Video Games

Triforces and Choo-Choos

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The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks nearly brings the console Zelda experience to the DS.  I would call the console Zelda games my favorite game series, from A Link to the Past to Twilight Princess (I do like the NES Zelda games, but I don’t love them), so Spirit Tracks’, and its predecessor Phantom Hourglass’, attempts to bring that experience to a handheld is laudable, even though they ultimately fall a little short of the goal.  That is not to say that Spirit Tracks is a bad game, far from it, just that the sacrifices required fitting the game on the system robs it of some of what makes the console games so great.

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Life is a Dream

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I still had more to say about Klonoa than I was able to say on my Rambley Bits posts.  The subtitle-less (at least in America) Klonoa game for the Wii is a remake of Klonoa:  Door to Phantomile for the Playstation.  I have never played the original version, but from what I understand, the only substantial change is the significant graphical upgrade.  Instead of 2D sprites on a 3D background, the graphics are now much improved full 3D, though the gameplay remains mostly 2D.  It is a slower paced, more thoughtful New Super Mario Bros. and Klonoa makes better use of 3D space.

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Moons and Dragons and Adventure!

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I gushed a week or so ago about the early parts of Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete.  I’m glad to say the level of quality holds up through nearly the entire game.  And those parts that falter are only minimally disappointing.  Lunar delivers on everything it aspires to:  a mechanically unambitious but fundamentally sound old school JRPG with a cinematic flair.  It combines 16-bit goodness with just the right amount of modern influence to keep it from feeling archaic.

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