Merry Christmas from the SuperPhillip Central family to each and every one of you! I hope it was a wonderful holiday spent with friends, family, or even just a relaxing day work-free day by yourself. For everyone else who doesn't celebrate, I hope it was simply a happy Monday.
This week on the final 2017 edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs, we begin with a recent release in the form of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. Then, we get nice and Christmas-y with some winter-themed tunes from I am Setsuna and Yooka-Laylee. Get ready to dress up to your best ability with our next game, Style Savvy: Trendsetters, and then if the cold weather is already getting to you, let's fly away to Isle Delfino in Super Mario Sunshine!
Click on the VGM Database to get a look (and listen) at every song ever featured on the weekly recurring article series. Now, let's get on to the music!
v1531. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (NSW) - Gormott Province (Day)
We begin this Christmas edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs with the most recent release included today. It's Xenoblade Chronicles 2 for the Nintendo Switch, and it's a glorious return to the classical music style of the original instead of the electronica heavy sound of X. (Though that soundtrack had a lot of winners too.) Gormott Province is essentially the Gaur Plains of Xenoblade Chronicles 2, the piece for the first major exploratory area in the game. It takes a bit to get to my favorite part of this theme, but once it gets there, the wait is most certainly worth it.
v1532. I am Setsuna (PS4, NSW, Vita) - A Fantastic Encounter
Square Enix's Tokyo RPG Factory, the developer behind I am Setsuna, is preparing to release its next title in the new year with Lost Sphear. While I am Setsuna nailed the ambiance, environments, and especially the music, what it failed to do was to create a game that truly enamors players with its gameplay mechanics. It's a shame since these themes, such as this battle one, are composed so wonderfully. It's like newly fallen snowfall in the woods, idyllic and beautiful.
v1533. Yooka-Laylee (Multi) - Glitterglaze Glacier
When I read that several ex-Rare employees (and ex-staff on one of my favorite 3D platformers ever, Banjo-Kazooie) were getting together to form their own company to create a spiritual successor to same game, I was excited beyond measure. The end result, Yooka-Laylee, strays a bit too closely to Banjo-Kazooie in some really obvious and almost downright blatant ways, but overall, I did enjoy the game. One reason for that was Grant Kirkhope's (Banjo-Kazooie's original composer) spectacular score, such as this piece for the second major world in Yooka-Laylee, Glitterglaze Glacier. Yes, this and the battle theme of I am Setsuna really evoke some warm holiday feelings!
v1534. Style Savvy: Trendsetters (3DS) - Opening
Today sees the North American digital-only release of Style Savvy: Styling Star on the Nintendo 3DS. Seems like a perfect opportunity than any other to wrap ourselves in our favorite stylistic sweaters and listen to some pop sound from the second game in the series, Style Savvy: Trendsetters. This entry introduced the series to the Nintendo 3DS in a big way, such as adding men clients to take on styling challenges for. As for this opening theme, it's positively perky and keeps me bouncing and bumping around this Christmas evening.
v1535. Super Mario Sunshine (GCN) - Sky & Sea
And what Christmas celebration would be complete without Mario? Rather than doing a cliche snow level pick, I chose the complete opposite: Super Mario Sunshine, a game located completely on a tropical isle! With how cold it is outside here at SuperPhillip Central HQ, I'd prefer to lounging on the warm beach sands of Isle Delfino right about now -- even if Bowser and his son decide to make a return trip! Sky & Sea plays during special bonus stages like the dreaded pachinko machine and poison river! But don't think ill of this song; it just goes to show how a catchy number can soften the blows of frustration one can get tackling these sometimes seemingly impossible challenges.
Monday, December 25, 2017
Sunday, December 24, 2017
Top Ten Christmas-Themed Video Game Levels
It's Christmas Eve and in but an hour's time it will be Christmas here at SuperPhillip Central HQ. This brings up a nice opportunity to go into one of my favorite topics of discussion: video game levels. But not just any video game levels, Christmas-themed video game levels! I won't go in as in-depth on the design principles on display like I do with my Best Levels in Video Game History series of articles, as I prefer to keep it light for Christmas Eve. A whole slew of games from past and present are featured in this top ten list, including Super Mario Odyssey, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered, and some goodness from Diddy Kong Racing as well. SuperPhillip Central will see you tomorrow for even more holiday cheer, but for now, read this list and add in some of your personal faves in the comments.
10) Winter Crash - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered (PS4, XB1, PC)
Originally only available to PC and Mac players when the map released with the original Call of Duty 4, Winter Crash is the bash that is back, Jack, and it's the perfect map to play during this festive season. Sure, some might prefer to lounge around with family singing Sleigh Ride (the one with the sleigh bells jingling, ring-ting-tingling too), while others just want to slay in general. Preferably with an automatic weapon on the battlefield. Winter Crash is structurally the same as the Crash map, also included in the original Call of Duty 4, but Winter Crash alters the mood a bit with a nighttime sky, snow to slosh around on instead of sand to seep into your soldier's combat boots, and a whole array of Christmas lights and the piece de resistance, a glowing Christmas tree in the center ground of the map with nicely wrapped presents underneath.
9) American Consumption - Splinter Cell: Blacklist (PS3, 360, Wii U, PC)
As a kid and in my teens, I found Christmas to be a magical time of year. Toys, games, teddy bears, presents under the tree, stockings hung by the fireplace, and so forth. Now that I'm much more cynical, I see it as consumers doing their best to make themselves happy with materialistic items, going into debt in the process. Me included, as I especially still love presents under the tree, so that makes me a hypocrite.
Regardless, it's the perfect segue to Splinter Cell: Blacklist's American Consumption is a brilliant level with some of the best controlling third-person stealth gameplay this side of Metal Gear Solid, just without the ridiculous story. It sees Sam Fisher (probably a clone because I know the REAL Sam Fisher has the voice of Michael Ironside) sneaking his way through a proliferation of Christmas decorations and theme park attractions, as he slices through the necks of enemies like a knife through a Christmas fruitcake. It's one of my favorite levels in Blacklist, as I originally played it around Christmas time a year or so ago.
8) A Little Light Snowfall - Yoshi's Woolly World (Wii U, 3DS)
We begin our look at a staple of snow levels, being in a platformer of some type, with a 2D platforming journey through a winter wonderland obstacle course in Yoshi's Woolly World. The light snowfall in the level's title comes from the frozen over precipitation that has left traces on the ground, and made the level's platforms especially slippery. There are some more hefty piles to be found from mounds of snow that fall upon either Yoshi stepping foot on them or hits them with an ball of yarn. There are opportunities for flight as well with the help of Lakitu's cloud, a chance to become large and smash through enormous ice cubes and enemies alike effortlessly, and traverse through this chilly but colorful winter landscape. What I like about this level in Yoshi's Woolly World is how elements of the environment can be interacted with to provide a robust lineup of challenges for Yoshi to endure.
7) Snow Kingdom - Shiveria - Super Mario Odyssey (NSW)
Mario games generally give off a sense of warmth, and it's no truer than in his latest 3D platforming adventure which spans the globe, Super Mario Odyssey. His entry into the frozen lands of Shiveria is met by a massive blizzard, frigid temperatures, cold water (dangerously so), and not a friendly face to be found. Upon entering into a hole, Mario uncovers a town full of adorable seal creatures wearing Eskimo outfits. Times aren't happy at the beginning, but by the end, Bowser's forces have retreated and normal life can resume. What was once a snowstorm so massive that you couldn't see well, you can now see across the distance of several football fields. The blue sky greets Mario hello and the Shiverians can go on with their lives in their cozy, rosy, and warm town with holiday decorations. Maybe some special racing can be done, too!
6) Halloween Town - Kingdom Hearts II (PS2)
In the land of The Nightmare Before Christmas' Halloween Town, you can bet your bag of bones that Jack Skellington is preparing a bold plan to bring the cheer of the holiday season to the otherwise Halloween 24/7 town. While Sora, Donald, and Goofy don Halloween costumes for the level, fitting right in with the city folk, Mr. Skellington wears a full-on Santa suit. Perhaps Jack's wearing a Halloween costume, too, while I'm thinking of it... Many locales from the film are included in this Kingdom Hearts II re-imaging, including a colorful display inside of Santa's Workshop. It's a perfect mixture of two of the most popular holidays around.
5) Frosty Village - Diddy Kong Racing (N64, DS)
We reach the second half of this Christmas-themed video game level list with one of two racing games occupying spots on the countdown: Diddy Kong Racing. Frosty Village is as close to Christmas as you're going to get playing a kart racer on the Nintendo 64. The trees shine brightly with multi-color Christmas lights, and the cabins at the bottom of the hill after the overpass (which I would imagine is a super sweet sledding spot) make you want to enter inside, put on your slippers, rest by the fireplace, and drink some hot cocoa. But alas -- you can't! You have a race to win in this Christmas racing paradise! Whether in kart or in hovercraft, Frosty Village is an entertaining track that hits me right in the nostalgic feels.
4) Gotham - Batman: Arkham Origins (PS3, 360, Wii U, PC)
Batman: Arkham Origins has a location that is another star of the game alongside Batman and The Joker. I'm talking about Gotham City. In Arkham Origins, all of the happenings of the game occur on Christmas Eve, and it makes for an engrossing city to explore. Snow falls from the night sky, holiday decorations are sprinkled across the blocks, corners, and streets, and the level of discomfort around the city during what should be a festive time is rather daunting. But now for Batman, of course. Batman: Arkham Origins' Gotham has so many meticulous details and areas to explore. It makes me a bit disappointed that more people didn't find WB Games Montreal's take on the Arkham series to be as utterly enjoyable as I did. Then again, I always get disappointed when someone gifts me chocolate for Christmas, as I can't stand the taste, so I know; I'm weird.
3) Christmas Is Here - Bully (360, Wii, PS2)
The town of Bullworth is the locale where Rockstar's Bully takes place with Bullworth Academy positioned right in the middle with an amusement park on one side of town and the downtown districts being on the other. Throughout the course of Bully's calendar year, the town takes on and celebrates various holidays. For instance, when Halloween rolls around, all of the kids around town and students at the academy are sporting costumes. When Christmas comes a knocking, the town is painted with snow, with holiday lights shining brightly, and protagonist Jimmy having some hijinks afoot, such as making an arsenal of snowballs and chucking them for one snowball fight to end them all. Rather than devote a huge budget to a large playground, instead Rockstar used that budget to create a robust, detailed, content-rich, dense, and welcoming town that felt like home for fans of the game.
2) Animal Crossing (Winter) - Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (NSW)
If I was writing a list about Christmas-themed events in video games rather than levels, Animal Crossing and its sequels would find a place on this list. However, since that isn't the case, I can do the next best thing. Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe's Animal Crossing track models itself after the game series it's inspired by, complete with the changing of seasons. However, instead of waiting three months for the next season to come by, one is chosen randomly (or at will if you know the right button to press before the race loads). Each season offers the same track but changes some aesthetic elements. For instance, in Animal Crossing's winter form, the track is raced on under a starry nighttime sky complete with an aurora in the sky. Trees are bare from losing their leaves, snow has accumulated on their limbs, and many sport Christmas lights. The ground is covered in snow, and what makes this version of the track especially Christmas-y is how well the town celebrates it, enveloping itself in holiday cheer from all of the colorful holiday lights. It's a delightful race with a sense of home to it. How did you do that, Nintendo, in a racing game of all things!?
1) Freezeey Peak - Banjo-Kazooie (N64, XBLA)
In their top form, the developers at Rare were geniuses when it came to making fun games. The ideas and creativity blasting out of each and every seam is just marvelous to look back on and think about. Most developers would love to have just one memorable level in a game, but with Rare it continued to release games with some of the most bizarre yet fantastic worlds around. Many platformers have a snow or ice level within them. In fact, I think it's a law that can send you to prison if you don't follow it when making a platformer of any kind. While games like Super Mario 64 had winter wonderlands of its own, Rare released a game a year and some change later featuring a highly creative take on the winter world with Freezeey Peak.
Making the first left turn at the very beginning of the level sees you facing a humongous snowman monument -- fully able to be scaled, mind you. In the main part of the level, snowmen enemies chuckle as they toss painful snowballs at the bear and bird duo. A Christmas tree rests in a corner, waiting to be lit. A bear-hating walrus doesn't want Banjo inside his cave (but won't mind with shaman Mumbo Jumbo's help). Plus, you can't ignore the pleas of the trio of polar bear children who want their Daddy to come home with their lost presents. It's Christmas, for goodness sake!
10) Winter Crash - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered (PS4, XB1, PC)
Originally only available to PC and Mac players when the map released with the original Call of Duty 4, Winter Crash is the bash that is back, Jack, and it's the perfect map to play during this festive season. Sure, some might prefer to lounge around with family singing Sleigh Ride (the one with the sleigh bells jingling, ring-ting-tingling too), while others just want to slay in general. Preferably with an automatic weapon on the battlefield. Winter Crash is structurally the same as the Crash map, also included in the original Call of Duty 4, but Winter Crash alters the mood a bit with a nighttime sky, snow to slosh around on instead of sand to seep into your soldier's combat boots, and a whole array of Christmas lights and the piece de resistance, a glowing Christmas tree in the center ground of the map with nicely wrapped presents underneath.
9) American Consumption - Splinter Cell: Blacklist (PS3, 360, Wii U, PC)
As a kid and in my teens, I found Christmas to be a magical time of year. Toys, games, teddy bears, presents under the tree, stockings hung by the fireplace, and so forth. Now that I'm much more cynical, I see it as consumers doing their best to make themselves happy with materialistic items, going into debt in the process. Me included, as I especially still love presents under the tree, so that makes me a hypocrite.
Regardless, it's the perfect segue to Splinter Cell: Blacklist's American Consumption is a brilliant level with some of the best controlling third-person stealth gameplay this side of Metal Gear Solid, just without the ridiculous story. It sees Sam Fisher (probably a clone because I know the REAL Sam Fisher has the voice of Michael Ironside) sneaking his way through a proliferation of Christmas decorations and theme park attractions, as he slices through the necks of enemies like a knife through a Christmas fruitcake. It's one of my favorite levels in Blacklist, as I originally played it around Christmas time a year or so ago.
8) A Little Light Snowfall - Yoshi's Woolly World (Wii U, 3DS)
We begin our look at a staple of snow levels, being in a platformer of some type, with a 2D platforming journey through a winter wonderland obstacle course in Yoshi's Woolly World. The light snowfall in the level's title comes from the frozen over precipitation that has left traces on the ground, and made the level's platforms especially slippery. There are some more hefty piles to be found from mounds of snow that fall upon either Yoshi stepping foot on them or hits them with an ball of yarn. There are opportunities for flight as well with the help of Lakitu's cloud, a chance to become large and smash through enormous ice cubes and enemies alike effortlessly, and traverse through this chilly but colorful winter landscape. What I like about this level in Yoshi's Woolly World is how elements of the environment can be interacted with to provide a robust lineup of challenges for Yoshi to endure.
7) Snow Kingdom - Shiveria - Super Mario Odyssey (NSW)
Mario games generally give off a sense of warmth, and it's no truer than in his latest 3D platforming adventure which spans the globe, Super Mario Odyssey. His entry into the frozen lands of Shiveria is met by a massive blizzard, frigid temperatures, cold water (dangerously so), and not a friendly face to be found. Upon entering into a hole, Mario uncovers a town full of adorable seal creatures wearing Eskimo outfits. Times aren't happy at the beginning, but by the end, Bowser's forces have retreated and normal life can resume. What was once a snowstorm so massive that you couldn't see well, you can now see across the distance of several football fields. The blue sky greets Mario hello and the Shiverians can go on with their lives in their cozy, rosy, and warm town with holiday decorations. Maybe some special racing can be done, too!
6) Halloween Town - Kingdom Hearts II (PS2)
In the land of The Nightmare Before Christmas' Halloween Town, you can bet your bag of bones that Jack Skellington is preparing a bold plan to bring the cheer of the holiday season to the otherwise Halloween 24/7 town. While Sora, Donald, and Goofy don Halloween costumes for the level, fitting right in with the city folk, Mr. Skellington wears a full-on Santa suit. Perhaps Jack's wearing a Halloween costume, too, while I'm thinking of it... Many locales from the film are included in this Kingdom Hearts II re-imaging, including a colorful display inside of Santa's Workshop. It's a perfect mixture of two of the most popular holidays around.
5) Frosty Village - Diddy Kong Racing (N64, DS)
We reach the second half of this Christmas-themed video game level list with one of two racing games occupying spots on the countdown: Diddy Kong Racing. Frosty Village is as close to Christmas as you're going to get playing a kart racer on the Nintendo 64. The trees shine brightly with multi-color Christmas lights, and the cabins at the bottom of the hill after the overpass (which I would imagine is a super sweet sledding spot) make you want to enter inside, put on your slippers, rest by the fireplace, and drink some hot cocoa. But alas -- you can't! You have a race to win in this Christmas racing paradise! Whether in kart or in hovercraft, Frosty Village is an entertaining track that hits me right in the nostalgic feels.
4) Gotham - Batman: Arkham Origins (PS3, 360, Wii U, PC)
Batman: Arkham Origins has a location that is another star of the game alongside Batman and The Joker. I'm talking about Gotham City. In Arkham Origins, all of the happenings of the game occur on Christmas Eve, and it makes for an engrossing city to explore. Snow falls from the night sky, holiday decorations are sprinkled across the blocks, corners, and streets, and the level of discomfort around the city during what should be a festive time is rather daunting. But now for Batman, of course. Batman: Arkham Origins' Gotham has so many meticulous details and areas to explore. It makes me a bit disappointed that more people didn't find WB Games Montreal's take on the Arkham series to be as utterly enjoyable as I did. Then again, I always get disappointed when someone gifts me chocolate for Christmas, as I can't stand the taste, so I know; I'm weird.
3) Christmas Is Here - Bully (360, Wii, PS2)
The town of Bullworth is the locale where Rockstar's Bully takes place with Bullworth Academy positioned right in the middle with an amusement park on one side of town and the downtown districts being on the other. Throughout the course of Bully's calendar year, the town takes on and celebrates various holidays. For instance, when Halloween rolls around, all of the kids around town and students at the academy are sporting costumes. When Christmas comes a knocking, the town is painted with snow, with holiday lights shining brightly, and protagonist Jimmy having some hijinks afoot, such as making an arsenal of snowballs and chucking them for one snowball fight to end them all. Rather than devote a huge budget to a large playground, instead Rockstar used that budget to create a robust, detailed, content-rich, dense, and welcoming town that felt like home for fans of the game.
2) Animal Crossing (Winter) - Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (NSW)
If I was writing a list about Christmas-themed events in video games rather than levels, Animal Crossing and its sequels would find a place on this list. However, since that isn't the case, I can do the next best thing. Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe's Animal Crossing track models itself after the game series it's inspired by, complete with the changing of seasons. However, instead of waiting three months for the next season to come by, one is chosen randomly (or at will if you know the right button to press before the race loads). Each season offers the same track but changes some aesthetic elements. For instance, in Animal Crossing's winter form, the track is raced on under a starry nighttime sky complete with an aurora in the sky. Trees are bare from losing their leaves, snow has accumulated on their limbs, and many sport Christmas lights. The ground is covered in snow, and what makes this version of the track especially Christmas-y is how well the town celebrates it, enveloping itself in holiday cheer from all of the colorful holiday lights. It's a delightful race with a sense of home to it. How did you do that, Nintendo, in a racing game of all things!?
1) Freezeey Peak - Banjo-Kazooie (N64, XBLA)
In their top form, the developers at Rare were geniuses when it came to making fun games. The ideas and creativity blasting out of each and every seam is just marvelous to look back on and think about. Most developers would love to have just one memorable level in a game, but with Rare it continued to release games with some of the most bizarre yet fantastic worlds around. Many platformers have a snow or ice level within them. In fact, I think it's a law that can send you to prison if you don't follow it when making a platformer of any kind. While games like Super Mario 64 had winter wonderlands of its own, Rare released a game a year and some change later featuring a highly creative take on the winter world with Freezeey Peak.
Making the first left turn at the very beginning of the level sees you facing a humongous snowman monument -- fully able to be scaled, mind you. In the main part of the level, snowmen enemies chuckle as they toss painful snowballs at the bear and bird duo. A Christmas tree rests in a corner, waiting to be lit. A bear-hating walrus doesn't want Banjo inside his cave (but won't mind with shaman Mumbo Jumbo's help). Plus, you can't ignore the pleas of the trio of polar bear children who want their Daddy to come home with their lost presents. It's Christmas, for goodness sake!
Thursday, December 21, 2017
Mantis Burn Racing (NSW, PS4, XB1, PC) Review
From a racing game on water from yesterday to a racing game planted firmly on the ground (with the occasional hang time from hills), SuperPhillip Central centers its focus on VooFoo Studios' Mantis Burn Racing. This game saw a release on PS4, Xbox One, and Steam already, and now it has arrived on the Nintendo Switch. That is the version of the game I'll be covering with this review. Let's mind the corners and navigate those twisty turns together at once!
I'm burning, I'm burning, I'm burning for you.
I started playing games in the NES era, and with those games came one I went crazy over. It was a top-down racer called Super Off Road, where drivers raced along undulated dirt tracks in single screen arenas. My, how have times changed. VooFoo's Mantis Burn Racing has been on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam storefronts a little bit now, and recently it was added to the Nintendo Switch eShop. With beautiful HD environments with tricky tracks and circuits to compete in, Mantis Burn Racing delivers a fast and insane top-down racing experience that shows how far the genre has come since my days as a kid playing Super Off Road.
Mantis Burn Racing is easy to learn with its minimal required button inputs. You have a trigger for acceleration, a trigger to brake, and a boost button that can be used when you've produced enough boost energy done by earning XP mid-race. XP is handed out liberally with 20 points here for a good drift around a turn and 20 point there for overtaking an opponent. It's best to learn how to take turns well and use boost energy adequately, or else you'll find opponents easily overtaking you.
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| You can even earn XP from getting big air like these racers are about to do. |
As you progress through the main mode for solo players in Mantis Burn Racing, the career, you earn gears, XP, and currency to progress through the ranks along a map of sorts. All of the paths converge at the end where a lock rests. By fulfilling the gear requirement of that lock, it opens, allowing progress to the next series of challenges. XP is used to gain levels, filling up a linear line that occasionally unlocks new vehicles, modifications for your vehicles, and cold, hard currency, which you can use to purchase vehicles, upgrade old ones, and the like. Modifications comes in several forms, such as for tires, the engine, the suspension, and more to work on each vehicle's handling, acceleration, top speed, etc.
The career mode features an abundance of event types, such as standard races, Elimination events where the racer in last gets eliminated one-by-one until there's no other racers left but first place, time trials, Overtake events that have you rushing to race past other cars to overtake five other vehicles before your opponents do. The variety with events on display here is nice, especially since the track variety suffers a bit.
There are 12 tracks total in Mantis Burn Racing, and while that number would be adequate in any other racer, in Mantis Burn Racing the tracks are spread out across only three environments. You never race in familiar territory structure and turn-wise in the different races, but you do speed through similar-looking environments like a dusty canyon, a corner-intensive city, and on a snowy and treacherous mountainside. The track designers did their best to add some variety to the tracks despite being in only three environment types such as New Shangra-la's tracks taking place in nighttime on a track with a green glow to it, a harbor course that is drenched in light from a setting sun, and a trip through a monument-filled scenic route of the city.
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| One New Shangra-la race goes from overpasses to sewer channels. |
The DLC from the PS4, Xbox One, and Steam versions of Mantis Burn Racing come already pre-installed with the Nintendo Switch version, but to play those seasons within the career mode, you need to reach a certain point in the career. There are so many events throughout the career mode (and so many roadblocks like needed the right vehicle weight class that requires the player to spend currency they might have to grind for just for the necessary ride) that reaching the end or even less making substantial progress in the career turns out to highly tedious and repetitive.
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| While another race occurs at night alongside some scenic sights. |
This is especially so if you're trying to gain all six gears per event through completing achievement-like challenges, such as winning the race, drifting for a set number of seconds, crashing through a certain amount of breakable objects, beating specific lap times, and more. Though you have to admire the huge volume of events available throughout the career mode and the carrot on the stick supplied for players to engage and engross themselves with unlocking content. You can't say the quantity is not there, even if the quality gets a bit repetitive along the way. Not a bad problem to have, however, if you're enjoying what's here.
And what's here in Mantis Burn Racing is quite good. The racing is superb, and customizing your vehicles is a must unless you want to bounce around the tracks like a hovercraft. You can alter the camera angle with the press of a button to support your preferred view. I went with a direct view over my vehicle, so all controls were traditionally handled (i.e. turning left on the analog stick turned my vehicle left instead of whichever way it was facing compared to an alternate camera angle). Sometimes, though, with such a camera angle, I found it hard to discern where turns were, as parts of the environment would obscure my view, leading to frustrating and time-consuming crashes straight into barriers, slowing my vehicle down immensely.
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| I'm dreaming of a white and explosive Christmas with Mantis Burn Racing's Battle DLC. |
Multiplayer offers plenty of content for players both online and locally. Cross play with PC players on the Nintendo Switch brings enough players to the fold where waiting around for races is seldom a lengthy process. All options are available to you when participating in multiplayer, such as the 12 tracks in both normal and reverse designs, all the modes including the Battle DLC, and more. As someone who doesn't really partake in online that much, everything seemed to run well enough and I enjoyed myself with the limited system-wide options available to me on the Nintendo Switch.
Mantis Burn Racing brings back good memories of my times playing Super Off-Road back in my youth, and it is of course a marked and sophisticated improvement over those memories in control, design, and everything else. The career mode could have used some shortening or a better variety of environments, but overall, Mantis Burn Racing captured the same spirit of mine as a game I really adored as a child, and made new memories that I will hopefully look back on in another 25 years.
[SPC Says: B]
Review copy provided by VooFoo Studios.
Wednesday, December 20, 2017
Riptide GP: Renegade (NSW) Review
And here we go! A barrage of end of the year reviews are coming to SuperPhillip Central. Our first game of the month and of this barrage is Riptide GP: Renegade for the Nintendo Switch. Released earlier this month, I found myself enjoying splashing across the water, the waves, and finding the greatest racing line to outwit my opponents. Here's the SuperPhillip Central review.
From the makers of Hydro Thunder Hurricane comes what can be considered a spiritual successor in Riptide GP: Renegade. This futuristic aquatic jet ski racer set in a world flooded by water has seen releases on multiple platforms already, including on mobile (which SuperPhillip Central gave a B- to in my original review of the game). Now, Riptide GP: Renegade splashes onto the Nintendo Switch's eShop for a relative low cost of entry, and it's very much worth riding these waves.
Riptide GP: Renegade plops you right in to the excitement with a race to quickly learn the controls. However, upon reaching a certain point in the race, a squad of police cruisers arrest you on the spot for illegal racing. A costly setup by a character named Krex that ends up with your character in prison for two years. In that time, your crew has come up with a multi-stage plan to get even with Krex, including getting new members to join you, and earning some race cred to get back into the official racing league.
All of this plays out in Riptide's career mode. Here, you compete in different event types across nine race tracks to put your crew's plan in action. There are standard races, as well as Elimination style, where after every 30 or so seconds the player in last place is eliminated until there is no one left but the race leader. There are also slalom events where you slosh along the water to situate yourself on the left and right side of slalom cones as you attempt to clear the track as fast as possible. Finally, Freestyle brings the trick system of Riptide GP into full display where pulling off the sickest tricks (while keeping mind that repeated tricks award less points) within the time limit is the way to go.
The career mode follows a linear path of events split in sections. These sections each have you and your crew trying to impress a certain character enough that they'll decide to race against you in a one-on-one contest. Win the race, and you'll not only be able to race as that character, but you'll also earn a more powerful ride with better stats and more upgrade potential.
Each event in the career mode awards you with up to three stars, depending on what place you get in on the podium. The events also provide cash and experience rewards. The former is used to upgrade your current jet ski in one of four categories such as top speed, acceleration, boost, and handling. Experience is used to level your rider up, netting you skill points that can be utilized to purchase new, more complicated tricks, as well as race bonuses like better drafting of other racers, a better boost at the start of races, and more boost energy upon successfully nailing tricks.
Throughout the 4-6 hour career, you'll be spending a lot of time across the same nine tracks of the game, especially due to repeating certain events due to odd difficulty jumps along the way. This can be a bit repetitive to see the same nine tracks and having to compete on them repeatedly, but the tracks are designed so well that none of them stand out as anything close to bad. Many courses provide ample shortcut opportunities. Whether it's riding up a series of geysers to reach a giant half pipe for a perfect tricking spot or navigating the wild waves of The Ruins to pass under an overpass to discover an alternate path, these shortcuts are placed cleverly throughout each track, as are the decal-unlocking Easter Eggs to collect. Both shortcuts and Easter Eggs demand the player to be observant of their surroundings and to explore them, all the while gunning for first place.
You can customize your racer somewhat by not only changing which character you play as but also their vehicle. You can also alter both the color schemes of the racer and the jet ski with three different color categories to make colorful and artistic statements (or just go all Johnny Cash with a pure black outfit and bike if you like). Finally, decals and racing numbers can be applied to your racer/vehicle combination, and more and more decals are earned by competing events in career mode.
All of the events and tracks in the world don't mean a thing if Riptide GP: Renegade's gameplay isn't up to snuff. Thankfully, the handling of each vehicle, the physics of different wave types regarding how they bounce your vehicle around, and the collision detection regarding track geometry are all fantastic in design and execution. Skirting about the water's surface feels excellent, and leaping off waves and ramps to perform tricks (accomplished by tilting both analog sticks in specific directions) is always an exhilarating action.
Riptide GP: Renegade sports multiplayer options for local competition as well as online. The online portion isn't that active at all, unfortunately, but at the same time, with limited interaction between competitors in races, there isn't much to be found in variety. This makes the multiplayer experience a bit shallow when all it takes is one crash to be completely out of the race against more skilled players.
By virtue of being on a platform with better, more comfortable control options for a game of this type, Riptide GP: Renegade on the Nintendo Switch is a step up from its mobile offering, even though the price is more substantial on Switch. Excellent controls, handling, physics, track design, shortcuts, and a worthwhile career mode will present a lot of enjoyment for players while lackluster multiplayer options are hollow. Still, Riptide GP: Renegade manages to fly off the ramp, pulling off some incredible tricks midair while making a successful landing in the process. Forced metaphors aside, Riptide GP: Renegade is recommended by SuperPhillip Central.
[SPC Says: B]
Review copy provided by Vector Unit.
Blazing an aquatic trail
From the makers of Hydro Thunder Hurricane comes what can be considered a spiritual successor in Riptide GP: Renegade. This futuristic aquatic jet ski racer set in a world flooded by water has seen releases on multiple platforms already, including on mobile (which SuperPhillip Central gave a B- to in my original review of the game). Now, Riptide GP: Renegade splashes onto the Nintendo Switch's eShop for a relative low cost of entry, and it's very much worth riding these waves.
Riptide GP: Renegade plops you right in to the excitement with a race to quickly learn the controls. However, upon reaching a certain point in the race, a squad of police cruisers arrest you on the spot for illegal racing. A costly setup by a character named Krex that ends up with your character in prison for two years. In that time, your crew has come up with a multi-stage plan to get even with Krex, including getting new members to join you, and earning some race cred to get back into the official racing league.
 |
| Revenge is a dish best served wet. |
The career mode follows a linear path of events split in sections. These sections each have you and your crew trying to impress a certain character enough that they'll decide to race against you in a one-on-one contest. Win the race, and you'll not only be able to race as that character, but you'll also earn a more powerful ride with better stats and more upgrade potential.
Each event in the career mode awards you with up to three stars, depending on what place you get in on the podium. The events also provide cash and experience rewards. The former is used to upgrade your current jet ski in one of four categories such as top speed, acceleration, boost, and handling. Experience is used to level your rider up, netting you skill points that can be utilized to purchase new, more complicated tricks, as well as race bonuses like better drafting of other racers, a better boost at the start of races, and more boost energy upon successfully nailing tricks.
 |
| Helpful green signs like this one just ahead show when upcoming ramps are near. |
You can customize your racer somewhat by not only changing which character you play as but also their vehicle. You can also alter both the color schemes of the racer and the jet ski with three different color categories to make colorful and artistic statements (or just go all Johnny Cash with a pure black outfit and bike if you like). Finally, decals and racing numbers can be applied to your racer/vehicle combination, and more and more decals are earned by competing events in career mode.
 |
| Use a color scheme and decal fit for jolly, good, old racing representing Britannia or any country you like. |
 |
| Make sure you have plenty of room to perform your trick, or else you'll bail and lose valuable time! |
By virtue of being on a platform with better, more comfortable control options for a game of this type, Riptide GP: Renegade on the Nintendo Switch is a step up from its mobile offering, even though the price is more substantial on Switch. Excellent controls, handling, physics, track design, shortcuts, and a worthwhile career mode will present a lot of enjoyment for players while lackluster multiplayer options are hollow. Still, Riptide GP: Renegade manages to fly off the ramp, pulling off some incredible tricks midair while making a successful landing in the process. Forced metaphors aside, Riptide GP: Renegade is recommended by SuperPhillip Central.
[SPC Says: B]
Review copy provided by Vector Unit.
Monday, December 18, 2017
SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs - "Twas the Week Before Christmas" Edition
'Twas the week before Christmas, and all through SuperPhillip Central's site
Phil was preparing game reviews to end the month for your delight
That... That's all I have for my Christmas poem so far. Instead, I bring you a special pre-Christmas edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs! Next week, presents will be opened, gifts will be given, and the fireplace will be lit up to make everyone warm and toasty. (Unless you're like me and don't have a fireplace in your household.)
This week's lineup of games features music from Star Wars Battlefront II, the recently released version, that is. Then, SoulCalibur V delivers an impressive orchestra and choir piece to bring even more emotion to this edition. Following that, we go a bit chill with music from Sonic Free Riders and Super Princess Peach. Things wrap up with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project.
Before I conclude my weekly introduction to SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs, remember to check out the VGM Database for all past games and songs ever featured on this long-running segment. Now, let's get onto the music!
v1526. Star Wars Battlefront II (PS4, XB1, PC) - Falcon Flight
Beginning with a bang, Star Wars: The Last Jedi released in theaters this past Friday, so what better excuse to post a theme from a Star Wars game? While EA's Star Wars Battlefront II has been raked over the coals with its microtransactions, so much so that the company is temporarily removing them until it gets a better idea on how it wants to implement them, the presentation is absolutely breathtaking in both gorgeous visuals and magnificent sound. The latter part of the presentation is our focus with this theme that plays during the Millennium Falcon's flight.
v1527. SoulCalibur V (PS3, 360) - Daybreaker
Announced at The Game Awards 2017, SoulCalibur VI is set to launch on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One sometime next year. Thus, let's take a look -- or in this case, listen -- back to the game that proceeded it, SoulCalibur V on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Much like Star Wars Battlefront II's score, we're greeted with an epic symphonic performance, but this time we have the powerful force of a backing chorus joining in.
v1528. Sonic Free Riders (360) - Metropolis Speedway
"Hey, hey, hey!" Groove with this track from the otherwise reprehensible attempt at bringing the Sonic Riders series to the Xbox 360's Kinect. It was a recipe for disaster, as well as a move that has pretty much killed the otherwise enjoyable Sonic Riders series. Thanks, Kinect! Having gotten my bitterness out, we can turn towards this infectious theme for the Metropolis Speedway circuit in Sonic Free Riders, one of the high points of the soundtrack as a whole.
v1529. Super Princess Peach (DS) - Tag the Flowers!
While those of us deep in the Midwest of the United States don't have much in the way of flowers to actually tag, much less pick, there's nothing saying we can't enjoy this delightful loop from the Nintendo DS' Super Princess Peach, the very first platformer where she's the star and not kidnapped. Instead, the roles are completely reversed with Mario being the one who is kidnapped by the ghastly Bowser. The Super Princess Peach soundtrack has a lot of cute and bouncy themes throughout its lineup of tunes, such as this one that only appears in a specific series of puzzle rooms in the first world of the game.
v1530. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project (NES) - Ending Part 3
I would consider Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project the most overlooked of Konami's early era TMNT games. The first TMNT is well known for being ridiculously hard, TMNT II is a home port of the famous arcade game, and Turtles in Time (TMNT IV) saw the series leap to the Super Nintendo. Meanwhile, The Manhattan Project released after the launch of the SNES and didn't get too much hype otherwise. It's still a rather fun game, especially if you like beat-em-ups and/or the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Phil was preparing game reviews to end the month for your delight
That... That's all I have for my Christmas poem so far. Instead, I bring you a special pre-Christmas edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs! Next week, presents will be opened, gifts will be given, and the fireplace will be lit up to make everyone warm and toasty. (Unless you're like me and don't have a fireplace in your household.)
This week's lineup of games features music from Star Wars Battlefront II, the recently released version, that is. Then, SoulCalibur V delivers an impressive orchestra and choir piece to bring even more emotion to this edition. Following that, we go a bit chill with music from Sonic Free Riders and Super Princess Peach. Things wrap up with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project.
Before I conclude my weekly introduction to SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs, remember to check out the VGM Database for all past games and songs ever featured on this long-running segment. Now, let's get onto the music!
v1526. Star Wars Battlefront II (PS4, XB1, PC) - Falcon Flight
Beginning with a bang, Star Wars: The Last Jedi released in theaters this past Friday, so what better excuse to post a theme from a Star Wars game? While EA's Star Wars Battlefront II has been raked over the coals with its microtransactions, so much so that the company is temporarily removing them until it gets a better idea on how it wants to implement them, the presentation is absolutely breathtaking in both gorgeous visuals and magnificent sound. The latter part of the presentation is our focus with this theme that plays during the Millennium Falcon's flight.
v1527. SoulCalibur V (PS3, 360) - Daybreaker
Announced at The Game Awards 2017, SoulCalibur VI is set to launch on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One sometime next year. Thus, let's take a look -- or in this case, listen -- back to the game that proceeded it, SoulCalibur V on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Much like Star Wars Battlefront II's score, we're greeted with an epic symphonic performance, but this time we have the powerful force of a backing chorus joining in.
v1528. Sonic Free Riders (360) - Metropolis Speedway
"Hey, hey, hey!" Groove with this track from the otherwise reprehensible attempt at bringing the Sonic Riders series to the Xbox 360's Kinect. It was a recipe for disaster, as well as a move that has pretty much killed the otherwise enjoyable Sonic Riders series. Thanks, Kinect! Having gotten my bitterness out, we can turn towards this infectious theme for the Metropolis Speedway circuit in Sonic Free Riders, one of the high points of the soundtrack as a whole.
v1529. Super Princess Peach (DS) - Tag the Flowers!
While those of us deep in the Midwest of the United States don't have much in the way of flowers to actually tag, much less pick, there's nothing saying we can't enjoy this delightful loop from the Nintendo DS' Super Princess Peach, the very first platformer where she's the star and not kidnapped. Instead, the roles are completely reversed with Mario being the one who is kidnapped by the ghastly Bowser. The Super Princess Peach soundtrack has a lot of cute and bouncy themes throughout its lineup of tunes, such as this one that only appears in a specific series of puzzle rooms in the first world of the game.
v1530. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project (NES) - Ending Part 3
I would consider Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project the most overlooked of Konami's early era TMNT games. The first TMNT is well known for being ridiculously hard, TMNT II is a home port of the famous arcade game, and Turtles in Time (TMNT IV) saw the series leap to the Super Nintendo. Meanwhile, The Manhattan Project released after the launch of the SNES and didn't get too much hype otherwise. It's still a rather fun game, especially if you like beat-em-ups and/or the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
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