First on the list: Namco Bandai’s Retro Game Challenge

Namco Bandai once again tried to screw us out of another game they developed, but XSeed stepped in to publish it!

Okay, not really. As the game is based off of the Japanese show Gamecenter CX there would’ve likely been no commotion had this game never been released outside of Japan, unlike another certain Namco franchise. (coughtalesofcough)

As much as my gaming history dates all the way back to the Intellivision and the Commodore 64, I can safely say that I was never aware of this game until I heard the Destructoid guys talking about it on Podtoid shortly after it came out. (Unfortunately I can’t remember which episode; Likely near the end of February.) What I heard from them sounded like an amazing game based around my childhood pastime, although I had kind of written off ever trying to find it.  It was only a couple of weeks ago that I had an ample amount of cash burning a hole in my pocket, and so I was browsing the shelves at my local EB games when lo and behold, what do I find? Yes, Retro Game Challenge. It was a no-brainer; The game was mine for the taking.

This is going to be quite odd for a “First Impressions” because really I’ve nearly finished the game. I only have one more game to go and then the final challenge.

Game Overview
As I mentioned before, Retro Game Challenge is based off of Fuji Television’s Gamecenter CX, a show featuring mediocre gamer Shinya Arino trying to beat some of Japan’s hardest games, or try to pull off feats that take a bit of grunt work to clear.  In the game, a “virtual” version of Arino haunts your DS and then sends you back in time, as a child, to his house in the 1980s. From there, you must tackle Arino’s challenges in eight different 8-bit style games. Although these retro games aren’t real games from the 80s, they are all similar to at least one type of game of that time period, whether it be the Galaga-inspired Cosmic Gate, Dragon Quest-esque Guadia Quest, Star Soldier-ish Star Prince, or Haggleman, which could resemble various NES platformers back in the days.

How does it play?
Imagine yourself in the late 80s in a room with an NES, with a stack of games on one side, and a bunch of Nintendo Power magazines on the other. That is Retro Game Challenge. Every aspect of home console gaming from the 80s has been recaptured, from the gameplay style, to the old cheat codes, even the cheesy magazine articles  and features back in the days. If that isn’t enough, try talking to young Arino with the chat feature. He’ll even start using cheesy schoolyard words and Fresh Prince quotes. (“Take it from me, parents just don’t understand.”) Just about all of the eight games are addicting to play except for maybe one, which is more or less showing how some developers got away with pallate swapping stuff and calling it a “new game.”  Otherwise, there’s much fun to be found in this game.  Every once in a while, Arino will pick up a magazine that will reveal some hints and cheats for certain games if you thuroughly read them.  (All of the challenges are “no holds barred” meaning you can use whatever cheats you want to clear them)  As well, after you beat all the challenges for a game and move onto the next one, you can play the game in “freeplay” mode; Your stats from playing these games in freeplay mode contribute to your overall “gamer ranking” and even keeps track at how well you are at rapidfire. (Without the use of a turbo button.)

All in all, this game is bound to leave any old gamer with a nostalgic experience that will have you coming back to it over and over again.

Pros:

• Game experience is bound to give most old gamers a BIG throwback to the 8-bit era, and also show to the younger crowd what gaming was like before they were born, without the flashy graphics and the Internet.
• Addicting gameplay
• Authentic representation of retro gaming

Cons:

• Some challenges and games can be a bit too easy
• The game also emulates the “bad” side of retro gaming (i.e. Rally King SP)

• Young Arino can get on your nerves when playing a game.

Do I Like It?

Am I a gamer? Yes. Was I a retro gamer? Maybe I was a bit young being born in the mid-80s, but you bet I was.  I didn’t have too much time over the last week to play very much but when I did play this game, I just could NOT put it down. This game is just amazing and brings back so many memories, and I seriously like it.

Who should buy it?
If you ever owned an NES or anything similar, and you own a DS now, you need to go out RIGHT NOW and get this game. No, seriously. Step away from the computer, go to your nearest GameStop or whatever, (except if you live in Europe, then you’ll likely have to import it) and buy this game. Now. You won’t regret it.

That ends my First Impressions coverage for Retro Game Challenge. Now onto what is one of the most anticipated DS games of the year so far: Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars

In what was probably the only game worth mentioning from Nintendo’s E3 conference last year, Rockstar Games has brought GTA back to the handheld some five or six years after the GBA version of GTA.  This time, though, they’ve created an original game rather than a downgraded port.  GTA: Chinatown Wars is much like a GTA3 or 4 from a GTA2 perspective, offering most of what the recent games have to offer from a top-down view.

As much as I was an idiot for following all of the mindless media drones in how GTA3 was a bad influence on everyone (and how they claim it still is) the GTA series has grown on me as of late. I took quite a liking to the vast world that San Andreas was and really enjoyed the previous entries in the series, despite not being able to play GTA4 yet. It hasn’t gone too far up my list and so I wasn’t trying to hard to acquire it, and would really only get it if I could find it.  Believe it or not I managed to find this game on release day (Which is unheard of around here) and so it was an easy 40 dollar buy.

Game Overview:
The game takes place in GTA4′s version of Liberty City, minus the westernmost island, in the present day. (Early game dialogue reveals that the game takes place in the year 2009.)  After word of his father’s death, Huang Le flies into Liberty City from Hong Kong in order to deliver a sword to his uncle “Kenny”, whom would become the successor to the Triads in his father’s place given that the sword was delivered into the proper hands.  However, Huang is ambushed the instant he touches down, shot in the side of the head, and is then dumped into the harbour as his assailants make off with the sword. Huang’s delivery is about to get much much harder as he delves into the criminal underworld.

How Does It Play?
As I’ve already mentioned, this game takes many of GTA 3 and 4′s features and throws them into a game with a GTA2-like viewpoint. With the DS being the least powerful of all the consoles and handhelds out on the market right now, Rockstar was able to make this game look nice and crisp with cel-shaded visuals. Although, with many games that aren’t completely top-down, the game can get a bit disorienting at first but it becomes quite easy to find your bearings.  You also have to discover points on the map by yourself, so you may need to just explore once in a while in order to find the locations of scratch card shops and dealers.

One thing Rockstar did differently is that they took the chase mechanics and turned it upside, down.  You can now slowly fight off your wanted level by taking out police cars that are chasing you.  When you take out the number of police cars equal to your wanted level, one star turns grey. Once all your wanted stars are grey your wanted level is suspended. (Which means your level will be cleared as long as you don’t do anything in front of the cops until it disappears.)  Of course, you can always try to hide from the police or rush to one of your safehouses as well, although it’s actually quite easy to evade the cops as long as you’re able to duck down an alleyway without being spotted and there’s always an alley nearby.  One thing to note, though, is that your wanted level is never instantly cleared now. When you exit a safehouse or evade the police altogether, your level is suspended before it’s cleared making it more important not to cause any extra havoc once you’re out of sight.

Progressing through the game is like most others; you’ll have people that will give you missions and it’s your job to complete them all. As you progress through the story, missions through other people become available; It’s just like it’s been since GTA3. One thing that was brought back from the classic games was Rampage mode, which requires you to kill a certain amount of people in a certain time with unlimited ammo for a certain weapon. (I think it was GTA2 that we last saw this feature?)  This game also introduces you to trading and dealing, as you buy some “controversial merchandise” (Sorry. I don’t want certain activists going bonkers over my blog.) from certain dealers and then try to sell it to others for a higher price.  This is definitely the easiest way to make money in the early going, as long as you don’t get caught doing it. (Though outrunning a 2-star level isn’t all that hard.)  At times, dealers will send you e-mails saying that they’re selling especially cheap or buying higher than usual.

Although this game is really great in a way, it does have a few technical issues with it, other than the noticable slowdown when you have a lot of cars on screen. The game seems to have a couple of glitches related to vehicles, though they don’t happen frequently enough to become a problem, (especially since you have the autosave feature) and the game tends to freeze up often if you leave the game online. (Though, I have yet to discover what you can do with this game online besides uploading your game stats to the Rockstar Games Social Club, but god forbid that this happens while the game is autosaving.)  However, since most of these glitches are either rare or have a workaround that won’t hamper the game experience, it only slightly hampers the experience.

Pros:

• It’s GTA on a handheld!
• Meshing the features of GTA3 and 4 with the viewpoints and some features of GTA1 and 2
• Easy to pick up and play.

Cons:

• Lack of online multiplayer. Online functionality only really good for one or two things.
• GPS route plotter frequently plots idiotic routes, such as doubling back on a road.
• Rare technical glitches and freezes

Do I Like It?
Although not like the more recent Grand Theft Auto 4, this game is definitely not any worse off than its console bretheren. GTA: Chinatown Wars did not fail to impress me in most areas (aside from online functionality) and is easily one of the best titles I’ve bought for the system.

Who Should Buy This?
Any GTA buff regardless if you prefer the classic or modern games.  Many first-timers have also said that this game is gold, so if you’re looking for just any open world experience, this game is for you.