Take a key for coming in!

[Green Gibbon!]

Being a bit distraught over the general lack of Wii in the marketplace, I finally popped open Goku Makai Mura to vent my frustrations on zombies and Red Arremers. I don't think I was expecting a whole lot and I'd been hesitant to actually start playing - the novelty of the retro revival trend is wearing thin, but Fujiwara and his minions have pooped the lone diamond in this ocean of manure.

It's true to the spirit of the original games and, unlike New Mario Bros, feels like a genuine step forward. It really is the best Makai Mura yet. The level design is quite rich, with branching paths and hidden items for those daring enough to explore (and it does take some balls when you're being bombarded from every angle by screaming banshees). The difficulty has been very fine tuned so while it still has the trademark series bite, it never feels like you have to gun through continues just to progress. You can return to any area you've completed if you locate the hidden key, so there's alot of leeway for setting your own pace without the frustration of returning to square one everytime you run out of lives.

The graphics are especially lush. I thought the poly look was a piss poor idea at first, but the results are spectacular. This is by far and away the best looking PSP game I've seen yet. If I have any qualms, it's that it's not always easy to discern the properties of a given surface: there are alot of "oh, I wasn't supposed to touch that" moments.

The only major complaint I have is that, 15 years after the last proper Makai Mura, Arthur still hasn't learned how to change direction in mid jump. This limitation, as always, proves quite frustrating in touchy platform jumping segments. Every single leap is a commitment, which tends to be a bit of a drag in an action game that is otherwise very fast-paced and fluid. (I also find myself wishing that Arthur could shoot in the ordinal directions, but maybe I'm just spoiled to progress.)

Except for Lumines, this is my favorite PSP game yet. Boxers and all.

[Cuckooguy]

The next time you say the Japanese title for a game instead of the American version... could you at least go

I finally popped open Goku Makai Mura (Extreme Ghouls n' Ghosts) to vent my frustrations on zombies and Red Arremer

so people can at least know what the fuck you're talking about?

[Green Gibbon!]

It's too much trouble to remember what combination of Ghosts, Goblins, and Ghouls Capcom uses to refer to each game. Plus I don't like to include parenthetical explanations because it's patronizing.

Also, the American title is "Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins", not "Extreme Ghouls 'n Ghosts".

[Zeta]

I hate those games. They're too damn hard, and the protagonist couldn't be less appealing.

[Arcade]

I hate those games. They're too damn hard, and the protagonist couldn't be less appealing.

How dare you to insult Sir Arthur?

[Baba O'Reily]

I used to think that series was hard, but then I realized that I was doing it wrong.

The object is not to carve a path through the enemies, it's to maneuver around them, as if you were an orchestra in the dark.

[CM August]

as if you were an orchestra in the dark.

That sounds mysteriously arousing.

[Locit]

But an orchestra can't play in the dark. It gets frustrated after dying for the fiftieth time without any hope of significant progress.

[j-man]

You bitches just need a bit of Metal Slug training. There's a game that separates the men from the boys.

[Cuckooguy]

I think I'm the lone person in the world that has actually beaten Marvel Land. I guess it's too hard for babies. Babies LIKE YOU.

Anyway, mastering Ghouls 'n' Ghosts 'n' Goblins 'n' Whatever is about memorizing the predictable enemy movements. Once you've got that down pat it's still a difficult game, but because you know what the enemy's gonna do everytime then when you go to an area it feels like "Just a little more..." instead of "DAMMIT IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!!!"

If I ever commited myself to complete a Ghouls 'n' Goblins game, I'd play one with an infinite amount of lives or some kind of option to access an area without having to tackle the previous areas again. Does the PSP remake version have an option like that?

[Baba O'Reily]

You bitches just need a bit of Metal Slug training. There's a game that separates the men from the boys.

Metal Slug is for wussies. Contra is the true test of mettle.

[Green Gibbon!]

If I ever commited myself to complete a Ghouls 'n' Goblins game, I'd play one with an infinite amount of lives or some kind of option to access an area without having to tackle the previous areas again. Does the PSP remake version have an option like that?

The game saves your progress at the end of each stage, so you can concentrate on clearing one at a time. Also, each level is divided into 2 or 3 sub areas, so even if you lose all your lives and have to continue, you start at the beginning of the area, not the butt fuck start of the entire stage. And continues are unlimited.

I'm in the second to last stage, which is farther than I've ever made it in a Makai Mura before. Granted, I'm playing on beginner mode...

[j-man]

Metal Slug is for wussies. Contra is the true test of mettle.

I think we've had this little discussion before.

[Ritz]

Contra (Hardcorps) is certainly harder the first few times around, but once you've got a feel for the bosses' attack patterns, there really shouldn't be much margin of error. Metal Slug, on the other hand, has quite a few instances where your survival depends almost entirely on luck. Ergo, I'd personally say Metal Slug is the bigger challenge, but that doesn't necessarily make it the harder series; if the player sucks, Contra sodomizes exponentially more.

Either way, you're both wrong. Radiant Silvergun is the ultimate measure of length and girth.

[CE]

GG, have you tried going to Toys 'R Us and getting in the queue? I got in the queue in the one right near me and got me Wii yesterday. No Trauma Center, sadly. :(

Doesn't matter, Monkey Ball + Wii Sports is more than enough for me.

[Shadow Hog]

For what it's worth, sucky players who don't mind some Japanese text should find that Japanese <i>Contra</i> games actually had hit points the whole time.

Doesn't matter, Monkey Ball + Wii Sports is more than enough for me.

No... no <i>Zelda</i>?

What kind of a man ARE you? (Obviously a little different from the usual miserable little pile of secrets.)

[Baba O'Reily]

Metal Slug is for wussies. Contra is the true test of mettle.

I think we've had this little discussion before.

You're still wrong.

[Green Gibbon!]

I have a Japanese one reserved, the only problem being, of course, that I won't be able to play Zelda (at least not in English), which is a critical point. It looks like they're price gouging, though, which I didn't really expect to happen, so I'm going to have to wait either way. It seems as though I'm also going to have a bit of a time finding component cables...

I think I'll just accept life without Wii until I can walk into Best Buy on my lunch break and buy everything I need off the shelf. This launchtime brouhaha is getting out of hand.

[Baba O'Reily]

There are less than 500,000 PS3s on the market right now and all I can think about is my future Wii.

I'll probably pick up the PS3 when there's a price drop, but right now? Pure insanity. I only wish that I'd picked one up at launch so that I could make an absurd profit.

[Opa-Opa]

Metal Slug is for wussies. Contra is the true test of mettle.

I think we've had this little discussion before.

You're still wrong.

I beat Contra when I was merely a boy. It takes a full grown man to beat Fantasy Zone.

[G.Silver]

I never did beat Fantasy Zone, the end boss beat me every time. Opa Opa's own giant father! I'm suddenly wondering what Ristar would have been like with a horrible fight against Ristar's "too big for the screen" father that you always lose.

[Green Gibbon!]

I only wish that I'd picked one up at launch so that I could make an absurd profit.

Y'know, about a week ago I was strolling through Best Buy on my lunch break and they had two PS3's for sale. They were at a table being guarded by no less than six employees, including the villainous store manager who I remember with contempt. I almost bought one then and there to sell online, but I figured that if I could randomly walk into Best Buy and find some for sale, there couldn't have been much of a shortage. I now realize it's because I keep snoozing through opportunities like this that I have become such an utter and complete failure at everything.

Incidentally, they did have an open one in the demo unit, and I was shocked to see just how big the machine is. It's at least the size of an Xbox, a bit larger I think. I wonder how much it weighs?

[MegaKitsune]

Contra Hardcorps is hard....but I'd like to see everyone here beat Ikaruga on Hard.

With your feet.

[Light Speed]

Nintendo.com has component cables for sale right now, at least as of about 2 hours ago when I last checked. They have a limited supply though so get one soon if you want to get one at all.

[MegaKitsune]

I can understand Wii not coming with component cables, as most of the casual gaming audience doesn't have that kind of TV yet, but what's the deal about having to buy a numchuck separately? That's bullshit.