Completionist’s Nightmare

My weekly rewing has been on a little hiatus because of work trips. I resume this feature with one of the largest games ever made. It takes a large amount of time and skill to fully complete this game.



Donkey Kong 64 was the first Nintendo 64 game that required the expansion pak. The game had good graphics for the 64 and also had interesting gameplay. In each of the eight worlds you have objectives that need to be met by each of the five playable characters. Often you need to use a particular character and their special ability to reach areas that would otherwise be inaccessible. One of the very best parts of the game was the opening cut scene which contained the D.K. Rap.



Hopefully, this game will make it to the Virtual Console. If you have hundreds of hours to waste this would be a great game to purchase.

Peripheral Overload

I am really looking forward to Guitar Hero World Tour's release in October. It should provide an enhanced Guitar Hero experience and not provide a gimped port like Rock Band. Plus the drum set for it is awesome.

However, the downside of the game is figuring out where I am going to keep the drum set, an extra guitar, and a microphone. My living room is already overflowing with peripherals as it is.

I already have to move the guitar and the balance board just to open the cabinet where my games our stored. Someday I imagine that I will have to have a separate closet for my games. Until then I will have to put up with Tammie's constant nagging to clean them up.

Game Night

One of my favorite things growing up was to have game nights with my friends. We would play video games late into the night. Some of my favorite video games are my favorites not because of how incredible the game was but rather because of the fond memories I have staying up and playing them with friends.


As I have moved away from friends these game nights have ceased (except for bachelor parties). However, with more video games going online (and with more of my friends buying Wiis) video game night is making a triumphant return. Most often we will be playing Mario Kart, other times it will be Smash Bros. Brawl. If you are up for a game let me or Adibobea9 know what evening works best and we will try to accomodate.

Nintendo World Cup

This week again I am going back to one of my favorite games as a kid. Nintendo's World Cup.


This was a simplistic soccer game, but it had many great features. First, was the graphic style of the game. Nintendo's World Cup borrowed sprites from River City Ransom. When you tackle a player or hit them hard with a soccer ball their eyes bulge out.

Second, was the simple game play. You just tackle, pass, shoot, or do super shots (which consist of either a bicycle kick or a header). If you tackle someone enough they will pass out until a goal is scored or the ball goes out of bounds. Because of this you will often have times when all of the opposing team is passed out. Few things in gaming are as enjoyable as knocking out a soccer player by tackling them over and over.
It was really enjoyable to play through the game. The difficulty ramed up nicely. Cameroon, the first nation you play, is easy to beat. Their team spends most of the game laying on the ground. Germany, on the other hand, is a very difficult team to beat.

One-to-one

One of the biggest announcements from Nintendo at E3 is their new Wiimote attachement Wii MotionPlus. Wii MotionPlus, in conjunction with the sensor bar and the accelerameter already in the Wiimote, will provide enhanced motion sensing. "Every slight movement players make with their wrist or arm is rendered identically in real time on the screen, providing a true 1:1 response in their game play." Despite the promise of the new controls, I think that one-to-one motion controls will end up being a mixed blessing for video games. The Wii MotionPlus will make some games possible that are not possible with just the Wiimote. One game I am especially excited for is the potential for a frisbee golf game. However, the danger that must be avoided is making the controls too realistic. One of the main reasons I play video games is to do things that I am incapable of in real life. It is an escape. For example I love golf games because of my awesome golf skills in video games. Tiger Woods PGA Tour would lose a lot of its appeal to me if I was only as good in the video game as I was in real life. It wouldn't be fun to shoot a 120 golf round in a video game. For games to be enjoyable with Wii MotionPlus developers must be able to obtain the proper balance between realism and keeping the games accessible.