Super Mario Advanced 3: Yoshi’s Island (2012 Review)

Platform reviewed – Game Boy Advance

Other platforms – Virtual Console

Developer – Nintendo EAD

Publishers – Nintendo

Genre – Platformer

Rating – 3+

Release dates

Game Boy Advance – October 2002

Virtual Console – December 2011

One of the greatest 90’s childhood games Super Mario Advanced 3: Yoshi’s Island is a game loved and adored by fans almost as much as the ever loveable Yoshi. Originally known as Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island, this 1995 game was first out on the SNES before a port of it was made for the Game Boy Advance, the title being changed to Super Mario Advanced 3: Yoshi’s Island.

In Yoshi’s Island you control the fun-loving, cute dinosaurs known as Yoshis as you travel across multiple levels to try and keep Baby Mario safe while going after his brother Baby Luigi, who is held up in Bowser’s evil castle. At the end of each level Baby Mario is transferred over to another Yoshi who will carry him through the next level.

This is how we roll on Yoshi Island!

The map screen which shows you all the worlds available as well as a lonely, crying Luigi.

How the game works is both similar and different to normal Mario games; for example, the classic way of defeating enemies by jumping on them is a means to attack in this game, though it is not really the primary form of attack for a Yoshi.

The way these dinos attack is to lash out its tongue to pull enemies into its mouth, from there it can either spit them back out or swallow them to form an egg which follows behind. These eggs can be collected and then used as projectiles against enemies that are out of reach as well as to solve certain puzzles.

Apart from the tongue Yoshis can also use the stomp move while in mid-air to come crashing down onto the bad guys. This move was first introduced in Yoshi’s Island and has become a main move for not only Yoshi but for many other characters. Also the classic Yoshi move of the flutter jump is also featured to aid the Yoshis in carrying Baby Mario to his final destination.

Other similarities between Yoshi’s Island and other Mario games is the linear structure and power-ups, though while not that common  are still available. They are occasionally found in certain places and are usually used to gather the hidden items that are required for 100% completion of the level. The power-ups are only temporary and feature such things as the Starman power-up for Mario from previous games as well as the ability for Yoshi to magically transform into certain vehicles such as a helicopter or a train.

Quick Yoshi, grab that Baby Mario!
By jumping up and bursting the bubble Baby Mario can be saved and placed back on the Yoshi’s back.

The health system is also another difference from usual Mario games; in this game the Yoshis are near invincible as only a few obstacles such as lava and pitfalls can automatically kill them. If Yoshi is hit by an enemy or obstacle then Baby Mario is flung off his back and begins to float around in a bubble, crying. If Yoshi doesn’t grab him before the timer that appears reaches zero then Bowser’s minions will swoop on screen, capturing him, causing you to lose a life.

It’s Yoshi Time!

Though why is Baby Mario in need of escort in the first place, and what is all that about Baby Luigi being in Bowser’s clutches? Well it all began while a stork, who was carrying two babies across the sea, was attacked by the evil Magikoopa, Kamek. With orders from his master, Baby Bowser, he attempted to steal the two babies though failed to secure Mario and as luck would have it the future-hero of the Mushroom Kingdom plummeted down onto Yoshi Island, the home to all Yoshis.

Luckily his fall was broken as he landed on top of a Yoshi’s back and after a clan discussion the dinosaurs knew what had to be done. Using a relay system they plan to guide Baby Mario through the six worlds of Yoshi Island and rescue Baby Luigi from evil hands. The road ahead of them is filled with danger though as evil minions roam the land in search for the fugitive baby.

The gameplay on the whole though, as well as the plot, is a nice change from the normal Mario games. They have changed the style of the game around as well as certain gameplay functions, but it still has that Mario-esque feel to it. Nintendo have always known what they are doing when it comes to giving fans what they want when it comes to spin-offs.

Despite this though the game is slightly easier to complete then the main games of the series but that doesn’t make it any less fun or challenging. While appearing to be a children’s game it also has features that would make even hard-core Mario-fans eager to play it, especially with the secret bonus levels which presents you with a much more hazardous, danger-filled experience.

Like a Boss!

Simple, yet fun, boss battles are what makes this game enjoyable and challenging to try to hang onto those 30 health points.

The bosses are fairly straight forward and are extremely Mario-like in how they are panned out. Each one usually has a different gameplay style or strategy you need to figure out, this means the boss battles are not boring and are extremely fun to play.

The overall downside is that the bosses can be quite easy and too simple in some cases; an example of this is how to defeat one boss all you have to do is push off a plant pot, which has a massive ghost coming out the top, off the edge while dodging the fireball attacks it summons, easy.

The real difficulty though I suppose is how to gain and then keep the 30 life points you have to keep Baby Mario safe as the overall timer on how long you have to save him can increase though collecting items.

The replayablity in this game though, despite the easy gameplay, is really high and is what would make the game appealing and enjoyable for an older audience, as well as for hard-core Mario fans as I mentioned before. This is due to the fact there is a goal to 100% every level on each world which will unlock an even greater challenge, the bonus levels. These are much more difficult than the normal levels you have to play in order to finish the storyline.

In terms of graphics this game is an extremely good port despite the graphics being way over a decade old; the cute art style is extremely pleasant to look at and is a nice change from the normal Mario style. The childish drawn style of Yoshi’s Island gives it such a different feel and helps actually emphasis the peaceful, almost child-like ways of the Yoshi. It’s typical Nintendo to incorporate the graphics and design of the game with the personality and innocence of the characters and storyline; it all works perfectly.

The design of the baby versions are extremely cute too which does give the sense of this game being intended for a younger audience, though as I have said before this is remedied by some of the difficult parts which have been added into the game; the developers and designers though of everything! Even the bad guys such as Kamek, Baby Bowser and the bosses have a cute charm to them which goes well with the games sweet child charm.

While the backgrounds are simplistic in design they still convey a lot of detail in shaping the levels; this allows every world and level to feel different and have its own individual charm to it. It’s the lack of rehashed backgrounds and graphics which makes this game a really great play.

The quaint, peaceful appearance of some of the levels in this game is what gives this game its initial charm.

Now, similar to the graphics, the sound has a cute charm to it which compliments the game perfectly; even some of the enemy sounds are cute as Shy Guys jump out of warp pipes to stop Yoshi.

If the bad guys sounds are cute then you can imagine that the good guy sound effect are going to be amazingly adorable, well the noises Yoshi makes as they stomp themselves downwards, as they lash out their tongue, as they swallow whatever they have in their mouth and even when they turn the enemy into an egg, they all fit Yoshi fantastically as well as the charm of the game.

The music is also another strong point which, like most other Mario games, is extremely fitting for the mood of the level; this goes for whether you are frolicking through grassy meadows filled with Fuzzies or working your way through the enemy’s stronghold, all have the tunes which helps create this strong Mario spin-off.

The soothing, peaceful theme which starts at the beginning of the game perfectly shows how peaceful Yoshi Island, as well as the lives of Mario and Luigi, was before Kamek and his master began to stir up trouble.

Oh, and for you massive Mario fans you’ll be pleased to know that the sounds of collecting coins, as well as the sound when you go into a warp pipe, are present in this game.

This game was free to those on the 3DS Ambassador Program (this is how I got the game, though I have played the GBA version previously belonging to my girlfriend). Though there are other ways to get the game such as finding it on ebay as well as Amazon for a pretty good price. For a Game Boy Advance game it isn’t the cheapest but it sure is worth the money for what a great game Yoshi’s Island is.

All in all this game is just as awesome as it is cute, cuddly and challenging. The sound works extremely well with the graphics to create a pleasing atmosphere which along with the gameplay and good storyline allows this game to be a great play. Now many may be put off by it due to the cutesy, almost crayon-drawn art style and think the game is purely for little kids but will soon find out this game is a must play for all Mario fans.

9 rupees out of 10

See some of my other old Nintendo game reviews: Pokemon Yellow, The Legend of Zelda

The Legend of Zelda (2012 Review)

Platform reviewed – 3DS Virtual Console

Other platforms – Nintendo Entertainment System, Famicom Disk System, Gamecube, Game Boy Advance

Developer – Nintendo EAD (formerly Nintendo R&D 4)

Publishers – Nintendo

Genre – Action-adventure

Rating – 7+

Release dates

FDS/NES – November 1987

Game Boy Advance – July 2004

Wii Virtual Console – December 2006

3DS Virtual Console – September 2011 (for 3DS Ambassadors), April 2012 (normal customers)

Finally I get to review the great iconic The Legend of Zelda, the original in the series to which this blogs name was inspired from. From a time era a bit before my time the 80’s was truly when video gaming was beginning to hit the market with fantastic sights and sounds.

Ah retro gaming, it’s really fun to play a game that’s older than myself, and even though I didn’t play the original when it first came out (obviously) I still feel captivated by the great Zelda theme playing both on the opening main menu and then in the in-game overworld. Such a great iconic piece of gaming.

Though, like anything, this game is not perfect no matter what people want to believe. It has its annoying flaws, yes, though that is what makes it a challenge to complete.

Now The Legend of Zelda was the very first game in the Zelda series and came around in 1986 for the Famicom (NES) in Japan. It took just a year after this for it to be seen in the western world. After it was released it received great reviews and praise for its design and general concept; it was also extremely commercially successful as 6.5 million copies were sold worldwide. This made it the fourth best-selling NES game for all time and the second best-selling Zelda game to date, followed by the winner Ocarina of Time which sold 7.6 million copies.

After this it was a while before ports were introduced of it for consoles such as the GameCube and the Game Boy Advance. It was also released on the 3DS system as downloadable content last year and is still a fan-favourite. Though among fans the game is known as the Japanese name Hyrule Fantasy: The Legend of Zelda as to not confuse with other games in the series.

Ganon, the Prince of Darkness, himself!

Now the plotline focuses on a boy called Link in a time when the world was in the age of Chaos. In the middle of all this though, in the kingdom of Hyrule, a legend about the ‘Triforce’, golden triangles of magnificent magical powers, was passed down from generation to generation. One day though an evil army led by Ganon, the Powerful Price of Darkness, attacked Hyrule and stole the Triforce of Power in an attempt to seize the whole world for himself and plunge it into darkness.

It was then, in an effeort to stop Ganon from gaining its power, that Princess Zelda of Hyrule split the Trifroce of Wisdom into eight fragments and scattered them across the land. Entrusting her loyal nursemaid, Impa, to escape and secretly find a man with enough courage to face and destroy Ganon. After hearing this though the Prince of Darkness imprisoned the princess and sent out a search party to locate Impa.

Soon Impa came across the young boy after he saved her life from a horde of evil henchmen. After hearing the tale of the princess and the evil Ganon Link’s sense of justice shone, and it was at that point he started his quest to find the eight pieces of the mystical triangle and rebuild it in an attempt to face the powerful foe and vanquish him forever.

With such a simple, basic plot the gameplay is exactly the same. While quite challenging, and also extremely annoying, the main gamplay is to merely explore the land of Hyrule, both in the overworld and in the various dungeons scattered throughout the map. The game takes on many forms though such as action, adventure, puzzle-solving and even roleplaying as you try to complete the main quest without getting too lost in the process.

It’s dangerous to go alone, take this!

Explore the land of Hyrule, fight the evil monsters and save the Princess and the rest of the Kingdom from a fate worse then death!

The moment you start you are given no clear indication of where to go, you do not even start off with a sword. You must realise yourself to go to the cave in front of you to acquire the special sword which fires off a special sort of beam when your life energy is full.

That’s one of the things which makes the gameplay difficult as well as annoying, the fact you will get lost so many times as well as trying to figure out exactly where to go next. This apparently was remedied when the game moved over from Japan to America; the game’s manual contained many hints, tips and suggestions at what to do next, making the gameplay a little easier, though I suppose it would take all the fun out of it.

That sense of accomplishment after finally locating the next dungeon in the correct order is a great feeling, but then again the feeling of finally finding it but dying halfway through it is not, especially when you are sent back to the middle of the map.

The overworld exploration is only half of it, the rest is made up of combat against the many evil creatures that scour the land. Most of them are easy to avoid, while others are so jumpy they manage to trap you, easily whisking your health down when at a low heart count of 3 -6 hearts. As well as keeping your health up you must also be on the lookout for dungeon entrances and shops so you can use the rupees you collect from killing monsters on stuff such as magical shields, lanterns, potions and so forth. Side-quests are also available to help you greatly on your quest.

Dank, dark and deadly!

The nine dungeons though are the main focus and the way in progressing through the storyline. In these dark, dingy, evil places there are a large variety of traps, monsters and puzzles. This is where the game gets that little bit more difficult as you traverse the maze-like collection of rooms connected by doors and secret passageways. The monsters that guard the rooms here are much different than those in the overworld and require much more thought in taking them down, in some ways they are easier than the annoying little squirts outside.

The dungeons all have different shapes to them and require you to navigate through each room until you reach the boss.

Reaching the end of each dungeon is the main goal as you collect the pieces of the Triforce of Wisdom. Hidden, secret items are also stored within these dungeons such as the bow, boomerang and a recorder and all do different things to help you on your quest.

Throughout each dungeon you can make things easier by taking the risk to gather up the map and compass items. These items help your exploration of dungeons in the way that the compass shows the Triforce Room as indicated as a flashing red dot. The map however shows you all the available floors in the dungeon, both are definitely worth risking your life for as it would save random wandering around.

The variety of bosses in the game is pretty good though overall, each with different abilities, fighting styles and all require different strategies to beat ‘em. The bosses are found just before the final part of the dungeon and reward the player with a Heart Container once beaten, increasing your health by one heart.

As well as fighting monsters to secure keys to advance through the dungeons you are also required to figure out puzzles by pushing blocks; these can unlock hidden items as well as secret hints from the old man you met at the start (if it is indeed the same guy).

Keep Healthy!

Now in terms of health if you happen to get hit enough times and lose all your hearts then it’s Game Over for you, friend. From the Game Over screen you can then choose to either save, retry (which will take you back to a previous save) or continue, meaning you carry on with the death being counted to your gameplay. After this you then respawn at the starting point of the game with three hearts.

See how familiar this is to the new Zelda games? The newer games are just a more advanced, larger, more plot driven versions of the original which is great to see how they keep to their roots. They all follow this extremely basic yet effective and fun gameplay style.

The graphics are very simplistic with basic sprites of the hero, bad guys and items; though not that terrible you cannot even tell what they are they are nothing amazing even back in the day. With the game being designed originally to be stored in an 8-bit cartridge the graphics do not use that many elements overall; for example the sprites for the environments, enemies and other characters are quite overused, with some colour variations to tell them apart such as octoroks being a common red, while sometimes they can be blue, or how the dungeons are made out of the same bricks, just painted different colours.

The game is still enjoyable to play for the most part though even with these graphics, as it’s the challenge the game presents which is the reason a lot of people rate it such a high-score game, even now.

Now for sound there really isn’t too much to say as there are only three different tunes to listen to; the overworld/main theme, the dungeon theme and the final level theme. The other sound effects are for things such as when you take damage, when you use your sword and when you collect items such as hearts and rupees. Overall the sound is very average, though still quite effective, it’s better than there being no sound effects at all, and at least the sound of you taking damage sounds like you are actually shouting in pain though even with the sound being so simple.

The dungeons feature such repetitive yet extremely fitting music, it’s dark, dingy and early, just the sort of music which you should hear in a dungeon filled with evil. The music fits very well in this game, the uplifting theme for the overworld and the eerie music for the dungeon levels; the original theme of evil/Ganon is so great to hear.

Trek through nine of Hyrule’s dungeons in order to find and locate the eight pieces of the Triforce and save Princess Zelda.

Now as for features and replayability, if the main storyline quest was not challenging enough for you there is a new mode to add to the replay value, Second Quest. In this more difficult challenge the dungeons and placements of items are different while the enemies are much stronger than their First Quest counterparts.

For more extra replay value and for a nice touch challenge you could always try and beat the top time for completing the game. Apparently the fastest completion time (with Up + A warps) is 31 minutes and 37 seconds by Rodrigo Lopes on June 12^th, 2006. Good luck!

Now don’t go thinking you can just run off and buy a NES version for cheap, chances are you may on ebay or from an independent shop, but there are other ways to play the game; such as downloading it from the Wii Shopping Channel for 500 points, or buying the Zelda Collection game from CEX which includes this game as well as Zelda II – The Adventure of Link, Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask; a pretty good buy for all those games in my opinion.

Now you can also play the game through the 3DS eshop Channel too as it was released for £4.50 on the 12th of April 2012. It’s a pretty good price overall.

Overall this game is a pretty good, if not annoying in some parts, play with a lot of challenging aspects which is what most retro gamers think is lacking in today’s video games. Whether I agree on that or not is an issue for another time.

8 rupees out of 10

See some of my other old Nintendo game reviews: Pokemon Yellow, Yoshi’s Island

Lost in Blue 2 (2012 Review)

Platform – Nintendo DS

Developer – Matric Software

Publishers – Konami

Genre – Adventure

Rating – 7+

Release dates – May 2007

Ever wondered to yourself what it’s like to live on a desert island but want none of the hassle of getting shipwrecked, almost drowning in the ocean, surviving against nature and the elements and suffering to the insanity of loneliness? Well you’re in luck as the Nintendo DS has the perfect game for you, Lost in Blue 2.

It all started with Survival Kids, a game fort the Game Boy Colour way back in 1999. The game had a similar gameplay style to this which was to merely stay alive after washing up on a deserted island. A sequel to Lost in Blue and followed by Lost in Blue 3 this adventure survival game was developed by Matric Software and published by Konami in 2007. In this dessert island survival adventure game you must work together with your partner as you climb, run, fish, stab and milk (yes, milk) your way to survival.

The main opening and how the entire adventure and fight for survival begins.

So what is this game all about then? Well it involves the main characters Jack and Amy, a pair of young teenagers who have been caught and shipwrecked due to a storm violently turning over their cruise boat. From the start you may select to take something from either the table, closest or suitcase, depending on what you choose can depend on whether you get nothing, an empty bottle to store water or more health/stats when you start off.

Depending whoever you selected to play as (either the boy or girl) you find yourself waking up on the beach of a deserted island and after a while find your partner character (who is the character you did not select). From there you both must search for a way off the island while surviving against the harsh elements, ferocious beasts and pure isolation from civilisation. Similar to Lost in Blue 1 the overall ending when you manage to escape is different depending on how well you got along with your partner.

Same ol’ same ol’.

Speaking of the first game I do have one small criticism about the storyline to this game. To put it simply, the first one was better. I won’t say too much, but after coming out of the ruins I was disappointed by what was out there, what you were up against in the first game was much more severe and life-threatening, and the ways of escape in my opinion were better than being forced to dive for maps and give gifts to a gorilla in hopes of being given a radio in return.

Though unlike Lost in Blue 1 this game does allow the female to travel further than the male and to not be solely dependent upon him, but the overall aspect of this makes the game weaker in my opinion. True, they couldn’t have used the same idea again, but for me it feels like both the male and female storylines are almost identical.

At least with Skype mode from the first instalment there were differences, sure the game was more about sitting there milking and looking after the place while the male went out to explore the island, but it was different. The only difference in gameplay in Lost in Blue 2 between Jack and Amy is the fact that Jack can climb twice as high, is better at cooking food and is stronger at fighting.

Amy on the other hand is a better swimming, can find food much more easily such as spices and when using ranged weapons such as a bow and arrow she has a steadier aim. The girl has more independence but playing the whole game through with the other gender is not overly rewarding and breath-takingly different.

Cast aways!

The game’s storyline advances as you go further through the island, the deeper you go the more the story will unfold. The best thing about this game though is that you cannot simply just rush on out exploring, you must make a plan, think ahead. Have you got enough food for your journey? Got enough water? Packed some energy-packed mushrooms (these mushrooms, the colour of which depends on each playthrough gives you a nice buzz of energy, though you may not be able to sleep well during this status effect it is excellent for exploring)?

And it isn’t just yourself you need to worry about. Does your partner have enough food? Are you making the most out of them, should they be making ropes or baskets while you are away? These are all things you need to think about before you leave on some large exploration. Also some days might not even be spent planning or exploring, but just gathering food and supplies to make your home more comfortable by crafting chairs, shelves, better beds and making sure you have enough firewood for the fire.

With there not being a social metre in this game you do not need to worry yourself about making a friend called Wilson out of a coconut or an adrift volleyball.

Having found food, water and shelter your journeys to find a way off the island will take you across beaches, through jungles and even into dank marshlands, all the while trying to keep yourself alive. Over time you will build furniture, hunt game, develop new tools, come to near-death situations and even build a treehouse and find new homes. With each passing day for survival comes a new problem or danger to face. How do you survive? Easy, by using your wits and the awesome touch screen game mechanics.

Touch and Go!

The game can be played completely with the touch screen and stylus or a mix of using buttons and the touch screen; it all depends on your own preferred gaming style. Personally I use the combination of the two as I find it easier and it’s what I am used to. Though the idea of using purely the touch screen is not a hard task and makes the game equally as enjoyable to play as using a mixture of the two.

The top screen has three different displays which can be toggled by using the shoulder L and R buttons. The first of the three shows stamina, hunger and thirst and over time and by doing certain actions these all decrease; when one or more of them reaches zero then the health gauge which can be seen as a percentage starts to go down.

If your (or your partner’s) health meter reaches zero then it’s game over. This display is a nice feature which was also present in the first Lost in Blue; it is especially useful as it shows both you and your partner. The sun behind them also is a good way for you to know instantly what time of day it is and how much sunlight you actually have. The amount of days and the time is also shown at the bottom of the top screen.

The other two screens are for navigations; one being a map of the surrounding area you are in and the other being the view of the entire island, with fog covering parts of the island you have wet to discover.

I’m a firestarter, twisted firestarter!
Using the microphone and the shoulder buttons you can create a fire to keep you and your partner warm.

The bottom (touch) screen shows a looking-down view of the player as well as the surrounding area which changes as the player moves around. Being the touch screen this is the screen which you can control your character using the stylus as well as how you complete minigames.

Now the touch screen, as I’m sure you know, is not the only new feature to be introduced to the DS. The microphone is another one. Using this piece of equipment you can start a fire with clever usage to the consoles features. By blowing into the microphone you get the fire going from a mere ember up to a roaring fire to keep you and your partner warm. This along with the use of the touch screen to spear fish, make lures and hunt animals shows how much the game has put the DS features to good use.

Like most games there are in fact bosses in this game. You encounter certain creatures which act like guardians to certain areas and by killing them do you progress in the storyline. Beasts such as a crocodile and a tiger are some of the natural predators you will be up against. Usually these animal bosses are only fought once and can never be found again, wolves are an exception though.

The two main characters, Jack and Amy, seem okay, though in my opinion have quite shallow personalities in the fact of you do not get to know too much about them, you don’t feel any sort of emotional attachment to them. Sure there are the odd moments when you feel some sorrow for the loss of a dead chicken and the girl is genuinely upset, but the character development for this game overall just seems poor. The interactions they have together seems fair enough and I suppose the fact they are just two kids who happened to get lost on an island together is the point of the game, but something just seems off.

More modes then you can handle?

Now this mode where you try to survive alongside your partner, aptly named Survive Together, is not the only mode you can play in this game, no. There are two other modes you may play; Multi-Survival and Serious Survival.

Wrestle and fight the croc with your bare hands! Just be careful not to get it chomp off.

Now, as you could possibly guess Multi-Survival is the multiplayer mode for the game and on the whole isn’t that bad. Being a single-card multiplayer mode it allows you to challenge up to three friends at some of the minigames which are present in the main storyline. A nice competitive change from the survival seriousness.

The other mode is Serious Survival and as you can tell by the name is a much more hardcore survival challenge then the Survive Together. In this mode you are alone, no partner to help you in any way (though in some ways this is a bonus as babysitting your partner can be a really pain in the coconut) and the ending always results in death. You cannot escape in this mode, the pure reason is to try and see just how long you can survive; the rank you get depends on how long you last on your own.

A rather fun, little challenge mode which can get quite boring and monotonous after a while. The plus side is that you can use this mode to try and add more additions to the picturebook without your partner needing constant care as you unlock everything in Serious Survival from the start (including lures which I found a pain to unlock).

What’s the picturebook? Well this is the thing which I think adds to the replay value of the game, though the only thing which would have been better would have been more rewards for gaining certain things. The picturebook is a menu you can select from the main menu when in game; it contains all the animals you have discovered, plants, recipes for cooking, tools and so on.

A personal goal for some is to try and complete the picturebook completely, though it would have been nice for some sort of achievement or feature to be unlocked after certain parts in the picturebook are complete. The ability to just try to survive for as long as possible is also another aspect which allows replay value to be quite high in this game.

The music used is very island-like, it creates the correct atmosphere for the areas of the game, and the fact that little jingles/music starts when going into different areas, leaving your home and so on; it creates a nice, warm, pleasant touch to the game. The sound effects of the animals, the ocean, even the sound of footsteps on grass or sand are all very well done, it adds to the exotic, desert island feel. The random birds chirping and animals grunting when you get close to them is a nice feature. All these sounds do not sound stupid or out of place and work well with the nicely designed environments.

Though one of the best sounds is that extremely intense night-time music; as you run across the grasslands and jungles you risk your life by trying to evade the hungry predators eager for some fresh meat.

Now finding this game is not as simple as others, in some areas it may be more expensive, but going to CEX would ensure you find it for an alright price of £8 (though spending the £5 and getting the first Lost in Blue is a better deal in my opinion). You can also find it at the usualy places; ebay and Amazon for a pretty decent price too.

On the whole I feel sequels should usually bring something new to the table, even if it’s just a small tweak here and there, and while this game has some slight positives over the its predecessor I feel like this is purely a worse repeat. There isn’t much difference between this and the first instalment of the series; sure there are slightly better graphics and the top screen has been styled with the characters whole features showing not just a blue or pink blob, but that’s about it. There are a few more mini-games that have been added in and though the idea behind the game is good if you want to play a desert island survival game, play the first game instead.

6 rupees out of 10

The Simpsons Road Rage (2012 Review)

Platform reviewed – Playstation 2

Other platforms – Xbox, Gamecube, Game Boy Advance

Developer – Radical Entertainment

Publishers – Electronic Arts

Rating – 3+Genre – Racing

Release dates

PS2 – November 2001

Xbox – March 2002

Gamecube – May 2002

Ah, there’s nothing like some Simpson’s hilarity mixed in with hectic driving in a crazy bid to earn money as a taxi service, right? The wind in your hair (or lack of in Homer’s case) as you rip up the streets, picking up other Springfieldians and taking them to their destination on time; the overall goal? To earn as much cash as possible in the time limit.

Sound familiar? Well if you’ve played Sega’s Crazy Taxi it should. Radical Entertainment aimed to take this extremely popular arcade gameplay style and blend it with The Simpsons, creating a funny, easy-to-grasp game for all ages. In fact, the game was so much like Crazy Taxi that Radical Entertainment was actually sued by Sega for patent infringement. The case of ‘Sega of America, Inc. V. Fox Interactive, et al.’ was settled in private for an undisclosed amount. (For a related article about the case to find out a little more, go here.)

Now the plot is fairly simplistic due to the main feature of this game merely being a driving, taxi-based game, but is still something you would expect to see in an actual episode of The Simpsons. Charles Montgomery Burns with his money and power has bought all the transit systems in Springfield in a bid for control and on top of this has created a new form of transport; a radioactive bus.

The Burns Atomic Mega-bus is faster, cheaper and completely safe!

The safety of these busses though is left to be desired though as the bright green glow that surrounds it looks the complete opposite of safe.

Hearing how the busses are a threat to public health Homer gets the smart, yet crazy, idea to take to the streets and use his own car as a means of safer public transport. Others quickly follow him in this wacky idea though as together the residents must earn one million dollars altogether to be able to take back the transit system, effectively returning the town to normal and overthrowing Mr. Burns’ transit reign of terror..

All’s fare in love and war!

The greedy corporate stereotype won’t go down without a fight though and aims to slow you down throughout levels by bashing into you with ramming speed and depending on whether he hits you or not results in a funny line being spewed by the rich old man’s mouth.

Now in order to gather up the money the game takes you through six large levels, each jam-packed with memorable places such as the Simpsons’ household, the Kwik-e-Mart, the Nuclear Power Plant and even Springfield Gorge in which you can actually cross (hopefully more successfully than Homer’s attempt when on that skateboard). Though you only start off with Evergreen Terrace you can unlock more places to visit through gathering money and reaching certain milestones, allowing you to explore more places in Springfield and experience more challenges.

Now the main gameplay takes form in the Road Rage Mode, which is where the main storyline ties in. In this mode you are given a certain amount of time, depending on the difficulty you have selected, in which to find, pick-up and deliver passengers to their destinations. You receive money each second you have a passenger with you and receive a bonus in form of a tip depending on how long you took to get there.

A time bonus is also given out as well as the tip and is the key to staying on the level for long periods of time. Beware though of the additional time limit which starts when picking someone up; if that runs out then the passenger flees the vehicle, leaving you without a money or time bonus.

Other bonuses such as Safe Trip and Road Rage are given if you avoid traffic or destroy a certain amount of the destructible environment while driving. These can be hard to achieve though if you allow the many hurdles and hazards you are faced with to get the better of you. Other vehicles, transit busses, pitfalls, Mr.Burns and the occasional invisible wall (due to slightly poor design) are what you must look out for to enable a successful taxi run.

Gameplay featuring Homer escorting Jasper in the Crazy-Taxi-esque style.

Meet the Family!

Though you start off with Homer, Bart, Marge, Lisa and Grampa you have the ability to unlock twelve other characters such as Krusty the Clown, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon and even Ned Flanders as the game progresses and the milestones mentioned previously have been hit. Classic vehicles such as Marge’s Canyonero, Bart’s space shuttle Soapbox Racer and Mr.Plow’s snow plough are some examples and offer a range of different handling and quotes from the series itself.

The invisible barriers that are left in the game, which links to the game’s graphics and poor design, can make the game a tiny bit annoying, though on the whole it does not affect the overall gameplay at all and is still possible to score extremely high scores. The learning curve and controls are easy enough to grasp and through the crazy mesh of cars and destroyed objects, which is nice to see still fallen and not instantly disappear.

Feeling in the need for speed?

Road Rage Mode is not the only mode there is to play through though, by all means no. There is in fact a number of other types of play modes to smash through; one of them being Sunday Drive. This pleasantly serene mode is one where you go around locations at your own pace, picking up customers with no time limit and effectively allowing you to explore at your own leisure. This mode is particularly useful when you just want to have a relaxing, stress-free play as well as being useful for finding shortcuts to help you in Road Rage Mode and gathering the strengths and weaknesses of certain characters driving styles and bulk.

The second mission for Mission Mode featuring Bart and the ever so irresponsible Homer.

Another single-player mode is Mission Mode which is a very fun 10 mission filled section. In this mode you take the role of different residents of Springfield who are playable in the other modes mentioned with the overall goal of clearing the mission objective. The price for completing them all is a secret and shall not be discussed, want to find out look elsewhere.

The final mode you can play on is Head-to-Head, and yes as you can guess by the name it is in fact a multiplayer mode. In this game play mode you and your opponent must drive around to pick up the same passenger and deliver them to their destination while aiming to reach a pre-determined amount of earnings.

Your rival can bump into you to steal your customer away and try to claim the fare, so beware. Overall thought this mode allows more hilarity and craziness (as well as more road rage) as you both tear up the streets to win. In my opinion all these modes make this game really great.

In terms of replay value there is some, though not much. It’s nice to drive around in Sunday Drive and Road Rage mode and try to get a high score, and it’s nice to go head-to-head with a friend, though once that one million dollar mark has been reached there is no longer anything to strive for apart from being top of the leader board. I know all good things must come to an end though and the use of the milestones as a means of unlocking new content is a nice touch.

The game has nice camera angles, only changing when going over a long jump or something similar though doesn’t impact on the gameplay and mainly keeps you in check as you weave in and out of traffic.

Got Road Rage?

The graphics are nothing amazing and state of the art but were not so terrible that watching the cut-scenes or playing the game was difficult or cringe-worthy. You can tell what is what when driving around and even though the trees, ground and water look fairly simplistic this suits the style in which the television show is done in, creating more of an element you are in The Simpsons world.

With nicely destructible environments you can crash into tree trunks, go through fences and smash through glass, but there is only one problem I have encounter a number of times, and that one sign could be easily rammed into and knocked down, while another is solid, causing you to have a head-on collision, wasting valuable time and money.

Another annoying element is already destroyed objects latching themselves onto you, or a pile up of objects and cars which block your road as the time limit is getting scarily close to ending, though this element is just part of the hectic gameplay style of the game. This next point though is an element which isn’t a hazard the developers intended to have in at all and is the fact of invisible walls. These annoying obstacles are usually found when investigating shortcuts or flying into areas during jumps which were not meant to be crossed causes you to flail about again wasting time and money.

(Video created and posted on Youtube by; damsoft1.)

On terms of sound the game features the original cast of voice actors for the characters proving both new dialogue and that of voice clips from the TV show. As well as this the much-loved humour is also present, and with both of these elements combined with the overall Simpsons-style of appearance the game gives off a nice, warm, familiar feel which I love.

The witty, classic jokes and quotes are used throughout and are trigged in numerous ways, causing a smile to appear on my face as I recall or try to remember what episodes they are linked to (back in the day I was a massive Simpsons fan). This linked with the gags and believable cut-scenes allows you to believe that this sort of thing could happen in the actual television show. The only problem with the quotes is the fact that over numerous play-throughs the dialogue will become somewhat repetitive, though in my opinion the humour is something which is hard to become annoying, and even after hearing the same line over and over I still cannot help but find it enjoyable.

Can you name the truck with four wheel drive, smells like a steak, and seats thirty five? Canyonero!

The music is nothing to write home about though, the music for the main menu is interesting though as it involves the classic Simpsons tune but given a new style and sound. I cannot quite name what style it is, but I like what I hear. For each of the levels the music isn’t one of the strong points, as the frantic gameplay as well as the voices sort of take over the music, though it isn’t boring or irritating to say the least, more cheery and the sort of music which would suit a quick-paced taxi-service game.

From what I can see online on CEX the price of this game, considering its age, is quite reasonable (for the PS2, the Gamcube price is sort of pushing it). The pricing on Amazon goes for quite a bit of money due to it not being in circulation for such a long time though on ebay it can go from around £5 upwards on Buy it Now.

In my opinion I feel this game was a good addition to the Gamecube, PS2 and Xbox (there is a Game Boy Advance version, but that version is quite different then the home console) and deserves the platinum hits title it was bestowed with. With a piece of my late primary school childhood embedded within it I feel this game was good and playable then and still the same now. With alright but colourful graphics, funny, memorable quotes and humour with a dash of craziness this game is a must have for any Simpson fans collection. Not the best game in the world, but by no means the worst.

7 rupees out of 10

Pokemon Yellow (2012 Review)

Platform reviewed – Game Boy

Developer – Game Freak

Publishers – Nintendo

Genre – RPG

Rating – 3+

Release date – June 2000

Now you may have thought that based on the actual name of this blog my first actual review would have been something like the original Legend of Zelda, Minish Cap or even Ocarina of Time; but no.

Following the grand success of the masterpieces Pokemon Red and Blue (Green as well if you include the Japanese release) a new game hit shelves in the new millennia. Being the fourth game in such a revolutionary series Game Freak took both these previous titles and the successful anime and blended them together to form Pokemon Special Pikachu Edition, or more commonly known as Pokemon Yellow.

Ah, Pokemon Yellow, how you take me back to my childhood. Shocking I know, but I did not actually play the original Red or Blue when they first came out (don’t ask me how that happened, I was young, I was foolish) and so Pokemon Yellow was in fact the very first Pokemon game I owned; I even think it was the very first Game Boy game I owned.

But enough of my anecdotal rambling; at the age of ten you finally are granted your very own Pokemon Trainer license, allowing you to venture forth and train the wild creatures known as Pokemon; powerful beasts of all shapes and sizes with many different elemental abilities. During your journey you’ll form a strong bond with to travel towards your ultimate goal.

And what is this ultimate goal you may ask? Well, it’s to journey the land of Kanto and defeat the powerful eight Gym Leaders, face the Champion of the Pokemon League and capture all 150 (or 151 if you count Mew, which I suppose you should) Pokemon which would make you the greatest Pokemon Master of all time (like you had to ask me that though; please tell me you didn’t?).

Hi, my name is (what?), my name is (who?), may name is… ASH Ketchum!

Though before you can even dream of reaching such heights you must first acquire a team of these Pokemon creatures. They can be hiding anywhere; in grass, in caves and even on the water. Catching and training them to become stronger is the main focus of a Pokemon Trainer.

Pokemon! I choose you!

Now the storyline to this game is exactly the same as Red and Blue, just with a few new anime-related tweaks. As mentioned before you have just been given the chance to go out and become a Pokemon Trainer, and after gaining your starter Pokemon, this time you can only get Pikachu, you are free to roam the region of Kanto.

Soon though your adventures go beyond what you first imagined as you side-track from your ultimate goal to end up taking on the infamous and evil organisation Team Rocket.

Like the games before Pokemon Yellow is mainly shown as being a third-person overhead perspective game, with this changing to a side-on battle screen once a fight starts. Such a simple concept with an even simpler mode of navigation and travel has evolved to make the series pure genius. The gameplay is very well crafted and is super effective; why else has the Pokemon games been going so strong for all these years now?

Fight for this Love!

The game mechanics for these fights is one which has not changed even in today’s Pokemon games and was the same as Pokemon Blue and Red; the fights are done in a turn-based system and depending upon certain stats determines just how much damage your Pokemon can deal, what order you will attack in and how much damage you can take from the opponent.

Utilise your devastating attacks on your foes!

Hit Points (HP) are the measure on how much health Pokemon have left before they faint, which happens once it reaches zero. You can use healing items to restore health or even revive a Pokemon once it has fainted. You can dwindle health down by using one of the four moves your Pokemon can learn at any time.

Defeating an enemy Pokemon and causing it to faint causes the Pokemon involved in that fight to gain Experience Points (EXP) and with enough causes them to level up. This increases the stats (making your Pokemon stronger) and allows you to learn new moves; also some Pokemon can evolve into different, more-powerful evolved forms when they hit a certain level which is known simple as ‘evolution’.

Gotta Catch ‘Em All!

Aside from battling and becoming the strongest Trainer there ever was the other main goal of Pokemon is to catch ‘em all, this part of Pokemon is even more essential then Pokemon battling, as with no new Pokemon to be caught you would have a fairly weak team.

Once capturing a Pokemon in an item called a Poke ball the Pokemon is then under the Trainer’s ownership and is registered into the player’s Pokedex, a hi-tech encyclopaedia, given to you by Professor Oak. It is this which is the proof to whether you have indeed caught ‘em all. To achieve this accomplishment you must capture, evolve and trade to obtain all the Pokemon possible.

What else is strong is the amount of challenges you will be faced with as the game goes on; the bosses take their forms in my opinion as storyline characters who you have to beat to progress through the game. Characters such as your rival, Jessie and James, the Gym Leaders are to mention a few. Building up your team, giving them good moves, good strategies and using good combos is the way to win.

The Strongest Link!

“Pika?!”
One of the many mood faces of Pikachu.

Another feature available is the ability to trade Pokemon with others with Pokemon Yellow as well as those with Blue and Red. It requires a Game Link Cable and a second cartridge. As mentioned before the goal is to capture every single Pokemon, similar to Red and Blue you need to trade with other people to complete the Pokedex. The reason for this being that there are such things as version-exclusive Pokemon, and is a tradition used in even the latest Pokemon games.

Apart from trading you can in fact battle with another player too, this pits both you and a friend against each other using the Pokemon teams you enter the trading area with. Not being able to use items you must rely more heavily on strategy in these link battles.

Now, these are all the things which are similar to Red and Blue, but there are some differences to this version. As mentioned before elements of the Japanese anime series were introduced into the game to create a new yet familiar feel for the game; familiar in both the sense of being like the anime and also like the previous two instalments.

With the anime voice being used for Pikachu it gives the game a nice shout-out to the cartoon as well as the spectacular voice acting from Ikue Otani, though the only downside is how muffled the voices of Pikachu can be at times such as on the screen before the main menu.

There are moments as well when Pikachu does special mood emotions such as when in the spooky Pokemon Tower or when placed under a status effect; though there are no specific bonuses for Pikachu actually liking or disliking you it is a nice gimmick  to make the original Red and Blue that little bit different.

Prepare for trouble… and make it double!

Another few little additions to this game is the introduction to Jessie and James into the Pokemon game universe. Created solely for the anime the devastating duo appear in Pokemon Yellow with the same Pokemon that their anime counterparts have under their ownership.

Another similar attribute to the anime is how the yellow rodent actually follows you when in the overworld. This is a feature as seen in the remakes of Pokemon Gold and Silver (HeartGold and SoulSilver) though in that game any Pokemon first in your party follow you; in this game as long as Pikachu is in your party and not fainted it will follow.

How much things change, the more they stay the same!

Now the graphics for this game might not be much now when compared to the newer games, but back in the day they rivalled that of some of the other biggest game releases out there. The nice, bright colours, the reworked sprites of the Pokemon and trainers, everything was just great for one of the biggest names on handheld consoles. Even with simplistic colours and environment design the deep, dank caves, the high sky-touching buildings and the quaint, little stretches of grasslands all have the right feel to them.

Ah, the sound, the sound of that wonderful old, Game Boy sound which chirps forth from the speakers. That old 90’s handheld video game music delivers such a nice case of nostalgia. Ths music for this game is absolutely amazing, and I aint just saying that because I’m a massive Pokemon fan, no, the sounds of this game are all really good. The music fits the locations and areas very nicely, the caves have a murky, dark atmosphere to them, so does Viridian Forest and the Abandoned Power Plant. The Pokemon League, as well as the Pokemon Gym, music gives a nice big rush of adrenaline like ‘yeah, me and my pal Pikachu are here, we can take you down and be the very best, like no one ever was!’.

Speaking of sounds… there’s Jigglypuff! Careful, allowing it to sing to you causes your Pikachu to fall into a deep sleep, as well as the Nurse Joy in charge of the Centre!

Price-wise this game is hard to categorise, though you may be looking between £5 and £15 or even less depending on where you go. I do know a lot of independent video game stores do hold Pokemon Yellow and other old Game Boy games (I, or maybe it was my girlfriend, bought Pokemon Blue a while back at an independent store for around £8 or so and works fine).

There’s a problem about buying these games though, whether or not they actually work when you begin to play them. The best place to find a cheap version of Pokemon Yellow would be ebay.

This game, as well as the ones that have come before it, shows just how strong a gameplay style Pokemon is. Such a simple concept and an easy storyline, as well as simple characters who even without development still holds very strong personalities and you almost connect with them.

Being in the same generation as when Pokemon all began if you have played the other 4 generations and not this one then you are truly missing out my friend. You won’t regret your purchase.

I personally thoroughly enjoyed this game for its gameplay and game mechanics, and even with hardly any serious character development (only slight bits here and there) the game has great, easy-to-follow storyline.

9 rupees out of 10

See the Pokemon Yellow Video Walkthroughs.