Pikmin 3

It’s been nine long years since Pikmin 2 was released, and finally, Pikmin fans have a new game to play. Pikmin 3 has just been released for Wii U and I picked it up today. Once I put the disc in, it downloads and installs an update. That took several minutes, and then I started watching the opening sequence. The first thing that struck me is that the characters speak gibberish. Is Nintendo still stuck in the days of Banjo-Kazooie on N64? Maybe it’s just me, but I’d prefer actual language over “Arry, arry? Oo too roo umplin, wah wah.”

Pikmin 3 - Charlie screenshotAnyway, you start out as Captain Charlie. Your team has three characters, but all three begin the game in separate locations after a crash landing. Charlie stumbles onto yellow Pikmin very early on. You make your way through a snowy area, using Pikmin to clear away mushrooms that block your path.

p3-yellowAfter Charlie reaches a certain point, you switch to controlling Alph instead. He finds red Pikmin at his location. Much as in earlier games, you will order the Pikmin to build bridges, destroy walls, push boxes, and defeat enemies. And when need be, run for your life.

p3-redYou can control the game with a Wii remote and nunchuk, or you can use the Wii U gamepad. So far, I’ve only tried it with the gamepad. It seemed like gamepad controls would be most similiar to the controls of the original GameCube games, which used two sticks. Unfortunately, Nintendo hasn’t tried to keep the same control scheme. I’m used to pressing B to whistle for Pikmin, and now I have to use ZR. And the right stick is not used for directing the Pikmin like it was in the GameCube games, so the controls are going to take me a while to get used to. So far, I haven’t seen an option to customize the gamepad controls.

But controls aside, I am enjoying the game so far. I’ve only played two “days” of gameplay, and the first day is just a tutorial, so I’ve barely scratched the surface.  I’m looking forward to delving deeper into the game in the weeks ahead. I’ll be sure to update my progress from time to time, so be sure to check back!

Zelda LTTP: East Palace

When I left off last time, I was in Kakariko Village. A boy told me the location of the elder I need to see. So today, I headed east to find him. He told me his name is Sahasrahla (bless you!) and he said I need to find three pendants before I can wield the legendary sword. He asked me if I really wanted to find it. The choices were “yeah” and “of course.”

zlttp-yes of courseI responded with a yes, and he told me I needed to first retrieve the pendant of courage from the East Palace. So I made my way there. And even though I haven’t played A Link to the Past in years, I remember this palace well. I also love the moody, atmospheric music in here.

zlttp-east palaceAfter avoiding an endless stream of bowling balls and defeating wimpy skeletons that fly backwards every time you swing your sword, I acquired the big key. A couple screens later, I used it to open the treasure chest and I got a bow! I like how it tells me I can shoot arrows until I run out.

zlttp-bowI then advanced to the ball room.

zlttp-ball roomAt least, that’s what it should be called. But these are no ordinary balls. They will hit you hard if you run into them, yet they have the magic ability to pass through other balls as if they were ghosts.

Anyway, I continued on to the boss room. You have to defeat these six armored knights that bounce around the room in patterns clearly choreographed by Paula Abdul.

zlttp-six dancing knightsThey dance quite well considering all that armor they’re in, and they’ve obviously been rehearsing for weeks. But Link is able to break up their routine with his sword and arrows (until he runs out). Once five of them are defeated, the last one gets reeeeeeally angry at you and starts stomping around. I think he knows his dancing career is over at this point. Once he’s gone, Link gets a heart piece and the pendant of courage.

I then returned to Sahasaharahalaharalara the elder, who told me I need to recover the other pendants. He also gave the pegasus shoes, which let me run real fast and crash into stuff.

Zelda LTTP - Pegasus ShoesHe also told me that a helpful item is hidden in a cave on the east side of Lake Hylia. I went to check it out and I got a cool ice rod.

Getting the ice rod in Zelda LTTPThat’s all for today, but this Link to the Past will continue in the future. See you next time.

Wario Ware D.I.Y. Showcase

Nintendo recently announced their “elite status” rewards for Club Nintendo members. Gold members can choose a calendar or one of several downloadable games, while platinum members can choose a 3-poster set, a Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask CD soundtrack, or any of the gold rewards. I really would have loved that Majora’s Mask soundtrack, but I was only a gold member this year (mainly due to Pikmin 3 being delayed). I had no interest in the calendar, so I ended up choosing from the downloadable games available. A lot of the games were games I already owned in one form or another, so I ultimately went with Wario Ware: D.I.Y. Showcase for Wii.

wwdiy-leafIf you’re not familiar with Wario Ware games, they’re essentially a collection of mini-games…or micro-games. Each mini-game only lasts a few seconds, but you’re bombarded with many of them, one right after the other. The original Wario Ware, Inc.: Mega Microgames is my favorite Game Boy Advance (GBA) game.

But in addition to the included mini-games, Wario Ware: D.I.Y. Showcase works with the DS version, called Wario Ware D.I.Y.; the DS game lets you create your own mini-games, save them, and upload them. So if you’ve created mini-games on the DS, you can play them on the Wii “Showcase” game. Unfortunately, this D.I.Y. Showcase doesn’t have a mini-game editor itself. Nintendo, of course, wants people to buy both versions of the game. But the good news is that D.I.Y. Showcase can download mini-games that other players have created. But for now, I’m mainly sticking with the built-in games.

wwdiy-catsAs usual in Wario Ware, the goals of the mini-games are wacky and varied. You may have to grab pieces of pizza, toss bombs, drive a car, place candles on a birthday cake, spear a falling leaf, shoot finger rockets up the nostrils of a nose-shaped ship, figure out which cat ate a fish, break out of an egg shell, or sneak up on an octopus.

wwdiy-octopusThere are also some mini-games that include segments based on classic Nintendo games. You may have to shoot the ducks from Duck Hunt, blast Donkey Kong’s barrels before they bowl over Mario, shoot Koopa Troopa with a shell in a Mario Kart race, dodge a punch in a scene from Punch-Out, and so on.

wwdiy-mkFrom what I’ve played so far, the game is fun and enjoyable. It doesn’t seem as addictive as the original Game Boy Advance game though, but it’s still too early for me to give a final verdict. I’ll be playing more of this in the coming weeks, and you can expect a review of the game in the not-too-distant future. Here is a gameplay video of the “Wario Man” stage, which features mini-games that include Wario himself, in one form or another: