Remembering Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards

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I am continuing my series on talking about games from my childhood, and one memorable game that I had on the Nintendo 64 when I was a child was Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards. I previously mentioned in my review of Kirby and the Forgotten Land that I played a few Kirby games in my childhood. Most Kirby games are not worth talking about in a blog post because they are all the same sort of 2D platformer. However, Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards is just different enough that I need to talk about it.

Remembering Conker's Bad Fur Day

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There was a game on the Nintendo 64 that I remember vividly; not because I have ever played this game (until now), but because of the controversy this game would happen to generate at the time of its release. I am talking about Conker's Bad Fur Day, developed by Rare (formerly Rareware). Rare was probably one of the most highly-regarded video game studios of the 1990s and early 2000s, putting out highly influential and critically-acclaimed games such as the Donkey Kong Country series, GoldenEye 007, and Diddy Kong Racing. Diddy Kong Racing introduced two characters that would go on to have their own games: Banjo (Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie) and Conker, the cute red squirrel who will be the focus of this blog post.

Do Not Pursue Lu Bu, Do Not Collect $200 (Dynasty Warriors Tribute)

I was thinking about a video game-related question I saw while lazily browsing the internet. What is a video game or video game series that is not necessarily well-received or highly-regarded, but provided you hours upon hours of joy and entertainment while playing? My immediate answer to this question were the Dynasty Warriors games. I do not believe there is a Dynasty Warriors game that is genuinely amazing, but these were some of the most satisfying video games I have ever played in my life. I have referenced Dynasty Warriors in a few of my game reviews, but I have never talked about the video game series directly. In this post, I will give my long-awaited flowers to the Dynasty Warriors video games.

NieR: Automata - Why Is This Game So Special?

Before I start to answer the question in the title, I want to talk about my relationship and experience with playing NieR: Automata. The first time I played this game was maybe around 2018 or 2019 on the PS4. The release of NieR: Automata was in 2017, developed by PlatinumGames (makers of the Bayonetta series, among other titles), and published by Square Enix. 

Diddy Kong Racing - The Superior N64 Racing Game

I have been thinking about creating blog posts giving my thoughts playing video games that I used to play religiously in my childhood. There is no video game console that defined my childhood more and that I remember more fondly than the Nintendo 64. I have already written posts about Super Mario 64, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and Super Smash Bros. However, I want to use this post to talk about Diddy Kong Racing, which is the superior racing game on the N64, and certainly better than Mario Kart 64.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - Genre-Defining

I have been thinking about my reviews of Breath of the Wild and Skyward Sword and I decided to go through the gauntlet of playing the classic mainline 3D Legend of Zelda games. Where better to start than the iconic Ocarina of Time. I have talked about the legacy and importance of games such as Super Mario 64 and Final Fantasy VII, but Ocarina of Time is also one of the most important video games in video game history. Ocarina of Time is the book of Genesis of the open-world, action-adventure game, and the plethora of action-adventure games released since Ocarina of Time can trace its roots to this game.

Super Mario Galaxy: The Masterpiece

I saved the best game on Super Mario 3D All Stars for last, and that is Super Mario Galaxy. Super Mario Galaxy came out in 2007 for the Nintendo Wii to universal acclaim, for which I will explain further in this post. Super Mario Galaxy differs from the other two Mario games in the bundle. The focus of Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Galaxy is on open-world exploration and collecting, whereas the focus of Super Mario Galaxy is on completing linear challenges. Super Mario Galaxy feels similar to many of the older 2D Mario platformers in its game design.

Super Mario Sunshine AKA Slime Cleaning Simulator

Continuing on playing all of the games from Super Mario 3D All Stars, the second game I play is Super Mario Sunshine, released on the GameCube back in 2002. This was the only game I have not actually played prior to my purchase of this compilation of Mario games for the Switch. I am happy to say that I enjoyed Super Mario Sunshine and the game deserves its place as a celebrated Mario 3D platformer, despite its noted criticisms. Just as an FYI, I beat the main game of Sunshine, but I did not get every single Shine Sprite.

Is Super Mario 64 Still Fun To Play?

I recently purchased Super Mario 3D All Stars for the Nintendo Switch, which includes Super Mario 64 (from the Nintendo 64), Super Mario Sunshine (from the Nintendo GameCube), and Super Mario Galaxy (from the Nintendo Wii). Three full-length games for the price of one regular-priced Switch is a good value. In addition, I wanted to relive the nostalgia of playing through Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Galaxy again (I did not play Super Mario Sunshine). For the purposes of this post, I will talk about Super Mario 64. I will talk about my experiences with the game, and then talk about if the game still holds up today.

Final Fantasy VII Remake: The Game Dreams Are Made From

Final Fantasy VII Remake is the long-awaited and much-delayed release from Square Enix, which is a re-telling of the classic Final Fantasy VII released on the PS1 back in 1997. Before I get into my review of the remake, I will give some context on what made the original FF7 so special in the eyes of many gamers, including myself.

So, what made the original FF7 so special?

Reminiscing On N64 Super Smash Bros + Quick Thoughts on Smash Ultimate

As the self-isolation takes hold on me, I have been taking measures to decrease my boredom while I am staying home. I purchased 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate' for the Nintendo Switch, and the purchase got me thinking about my fond memories playing the original 'Super Smash Bros' for the Nintendo 64.