Review Time!!! Part Three: Transformers

This is my third review and it's for Transformers Fall of Cybertron. This is by far my favorite PlayStation 3 game. So far. And no it's not just because I really like the Robots in Disguise. Even if the game didn't have a single shape-changing robot it would still stand out.



This game has excellent storytelling skills, having a dramatic, flair filled atmosphere while at the same time telling the origin story of the Autobots and Decepticons. Sadly, they forgot to explain two things: First, what happened to the Dinobots at the end of level twelve? and Second: Is Starscream truly stranded on Cybertron when the Autobots and Decepticons evacuated Cybertron? I have a hunch that the first question will be answered when Rise of the Dark Spark is released. I just think that Starscream is simply going to inexplicably show up, probably trying to assassinate Megatron and make himself king again. However, the first time he was king he failed to destroy Megatron. He was smashed to bits by Metroplex. Even then Megatron survived. In fact, one might say he is death-less or immortal as he has been "killed" but always comes back.



Anyway, This game is a shooter, much to my joy. However, each character handles differently. Cliffjumper and Starscream sneak around like ninjas, trying their best to avoid gun-fights and devastate enemies from the shadows. At the same time, Jazz and Swindle have a little bit of platforming and a LOT of puzzle solving.


Grimlock and Bruticus probably are the easiest to use. Grimlock can grab his surroundings and throw them around, and can use his sword to pulverize anyone that gets in his way. Bruticus can punch his way to victory. Literally. Press the punch button to do a combo. Plus, he can do the Sonic Pain Wave, a super, one hit kill move where he hits the ground and sends out shock-waves.


The only problem is that there are only thirteen levels. I would be happier with the game if it had at least twenty.  But one must remember that every console has limits.



The previous game had a local co-op mode, but this game doesn't. All multiplayer is strictly online only. Most people think playing with complete strangers is cool, but me? First, online cause privacy issues. Second, I do not even need to play with others to beat something. I can beat almost any game by myself, with NO BACKUP. I mean that. In fact I am trying to beat Monster Hunter Tri solo because thankfully, Capcom shut down the online, which means I am free to beat the solo story (even though there is not much story to beat. Pick a few Quests, do the Quests, get cool stuff, make armor and weapons, repeat).



All-in-All I give this game a perfect 10.0. The only thing I don't like is sneaking around as Cliffjumper. But that is because I like the "Shoot first, shoot later" strategy. Basically if it moves shoot it!!!!!

Review Time!!! Part Two: Spider Man

This is the second part of my reviews on various video games that I have played (and for most of them, beaten). This one is on The First Amazing Spider-Man.




This game is not as awesome as Spider-Man Web of Shadows but it has some stuff to back it up. Web of Shadows has upgrades that you can actually notice. This game, the upgrades are not as obvious. In fact, the only major change is how Spidey does the Stealth take-down. Before upgrading, Spider-Man pins the target to the ground and webs them to the floor. After upgrading, Spider-Man traps the victim in a cocoon and webs the cocoon to the ceiling. That is cool but it begs the question. How are cops supposed to notice the cocoon, let alone get them out without harming them? But this question is for entertainment only. There is no real answer.



Now there are two major things that I don't like about this game. Almost all the levels (except for bosses) take place indoors, taking Spidey out of his element (swinging on webs outside and delivering a LOT of cheesy jokes). And second, the Wii version of this game is a half baked game with no Free Roam and most of the time the NPC character animations look awkward. Also, Only Spider-Man's fingers move in the Wii version (which, I have. I would rather have the PS3 or Wii U version). And the optional side missions get boring really quickly (again in the Wii Version. The side missions have more variety than the Wii version).


But here are the things I do like.The Web Rush feature is nice edition (especially in the PS3 version). The Spider Sense counter has one pro and one con. On the Plus side it makes Spider Man almost untouchable in open combat. However it sometimes makes fights too easy (There is such a thing as too easy).


Finally the Boss fights are fantastic. Tricking the Rhino into smashing his head in a truck, punching robots in the eyeballs, and going toe to toe with the Lizard are some of the most enjoyable moments (even in the Wii version, which is not nearly as fun, or entertaining, as all the other versions, really.)

I would give every version except the Wii version a 8.0 and give the Wii version a 6.2. If the Wii version had Free Roam and more lifelike animations the score would have been higher, but the Wii version is nowhere near as fun as every other version. My advice; Get the PS3 version. If you think about getting the Wii version just keep on walking. The PS3 version is a whole lot better.


Now think about this. Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 (see part one for more details) scored higher than both scores combined. Spider-Man is one of my favorite superheroes. This game isn't the best Spider-Man game but is a good game (Web of Shadows is and unless they do a good job with Spider-Man 2, will probably remain the best Spider-Man game of all time).

Review Time!!! Part One: Naruto

I realized something the other day. My favorite video game critics GameInformer and IGN write reviews (and previews) for literally every game out there. This is my 215th (or somewhere around that number) post and I almost never wrote a review based on personal experience.



So it's only fair to reveal my opinion on my blog. My first review is about a game I recently got (I bought on my birthday!!); Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 (Full burst edition!!!).




Now this game's primary focus is on story. Because they don't bother giving you a tutorial on basic combat I recommend playing with Free Battle mode before doing story mode.


The game has a LOT of cutscenes so I suggest this game for very patient gamers. For impatient speed runners there is a feature that lets you skip some cutscenes.



Also this game is not very difficult once you get the hang of basic combat (the secret optional boss is the only hard part for me. I died more times than I would like to admit on that level. But I beat the boss.). Another focus for this game is visual flair. When I first unlocked every character I tried to find the coolest looking finisher (Sasuke's Flame Control Sword wins).


Regular fights don't offer much variety sadly. The only truly unique fights are the boss battles (the fight between Naruto and Sasuke at the end of Chapter 2 was my favorite. I also like fighting the final boss).


Oddly enough they have a feature which lets you turn off blood in the game. Of course the amount of blood is very minor and can be easily ignored. Unless of course you just happen to be squeamish. In which I suggest you turn off blood in story mode but only if even the tiniest drop of the red stuff churns your stomach. Other than that, keep the blood. Also the only blood appears in cutscenes only. NOT in combat.



As far as humor goes, only a handful of characters are constantly funny. Naruto has his moments (his funniest moment was when he called Might Guy "Super Bushy Brow Sensei"). Killer Bee's rhyming is quite entertaining. Especially because everyone else thinks that his rhymes are bad.




All in all, this is a great game (I give a 9.0. If the cutscenes were shorter and you could have Naruto use Summoning Jutsu the game would be better). The cutscenes are surprisingly lengthy. The longest cutscenes are in chapter four. This game is probably not the best way to refresh Naruto knowledge. After all, the references to past events are vague. At least until you fill the Ninja World Timeline book. Then you can revisit famous events from the TV show. And no. You cannot do neither the written Chunin Exams or the survival drill in the Forest of Death. You CAN do the final exams however, but they are just normal one-on-one fights. Nothing special. Also, you can't summon a certain giant red frog with a attitude.

LEGO The Hobbit Time!!!

LEGO Lord of the Rings was a stroke of brilliance in it's own right. But what happens if you travel sixty (60) years before the first Lord of the Rings movie? You get LEGO the Hobbit!!!




This game sees the return of Bilbo Baggins and Gandalf and marks the video game debut of the Thirteen Dwarves. Unless of course you wrote a fan fiction about them in a video game, but seriously, who takes advice from fan fictions for video games? It worked for Adventure Time when someone submitted the idea for the "Jake vs Meemow" episode but with video games it's a whole other story.



Anyway, Oddly enough LEGO the Hobbit only covers the first two Hobbit movies. The third one is currently in development. So I guess that it makes sense that LEGO is not spoiling the plot of the third movie by keeping it out of the game altogether.


LEGO the Hobbit has pretty much the same story as the first two movies so I guess that there is no point in writing the story. Then again, one of the most important aspects of a video game is storytelling. Well, at least in games that actually HAVE a Story Mode (none of the Mario & Sonic games have story modes). Anyway, The Hobbit (like all LEGO games) take the best bits of previous games while improving the formula. EXAMPLE: Players can use Bombur's (he is one of the Thirteen Dwarves. He is the really fat one) stomach as a trampoline to enable other characters to reach otherwise unreachable platforms (or switches, depending on the puzzle).


Just like LEGO Lord of the Rings, this game has the Mithril crafting system that can make equipment that can enable one character to mimic the powers of another character without having to switch character. I can imagine that if this is available in the levels it ought to be available in Free Play Mode (Otherwise it would be cheating in Story Mode).



Also just like the more recent LEGO video games, LEGO the Hobbit has TALKING LEGO Minifigures. Instead of the random gibberish in LEGO Star Wars III, LEGO Indiana Jones, LEGO Harry Potter, and other past games. However, instead of original dialogue the dialogue in LEGO the Hobbit is almost identical to the dialogue in the movies.



This game will be released on April 22nd and Pre-Order for GameStop is live. If you Pre-Order they give you a GameStop exclusive Bilbo Baggins Minifigure. Even though I already have a Bilbo Baggins Minifigure. But this one has a unique design. GameStop.com nicknamed this particular Bilbo Baggins Minifigure "Good Morning" Bilbo Baggins. Which is actually a reference to the opening scene of the first Hobbit movie where Bilbo and Gandalf the Grey have a humorous conversation over the definition of the phrase "good morning" (Gandalf: "What do you mean by 'good morning'? Are you wishing me a good morning whether I want it or not, or do you feel good on this particular morning? Or are you saying this is a morning to be good on?" Bilbo: "All of them at once... I suppose.").


For video and screen shots, please go to GameStop.com. They got more videos than everyone else!! Ha ha!!!

Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark time!!

They are coming out with a NEW Transformers game!!!!! It is not OFFICIALLY released but they got trailers, videos, etc. AND the game looks mighty impressive. I just hope that there are more Dino-bot levels and less stealth levels. I hate the stealth levels. Though I guess that is because whenever I play any game that lets you use laser guns (like Transformers Fall of Cybertron) I love gunning down everything in sight (Scrap-maker's my personal favorite gun in the game. Can't Beat Scrap-Maker!!! Ha ha!).



But seriously, my least favorite moment of Fall of Cybertron was when I was playing as Cliffjumper. His humorous quotes (especially when you blow your cover) and sarcastic jokes he trades with Jazz make up for sneaking around. Honestly I prefer shooting everybody in the face with a Thermo-Rocket Cannon. But that's just me. You may like sneaking around doing one-hit stealth kills to everybody, but to me, NOTHING beats blasting everybody's face off with weapons of mass destruction. Or punching them in the jaw, in the VERY likely event that you (or me) run out of ammo.



Enough about Fall of Cybertron. In Rise of the Dark Spark, The Autobots (who are goody little two shoes!) and the Decepticons (polar opposite of the Autobots who again, are goody little two shoes!) race all over Earth AND Cybertron for the titular Dark Spark, something that possesses crazy awesome power. Like the kind of power to blow up half the universe.


A new feature is that the Insecticons (Decepticons that transform into giant bugs/insects/arthropods) are now playable. The Dino-bots also (just like everyone else) have been redesigned. Grimlock's T. Rex form is now notably spikier in this game than it is in the previous game.



That is pretty much everything I know about Rise of the Dark Spark. For videos and screen shots, please go to GameStop.com Or Wikipedia.

Naruto Time!!!

This post is about a really awesome game known as Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst. Lengthy title, but no different from the video game Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon because I DON'T KNOW title. Anyway, I have the game (and completed story mode) AND unlocked pretty much everything (save for a handful of Ninja World Timeline pages. I am still working on that. and the secret boss battle, which is really, really difficult.)



The gameplay is pretty straightforward. Since this is a fighting game, your character (there is 84 playable characters, most of whom have Japanese names except for three) lock fists (or in some cases, clash knives) with each other. Each character has two special moves, the Ninjutsu and Ultimate Ninjutsu (even though Itachi's Ultimate Ninjutsu is technically genjutsu). The difference between these two varies from character to character. the biggest example of these characters is Kabuto. His original form uses Dead Soul as a Ultimate Ninjutsu, but his Snake Cape form uses the same technique as a Ninjutsu. His Snake Cape form's Ultimate Ninjutsu is Summoning: Reanimation (he uses this a lot in the story mode. Mostly to build an army of undead ninja warriors of notable skill).


Also, almost every character has a Awakened form. In most cases, Awakened forms offer either a completely different move-set, a Ninjutsu that can only be used in Awakened form, or in some cases (like the main hero and title character Naruto) both. Also, some Awakened forms are more notable than others. Like how Killer Bee turns into a giant octopus like creature (named Eight-Tails) is very notable, but Kakashi's Awakened form is a lot less notable. The only thing that is different is the fact that Kakashi lifts his headband, revealing the left eye he is almost always hiding.



The story of this game is pretty long so it take forever for me to tell it in full detail. A brief summary would be better.

I am going to start way in the beginning. Thousands of years before the events of the TV show there was this ninja named the Sage of the Six Paths who apparently saved the world from a creature called the Ten-Tails. He defeated it by sealing it inside himself and later split the Ten-Tails' power, or chakra, as it is called into nine seperate beings. All of whom strongly resemble real life animals but gigantic, like the kind of gigantic that says "I'm taller than most skyscrapers". Also they have bits of human in them (the ability to talk, humanoid hands, etc.). These creatures are collectively known the Tailed Beasts, because all of them had several tails (except for the raccoon, named Shukaku, who only has one tail.)


The Tailed Beasts weren't allowed to roam freely when the Sage of the Six Paths died, however and each one was sealed inside people. The main hero of the game (as well as the entire series), Naruto is the host for arguably the most powerful of the Tailed Beast, Kurama (who is a fox. With nine tails. Hence his nickname: Nine-Tails).


At the time of the game, Naruto's close friend Sasuke had been turned evil (walking the path of darkness, as he said it) and wants to avenge his dead brother by destroying Naruto's hometown: The Hidden Leaf Village.


Later on in the game a mysterious masked man named Tobi (who copied the name of the deadliest ninja ever.) starts a war using an army of undead ninja (given to him thanks to Kabuto's ability to use Summoning: Reanimation) and "pale monsters" as the hilarious rapper Killer Bee calls (they are actually called White Zetsu but only Kabuto calls them that. Everyone else gives them a nickname).


The final story detail I give away ultimately is a major spoiler. Every Tailed Beast (minus Shukaku. I don't know where he went because his host, Gaara of the Sand, no longer hosts him) faces off against each other in a lengthy, four part boss battle against Tobi. The first two stages you play as Naruto and Killer Bee (who is using a great-sword he looted from a certain have man half shark hybrid creature) gives support, the third stage lets you play as Kurama as he KO's his brethren one by one (minus the octopus Eight-Tails, who was sitting the fight out. I forgot his real name but I will remember. Eventually). The final stage is a one-on-one duel with Tobi which lets you play as a weakened Naruto.


The Full Burst version also has a side story/bonus chapter where Sasuke teams up with his brother Itachi (who was brought back to life by Kabuto's Summoning: Reanimation) to fight Kabuto, who has entered Sage Mode. I tried this bonus fight a thousand times but I lost because it is really, really, really hard. Super Hard even. This boss fight is hard for two reasons, First, Kabuto will almost always teleport behind the player if they use a melee attack (which is inevitable, because you can only use the Uchiha Brothers: Sasuke and Itachi, who are melee fighters by nature. Itachi can use Fire Style: Fire Ball as a ranged attack, but that is literally his ONLY long ranged attack). Second. Once the player put some meaningful impact, Sage Kabuto enters his Awakened state and sometimes hops on a pillar and sends out a barrage of long ranged projectiles (these range from massive boulders to ghosts) and as soon as he is done doing that,  he jumps off the pillar and tries to skewer the player's character with a lance made entirely out of bones. Assuming you are fast enough to dodge the initial charge, he turns around and goes for a second charge.


For more info please go to the Naruto Wiki. Also, if you have the Full Burst edition and have beaten the secret boss, please leave step by step instructions in the comments.

The LEGO Movie (and it's video game namesake!) Time!!!

This post is about two things. First and most important is the LEGO Movie!!!! LEGO's first ever full length feature film!!! With LEGO Bricks!!!! And second, is the video game based off the movie!



The LEGO Movie is a Action Comedy (mostly comedy) movie so it's got a lot of action-packed stunts, vehicular chases, fight scenes, etc. At the same time, it has very funny scenes (EXAMPLE: very late in the movie when Batman, yes Batman, tries to hit a switch with his batarangs but pathetically misses every time except when the last actually hits the switch, prompting Batman to say "First Try!")


Unlike most LEGO video games, the LEGO Movie Video Game is almost identical to the movie (previous games like LEGO Star Wars III has the characters speaking random gibberish instead of words, LEGO Lord of the Rings omitted Bilbo's birthday, etc.). It is so identical that if you want to watch the movie I recommend that you do NOT play the game until you watch it.




Here is the plot of the movie (I already know the story!!!!!!!). WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD. READ AT YOUR OWN STORY REVEAL.

Since this movie is made by LEGO, literally everything from visual effects to vehicles are made entirely out of LEGO bricks. Thus, almost the whole movie is stop motion. Anyway, at the beginning of the movie we see a wizard named Vitruvius try to protect a mega powerful relic called the "Kragle" (which is actually a bottle of glue) from the tyrannical Lord Business (he wears a weird hat AND is gigantic thanks to his size 40 shoes.). He fails however and is permanently blinded by a Lord Business' laser cannon. However before the tyrant leaves Vitruvius warns Lord Business about a prophecy, which goes something like:

One day a talented lass or fellow,
A Special one with a face o yellow,
Will make the Piece of Resistance found,
From it's hiding refuge deep underground,
With a noble army at the helm,
This Master Builder will thwart the Kragle and save the realm,
And be the greatest, most interesting, most important person of all time,
All of this is true because it ryhmes.

I like the last part the most. Anyway, in case you are wondering the Piece of Resistance is a LEGO Brick that can reverse the effects of the Kragle. Also, a Master Builder are LEGO Minifigures that love building things but hate using instruction manuals. Ironic because President Business (that is what Lord Business is called by civilians) made it against the law to build WITHOUT reading a instruction manual. Then again, there are turbo-dummies that rob banks and commit other crimes. Only Difference is that this president makes ridiculous laws (like it being mandatory that everyone loves the same song, among others) and building things with your imagination is the heart and soul of LEGO.


Anyway Eight (8) and a half years later we get to see the main hero of the movie: A normal, everyday minifigure who has a job as a construction worker. Ironic because he can not build anything without someone giving him step by step instructions. Anyway after a day of work this minifigure (named Emmet) tries to hang out with his coworkers, but the wind blows his "how to be popular and happy" booklet out of his tiny yellow hands. He then meets the Master Builder who calls herself "Wyldsytle" (her real name is Lucy) who is searching for something. As his "how to be popular and happy" booklet says so, Emmet originally was going to report Wyldstyle to the authorities, but he instead tries following her when she leaves the scene. Only to fall through a insanely large hole. And when  I say "large" I don't mean the "that is pretty big, bro" kind of large. I mean the "Look at the size of that thing! It's Huge!!" kind of large.


Anyway, when he finishes falling he finds the Piece of Resistance and decides to touch it (either because he heard the voice of the Piece or he was just plain curious). He passes out after experiencing a astral vision, and awakens to be interrogated by Good Cop/Bad Cop, a police officer with a split personality. Bad Cop simply assumes that Emmet is a Master Builder because the Piece of Resistance has glued itself to Emmet's back. When Bad Cop and Good Cop both fail at their interrogation methods (mostly because Emmet had a panic attack when he saw the Piece on his back) Bad/Good Cop orders a handful of robots to melt Emmet with LASERS!!!!!!


Before Emmet can be melted down, however, Wyldstyle rescues him (and kicks a robot right in the "space between the eyes and mouth" as Wyldstyle called it). Wyldstyle, like Good/Bad Cop, assumes that Emmet is Master Builder. However she learns the truth when Emmet pointing out that traveling to other worlds (they were about to escape the city by going to another world) is against the instructions. After Wyldstyle whacks Emmet in the head with a cactus, Emmet and Wyldstyle then go inside a hangout for cowboys (they were in the Old West) they meet the now blind Vitruvius, who explains that they must reunite with the remaining Master Builders (including but not limited to, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Lloyd the Green Ninja, Abraham Lincoln, a guy dressed as a clown, The 1980 something space guy, Michelangelo the artist, Michelangelo the Ninja Turtle, and the NBA Basketball All Stars) to save the universe from the Kragle (which will glue every brick in the universe together).


I gave enough spoilers for the movie so I am just going to summarize (it pains me to summarize. Rule #1 of the universe. NEVER make me summarize!) anyway after several more adventures Emmet and friends (one of which is a giant cat thing) along with a army of civilians turned Master Builder mount a final showdown on Lord Business (with Emmet unlocking his imagination and in turn, building a four armed construction vehicle themed robot to fight with), and before this Emmet is dumped off the edge of the universe and finds himself in a 12-year old kids bedroom who is actually causing EVERYTHING in the LEGO movie to happen by playing with his LEGO bricks. I would give spoilers but this is a very long movie and I need to summarize for once (I hate summarizing) to save time.


For trailers and pictures, please go to LEGO.com OR the LEGO wiki.