NYCC 2011: Sonic Generations

Our adventure into this year's New York Comic Con was not exactly as peachy as we would have liked, but when is a convention not stressful? We were only able to attend the Thursday and Friday events for both economical and physical reasons, but we got a handful of videos and impressions to make for you all.

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Sonic Generations was available in split venues at this year's New York Comic Con; the console version of the game was situated at the Archie Comics booth while Nintendo housed the 3DS edition (which was on rotation with other third party games such as Skylanders and Shinobi). I only got my hands on the 3DS version, and it looks to have improved some since it last appeared in public.

Old Sonic Character, meet New Sonic Worlds.

Comparatively, Classic Sonic was both slower and tighter in control than Modern Sonic was. Classic Sonic required more of a running start to really get moving while Modern Sonic accelerated much faster, making it a tad harder to know what was in front of him. While I didn’t test to see just how close Classic Sonic’s physics were to the physics on the Genesis, I could tell there were some differences, but not enough to impede my experience. As for Modern Sonic, he played similarly to his Sonic Rush counterparts, which was fast and smooth.

Green Hill has gone 3D. Blast Processing has returned!

One thing I noticed was that the Classic Sonic stage layouts were copies of the original level layouts back on the Genesis. This is a tad disappointing as Green Hill Zone Act 1 is only 30 seconds long and there is no feeling of experiencing new levels. Luckily, Modern Sonic’s stages are completely new with rails and other stage gimmicks. I was happy to notice that both Classic and Modern Sonic had complex platforming elements as well as multiple paths to choose from, adding to the game’s replayablilty. One element I did not like for Modern Sonic was that in some parts you needed to boost in order to get through while other parts punished you if you didn’t take you time. As far as level layouts go, they were pretty much on par with Sonic Rush’s level design, which is okay by me. As for the boss in the demo, Big Arm, I found the battle challenging and fun. Compared to videos I have seen online, this boss fight felt tougher as a result of his constantly changing attack pattern; this more difficult battle also allowed me the time to hear the music, which was a neat combination of both new and old themes.

After playing both versions, I found a problem I had not thought of before. In the console versions, both Sonics have different looking stages and play styles, but in the 3DS version, both Sonics look the same and have similar levels. This caused some confusion mid-game; at times I would forget that I had special abilities or that I could not use special attacks. Hopefully this will not be too much of an issue for me later on!

Well, as long as it is fun, I won't complain about including Sonic Heroes.

After seeing both versions in person, it was clear that the console version is getting far more attention than the handheld version. Both games look nice, but some corners are being cut in order to get the 3DS game out this year. My other concern is game length. The HD version has 9 stages each with two acts and 10 missions, but so far it appears that there are only 7 stages with 2 acts on the 3DS. Besides that, the game does appear to be improving and should be at least enjoyable to fans of the more recent Sonic handheld games.

On Thursday, I had the pleasure to speak with Aaron Webber about Sonic Generations, which you can see in the video below. While no release date has been announced for the 3DS version, the 360, PC, and Playstation 3 version of Sonic Generations is expected later this month.

NYCC 2011: Shinobi

Our adventure into this year's New York Comic Con was not exactly as peachy as we would have liked, but when is a convention not stressful? We were only able to attend the Thursday and Friday events for both economical and physical reasons, but we got a handful of videos and impressions to make for you all.

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At New York Comic Con, one of the third party games on display at Nintendo's booth was Sega's Shinobi for 3DS. This action-packed ninja adventure promises to bring back the old-school arcade experience that gamers have been wanting for the last few years. We got to play some of it there, and it feels like it is going to match the old school pretty well.

The demo started off with the protagonist talking with his sensei about basics and some advanced controls, and there was quite a lot to learn. I quickly decided to skip through the tutorial and jump head-first into the game, although in hindsight perhaps I should have gone through the tutorial a little bit. From the quick-passing screens, I could see a large amount of moves that the main character can do, from sword slashing to parrying to a new magic move which clears the screen in one blow.

As soon as I passed the tutorial, invading forces attacked the dojo and the game began in earnest. Like the older Shinobi games, this game is a side-scrolling action game in which you use the circle pad to move the ninja around and attack a vast onslaught of enemies using long-range shurikens and close-range combat. Unfortunately, the enemies can also throw throwing stars at you, and at the time, I did not realize that the parry move could knock off projectiles as they came to me. As a result, I got pummeled quite often in my time.

In the future, ninjas fight everything and everywhere!

Like real ninjas, the enemies do not give you much time to react, making the whole demo a high-octane experience, which was only made more complicated around the crowded and loud convention floor. If you can manage to sneak behind an enemy, you can take them out in a one-move takedown; if they spot you, you earn a sword to the face. While fighting, you can throw a chain upward to launch yourself toward higher places and especially toward airborne enemies for special combos. However, I could not find a way to launch the chain in any other direction; this was no Bionic Commando for me.

Of course, this screen shows we might be a little mistaken.

Besides fighting, the platforming felt pretty straight forward. The game allows you to use ninja skills to grab onto platforms, ropes, and anything else that a badass ninja needs to grab to get the job done. The game is clearly more combat-based, and perhaps that is a good thing when it comes to the Shinobi franchise.

Graphically, the style is more comic-based, if the boxart did not give this away. The fire effects and cel-shaded enemies further emphasize the comic style, but the backgrounds are pretty flat and lack detail where it should be expected. With stylized games like Okamiden showing up at the end of the DS's life with great aethetics, Shinobi came off to me as a simple, upgraded DS game in the texture department rather than a full-blown 3DS game. In 3D, the game looks nice, but there could have certainly been more usage of the display with the actions in the backgrounds. There should have been more to emphasize the 3D effects where possible.

Perhaps later worlds will better show off the 3D effect better.

While I was fairly inept at playing the game at the show floor, Shinobi looks like it will match the difficulty expectations of the series. I continued to get beaten up by the enemies and was confused by all the moves throughout; NYCC was probably not a good venue for me to try the game out, especially having skipped the tutorial entirely. Initial qualms aside, the game looks like it'll meet the expectations of Shinobi fans of yore.

Shinobi is expected for release this November.

NYCC 2011: Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion XL

Our adventure into this year's New York Comic Con was not exactly as peachy as we would have liked, but when is a convention not stressful? We were only able to attend the Thursday and Friday events for both economical and physical reasons, but we got a handful of videos and impressions to make for you all.

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There is no denying that Cartoon Network has become one of the biggest child and adolescent programming channels on cable today, and it has a lot of characters new and old to thank for that. From the eco-friendly Captain Planet to the chef-in-training Chowder, the variety of characters is so large that it eventually spawns the question: who would win in a battle, Samurai Jack or Ben 10? Or Flapjack? Or the Powerpuff Girls?

Enter Papaya Studio's Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion, a CN-themed fighting and action game. Originally released on the Nintendo 3DS this past summer, Punch Time Explosion is getting a special XL edition for home consoles this holiday season, and from what we saw at Comic Con, it is certainly improving on what the original game had established. For one, the new adventure consists of as many as eight brand-new characters, including Him from Powerpuff Girls and Kevin Eleven from the Ben 10 series. Also, a large number of new battle maps have been added, expanding the locales of the many worlds, including Mandark's Lab and Candied Island. So for those who liked the 3DS version and wanted more of everything, there is nothing to worry about here.

Toiletnator is about to get beat down.

Of course, an XL version is not just more characters and levels. The console version's graphics have been improved, and the framerate has been stabilized, which is certainly helpful for keeping up with the action. Players can play the Story Mode cooperatively, and there are a number of new battle modes for multiplayer. There is even a Practice Mode so you can learn each new character's abilities before you jump into the fray. Even older characters have new abilities, particularly the Synergy Attacks, in which an assisting character and the playable character join together to perform a special destructive attack on unsuspecting opponents.

In this lab, it is all fun and no work.

From my experiences, the game has quite a bit of activity happening, and at first, the controls might be a little daunting, but even less experienced players should do rather well, what with the Punch Time Explosions and assist attacks. Considering all the characters, crazy level selection, and new Synergy Attacks, this game will certainly compare well against Super Smash Brothers Brawl, and considering there are not many games like this on HD platforms, this could be a good contender for children's wish lists this holiday.

Check the pecks, then check this punch!

We had an interview with Senior Producer Richard Robledo regarding the game and its new features, not to mention the controversial question: which Cartoon Network character is his favorite?

Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion is available now for 3DS and the console XL version will be available this holiday season under a budget price. For more information, head to the official website.

NYCC 2011: Skylanders: Spyro's Big Adventure

Our adventure into this year's New York Comic Con was not exactly as peachy as we would have liked, but when is a convention not stressful? We were only able to attend the Thursday and Friday events for both economical and physical reasons, but we got a handful of videos and impressions to make for you all.

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When it was announced earlier this year, Skylanders: Spyro's Big Adventure was met with a mixed reaction, mostly toward the cash-grab mentality the concept reflected. Essentially, Skylanders is a toy and game combination aimed toward children, all while rebooting the Spyro franchise and introducing a myriad of new characters for marketability. Using a portal device, players input characters to the game via individual toy statues; the games each come with three figurines, and there are over thirty in total. Consequently, not only do you have to purchase the games, but you also have to purchase additional toys to play as every character.

While this negativity toward Activision is understandable, that negativity does not necessarily outdo the fact that the game is pretty darn fun.

At New York Comic Con, I got my hands on the 3DS version of the game, and a developer from Vicarious Visions was there to answer my questions and help relay information on the titles. While we chatted about the game and its features (as we talk about in the below video), I played through the first few areas the game had to offer, and overall I was pretty impressed.

A scene from the console version, when it was first announced.

Unlike the console versions in which the portal needs to be activated at all times for character swapping, the handheld edition allows players to store two heroes in the game at one time, but to change characters outside of the stored ones, the portal will need to be used. Also unlike the console version, the 3DS version of the game is more platform-intensive, and from what I played, that is certainly true. In the last Spyro series, the games were more focused on beat-em-up scenarios; this rendition puts more emphasis on quick battles and unique character abilities. According to the developer, the handheld version is more fast-paced than the console version, and while I cannot confirm that, the game did feel well-paced.

The Portal, not just a display for your Skylanders figurines.

Swapping characters was quick and easy, and as I played, they did have their little differences. Dark Spyro, for instance, glided across gaps while Ignitor, the other character in the demo, provided a double jump for platforming. As the game progresses, each character gains experience and, subsequently, abilities as they venture through each level of the game. While there are no extreme RPG elements in here, the leveling concept does make replaying the game more acceptable; having so many characters to choose from helps that as well.

Perhaps my biggest fault with the game from my hands-on time was the framerate. Seeing as this demo was probably a very complete version of the game, the framerate was disappointing. Sitting at roughly 20 fps, the game felt occasionally stilted. Thankfully, the 3D effect is greatly utilized, with large towers and drops which make good use of the 3DS display. The graphics are bright and do not show much of the faults a number of third party games on the 3DS did before. It certainly does not feel like an up-port, thank goodness!

The handheld game accepts all characters from the console versions, too.

We were told that there will be at least 30 characters, of which two are exclusively included in Starter Packs: Spyro with the console game and Dark Spyro with the handheld edition. This does make the game initially expensive. Thankfully, the game seems very solid and certainly welcoming to younger gamers. Will it be brought to the same height as the original Spyro series? Well, perhaps that depends on your perception of the original series. At the very least, this is a unique take on the franchise, and it is certainly not a bad one.

Skylanders is out now, but if you want some quick impressions over Comic Con footage, look no further!

eShop Rating-Sales: September 2011

The Nintendo eShop is Nintendo's online shop through the 3DS where people can download games from old Nintendo hardware, DSiWare games, and new download software specific for the 3DS. Because Nintendo does not disclose sales numbers, and developers are most likely barred from revealing them, we do not know how games are doing on the service.

But we might have at least a small hint.

After playing a game on the 3DS for over a hour, players are capable of rating these games via the eShop, and the totals are shown on each game page, showing up to five stars based on what the population thinks. At the very least, we now have minimum sales figures for the games, but with a very large disclaimer: these numbers represent the users who have done the following:

1) Purchased the game
2) Played the game for over an hour on the 3DS, and
3) Chose to rate the game on the eShop.

People who play the games on their DSi systems cannot rate games, nor can people who have not played the games for less than one hour. Since rating cannot be done outside of the eShop, some might have forgotten to or chosen not to rate said games. Also note that a rating does not necessarily correspond with a sale in the month in which it appears, only emphasizing the number of additional people who completed the above steps.

With that disclaimer in mind, let us take a look at how the games performed.

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Free Apps

1/1 Nintendo Video	7158	19206
2/2 Pokedex 3D	5371	31464
3/3 Netflix	3331	14147

Unmoved from last month, Nintendo Video remains the most-rated product in Nintendo's applications, but Pokedex 3D is still the most-rated download software on the eShop to date. At the very least, roughly 30 to 40 thousand people have accessed the eShop at some point, but I imagine the number to be greater overall.


Pre-eShop DSiWare*

1/1 Plants vs. Zombies	647	3623
2/2 Photo Dojo	496	2643
3/3 Cave Story	424	2791
4/5 Inchworm Animation	419	1707
5/4 Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!	404	2387
6/7 Anonymous Notes Chapter 1 - From the Abyss	304	1342
7/10 Zenonia	299	1128
8/6 Shantae: Risky's Revenge	281	1911
9/8 Bomberman Blitz	211	1091
10/12 Mario Clock	209	972
11/9 GO Series: 10 Second Run	203	839
12/11 Tetris Party Live	194	999
13/13 Pop Island - Paperfield	168	788
14/15 Army Defender	162	614
15/14 Soul of Darkness	122	595
16/16 Dark Void Zero	119	622
17/00 JellyCar 2	108	585
18/17 Dr. Mario Express	96	580
19/19 Anonymous Notes Chapter 2 - From the Abyss	71	386
20/18 Extreme Hangman	59	424
21/00 Arcade Bowling	56	267
22/20 GO Series: Defense Wars	33	136
23/21 WarioWare: Snapped!	31	180

*The list might not include games with higher rating counts, as it omits a large portion of prior DSiWare releases.

More or less the top 6 games remained as such, although there are some movements lower down the list. There does not appear to be any surprise in the current listing of old DSiWare games, at least not yet. Meanwhile, Nintendo this past month posted a "Biggest Movers" category in the eShop, and including newly charted games, represent the added chunk of games to the list for next month.

Crystal Monsters	638
Nintendo Countdown Calender	353
Pop Island	332
Touch Solitaire	317
My Farm	279
Paper Airplane Chase	227
Blazybloo: Super Melee Action Battle Royale	217
Mario Calculator	193
5 in 1 Solitaire	180
My Exotic Farm	175
Castle Conqueror	168
Gangster 2: Kings of L.A.	160
Earthworm Jim	149
AiRace	144
A Topsy Turvy Life: The Turvys Strike Back	63
Petz Dogz Family	51
Petz Kittens	38

Yes, Nintendo listed two Petz games in the "Biggest Movers" section. I have my doubts, but we will see next time if the category meant much.


Post-eShop DSiWare

1/00 The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition**	1679	1679
2/16 Let's Create! Pottery	99	112
3/01 Afterzoom	80	376
4/00 GO Series: Fishing Resort	61	61
5/02 Extreme Hangman 2	56	213
6/05 Go! Go! Kokopolo	51	96
7/18 Magical Whip	47	58
8/03 The Lost Town: The Dust	46	168
9/20 Build-a-lot	29	38
10/32 Calculator	29	32
11/06 My Australian Farm	27	71
12/13 My Asian Farm	25	42
13/07 Moto eXtreme	22	96
14/04 Antipole	22	113
15/31 Zoonies - Escape from Makatu	19	23
16/09 Make-Up & Style	17	82
17/00 House M.D. - Blue Meanie	17	17
18/12 Pro Jumper! Guilty Gear Tangent!?	16	70
19/00 Defense of the Middle Kingdom	16	16
20/19 Kung Fu Dragon	14	25
21/26 Crazy Hamster	14	20
22/10 GO Series: Portable Shrine Wars	13	45
23/23 Blockado - Puzzle Island	13	20
24/00 Break Tactics	13	13
25/08 Stratego: Next Edition	12	87
26/14 Farm Frenzy	10	35
27/15 Heart Spaces Euchre	8	32
28/17 Puzzle Fever	8	29
29/25 Roller Angels	7	26
30/11 Jewel Keepers: Easter Island	7	44
31/22 Trollboarder	7	17
32/27 Zimo: Mahjong Fanatic	6	19
33/24 Delbo	6	28
34/00 DotMan	6	6
35/28 Hidden Photo	5	20
36/00 Puzzle Rocks	5	5
37/00 Escape Trick: Ninja Castle	5	5
38/34 Boardwalk Ball Toss	4	15
39/36 Go Fetch! 2	4	6
40/33 Gold Fever	3	18
41/21 Beach Party Craze	2	20
42/29 Oscar's World Tour	2	7
43/30 Play & Learn Spanish	2	7
44/00 Bridge	2	2
45/35 Just SING! 80s Collection	1	3
46/37 B-Team - Episode 2: Ice & Venom	1	2
47/00 Bugs 'N' Balls	0	0
48/00 Crystal Caves of Amen-Ra	0	0

**This game is free and will be available for free until February 20th, 2012.

Even a couple of days after its debut, Four Swords Anniversary Edition happens to become the most-rated game from new DSiWare titles, although that is to be expected. The game is and will remain free for months, so I suspect it will stay at Number 1 until then. Outside of that large outlier, the highest new release goes to GO Series: Fishing Resort with 61 ratings. Last month's biggest rated title, Go! Go! Kokopolo, only debuted with 45, although it has since more than doubled in ratings, a good sign for a good game. However, the biggest mover from last month's releases was not Kokopolo but Let's Create! Pottery, with 99 ratings this past month.

The last two games, both without a single rating, were only out for a full day when I gathered data, so if they are good, expect them to shoot up the charts come next month.

After Zelda, the most-rated post-eShop DSiWare title remains to be Afterzoom.


Virtual Console

1/1 Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX	1693	14452
2/2 Super Mario Land	1006	8464
3/4 Kirby's Dream Land	595	2572
4/3 Donkey Kong	463	3319
5/00 Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge	275	275
6/5 Mario's Picross	238	806
7/7 Gargoyle's Quest	225	350
8/6 Game & Watch Gallery	185	802
9/00 Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins	81	81
10/8 Alleyway	64	585
11/9 Avenging Spirit	48	119
12/00 Pac-Man	47	47
13/10 Qix	30	170
14/11 Baseball	27	126
15/12 Radar Mission	23	203
16/14 Tennis	17	138
17/13 Fortified Zone	15	91
18/00 Golf	14	14

The top 4 games remained as expected, although Kirby outdid Donkey Kong this month. The most-rated new release was Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge with 275 ratings. The other Capcom release, Gargoyle's Quest, sits at the top of third-party VC releases. The worst-performing game of the bunch was Golf, which also debuted this week. Word of advice for Nintendo: do not release a GB Golf title within weeks of releasing an NES Golf game for the Ambassador Program. Also, Super Mario Land 2 was barely out when the month ended; expect it to do well next month.

Link's Awakening DX remains the highest-rated title on the eShop that was never available for free at any time. Outside of new releases, Fortified Zone remains the least-rated VC title, with only 91 ratings.


3DS Download Software

1/1 3D Classics: Excitebike*	1399	17490
2/2 Let's Golf! 3D	456	1351
3/3 3D Classics: Xevious	241	901
4/4 3D Classics: Urban Champion	210	401
5/0 3D Classics: Twinbee	67	67

*This game was available for free during the month of June 2011.

Like last month, the actual 3DS games from eShop went up in count by one, and it happened to be another 3D Classics title. Twinbee only had a week to perform, and it did poorly, with only 67 ratings. Urban Champion, despite being seen negatively upon release, still sits at a total of 401 ratings. Let's Golf! 3D surpassed 1000 ratings, and Xevious appears to be on the verge, as well.

As expected, 3D Classics: Excitebike remains the most-rated 3DS download software and, outside of Nintendo Video and Pokedex 3D, is the most-rated product on the eShop. I do not expect this fact to change into the near future.

Overall

1/2 Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX	1693	14452
2/00 The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition**	1679	1679
3/1 3D Classics: Excitebike*	1399	17490
4/3 Super Mario Land	1006	8464
5/6 Plants vs. Zombies	647	3623
6/5 Kirby's Dream Land	595	2572
7/8 Photo Dojo	496	2643
8/4 Donkey Kong	463	3319
9/7 Let's Golf! 3D	456	1351
10/9 Cave Story	424	2791
11/12 Inchworm Animation	419	1707
12/10 Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!	404	2387
13/15 Anonymous Notes Chapter 1 - From the Abyss	304	1342
14/19 Zenonia	299	1128
15/13 Shantae: Risky's Revenge	281	1911
16/00 Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge	275	275
17/14 3D Classics: Xevious	241	901
18/11 Mario's Picross	238	806
19/29 Gargoyle's Quest	225	350
20/17 Bomberman Blitz	211	1091

*This game was free for the month of June 2011
**This game is and will be free until February 2012

In a way, it is sad to see only two new games appear on the Top 20, but between free games, great handheld virtual console titles, and the 10-game Ambassador Program, I suspect the ratings to have dropped as a result. Link's Awakening DX remains at the top, but Four Swords Anniversary Edition almost surpassed it, followed by the other-once-free title on the eShop 3D Classics: Excitebike. The only paid-for debut in this now Top 20 is Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge. Meanwhile, the only August games on this list are Mario's Picross and Gargoyle's Quest.

What's in store for October? Well, there will almost certainly be a 3D Classics title, and Japan is getting a unique game developed by Intelligent Systems. As for other titles, Wayforward's newest title might appear in the next couple months, so keep a look out!