Monday, August 30, 2010

Shenmue is beautiful in HD !!!

I am shocked. We didn't get a release of Shenmue 2 in the states. We can only import the EURO version or buy the Xbox release. I was worried at first about getting the xbox version but was glad to know it at least used the same voice actor for Ryo. But I was a little happier when I saw this game was backwards compatible on 360 and had 720p mode! Needless to say, this game is gorgeous on a 42" Plasma tv over HDMI! Hong kong is breathtakingly beautiful and every little attention to detail in the graphics is evident! Just the icing on the cake for what is so far the best game since Shenmue 1! My only complaint so far is, if you are playing on a 360 the music and sound effects will slowly stop working some times minus the voices. To easily fix it, just pause and unpause the game. It returns to normal right away! I will post a full review soon!


Shenmue: Just finished and now time for a review!

Ok, so I have just finished what I now consider to be the greatest game I have ever played. And the fact I even think that is amazing. Because honestly, I went into this game with huge expectations after hearing all the hype. Normally doing that is like getting hyped about a new movie, it sucks when you finally get to go see it! I have already said once that I have never been a big adventure/RPG gamer at all. But this is one game that has really sucked me into the story. I should also add I may include spoilers, however I am sure most people who will ever play this already have by now. But I will keep it to a minimum for people like me who are new to the series!


Graphics: This is one place I feel I must start. I hate to judge a game by graphics but, the dreamcast manages to paint such a beautiful and intriguing world! The lighting effects of Dobuita at night can be breath taking. And I should add that I don't yet have a VGA box so I was plaing over composite on an old CRT TV I have in my gaming room! And the game even looked breathtaking there. I can imagine using a VGA connection on my nice TV! Even for such an old game the character animations and such are amazingly true to life. Each person has unique features and no two people look the same. There is a small amount of slow down in extremely crowded areas during free roam of while driving the forklift later on. I am glad to see there was no slow down during any of the fight scenes, where it really matters most! The cut scenes are insane! It doesn't matter if it's a dream or a romantic scene with Nazomi. They always feel epic and you always feel like you are more than a person holding a controller.


Music: The music in Shenmue always seems to fit the mood! Walking in town on Christmas you are even over come by the sounds of the holiday season! I think the most memorable moment is the beautiful graphics and music setting the mood when it changes from day to night. For some reason, witnessing this on a daily basis really drew me into the game! The mood of each scene is hugely increased and really draws you to an emotional level as if you were in Ryo's shoes. The cut scenes feature some greatly inspiring music as well! Just watch the trailer on youtube and tell me the music doesn't suck you in!


Gameplay: I will say that like alot of people the gameplay at first can be a tad slow paced. But the game does a great job of quickly picking up and slowly drawing you into it's world! The control is awesome and I rarely had a hard time figuring out where I needed to go or what I needed to do. Sometimes it's bound to happen but just when you start to get confused the game steps in and leads the way! The camera is amazing and very cinematic. I never ever had a problem with a camera angle blocking anything! And when you aren't out hunting for answers and talking to people there are a ton of other things to do! You can even find a Sega Saturn in your house!
At first it may seem like another useless prop. But no! Each time you buy a ceartin item at the convenient store you get to draw a prize....get the number 2 prize and you can pick a Saturn game! Space Harrier or Hang-on. You then go back to the house and can actually see Ryo put the game into the system, close the lid and turn it on! Then you can play whatever game you won! The detail is amazing in this world!



Lasting appeal: Well, after part 2 you are out of Shenmue games for a while. So after completing those you will surely be back to collect every possible item and explore every nook and cranny of the game! Other than that the replay may eventually become dull. But in the mean time I am off to play Shenmue 2!
Over all rating? a 5/5 !

Friday, August 20, 2010

Do you know where I can find any Sailors?

Ok, so to be absolutely honest, I have never had any real motivation to play RPG games. I tried FF7 back in the day and never had the patience to finish it. I am however the type of gamer who is easily influenced lol. So when reading through the Retro Gamer Magazine I came across the Shenmue making article. I have always heard about this game but never tried it.

So being the type person I am, I fired up ebay and had a copy on it's way in mint condition. I will admit that I have not been able to put it down. I have bought like 200 bucks in Saturn games and still have not played them because I am so hooked! The entire mood of the game is just awesome. I even won a copy of Shenmue 2 for xbox on ebay and will be playing it on my 360. I wanted the UK version for the dreamcast seeing as how the US didn't get a release. But it is pretty pricey!

So for a guy like me that's not a typical RPG fan but is really enjoying Shenmue, are there any other RPG games you think I may like? Either on Saturn or Dreamcast? Maybe even ps1? Anything similar to this out there? Comment below to let me know!


Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Finally bought another Sega Saturn!

Well, I could not stand it anymore. I finally bought another Saturn to replace to one I sold. Now I am kind of sad because I now have to re-aquire games like Bones and Panzer Dragoon. I bought a model 2 this time with hopes of being able to throw in a mod chip as well and maybe run a action replay 4 in 1 cart too! I have bought a tone of stuff for the Genesis and also the Saturn so I need to find some time to post more updates! In the mean time I have been trying to find time to explore Shenmue on Dreamcast since I have never played it before! I'm not a big RPG fan but I know there are a ton of good ones on the Saturn. Can anyone recommend some good RPG games for me to play for people who normally are not into them?!?!


Friday, August 6, 2010

I love mint boxed NES games: Double Dragon 2!

There is something about finding a survivor. A game is just innocently sitting on a shelf somewhere in a mint condition box and 100% complete. It has survived 20+ years of owners and harsh playing conditions. As kids we threw the boxes away alot of times! Well I learned better around age 10. But this game blew me away. I can't even see any marks on the contacts to show it's even been played! The box is mint and still has the manual, sleeve, and all the little cards that you register with and get Nintendo Power subscriptions! This is the game I saw at Play n Trade but didn't bother asking the price.

$11.99. Yup, that's all I payed for a mint NES game. I understand it would be worth more if it weren't the second game in the series but to me it's cool to have sitting on the shelf in my game room. Right next to my boxed copies of Mario 1 2 and 3. I love finding this old stuff!


Picked up some more games for the ole' Genesis!

Headed back down recently to the local Play n Trade and picked me up some more Genesis games! I had to buy Road Rash2! I know it may not hold up well today, but I remember going to my cousin's house and begging my parents for a Genesis after playing Road Rash every time! I can't wait to blow the dust off this one!

Then there is NBA Jam TE. I am not a sports fan by any means, but this was always so much fun to play! I still remember playing as Clinton to this day! The sound of the announcer saying "He's on Fire!" still echoes in my memories!

Sonic and Knuckles, I will most likely get alot more in depth on this one later! Wikipedia has a very nice article on this game and it's "Lock on" technology. I mainly wanted to play the new levels that it contains! But you can also attach older Sonic games and have access to knuckles as a playable character and other new levels and such in Sonic 3!