Wha'cha been playing?

Nintendo DS - In demand!
It's been a very long time since I used my Nintendo DS. For the most part, there has been a tremendous amount of shovelware on Nintendo's platforms (Wii included) and thus I've lost interest in the good each has to offer. During our recent trip to Manhattan, I made a stop at the Nintendo World store which has since rekindled my interest in the DS. Specifically, I was impressed with Ninja Gaiden (below) as well as The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass - a title I own but have not played.

Hot last week:

Ninja Gaiden (DS) - I picked this game up after our trip to the Nintendo World store. I heard great things about it, but I hadn't seen it in action. Overall it's graphics, gameplay and unique control is impressive and a lot of fun - recommended.



Playing Now:

Mystery Dungeon Shiren The Wanderer (DS) - For those not in the know, the Mystery Dungeon series falls under a little known genre (to non-hardcore gamers at least) of roguelike. Rogue (1980) is one of the original computer role-playing games, thus roguelikes are based on the conventions establish in that original game. These conventions include randomly generated dungeons, turn-based gameplay and lots of loot to collect.

Shiren The Wanderer follows these conventions to a tee. In many reviews, this game fares miserably -- mostly, in my opinion, because the reviewers are not familiar with roguelikes and how deceptively deep they can be. At first blush, Shiren appears too hardcore for its own good. No matter how far one progresses in the game, if the character dies, he has to start back at the beginning of the game -- all treasure gone and you're back at level 1.

At first, this is very very disappointing to the player, but the game is built around a sort of "Groundhog Day" mechanic and restarting affords him the ability to learn how to truly play the game. As play continues (and re-continues), the deeper aspects of the game slowly begin to reveal themselves and each time one's approach to the game's dungeons is refined. The experience is engrossing and real-world time melts away during play.

For those who like RPGs, particularly old-school types or even games like Diablo, this game is a must buy -- highly recommended.


R-Types (PSN: PS3 / PSP) - I'm a big fan of old-school shooters, and R-Types became available for download in last Thursday's PSN update. I really appreciate it when Sony releases old PS-One games on the Playstation Network, because they're generally a good value (cheap) and I can play them on both my Playstation 3 and my PSP.

I spent a bit of time playing this game on both handheld and TV and I quickly became frustrated by it. Now, I am a fan of Gradius, which is pretty hard, but R-Type really takes me to task. I will continue to try to become good, but I'm not holding out much hope. Sometimes the mechanics of old games just don't stand the test of time -- not recommended.


Up Next Week:

Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3 / XBOX360) - There's no denying the impact this game is going to have. From all the reviews, previews and trailers, GTA IV has shaped up to be a must-have game. The release date is Tuesday (4/29/08), and I plan on stopping by my local Gamestop and picking it up.