Tatsunoko Vs Capcom REVIEW!

It's been a long time coming.

The combo-friendly crossover craziness of the Capcom Versus series is finally making a comeback - though not in the form or on the platform anyone expected. Due to the Marvel license being owned by another publisher, Capcom instead chose to clash their iconic characters against the classic Japan-centric Tatsunoko Productions. For hardware, they chose a Wii-based arcade board, which allowed for an easy port to the Wii for home release. This combination of odd character choices with an unusual hardware choice appears strange at first glance but manages to progress the series into modern relevance while feeling both classic and new.

Classic Elements

The old saying goes, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". And while TvC doesn't completely take this saying to heart, it does manage to retain most of what made the Versus series distinct. Gameplay is still tag-based and centered on easy-to-do chain combos and flashy supers that are more over-the-top than ever before. Never (outside of games created by Nintendo itself) has the Wii shown itself so capable in terms of quality particle effects and smooth visuals. Despite the craziness happening on the screen, the game rarely slows down. This game is, without question, one of the most beautiful third party efforts on Wii, and shows that the Wii is far more capable than "last gen" consoles in the graphics department.


Changes and New Elements

Although the character count has been vastly reduced (to 22 from MvC2's 56) - mainly to compensate for the new (admittedly beautiful) cell-shaded 3D graphics, there are very few characters recycled on the Capcom side - which is actually a welcome change - as fighting styles for the new characters are extremely unique, and will make for the discovery of interesting tournament strategies over time. Unfortunately, the character count on a team has been reduced from 3 back down to 2, and the button count has been similarly shrunk from 2 punches, 2 kicks, and 2 assists to weak, medium, strong, and assist. Due to this, some moves for iconic Capcom characters have new joystick motions or gameplay effects (some examples include Ryu's tatsumakisenpuukyaku and the range on Chun Li's kikouken). Combos are generally easier to do because of the control simplification, although pressing the joystick in different directions in combination with the buttons will produce attack variations in punches and kicks.

Although the controls are a bit more user-friendly, there are many new gameplay elements that seem inspired more by Guilty Gear than old Versus games. Two blatant examples are the Baroque mode (which works like a Roman Cancel combined with a damage boost that is determined by how much recoverable vitality is in your lifebar) and the Mega Crush (which sacrifices two super meters and some life in exchange for a combo break (a la Guilty Gear's Burst). Other new developments include the variable air raid (which allows you to tag a partner in during an aerial rave) and the removal of snapbacks for most characters (though a few still have these moves). Another interesting shift is invulnerability during tag-outs. It is now exceptionally hard to hit a tagging opponent (in comparison to MvC2), which makes tagging out a bit safer (though the character tagged in is still easily punished if the tag attack is blocked). The final boss of the game is Yami from Okami, and the difficulty of this boss will vary wildly depending on the characters on your team. While those with beam/projectile supers will do well against him, and Yatterman's Yatterwan super does about a 1/4 health bar of damage to any form (by far the easiest way to kill the boss), grappling characters and especially Gold Lightan have a difficult time against the third form. The third form's unblockable grab-beam attack makes the new Mega Crush a necessity.

Though the game is fairly balanced in comparison to MvC2, infinite combos have already been found for Viewtiful Joe and Chun Li. Also, the new "big" characters (Lost Planet Mech on the Capcom side and Gold Lightan on the Tatasunoko side) play unusually and probably won't see much tournament use.

Oh, yeah...and they added a bunch of minigames too, most of which aren't all that fun - but a few of which (including the hadoken simulator and the shooting gallery style games) can be a fun diversion and an easy way to earn a few extra points for unlocking content (four extra characters not in the arcade version, along with a bunch of gallery art and sound effects are unlockable in the Wii release).

Controls

Wavebird: Though playing TvC on a Wavebird isn't ideal, it's playable. The d-pad more than gets the job done, though the button configuration will obviously take some getting used to.

Classic Controller: Pretty much feels how you'd expect. The default button configuration isn't something I would have chosen, so I did end up making some changes. Probably the casual gamer's best choice.

Hori Wii Fighting Stick: The Hardcore gamer's choice. Since the stick is Hori, it's solid. My beef with TvC is mainly due to the Hori stick's design. I have large hands, and the first two buttons on the Hori stick are too close to the stick to be comfortable. In most games, this would be solved by mapping other buttons and leaving those first two unmappable...but TvC's menu does not allow the zL and zR triggers to be mapped, basically forcing me to use those first two buttons that cause my hands to cramp.

Importability

Aside from the unlocks and the main menu, everything is pretty straightforward and there's a lot of English (option menu is all English). Below is a translation for the main menu and attack types (for easy controller configuration).

* アーケード　＝ Arcade Mode
* バーサス　＝ Vs. Mode
* サバイバル　=　Survival
* タイムアタック　=　Time Attack
* トレーニング　＝ Training
* プレイデータ　＝ Play Data
* オプション　=　Option
* ショップ　=　Shop
* ギャラリー　＝ Gallery
* オリジナルゲーム　＝ Original (Mini) Games

* 弱　=　Weak attack
* 中　＝ Medium attack
* 強　＝ Strong attack

All that was promised and more

I've had some time with TvC and I have to say, color me impressed. It is hands down the BEST third party effort on the Wii so far, and it's a real shame we'll never see it on these shores...

I'll have a full review soon.

Coming up...

Review incoming, barring any Freeloader FAIL... Stay tuned.

Kingdom Hearts Re: Tired

Originally part of the Japanese-only release Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix +, the game was considered an "extra". Yes, Square-Enix is charging us full price for what was a bonus disc in a Japanese "Director's Cut" release of KHII containing new weapons, cutscenes, areas, and boss battles. Though disappointing, it is fortunate that SE decided to release re:CoM in the States at all, especially given the fact that we are definitely in the PS2's twilight years. I purchased the game solely to support SE's efforts to bring over "special edition" releases, even if we don't get the whole package...

All that said, if you liked the GBA release, or never played it, this game is for you. Just don't expect it to be a proper sequel to Kingdom Hearts II (a far superior title). The engine used to render the areas and characters is based on KH1, and therefore the areas are a little more barren than you would be used to from KHII. Also, they didn't bother to re-sync the lips with the English voice acting, which can be exceptionally distracting if you have studied Japanese at all and can actually see what the characters are saying (although for most of you that probably won't be an issue). The storyline bridges the gap between KH1 and KH2, and explains what happened to Sora prior to the start of KH2. Most of the voice actors from KH2 reprise their roles, although some notable ones are missing (though I doubt any Square fan was REALLY expecting Hayden Penettiere to reprise her role as Kairi due to her newfound fame courtesy of HEROES, so her absence isn't surprising).

To those expecting normal KH gameplay, I've got bad news for you there, too. It's a card game. Don't wince too much - it's an action-based card game. In a sense, all your actions (including items, attacks, and spells) are represented as cards, and you form a deck of commands you can use in battles. The higher the number on the card, the more effective the card is, and a card of a higher number can cancel an enemy card of a lower number. The system works surprisingly well (especially when strategy comes into play later on in the game, stacking certain combinations of cards and using them all at once in "sleight" attacks), but the fact remains that the entire system doesn't work quite as well in 3D as in 2D. As I play the game, I keep wishing for the KH2 battle system.

As I said, this was not intended to be a stand-alone game, and it shows. What you get is a 3D remake of CoM on the GBA, script largely untouched, with a few new cards and a couple new boss fights (which are welcomed). The quest is long, especially when you consider the two playable characters (I won't spoil). In order to get the full story, you'll have a lot of difficult card battling ahead of you - which may be a good thing or a bad thing. The difficulty is also ratcheted way up - especially in the second quest. You WILL die a few times, and it'll take some strategy to figure out decks to best certain bosses.

One final note: PS3 compatibility FAILS.

If you have a PS3 with SOFTWARE EMULATION (either the old 80gb model, or the MGS4 40gb special edition model), you will experience glitching in the first area of the game and won't be able to pass the tutorial. Some people bought the game concerned their game was broken or glitchy, but this turned out to be the fault of the software emulation of the console. In my opinion this is unforgivable, SE will lose a few sales to this. People with launch units (60gb or 20gb) will be able to play the game completely error-free, courtesy of hardware emulation.

Other than that, it's Kingdom Hearts...but not the triple-A Kingdom Hearts you're used to. This is more of a snack to tide us over until Birth By Sleep and 358/2 Days (yes, they REALLY are keeping those names for the American releases) hit the PSP and DS next year.

Dear SEGA:

Having played many of your games, and just about all of your Sonic titles, I have a question for you (and it's an easy one)...

What is so hard about making a quality Sonic game?! It seems with every yearly release you get an inch or so closer than the year before to regaining some kind of playability and enjoyment in the games. But for some reason you INSIST on shipping in Q4 to maximize holiday sales (rather than finishing your games).

I think Yuji Naka would be disappointed in you.

You've gone as far as to go on the record to state that Sonic 2006 was "unpolished". Yeah, "unpolished". Falling through solid ground more times than I can count, obnoxious loading times, furry-on-princess make-out session... I'd have a few more choice words for that mess besides "unpolished", but I'm sure you don't want to hear them. That game could have been good. It even showed promise, at least graphically. But the levels were untested, the load times were unforgivable, and the story was absolute garbage. I quote myself:

"I wanted to like [Sonic 2006], I REALLY did, because it's one of the few Japanese games on the [360] with a recognized brand. However, abysmal collision detection and boundary issues caused me plummeting to my death from what appeared to be solid ground...not to mention the glitchy camera, incessant load times, and poor level design issues (pressing a button to run over poorly placed pits of sand without sinking, mere milliseconds after hitting a speed booster? No thanks.) that caused me to utter many an expletive in distaste at Sonic Team's disgustingly bad QA in an attempt to release the game for the holiday season last year. The worst offender of the collision detection and bad level designs are the "mach speed" sections of the game, which play like poorly laid out racing levels. Sonic races along (all too fast) and if you hit an obstacle or enemy, you die. Simple as that. The problem is, Sonic moves too quickly, and the "wide, expansive" environments make it somewhat difficult to figure out where you're supposed to go next. Furthermore, the design of these sections feels almost random. I found myself continuously fighting the game trying to figure out what the developers WOULDN'T PLAN on a player doing, so I wouldn't fall victim to unnecessary death-by-bug. Sadly, I still ran into bugs over and over again while keeping this in mind, and never wanted to press through to obtain even one single achievement award."

Though it pains me to say it, Sonic: Unleashed isn't much better. It provides some 2.5D segments that push the series in the right direction, but other parts of the game are ripped directly from those nasty Mach Speed sections (fortunately you don't die if you hit an obstacle this time) and others are pilfered from God of War (the corny WereHog levels). Please, MAKE IT STOP. Just make a sequel to the original Sonic games, put it in HD, and stick it on the PSN and XBL. At this point, that's about all any of us former fans could ask for...and it wouldn't even cost you as much as these big-budget diarrhea discs you're farting out every year. Enough. Please. Enough...

On Castlevania Judgment (not an Epic Fail...)

Sometimes, albeit not often, the Wii has decent, if not stellar, third party contributions.

and...

Sometimes reviews can be wrong.

Case in point: Castlevania Judgment. A combination slasher/fighter/action title that is unfortunately destined to be headed to a premature death in the bargain bin due to both the tsunami of software releases over the next few weeks and to its less than stellar review scores. A game that really doesn't know what it's supposed to be, but yet got beaten up in the mainstream press far more than it deserved. A game that, surprisingly, manages to look fairly good graphically for a non-Nintendo title - especially to those that dig its anime-inspired over-the-top art style. A game that controls just fine, provided you toss the waggle-stick aside and put your classic controller or GCN Controller/Wavebird to good use.

Perhaps we'll never know why Iga decided to make this game rather than a true-blue 2D Castlevania title for Wii, and those who were expecting something like that are of course going to be extremely disappointed with Judgment. That being said, though, there's a lot to like here. Far more than the reviews would have you believe. So I suppose the best way to handle a review of this game into the genres which it represents, and then dealing with the typical criteria of graphics, sound, and control.

As a fighter, Castlevania Judgment is: 2.5/5

Unbalanced and toned down for the Wii audience. There are some technical moves to pull off here, but it's a very mash-friendly fighting game with a few exceptionally overpowered characters. The subweapons aren't all that useful, and "super attacks" (that are activated with a push of the X button on the GCN controller when the super meter is full) can drain an opponent of 75%+ of a life bar. There aren't that many characters to choose from, and the hazards in the environments feel like an afterthought (remember Mace: The Dark Age on N64? Yeah, kinda like that). I can't help but feel that this game wasn't meant to be a balanced fighter. All that said, it's still leaps and bounds ahead of Namco's sophomore Wii effort Soulcalibur Legends... then again, just about ANYTHING would have been better than Soulcalibur Legends.

As a third-person action game, Castlevania Judgment is: 3.5/5

More or less, if you liked the 3D titles in the Castlevania series... Lament of Innocence and Curse of Darkness, this game plays like a jacked-up version of the boss fights from those games. The controls are a bit different, and due to the emphasis on 1 on 1 fighting, obviously there are differences in how the game "feels", but its action roots are certainly apparent. I can't help but wonder if the game began life as a new 3D Castlevania on the Wii. Thanks, but no thanks. I actually prefer Judgment's current gameplay when compared to to running through empty corridor after empty corridor with little scenery, stopping to fight some guys, and then do the whole thing over again. Though all of these issues could have been avoided if they would have just released a real 2D Castlevania on the Wii... Judgment isn't bad, it just isn't that great either.

As a Wii game, Castlevania Judgment is: 4/5

I'll be the first to admit - I popped this game into my Wii expecting it to suck hard. Really hard. Like, really, really, "SUCK MONKEY BALLS OUT OF A BULL'S ANUS" AVGN hard.

After reading the reviews I wanted to remove it from my Gamefly queue to avoid wasting both my time and theirs. I was completely expecting a Castlevania-flavored Soulcalibur Legends style turd to be squeezed out by Konami to capitalize on the waggle craze. Thus I can't help but give it points for being BETTER than completely horrible. And that's a sad thing, but a true one. As a fighting fan, and a Castlevania fan, I'm having a good time with this game. I know it's shallow, and I know I'll probably be returning it in a few days, but for the moment, it's a lot of fun. The online is smooth and doesn't require friend codes, and the graphics are beautiful (especially with the anti-jaggie filter turned on) for a Wii game. Lots of particle effects, very little slowdown. The development team had love for this game. I don't think they had as much time as they would have liked to work on this title, but what's there is solid. And that alone is worth a rating boost, because this is one of the few third-party efforts not in the "Bratz Babiez Partyz Fashionz Dolphinz Happy Fun Ninjabreadz Manz" line of titles that sadly continue to sell to the idiot masses.

Note to the Hardcore:

As I said above, and I can't emphasize this enough: DO NOT PLAY WITH WAGGLE TURNED ON. It's just as broken as Soulcalibur Legends or Bleach, probably moreso. There's nothing I hate more than a Wii fighting game that forces waggle for every attack - it's just stupid, and I know most of you agree.

Treat this as a fanservice game, a "popcorn game" that won't have much longevity but will be fun in short bursts or to pull out at parties. It's very simplistic.

As far as how it plays (with existing games for reference)... it's two parts Destrega and one part Power Stone, coated with a thin Castlevania shell sprinkled with bits of Mace: The Dark Age. I know Destrega and Mace are pretty obscure games nowadays, but they contained several elements that made their way into Judgment: simple controls, over-the-top moves, half-baked environmental hazards, and 1 on 1 versus gameplay. In fact, Mace and Destrega keep coming up in my mind as I play Judgment. Since I liked both of those games back in the day, I don't have a ton of complaints. It's a light snack of a game in-between rich, calorie-laden first-party Nintendo goodness. That being said, it's also one of the best non-Capcom third-party efforts on the system so far. That's intended as a compliment to Konami... I'm not saying rush out to the store and buy it, but definitely give it a shot. Chances are you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Infinite Undiscovery, Last Remnant and the Decline of the JRPG

Let me start with a comment you'll probably all agree with me on: this console generation is a lousy time to be a JRPG fan, if the review scores are to be believed.

First, right out of the gate, the only promised titles are FFXIII (years and years off), and Enchanted Arms, which turned out to be sub-par and had the worst, most offensive character archetype in the history of video games (thanks, Makoto). The years ticked by and the releases finally began to trickle out of the studios - mostly for Xbox 360 (much to the chagrin of Sony fanboys who bought the PS3 believing it to be THE JRPG system of this gen - which it should have been - but its slow start cost Sony dearly), and slowly increasing in quality. Following Enchanted Arms, there was Blue Dragon, then Lost Odyssey, then a couple of oddball strategy RPG hybrids from Atlus (PS2 ports from Japan), then Tales of Vesperia, then Infinite Undiscovery, and now Last Remnant...with the promise of Star Ocean and possibly Final Fantasy XIII (FINALLY) next year.

But something happened along the way...the games came out, but really didn't get any better, if the critics were to be believed. Blue Dragon scored subpar reviews, Lost Odyssey did marginally better, Tales did okay, and Infinite Undiscovery and Last Remnant got hit _HARD_. Most of the complaints for all the JRPGs up until Infinite Undiscovery had to do with "more of the same". Apparently, the US-developed Space Marine or WWII games can get away with "more but prettier" content, but Japanese games get absolutely crucified in reviews for doing essentially the exact...same...thing.

Now it should come as no surprise that the two most "revolutionary" RPGs to hit the next-gen consoles so far, Infinite Undiscovery and Last Remnant, were also heavily criticized, but for completely different reasons. In Infinite Undiscovery's case, it was an (admittedly) minigame-glutted first 10 hours which, if you are an achievement completionist, would be one of the worst gaming experiences of your life.... make no mistake. The stealth "can't get hit" minigame. The castle siege. The ANNOYING villager rescue. The prisoner rescue where the enemies kill the prisoners before you can save them. The ridiculously cliche plot...UP TO A POINT.

Somehow I get the impression that the reviewers got fed up and never played past the first 10 hours, because the plot takes off at the end of the first disc and doesn't let up until the end of the game...and the gameplay gets better. The minigames fade away and what's left is pure FFXII style exploration and combat bliss - with an element of danger because your party members can turn on you with little warning during battles (can't explain why - plot spoilarzzz). There are a few "groaner" plot twists, the kind you tick off on a checklist, and the areas admittedly could have used a bit more polish. Overall, I'd say it certainly didn't deserve the bashing it got from the mainstream press, although it was admittedly a B-effort from a farmed-out team. Not Square-Enix caliber.

In Last Remnant's case, well, let's investigate...

I've spent the past few days digging into both Last Remnant on 360 and Tales of Symphonia: Knights of Ratato...errr, Dawn of the New World on the Wii.

As far as graphics are concerned, Last Remnant is absolutely gorgeous. It's built on UNREAL and shows that the engine can do more than display various shades of brown, red, and grey. Square-Enix vistas are brilliantly brought to life. My only concern is that the towns I've explored so far kind of blend into each other - similar archetecture and thematic elements, and all very reminiscent of FFXII's Rabanastre. Dungeons are rendered gorgeously.

The battle system is revolutionary. You control groups of units rather than single units, and get to choose actions from a predetermined pallet for each group. The camera swings wildly about the arena while the battles are taking place, as you can comandeer upwards of 20 different units simultaneously in the psuedo turn-based skirmishes. The battles require a different kind of strategy since you're not exactly sure what commands the game will give you on any given turn (this is the biggest problem with the new system), and you may be left without the ability to heal on a turn where you need it. That said, this was a very nice first attempt at trying something a little new and different - something that could be perfected with a little polish.

So why did the reviews blast it? They weren't comfortable with the new battle system, and were put off by minor technical issues. They didn't like the loading times or the fact that there was framerate stutter on occasions, and dropped the score (in some cases, such as Gamespot, quite significantly - 6.5) . Normally this wouldn't bother me, as I noticed those issues at first as well and was admittedly put off...until I installed the game to the HDD and watched those issues disappear. No more long loading times, and framerate stutters became much less common. They failed to mention this fact. Somehow I get the suspicion the mainstream press is being overcritical of the JRPG if they manage to overlook Fable II's many flaws and award it a 10, but yet give something like Last Remnant a 6.5.

Granted, the Last Remnant is far from the "second coming" of the JRPG, but it takes a good many steps in the right direction.

So much so, in fact, that I have my sneaking suspicions that those looking forward to a gameplay revolution in FFXIII may be shocked at how similar the two games end up. Let's compare: the dramatic, sweeping camera angles, complex HUD that doesn't appear to actually do much, and a lot of action sequences that you don't control (in Last Remnant's case)...but honestly, do you really expect you'll be controlling Lightning most of the time during battles? It's going to be a gussied-up, polished, and slimmed down version of Last Remnant's take on battles, but with less characters - mark my words. In my opinion, that's both a good thing and a bad thing. The American mainstream press will dump hate on it, just as it has done with Last Remnant. But those of us looking for evolution in the genre won't care one bit.