It’s been a busy couple of weeks. Last Sunday was my birthday, and I had my parents visiting our house here in California! They hadn’t been here before, and I hadn’t seen them in almost two years, so it was a great, eventful visit! Outside of that, there were some big time releases I was looking forward too for a long time that came out these past two weeks, leading to a rather small but high-quality Roundup. Let’s get started!
 Marble Saga KororinpaWii Release Date: March 17th, 2009 Purchased at: GameStop (San Francisco, CA – $2)I’ve come across several copies of the earlier title in the series, Kororinpa: Marble Mania, but never have I seen this sequel at a store. Apparently I just had to travel a couple hours via train to San Francisco to find this one! And such a great price, too! I still haven’t played the games, but they are similar in gameplay to the Super Monkey Ball series, and have you completing mazes and challenges by tilting the Wii Remote and level to advance. They’ve been regarded as good games, so I’m hoping to try them out here soon! |
 OpoonaWii Release Date: March 25th, 2008 Purchased at: GameStop (San Francisco, CA – $6)Even better than finding Kororinpa was finding Opoona, a random Wii RPG I’ve had my eyes out for for nearly five years!I remember seeing the game back in Indiana years and years ago, but I passed on it because it was something like $30 and thought I’d see it again. Well, pretty much since then I haven’t seen it at all, and I’m happy to finally have it in the collection. Interestingly it’s creators have a strong background in the Dragon Quest series, having an artistic and developmental hand in most all those games since Dragon Quest III. |
 Rhythm Heaven FeverWii Release Date: February 13th, 2012 Purchased at: GameStop (Sunnyvale, CA – $9)Whenever I’m i doubt, I go to the Sunnyvale GameStop. There always seems to be something there I actually want, and this trip is no exception. I’ve seen Rhythm Heaven Fever dozens of times at stores, but this time I decided to buy it thanks to some coupons and generous gift cards from my birthday! Unfortunately I think the game is only for one or two players, meaning a big party game it is not. It does state on the back of the box that the game is fun to play and fun to watch! I’ll be the judge of that! If you didn’t know, this series is created by the same team behind the awesome WarioWare series! |
 The DivisionPS4 Release Date: March 8th, 2016 Purchased at: GameStop (Sunnyvale, CA – $24)A used copy and a 20% off one used game coupon meant scoring this new’ish game on the cheap! I would never have thought to buy this game, but after attending my brothers wedding and talking to some of his friends there, they sold me on it. Touting it as a sort of real-life Borderlands, the idea of getting new guns, running around shooting things, and leveling up still sounds good! I don’t think there’s co-op via splitscreen, so that’s a downer (and a win in the Borderlands box), but I still want to give it a go. And it’s still kind of new, so the online community should still be there with new players and DLC still rolling out. |
 Disgaea 3: Absence of JusticePS3 Release Date: August 26th, 2008 Purchased at: GameStop (Sunnyvale, CA – $5)I’ll occasionally peruse through the “Games under $5” bins at GameStop, seeing mostly sports games and countless Assassin’s Creed’s, but this time I found a game I actually wanted! Ever since my good friend from high school turned me on to the Japanese strategy genre, I’ve been intrigued in just about every game in the Disgaea series. They’re often loaded with an absurd cast, and tons of them, and a story that’s just as crazy. Still, something must be done right if the series is going strong today: Disgaea 5 recently released on PS4. |
 Zero Time DilemmaNintendo 3DS Release Date: June 28th, 2016 Purchased at: Amazon (Online – $30)After a whole fiasco with shipments being delayed, I finally received my pre-ordered copy of Zero Time Dilemma last Friday. Coincidentally, that was the same week I leant a friend my copy of 999, the first game in the series (which I still haven’t played). It’s fun to see him working though the old, now archaic, game and systems, and here I am enjoying the newest iteration of the gruesome trilogy. I still regard Virtue’s Last Reward as one of the best games on the 3DS, and one of the best gaming experiences I’ve had! Here’s hoping the third (and final!) game in the series lives up to they expectation! |
 Mighty No. 9PS4 Release Date: June 21st, 2016 Purchased at: Amazon (Online – $15)In a very weird series of events, my copy of Mighty no. 9 for the Wii U was delivered to my old address, and despite repeated attempts to see if the office had my package, it was never found. Amazon was kind enough to refund all the money. I went ahead and purchased the game again, this time on PS4, through Amazon, and since it was still within 2 weeks since the game’s release, I was given the Prime discount of 20% off the cover price. And, since Zero Time Dilemma was delayed for just about everyone, I applied the $10 promotional credit to the purchase, meaning I ended up saving 50% off this new game! Huzzah! Also, I’ve played the first couple of levels, and while there are definitely some shortcomings, I’m enjoying it so far! Maybe if/when the sequel comes out they’ll address some of my grievances. |
Laters,
Jsick
