Review: Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate

Developer: Capcom

Publisher: Capcom

Players: 1-4 (ad hoc on 3DS, online on Wii U)

Rating: Teen (Blood, Crude Humor, Fantasy Violence)

Platform Reviewed:  3DS



Monster Hunter is a fairly well known series by this point.  It has seen 12 releases across six different platforms, and a 13th game is on the way.  Even Japan's "Samurai Blue" Soccer Team played Monster Hunter in their downtime before their big win over Australia to take the Asian Cup in 2011.  So it's a pretty well known and well established franchise.  Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate came out in time to be a part of the Wii U launch lineup, and included a release for its handheld sibling, the 3DS.  But how does it hold up in the realm of giant monsters?

Review: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD

Players: 1 (2-4 online)

Rating: Teen (Violence, Blood)

Price: 1200 MS Points ($15)

Platform reviewed: Xbox Live Arcade

Back in February, I posted a "wish list" of what should come back in Tony Hawk HD and what shouldn't.  After sitting down in the career mode for five hours straight last Friday, I can safely say that there's at least a few people within Activision who share my sentiments.  Turn it up! Bring the noise!

Top 5 Gamecube Games: The Runners Up

I had a hard time writing the last Top 5 list, primarily because there are so many awesome games on the Nintendo Gamecube.  I had narrowed down a top 10, but the other titles were so awesome that I couldn't just let them get lopped off. For that reason, I'm going to take this week's Top 5 to list numbers 6-10.

The Great Update Revolution: Is it really helping?

One of the modern trappings of video games is updates after a game has been released.  A lot of people cry foul when it comes to this sort of thing, and with good reason.  Online networks can only provide so much in terms of fixing stuff that's broken.  However, there's other underlying issues at play here.  Patches and updates are increasingly used to fix game-breaking bugs, and this is hurting the gaming industry in general.

Top 5 Light Gun Games

It's no secret that I have a serious penchant for light gun games.   Something about the actual pointing the gun controller on screen and pulling the trigger lends it a unique feel, something much different than most shooting games out there.  For that reason, I'm going to spend today's Top 5 on my:

Top 5 Light Gun Games

MMO tropes that need to go Part 1

When in doubt...

I've played many massively multiplayer online (MMO) games in my lifetime.  Some of them were free to play, others required subscriptions.  While I routinely say no game is without its flaws, there are some "tropes" that have developed in the genre that are legitimately hurting it.  Here's a look at what game developers did right, and what others didn't do so well.

Since there's a wealth of information to cover, I'm going to turn this into a two part series.  Part two will go live next week, so stay tuned!

5 Wii games for the hardcore gaming crowd

It's no secret that Nintendo maintains a family friendly image.  The level of marketing to the parents of young children feels like the brunt of Nintendo's marketing budget. With the lack of Pandora's Tower and Fatal Frame 4 in the US, it's very easy to dismiss Nintendo as yet another greedy corporation who only cares about where they can make the most money.  Even so, Nintendo still pays attention to their core audience in some form or another.  Whether you believe it or not, the Wii has several games that cater to the interests of the hardcore gamer.  Here's 5 of them that you should be interested in:

F-Zero GX

Two weeks ago, Best Buy, Toys 'r Us, and Amazon.com all announced that they will be entering into the used video game arena. This will be good for all you bargain bin shoppers, as the competition will open up more games to the $9.99 and under arena. Keeping with this change of pace, I'm adding Amazon pricing to my reviews. I'll also start adding BB and TrU prices when I pick up games there.

Price : $7.99 at Gamestop, $4.99-$27.49 on Amazon

Players: 1-4

Rating: Teen: Comic Mischief, Mild Violence, Suggestive Themes

Save file size: 4 Blocks*

Other Notes: Progressive scan compatible. Connect your GCN Memory Card to F-Zero AX arcade machine for bonus features.

*game save requires 4 blocks. To use the Garage and make custom vehicles, this feature requires an additional 18 blocks.

The F-Zero Series has been around since the Super Nintendo era, and it still packs the same "oomph" that it did way back when. The game is set in the future and centers around high speed (and stakes) hovercraft racing. Racers have different stats based around body resilience, boost speed, weight, and surface grip. As you complete GP circuits, you can unlock up to 30 different characters.

Let me get this out now: this game is blisteringly fast. I cannot count the number of times that I had trouble keeping up with what was happening on-screen. Graphically, the game is gorgeous and the GCN's processor does a good job keeping up with all the action on the track. I don't recall seeing any chopping or pauses while playing the game. Tracks are varied and diverse, and I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge several tracks offered. The AI is smart and challenging, and will test even the most seasoned racing veteran. Time trial, GP, and versus modes keep the replay value on this game very high

No game is without its flaws, and F-Zero GX is no exception. Story mode, where most of the goodies are unlocked, is either mind-numbingly easy or so hard it seems broken. I did not like the story mode at all. The garage, where you can create your own custom racers takes waaaay too much space on the memory card for what it provides. Custom racers look like poorly made lego creations, and lack the panache that the pre-rendered vehicles deliver. The Emblem editor is impossible to use for all but those with master's degrees in graphic design. Even then, the emblems don't look all that great in the first place. When left on the system defaults, the controls are inhumanly tight. You need to calibrate the game for your controller each time you start it up, especially if you use a different controller each time. I'm just glad they included controller calibration in this game.

This game sort of reminds me of Star Wars: Episode I Racer for the N64. It has similar challenge while keeping up the fun factor. There's enough diversity in the 30 different racers to give a good romp to any race fan. The learning curve for this game is painstakingly steep, and will require serious practice before newcomers will be able to race with the best. Once you've crossed all the necessary hurdles, this game will keep you coming back for more.

Parent's notes: This game packs a lot of challenge. While there's not a whole lot of questionable content, the steep learning curve will drive away most youngsters looking for a race. It's alright for the teenager, but younger audiences will have difficulty understanding what's going on.

Technic Beat

Price: $2.99 used at Gamestop

Ebay Listings

Rating: Everyone

Players: 1-2

Memory for Game Saves: 227 KB

Peripherals required: N/A

Warning: people who get epileptic seizures from flashing lights should NOT play this game!!!

Let the record stand that I was addicted to DDR back in 2002, when one of my friends imported a copy of DDR 3rd mix Korean v1. I still have my launch copy of DDR Konamix, DDRMAX2, and ITG. And I love 'em all. Music games usually stick very well with me. I've been looking at this game for some time, long before I started Treasure Bin. Treasure Bin just gave me an excuse to finally buy it. for a $3.00 game, this one is rather interesting.


A little bit of online research revealed that the game was originally released in Japan early in the PS2's lifetime, back when the Music Game craze was in full swing there. It didn't come stateside until 2002, when Mastiff Games picked it up. Mastiff had a cult hit track record with their work in bringing the Street Fighter EX series stateside. (Thanks to Gamespot for the info)


Sitting down with the game for the first time, I went straight to the tutorial. Believe me, it went through the basics to a D. The D-pad, of course. (okay, so it was a bad joke. get over it.) It shows you how to control the character, to the basics of scoring points in this game. No matter what happens, PLAY EVERY TUTORIAL!!! It helps so much in the long run.


The Arcade mode offers 1- and 2-player modes, with co-operative and competitive modes available for 2 players. The entire premise of the gameplay is simple: as your little character moves around the rectangular playing area, circles will appear onscreen with another circle moving towards the edge of the outer circle. When the two touch, press the square button to activate the note. It's simple at first, yet scales into insanely difficult combinations as you progress. I reached three stars out of 6 (level of difficulty) within a week. I managed to wrangle a friend into trying the game co-operative with me, and both of us agreed that the game is good fun.


For a music game, the songs can make or break a game. "Spider Control 16th" was one such song that I fell in love with right away, despite it being relatively low level. There's a lot of original works in this game, all of it filling in various subgenres of electronic. They tell you the style of song when you start the level, and let me tell you. I may listen to a fair amount of electronic music, and even I've never heard of some of these genres. All of the Namco songs are trance, house, and drum-'n-bass remixes of their 8-bit originals. Much of the music is electronic, yet the songs feel right at home with the Special Effects displayed on screen. It feels kinda like a miniature rave.


The Verdict: I think it's fair to say that this game is definitely not for everyone. Very few of the songs are going to be recognizable by most people. Only the most hardcore nerd would have any chance at recognizing every song in this game. If you're looking for mainstream pop/rock, this game is definitely not it. On the flipside, If you enjoy branching out into music you've never heard before, you just might like this game. The beats are catchy, the tunes will permeate your brain, and the $2.99 price point would make this a good game to try out and experiment with. It's also a pretty good party game, too.


Parent's notes: This game is rated E, so there's little to complain about in this game. There's a lot of flashing colorful lights that beg for a seizure attack if the child is susceptible to them. The lyrics are few and far between, if at all. I've found no objectionable language in my testing. I wouldn't recommend this to really young children, as there's a bit of reading in the tutorial section and setup, but children age 7-8 and up should be able to pick this game up really quickly. This game gets a thumbs-up from me.

Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup

Review Played on: GCN
Price: $3.99
Found in GameStop's Used GCN games section
Players: 1-2
Rating: Everyone

It's a generally well-known fact within hardcore gaming circles that video games based off of movie and book franchises suck. I had exactly that impression going into reviewing this game. Looking at the price, I was planning on making this my first “bad game” review. This game both confirmed and rejected my assumptions. Curious? Read on.

Starting off, the opening cinematic is impressive. I laughed at the fact that they included classical music in the game. When you start the game, there's a cinematic in which Harry Potter himself talks to you about what Quidditch is, how it works, and what to expect. It's kinda sad, but his head looks like it's detached from the rest of his body. I couldn't stop laughing about this.



The start of the game is rather simplistic, though very helpful. You choose a house (all from Hogwarts: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin) and meet the team captain. Knowing everyone else is just going to take Gryffindor, I chose Ravenclaw as the first team to play as. Cho Chang greeted me, and got the training underway. You complete challenges that help you get better at the game, while earning Quidditch Cards in the process. Quidditch Cards determine what game modes, special moves, and what-not are unlocked. It's a rather engaging process that has you working to get matches unlocked to work your way up to the house cup. I felt that the training mode was very slow moving, though I can't speak for everyone. Given that this game is marketed at kids and not at adults, I suppose I should be more understanding.

Once you complete the challenges, you can start matches for the Hogwarts House Cup. The early matches are simplified down, and really easy to win. After a period of time with passing and scoring with the quaffle, the chase for the golden snitch starts. The snitch will produce a yellow trail that will increase your boost meter when you fly in it. Your seeker's goal is to boost close enough to the snitch that you can press the “catch” button and end the game. My first three matches against the other Hogwarts houses were utter slaughters. 300+ points to 0, in most cases. I think my match as Ravenclaw vs. Hufflepuff was 440 to 0.

Once I finished the Hogwarts cup, I moved on to the Quidditch World Cup, which, in my humble opinion, is where this game really shines. Personally, I love the Quidditch World Cup mode. You have three teams available at first: England, USA, and Japan. There are four different difficulty modes to unlock: Comet , Nimbus 2000, Nimbus 2001, and Firebolt. My first league was on the Nimbus 2000 difficulty, which was a welcome challenge compared to the sweeps of the Hogwarts cup. Each of the teams has their own unique feel to them, which was entertaining to watch. The stadiums are nothing short of beautiful in QWC mode. I loved Japan, Spain and the Nordic Team's stadiums. It was nice to see random weather conditions in the stadiums, where applicable. At a few matches in England's stadium, the sun was shining brightly, other matches were rainy with a bleak gray sky.



There is a lot more going on in the QWC mode, to be sure. Bludger attacks can steal the quaffle from your opponent, but you have to work up to them. The special moves have to be charged up to use, which means you have to play them wisely, not just flippantly. I should also note that the combo system is a lot of fun to use, especially when you can link it into a special move. Dodging, steals, and power shots all add to the cinematic experience. All special moves are named in the inventory, as well as how to pull them off. I noticed that several moves were mapped to a particular button press, which simply randomized what special move was completed. Kind of annoying, especially if you wanted to try to pull off a particular special move.

Some of the Team special moves seemed a little too clichéd for my taste. For example, the USA's team special move looked way too much like basketball, and Japan's looked like something out of a Kung-Fu movie, which would have been more of a Chinese convention, anyway. Most people aren't going to care, but it irked me for some odd reason.

Every so often, there will be a cinematic after a goal, in which the one who scored the goal does some sort of cheer, high five with a teammate, etc. The animations are all the same, but the character models switch out regularly. I would've liked to see a beater come out and high five a teammate once or twice, but that's nitpicking. A lot of the game-ending animations seem recycled, and by the time you hit the QWC, you're wanting to skip the ending animation because you've seen it so many times already.

The GameCube version of HP:QWC sports a co-operative mode with a second player who has a GBA and HP:QWC for the GBA. Linking the GBA to the GameCube brings in some new options for each player. I do not have a copy of HP:QWC for the GBA, so I've had to miss out on this part. There's also a 2-player competitive mode, in which two people can play against each other in any stadium unlocked. Gaining more Quidditch cards will unlock more teams and stadiums to play in. Players can use Hogwarts teams or QWC teams, but the two cannot overlap. I didn't enjoy the multiplayer as much, it just didn't have a good feel to it. Having a four player mode would've been nice, too.

I really wish there was more unlockable content besides the extra difficulty modes. It would've been cool to see more stadium options, characters, or even secret teams. I can't see hardcore gamers staying at this one much beyond the Firebolt difficulty and completing the league challenges. Some of the steals in this game are blatantly overpowered, and really unbalance the game.

The Verdict:

It's interesting to see a game based off of J.K Rowling's Harry Potter universe that's not closely tied to the story lines of the books. I enjoyed the harder difficulties in QWC mode, though I suppose that younger gamers would enjoy seeing Harry Potter in action, especially winning the Hogwarts Quidditch Cup as the hero. For $3.99, the price is definitely right. If you can handle the slow pace of the training mode, you'll enjoy the later game modes. I wouldn't recommend this title as much to people who didn't enjoy the books. A lot of the game's pizazz comes from reading about the game in the books. Overall, it's not a bad game, but it's not fantastic either.


Parent's notes:

Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup is aimed at a younger audience, and this game has little that most parents should object to. Parents concerned about the use of magic will find little of the sort in this game, if at all. This game focuses on the popular sport in the wizarding world, and any magic involved would be in levitation or bright sparkles. I say that this game is more than appropriate for children, and while parents would probably tire of it faster than the kids, this game gets my thumbs-up as a game that the whole family can enjoy and even play together.