Shake a Fat Man

[Arcade]

I got an used pocket gameboy and Mario land 2, Im going to be a bit busy...

[FlashTHD]

I got an used pocket gameboy and Mario land 2, Im going to be a bit busy...

"PRAAAAAIIISE god!!"

"And god bless the United States of America!"

[Dusk]

Was that the "Six Golden Coins" game? Or am I thinking of something entirely different?

[G.Silver]

Anyway what I'm trying to say is I tend to be cautious with new sidescrollers charged at full price in the event they're over a little on the quick side. I'm all for quality over quantity though, I'm not the type of guy who thinks sequels should be "more of the same but 200 levels!!" but these days I tend to watch what I'm spending on games and buy them far less often, so I do like it when an expensive purchase (especially in the UK where "full price" is considered £40, roughly $70 odd US dollars) gives me more than a couple of days of play time. Nowadays I don't have the patience I had as a kid either to sit and replay games over and over based on their quality alone, though it'd be great if I did!

I definitely get what you mean there, it's not so much a lack of patience as a lack of time and interest in doing it. Even if a game was as good as something that I played over and over like Sonic CD or Gunstar Heroes or something then I'd never be able to appreciate it to the degree that I did as a kid. But because of that I almost prefer a short game of that variety, so long as it's good and solid enough that if I did want to play it again, I could do it without having to set aside a huge chunk of time for it.

Of course, I'd prefer it if the game only cost $20, and with only an hour of playtime, you'd think that would be reasonable but then you look at something like Lost Winds where it's too long (and slow) to want to play again, but at the same time too short to be really satisfying.

I'm a little curious about the economic difference in price in the UK, for one thing the US dollar is really low compared to other countries, but I think it's assumed that it will go back up sooner or later so prices here don't really reflect that. (Anyone who actually knows something about world economics want to step in here?) $50-$70 is still a lot of money, and if Nintendo is REALLY charging the equivalent of $70 (ie, convert that $70 into grain or something) for Wii games in the UK then Wario being a full price title is the least of your problems over there, because Nintendo is robbing you. How much do PS3 and 360 games cost over there?

remember when Nintendo said New SMB was done in 3D because it was faster and cheaper?

Did they actually admit that?

I am certain I read it in an interview where a producer said 3D was specifically chosen because it could be done more quickly (I assume cheaply along with that), but I can't find it anywhere, of course.

[j-man]

I dunno what part of England you're all talking about, but 'round these parts Wii games go for £25-£30, which is about fifty or sixty "bucks". For PS3 stuff though, you're looking at £45 or above, depending on your retail outlet of choice and the extent of their capitalist pigdog madness.

What it boils down to, though, is that I used to pay fifty quid for a Mega Drive game when I were a lad, so it's not so bad. When you start equating prices based on exchange rates you're kind of missing the point. You live where you live, and you can only really judge the cost based on how much is in your pocket and how much of a stingy bastard you are.

[Yami CJMErl]

Was that the "Six Golden Coins" game? Or am I thinking of something entirely different?

Its' full name was "Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins", so yeah.

It was, coincidentally enough, Wario's debut game as well.

[Isuka]

Just reminded that the Wii's around U$S 800 down here, and the PS3 games are around U$S 123. But then again, I'm used to be robbed, so meh...

[G.Silver]

And no, you most likely won't be disappointed.

So I tried WarioLand 3 (extensively, it's freakin' long!), and nope, disappointed for the exact reason I figured--it's nothing like WarioLand 4! Sure, it's a very good game in its own right, but the things that really stood out to me about WL4, like the kooky levels, dramatic escapes from every stage, or the huge moveset available right from the getgo (they feel more refined than WL3, too), are just not there. It's not a bad game (and still pretty charming), but it's no WL4.

[Shadow Hog]

Right, I'd argue about how you're wrong and everything, but having not really played WL4 to a degree enough that I can remember pretty much any of it, I'll just have to shrug and say "whatever".

I forgot that you earned the moves in WL3, though. Yeah, WL2 didn't have that. You level up pretty damn fast, so you'll be in familiar territory soon enough. I can imagine the moves being refined in WL4, though, considering that games are supposed to get better as time goes on. That being said, I'm not sure how many moves there'd be in WL4 that weren't already in WL3 (certainly something, but it's not coming to mind right this second).

Out of curiosity, how far in are you, anyway?

And I'm probably the only one who thinks this, but the dramatic escapes in WL4 were a bit of a turn-off more than a turn-on.

[Dusk]

Call me a sucker for non-linearity, but Wario Land 3 had an almost Metroid-esque feel to it in how you would open a treasure chest, get an item that would change a few stages around, and then go back to said stages in whatever order you wished to find more items, rinse, repeat, etc. I absolutely loved it; I think I played through the game four or five times, and each time I progressed through the levels in a different order. That and the whole invincibility concept, in my eyes, was brilliantly executed.

And I'm probably the only one who thinks this, but the dramatic escapes in WL4 were a bit of a turn-off more than a turn-on.

No, I'd agree with that. And really, they were hardly dramatic at all, unless you were playing on hard mode. Even then it's a stretch.

[G.Silver]

It's hard to say, I just got the "throw" powerup. I'm still playing, by the way. But here's the thing, I want linearity! It's strictly a matter of taste, is what I've been trying to say, I'm not trying to piss you off. It's just that these games are completely different, which is kind of what I expected in the first place. Honestly, I'm pleasantly surprised by how good the game is to begin with, and it's cool to see where a lot of the recurring elements came from in the first place.

[Shadow Hog]

WL2 is definitely more linear. I'll still have to look into WL4 (again), though. I keep meaning to, but never really have. It's Wario, though, so I'll most likely enjoy it.

Y'know, I never really understood what the whole crux behind Master of Disguise was...

[Rob-Bert]

WL2 is linear save for the mutliple endings and branching story paths. Some stages (sub-chapters), usually the boss ones, have an alternate exit that changes the way the story progresses, thus unlocking a whole other set of stages. Once you beat the game by beating the final boss of whatever path you went down, you get a chart showing all the possible paths you could take, complete with a box showing whether or not you got the treasure item for that stage. You have to go down every possibly path to get all the treasures and puzzle pieces (the ones you get from the end-of-stage number guessing game), and doing that unlocks two extra features: a remake of a Game & Watch game, and a bonus time trial stage.

[K2J]

And the ability to start any stage directly from the boss.

I usually place WL3 lowest on my list of the four, but I might need to go back and play it again. The concept of having to earn your powerups (not to mention that odd golf minigame) was a pretty big turn-off for me, but maybe the nonlinarity will have some merit now that I can see it in perspective.

Does anyone else miss Captain Syrup? I was rather surprised she hasn't appeared in any Mario Kart yet; you'd think if they're adding Daisy (a Jonas Quinn for Peach) and R.O.B. they would add a relatively unique female character as well.

[Opa-Opa]

I just found out that buying games from our own eBay type of thing is actually a LOT cheaper than buying them on stores. And I'm talking about new and unused games.

I just bought Halo 3 and now I'm buying Beautiful Katamari. I love those sticky balls.

Funny thing about replayability. I hardly replay recent games. The ones that I do have to be very very fun to play (lately, Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb, Tron 2.0, Republic Commando). But I replay old games all the time. I just finished Megaman X for the 1000th time, I've been playing Ninja Gaiden 1 and 2, and I think I finish Alex Kidd at least once a month. Not to mention Zillion and Fantasy Zone, that tend to be revisited everytime I smell some kind of weird soup my mom makes from time to time.

[Rob-Bert]

Replayability.... I 'm on a serious Bomberman binge. I just went and beat all of Wario Blast, and now I'm on Super Bomberman 2.

[K2J]

I love those sticky balls.

Please tell me that was intentional.

[Esrever]

So, what do you guys think? Is that a tiny polygonal Wario, or is it a 2D sprite? (Personally I'm leaning towards the former.)

The 2D backgrounds look really nice!

[James McGeachie]

I think it's safer to always just assume it's a 3D model in these circumstances nowadays.

[M.C.Dillinger]

Even if Wario is in 3-D, the game is looking good so far.

[Dusk]

I'd say 3D, but regardless, I think it looks promising. Just as long as that shake mechanic isn't completely whored and overdone.

[FlashTHD]

...GBA/DS graphics on a non-WiiWare 2D Wii game. Bland GBA/DS graphics.

Is this some sick joke? Because I can't get over how backwards and drab that looks.

[Locit]

...GBA/DS graphics on a non-WiiWare 2D Wii game. Bland GBA/DS graphics.

Is this some sick joke? Because I can't get over how backwards and drab that looks.

What's it like never being happy?

[Ngangbius]

^He can tell that they are bland GBA-level graphics with screens that small? Really?

For the record Captain Syrup makes a comeback in this title and there are anime sequences by Production I.G.. Supposedly, they also designed and animated the sprites in this game.

[Zeta]

Captain Syrup! FUCK YES.