SuperPhillip Central Best of 2016 Awards - Top Five Biggest Disappointments

I used to house a lot of hostility towards the industry and gamers in general in the past with SuperPhillip Central. Over the 8+ years of the site, I've since cleaned up my act, as hey-- there's enough hostility in the industry and the hobby already, so why add to it! That doesn't mean I'm sunshine and happiness each and every day, as this awards category for the SuperPhillip Central Best of 2016 Awards shows. We're talking about the games that disappointed me the greatest from those I had the honor (or dishonor?) of playing.

5) Street Fighter V (PS4, PC)

Despite its core gameplay being anything but a disaster-- instead, just as good as ever-- the disappointment from Street Fighter V came from how little content the game had when it originally released in February worldwide. The lack of modes, including a traditional arcade and story mode, meant that for players who weren't that interested in seriously investing in the competitive portion of the game didn't really get their money's worth. The launch was also plagued with connection issues as well as rage quitting problems. While some of these problems have been fixed, to say that they didn't affect Capcom's bottom line and the interest of both beginning and middle-of-the-road players would be foolish.

4) Mekazoo (PS4, XB1, PC)

This entry on my list is one that is very much a personal disappointment. Mekazoo is a 2.5D platformer where you switch between different animals to solve challenges and progress through the various levels of the game. It's actually a well designed game, but the biggest issue which comes blatantly apparent in the latter half of the game is how many bugs, glitches, and performance problems the game currently has. While these have been promised to be amended and soon, it absolutely ruined my fun for an indie game that I was very much hyping. Until these problems are patched, Mekazoo is a game I won't be returning to.

3) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan (Multi)

Platinum Games can be hit or miss with their licensed projects. While Transformers: Devastation was an awesome action game set in the Robots in Disguise universe, a game like The Legend of Korra wasn't so special. Sadly, Platinum Games' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game, Mutants in Manhattan falls in the latter "not so special" category. With four Turtles on screen at the same time and some bizarre camera angles, it is challenging to see what is going on. This makes dodging and evading attacks, something that is of the utmost of importance to survive, something immensely difficult to do. The randomness of the mission design, boring level design in general, and less-than-stellar action makes for a Turtles game that is about as appetizing as Turtle Soup.

2) Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness (PS4)

One of my favorite JRPGs of all time is the incredible Star Ocean: The Second Story and its PSP enhanced port, Second Evolution. Since then, the series has seen another appealing entry with the PS2's Till the End of Time, a not-so-great fourth entry last gen, and now, this year's Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness. Between the inability to skip most scenes (just standing around or walking about with impatience, since for the most part there are limited "true" cutscenes to be found), the difficulty to see what's going on in battle, tedious backtracking, and vanilla characters, Star Ocean's latest is far from the greatest. The lack of a sizable budget definitely shows and certainly hurts the overall product. Though I completed the game, I really have no desire to return to the world occupied by protagonist Fidel and his bland companions.

1) Mighty No. 9 (Multi)

It took approximately three million dollars to make... this?! Mighty No. 9 is a lesson in Kickstarter of not spreading yourself too thin, which is exactly what Keiji Inafune did with Mighty No. 9 by wanting to put the game on seemingly every platform under the sun. Plus, I don't think starting a completely different Kickstarter while your first one hasn't even launched a final product is a good idea... Regardless, Mighty No. 9 suffers from various performance problems, but its main issue is that it just doesn't do anything special. The controls work well enough, but the level design is unimaginative at best and is pitiful at worst (looking at you, museum level with no checkpoints until the end, and you, level with the pink spinning turbines). Waiting so many years, hearing so much PR speak, and it all led to this... unacceptably bland game is why SuperPhillip Central picks Mighty No. 9 at the biggest disappointment of 2016. (Well, gaming-wise.)

SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs - "Second Xenoverse, Not the Same as the First" Edition

A new week brings a new series of video game music to your ears! It's SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs, and five more VGM volumes are here! We're in the middle of November, and the temperatures are slowly but steadily falling.

This week, Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 kicks things off. Then, we shrink things down Minish-size with The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap. Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour launches a shot from the tee, while Mighty No. 9 brings a boss battle theme into the fray. Finally, the original Suikoden wraps things up this week.

Click on the name of the VGM volume to hear the song featured. Lastly, the VGM Database is still around for you to see and hear past VGM volumes featured on this weekly SuperPhillip Central segment.

v1266. Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 (PS4, XB1, PC) - Hyperbolic Time Chamber Stage

Let's begin this edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs with a song from a recent release, Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2. Improvements were made to the battle system, and hopefully that also goes to the RNG of unlocking moves and costumes! What didn't need improvement, however, was the fantastic soundtrack of the original game. The music is just as good from what I've heard so far from Xenoverse 2. Check out this theme for the Hyperbolic Time Chamber stage of the game.

v1267. The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (GBA) - Hyrule Town

One of the most underrated Zelda games in my opinion is The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap. It was the last Zelda that Capcom developed. It was just as special as its Oracle duo of titles from the Game Boy Color. Hyrule Town is planted right in the middle of the kingdom of Hyrule, and there, houses and neighbors go forth, living their lives. And it's all to this upbeat and catchy theme!

v1268. Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (GCN) - Ring Attack

It might no longer be golf season in most areas of the United States, but that isn't stopping the Favorite VGMs from incorporating a song from Mario Golf's GameCube outing. Ring Attack is a mode where the goal is to not only drive and chip the ball through one ring or several, but you must also make it in the hole with at least par. Motoi Sakuraba is the constant composer behind Camelot Software Planning's various games, and without him, a great deal of what makes the sound of the developer's games would be lost.

v1269. Mighty No. 9 (Multi) - Allies Obstruct

I cannot really remember a lot of themes from the disappointing Mighty No. 9. This is mostly in part due to how much talking from the characters goes on in stages. However, I do very much enjoy the boss battle theme, which pits Beck, Mighty No. 9, against the corrupted Mighty Numbers that plague the city. This rock-centric boss battle theme keeps fights engaging and frenetic.

v1270. Suikoden (PS1) - Beautiful Golden City ~ Gregminster Theme

Let's cap off this week's edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs with a uptempo city theme with a Middle Eastern flair. It's theme for Gregminster of the original Suikoden, yet another franchise locked tight in the chest that is Konami's. Here's hoping Konami one day starts using its immense catalog of franchises once more. Ah, a boy can dream...

Review Round-Up - July 2016

It was hot like Hell outside this past month, so why not play a game that partially takes place IN Hell?
That's what DOOM was for, SuperPhillip Central's Game of the Month for July.

It's the start of a new month! I hope you guys' July was a fantastic one! It was pretty nice here on SuperPhillip Central despite Central City being very hot outside. That just meant I could have an excuse to spend time indoors and play some games for review. Hence, the Review Round-Up for July 2016!

This month was special because it was the month where I covered my first PlayStation 4-exclusive game, Killzone: Shadow Fall! It gunned for a great score, and received a B- for its trouble. Then, Tearaway: Unfolded, another PS4 exclusive, was covered, crafting its way to a B. Following that was SuperPhillip Central's Game of the Month for July, DOOM, going through Hell and back to get an impressive A- score. Moving on from that great shooter, Trine: Enchanted Edition once again was reviewed, but this time it was its PS4 port, earning a B+. Finally, Mighty No. 9 surprised me with its gameplay quality, though everything else was pretty disappointing for how much the budget of the game was. It got an average C score, as did Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins, the lone retro review of the month.

Killzone: Shadow Fall (PS4) - B-
Tearaway: Unfolded (PS4) - B
DOOM (PS4, XB1, PC) - A-
Trine: Enchanted Edition (PS4) - B+
Mighty No. 9 (Multi) - C
Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins (PSP) - C

Likewise, the other featured game this past month, Mighty No. 9, was one that
some players felt like was FROM Hell, but not this reviewer!

Mighty No. 9 (Multi) Review

Before we close out the month of July, two more reviews are coming. The first of which is for Mighty No. 9, a game which has a development story that I would pay to read about because of how many controversies plagued it. Regardless, the game ended up being rather fun overall. Check out the SuperPhillip Central opinion with my in-depth review.

Totally NOT a Mega Man Clone

One of the most infamous Kickstarter projects started out so innocently and with a lot of hope. Keiji Inafune, one of main minds behind the Mega Man franchise of old, put a lot of passion behind a Mega Man-like game called Mighty No. 9. With a beautiful piece of concept art, fans quickly backed the project, contributing more than four million dollars total.

Following this was a lot of controversy, from Inafune asking for even more money, multiple delays, the launch of a second Kickstarter before Mighty No. 9 even released, and community manager mishaps. While the final product of Mighty No. 9 is hardly what I'd say awful, for a four million dollar Kickstarter-backed game, most of us can easily expect more from this project.

The story of Mighty No. 9 follows Beck, the ninth robot of a unit of warriors known as the Mighty Numbers. When an unknown virus infects numerous machines as well as the other Mighty Numbers, the unaffected Beck must combat against the threat by taking down each corrupted Mighty Number and discover the reason for the virus breakout.

Being a game created by former Mega Man mastermind Keiji Inafune, it only makes sense that Mighty No. 9 would take a lot of concepts and mechanics from his past works. This is seen throughout the gameplay, where you control Beck as he shoots, runs, jumps, and dashes through one of a dozen or so side-scrolling platforming levels. The levels don't have as much in the way of secrets, as they're linear just like many of the classic Mega Man series games. However, many levels do reward points for completing certain challenges, such as getting a Sprinter bonus for moving quickly through a specific area of a level, or a Quick Clear bonus for taking out a room full of enemies with swift timing.

Take out all of these foes within a fast enough amount of time to receive a Quick Clear bonus.

The majority of levels are decently designed, though there are numerous instances of bad design here and there. One level has a place where you are required to carefully floor dash underneath two purple spinning turbines. The timing here is so strict that failing to perform floor dashes with the correct precision results in immediate death. In another level, the goal is to pursue a far off sniper. Coming into contact with him results in the Mighty Number retreating to another area. This game of cat and mouse goes on for a ridiculously long time, and the fact that death results in you being forced to start the level from the beginning makes for a needlessly tedious time.

However, when Mighty No. 9's levels do shine, it's a lot of fun. I particularly enjoyed a level where Beck is moving across the tops of vehicles in a fast-paced highway level, though the frame-rate isn't always the smoothest, slightly diminishing some of the enjoyment I had. Another level has Beck scaling a radio tower to reach a Mighty Number to battle. The vertical nature of the level and the fierce winds make it one of the most interesting in Mighty No. 9.

The highway is one of the more interesting levels featured in Mighty No. 9.

Mighty No. 9 adds to the Mega Man formula with a dash mechanic that is put to use on weakened enemies. When a foe has been pelted with enough of Beck's bullets, they enter a weakened state where Beck can then dash into them, defeating them while gaining points. Depending on how fast Beck dashes into a baddie after they've been weakened, the enemy gives him a boost as well as the player a specific percentage. Keeping a combo going by dashing into weakened enemies while getting 100%'s is a lot of fun and is the main way of earning high scores in levels. This even goes into boss battles, where giving one of the Mighty Numbers enough damage will present them with a weakened state, allowing Beck to dash into them to not only deal permanent damage to their life bar, but also allow Beck to continue his combo, pending he's fast enough to dash into them when a boss has become weak.

The true enemy of Cryogen's level is that of the ice puns that will leave you out in the cold.

Speaking of the boss battles, Mighty No. 9 shines in this aspect, creating battles that are both memorable and challenging for the most part. Just like with normal enemies throughout the game, the Mighty Number bosses as well as other stronger enemies can be weakened when enough damage has been dished out to them. However, bosses will regain the health Beck just gave them if he doesn't dash into them while they're weakened within a relatively small window of time. Usually bosses add a more powerful attack and change to their patterns when their health has been lessened to about halfway, making these fights quite dynamic and quite fun.

Continuing to borrow from ideas from the Mega Man franchise, defeated Mighty Numbers give Beck their signature special weapon that he can use in levels and against other bosses to make for an easier time of things. While it's not as enjoyable as the Mega Man series to figure out which Mighty Number weapon works best against which boss, as the effects aren't nearly as drastic against a boss's health, it's still pretty fun all the same.

Alongside the main campaign, you can unlock new challenge missions for either solo or cooperative play. These missions have you doing everything from getting to the goal with various caveats such as one that has you being unable to use your dash or attack abilities, destroying all the targets as a particular character within the time limit, and the hardest of the hard challenges, playing through all of Mighty No. 9's stages without dying. Yeah, I don't think I'll be getting to that one any time soon! In addition to the challenge missions, once you initially beat Mighty No. 9, you unlock a boss rush, pitting you against all of the Mighty Numbers in succession.

The feel of controlling Beck is one of the highlights of Mighty No. 9 that the development team got right.

Mighty No. 9's budget certainly didn't go to its presentation... or if it did, then Inafune and his team certainly botched it considerably. The environments are sterile, bland, and mostly lacking personality. The characters in story sequences pantomime to one another, never moving their mouths, and talk so slowly that it's difficult to stay interested in the story, even with a vested interest like I started out with. The frame-rate also leaves something to be desired, sometimes sinking to embarrassing levels in more action-oriented sections of the game.

Watch out for those pink spikes. They will end your run if Beck even so much makes contact with them.

On the sound front, part of the Kickstarter budget went towards hiring voice actors to deliver the game's lines. The voice acting is generally very dull at best and incredibly grating at worst, especially Mighty No. 2, Cryogen's high pitched voice and ice puns that would give Arnold Schwarzenegger's Mister Freeze a headache. Musically, what is featured is hard to hear thanks to the repeated lines of dialogue that is featured in each level. Sometimes the dialogue boxes actually detract from the experience as they can cover up hazards in levels such as one-touch-and-Beck-is-dead floor spikes.

All in all, Mighty No. 9 isn't an absolutely horrid experience by any stretch of the imagination. It's, dare I say, a good deal of fun. However, some design decisions especially in some levels, dull environments, and unappealing voice acting make for a game that is good but not great. In total, Mighty No. 9 is an average platformer, but considering the game somehow took four million dollars to create, "average" is simply not good enough.

[SPC Says: C]

Mighty No. 9 (Multi) Gameplay Trailer

Mega Man is one of our households favorite video game franchises, so it's basically a given that we're excited for its spiritual successor, Mighty No. 9. It's due out September 15 for most gaming platforms, with the handheld versions appearing a bit later. Check out this 60 FPS trailer and enjoy!

Top Five Most Anticipated Digital-Only Games

Gaming is heading towards digital more and more as each year passes by. It's fantastic that developers are able to create mid-tier games that last generation were all but endangered in the retail space. Now, we have genres that wouldn't fit into the AAA-line of thinking that this industry continues to lean towards readily available on many digital marketplaces. The titles that I'm most excited for this year are but some of the incredibly hype-worthy games coming from developers both small and large.

I passionately encourage you to please recommend to me other digital games that are coming out that I may not even know about. It would be with great thanks from me for you guys to do that. Also, after you're done reading my picks, let's chat about digital games in the comments section!

5) '90s Arcade Racer - Developed by Antonis Pelekanos and Nicalis

A lot of the games on this list are inspired by retro classics. This next indie title, '90s Arcade Racer is one that can thank Daytona USA for its inspiration. I have been wanting a modern racer that is less simulation and more about crazy drifts for the longest time. It's gotten so bad for me that I was honest to goodness willing to pull the proverbial trigger on Ridge Racer... for the Vita. Let that sink in how deep my desperation goes. However, '90s Arcade Racer is a game that seems to scratch my itch for thrills, chills, and drifting goodness. Of course, since the game is being published by Nicalis, we will probably have to wait until 2020 to see the game released. Perhaps I'm being hard on Nicalis, but the publisher does not have a good "track" record on releasing games in a timely fashion. Still, I'm sure the wait will be definitely worth it!

4) Midora - Developed by Epic Minds

Midora has an art style highly reminiscent of The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap, and in addition to the art, the gameplay is similar to the legendary franchise its inspired by. Currently, the team at Epic Minds is planning 12 unique dungeons full of insane traps, enemies, and obstacles. Furthermore, we're bound to get a high number of secondary items aside from Midora's main means to attack to open up the possibilities for different combat strategies and puzzle concepts. Midora may seem too heavily inspired by The Minish Cap, but I think that is what draws me to this game. It's an ode to 16-bit Zelda, and despite not being overly innovative, I still feel the need to play this game.

3) Mekazoo - Developed by The Good Mood Creators

If you see a theme on my five selections for downloadable games that I have the most excitement for, it's probably that all of the games here are in genres that are my favorites or games inspired by favorite franchises and games of mine. Mekazoo is a 2.5D platformer which has you switching between one of a handful of different animals, such as an armadillo, a frog, and a kangaroo, and platforming with great acrobatics through multiple tiered levels. It's an exciting prospect and the trailer for the game shows this action beautifully. With a release period for late this year, I cannot wait to see more footage and imagination shown from The Good Mood Creators and their greatly interesting game.

2) Mighty No. 9 - Developed by Comcept 

A project led by the driving force behind the Mega Man series, Keiji Inafune, Mighty No. 9 definitely has its roots greatly inspired by the Blue Bomber's games. With a formula just like the Mega Man games, eight bosses that strike a resemblance to Robot Masters, and similar gameplay, Mighty No. 9 might as well be considered an all-new Mega Man game. While the Kickstarter campaign is a bit dubious in how much money it continually wants and how the mock-up for the project is nothing close to what the actual work-in-progress looks like, I am still drooling over the prospect of playing a Mega Man-like game from the man most closely tied to the franchise.

1) A Hat in Time - Developed by Gears for Breakfast

A Hat in Time satiates my hunger and thirst for a traditional 3D collect-a-thon style platformer akin to classic games like Super Mario 64 and my favorite of the bunch, Banjo-Kazooie. The game is set to feature fully explorable worlds; the ability to battle enemies and bosses with either Hat Kid's umbrella or an ode to Mario, a jump to the noggin; collectibles aplenty like badges that can be equipped to change the player's play style; cooperative gameplay; and an art style similar to what was seen in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. A Hat in Time is such an exciting project to me, someone who is a huge fan of Nintendo 64 era 3D platformers, and I am chomping at the bit to see this game released to the public.