ugvm

the site of uk.games.video.misc

Vostok Inc (Switch): COMPLETED!

Posted on Written by

Apparently, it was more than FIVE YEARS AGO that I last played and completed this. That’s not possible. The Switch itself is only 18 months old, right?

Well, Toby off of the ugvm Podcast mentioned he’d started playing it recently, and that reminded me what a great game it was, and so here we are.

I won’t go into all the details of the game itself because I did that last time. What I will say, however, is that on this playthrough I struggled to get started. You see, there’s no main menu on the start screen, so you just go straight into your last save. Which was from five years ago, on level 51, with the game completed. It took a while to find the setting to New Game+ it (which only carries over your achievements) – they’re in the options if you’ve arrived here via Google struggling to find it yourself – but then I was away.

This time, I didn’t finish it until I was well into the 70s in terms of level. And had more money than it seemed practical to spend. Not sure how that happened.

Kirby’s Dream Land 2 (Switch): COMPLETED!

Posted on Written by

After completing the first Kirby’s Dream Land (again) recently, Nintendo were kind enough to put the sequel up on their Switch Online service for me to play. And oh my did they add a lot to the game.

In Kirby’s Dream Land 2, Kirby now has his trademark enemy ability duplication capabilities, but there’s also an overworld, way more levels, and three “animal friends” for Kirby to ride. A fish, a hamster and an owl, who have their own abilities – the owl can fly, the hamster can (of course) walk on ice without slipping, and so on. On top of that, though, they too take on the powers of enemies in varying ways. It means there’s much, much more to the game than the original, which is great.

It’s still very, very easy though. As in, I didn’t die once. Not that it really matters. And I didn’t access all the secret areas (many of which require you gaining a friend or power from another level first), which would add some difficulty. Fun though.

Ori and the Blind Forest (Switch): COMPLETED!

Posted on Written by

You’d think I’d have hopped on this earlier, what with it being a Metroidvania and having a great reputation and stuff, but for some reason it took until I saw it for about £6 on the Switch eShop before I bought it.

And oh boy is it pretty. Sure, so it’s a 2.5D game and not the next Call of Duty, but it’s still very impressive for a Switch game. The lighting and colouring effects are amazing, and there are a few areas where your surroundings change if you carry a certain item and the effect is very clever. It sounds just as good too.

The story is probably deep and meaningful but to be honest I got confused as to whether the tree, who might be your parent, was good or bad. Because it seemed to destroy the forest but then also wanted you to repair it? I dunno. It doesn’t matter.

The gameplay reminded me a lot of Guacamelee, mainly because of the tricky platforming. There are a number of sections where you have to perform perfect sequences of moves with precise timing, which Guacamelee threw at you a lot. The combat, however, is completely different as your little spark wisp thing acts like a short-range homing missile, so you don’t need to aim or get especially close to fight.

The combat sections are also incredibly easy, whereas although obviously doable, the “chase” platforming sections are quite the opposite. It makes the game feel a bit imbalanced, but not damagingly so. The exploration and gaining new abilities to explore further is the core fun of Ori, like all good Metroidvanias, and it nails that perfectly with some unique powers (like the sort of grapple move) and lots to find.

Being a Microsoft game, it was really odd to sign in with my Xbox account, on my Switch, and gain Xbox achievements as I played. Of course, it doesn’t change the game at all, it just felt weird. Like when Sega started making Nintendo games.

Anyway, with that completed I just need to wait for the sequel to drop in price…

Metroid Fusion (Switch): COMPLETED!

Posted on Written by

Like Minish Cap, Metroid Fusion is a GBA game I haven’t played for a very, very long time. Also like Minish Cap, I have it on my 3DS, also unplayed. But let me not talk of what I haven’t played, for this appeared on Switch Online and I did play it.

Metroid Fusion is a more linear than usual Metroid title. That’s not to say there isn’t any backtracking or hidden things, more that it’s very hand-holdy and you’re told where to go (usually exactly) frequently, and sometimes even how to get there, so random exploration isn’t really a part of it. What is a part of it, however, is often getting stuck somewhere with seemingly no way of getting out, and it is only by bombing and shooting everything in sight and trying to climb into walls which don’t obviously show they’re hollow, that you escape. Or at least, that’s what happened to me. A lot.

Wonder what ate that?

It’s also quite a lot easier than most Metroid games, and certainly easier than I remember it being. Apart from Nightmare, who was a right old pain and I’m pretty sure I fluked it past him. Oh yes, I knew how to hit him, but avoiding him seemed completely impossible to plan for and somersaulting around him (shades of one of the Dread bosses there) was tricky because of his erratic movement and the lack of space. Those Core-X things that come out after bosses that also need defeating caught me out a few times too.

Nightmare. And he was.

I can never remember if it’s Fusion or Zero that is supposed to be the “good” one. I thought they both were, but one was more loved than the other? Well, this is certainly excellent so if Zero is better, I can’t wait for that to appear on the Switch Online service at some point.

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (Switch): COMPLETED!

Posted on Written by

Another Nintendo Online Service game. I have played this before, but maybe only once? I didn’t remember any of it apart from the bunny ears and the deformed Wario sprites.

It was so, so easy though! I didn’t die at all! Every boss was easy. Every level a cinch. I ended up with more lives than it’s possible to ever use.

But, it was enjoyable. A bit jerky, but very impressive when you consider this was a Game Boy game and so the same hardware as the good but obviously reduced-to-fit original Super Mario Land. Big, clear graphics, nice tunes and plenty of level variety.