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Super Smash Bros Ultimate: COMPLETED! (Switch)

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It’s 2019, and the first game to be completed this year is Super Smash Bros. And by complete, I mean, the MASSIVE new single player mode – “World of Light”. In brief, this mode is a huge map with lots of fight events on it. Some are simple one-on-one brawls, some have quirks like gravity that randomly flips or after a few seconds one hit kills you, and others have a number of unusual fighters such as an army of mini Donkey Kongs or a giant metal Mario.

You can read more about how it all works, and the whole spirit system, in more detail elsewhere, but for the entire game I just stuck with Kirby, rarely had a difficult fight, and then got what appears to be the best ending. Well, OK. For the very final actual battle you have to choose three fighters and they can’t all be Kirby. I chose Sonic and Roy (as Roy was the best character in Super Smash Bros Brawl on the Gamecube), but Sonic is awful so I swapped him for the more Roy-like Marth and was much more successful then.

And it is an incredible game. So much to do, so many different fights, so many spirits to collect and power up – and I haven’t really even touched standard “Smash” mode, and I’ve only played online once (as Kirby: I won). Yet 30 hours of World of Light is more than enough for one game – all these other modes and extras are just bonuses, as far as I’m concerned.

Yeah, I’m saying that, just like with that other “online competitive game” Splatoon 2, single player is the best bit.

The post Super Smash Bros Ultimate: COMPLETED! (Switch) appeared first on deKay's Gaming Diary.

Ristar (Switch): COMPLETED!

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I did have a longer post for this but the WordPress app swallowed it and I can’t be bothered repeating myself.

What I basically said, though, is that I’d unfairly maligned Ristar for years because I didn’t like it and it wasn’t Sonic, but actually giving it time it’s not that bad at all. It’s still no Sonic, but it’s a decent enough game in its own right.

The post Ristar (Switch): COMPLETED! appeared first on deKay's Gaming Diary.

Sonic 3D: Flickies’ Island (Switch): COMPLETED!

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Many times over the years I’ve tried to play this, and every time the slippery controls, wonky collision detection, and overuse of pressing diagonals have put me off before the first boss.

So what’s changed this time? Why did I play it completion? I’ve no idea.

It’s still awful. It’s six generically themed levels, with sound effects nicked from Sonic 3, and a badly realised Flicky collecting mechanic. It’s not Sonic, it’s not Flicky, and aside from being technically very clever it’s really not a very good game at all.

At least it’s not Sonic Forces though, eh?

The post Sonic 3D: Flickies’ Island (Switch): COMPLETED! appeared first on deKay's Gaming Diary.

Ninja Gaiden (Switch): COMPLETED!

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I have to admit, I never really played any of the Ninja Gaiden games originally. I knew they were hard, but oh my word was this hard.

There’s no way in hell I’d ever get close to completing it without save states, and it is just that it is difficult – it’s a mess in terms of collision detection, and baddies that respawn if you back-track a single pixel. These two things often conspire against you, as you’re knocked back by one baddie into the path of another that just regenerated.

The sticking to walls is rubbish, as you’re a sitting duck. Often, you end up stuck to a wall you didn’t intend to stick to just because you jumped or fell vaguely near one. And then there’s the stringent level time limits, at least two of which I’m sure aren’t possible.

In all, it’s really not a very good game and I’m baffled by the high regard in which it seems to be held.

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Phantasy Star (Switch): COMPLETED!

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The Phantasy Star games are some of my very most favourite RPGs. Phantasy Star III was my first one, but I later played the original and, although it wasn’t quite the same, it was also excellent.

Since those days, I’ve completed the first game several times – on the Master System originally more than once, in an emulator, and in the Game Boy Advance Phantasy Star Collection. But, loading it up briefly aside, not for over a decade. Until today.

Considering I only started it three days ago, I think I’ve done pretty well! I’m amazed at myself for how much I remembered in terms of what needed to be done, if not the names of actual people or places. Or specific stuff like exact routes to take through dungeons, although that particular issue was helped greatly with the new automap feature.

There’s a new mode too, called Ages Mode, which I don’t remember starting but I suspect I may have done without realising. It supposedly reduces the number of random battles, but increases the amount of experience points and money you gain from the battles you do get. The reason I think I must have played through on this mode is because I found the game a lot less challenging than I remember it being. Sure, I mostly knew what I was doing, but that can’t be the only reason.

For those asking if a 30 year old JRPG like this still stands up today, then I can say yes, for sure. There’s some clunkiness, such as the tiny inventory, lack of space for full-length item names (a leftover due to the Japanese original needing fewer characters – many games have this “issue”, it’s a pain how you use and disembark your vehicles, and so on, but none of these are major issues. The translation isn’t great, but that doesn’t get in the way of the story or the game, and the battle mechanics are standard JRPG fare and even modern games are largely identical. Coming to this so soon after Pokémon, however, I did notice how there was no “speed” stat, which makes the “fight order” somewhat random.

It’s hard not to like the big chunky Master System graphics, and the 3D dungeons are still pretty impressive even now, so yeah, Phantasy Star is still one of the best games ever made.

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