Super and Desperation moves. Lastly, you get to 'Soul Bombs' per fight, which act as super moves of sorts by pressing weak slash and weak kick at the same time. Simple and uncomplicated.

 Character models look fine, although, and I can't believe I'm saying this, I think some designs are a bit too colorful. Animations are rather stiff and lack finesse, but you can get used to them. Curiously, you can run the game at either 30 or 60 FPS by going into the Options menu. Playing in 60 FPS will turn the backgrounds into untextured globs of paint... but I can deal with that if it means 60 FPS, that's the way I played the entire game!

 If I were to sum up the game it would calling it a mixed bag. Animations and attacks look stiff and lame, but there're also a few very crunchy, satisfying moves as well. Some character designs look really cool, but others are pathetically generic. You could certainly do much better than Battle Arena Toshinden 3, but you could also do much worse.
 6.0 out of 10

Now Playing: Battle Arena Toshinden 3

 Yes, another fighting game. Sue me.

 Color me surprised, I expected Toshinden 3 to be terrible, and it kinda isn't! I mean, it's clunky, it's wonky, it's rather stiff... but it's kinda good. I managed to pull some badass looking combos which actually surprised me a bit, it seems like... it seems like it plays better than Toshinden Subaru(4)!

 Basically, as stiff and lame as the game is, it can be kinda fun. Some animations look really good, others don't, some characters are kinda cool, others are terrible... It's a mixed bag. Everything in the game is a mixed bag leaning towards fun. And I'm definitely reusing that line in the review.

 And that's all I've to say up to this point. It has some good things, some bad things and there're a dozen other better fighting games you can get on the PS1... but it's still worth a look for fighting game aficionados.

Review #364: Tobal No.1

 Not gonna be number 1 any time soon...

 Tobal No.1 is yet another original idea from Squaresoft back when they were at their prime. I'm pretty sure it was their first fighting game, and while flawed, it would set up the foundation for the superior Tobal No.2 as well as some elements which were borrowed by Ergheiz.

 The game offers a Tournament Mode, which is actually the game's Arcade Ladder, a VS Player mode, as well as a Practice mode hidden underneath the Options menu. There's another mode, Quest Mode, which you must tackle in order to unlock the 4 bonus fighters. This mode... is not good. It's played in third person while retain the same control from the main fighting mode, which means that it controls like garbage. Turning around is clunky and tedious, the platforming is all kinds of annoying and moving around is imprecise and very, very wonky. It makes for a very vexing time. Bonus points for at least trying, but don't feel too bad, Square would get it right with Tobal No.2 and Ergheiz.

 But fighting is where it's at, and man is it swell! You've a low attack, mid attack and high attack as well as dedicated jump and block buttons. Mixing different directions, as well as the jump or block buttons with the attack buttons will result in all manners of different attacks and combo strings. I felt like there's not much potential for combos, but the movesets are deceptively extensive and every character has his or her own moves. While tearing down the enemy's life bar will KO them, you must also watch out for ring outs, as you can fall off the stage.

 The in-game camera is a bit of an oddity... it doesn't always try to give you a side view of both characters, as sometimes the camera will trail behind for a sort of back camera, or will lean too far to a side. It's not unplayable and it probably won't mess up your moves, but it's certainly weird for a fighting game.

 Props for Akira Toriyama's character designs. These are the most unique characters he has ever designed, and not only are characters different from each other as far as moves go, but also visually. There's a ton of variety, from a chicken man, to a big woman wrestler, to more grounded and generic characters like martial artists Chuji and Gren. It's a very colorful cast, and not something we see nowadays. Animations are also exquisitely smooth, it's quite a treat watching all these characters in action.

 Tobal No. 1 is a more than decent fighting game, but it's a bit lacking. It lacks modes, it could've used a couple more characters, and it's most ambitious mode, Quest Mode, is an annoyance. That said, when it comes down to the fighting mechanics, they are solid if a bit limited, so it's not the best fighter to play competitively. If you can get Tobal No.2 go for it, as it fixes Tobal 1's shortcomings and polishes what already worked well.

 7.5 out of 10

Now Playing: Tobal No.1

 Another fighting game!? Another fighting game.

 Tobal, baby! I used to own the second one, but since it was never released in USA this'll have to do. I don't really care about the two newcomers or the dungeon baddies, so it's alright.

 That said, the game looks surprisingly bad. I mean, it's not a bad looking game, not by any means, but the second one looked like a Nintendo 64 game!... Which I realize doesn't mean much in this day and age, but it's the PS1 we're talking about!

 I've already beaten Arcade Mode with 7/12 characters, and it' pretty good. There's not a whole lot of combo potential, but movesets are deceptively extensive. I also like the character roster, most characters are pretty weird and unique.

 Bottom line is I'm liking Tobal a lot. Now onwards to quest mode!

Review #363: Bushido Blade

 The wind is blowing. A pair of Blades clash once and again. A single body falls. Sometimes both of them.

  I've always been familiar with Bushido Blade 2, since I thought being a fighting game sequel it would be the superior game, but last year I found out that both games are quite different, so I had to give Bushido Blade 1 a try.

 Bushido Blade is not your average fighting game. There're no life bars or energy gauges, and just one hit is enough to finish a match. You pick from 6 characters and 8 different weapons: A katana, a nodachi, a warhammer, a naginata, a saber, a long sword, a broad sword and a rapier. Quite a few of these weapons are actually missing from the sequel, and characters have never really been all that unique among each other, so in a way, this game actually has more variety.

 Control aren't as streamlined as in 2, you've three attack buttons: High, mid and low, as well as a defense button that must be timed alongside the enemy's attack. R1 raises your positions while R2 lowers it, which translates into changing into the three different positions each weapon allows, plus, R1 can be used to climb walls, R2 and then R1 allows you to jump and R2+attack buttons will produce special attacks. It sounds like a handful, and compared to Bushido Blade 2's simplicity it kinda is, but it's easy to get the hang of it. What you will notice is that gameplay is much slower, les flashy and more deliberate in this game. It's not better or worse, it simply is different, you could mash buttons in the previous game and produce some tense blade clashes, here when your blade clashes with another doesn't allow you to immediately attempt another attack, so you must be more careful.

 In the sequel, body blows didn't matter too much unless you were hit on an arm. In this game, unnecessary damage is an actual hindrance, which is awesome. Being hit on your legs will decrease your running speed or sometimes even reduce you to a crawl, which limits your stances and movement. Getting hit on an arm will limit the stances you can switch to. Getting hit anywhere will make your attacks slower. You really don't want to get hit in Bushido Blade 1, because if you survive the hit it will hamper your efficacy.

 Sadly the game is a bit lacking in modes. There's a VS mode, against player only, Slash Mode which pits you against 100 enemies(And lets you unlock a 7th character... if you are good enough), training against a CPU and, finally, Story Mode. There's two endings in Story Mode, the good one is a bit of a secret how to get it, but it involves running. Breaking the code of Bushido(attacking a downed enemy, hitting the on their backs) will cut your run short however.

 Bushido Blade 1 isn't better or worse than Bushido Blade 2, it's just different. While I prefer BB 2's faster paced combat, the importance of body damage in this game makes it a much more interesting affair. And while BB 2 might have more characters, I'd rather have more weapons! All in all, this is an interesting case, as I would suggest getting both as each game offers something different. But for what it's worth, Bushido Blade 2 definitely has more longevity: More modes, more characters and more stages.
 8.5 out of 10

Archile's Grab Bag: 2017 Edition

  New year means new packages which means new games which, apparently, also means a new pair of legs.

 Tobal No. 1: I'm actually familiar with the game's sequel, Tobal No. 2, but seeing how that one wasn't released in USA it would be a bit of a hassle getting it to work. Plus, I didn't really care about the bonus 'Dungeon' fighters or the new default characters. That said, the graphics seem a bit blockier, but oh well, as long as the gameplay is as smooth as it was on the sequel I'll be a happy camper.

 Battle Arena Toshinden 3: I played Toshinden Subaru(4) and it was crap. I also tried one of the PC Toshinden games and it was also crap. But seeing how Toshinden is supposed to be a Playstation classic, I'll try to give it another shot. Not too hopeful about it though.

  Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam: The Tony Hawk game nobody talks about, originally released on the Wii, I opted for traditional PS2 controls. It seemed decent, from what little footage I've seen.

Tony Hawk's Proving Ground: I wasn't wowed by Project 8, but maybe, just maybe, they managed to get Tony Hawk back on track with Proving Ground. I actually liked the new 'punching bystanders' mechanics I saw, so I'm slightly optimistic about it. Slightly.

 Sonic Heroes: I remember being kinda excited about Sonic Heroes back before it was released, since I had grown up as a Nintendo Kid, but jumped ship to the PS2, I hadn't had a chance to play Sonic, which made this my first Sonic game. I think I kinda liked it, although its reception was rather lukewarm and the PS2 version got the most flak!

 Star Wars Episode III - Revenge of the Sith: The only Star Wars prequel that was actually good! This game looks very, very promising, to say that I'm very optimistic about it is selling it shortly. I can't wait to give this one a try!

 Metal Slug - Anthology: I'm a bit of a NEO-GEO lover, so of course I'm amiliar with the Metal Slug franchise! This anthology looks to be every Metal Slug fan's wet dream.


 I also got Bushido Blade I but didn't take a picture, regardless, I've already played it for a bit, and it's really good. In some ways, its better than the sequel, in others... not so much.