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My VG Music Picks #85 – The Final Antasma Battle (Mario & Luigi: Dream Team)

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Mario & Luigi: Dream Team

It’s such a shame to hear about AlphaDream going bankrupt. They were the studio that brought us the imaginative, funny, and just enjoyable Mario & Luigi series of RPGs. And while we can argue about whether or not the quality of the games diminished over time, there’s no denying that all of them were at the very least decent and fun games to play. I had high hopes for the potential of the series when the Switch was released but, sadly, it is not to be.

There is quite a bit I love about this series; one primary aspect being its music. The legendary Yoko Shimomura lent her talents to all of the games and created such varied soundtracks, filled with pieces that fit right at home in Mario’s world, as well as ones that felt like they belonged in more “serious” RPGs. That’s not me complaining, by the way. I think that’s amazing, hearing these Final Fantasy-like dramatic scores in a game starring a short Italian plumber who jumps on turtles. One example being this track. Continue reading →

Favourite Moments in Fiction #21 – VS Lusamine/Mother Beast (Pokémon Sun and Moon)

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Pokémon Sun and Moon

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Lusamine is easily my favourite villain in the entire Pokémon series. Aside from having a simple but sleek design, she’s deliciously despicable to boot. She’s able to present herself as a calm, intelligent and caring woman when, in actuality, she’s obsessive, arrogant and emotionally abusive to her own children. This makes her a great antagonist that you enjoy battling, just so you can wipe that smug smirk off her face and prove her wrong. But I want to focus on the second battle with her, mostly because of how unique it is for the series. Continue reading →

WarioWare Gold – Glorious, Gaming Goodness or Just Gross?

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

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I never realised how much I missed playing WarioWare games until I tried out the demo for the latest entry – WarioWare Gold. It was like meeting up with an old friend you hadn’t seen in years and finding out that you’re still on the same wavelength and have a fun time together. And considering the last WarioWare game came out in 2013 (assuming you even count Game & Wario, that is), I feel that comparison is perfectly apt.

But is WarioWare Gold deserving of that name? Is it the game that long-time fans have been waiting for? Or is it just like Wario himself and full of hot air? How about I stop asking rhetorical questions and we get on with the review. Continue reading →

Detective Pikachu – A Bolt of Brilliance Or A Load of Trubbish?

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

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When this game was first announced, it raised a lot of eyebrows, myself included. In a good way, mind you. The idea of a game centered around a gruff-sounding, coffee-loving, talking Pikachu seemed so crazy that it could actually work, or at the very least was worth experiencing. But after its official announcement, we heard basically nothing about the thing for, like, three years until it was suddenly released in Japan in early 2016.

Cut to two years later and the game not only received an expansion but was released in its entirety here in the West for us to enjoy. But was it worth the wait? Does it offer anything of substance outside of its bizarre concept? Is there any reason it should also be getting a movie adaptation? Well, I think I can answer those first two questions at least. Continue reading →

My VG Music Picks #57 – Athena Cykes ~ Courtroom Révolutionnaire (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies/Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice)

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

I don’t know if I’m in a minority or not, but I thought Athena Cykes was a welcome addition to the main Ace Attorney cast. While she may not be the most original character ever, her energetic, confident personality made her the perfect newcomer to contrast against the likes of Phoenix and Apollo. Not to mention I enjoyed her character arc in Dual Destinies, the introduction of the Mood Matrix mechanic and, of course, her superb music theme.

Continue reading →

Zero Time Dilemma – It All Began With a Snail

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

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In another timeline, this game does not exist. Due to the poor sales of Virtue’s Last Reward (which I wrote a review of previously), the third entry in the Zero Escape series was pretty much dead in the water. The odds of it ever being made were virtually nonexistent. Fortunately, this is not that timeline and thanks to outcry and support from a dedicated fan-base, director Kotaro Uchikoshi was able to bring this project to life and properly conclude the series.

This was one of my most anticipated games of 2016, but I held off playing it due to hearing rumours of a re-release of the first two games being made. Those rumours were true but I wasn’t able to actually play it until late 2017 when the Vita version finally got released in the EU. With those games under my belt, I immediately went into Zero Time Dilemma with high expectations and plenty of concerns. While reviews for the game were mostly positive, there were still a tonne of fans that outright hated it, even claiming it retroactively ruins the entire series. And after playing it… well, it left enough of an impression to make me write this review.

So is Zero Time Dilemma the worthy conclusion it was hyped up to be? Or would it have been best if it never existed at all? Continue reading →

My VG Music Picks #53 – Battle! Ultra Beast (Pokémon Sun & Moon)

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Pokémon Sun & Moon

I instantly fell in love with the Ultra Beasts when they were first announced for Pokémon Sun & Moon. They were so alien in design, so unnatural looking and a little bit scary to boot. And on top of that, they have an amazing theme to go along with their appearances. Continue reading →

Five of My Favourite Generation 7 Pokémon

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

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About a couple of years ago, I wrote a list about thirty of my favourite Pokémon, but that was before the then upcoming seventh generation of games had come out – Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon. These two games introduced a bunch of brand new catch-able creatures so, with the updated releases, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, still fresh in my memory, I figured I would follow up on that previous list and share a small sample of my favourite additions to the ever growing world of Pokémon.

Quick disclaimer – I’m only including brand new Pokémon so no Alolan forms. Continue reading →