Super Mario Galaxy 2 Trailer is Out of This WorldPosted by Mitch on February 24th, 2010

If there’s one thing that Nintendo knows how to do well, it’s stringing along the hardcore over and over again. Just when you feel like trading your Wii in, Nintey hits you with a one-two combination of their top tier franchises. This time it’s Mario Galaxy 2 and Metroid: Other M which have release dates of May 23 and June 27, respectivley. Below is a trailer for Mario Galaxy 2, so check it out why don’t you.

I remember hearing that Galaxy 2 is going to be significantly harder than the original, and judging by this trailer I can definitely believe it. Is anyone else excited about this?

Review: New Super Mario Bros WiiPosted by Anthony on December 10th, 2009

New Super Mario Bros Wii is Nintendo’s attempt to make Mario a party game without calling it Mario Party or making it suck. They succeed. But NSMBW is also a fun single-player experience, akin to Super Mario World, which if you believe THIS joker, is the best Mario game ever.

The plot is not exactly anything worth mentioning, but I will anyway. The Princess is kidnapped by Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings, which means that now all of Bower’s children have teamed up to make Mario’s life hell. Mario, Luigi and two unnamed Toads set out to rescue her, through 8 worlds filled with obstacles and enemies new and old. Stop me if you think if you have heard that one before. The story is inconsequential, which is how it should be. Remember that they tried to throw story into the Sonic games and we all know how that turned out.

Mario is all about gameplay and it delivers. The game is set up with the overworld map seen in Super Mario Bros 3 and Super Mario World. Some levels have secret exits that, when discovered, open up new areas of the maps that lead to cannons which warp you to a later world. The control is tight, as Mario’s jump has been perfected over the years and it doesn’t change here. He can still do triple jumps, like in Mario 64, and they added a wall jump, which has saved my ass more times than I can count. The only motion controls found here are a quick shake to do a spin jump or launch yourself high into the air using the new Propeller Hat and occasionally you control a platform by tilting the Wii Remote accordingly. Both are done well and sparingly.

The levels are varied and colorful. The graphics aren’t going to blow your mind, but the game looks like the natural progression from Super Mario World. In fact, this game feels like the direct sequel to that one. Each world has a theme that every level exploits, such as an ice world, a tropical island world and wait for it…a lava world! Some things never change. And that is a good thing, if you ask me.

One thing that is different is, thanks to the power of the Wii, is the dynamic nature of the environments. Ever heard the term, “rolling hills”? Well, this game takes it literally, as the green hills roll and try to dislodge your timing. Pipes move up and down, platforms spin around and enemies are ever present. All of this makes for a challenging Mario game. Now that you will ever see the GAME OVER screen, as NSMBW is highly liberal with the extra lives, but you will die quite a bit.

Which leads me to that controversial feature, the Super Guide. All that uproar was for naught because I never even saw it. The only way you can lose it is if you die 8 times on a single level. While I admit, I came close a few times, I never died enough to unlock it. But if someone is having that much trouble, I see no issue with it and the hardcore fans should just deal with the fact that Nintendo wants as many people as possible to play and experience their games in full. So I have nothing bad to say about the Super Guide. If anything, it added an incentive for me to play better as I did not want to see the option pop up, thus maintaining my elite Mario skills status.

The other big deal is the multiplayer, which I did not mess with until I had completed the game. I took my Wii over to my fiancee’s house and played it with her cousins on Thanksgiving. And it was a blast, with one caveat: do not expect to breeze through the game with 4 people. This game, as already mentioned, is difficult enough when playing solo, but add in the chaos of 3 other people and you just have to smile and deal with it. The game pauses for a brief second when someone dies or gets a power-up, which has resulted in deaths many times over. Thankfully, as long as one person is still alive in the level, the others can be revived, which means you find yourself rooting for your teammates to clear that jump and bring you back into it. It’s a great addition to the Mario series and a fun way to hang out with friends or family.

Even using our new grading system, it is tough to judge this game. It doesn’t do a whole lot new, despite it’s title, but it gives us what we have clamored for: an old-school Mario game with updated visuals and gameplay. There are a few things that are annoying, such as the fact that you can only save after beating a fortress or castle, unless you do the Quick Save option. After beating the game you gain the ability to save anywhere, which is so pointless and so Nintendo-like that you just have to shake your head in amazement. Despite this, New Super Marios Bro Wii is a stellar entry in what is one of the most revered and popular series in all of games and if you have ever loved a Mario game, you should seek this one out. I doubt you will be disappointed.

GamerSushi Score:

How does our grading system work? Check out our grade chart!

Nintendo Teases Zelda Reveal in 2010Posted by Mitch on November 18th, 2009

Not to be lewd, but I imagine the current relationship between enthusiast gamers and Nintendo to be comparable to a young man and some sort of harlot. She keeps giving you tantalizing glimpses of her ankle while all the while promising that more is coming.

To continue with this tortured analogy, the “ankle” here is the concept art that Miyamoto was parading around at E3 ‘09 depicting Link and some sort of ethereal being that looked vaguely like the Master Sword. In a recent interview with UK’s Official Nintendo Magazine, Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma says he hopes to show something “surprising” at E3 ‘10, thus completing the promise of “more”.

Nintendo proved recently with Super Mario Bros. Wii that it still knows how to make titles for its old-school fans, and with Metroid: Other M on the horizon I think we can take this as a sign that Ninty is finally starting to show appreciation for the “hardcore”. Though the company is often criticized for its constant rehash of the same tired franchises, there’s no doubt that gamers everywhere still clamor for these titles. The question is, how much longer will we get strung along before we see some actual gameplay? What’s your opinion, though? Are you pumped for a new Zelda, and what do you expect from it?

Source: Kotaku

New Super Marios Bros. Trick VideoPosted by Mitch on November 13th, 2009

This game just came out, and there’s already a pretty sweet video showing three players carting Luigi across the level while the lazy ingrate does nothing. Check out the video and prepare to be astounded, bedazzled and other-wise stupefied.

Apparently there’s all sorts of fun to be had with this title, so I’m going to have to dust my Wii off and give it a go. Anyone else pick this up, or is thinking of picking it up?

Words of Wisdom From An Older GamerPosted by Anthony on July 9th, 2009

Learn from my mistakes. I am 28 years old and I have played games all my life. I have learned some lessons about games and thought it might be beneficial to pass those on to you whippersnappers, to prevent you from making some of the mistakes I made.

1. Don’t buy a game you aren’t going to play right away. If you are buying it the day it comes out with the intention of playing it down the road, don’t. If the drive to play it isn’t there now because you have something else to play, then what makes you think it will suddenly appear later on? Answer: it won’t. And you will end up with a giant backlog of games that most likely you will never play because something new is always coming out. If you wait a week or two, I promise that insatiable need you feel to possess that game will dissipate, leaving a profound and new understanding about yourself. Also, it leaves $60 bucks or so in your wallet. Win/win?

2. Don’t be blindly loyal to a console. I was a Nintendo kid, like millions of others. But when Final Fantasy left Nintendo for Sony, I bought a Playstation and I have been with Sony ever since. Now, I still buy whatever Nintendo console is out there, but later, for a cheaper price and I use it as a second system and nothing more. If the 360 is your thing, but the games on the Wii or PS3 look good, don’t punish yourself out of some misguided loyalty to Microsoft. Trust me: they, nor Sony or Nintendo, give a crap. Play the games you want. Whatever system it may be for.

3. Games matter. Consoles don’t. Graphics? Sound? Online? These things matter not. If you want to know what console is right for you, then look at the games. Games determine what wins in the console wars, nothing else. Not fervent message board chatter, not how many people play online and not who has the better E3. It’s the games, stupid.

4. Reviews do matter. But they also don’t. See, don’t worry about the score a game gets. Read the review, in fact, read several reviews of a game you are looking at buying. You know what type of game you like, right? Scan the reviews to decipher if it is the kind of game you will like. If so, then the score doesn’t matter quite as much to you. If you love hack & slash RPGs and the reviewer gives one a 5, but for you it sounds like a 10, then get it! On the other hand, reviews don’t matter. No one really cares what game gets a 10. No one will remember that. So if a game you love gets a low score, who cares? Are you so insecure that someone else’s opinion might alter yours?

5. It’s a game. Enjoy it. We all forgot this sometimes, but don’t let the extraneous crap let you forget the fact that you are playing this game for fun. For enjoyment. To escape from the horrors of the real world for a bit. Don’t become obsessed with tiny details that ruin the fun for you. If you like single-player games and despise online games, that’s fine. There is nothing wrong with that. If you only like playing in groups, then do so. Don’t let someone else try to tell you what you should like or dislike. Have fun.

6. Don’t cosplay. Seriously. Never do this. Unless you are a really hot girl, don’t ever do this on any day that is not Halloween and even then, it might be pushing it.

A Little Reason Goes A Long WayPosted by Anthony on June 21st, 2009

Take a look at any video game news site and you will be sure to find a story about how the PS3 is in third place in the Console Wars and how Sony should just give up and go the way of Sega and make games and not consoles. Yeah, cause that worked out so well for Sega. But I digress. The Playstation brand has seen rough days but it would foolish to count Sony out just yet.

Now, I understand that costs are very high to make video games and that making games on the PS3 is very complex and probably more expensive. I also understand that 360 has a higher install base, but I have news for you: it’s not that much higher. The 360 has sold about 30 million worldwide compared to the 22 million sold for the PS3. Consider the fact that the PS3 launched a year later and around the same time as the Wii. Factor in the admittely high cost of the PS3 and an 8 million unit lead is nice, but not nearly as big as everyone makes it out to be. From the way people fanboys talk, you would think the 360 has a 112 million unit lead or something. Oh wait…112 million units is the amount that the PS2 outsold the original Xbox by. But you didn’t hear this kind of doomsday talk for the Xbox then, did you? I know I didn’t. And the PS3 has already sold as many units as the original Xbox, which is not a mark of success by any means, but it sure does make you stop and wonder where all this negativity is coming from.

Let’s face it: the PS3 has had a rough launch. The high price and lack of killer games really hurt for a long time. But that time is over. With LittleBigPlanet, Killzone 2, Infamous and God of War III all out or soon to be out, the future for the PS3 is looking very bright. This article is not meant to prop up the PS3 or bring down the Wii or 360. I am merely trying to point out some facts that seem to fall by the wayside in these debates. Sony is not going anywhere and neither is Microsoft or Nintendo. Sony thumped everyone in the last round of consoles, so losing this one isn’t going to be end of the world for them.

Besides, these consoles are just getting going. Nintendo has jumped out to a seemingly insurmountable lead, but Wii sales have already slowed down and while mining the casual market seems to have done them a great service, the loss of the hardcore market might mean that the Wii’s days of ruling the sales charts are over. The 360 and PS3 will only get stronger, so we have a long way to go before this battle in the Console War is over.

Just relax and enjoy the games and try to let the guys who get paid tons of money worry about the business side of things. You want to support your console? Buy new, not used games. Other than that, it’s out of our hands. Except for the controller, of course. Until the Natal comes out.

Top 3 Hottest New Releases For JunePosted by Anthony on June 7th, 2009

All my complaining about a sparse summer season for games has fallen by the wayside, as now I simply am struggling to keep up with it all. We just had Infamous drop and now here comes a few more potential blockbusters to soak up the summer hours:
More »

Miyamoto Announces New Zelda for WiiPosted by Anthony on June 3rd, 2009

Nintendo had a pretty good showing at E3, but one thing was missing that irked some people: a new Zelda for the Wii. Well, irk no more, because 1UP has revealed that during a roundtable discussion, Shigeru Miyamoto unveiled plans for a new Legend of Zelda game for the Wii, due out in 2010. The reason it was not shown at E3 is the team wanted to focus on defining the concept of the new Zelda game rather than waste time on a demo.

1UP also reports that

During the discussion, Miyamoto briefly showed an image from the game featuring a mature Link barely visible through a broken wall. Although the picture only showed Link from behind, a short girl in a long robe stood in full view at Link’s back. Wearing a crystal necklace and emanating a blue aura, she gave off an otherworldly look

Joystiq adds, in their own report, that it could possibly be a Motion Plus exclusive, but that the details are not finalized.

Excited? Dismayed? It sounds like they are trying to make Zelda fresh again, which would be welcome news, especially after seeing the footage of the new Metroid game.

Source: 1UP

Source: Joystiq

Nintendo E3 Presser HighlightsPosted by Eddy on June 2nd, 2009

Here are the big points of the big N’s press event today:

• Looks like those reports of a new Mario Wii game were right. However, they shocked everyone with a new Super Mario Bros. game – with 4 player co-op! Plays a lot like LittleBigPlanet from the looks of it. It will also be out by X-Mas!
• Wii Fit Plus is out in late 2009. Oh joy.
• Wii Sports Resort uses the new Wii Motion Plus for enhanced movement – isn’t this what the Wii was supposed to do to begin with? However, the sky diving looks cool, also there will be basketball and archery.
• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 packaged with Wii Motion Plus. Neat.
• Red Steel 2 also comes packaged with Motion Plus and can only be played with the peripheral. Gameplay looks pretty sweet, and love the new art style.
• Square Enix announced Final Fantasy Crystal Bearers, a new open world RPG headed exclusively to the Wii. That’s what I’m talking about. The system sorely needs more RPG’s.
• A new DS Mario and Luigi RPG called Bowser’s Inside Story is coming at the end of the year. Those games are fun, but they really need to change the formula.
• Next, they teased everyone with a “legendary RPG announcement”. No, it’s not Zelda. Turns out it’s Golden Sun DS. Meh.
• Cop, a new DS game from Ubisoft, looks like a rip-off of Chinatown Wars, only it might be even better.
• Wario Ware DIY for the DS lets you design your own games. Could be cool, but due to Nintendo’s fear of the Internet, I can’t see this going anywhere.
• Facebook is coming to the DSi. That’s two systems now. You can upload your pictures of yourself with a squished head!
• Every presser is bound to have a wtf, and Nintendo unleashed one with the Wii Vitality Sensor. It’s a pulse reader that helps you relax? Seriously, they just showed a pic of Iwata in a recliner with his eyes closed and the thing on his finger. Wtf Nintendo. Games, please.
• Super Mario Galaxy 2! This one’s got Yoshi in it apparently. I have to say, that’s a pretty cool announcement. Any new 3D mario game is a total bonus. No date given, though.
• You know it’s bad when Reggie has to come out and say “I read the blogs, too”, and has to defend Nintendo’s hardcore-ism. After that, he showed off Sega’s Conduit, Dead Space: Extraction and Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles. Nothing too exciting here.
• Oh snap. A new Metroid game dubbed Other M is being made by Team Ninja, the Ninja Gaiden dudes. It’s a mature game with awesome third person action and platforming elements. Coming in 2010, and holy crap it actually looks cool. Maybe one of the best announcements at E3 to date.
• Kind of weird that Miyamoto didn’t make an appearance. I’m guessing that means we won’t be seeing Zelda until next year.

I have to admit, while most of that was a snoozer, the Project M reveal at the end was incredible. Check back throughout the day and these bullets will be updated with links to videos and screenshots.

What’s the coolest news from the Nintendo event? Discuss!

GamerSushi Asks: What Would You Do If You Ran Sony/Nintendo/Microsoft?Posted by Anthony on May 29th, 2009

With E3 just around the corner, everyone seems to have an opinion about what’s going to happen or what should happen. So I got to thinking: what would I do if I were running any of the Big 3?

Honestly, for Nintendo, I would keep doing what they are doing, but also I would try to get more of the classic Nintendo franchises out there to lure the hardcore gamers. Wii sales are finally tapering off, so if you can lure in those older gamers with a solid library then I think they will really show their dominance. Also, more Virtual Console games. One game a week ain’t cutting it.

For Microsoft, I would give up any hope of competing with Nintendo using motion controllers and stick to what works: hardcore gamers and buying exclusives for the 360. Microsoft doesn’t have nearly the number of Triple A exclusives for this year that Sony does so if they can hold their lead they will likely reload for next year. Look for a new Gears game to be announced at next years E3. I would also dump Rare. Their time in the sun is gone and I think they will only cost Microsoft money now.

Sony, despite the constant negative press, is not as far behind as you might think. They are only 6.5 million consoles behind Microsoft and since they started a year later, that isn’t too big a lead. 2008 was not Sony’s year for exclusives, but 2009 is. Killzone 2 and Infamous have already landed and more are on the horizon, including Heavy Rain and what the hell Kojima has planned. I have heard rumors of a MEGATON announcement that Sony has planned at E3, but I have no idea what it is, if anything. Sony needs to keep adding to the PSN and getting franchises that people associate with Sony, like God of War, Gran Turismo and Final Fantasy. If it means shelling out the big bucks, then I would do it.

What would you guys do to crush the competition?