You can expect to find anything in the realm of Inspiration, Projects I have/am working on, Entertainment that I enjoy and want to spread to the world,and just general chatter of my life happenings.
Please enjoy and don't forget to leave your own commentary. =D
No, not the Zelda Triforce...the actual guy who legally got his named changed to Triforce.
I first heard about this guy a few months ago when I read an article pointing out that he was waiting in line for the WiiU more than a month in advance.
From the outside ZombiU could look like just another shooter trying to cash in on the zombie craze. It is when you pick up the controller that you begin to realize that ZombiU is actually doing some new and fresh things to help it stand out from the horde.
ZombiU's single player is less about story and more about survival. The player must stay alive as long as possible through the zombie attack, and once the player is taken down, they will respond as a brand new character. The fun of this comes in the fact that as the new character you can reach the point that you're previous character was at to find out that they are not a zombie. I personally thought this was a great idea to keep the player retrying after every death.
My personal hands on time was with one of the multiplayer modes. The mode I got to try out pitted one player verse the other in a game of capture the flag. Instead of two players fighting against each other on the same screen though, one player (me) was given the pro controller and played on the big screen, while the other player (some random dude) used the WiiU tablet controller.
My goal was pretty simple...stay alive and capture as many flags as possible. I was satisfied with the controls of the game, only problem I ran into is how similar the pro controller is to the Xbox 360 controller, yet the right buttons A,B,X,Y was flipped with the right thumb stick. After some hours of play through I can't see this being much of an issue anymore. So how about the other guy? What was he up to at this time?
Well while I was running around scared out of my mind, the other player was setting up attacks on me with multiple zombies. The gamepad worked similar to an RTS style game, where the user would map out where they want zombies to be at, how to attack, etc... The gamepad player was also trying to capture flags as well, just using this unique style of gameplay.
Things just got serious.
As far as graphics and sound, both were at high quality. The game looked great, and the sound tried to capture great submersion. The audio is something Ubisoft is really trying to make right, and you can tell this since one of the ZombiU stations could be played with some really nice headphones.
At the end of the day ZombiU will come down to how much content it has in the final game. The core elements of the game seem unique enough to catch a gamer's attention, but without enough content it could fall flat.
We will be finding out how well the final product does soon enough.
First off if you didn't get the change to check out Rayman Origins that came out last holiday season, go do that right now! I guarantee you will find it for extremely cheap!
Rayman Legends was more of the same with new levels, new characters, new concepts, and better graphics.
RL was one of the games that I was not able to get any hands on footage of, but I did get some hands on time with it. I took control of Rayman with the new pro controler, while someone else controled a little helper named Murfy. This seemed to work very similar toNew Super Mario Bros U, where I would try to run through the stage as fast as I could, and they attempeted to assist me in doing this. In RL this concepted seemed much more important...many times I was not able to make it through a particular section, because the guy with the gamepad did not react soon enough to help me.
If you did not get a chance to check out the first trailer for RL, there were some cool WiiU exclusive features shown off. It looks like the WiiU version will take use of the WiiU gamepad in a crazy way. Check out the video below for more on this.
Rayman Legends felt more like what I would want from a new version of New Super Mario Bros. Great graphics, great gameplay, great coop, and great new additions. Keep an eye out on this beauty releasing later this year. -Travis
This is still the Pikmin you played many years ago, in fact if you played either of the new play control versions of Pikmin, then this should feel very familiar to you.
Pikmin 3 does take advantage of the WiiU game pad, but maybe not as much as you would expect. During the demo I could move around the map and scope out my surroundings with the touch screen. As far as controlling my character I was using a Wiimote and nunchuk combo.
The demo featured two different game modes; a boss battle and a fruit collecting challenge. I was able to get hands on time with the collecting mode, and watched a guy take on the giant boss. I also got some gameplay footage of this boss battle you can check out below. Pikmin 3 feels extremely similar to the past games...I am actually a bit surprised how little of a change the game series went through. Keep in mind this is only a demo though, and many other surprised could await us at launch.
You may notice that the character being played is not series veterans Olimar or Louie, but instead a nameless character that looks very similar. My guess is the story will develop to later on show these characters from the past. This nameless character controls just like Olimar from past games, and with the ability to use the Wiimote to point and click, managing your Pikmin is as easy as ever before.
The demo featured two types of Pikmin, the original red guys and a new breed of rock Pikmin. These guys seemed to operate similar to the purple Pikmin introduced in Pikmin 2. With their added rock like weight they can smash through things with much ease.
As far as graphics are concerned Pikmin 3 does not disappoint. The HD really helps with managing all the chaos taking place on screen. Also the "macro" look with all the extra depth of field is a very nice touch.
Pikmin 3 is scheduled to release somewhere in the launch window, and from the little bit of hands on time I got I can say it could very well be a worthwhile purchase as your first WiiU game investment.
If memory serves me right...Nintendo only had one surprise at their E3 2012 conference, and it was labeled as Nintendo Land.
My imagination runs wild at the thought of a Nintendo theme park similar to Disney World. Explorring Princess Peach's Castle, a virtual reality Lylat System Arwing fight, a DK spinning barrel ride....the possibilities our endless. Even a virtual version of something similar would be an awesome endeavor. Sadly Nintendo Land is not the virtual theme park that I was hoping for.
Nintendo Land is a collection of mini games inspired by Nintendo franchises. Each mini game has it's own rules and gameplay that falls into the world of that particular franchise. These mini games are not controlled by familiar characters such as Mario, Link, and Samus, but instead you will be controlling your Mii dressed up in an outfit that is fitting for that world.
I got the chance to try out two of the twelve attractions: Animal Crossing: Sweet Day and The Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest.
Sweet Day was a five player mini game that has four players working together to collect candy from trees while one person with the tablet attempts to take down the team by controlling two guards simultaneously with the tablet's two sticks.
I am pretty sure the guy with the tablet was a developer, or was cheating.
I got to play on the team of four...and well...we did not do very well. I never felt like I got to fully appreciate the game since the guy with the tablet was so good. I guess it also didn't help that my teammates were not very talkative...but we will blame that on the loud atmosphere of the WiiU Experience.
I am positive that this game could be a riot if you got together with four of your peeps.
Next up was Battle Quest which put three players dressed as Link together for a co-op adventure. Two players have Wii-motes which act as swords, while one player with the tablet takes on the role of archer.
I was one of the sword wielders, and found the controls to be responsive and something like a blend of Wii Sports Resort's sword game and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Even some of the enemies reminded me of Skyward Sword, since specific angled slashes were required to defeat them.
All three members of the team share a heart pool. We sadly did not make it to the end of the stage, but it was fun non the less.
I also had the chance to watch some players try out Luigi's Ghost Mansion.
Similar to Sweet Day, four players work together, while one player on the tablet attempts to take them down.
The player with the tablet plays as a ghost, while the four other players explorer the mansion interior with their flashlights.
I was able to get a small amount of footage of Ghost Mansion. Check it out below!
The representatives at the event kept describing Nintendo Land as an example of what Nintendo is calling Asymmetrical multiplayer. I think Nintendo Land does a great job of this, but what worries me about the game is the possibility of an extreme lack of depth.
Nintendo Land seems to be the answer to the success of Wii Sports. Though Wii Sports was not incredibly deep, it had additive gameplay that kept players of all ages coming back for more. For Nintendo Land to reach the caliber of Wii Sports it is going to either need depth or addictive gameplay...lets see if Nintendo can deliever this.
New Super Mario Bros U was one of the games I got to play but was not able to get gameplay footage of.
The fun things about NSMBU is the fact that a small speed run tournament was hosted at the WiiU experience....and well...My partner and I took home first place! =)
Now when I say I played with a teammate you are probably thinking one of us was Mario and the other was Luigi or some generic Toad...not exactly....
That's right folks. We BEAT Mario and Luigi.
During the tournament I took control of Mario with the classic sideways Wii-mote controller scheme. Mario controlled the same as always...I did not notice any differences in controls. While I was sprinting through the course as fast as possible my teammate assistance me in my run with the WiiU game pad. He could add stepping blocks, stun enemies, and help me gather useful items. In one scenery I was running through the stage without enough time to jump on a Koopa shell... luckily my partner came to the last minute rescue by tapping the Koopa as it appears real time on his game pad. Doing this popped the Koopa shell into Mario's hands allowing me to take out some Goombas off in the distance.
The demo at the WiiU Experience featured 3 playable levels. For a Super Mario veteran like myself I found these stages very simple, but fun non the less. The stages looked very colorful and vibrant in its widescreen HD showing.
The full game can also be played on the gamepad at any time without the need of the television which is another great addition. Want to check the weather or how a sports team is doing? Just switch to the gamepad mode and keep playing while you check up on your favorite team.
New Super Mario Bros U is nothing groundbreaking, but it is more of the same fun you would come to expect from the New series. New levels, new power-ups, new graphics, and new features, and the ability to bring your Mii into the platforming action.
I did not get the chance to take control of Batman in the port to the amazing game that first launched last year for other current gen consoles.
With that said...I did get some honest feedback from people who did experience Arkham through the tablet as we as the chance to watch a play through of the demo. (You can check out some of the gameplay yourself by clicking the link above.)
From what I could tell the game looked identical to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 counterparts. This is a very good thing, since Arkham City is a gorgeous looking game.
What does this version do that is different though?
The big thing is the fact that the tablet now allows as control of gadgets and your menu. The tablet also gives you control of the newBattle Armored Tech (B.A.T.) which is an upgrade of the normal armor for Batman and Catwoman.
The WiiU version has the subname "Armored Edition" I was not given much information on what all will be included in this version to make it stand out other than the new tablet features and added DLC.
I feel like this version may suffer from finding an audience with so many people already diving into the experience this past year. Without enough new features there may not be enough incenteve for Arkham vets to jump back into the city.
I am interested to see if the legacy of Nintendo fans that missed Batman's adventure last year will be enough for this game to gain high sales.
Both games were very fun to play, espically with people around comentating. Both mini games also made me feel like I was working out, more so the bob sledding...I could really feel it working my hidden six pack.
The issue I could see with Wii Fit U judging from the demo is it is just Wii Fit Plus Plus. The demo did not do much to utilies the tablet. You could chose workouts on the tablet, as well as have an extra camera that featured extra shots of what was going on. I am really hoping that the final game will have much more acnoligment of the tablet...and I am sure it will.
One thing you may also notice about this game as well as all other WiiU games is they look great! The Mii characters really cant go much farther in terms of depth, but you will notice right a way how much clearer everything becomes in HD.
I am extremely happy to see Nintendo catching up to the HD world!
