Wario Land II (GBC, GB, 3DS VC) Retro Review

We end this week of reviews with a review of the retro variety: Wario Land II. It originally released on the Game Boy in 1998 before receiving an enhanced color version on the Game Boy Color the following year. How does it compare to Super Mario Land 3? Let's find out.

Less Traditional, More Special

There are a wonderful amount of Game Boy and Game Boy Color titles that have yet to make it to the Nintendo 3DS's Virtual Console service. However, instead of moaning about what isn't there, I'd rather be happy about what is there. One such worthy title is Wario Land II, Wario's first full platforming adventure without any ties to his rival Mario (i.e. no "Super Mario Land" in the title). It's a game that proves that Wario can do just fine on his own without Mario's star power to help.

When a series of Captain Syrup's goons pillage a sleeping Wario's goods and treasures, the yellow and purple clad plumber finds himself pursuing through forests, oceans, ruins, and castles. Don't these fools know that stealing is Wario's job?

Wario Land II is quite different in both structure and gameplay than its predecessor, Super Mario Land 3. The traditional power-up system has been replaced. In Wario Land II, Wario can get hit as many times as he wants and never dies. There are no lives in the game. Instead, Wario collects coins, and each time he takes damage, he loses some from his total. The challenge of the game comes from obstacles that get in one's way as well as puzzles.

You might wonder how bosses work in Wario Land II, then if Wario cannot die. You see, bosses in the game try to knock Wario out of the battle arena somehow. For instance, a bee boss tries to sting Wario so his head inflates and causes him to float out of the arena, forcing the player to start the encounter anew.

As stated, gone are the power-ups from yore. Replacing them are different forms of Wario. I mentioned one of them when Wario gets stung by a bee. Another happens when a fire enemy breathes its hot flame on Wario, making him do a mad dash across the level, allowing him to burn up certain blocks after this process.

In each level there is a treasure to collect, collected from winning a mini-game. Unfortunately the door to the mini-game looks the same as every other door in the game, but usually you can tell as the door is hidden away in a secluded and/or hard-to-find spot. The mini-game that you play has eight tiles in two rows and four columns. The lock on the treasure shows a specific enemy. When the countdown chimes to zero, the eight tiles will turn over, revealing the enemy portraits they hold, before quickly flipping back. Depending on how many coins you spend, the tiles will reveal themselves for a short or longer period of time. Choosing the tile that has the same face as the lock on the treasure chest will net you that treasure.

Collecting coins are important not only for that mini-game, but also for the end of level mini-game. There is a 3 x 3 spread of tiles. The entire spread is hiding a number from 0-9. As the tiles turn over, you spend coins in  increments of fifty. Guess what number the tiles are hiding, and you win a piece of the map.

Beating the game and seeing the "ending" are just one part of Wario Land II. Once Captain Syrup has been initially defeated and the credits have rolled, you can visit past levels. You will notice on the level select screen that there are sometimes two exits in a given level: one easy to find and one secret. In order to get 100% of the game completed, you must beat every level, find every treasure, and collect every map part. That is no quick task as there are tons of levels in Wario Land II. Compared to Super Mario Land 3, Wario Land II boasts an exponential amount of playtime.

The controls of Wario Land II have that Nintendo-quality tightness that fans and players alike have grown to expect from the company. Wario has an assortment of attacks to assist him through his adventure such as the ability to charge (great for plowing through weak walls), to chuck enemies, and to ground pound. Complaining about the controls of Wario Land II is something I never did for the 10+ hours it took me to do everything in the game.

The game was originally developed for the Game Boy and was the last first-party developed title for that platform. A color-enhanced version (the one that this review is based on) was released a year later. The game sports big sprites and objects that are easy to see, so running into something that blends into the background is something that doesn't usually happen. The music is appropriately jaunty in most cases, subdued in others. All-in-all, Wario Land II looks and plays in a fine fashion.

Comparing Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 to Wario Land II is something that can be done, but it doesn't do either game justice. They are different experiences, albeit sharing the same platforming at their cores. Both are terrific Game Boy-era platformers that still hold up well in this day and age. While Super Mario Land 3 is a more traditional platformer, Wario Land II still offers a lot of fun despite not being able to die. The amount of platforming puzzles and other physical impediments create a clever game that most 2D platforming purists will enjoy.

[SuperPhillip Says: 8.75/10]

Skylanders: Giants (3DS) Review

It is Thursday on our week of new reviews, so that means we've arrived at the fourth review. It is for a handheld version of an ultra-popular and successful series of toys and games. It is Skylanders: Giants for the Nintendo 3DS.

They Might Be Giants... 

And Successful Ones At That

The Skylanders series fused two things together, the collectible aspect of buying figurines and video games, to create an addicting and brilliant idea. Combined, they created Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, and the rest, as they say, is history. It seemingly became a sensation overnight as kids and grown adults (not to hint that there is anything wrong with that) feverishly raided shelves for new figurines for their copies of the game. Now the Skylanders are back, and they have brought powerful Giants with them in Skylanders: Giants. While you may have read a lot about the home console versions of the game, the Nintendo 3DS version hasn't received as much press. Is the 3DS iteration of Skylanders: Giants a suitable substitute or complement for the console versions?

Skylanders: Giants has around 40 new figurines to add to the playing experience. They are brought to life into the game by setting a figure on the Portal of Power and pointing the Nintendo 3DS system's infrared sensor towards the portal. After some waiting the figure comes to life in the video game, able for you to play as them. There are 99 characters in all, some just enhanced versions of existing characters like legendary versions or Series Two versions of Series One Skylanders, and they all have different elements attached to them. Some are water, some fire, some life, some magic, some wind, etc. Each Skylander can gain experience levels through collecting coins and beating up baddies. With each level gained comes additional attack strength and health, as well as new or improved moves.

Pop Fizz is one of the three Skylanders

bundled in the Starter Pack.

While Skylanders: Giants on the home consoles is a beat 'em up with Gauntlet-esque elements to it, the Nintendo 3DS version is a different beast altogether. While it contains some of the aspects of the home console versions, Skylanders: Giants on the 3DS is a platformer at heart. In fact, the home console versions don't even have the ability to jump while with the 3DS version you'll be leaping across chasms and from platform to platform a lot while defeating foes. 

The new Giants Skylanders bring on the pain.

Each level in Skylanders: Giants has stars you can earn. These are done by performing tasks within each level. You automatically acquire one through completing a given level, but there are also timed challenges, where you must race to the end of the level before time runs out on you, and several mini-missions in the levels. These mini-missions can be activities like obliterating a specific amount of a certain enemy, opening a set number of treasure chests, collecting a certain amount of coins, and clearing elemental gates.

Jet Vac cleans up the battlefield.

In the game there are various areas that can only be accessed by one type of Skylander, whether it is a giant or an elemental type like fire or wind. These are the aforementioned elemental gates. Seeing as the Starter Pack for Skylanders: Giants only contains three Skylander figurines/characters, you need to at least buy figures of a different element to reach the areas that the Starter Pack figures can't gain access to. The elemental gates not only help you gain a star for the level, but they usually have a present at the end of their paths. These presents are different hats that can be worn by your Skylanders, and if you're like me, you'll want to get them all. Oh, the trials and tribulations of being a completionist!

With Chop Chop there are no bones about it.

One of the major and most noticeable problems with the Nintendo 3DS version of Skylanders: Giants is the recurring bouts of slowdown. It happens way too often and most of the time turns the game into a slide show rather than something consistent. During when you switch Skylanders? Yes. During when you level up? Yes. During when there is more than two enemies on screen at the same time? Yes. During the level overview where the camera pans around the upcoming level? You probably have caught on to the pattern by now. It is curious as to why the game's performance is so bad when the visuals don't seem to really push the 3DS hardware too terribly hard.

Despite the obvious and apparent performance issues that plague the 3DS version of Skylanders: Giants, I still found myself enjoying the game and never really finding myself dying because of slowdown. The platforming is responsive and feels right. If the performance issues were ironed out, the 3DS version of the game would be my favorite. As it is, Skylanders: Giants on the 3DS hardware is one with clear problems but still retains a level of fun that makes it a worthy addition to one's handheld library.

[SuperPhillip Says: 6.5/10]

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale (PS3, PSV) Kat and Emmett Graves Trailers

Two new combatants will be headed to the PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale: Kat from Gravity Rush and Emmett Graves from Starhawk. They will available February 12, and for two weeks they will be free to download. Downloadable characters will have their own set of icons, backgrounds, taunts, intros/outros, and victory themes, just like their on-disc counterparts. While you wait for next month, why not check out the two introduction trailers?

Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate (Wii U, 3DS) Box Art & New Trailer

Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate now has a release date other than the vague March time frame. We now know that the game will be releasing in North America on March 19 with Europe's release date to follow a couple of days after. Witness the announcement in this new trailer for the game.



Also, here are the official box arts for the Wii U and 3DS versions:

Scribblenauts Unlimited (Wii U, 3DS, PC) Review

We're halfway through this review-filled week. For the third review we have Scribblenauts Unlimited. The copy I reviewed was the Wii U version.

To Play or Naut to Play

The Scribblenauts series debuted on the Nintendo DS and brought with it highly innovative emergent gameplay and a lot of promise. While the original Scribblenauts did not live up to its potential, its sequel Super Scribblenauts made everyone remember why they were hyped for its predecessor in the first place. Now it is the launch of the Wii U and with it comes the first home console version of the Scribblenauts series, Scribblenauts Unlimited, also on Nintendo 3DS and PC. Does the game offer unlimited potential or limited enjoyment?

This edition of Scribblenauts tells the tale of how Maxwell got his magical notebook and became the helpful hero fans know him as. This is how Scribblenauts Unlimited's story goes: Maxwell acquires the notebook and pulls a mean trick on an old man. Turns out the man is a magician who casts a spell that slowly turns Maxwell's sister to stone. It is up to Maxwell to gather special trinkets called Starites to nullify the effects of the old man's spell. The plot is just a means to an end to give an excuse for players to unleash their creativity on the various missions, but it is a nice and simple one nonetheless. Scribblenauts's home console debut has still-frame cutscenes that bookend the game, narrated by Maxwell's sister.

The humble farm where our adventure begins...

So Maxwell has his mission, but how does he collect Starites? Well, there are a multitude of levels to enter, each with their own set of characters, objects, and whatnot that need the type of help that only Maxwell and his magic notebook can provide.

The notebook is the most important piece to Scribblenauts Unlimited. You can input a noun and it will mystically pop up in the game world. There are limits to what you can place, but for the most part, there is a wide range of words that the game recognizes. In addition to nouns, you can add adjectives to objects and characters to make them even more unique. For example, you can write "giant" and a huge male character will be summoned. Then you can add a "green" adjective to him and he will change color.

If things get too hot, why not write in some rain?

What does this have to do with the actual people needing help? By summoning the right object or using the right adjective, you assist the various cries for help and are awarded Starite shards. Such an instance could be a zombie who is hungry. Type in "brain" and you will satisfy the zombie's hunger and be awarded with a shard.

Wizards of Scribblenauts Place

The fun of Scribblenauts Unlimited is knowing that you can complete missions in a vast array of ways. There is no "one" solution in most cases. If you have gorilla sitting on top of a building with the clue of "King me", you can opt to give the gorilla a crown for the simplest solution, or you can opt to input "chessboard" and voila, the gorilla is satisfied that way as well! It is absolutely fun to concoct different solutions each time you play. Though, occasionally something that you would think would work doesn't, and that just creates a little frustration.

Even a crew of vikings needs a little bit of "me time."

Nonetheless, even if you mess up entirely and somehow kill an important character you can always reset a given level. The Starites and Starite shards you earned will stay collected, but everyone and everything in the level will return to how it was originally when Maxwell first stepped into it.

In addition to the individual characters and objects needing help, there are special missions.. These require multiple steps to solve them, but the reward is much greater, a full Starite. Such examples include helping a boy scout earn his badges, breaking out of a booby trap-filled prison, or assisting a chef in cooking something fabulous. As you gain more complete Starites, the areas of the world map that you can explore increases, but Maxwell's sister becomes more petrified in the process.

Riding a raptor? Why the heck not?

Something not in the Nintendo 3DS version of Scribblenauts Unlimited is the object editor. Here you can tinker with preexisting objects or build your own. These objects can be shared with other users online via a marketplace-like setting. Already there are brilliant designs manufactured, a lot of them video game-related objects such as Sonic the Hedgehog and Metroid's Samus Aran, for instance. And don't worry about not having enough space as you can hold upwards of 500 saved objects.

Oh, give me a home where the buffalo roam,

and the deer and the c-antelope play.

Scribblenauts Unlimited looks fantastic on the Wii U. The higher definition than what was possible on the Nintendo DS offers crisper and cleaner characters and absolutely vivid levels. Since the game is on more powerful hardware, the limit of how many objects you can create on screen at the same time has greatly been improved. Obviously this isn't the case with the Nintendo 3DS version, which can easily be considered the weakest of the three (Wii U, 3DS, and PC). The ability to play Scribblenauts Unlimited on the Wii U GamePad exclusively is also a wonderful feature of that version. Meanwhile, the music is quite catchy and even got me bopping my head while I was playing. Overall, Scribblenauts Unlimited is a success when it concerns presentation.

The home console debut of Scribblenauts is very much a noteworthy one. While there are the occasional glitches like failing a mission because Maxwell died mysteriously or objects falling through the ground, the good far outweighs the bad in Scribblenauts Unlimited. The possibilities for solving puzzles and helping people are very high. The only limitation is your imagination... and the game sometimes not being as open-minded with solutions as it is advertised as.

[SuperPhillip Says: 8.0/10]