Sunday Roundup: 9/25/11

There’s really not much that I need to say about this game that gamers don’t already know. Symphony of the Night is one of the best Castlevania titles, and having finally found it (for $13 no less!) makes me feel pretty good. I’ll definitely pop this one in and play through Alucard’s story all over again.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think this game has the longest title in the entire series. Not only that, but anything after the roman numeral (or in this case the word “swords”) has no reason to be on the box or in the title at all. Anyhoozle, this game is a unique entry in the DQ series, as it’s more of an on-rails game, and you use the Wii remote to swing your sword and attack stuff. It’s an earlier Wii title, but it’s actually quite fun. At least it takes advantage of the Wii remotes motion controls in a somewhat entertaining way. The graphics are also fairly decent, and still capture Akira Toriyama’s unique anime style. If you see it you should definitely pick it up: it could be a popular game in the future for collectors.

I was quite shocked when I saw this game sitting on the shelf at the used game store. Kagero is the sequel to Tecmo’s Deception, and both games are sort of horror/RPG/adventure games with a very violent twist. The first game was alright, but featured completely brutal gameplay: you can set traps to dismember humans, burn people alive, and even kill babies (albeit evil babies)! This sequel is supposed to be a much better game, and I can’t wait to get my hands into it. Side note: this series has an almost Rambo style of naming sequels, namely they don’t follow any conventional naming method:
Tecmo’s Deception -> Kagero: Deception II -> Deception III: Dark Delusion -> Trapt

The King’s Field series has always caught my eye, but I’ve never been able to give it any love. I actually picked up the first game a few years back for a dollar at a garage sale, and from everything I’m reading online this sequel is better in every way. Let’s see how it is soon, shall we? If the game is anything like the sweet cover art then we should be in for a great time.

I’ve had a really great time with this one. You can actually read all about it here.

So I had this thought that I’d love to do a retrospective playthrough of the entire Capcom vs. series of games, starting with the early title X-Men Children of the Atom and finishing up with the new release of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. But then I thought of how much money that would be. I think I got lucky when I found this one for $20, but the others can run for upwards of $50! That’s insane… but it could actually still happen.
In the meantime, enjoy this video I made.

And we’ll end this week with two titles released by the new deceased Midway games. The first of which is the first 3D title in the MK series, Mortal Kombat 4. You know, I actually didn’t think this game was all that bad, and it’s still a good MK game in my mind. The characters look blocky as shit, but the gameplay remains distinctly Mortal Kombat. The newer cast of characters don’t compare to the older ones though. But regardless, MK4 is a good entry into the series, and should definitely be played by any fighting fans out there.

And then there’s War Gods. Coming out about a year before MK4, War Gods is a forgettable 3D fighter from Midway. While the game isn’t high on people’s radar, there’s still some good bits here. The cast of characters are all very diverse, including a voodoo priest (named Voodoo), a pagan witch (named Pagan), a Roman gladiator (named Maximus), and a Kabuki fighter (named Kabuki Jo). Okay, so they weren’t so original on names, but the cast was all over the place, which I liked. The fighting is sloppy and hard to control, and the 3D element they make so prevalent on the box only somewhat works. Tekken 3 would do 3D fighting way better the next year. There are also fatalities in this game, just like big brother Mortal Kombat, and they are gruesome, making the game somewhat worth it to play. It’s a tough game to find now-a-days, but it’s worth a look.