DS

Hardware Post Mortem: Who Won? Sony PlayStation Portable vs. Nintendo DS

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 04/12/2023
Posted in: Blogs, DS, Nintendo, PSP, Retro Consoles, Sony. 2 Comments

These two portables were a huge part of my early teen years. I pre-ordered the PSP when I was 14 years old. I used my allowance saved up for 6 months to slap down that $250. I hadn’t been that excited about a piece of hardware in my life. I made a wallpaper (see below) for it, prepped files to transfer to the measly 32MB memory card, and even picked out a case ahead of time. The Nintendo DS was more of an afterthought. I never got excited about it due to the less powerful hardware and then heavily criticized touch screen. People thought it would be full of gimmicky games and lack the essence of what made the Game Boy so great. I’ve owned both of these systems for many years now and have played a good majority of their libraries. I want to break down the categories into hardware, revisions, software, and then various game genres. Most people just pick the best-selling games and compare those, but the systems go deeper than that. Some genres were stronger on one system over another due to their button layout and unique hardware. I am honestly tired of these comparisons: The DS had Zelda and the PSP had God of War. It’s so much more than that.

Looks/Shelf Appeal

Sony PSP

This is the first thing that you will notice before even picking up the system, so it makes sense right? What system had the more attractive box, better pack-ins, and overall looks? This matters more than people think, especially for the casual gamer who doesn’t do extensive research beforehand or the non-gamers who make a spontaneous purchase.

The PSP overall had a much larger box than the DS. It even showed right up front what it included. You got a hand strap, 32MB Memory Stick Pro Duo for game saves, a UMD demo sampler, wired earbuds with a remote, a soft case, a cleaning cloth, and the system itself. For $250 you saw right there that you got some value for all that money. Not only that but the PSP itself was plastered on the front for all to see. The XMB showed a music, video, game, and photo symbol so you knew this thing could do multimedia. This was the last of the Sony of the ’90s where everything they created had value and they showed right up front what you were getting to entice buyers and it worked.

Unboxing the system felt premium and holding that sleek handheld was an experience I will never forget. It was sleek, and slim, looked futuristic, had a great build quality, and was comfortable in the hand. It was one of the best gaming unboxings of all time and nothing has topped that since.

Nintendo DS

The Nintendo DS wasn’t super appealing at first glance. The touch screen and the prominent stylus made you think it was a PDA or some sort (PDAs were still a thing back then) so it was confusing. Was it a game system or a personal organizer? The casual observer would be confused. The dual screens didn’t help either further pushing the PDA look. There was no video game shown on the front and the drab gray box was lifeless. There were no pack-ins either with the DS. While it was $100 cheaper than the PSP that sure made it appealing, but you didn’t get anything with it.

When you actually unboxed the system it was bulky, kind of ugly, and the screens weren’t very bright. A far cry from Sony’s bright LCD on the PSP, however, there was no ghosting on the DS like there was with the PSP-1000 model. The speakers sounded good and it had wifi as well, but another appealing factor was the backward compatibility with GameBoy Advance titles. This also acted as a peripheral port too. Great for rumble packs, and anything else you could imagine going in there.

Software

Sony PSP

The PSP was the first handheld to be a full multimedia station. This was before smartphones took off, so it was a very popular option for people wanting an MP3, video, photo, and gaming machine all in their pocket. It was fiddly with the videos as they had to be encoded in MP4. The PSP could also play WMA and MP3 files, but not FLAC or WAV. While the PSP could also display photos it seemed pointless without having a camera. While one would come later it was of terrible quality and nothing close to even what the first iPhone had. All of this multimedia stuff was great, but it came at a cost. Memory Stick Pro Duos were very expensive in larger capacities. The one it came with was meant only for game saves and DLC. If you wanted to do anything else you need to get a 64MB one or higher. Forget sticks that were 1GB. These cost hundreds of dollars and took a couple of years before coming down to an affordable price. This was Sony’s future-proofing the system, but it wasn’t appealing to early adopters. I remember my first large memory card was a 512MB and that cost $70 just one year later.

This was essentially where the XMB was born. What we got on the PS3 and PS4 and even a little bit on the PS5. Many Sony Blu-Ray players also used this menu system. It was simple and easy to figure out. Sony would later add comic support, web browsing (which was awful and slow), RSS feeds, and digital TV in Japan. It tried to do it all, but it couldn’t do it all very well. It helped show off the power of the PSP.

Nintendo DS

What you see is what you get. This is all there was to the DS’s software. This single screen. You could go into the options and set your birthday for certain games to recognize, but that’s about it. There was a simple calendar and analog clock. Pictochat was your only app and you could choose which game slot to play and DS Download Play, but that’s it. The DS didn’t focus on anything else but the games, and for the price, you expected that. I was surprised the DS had a menu system at all of how simplistic the overall design was. There was no need for more expensive memory cards as all games were saved on the game card.

Online Capabilities

Sony PSP

This was the early 2000s. Everything was online or needed to be. The PSP had this in mind right out of the gate with what Sony called “Infrastructure” play or online play. Many launch titles had it, but they also had “Ad-Hoc” play which was wireless local multiplayer. Some games had the ability to play online locally with one UMD which was awesome, but very few games support this. Playing online was as simple as connecting to an access point, but this became impossible when later routers would implement WPA2 wifi security which the PSP did not support. Being able to go on a web browser was neat. Does anyone remember the hidden one in Wipeout Pure? Downloading DLC on a handheld was also really cool. You could later download comics, and RSS feeds, which were ahead of their time. Only smartphones were doing this. However, in the end, it was up to the game to support online play. Sadly, neither system supported a friends list, clans, rankings, or anything like that.

Nintendo DS

Surprisingly, the DS was capable of the same online play as the PSP, but mostly local wireless was implemented. You could play with up to four players off of one cart if the developers allowed it and even beam demos to your friends. This was utilized more than the PSP, and very few games had online play. The DS suffered from the same security incompatibility as the PSP later on but also had a feature the PSP didn’t have: DS Download Play. You could go to game stores and download demos of games which was really cool. Sadly, due to the lack of a storage option, you could not download or obtain DLC in any way unless it was in the cart and became unlocked by connecting to a server. Overall, the online capabilities of the DS were barely there.

Hardware/Features

Sony PSP

The PSP is technically superior in pretty much every way. A faster CPU and GPU, more RAM, a bigger screen, an external wifi switch, larger physical media capacity, and a few more options. However, the CPU was underclocked for a good year to 222Mhz to save battery life until God of War: Chains of Olympus came out to overclock it to the full 333Mhz. A firmware update was required to even do this which shipped with the game. While the media capacity was larger, a UMD was 1.8 GB compared to a DS cart’s 512MB max capacity. That’s three times larger. This allowed for richer worlds, more content, and better visuals overall. The downside to this was spinning media on a battery. The UMD sucked the battery’s life down and thus games later in the system’s life opted for data installs as the prices of memory cards came down.

The physical design of the PSP while beautiful and ergonomic was also fragile. The system got dust under the plastic lens easily, the LCD could easily crack (I cracked mine only a few months in from just being in my pocket), the UMD drive failed, and while the battery was removable it was a fairly low capacity only giving users around 3-4 hours. The LCD also had serious ghosting issues, but many didn’t notice this as LCD screens were still expensive. While the PSP did a noble job on its first outing it had some serious flaws that were later addressed in newer models.

Nintendo DS

The DS had lower-powered hardware, but the battery lasted much longer. Getting nearly 8-10 hours on a single charge. There were no spinning media to worry about or a large power-hungry screen. The DS did have smaller screens and while they were clear, the backlight wasn’t that great on the first model. The touch screen was also prone to scratching. So in the screen department, it didn’t do so well. The DS didn’t have a sleep mode like the PSP did. The game had to support going to sleep so you could close the DS up. The DS was built better and felt sturdy however the hinge was a weak point. The stylus was also prone to get lost and when that’s gone you can’t play any games at all. A losable core piece of hardware is a downside.

In the end, they both have their strengths and weaknesses. The DS has lower-powered hardware, but the touchscreen forces gameplay innovation and creativity. The PSP looks sleek, but it is really fragile and the spinning media sucks the battery. You also need expensive proprietary memory cards. With the PSP’s largest strength being processing power, the DS just edges out on everything else.

Revisions

Revision 1

Sony PSP-2000

Handhelds are notorious for hardware revisions. Some give better processing power they are, in the end, built to cost and are meant to be cheaper to produce. Both systems had many revisions with pros and cons. For starters, the PSP’s revision of the PSP-2000 or “Slim and Lite” reduced the screen ghosting by a lot, but made the PSP feel lighter and too cheap. It felt more plastic-like and had fewer metal parts inside. It came in many more colors and bundles but also didn’t come with anything like a value pack. This was just a core model. Sadly, the storage option wasn’t addressed and the battery was surprisingly shrunk down so you got less battery life. The only addition was video output which was nice but made no sense. However, Sony did double the RAM for faster loading times and better web browsing. The D-pad was also slightly improved. That was probably the second greatest addition next to the better screen. It was a modest revision, but nothing spectacular, and didn’t focus on the system’s biggest weaknesses.

Nintendo DS Lite

Nintendo released a strikingly slimmer Nintendo DS Lite. This thing was very sleek and gave off PSP vibes with how slim it was. Like the PSP-2000 not much was addressed. The biggest complaints were the size and chunkiness of the original model and that was taken care of. Brighter screens, a longer-lasting battery, and a longer stylus were added so nearly every issue of the original model was fixed. This is the perfect DS to get if you want GBA compatibility.

In the end, the PSP didn’t address enough of its bigger issues and added features that didn’t enhance the overall experience. While the DS Lite didn’t add anything new it focused on improvement.

Revision 2

Sony PSP-3000

The PSP-3000 was sony’s last full-size revision. It had even fewer improvements over the 2000 model only adding the best screen yet with half-reduced pixel response time, more brightness, and a better contrast ratio. However, the parts were cheapened even more and it almost feels like a toy at this point. The component video was added to the video output which is nice I guess. I never understood hooking a handheld up to a TV. It kind of defeats the purpose and it looks ugly. That was it. The lens on the screen reduced glare, but overall with was a severely cost-reduced model and that was clearly the goal. By now the PSP was at its peak and was quickly dropping in sales.

Nintendo DSi

This is where Nintendo took a step back. They removed the GBA slot which rendered all DS accessories useless and had no backward compatibility. Instead, they added two cameras which were awful and pointless. I would have rather kept the GBA slot. We did get a more powerful CPU for the DSi shop and a new home screen. The doubled CPU power was nice and helped with DS games that suffered a slowdown on the previous models. We also got a four times RAM increase, and 256MB of internal storage for the DSiWare games, plus an SD card slot. While the GBA slot was taken away we did get an actual advancement in the software and hardware side of things, unlike the PSP. The last downside was shorter battery life due to the larger screens, increased CPU speed, and a better wifi card.

Revision 3

Sony PSP GO

This was Sony’s final outing and it was a drastic change. They wanted to really push the PlayStation Store by making a digital-only handheld. That’s great and all, but what about all that physical media out there? They promised a program that would allow you to download a digital game if you had the physical one, but there was no way to prove this and prevent piracy. In the end, you had to re-buy everything and this killed sales. They also introduced a new, more expensive, and harder-to-find propriety storage that came in smaller sizes than memory stick pro duos. The memory stick micro or M2 card maxed out at 32GB. Despite this serious downside the new compact slide-out design was reminiscent of phones in the day and was a huge hit with fans. Again, there’s a downside to this. The 4.3″ screen was reduced to 3.8″.

While Bluetooth was added to connect a PS3 controller to play on a TV Sony continued to alienate previous owners by now making the cable proprietary and removing USB support. This was to support the official dock as the PSP could act as an analog clock, MP3 player, and video player, however, this was too late. While it’s a super sleek handheld, and the 16GB of internal storage is a good start it’s not enough. There should have easily been 32GB of internal storage and SD card support. But Sony’s rampant frothing-at-the-mouth drive to deter piracy killed the sales of their system.

Nintendo DSi XL

This is probably the best version of the DS to get overall. It sadly doesn’t improve anything outside of larger screens and better battery life. If you want bigger screens get this. If you want smaller screens, get a DSi. I owned one at one point and loved the larger 3.25″ screens. The system feels heavier but still sleek and well-built. I can’t give this one to Nintendo this time due to how little they changed anything. At least Sony tried to re-design the entire PSP despite its many setbacks.

Physical Games

Action

Sony PSP

The power of the PSP was suited for action games. Lots of explosions, fun combat, and the analog nub helped with this. Sadly, the lack of a second stick meant camera control was left to the computer or other buttons. Action games were plenty on the PSP with a lot of bestsellers. Most of Sony’s AAA titles were in this category. While not all of them were knocked out of the park, many showed off the power of the PSP and it set it apart from the DS at least in that way.

Some notable games are the God of War, Syphon Filter, Pursuit Force, Grand Theft Auto, Jak & Daxter, Ratchet & Clank, Ace Combat, Assassin’s Creed, Call of Duty, Brothers in Arms, Coded Arms, Monster Hunter, God Eater, Killzone, Manhunt, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Medal of Honor, Metal Gear Solid, Prince of Persia and the list goes on. These were massive franchises and most had the PSPs’ back. If you want to play action games there is no shortage on the PSP.

Nintendo DS

The DS did have some action games, but the lack of analog control and the stylus made it difficult to port games or stick known franchises on the system. There weren’t many 3D action games as the system was best with 2D platformers and RPGs. We did get a few noteworthy titles such as Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, Dementium, Moon, Metroid Prime: Hunters, Call of Duty, Brothers in Arms, Ninja Gaiden, Contra, Okamiden, and LEGO, and that about sums up 3D action titles on the DS. It was slim pickings, and only a few of these titles were amazing.

Racing

Sony PSP

Due to the PSP’s 3D capabilities racing games were huge on the system. If you were a racing fan this was the system for you. Nearly every major franchise landed on the system. ATV, MX, Burnout, Juiced, Need for Speed, Ridge Racer, Flatout, Split/Second, TOCA Race Driver, Gran Turismo, Wipeout, Outrun, Test Drive, Midnight Club, MotorStorm, Sega Rally, MotoGP, F1, WRC, NASCAR, Hot Wheels, Micro Machines, you name it. Not all of these were fantastic titles, but a lot of these games looked good and felt great on the handheld.

Nintendo DS

The DS didn’t lack any racing games, but due to the weaker 3D abilities of the system racing games weren’t the first stop for the system. Mario Kart probably dominated that genre single-handedly, but there were some third-party franchises as well. Burnout, Need for Speed, Asphalt, GRID, Sonic Racing, Trackmania, Racer Driver, Moto Racer, Dirt, Juiced, Ridge Racer, Diddy Kong, and a few others. While some of these franchises were also on PSP they were far superior. Some developers created all new experiences on DS over the PSP so they were their own unique games, but the ports weren’t very good and felt slow and boring. While there are a few solid titles on the DS it’s not the go-to genre for this system or its strength.

RPG

Sony PSP

The PSP was a strong system full of JRPGs. Not many Western ones made it to the system with the biggest being The Elder Scrolls Travels: Oblivion having been canceled. Many franchises, nearly all of the popular ones, made it onto the system both 3D and 2D. Remakes remasters, and one-shots made it onto the system as well. Series like Star Ocean, Final Fantasy, Persona, Kingdom Hearts, Valkyrie Profile, Ys, Lunar, The Legend of Heroes, Crimson Gem Saga, Class of Heroes, Brave Story, Phantasy Star, Dungeon Siege, Untold Legends, Growlanser, Tales of the World, Blade Dancer, and many others. If you notice a lot of these are lesser-known series, and Final Fantasy most dominated the system. There were more RPGs released only in Japan that the West never got. Thankfully some have been translated by fans.

Nintendo DS

The DS was clearly the strong winter in the RPG department. While it didn’t see hardly any Wester RPGs, JRPGs dominated the system and were one of its strong suits. 2D RPGs and even 3D isometric ones were popular with pretty much every franchise backing the system. Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, Mario & Luigi, Pokemon, Dragon Quest, Radiant Historia, Shin Megami Tensei, Lunar Knights, Nostalgia, Etrian Odyssey, Chrono Trigger, Lufia, Golden Sun, Rune Factory, Suikoden, Sonic, Luminous Arc, Phantasy Star, Avalon Code, Digimon, and the list goes on. As you can probably tell Pokemon alone would win this category. But you had Shin Megami Tensei games that weren’t Persona. Unique Final Fantasy games that weren’t remakes or ports. Quite a few one-shot exclusives. Dragon Quest never made it to the PSP, and neither did Suikoden. There’s so much variety here that any JRPG fan will love the DS in this category.

Puzzle

Sony PSP

Puzzle games are great in any portable form and every handheld has had a good amount of them. The PSP was no exception with the puzzle rhythm hybrid Lumines being the first on the system. The PSP got a ton of original puzzle games and ports. Some of them are wholly fantastic. Games like echochrome, Lumines, Crush, Exit, Practical Intelligence Quotient, Downstream Panic, Mercury, and others were great games that fit the widescreen of the PSP. There were also a lot of bad puzzle games on PSP, and sadly more than good ones.

Nintendo DS

The touch screen was just screaming for puzzle games. You can physically manipulate them outside of buttons and it gave the genre a chance to add another dimension. There were so many puzzle games on the DS that it drowned the PSP in comparison. Brain Age, Big Brain Academy, Picross, Meteos, Tetris, Planet Puzzle League, Professor Layton, Henry Hatsworth, Scribblenauts, Peggle, Touchmaster, Polarium, Crosswords, Clubhouse Games, and the list goes on. There weren’t just traditional puzzle games, but word games as well. Sudoku, Crosswords, and many others allowed you to write answers. That’s more than the PSP could. This is a situation where the genre fits the system better here.

Platformer

Sony PSP

The PSP has a hardware advantage here. The system isn’t just stuck with 2D platformers. 3D ones were common on the system, but then another hardware fault bites it in the ass. The lack of a second analog nub means no camera control. This became a widespread problem in the system. 3D platformers were frustrated endeavors and the DS’ lower-powered hardware suddenly could shine because of this. Games like Death Jr., Daxter, Ratchet & Clank, Pac-Man World, Jak & Daxter, Crash Bandicoot, Toy Story, and many others were decent to middling. 3D platformers would have been a huge leg up for the PSP if it just had another analog nub. That’s not to say 2D platformers never made it to the system. Games like LittleBigPlanet, Mega Man, Prinny, Ghost & Goblins, N+, Castlevania, and many others made it to the system and performed better, but there just wasn’t a lot of them. The PSP isn’t anything to sniff at when it comes to platformers, but nothing truly stood out.

Nintendo DS

With the power of Nintendo’s already strong platformer games and a lot of third-party series the DS really did shine. It didn’t have to worry about clumsy 3D controls either. Games like New Super Mario Bros., Super Mario 64, Super Princess Peach, Sonic, Kirby, Mega Man, Spider-Man, Castlevania, Wario, The Legendary Starfy, Yoshi, Contra, Aliens, and many others. Super Mario 64 was one of the rare 3D platformers, but it worked well thanks to being tailored for the system. It might kind of feel like there’s cheating here because Nintendo has such a strong presence in the platformer genre, but what’s here is here. While the PSP may have had a larger variety of platformers, the DS had a much stronger sense of quality.

Sports

Sony PSP

With the advantage of 3D and not needing to really use a camera the sports genre had an advantage here. Sony had their own sports series, plus third-party companies like EA and 2K could throw there’s on here as well. Games like NBA 2K, NBA Street, NFL Street, Tiger Woods, Pangya, Madden, FIFA, Fight Night, Hot Shots, Tony Hawk, WWE, NHL, Virtua Tennis, NBA Live, Pro Evolution Soccer, Football Manager, The Bigs, and the list goes on. There was a massive pouring of sports games on the system of nearly every genre. While a lot of them aren’t very good there is at least one decent title in every series on the system.

Nintendo DS

Now the DS was interesting when it came to sports titles. Developers had to be creative to put their series on this system due to the lack of 3D horsepower. Series like Tony Hawk were better on the DS (outside of Underground 2 Remix) because of this creativity needed. You also had series like Tiger Woods use the touch screen in unique ways. There were many series on the DS as well like FIFA and Madden, but they weren’t really any good. Nintendo had its own sports series like Mario Hoops, Mario & Sonic, and True Swing Golf, but again, nothing special. Many series were a one-and-done on here like WWE, Skate, Real Soccer, and some others that just didn’t perform well. The DS was a real mixed bag in the sports arena with only a few standout titles. This is where the lack of 3D power hurt despite the unique controls.

Rhythm

Sony PSP

Rhythm games during this era weren’t very popular on handhelds in the West. They exploded in the East and you usually had to import them if you wanted the best the systems had to offer. This was mostly the case with the PSP. There was Rock Band Unplugged and Lumines in the West, but Japan, China, and Korea got the likes of Hatsune Miku: Project Diva, DJ Max Portable, K-On, and Pop’n Music. The PSP’s widescreen format was great for rhythm games as it allowed a wide playfield and the number of buttons worked out great. The power of the system also allowed for music videos to play in the background which most rhythm games did.

Nintendo DS

The DS may not have had the powerful hardware or widescreen format, but the touch screen was a more physical and unique interaction for rhythm games that matched the arcade. Games like Elite Beat Agents, Ontomarama, Rhythm Heaven, Lego Rock Band, Guitar Hero, and many more. There was a much larger Western following thanks to the touch screen, but many of the rhythm games lacked content due to the cartridge’s small size and no way to download DLC. A lot of the DS rhythm games were more experimental and thus many didn’t review them as well as PSP rhythm games. Guitar Hero was fine, but the grip controller cramped your hands. There were also more consistent franchises on PSP with yearly releases, but the downside was needing to import.

Fighting

Sony PSP

The power of the PSP allowed for great 3D fighters and many jumped ship from their console cousins. Franchises like Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, Tekken, Dragon Ball Z, BlazBlue, SouCalibur, and many more made it onto the PSP. At least one entry in every major fighting franchise made it over and most were original titles. That’s not to say a majority reviewed well. Most of the 3D fighters reviewed with middling scores, and this was mainly due to the PSP’s not-so-ideal D-pad for fighting games. Despite the less-than-desirable score average, they made it onto the system nonetheless and many gamers ate them up.

Nintendo DS

The DS had some major franchises make it over like Mortal Kombat, Guilty Gear, Dragon Ball Z, Bleach, and Naruto, but it wasn’t as vast as the PSP. The DS was even less ideal for fighting games due to a lack of analog input, and the DS’ D-pad wasn’t much better. Some games added a touchscreen swipe system, but these just never felt the same. Sadly, the lack of power meant 3D fighters suffered, and 2D fighters looked squished on the small screen.

Conclusion

Well, despite this seeming like a competition each system has its strengths and weaknesses and some might play better to what you want over others. Some may only play RPGs on handheld so the DS would be the best system for you. Some may want more multimedia features so the PSP would be the way to go. While in the comparisons the PSP seems to have a stronger library it only seems that way at first. A lot of PSP games didn’t review as well as DS games on average. The lack of first-party support with Sony not releasing as many games as Nintendo did on the DS and the DS’ lack of power and unique controls forced developers to make games from the ground up. The PSP received a lot worse PS2 ports and movie tie-ins than the DS did. The PSP’s power was also a crutch that many developers leaned heavily on and it didn’t pay off most of the time. Each system is worthy in your collection, but this contrast and comparison may help those who are on the fence in one area or another.

In Defense of the 7: Nintendo DS Exclusives

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 03/29/2023
Posted in: Blogs, DS, Nintendo, Retro Consoles. Leave a comment

Many people use video game reviews to determine how to spend their hard-earned dollars. While as an adult I don’t take this as seriously and I now make my own money I am more forgiving of games that aren’t perfect. As kids or teens, we have limited money and are usually picked through gaming magazines to determine if that one game was worth the money because we only got a few a year. For me, it was only during Christmas time that my parents bought games. I mostly rented mine throughout my childhood and teen years. Even for rentals, I was picky as I didn’t want to be stuck on my weekend with a dud of a game. Even a 7/10 or 3.5/5 would be considered a waste of time. This was the last generation in which AAA title after AAA title would be considered fantastic and with so many exclusives it was hard to keep up with. The HD era of gaming would see budgets balloon to insane heights and game releases slowed down as a result.

In my eyes, 7/10 or 3.5/5 games are mostly ignored. These aren’t always considered hidden gems either. Some are, but some are just considered forgettable. Not awful or good, but just passes under everyone’s radar. These aren’t the “so bad it’s good” games either. A few of these games have cult followings; a few I had only heard of while compiling this list and some I played myself growing up. I compiled this list from Metacritic with games between 74-70. I feel that’s the true blue 7 range. 79 and 78-rated games usually only have about 25% of the critics giving it a 7 to bring an otherwise 8 score down some. These games are at least rated by half the critics as 7/10. While I know many people don’t listen to critics and some might feel this game should be rated higher or lower is subjective. Like it or not, critic reviews drive sales and it may be the reason why you might find a few games on this list you’ve never heard of, thought was talked about worse than you remember, or something along those lines

Pokemon Trozei! – 2005

A fun matching puzzle game, but lacked any modes and overall content. The graphics were also really simple despite looking at the part. The issue is that the game gets old really fast. It’s not as addictive as other puzzlers of its ilk.

Most Recent Entry: Pokemon Shuffle – 2015 (AND, iOS, 3DS)

Inazuma Eleven – 2008
Inazuma Eleven 2: Firestorm/Blizzard – 2009

This a great jumping-in point for new players as this new set of games are almost identical to the first game. You just get more of the same, and that’s not always bad. The original game was praised for blending soccer with RPG elements, but the soccer part wasn’t all that great. It’s still a unique series to check out.

Most Recent Entry: Inazuma Eleven Go: Chrono Stones – Thunderflash/Wildfire – 2015 (3DS)

Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume – 2009

This is considered the worst game in the series, but that’s saying a lot. The story alone is worth playing, but the game can feel overly complex at times and the AI is pretty bad.

Most Recent Entry: Valkyrie Elysium – 2022 (PS4, PS5, PC)

99Bullets – 2011

Well-liked for blending two genres well, but lacked content and was a little on the hard side. It’s still a very unique vertical shooter and felt like a good diversion from the anime-based shooters at the time.

Zoonies – Escape from Makatu – 2011

A cute and fun albeit forgettable platformer. The game also had some control issues and was really short, but at least it felt at home eon DSiWare.

Meteos: Disney Magic – 2007

More of the same with a Disney skin. The changes didn’t improve the game, but instead just made it different. If you love Meteos this one is worth picking up. It’s sad this series was so short-lived.

Most Recent Entry: Meteos Wars – 2008 (X360)

Big Brain Academy – 2005

A good improvement to the series and the puzzles get harder are you continue to play adding replay value. However, the overall content is a bit lacking and is only fun in short bursts.

Most Recent Entry: Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain – 2021 (NS)

Drone Tactics – 2008

Yes, it’s an Atlus game so that means there are some big fans of this game. While the strategy is fun and the game looks slick, the storyline is childish and pretty stupid. Many rolled their eyes at the story and skipped past it just to get to the meat of the game. In any RPG that’s not a good thing, but the gameplay is good enough to justify this.

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood – 2008

This game doesn’t need any introduction to Sonic fans or those avid in their DS lore. Bioware of all people made this game and it was incredibly hyped. A dark and mature Sonic RPG? What’s not to love? The game is way too simple. There are no deep gameplay elements or RPG things in here. It was clearly geared towards younger children despite the great visuals and unique twist on the series.

Most Recent Entry: Sonic Frontiers – 2022 (PC, PS4, XONE, PS5, XSX, NS)

Bomberman Land Touch 2! – 2008

Bomberman tried the Mario Party approach and didn’t quite hit it off. The game was way too simple and there wasn’t much depth to the title. However, there was a lot of content and the use of the touch screen was well implemented.

Most Recent Entry: Amazing Bomberman – 2022 (X360)

Custom Robo Arena – 2007

A decent RPG if not mundane and formulaic. The story is boring and the quests aren’t all that great, but fans of the series or just anime RPGs, in general, might find some value here. This would be the third and final game in the series.

New International Track & Field – 2008

A remake of the original game with cutesy big-headed characters. Some said the game should have been on a console as the dual screens made the game feel off, but some preferred it. It at least had online play at the time which was nice. This would sadly be the final game in the long-running series.

Puchi Puchi Virus – 2009

A solid puzzle game that was different from the rest. While it did grow stale after a while and didn’t have the staying power of Meteos or Tetris it was different at least. The bright colors were nice and it had some character.

Luminous Arc – 2007
Luminous Arc 2 – 2008

This is a great game for casual gamers who want to dip their toes in the SRPG genre. While it looks good and has some good writing, the game isn’t very deep and can be too easy for vets of the genre.

Yoshi Touch & Go – 2005

A fantastic tech demo during the system’s launch, but that was about it. The game was really short and mostly focused on showing off the touch screen and other features. It’s still worth a pick-up to remind you just how unique and fun the DS really is.

Most Recent Entry: Yoshi’s Crafted World – 2019 (NS)

Viewtiful Joe: Double Trouble! – 2005

While not the best use of the dual screens, and there’s no lefty mode, the game still looks great, but the action is mediocre compared to the console brethren. If you love the series you will like what’s here, but just know that it’s also rather short. This would sadly be the final game in the short-lived series.

Ultimate Mortal Kombat – 2007

Many criticized the game for not adding anything and being merely an emulated port. It was solid and ran well, but also had online play, but good luck finding anyone at the time. Included was the awesome Puzzle Fighter from Mortal Kombat: Deception which I personally really liked and spent more time playing than the fighting part itself. The special moves on the touch screen are nice and you can track your W/L ratio. It doesn’t utilize the touchscreen in innovative ways, but it didn’t need to.

Most Recent Entry: Mortal Kombat 11 – 2019 (PC, PS4, XONE, NS)

Prism: Light the Way – 2007

A fun and unique puzzle game if not bland in presentation. The story was considered silly and pointless, but the puzzles were addictive and that’s what matters the most.

Polarium – 2005

While a boring presentation and bland visuals might put you to sleep puzzle fans will find some joy here. The puzzles are rather hard, but not worth going back to. There is a puzzle maker that you can beam to friends though. There was a sequel later released on GBA of all systems.

Most Recent Entry: Polarium Advance – 2005 (GBA)

Yu-Gi-Oh! Nightmare Troubadour – 2005
Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s Stardust Accelerator: World Championship 2009 – 2009

These are considered the most newbie-friendly games at the time of release, but many will still get lost in the story without deep knowledge of the game’s anime lore. It captured the card game very well and had a rebuild of the entire series at this point in time. That was all well and good, but the steep learning curve for non-fans turned many away.

Most Recent Entry: Yu-Gi-Oh!: Master Duel – 2022 (NS, XONE, PS5, XSX, PS4, PC)

Summon Night: Twin Age – 2008

There’s nothing really wrong with this game. It’s a bit grind-heavy, sure, but the Diablo-esque combat and interesting quests made for a fun adventure. It just didn’t really stand out from the crowd much. It’s an Atlus series, so it has a lot of fans. The series would come to an end in 2016.

Most Recent Entry: Summon Night 6: Lost Borders – 2016 (PS4, VITA)

Super Robot Taisen OG Saga: Endless Frontier – 2009

Good writing, if mostly pervy talk, but good nonetheless, and an easy yet addictive combat system won’t fans over. It’s not the best game in the series, but it’s a more relaxing and fun game rather than serious.

Most Recent Entry: Super Robot Wars 30 – 2021 (PC, PS4, NS)

Glory Days 2 – 2007

A unique game for the system but the small screens make playing a bit annoying. While nothing exceptionally amazing it does what it seeks out to do well enough.

Most Recent Entry: Glory Days: Tactical Defense – 2011 (DS)

Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans – 2009

A well made if formulaic JRPG in the DBZ universe. Many praised the visuals and interesting story…for fans. Yeah, you probably won’t want to bother unless you’re a fan of the show.

Most Recent Entry: Dragon Ball: The Breakers – 2022 (PC, NS, PS4, XONE)

Contact – 2006

It’s an Atlus game. Yeah, Atlus had some very mediocre games on the DS, but they get credit for trying something new. Contact is one of those. Praised for its humor and interesting story, but had boring combat and exploration. You either love it or hate it.

Brothers in Arms DS – 2007

While given props for being an incredibly good-looking DS game and keeping the core BiA action intact, the game was rather short and over before you knew it. It had some online play, but barely. Sadly, the series never saw a true sequel.

Most Recent Entry: Brothers in Arms 3: Sons of War – 2014 (AND, iOS)

Harvest Moon: Frantic Farming – 2009

While not perfect, the puzzle gameplay is a nice change of pace for the series. While some of the puzzles felt like they had to be completed a certain way, any puzzle fan could get into this regardless of their Harvest Moon affinity.

Most Recent Entry: Doraemon: Story of Seasons – Friends of the Great Kingdom – 2022 (PS5, NS, PC)

Front Mission – 2007

A remake of the SNES classic, this is a deep and involved game that requires patience and a love for either mechs or the SRPG genre. This game turned many fans of the genre away for its complexity and sometimes dry presentation, but it still has a few layers of fun.

Most Recent Entry: Left Alive – 2019 (PC, PS4)

Dementium: The Ward – 2007

I personally love this series. It’s not perfect and has some pretty bad level design, and can be really frustrating, but the engine Renegade Kid designed is gorgeous. A 60FPS shooter on this system looks amazing. It’s also one of the best horror games on the system. It was later remastered on the 3DS which is probably the best version.

Most Recent Entry: Dementium: Remastered – 2015 (3DS)

Theme Park – 2007

A straight port of the 1994 classic, but that’s all it was. Nothing new was added or changed, and the game is overly complicated sometimes which would turn off casual sim fans. If you have the patience for the small screen and complex gameplay then you will have fun.

Most Recent Entry: Theme Park – 2011 (AND, iOS)

Mario Party DS – 2007

I remember when this game came out. Everyone was hyped for it but was let down by the board design despite the stylus and touch screen bringing a new dynamic to mini-games. The single-player was also really disappointing and was best played with friends. This is the one and only Mario Party game on DS.

Most Recent Entry: Mario Party Superstars – 2021 (NS)

Boing! Docomodake DS – 2009

A cute and quirky DS game that came over from Japan. The downside is the extreme amount of trial and error to get through the game. If you can stomach that then this is one really unique game that flew under everyone’s radar.

Go! Go! Kokopolo: Harmonius Forest Revenge – 2011

Considered one of the best DSiWare games on the system, the fresh characters and fun charm of the game were well-liked, but the brutal difficulty turned many away. It would get one more sequel on 3DS before being forgotten.

Most Recent Entry: Go! Go! Kokopolo 3D: Space Recipe for Disaster – 2017 (3DS)

Nostalgia – 2009

The name says it all. This game is for those who grew up with SNES or PS1 JRPGs. With that in mind, the game doesn’t add anything to the genre and is pretty formulaic. The story is good but takes a long time to get going, but with patience and nostalgia on your side fans will love it.

Pac-Pix – 2005
Pac ‘n Roll – 2005

A fun and unique early title for the system, but the interface and gimmicky controls got old after a while and only the most patient or diehard fans would complete the game. It’s still completely unique to the DS ecosystem. Pac-Pix was a fun scribbling game that let your drawings come to life. Very simple, but a great tech demo for the DS.

Most Recent Entry: Pac-Man World: Re-Pac – 2022 (PC, PS4, XONE, NS, PS5, XSX)

Guitar Hero: On Tour – 2008
Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades – 2008
Guitar Hero: On Tour Modern Hits – 2009

I remember getting the first Guitar Hero game for DS with the hand grip keys attached to the GBA slot of the DS. It worked really well, but anyone who didn’t have child-size hands would get serious cramps. You were also locked out of the game if you had a DSi which nixed the GBA slot. The great addition to this game was being able to play with friends with a single cart.

Most Recent Entry: Guitar Hero Live – 2015 (XONE, PS4, PS3, iOS, X360, WIIU)

Jam Sessions – 2007

More of a learning tool than a game. Well, yeah. That’s where it stops. There’s not much of a game here. It also didn’t teach you how to play guitar like an expert but got the basics across. The DS was a unique system that allowed learning software like this.

Most Recent Entry: Jam Sessions 2 – 2009 (DS)

DodoGo! Robo – 2011

The smaller package didn’t improve upon the sequels but just felt like an expansion or DLC. The puzzles were punishing but satisfying once conquered. The game also lacked any nice presentation looking dull in most spots.

Electroplankton – 2006

A fun and unique take on art and music but lacked a save feature which really irked players back in the day. It offered something new every time you booted up the game and felt like a piece of interactive art.

Moon – 2009

Moon was an underrated FPS game on DS that used Renegade Kid’s engine. It was smooth, fun, and had a great atmosphere. It was later remastered for the 3DS.

Most Recent Entry: Moon Chronicles – 2014 (3DS)

Kirby: Squeak Squad – 2006

A fun game if formulaic when it comes to Kirby games. It didn’t do anything new and was really easy and only offered forgettable mini-games. Mainline fans will still find something here to like.

Most Recent Entry: Kirby’s Dream Buffet – 2022 (NS)

Nanostray – 2005

The short-lived series was well-liked by shmup fans. The game was fun, but very short and didn’t do anything particularly fantastic with the genre. It’s still a great addition to your library if you’re a fan of these types of games.

Most Recent Entry: Nano Assault – 2011 (3DS)

Phantasy Star 0 – 2009

A decent take on the series in portable form. The game offered online play and fantastic grinding with friends, but the single-player experience wasn’t as interesting. While it was fun and you could do it the series is meant to be played online. Just be prepared to do a lot of grinding.

Most Recent Entry: Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis – 2020 (PC)

TouchMaster – 2007

This was a fun set of “car ride” games, but not every game would be suitable for everyone. You would pick your favorites and never touch the rest. It feels like you got ripped off. Thankfully the series would improve.

Most Recent Entry: TouchMaster Connect – 2010 (DS)

Ontamarama – 2007

One of the best rhythm games on the DS, but everyone kept putting it up against Elite Beat Agents at the time. It’s by no means bad but does feel sort of generic in comparison. It’s not zany or whacky, but just a fun anime-style rhythm game.

Draglade – 2007

Another Atlus game on the list. Draglade is a unique mix of rhythm action and fighting, but the story is silly, there’s not much depth or challenge, and it’s over before you know it. It’s still a fun anime-style game.

Birds & Beans – 2009

A small $2 game that doesn’t utilize any of the DS’ features is brave, but it worked here. It’s a fun and frantic arcade game with no shame about what it offers.

Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light – 2010

If you’re dying to jump back into the world of FFXII then look no further. This is a by-the-numbers JRPG with simple combat and a simple plot, but sometimes that’s okay.

Most Recent Entry: Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin – 2022 (PC, PS4, PS5, XONE, XSX)

Space Bust-A-Move – 2009

If you liked more of what the series has offered then look no further. The formula hasn’t changed in over a decade, but it’s still a lot of fun with unlockables and a space theme.

Most Recent Entry: Bust-A-Move: Journey – 2017 (AND, iOS)

Avalon Code – 2009

The Book of Prophecy is a unique gameplay mechanic that allows you to capture things and manipulate their attributes. The UI and interface are a mess, and the game requires a lot of hours behind it to fully enjoy the game. The complexity is well worth overcoming for the unique gameplay mechanic.

Digimon World DS – 2006

The series struggled to find its own identity outside of Pokemon. While the farming idea was fresh and the capture method was different it was a new start for the series, but not quite enough. It’s still a solid handheld entry.

Most Recent Entry: Digimon Survive – 2022 (PC, NS, PS4, XONE)

Save the Turtles – 2010

While teaching you about marine conservation this puzzle game was cute looking and fairly good for the cheap price point. It won’t blow you away, but it was a fun offering for all ages.

Resident Evil: Deadly Silence – 2006

This remake using the DS controls works just fine, but it doesn’t offer anything new. The game itself feels dated despite how perfectly fun it was at the time. If you are tired of the original game don’t bother. However, this is a good jumping in point for those who want a more modern update.

Most Recent Entry: Resident Evil Re:Verse – 2022 (PC)

Spectrobes: Beyond the Portals – 2008

The poor man’s Pokemon, or Digimon for that matter. While the monster trainer part was fine it wasn’t very deep and too simple for anyone familiar with other games in the genre. It’s still worth a look if you’re tired of said games.

Most Recent Entry: Spectrobes: Origins – 2009 (WII)

Gunpey DS – 2006

This puzzle game series was short-lived at the time, and while it was easy to learn but hard to master the overall difficulty wasn’t that high and you could easily achieve high ranks without a sweat. It’s still a cute-looking and fun game. This would sadly be the final game in the series.

Nervous Brickdown – 2007

A fun and stylish Breakout clone, but it doesn’t do anything new with the genre. The mini-games are fun, but they feel constrained to the gameplay element of bouncing a ball around and it hinders it a bit.

Cooking Mama 2: Dinner With Friends – 2007

The series was feeling stale at this point, but no game is incredibly awful as long as the unique controls work. These games are addictive and fun, but short-lived and don’t vary much between sequels.

Most Recent Entry: Cooking Mama: Cuisine! – 2022 (AND, iOS)

Trace Memory – 2005

An early DS title that used the stylus well and looked great. This touch-and-click adventure was praised for its story, but the slow pace, short run time, and lack of action put some people off.

Most Recent Entry: Another Code: R – A Journey into Lost Memories – 2009 (WII)

100 Classic Books – 2010

This may not be relevant these days, but before the rise of e-readers, the DS was thought to be a great option for reading books. While the backlight might be harsh on the eyes this is more of a piece of software and there’s no game here. 100 classic books on one cartridge could keep you busy for months or even years. It actually sold quite well, especially in the UK.

Photo Dojo – 2010

The DSi was the first handheld with a built-in camera. This, of course, sparked the start of augmented reality games, and while the cameras were of poor quality this game did a good job of injecting you and your friends into the game with zany mini-games.

The Legend of Kage 2 – 2008

A direct sequel to the classic side-scrolling platformer. The game didn’t offer much of new gameplay elements but still was hard as nails. This was a lot of people’s complaints. No difficulty setting and unless you loved old-school side scrollers you wouldn’t find anything worthwhile here.

Neves – 2007

While the design isn’t anything original this shape puzzle game gets the job done. It’s incredibly basic in presentation and if you don’t like this type of puzzle game you won’t enjoy it. It’s for a specific crowd.

Sonic Classic Collection – 2010

This is just a bog standard collection that we’ve seen before. It also doesn’t run super well on the system. Poor emulation aside if you have to have a classic Sonic game on your DS it’s not the worst thing.

Most Recent Entry: Sonic Frontiers – 2022 (PC, NS, PS4, PS5, XONE, XSX)

Fossil Fighters – 2009

It doesn’t look amazing or have any interesting story or characters, but it’s down right fun and has good combat. There are also a lot of things to do. Some may find it a bit too easy, but fun is fun.

Most Recent Entry: Fossil Fighters: Frontier – 2014 (3DS)

Atelier Annie: Alchemists of Sera Island – 2009

The one and only Atelier game on the DS. Annie is more of a city builder and less of an RPG. It also has a comedic story that’s very whimsical and fun. If you’re a fan of the RPG elements in the game then this may not be for you.

Most Recent Entry: Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream – 2022 (PC, PS4)

Metal Slug 7 – 2008

A surprising DS exclusive. It’s Metal Slug without any enhancements or advancement of the formula. It’s the same old Metal Slug we’ve either grown to love or tired of. The smaller screen thankfully doesn’t make it a chore to play and it runs really well.

Most Recent Entry: – 2009 ()

Dragon Ball: Origins 2 – 2010

If you loved the original you will like this one. Just be in for some unfixed controls and slowdown. It’s a fun RPG for fans of the series and you will be in for a good time despite its simplicity.

Most Recent Entry: Dragon Ball: The Breakers – 2022 (PC, NS, PS4, XONE)

Garfield’s Nightmare – 2007

Great visuals and level design help this game along quite a bit for older gamers. However, the pre-teen range this game shoots for shows. It’s easy and simple, but can be relaxing and lightweight for older gamers.

Most Recent Entry: Garfield Kart: Furious Racing – 2019 (MAC, PC, NS, PS4, XONE)

Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits – 2004

If you love Mr. Driller then this is for you. It’s also a good jumping-in point for new players. If you are tired of the series and want something new then this isn’t for you. It’s the same old game built for touch screens. That’s about it.

Most Recent Entry: Mr. Driller: Drill Land – 2020 (PC, NS, PS4, PS5, XONE, XSX)

Beat City – 2010

A simple but fun rhythm game. If you’re tired of the bigger hits on the DS then this might be for you. It’s really short, and doesn’t have much replay value, but could be a fun evening with cute graphics.

Art Style: AQUIA – 2009

The Art Style series was popular due to its simple design and minimalistic looks. Aquia mixes Tetris with Bejeweled and while it does a decent job it’s very simple and won’t hold your attention as long as other puzzle games on the system.

Most Recent Entry: Art Style: Rotozoa – 2010 (WII)

Professor Layton and the Curious Village – 15 Years Later

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 12/18/2022
Posted in: DS, Nintendo, Retro Consoles. Leave a comment

Publisher: Nintendo

Developer: Level-5

Release Date: 02/15/2007


Available Exclusively On

Professor Layton is a series I have been curious about, but could never get into. When this game came out I rented it from GameFly and sent it back the same day. It was frustrating right off the bat and I couldn’t solve a single puzzle by myself. These are probably some of the toughest puzzles you will ever come across in a game. I don’t mean regular puzzles in a 3D space, but full-on college-level logic puzzles. Math questions, pattern recognition, optical illusions and they’re all insanely tough. You do some slider puzzles, the occasional jigsaw, and process of elimination questions. The game is insanely hard and you will need a walkthrough for this one.

The base of the game plays out like a point-and-click adventure. You enter the town of St. Mystere to find the elusive Golden Apple and acquire its wealth. in the meantime, you are confronted by the townsfolk who strangely present you with puzzles at every turn. There are 120 puzzles in the main game with 15 unlocked as Layton’s challenges. There are an additional 25 puzzles as weekly downloads, but the service has since shut down. These can be unlocked with cheat hacks as they are in the game code. Layton’s Challenges are unlocked by finding pieces to every puzzle. One is sorting items in either Layton or Luke’s room and their reaction is a hint on whether it belongs to them or not. Another is assembling a gizmo and finding all pieces to a jigsaw puzzle. These are found by solving optional hidden puzzles outside of the story ones.

You can tap around on the screen for coins that are used to unlock hints, and you will need as many as you. You tap on the village folk to advance the story or solve their puzzles. If you missed any optional puzzles in a given chapter they are returned to the puzzle room so you don’t have to worry about not finding them. These don’t include optional hidden puzzles found by tapping around the screen, however. You can get through the story and solve all of these later at your leisure. You do get objectives at the top screen. Usually to go to a certain area or talk to a specific character. There are some really good-looking full-motion anime cut scenes peppered throughout the game will full voice acting. It’s low-quality audio due to the limited size of the DS carts, but it still looks good.

The game isn’t hard in terms of exploration. You’re limited to maybe a couple dozen screens over the course of the story and it’s laid out in such a way that you will memorize where everything is pretty fast. The story itself is cute and charming, predictable and forgettable, but works within the game’s world. Layton and Luke are great characters with depth and their personalities shine through here. I just wish the puzzles weren’t so damn hard. There is no difficulty ramping, and there are no mini-games for breaks. It’s just 120 puzzles that I either knew the answer to and doubted myself, didn’t understand the puzzle until I saw the logic behind the answer, was always off by one number, or almost had something. Most of these puzzles are well designed in terms of cleverness, a lot of the time the answer is right in front of your face in form of trick questions, but only those who are avid logic puzzle solvers will truly enjoy this game.

With a walkthrough, I did solve all 120 puzzles, and maybe 20 of those I solved on my own. It’s that damn hard and it’s a surprise as this game seems marketed toward children, and I’m sure many bought this and had no clue what to do. These are college-level puzzles that only serious brainiacs can solve. Sadly, you’re locked behind the puzzle and can’t advance. There’s no way to pay your way out or see the solution. You get three hints and a lot of them don’t help much. You just need to know that these are real puzzles that are serious. There is a scoring system in form of Pacarats, but these mean nothing and don’t unlock anything. It’s really just a score. Every time you fail a puzzle the potential score you can get for that puzzle drops. So, don’t worry about this system too much.

Overall, I liked the art and characters, the story was cute, and when I did solve a puzzle on my own it was satisfying, but the majority are just way too hard. There are no mini-games, breaks of any kind, or anything to change up the gameplay. Sure, the puzzles themselves have different uses for the touch screen. Write in stuff, and use the touch screen as a notepad to solve math problems or trace patterns, but other than that it’s just used to tap around the screen on static images. I’m hoping future games dial the difficulty way down and save the hard crap for the optional challenges.

Ontamarama – 15 Years Later

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 11/30/2022
Posted in: DS, Nintendo, Retro Consoles. Leave a comment

Publisher: Atlus

Developer: Noise Factory

Release Date: 11/06/2007


Available Exclusively On

The DS was made for rhythm games. The touch screen is a perfect way to implement fun new ideas as physical interaction with music is usually a good mix. Ontamarama tries this with cute visuals and using the touch screen combined with buttons. Sadly, it doesn’t pan out quite how the developers wanted. The game is just too distracting and causes artificial inflation in difficulty when the actual rhythm part never gets very hard.

The combination of using the face buttons plus the touch screen isn’t designed very well here. You have to tap the Ontamas that pop up on the touch screen to fill the buttons scrolling across the bar. Using just directional buttons to trigger the actual note. This just doesn’t work. While you tap the creatures you can’t keep your eye on the scrolling bar too. Slower notes work fine and you will notice this during the first few songs of the story mode. However, adding other things like needing to double tap notes, drawing circles around groups of Ontamas, and avoiding black Onatamas that lower your performance is just too much.

Eventually, songs get so infuriating because this combo just not working out. The songs aren’t hard themselves if only I could keep an eye on both things. There is also stuff happening on the top screen that I can’t even look at for a second. I also felt the circle drawing wasn’t forgiving enough. If you draw the circle too big it won’t register and the same for too small. Often times I just barely made it through the song before failing. There’s no way practice can make this game better unless you memorize each button placement and note, and that’s now a good way to master a rhythm game. It should be about mastering the mechanic and having your reflexes honed.

It would be kind of worth it if the songs were good. These are just loud clashings of instruments that don’t sound good. There are no catchy beats or tunes. It’s just generic-sounding music and just sounds like awful noise. If the music was really good then trying to master this frustrating system might be worth it. Now, I’m not saying the game is horrible. It’s a unique take on the genre and the developers really tried to do something new and when it works it’s a lot of fun. The visuals are cute, but the story is complete nonsense and silly. Sadly, there are only about a dozen tracks, so once you beat story mode that’s pretty much it.

I can see how this game didn’t sell well and failed. It isn’t the near perfection of Elite Beat Agents with its licensed music or Guitar Hero with its unique peripheral. The DS didn’t have a fantastic run of rhythm games, but they were all unique and tried something new and I can appreciate that. I feel if you really want to scratch a rhythm itch then pick this up for a challenge, but don’t play it for the music.

Meteos – 17 Years Later

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 11/29/2022
Posted in: DS, Nintendo, Retro Consoles. Leave a comment

Publisher: Nintendo

Developer: Q Entertainment

Release Date: 06/28/2005


Available Exclusively On

Match three puzzle games are a weakness for me. As long as there are some good visuals and addictive gameplay I’m hooked. Meteos is a unique take on this as the game lets you drag blocks anywhere in their column and you can match three horizontally or vertically. This allows the game to drop blocks at a breakneck pace. You need to strategize and line blocks up, but that’s not all. To clear them the matched blocks launch themselves and all blocks above them into the air. Continue matching blocks below that set and it will exit the screen and clear.

Of course, there are some items that help you clear the stage such as a giant hammer and bombs, but if the game is going too slow for you there’s a speed-up dial as well. The main mission mode has three different stages. In each one, you have to work your way to the final bass, Meteo. Each and every planet has a different tile set and way to clear blocks. One planet required matching two sets nearby in order to get the blocks to launch. Some planets will launch every set all the way up in exchange for making the entire round faster. This is a simple concept, but it’s hard to master. Match three games like this always require strategy, but I found that some luck comes into play here. I would restart one round nearly a dozen times only to win really quickly thanks to blocks falling in a certain pattern that allowed me to keep my screen clear.

Every time you defeat a boss it’s really satisfying. The fast speed of needing to look ahead and make sure blocks are always lined up gets tough, but you learn over time. I wish you had power-ups like in some games like this, but what’s here is fine. There are a couple more modes such as an endless mode and a custom mode. Modes are ideal for games like this that don’t have a ton of missions like Puzzle Quest. However, I really do feel a more robust mission mode would have been better. After about an hour I wanted to stop. The game is only fun in short bursts due to its arcade-like nature. While the game can be addictive at times when you actually win it can also be exhausting because of the fast pace and luck-based nature of each match.

For an early DS title, the game looks good. There are some nice effects, and lots of colors and the touch screen responds well to the small blocks. I did find some tilesets were hard on the eyes, but I did eventually get used to them. Overall, Meteos is a fun puzzle game on the system and takes the genre in new directions despite the lack of a more robust mission mode.

Call of Duty Games Ranked Worst to Best

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 11/02/2018
Posted in: Blogs, DS, Gamecube, Mac, Microsoft Consoles, Nintendo Consoles, PC Reviews, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, PSP, Sony Consoles, Wii, Wii U, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

220px-Black_Ops_318. Call of Duty: Black Ops III – 2015

At this point in time Call of Duty had already gone way off the deep end and the futuristic warfare and yearly releases were becoming a joke. Black Ops III has the absolute worst campaign in the entire series and the multiplayer is a joke. While zombies are quite enjoyable, it’s not enough to justify a purchase. The AI is insanely stupid, there’s zero challenge, and the environments, story, characters, and weapons are all generic, boring, and poorly designed. The cinematic moments are gone, the maps are stupidly generic, and it feels so bloated and on life support.

Best Version: PC

220px-Call_of_Duty_Modern_Warfare_3_box_art17. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – 2011

The last entry in the Modern Warfare timeline was a huge disappointment. The campaign was a boring generic slog, the multiplayer had lame maps, and it didn’t distance itself enough from the last two games. It was the same weapons, the same type of maps, menus, and multiplayer setup. There just wasn’t enough here to make the series stand out anymore and this marked the beginning of a steep decline for the series. While it’s playable, it’s not fun or memorable at all.

Best Version: PC

220px-Call_of_Duty_Roads_to_Victory16. Call of Duty: Roads to Victory – 2007

While enjoyable for sure, the game is very rough around the edges and was released during the end of the tiring World War II craze that ran for over 10 years. Everyone was tired of it, Modern Warfare was about to come out, and the PSP wasn’t a great system for shooting games. It was a very generic and forgettable Call of Duty experience and wasted the portable opportunity. At least it had some fun online multiplayer but was short-lived.

220px-Call_of_Duty_Black_Ops_II_box_artwork15. Call of Duty: Black Ops II – 2012

Black Ops II dropped the ball for this new timeline. The first game was amazing with great cinematic moments, fun multiplayer maps, and a whole new Vietnam War feeling to it, but Black Ops II tried to shoehorn a silly story into generic gameplay and some very boring multiplayer maps. It was a huge disappointing mess and marked the end of this timeline. It’s playable, but there’s no redeeming value to this game that makes it stand out.

Best Version: Wii U

220px-Codfhbox14. Call of Duty: Finest Hour – 2004

The very first console Call of Duty game. I remember getting this for Christmas in 2004 and was so incredibly excited. Console gamers could finally play Call of Duty, however, Finest Hour was far from the series’s finest moment. There were huge technical problems, the game felt like a step back for the series, and the campaign was generic and forgettable. It at least had some fun online multiplayer, but it was a good effort.

Best Version: Xbox

Call_of_Duty_3_Game_Cover13. Call of Duty 3 – 2006

A surprising console-only release, Call of Duty 3 was the third game in the original timeline and was better than most people expected. While it didn’t look that great it played fairly well, felt like classic Call of Duty, and was fast-paced and fun. It was very forgettable, however, and was at the tail end of the WWII craze that everyone wanted to die. There was something strange about this game as it felt dated, yet somehow still cinematic and fun, and had decent multiplayer as well.

Best Version: Xbox 360

220px-Cod2bre12. Call of Duty 2: Big Red One – 2005

Riding on the financial success of Finest Hour, Big Red One turned out to be a much better game, yet didn’t get as much attention. It had a cinematic and well-thought-out campaign and was much more enjoyable this time around.

Best Version: Xbox

220px-Call_of_duty_ghosts_box_art11. Call of Duty: Ghosts – 2013

Ghosts was a more boots-on-ground return to the series and felt a little closer to the original Modern Warfare series, but was too little too late. The additions of canine partners and some great cinematic moments just weren’t enough, including the first game in the next-generation cycle of consoles. The multiplayer was decent, but it felt like it was stuck in limbo and trying to be two different games at once.

Best Version: PC

220px-Advanced_Warfare10. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare – 2014

Advanced Warfare tried pushing big-name actors to sell copies, and Advanced Warfare had some awesome cinematic moments, but the story and characters were garbage, and the multiplayer was extremely unbalanced due to the jetpacks and weird futuristic gameplay. It looked really good, as it used a brand new engine for the series, but it was just too weird and too much of a departure from what fans loved.

Best Version: PC

220px-Call_of_Duty_-_Infinite_Warfare_(promo_image)9. Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare – 2016

Infinite Warfare has received more flack than any other game in the series, but it’s not the worst. For a series receiving so much resistance and backlash, it did some different stuff in the campaign that was quite interesting. Some of the characters were actually quite interesting and I cared about them a little which was odd for the series. The multiplayer was a generic feeling, as usual, but the campaign was a nice change of pace and the experimentation was a breath of fresh air for the series.

Best Version: PC

220px-Codbox8. Call of Duty – 2003

I never got a chance to play this until much later after release, but in 2003 this game was a graphical powerhouse, extremely cinematic, and set the standard for historic shooters. The campaign felt realistic, varied, and had some memorable moments. It was later released on consoles but remained exclusive to PC for nearly a decade. It gave PC gamers a proud reason to be so as this game would have crippled consoles back in the day.

Best Version: Xbox 360

Call_of_Duty_2_Box7. Call of Duty 2 – 2005

Being a port for Xbox 360 from a 2-year-old game was risky, but this game helped sell Xbox 360s and looked fantastic on the system. On PC, as it was exclusive for, was a great sequel to an already great game. It pushed hardware to its limits, had some fun exciting cinematic moments, and was decent multiplayer. It took everything everyone liked from the first game and expanded upon it, but it was a little more forgettable this time around.

Best Version: Xbox 360

220px-Coduobox26. Call of Duty: United Offensive – 2004

United Offensive is one of the best games in the original WWII storyline as it was intense, extremely cinematic, felt varied, and kept you on your seat. I played the campaign straight through and I usually don’t do that in this franchise. The game had an incredibly cinematic and tense campaign, probably one of the best in the entire series, and was highly overlooked. Everyone was gearing up for CoD 2 and United Offensive was sort of mulled over, sadly it was never ported to consoles.

Call_of_Duty_World_at_War_cover5. Call of Duty: World at War – 2008

World at War was a call to long-time fans and something to really look forward to. They made a huge risk by bringing you back to WWII, in the Japanese theater, and somehow creating one of the best games in the entire series. It was really looked over and a lot of fans never played this because of the WWII roots, but the campaign is spectacular and had some awesome moments as well as weapons and beautiful locales.

Best Version: PC

220px-CoD_Black_Ops_cover4. Call of Duty: Black Ops – 2010

Black Ops was the one and only good game in that timeline. The campaign was exciting, cinematic, had a crazy story and characters, and the multiplayer had some fantastic maps and great new era weapons. The brand new Zombies mode pretty much kickstarted a whole new series in the timeline and became the most popular multiplayer mode in the entire series. It’s seriously the last amazing game in the series and playing this reminds us why.

Best Version: Xbox 360

220px-Call_of_Duty_WWII_Cover_Art3. Call of Duty: WWII – 2017

Another great risk, and desperate attempt to get people back into the series, the game followed Battlefield’s step and went back to its roots. WWII was a fantastic attempt at everything from a beautiful new next-generation engine, cinematic gameplay, and interesting characters. While the campaign lost steam partway through, it’s more enjoyable than most of the games in the series and reminds us what Activision can do when they are actually inspired and put some thought and love into a game.

Best Version: PC

220px-Call_of_Duty_4_Modern_Warfare2. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare – 2007

The game that really started it all. It revolutionized first-person shooters on consoles as well as multiplayer that almost every military shooter has copied since. The careful detail to level design, cinematic moments, characters, and pacing was something Infinity Ward was masters at. The multiplayer is also something everyone has copied for the last 10 years and it’s clear why. The maps are perfectly designed, memorable, and a blast to play.

Best Version: PC

220px-Modern_Warfare_2_cover1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 – 2009

Why is this the best in the series? It took everything that made CoD4 amazing and stacked on top of that, plus the series hasn’t done something like that since. It’s sad to see a series lose steam too fast, but MW2 took risks and controversy proudly and even made some of the best multiplayer maps ever created in a game. It was perfect with well-balanced weapons, a fun and fast-paced campaign, and a multiplayer mode that hasn’t been as good since.

Best Version: Xbox 360

Mortal Kombat Games Ranked Worst to Best

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 10/22/2018
Posted in: Blogs, DS, Game Boy Advance, Gamecube, Mac, Microsoft Consoles, Nintendo 64, Nintendo Consoles, PC Reviews, PlayStation (PS1), PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, PSP, Ranked Worst to Best, Retro Consoles, Sega CD, Sega Dreamcast, Sega Genesis, Sega Saturn, Sony Consoles, Wii, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

My favorite video game of all time is Mortal Kombat. Something about the characters, violence, lore, and overall atmosphere that the game brings is just so satisfying to me. It was also the first video I ever played at 2 years old which was the original game on Sega Genesis back in 1993. From Fatalities to special moves, stages, and rocking industrial techno music, Mortal Kombat is one of the best, and longest-running, video game franchises of all time. That’s not to say the game went through some ups and downs. I have listed every main Mortal Kombat game from worst to best. I didn’t include various ports as they varied by quality, and discluded any handheld version as they were just dumbed down ports of larger games. I will also list the most superior port or version of that game as every port varied wildly due to various hardware limitations.

220px-Mortal_Kombat_Special_Forces16. Mortal Kombat: Special Forces – 2000

Is this really a surprise? Only beating out Mythologies by a fraction, Special Forces was a 3D action game disaster created by co-creator John Tobias and putting a damper in any future Mortal Kombat spin-offs. The game was near unplayable with awful graphics, terrible controls, a lame story, and nothing to really do with Mortal Kombat itself. It’s worth a play just to see how far down Mortal Kombat got, but this is by far its lowest point, but not the lowest timeframe.

220px-Mortal_Kombat_Mythologies15. Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero – 1997

Not much better than Special Forces, but at least the game was somewhat playable and felt more like Mortal Kombat. a 2D side-scrolling platformer, you play as Sub-Zero and run into awful live-action cut-scenes (the N64 version was spared of those) terrible controls, and boring gameplay. This game is probably not even worth touching unless you’re just curious.

Best Version: PlayStation

220px-Mortal_Kombat_Gold14. Mortal Kombat Gold – 1999

A direct port of MK4 and Dreamcast exclusive, Gold was too little too late with Soul Calibur and various other fighters pushing the genre into the next generation. It was clunky, tiring, old, and just didn’t feel right on the system this late in the game. It’s very playable, and MK4 fans will enjoy newcomers like Cyrax and Mileena, but it’s probably the worst game in the main fighting series.

!!e!U-T!EGM_$(KGrHqF,!lEEz+2,LZ6IBNP38FkCV!___113. Mortal Kombat: Armageddon – 2006

While being the next-generation MK Trilogy of sorts, Armageddon was a lazy cop-out for keeping the series at its yearly releases and was the end of this generation of 3D MK games. It featured every single MK character ever made up to Deception and shoved them all in the two-style martial arts that this trilogy of MK titles gave us. By this point, MK was really going downhill and fatigue was setting in with a bloated disc full of weird mini-games and cheap generic Kreate-A-Fatality that was more complicated and irritating than ever. Press certain button combos to create the same gory move for every character and just string them together as quick as you can, yeah what a waste. A few years of development and this could have been a game to remember. The Kreate-A-Fighter mode was the only new and original part. Mortal Kombat Kart racing was awful with shallow race tracks and no thought put into it, the Konquest mode was much better than Deception’s but was still a weird thing to even exist. Overall, it’s very playable and fun, but it’s just the most generic MK game ever made.

Best Version: Xbox

26312. Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance – 2002

Deadly Alliance shot the series into the next generation with brand new fighters and an all-new realistic martial arts approach to the game. With a story mode that’s really just a giant training mode, a fun Krypt area to unlock extras, and two awesome Fatalities per character, it only beats out Armageddon due to the originality within the game. The new characters are great and mostly untouched throughout the later games, however, the graphics were dated and everyone looked like plastic dolls with blood that looks like Jell-O. It was still gory and fun, but far from the greatness, the 2D games offered.

Best Version: Xbox

270240b11. Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe – 2008

This threw fans for a loop as MK mashed with DC to create a weird and forced fighting game no one asked for. The biggest hit was the Teen rating with the DC character performing “Heroic Brutalities” as they never kill and the MK character performing the most basic “Fatalities” that felt more like Wile E. Coyote ACME stunts. The fighting core was a slight departure from the previous games with a 2D plane and seemed pretty solid, but there was something off about the whole game. It’s decent, and quite playable, but very forgettable.

Best Version: PlayStation 3

mksmshot10. Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks – 2005

Shaolin Monks would be the last MK spin-off and actually did it right. Created by another development team, Monks lets you play as Liu-Kang and Kung-Lao with an over-the-top 3D brawler that is set in the MKII storyline. Using assets from that game such as stages and characters and even lore, the game recreated the MK experience with a fantastic fighting system that was fluid and even more fun with a second player. There were many secrets and the game is highly replayable. The only issue was the game was only 4 hours long, had awful voice acting, and a stupid story. Other than that, this is a must-play for MK fans.

Best Version: Xbox

download (2)9. Mortal Kombat 4 – 1997

This was the biggest turning point for the entire series. The game went forward into 3D forever and the result was some weird clunky stuff, but it was fast-paced and violent and somehow just worked. Not many games did 3D fighting very well at the time and the great roster and some of the best Fatalities in the series make for an awesome fighting game. The use of weapons was introduced for the first time as well.

Best Version: PlayStation

!!e!VD1QEGM_$(KGrHqN,!jME0DorDv!jBNP4B0oWZ!___18. Mortal Kombat 3 – 1995

MK3 had a lot riding on it at this point in time as it had big shoes to fill after MKII. The game was darker, more realistic, and added some mechanics such as running, Brutalities, and a secret code menu. MK3 also had some of the most memorable characters the series will see such as Sheeva, Kabal, and Smoke. The problem was the combos were so difficult to pull off a lot of people were turned off that the game relied on this system, not to mention the cheap ass AI.

Best Version: PlayStation

download (3)7. Mortal Kombat – 1992

The original is far down the list due to the fact that so many games in the series improved upon it, but it’s higher than others due to the originality and the fact that it has a one-of-a-kind atmosphere that no other game in the series nailed. The original roster and Test-Your-Might combined with the Fatalities and simple moves make this one of the best video games ever created. There’s quite a story behind this game and the fact the ESRB was created because this game says a lot. It’s a very simple and basic game, but it holds a huge piece of gaming history.

Best Version: Sega CD

51NwTi0onnL6. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 – 1995

An upgrade version of MK3, UMK3 is widely considered the best 2D MK game ever made as it perfected what they were trying to do with MK3. Adding new characters such as Rain, Noob Saibot, and Khameleon, and adding an Aggressor meter as well as making combos much easier, UMK3 was fast, looked good, and was dark with everything the series had to offer up until then.

Best Version: Nintendo DS

71772-mortal-kombat-ii-sega-saturn-front-cover5. Mortal Kombat II – 1993

Most people will say MKII is the best game in the series due to the perfect balance and style between MK1 and MK3. It was a little darker, more sinister, and had an imaginative roster of new characters such as Baraka, Kitana, Mileena, and Jax. The stages were amazing and the introduction of Babalities and Friendships helped set the tone for the series from here on out. The controls were tight and the game looked amazing.

Best Version: Sega Saturn

download (4)4. Mortal Kombat Trilogy – 1996

MKT was a best-of compilation of the series up until that point. Taking every single character, stage, and mixing several -Alities together, the game was a massive success and was a blast to play. You could also play as the bosses which were completely unheard of back in the day and it was so much fun. Trilogy remains one of my favorite MK games of all time and I spent hundreds of hours perfecting this game.

Best Version: PlayStation

5139Q1W9DSL._AC_SX430_3. Mortal Kombat: Deception – 2004

Deception was the best 3D game up until this point and had a lot to offer. It improved immensely on Deadly Alliance’s realistic martial arts and added new game modes and some amazing characters and stages. The game was just dark, gritty, and hit that perfect style that people loved. While the three martial-arts styles were a bit clunky and memorizing long combos was silly, most people forgave it for the amount of content available. Chess Kombat is still one of my favorite MK game modes of all time. Play chess like normal and then duke it out to take over the square. Puzzle Kombat took the Street Fighter version and added Chibi MK characters duking it out on screen. However, Konquest mode was a nasty ugly chore to unlock stuff in the Krypt. It was also the first online fighting game ever made and was buttery smooth across the board with a lobby room, ranking system, and various other features. I played this game for so many hours I lost count. The Fatalities were amazing and the new Hara Kiris which were “reverse Fatalities” blew my mind away. It was as competitive as it got and holds a special place for me as it was the first game I had ever pre-ordered as well.

Best Version: Xbox

271085b2. Mortal Kombat – 2011

With DC Universe disappointing fans so much we had all lost hope. Thankfully many consider this version to be the best 3D MK game to date and rightfully so. It builds off of MKII’s balancing and uses most characters up through MK3 so it keeps it old school. The X-Ray moves shook the industry and added a whole new meaning to gore and violence to video games. The new Challenge Tower was a blast and it featured the best story mode in any fighting game to date with halfway decent voice acting for once. Sadly, the game was quickly abandoned and only featured 4 DLC characters before being cut loose.

Best Version: PlayStation 3

mortal-kombat-x-pc-155131.Mortal Kombat X – 2015

MKX not only pushes the entire series in a new direction but shows fighting games a whole new level of production values and content. Taking the best from MK 2011 and the 2D games, MKX feels heavier, chunkier, and more violent than ever and that’s a good thing. Using Unreal Engine 4 and creating some of the sickest Fatalities to date, MKX also introduces some great new characters for the first time since Deception. The stages are awesome, the DLC characters rock, and the story mode is actually quite amazing and pushes the last game in the back corner. The new Krypt mode is more interactive and can almost be a game all on its own, and the new online towers make the game feel like it’s 1992 all over again.

Best Version: PC

Assassin’s Creed Games Ranked Worst to Best

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 10/20/2018
Posted in: Blogs, DS, Mac, Microsoft Consoles, Nintendo Consoles, PC Reviews, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, PSP, Ranked Worst to Best, Sony Consoles, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Assassin’s Creed is one of my favorite franchises of all time, and despite all the hate it gets for its yearly releases, there truly isn’t an actual bad game in the series. Each game has high production values, large open worlds, fantastic visuals, and the only bad thing is that it may not be as good as its predecessor or core components are just lacking. Assassin’s Creed is always held to incredibly high standards by the gaming industry because of what the first game achieved. It was a revolutionary game that completely took advantage of next-generation hardware and created a fantastic immersive experience that no other game had done before. Ubisoft rode this success a little too hard and the game’s quality varied wildly over the years, but in the end, they are all quite playable and somewhat enjoyable. I’m going to go all the way back to 2007 to today and rank the Assassin’s Creed games from worst to best.

NOTE: Mobile games will be excluded (Pirates, Identity, Rebellion, Towers, etc.) as none of them are good and I can’t even count them as the main games in the series. Portable entries will be included, however.

220px-Acunity14. Assassin’s Creed Unity – 2014

This is probably the lowest point in the entire series so let’s come out swinging. Unity was highly anticipated as it was the first entry in the series to use next-generation consoles and technology with an entirely new engine. The four-player co-op experience got people excited and man did it look gorgeous. Fast-forward to launch day and you have one of the buggiest and ugly launches in gaming history. The entire game was completely broken with glitches, crashes, entire consoles being corrupted, save data lost, servers crashing, you name it.

Get back into the game today and most of the issues have been patched out, while still full of bugs and problems, the game just wasn’t that interesting. The main character was boring, the French Revolution setting rode too hard on Assassin’s Creed III’s coattails. The combat was pretty much the same, and the bloated activities were ever-present and even copied from previous games. Chase these song notes, collect all the chests, collect all these medals, etc. It was tiring and overwhelming and not satisfying anymore. Then on top of that include a crowded UI, irritating side missions, and “investigations” as an excuse to use Eagle Vision more, and you have Unity. It’s still very much enjoyable, but the fatigue was really high with this game and it makes it the worst in the entire series.

220px-Assassin's_Creed_Chronicles_cover_art13. Assassin’s Creed: Chronicles – China, Russia, India – 2015-2016

Assassin’s Creed had dabbled in the 2.5D realm before with the very first mobile entry and Discovery for DS. While they weren’t awful, it took away what made Assassin’s Creed grand in scale and only concentrated on half-baked combat and stealth. The problem here is that Chronicles didn’t have anything interesting going for it. The gameplay was solid and felt like an Assassin’s Creed game, but the story, characters, and the world were void of anything fun or interesting. Not to mention the game was riddled with bugs, had performance issues on portable systems, and was squeezed into a release window right at the peak of the Assassin’s Creed fatigue, so basically it was a game no one wanted or cared about.

220px-Assassin's_Creed_Rogue12. Assassin’s Creed: Rogue – 2014

Rogue isn’t a bad game at all, in fact, it uses one of the most interesting characters in the series, but the gameplay, design, and overall feeling were right at the lowest point of the series and no one cared about this game. It was released the same day as Unity and felt completely unnecessary as it was more of an expansion to Black Flag. So it felt dated compared to Unity’s newer features. The game focused more on the pirate stuff and was a literal copy and paste of Black Flag, so you had a slightly interesting world with varied locales, and a better story than Unity, but so much dated content including the visuals as it was using the previous generation engine instead of Unity’s. It’s a very playable game, but it feels the most generic of the entire series.

220px-ACSyndicate11. Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate – 2015

Less than a year after Rogue and Unity we got an entirely new game in a new setting so it was a little promising, yet still, no one cared anymore. Not to mention, the Chronicles games were still being released so it was just so bloated and tiring at this point. Syndicate only ranks higher as it’s slightly more interesting with better main characters and a more interesting setting. The gameplay pretty much remains the same as Unity with slight tweaks, but it’s not enough to save the series from the staleness. The game looks fantastic and isn’t nearly as buggy as Unity, but at this point everyone wanted the series to die. You had an entire formula of collect-a-thon nonsense, the same Assassination scenarios, co-op that most people didn’t play, and controls and combat that had been used to death. This was the turning point in the series.

220px-Assassin's_Creed_Bloodlines10. Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines – 2009

Being the one and only Assassin’s Creed on PSP, and never ported to other systems, people were excited to go back to Altair was we never really saw him again. This game actually had a fantastic story and rode that more than gameplay. The game itself was really flawed with small little areas rather than an open world, clumsy controls, and dated gameplay, but it looked good doing it. Bloodlines gave us closer to Altair’s story and sadly most fans of the series never played this one.

220px-Assassin's_Creed_III_Liberation_Cover_Art9. Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation – 2012

Riding off the success of Assassin’s Creed III, Liberation was a portable spin-off for Vita and gained a lot of steam and momentum of being a true Assassin’s Creed game in portable form. We got one of the best protagonists in the series, and a decent-sized world in an entirely new setting. New Orleans was great to play in, and despite being short, Liberation pleased many fans. Now, it was maybe too similar to III on consoles and was stripped down of some features that the game had, but it was just right for a portable form and looked amazing on the Vita.

220px-Assassins_Creed_Revelations_Cover8. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations – 2011

Revelations was a surprisingly excellent game and gave us a satisfying conclusion to Ezio’s story. Revelations felt like a “best-of” up to that point with smaller open areas rather than a big world and were short and sweet at a steady pace. The game was honest with itself and did what other games in the series, later on, should have done. It felt like a short story or a small expansion to Brotherhood rather than being a bloated monster that no one cared about. The new gameplay ideas were fun, and it was just a solid game despite being so short. It also marked the end of the first-generation Assassin’s Creed games and would go on to be segmented from the rest.

220px-Assassin's_Creed7. Assassin’s Creed – 2007

The original should be at the top right? Not necessarily. The game had a split divide on whether you love it or hate it. This game, if you play it today, has the core Assassin’s Creed elements and nothing else. Stealth assassinations, parkour, and an open world. There were no side quests or anything to do except collect feathers and flags. It was a revolutionary game for its time with a game engine like no one had ever seen, and a fantastic protagonist and art style. The game is great as the sum of its parts rather than when you break it down. It feels pretty stiff and dated today, but in 2007 Ubisoft was one of the few companies that took a plunge and created a revolutionary game.

220px-Assassins_Creed_brotherhood_cover6. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood – 2010

Brotherhood was only the third game in the series, but fatigue was starting to show, however, Brotherhood did what future games should have done, and that just gives everyone the world they love while expanding on a great character and giving more content and new ideas. Brotherhood had enough ideas to create a new branch, but instead, they expanded Italy, added a great multiplayer suite, and threw in assassination crews to help during stealth gameplay, some small strategy elements, and a great side quest to collect some ancient armor. Brotherhood was incredibly fun and didn’t feel bloated or overdone. It was just right and rode the success of its predecessor correctly. Sadly, this was the only time that was ever done, but Brotherhood remains most fans’ favorite.

download (1)5. Assassin’s Creed III – 2012

This was the first turning point in the series marking Revelations and back as the first-generation Assassin’s Creed and the end of Ezio’s journey. III was divided as it didn’t feature a rich story and characters but focused solely on exploration. III was the first game to have an organic open world rather than just plucking you in a large city full of buildings. There was a wilderness, mountains, the ocean, and everything could be explored. It was amazing and felt great, but fans missed the good story and characters. While the American Revolution was perfect for the series, and Boston is actually one of the best worlds in the series to explore, the reasons behind it were lacking. The gameplay was also improved with before parkour animations, controls, but the combat had not changed much and there was more collect-a-thon stuff that the rest of the series took and ran with.

220px-Assassins_Creed_2_Box_Art4. Assassin’s Creed II – 2009

Considered the best game in the entire series, Assassin’s Creed II is also the reason why the series took such a steep decline. They literally perfected the first game to the point of not needing more perfection. It expanded on the first game so much that it blew people’s minds away. Animations, character, story, content, weapon and armor upgrades, a larger open world, dual assassination takedowns, ranged weapons, etc. This all seems silly now, but that’s a lot to add to a game and then make it a staple for the series even to this day. This game is both beautiful and terrible as how could a game be so perfect? It’s one of the highest-rated games of all time for a reason.

220px-Assassin's_Creed_IV_-_Black_Flag_cover3. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag – 2013

Considered by most to the most wholesome and fun game in the series, Black Flag took out what everyone hated in III and added some of the best characters and stories in the series, game everyone the amazing marine battles, and a giant open world with wilderness just like III. It was the first game to feel truly bloated with mode-side stuff that you can shake a stick at, but it also had the best feeling of exploration and discovery. Large empty caves and chasms, derelict ships, and a wide variety of environments to explore made Black Flag the end of the second generation of Assassin’s Creed game and probably the peak of the entire franchise.

naked-boxshot_560x638_mobile_2897092. Assassin’s Creed Origins – 2017

Origins marks the beginning of the third generation of games and the latest turning point in the series. Origins were set in an entirely new era, environment, and added and changed so much it has started to turn into more of an RPG than an action/adventure game. The game is using the next-generation engine from Ubisoft and adds more RPG elements such as equipping armor and weapons on every part of the body, and making it visible, but also giving the player levels and stats. The world also feels more organic and focuses less on traditional elements in the series like Towers, collecting, and faction stuff. Instead, the world is more explorable with question marks riddling the map for you to explore at your own pace and keeping the world a mystery. The world feels more like an actual world and not just cities with some open areas to funnel you to the next city. There are actual activities and life in-between large areas and the combat is immensely improved. The entire control scheme changed with less of a parry/counter-attack fest and more on skill and execution. Timing is key, enemies have levels, and different weapon types mean more in this game. Origins is just a whole new beast and so drastically different from the last ones it can be an entirely new series on its own.

220px-ACOdysseyCoverArt1. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey – 2018

While the game was just released, and from only playing a few hours, you can tell this is the best the series has to offer. It takes everything from Origins and does what Brotherhood did for II. The world of Greece is the most organic world in the series and the largest with the series going into more of the RPG territory than ever before. Dialog options, better horseback riding, and less hand-holding encourages exploration and discovery. The game is also just stunningly beautiful with so much detail crammed into every nook and cranny, it’s mind-boggling. The animations are uncanny, the combat has been improved to include abilities and passive stats, but the skill tree is also improved upon Origins. Odyssey is moving the series in the right direction, but let’s hope it doesn’t repeat the problems of the last 10 years.

Kingston HyperX Cloud Revolver S Gaming Headset

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 08/25/2018
Posted in: 3DS, Android, DS, Editor's Choice, Game Boy Advance, Hardware, iOS, Mac, Microsoft Consoles, Mobile Reviews, Nintendo Consoles, PC Reviews, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, PSP, Sony Consoles, Switch, Wii U, Xbox One. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment
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Manufacturer: Kingston

Release Date: 03/09/2017

MSRP: $149.99

I’m not really big on gaming headsets as I don’t need to use them often as I have my own place, but when I do I want something amazing, something that can deliver the quality and power of large speakers inside some cans. After having the Razer Man O’ War for about 18 months I switched over to some wired headphones and moved brands. Why Kingston? Well, the reviews are great and it’s plug and play, which may say iffy to some, but it works out well in the end.

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Some people want fancy software, RGB lighting, and crazy controls, but Kingston went a different route here. Most PC headsets are not compatible with a console, but these are thanks to a proprietary USB 7.1 audio card built in the cable with Dolby. Now the downside is that these are only stereo headphones with the 3.5mm jack adapter, but they still sound amazing. The USB port has a three-part equalizer for flat, bass boost, and vocal. For gaming and movies, you can activate the Dolby 7.1 surround sound with just a button allowing the headphones to control everything and no need for any software.

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The mic is completely removable which is a nice feature and works just how you would expect. There’s a button to mute the mic on the control box, but for consoles, you will need to remove it completely to mute it through the hardware. Outside of these features the headset itself is extremely comfortable and feels like a cloud sitting on your head. Instead of adjustable bands, we get a tension-sensitive soft band under a hard outer band. This means the band adjusts to your head shape easily without any fiddling. The ear cups are super soft and no sound escapes. Since these are wired headphones I had to figure out where to clip the control box which wound up going on my keyboard cable to keep it nearby so I can access the controls easily. The cord behind that is rather long which is needed for console use.

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Here’s the big question: How does 7.1 audio sound in games and movies? Well, it works surprisingly well. The built-in sound card does a good job decoding the audio and making it sound incredible. I could hear gunshots behind me, people talking next to me, and explosions sounded epic and amazing. Games with 7.1 options sound even better and more realistic, but sadly there aren’t many games with this built-in.

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With that said the HyperX Revolver S is a solid wired headset without the flash and fancy software accompanying most headsets these days. They are extremely comfortable, give an amazing sound output that is crisp and clear, and also have great 7.1 audio capabilities. There are a few minor gripes like the control box being in a weird spot on the cable, only three equalizer settings, and missing software for those who like to fine-tune, but what’s here works surprisingly well straight out of the box and is plug-and-play. This is a versatile headset for any gamer, but sadly the 7.1 only works through USB and the 3.5mm jack is strictly stereo. For the price point, you get bang for your buck that you won’t get with most other headsets.

Golden Sun: Dark Dawn – 6 Years Later

Posted by BinaryMessiah on 07/30/2016
Posted in: DS, Nintendo Consoles. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Publisher: Nintendo

Developer: Camelot Software

Release Date: 11/29/2010


Available Exclusively On

  • nds

I can count on two hands the amount of JRPGs I have actually finished from start to finish. I’m not a completionist with these games as they are long-winded, difficult, and usually very complicated and complex. Golden Sun is no exception. It starts out as a light-hearted easy-going JRPG, but then things turn around quickly once you get into the meat of the game.

That’s not to say Dark Dawn is bad at all, but it’s the only Golden Sun game I’ve actually played. I dabbled in the first game a bit but never got through it. The first things that got me hooked in Dark Dawn were the visuals, some of the best on the system, and the deep combat system. Golden Sun isn’t just about attacks and magic powers. The lore uses elements of the Earth to create Psynergy that each hero can harness and unleash which you will use more than regular attacks. Djinni is little creatures that you can equip to enhance stats, add new synergy powers, and summon giant creatures. The combat system requires quite a bit of strategy and you can’t ignore this Djinn system. You must go around collecting at least half of them or you will never be able to finish the game. This is part of where my issues started to set in.

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While combat is deep and complex, and quite fun, the exploration part of Golden Sun is just as deep. Every dungeon is full of puzzles that require you to use your Psynergy powers to pull blocks, grow vines, smash rocks, and slap stuff around. You unlock these powers as you acquire new party members and go along in the game. The game is actually quite large spanning a huge map and a couple dozen dungeons which are quite a lot for a handheld title. Once you get a third through you unlock your ship which allows you to access the rest of this world. There are many towns to explore, people to talk to, and weapons and armor to acquire. I never had an issue always having the most powerful stuff as the game is generous with money during battles. I also found this was the easiest game to level up in, but more on that later.

So, while the first few dungeons were easy and just the right amount of hard to figure out, they became obscure and downright confusing and labyrinthine later on. I actually needed a walkthrough for the last half of the game. I had no idea where to go, or what to do, and the game requires certain objects to be obtained before you can even continue the story. I would never have known this without a walkthrough. When I got to the final boss I actually had to level up 20 whole levels to beat him because I didn’t acquire all the Djinn in the game. I had to compensate with much higher base stats even though I had the most powerful weapons and armor in the game. Thankfully, in the final dungeon, the enemies are really easy and I could level up every two battles which is something I’ve never seen in a JRPG. The 20-level climb took only about 2 hours which is fast compared to most.

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How about the story? Well, there’s a lot of lore here and I appreciated all of it, but it’s just really forgettable and not all that interesting. You start out trying to find a bird feather to power a flying machine you broke then you end up saving the world? The dialog and writing are extremely cheesy and cliche and I just wanted everyone to shut up. The characters are nice, but once again, forgettable. I had higher hopes for the story in this series, the lore, and everything is there, but it’s just not very fulfilling.

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Overall, Dark Dawn is still one of the best games on the DS and one of the best looking. The graphics are fantastic with clean texture, high res models, and so much detail. The game is just brimming with variety and beautiful locales. I can only recommend this game to the hardest of hardcore JRPG players. The game is so complex and full of optional bosses, hidden weapons, and armor, that won’t appeal to most players. It’s fun and pretty straightforward until about 10 hours in then it gets complex and overwhelming.