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jp's Mario vs. Donkey Kong (GBA)
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| [March 29, 2005 03:49:45 PM]
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I just sent this game back to GameFly. The free trial has run out and I don't think I want to hang on to this game.
I made my way up to World 5, Level 2. Not too bad...though the game is definitely lacking in the spark department. It just doesn't seem like exciting fun. (as opposed to the "handheld" games in the extras section of Alien Hominid).
Why?
Well, for starters I think the controls could be a little more forgiving. Some of the special moves are rather fiddly and annoying to perform. Additionally, it is rather hard to jump over opponents and there are others that simply can't be leaped over. I also found it kind of hard to discriminate when I could jump over and when I couldn't. (in fact, the whole jumping thing is rather problematic in this game in my opinion...it just doesn't feel right)
Yeah. Now that I think about it some more, my main gripe is with the control. For example, you can't duck if you are standing at the bottom of a stair. If you are at the top of a stair (or rope) and jump-left, you end up falling down (from the left side). It's these little things that can really screw you up when you are trying to clear a stage. Dying at the end because you fell off a rope when you pressed jump button just seems moronic.
Also, you would think that the time limit each level has would make things more exciting, but it actually has the opposite effect. I get more frustrated because I end up "wasting" time figuring out the layout of the level, where to go, etc. In fact, time limits seem to be really annoying when there are elements in a level which you have to wait for (like a platform that you have to wait for to jump on). This is especially true when the time limit is really low. (say, 200 seconds)
Oh well. I'm happy I got to play it but it really is a "meh" kind of game.
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| [March 24, 2005 02:52:06 PM]
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Woohoo!
I'm up to the first few levels of world 4. Aint I great?
The gameplay has been getting poorer though. I've been having more control problems than before and some of the new moves that have been introduced are not that easy to do. In particular, I'm enjoying the "jumping" less and less. It feels kind of hard for me to gauge distances on the jumps, especially if you are jumping of a rope on to the ground and that sort of thing.
The other thing that has become more and more annoying is the time limit you have to complete each of the levels. There are a few levels you can't really beat on your first try unless you are lucky and happen to go down the "correct" route. There is little margin of error for exploring and discovering the level. I guess what I'm trying to say is that a time extension would be a good thing even if you miss out on the bonus points (you get extra score for the amount of time left on the clock when you finish a level).
What has been rather unusual is that the boss levels (against Kong himself) are really easy. I mean, pathetically easy. They put the rest of the game to shame.
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| [March 23, 2005 11:27:18 AM]
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I just finished the second boss level of world 2.
This game has, if I remember correctly, 6 worlds. I will never be able to finish it all before I have to return this game. Boohoo... I'm secretly hoping that just before I have to return it I'll get stuck somewhere and will be so frustrated that I won't care I didn't get to the end. Actually, I'd rather not be frustrated.
I'm usually interested in pretty much any Mario game that comes out. I've been thinking about why this is... I know that I won't be getting (usually) and excellent 10/10 game. On the other hand, I know I won't get a game that is totally crap either. Have I perhaps been "burned" by poor games that I prefer to go with something that guarantees a minimum level of quality that I find acceptable? Maybe. I know that I also go for games that are weird and strange and didn't get knockout reviews too. On the other hand, I've found that Mario games tend to be pretty broad as far as gameplay goes. In many ways they are great pieces of games design with, more often than not, that are kind of experimental in many ways. Mario & Luigi, Mario Kart, etc.
Maybe the bottomline is that I'm just a fanboy of sorts.
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| [March 22, 2005 11:16:05 AM]
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This is the other game I got as part of Gamefly's 10-day free trial. It really beats having to play Boktai in the dark! (it's cloudy again, what the heck is wrong with the weather!?!)
Anyways, I just played for about a half hour and cleared the first 5 levels. They're short, cute, and not too hard. I think this will obviously change because the game is just introducing all of Mario's moves. In fact, each level I played show cased a particular move with a little tutorial/cut-scene that illustrated how it was done. Nice. Also, each level has little "help" boxes that do the same thing. Not bad.
I really have to finish this game in a short period of time (because I have to return it) so I hope that I'm able to do that. I would really have to hate leaving the game half-done.
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jp's Mario vs. Donkey Kong (GBA)
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Current Status: Stopped playing - Something better came along
GameLog started on: Tuesday 22 March, 2005
GameLog closed on: Tuesday 29 March, 2005 |
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