Gaming Hearts Collection 1990's Gaming, 90s, 90s Gaming, Article, Electronics, Entertainment, Fun, Game, Gaming, Gaming Industry, Gaming Life, Gaming World, Single Player, Single Player Mode, Technology, Uncategorized, Video Games

Retro Gaming 90’s- Night Warriors: Darkstalkers Revenge (1995)

When it comes down to 2D fighting games from the 90’s that are considered to be underrated one of the few titles that comes to mind is Night Warriors: Darkstalkers Revenge which was released back in 1995. Night Warriors: Darkstalkers Revenge was initially released in arcade centers for the CP System II before appearing on the Sega Saturn in 1996. For whatever reason Night Warriors: Darkstalkers Revenge never appeared on the PS1 despite the console being more popular both Japan and America. For those who do not know Night Warriors: DarkStalkers Revenge was the direct sequel to the original Darkstalkers game Capcom had developed in ’94. Ironically, Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors was ported for the PS1 in ’96 despite the quality of the game being slightly inferior compared to Night Warriors: DarkStalkers Revenge. As far as popularity is concerned DarkStalkers: The Night Warriors was arguably a more well known title since it was the first entry within the entire series. In fact, Night Warriors: DarkStalkers Revenge had the same characters, ending and plot from the ’94 game. However, Night Warriors: DarkStalkers Revenge did have some new characters in addition to the likes of Morrigan Aensland, Lord Raptor, Hsien-Ko Felicia and others.

There were non-playable boss characters such as Huitzil & Pyron who were in the first DarkStalkers game that became selectable in Night Warriors: DarkStalkers Revenge. Also, the improvements made to the gameplay for DarkStalkers Revenge was a positive. When it came downtown the super meters of the characters Capcom had decided to give them both EX & ES specials. While a EX special consumed the players entire special gauge an ES special took up about a fraction of the characters meter somewhat similar to the Street Fighter Alpha series from the mid to late 90’s. Its entire possible that Night Warriors: DarkStalkers Revenge could have been way more popular than it was during ’95-’96 on the PS1. However, 2D fighting games were starting to lose their appeal in America & Japan during the mid 90’s in favor of 3D gaming. Despite, not being as popular as other 2D fighting games from the 90’s Night Warriors: DarkStalkers Revenge was still a very good fighting game that does not get talked about as much should.

Gaming Hearts Collection Article, Electronics, Entertainment, Fun, Game, Gaming, Gaming Industry, Gaming Life, Gaming World, Retro Gaming, Single Player, Single Player Mode, Technology, Uncategorized, Video Games

Retro Gaming 10’s- Lollipop Chainsaw: (2012)

When it comes down to older action based hack and slash games from the late 00’s-early 10’s titles such as Bayonetta, No More Heroes 2, Darksiders along with God Of War 3 comes to many people’s minds in relation to that particular genre. The titles just mentioned were all big attractions for older generation consoles between the late 00’s-early 10’s such as PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii. Which the hack n slash genre of gaming was not as pop as first and third person shooters fans and critics alike were fond of certain games from that genre back in the day. One of the few action-based hack n slash games that came out back in the early 10’s that has been seeming forgotten since its release was Chainsaw Lollipop from June 2012. For those who many have missed it Chainsaw Lollipop was developed by Grasshopper Manufacture the same company that worked on the No More Heroes series since 2007. Also, Chainsaw Lollipop was published by worldwide Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment before while Kadokawa Games took that same role Japan. The storyline for Chainsaw Lollipop was interesting especially since it took elements science-fiction and mixed it with something that has been a recurring issue especially in American society in relation to grade school which is bullying. In this game players control the main protagonist who is a cheerleader from San Romero High School and a cheerleader/zombie hunter named Juliet Starling as she fights of hordes of undead creatures during a zombie apocalypse on her 18th birthday.

The plot is both bizarre and intriguing as players discover that one of the key antagonists of the game is a gothic outcast by the name of Swan. It turns out that Swan is the one behind the zombie apocalypse and its mainly due to how he has been mistreated and bullied by almost everyone at San Romero High School. Ironically, Juliet was not among any of the students who mistreated Swan and while he began to develop romantic feelings towards her she eventually found another love interest. While Juliet falls for a jock at San Romero High School School it drives Swan insane especially considering the fact that jocks were the biggest bullies of them all. These events lead Swan to use his expert knowledge of Necromancy perform a ritual to summon the “Zombie of Zombies” and the final boss in Chainsaw Lollipop known as Killabilly from the Rotten World. Throughout the game players had to destroy various enemies and bosses using Juliet Starling’s athletic abilities and along with her custom chainsaw.

Players encounter bosses with the likes of Zed, Mariska, Vikkie, Lewis Legend, Josey with Killabilly arguably being the toughest one of them all. The visuals for Lollipop Chainsaw looked very impressive mainly since the game utilized the Unreal Engine 3 for the PlayStation 3 & Xbox 360. The gameplay for Chainsaw Lollipop was pretty solid and there was a fair amount of creativity that went into its development. Players were allowed to earn gold & platinum medals by engaging in activities such rescuing classmates and destroying enemies. The medals collected could be used to unlock new moves and attires for Juliet Starling in addition to obtain artwork and music in relation to the game itself. The health bar meter players are given can be replenished by collecting lollipops throughout the game. Also, Nick who Juliet saves from becoming a zombie by cutting of his head and using a magic ritual on him to maintain his life had health bar as well.

The plot for Chainsaw Lollipop took a interesting twist when Juliet learned that the zombie overlords that she battled were all allowed to perish so Killabilly could make his return to earth. Along with the comic-book like art style and the gameplay mechanics included in Chainsaw Lollipop the storytelling aspect of the game was surprisingly interesting. While the Chainsaw Lollipop mainly received a mixed reception from critics it was still a pretty fun action based hack n slash title. While the presentation of Chainsaw Lollipop can easily draw the attention of casual gamers who are huge fans of the hack n slash genre some would argue that minor improvements to the gameplay could have made. However, since Lollipop Chainsaw came out during a time period where 3D action hack n slash games were popular and never officially developed into a series it’s considered to be a memorable gem for the PS3 & Xbox 360 from the early 10’s.

Gaming Hearts Collection 1990's Gaming, 90s, 90s Gaming, Article, Electronics, Entertainment, Fun, Game, Gaming, Gaming Industry, Gaming Life, Gaming World, Single Player, Single Player Mode, Technology, Uncategorized, Video Games

Final Fantasy VII & VIII Twin Pack confirmed for the Switch console!!!!

One of the few things that has been making headlines within the gaming world as of late involves the upcoming Switch ports of the JRPG classics Final Fantasy VII & VIII from the late 90’s. As far as big attractions are concerned both Final Fantasy VII & VIII were among two of the best selling video games for the PS1 when they were released between ’97-’99. Square Enix’s Final Fantasy VII had sold close to 10 million following its release in January 1997 and was the third best selling game for the legendary PS1. The inclusion of memorable characters such Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockhart, Sephiroth made Final Fantasy VII arguably the best entry within series with a cult following that that is still present to this day. Final Fantasy VIII was a game that was not quite as successful as its ’97 predecessor but still managed to reach at least 7 million sales while becoming the seventh best selling title for the PS1. Despite, being criticized for its complicated gameplay and quality issues with Disc 3 FFVIII was still a game that fans of the FF series are still quite fond of.

Final Fantasy VII & VIII will undoubtedly be huge attractions for the Nintendo Switch especially considering the fact that those two titles are among the biggest JRPG’s that have never appeared on a Nintendo based console. As it currently stands the multi-language Final Fantasy VII & VIII Twin Pack can currently be pre-ordered for $49.99 on Play-Asia.com. Also, it has not been confirmed on whether or not the Final Fantasy VII & VIII Twin Pack will receive a physical release released outside of Asia or in western countries like America. As far as upcoming releases are concerned with the Final Fantasy series is concerned we know for a fact that the Final Fantasy VII: Remake has been confirmed to appear in America as a PS4 exclusive while there seems to be no plans at all regarding Square Enix doing something similar with Final Fantasy VIII outside it being remastered. Hopefully, the Final Fantasy VII & VIII Twin Pack will be released in western countries like America sometime in the near future or perhaps in 2020.

Gaming Hearts Collection 90s, 90s Gaming, Electronics, Entertainment, Fun, Game, Gaming, Gaming Industry, Gaming Life, Gaming World, Single Player, Single Player Mode, Technology, Uncategorized, Video Games

Could the Sega Genesis have been successful if were released in the 00’s?

As far as retro consoles are concerned there is no secret that the Sega Genesis is considered to be legendary in the world of gaming. The Sega Genesis was initially released back in ’88 and since its release the 16-bit console has managed to reach at least 35 million units in worldwide sales. Despite, not selling as much as the Super NES console released back in 1990 it was still praised for its collection of games including the Sonic the Hedgehog trilogy, Street Of Rage trilogy, Phantasy Star series and many other titles that are seen as classics from the early 90’s. While the 90’s was considered to be the golden era for video games involving 2D sprites and level design 3D gaming involving RPG’s, shooters and action-adventure titles were very popular during the 00’s. With consoles such PS2, Xbox, GameCube, Wii and the PlayStation 3 it would be easy to console that the Sega Genesis would have definitely been overshadowed in the 00’s.

There were consoles such as the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3 that could run 16-bit video games better than the likes of The Sega Genesis or the Super Nintendo. In fact the PS2 and the PS3 could run arcade games with ease making consoles such as the Sega Genesis and the Super NES obsolete. While the Game Boy Advance and the Nintendo DS were both highly successful during the 00’s many would argue that titles within the Pokémon, Super Mario and Legend Of Zelda series were still very big during that decade contributing to the huge sales of both handheld consoles. If Sega decided to release a Dreamcast 2 during early to mid 00’s than its possible that could of rivaled the Nintendo GameCube in popularity since the console sold less than 22 million units worldwide. By the 00’s decade technology had evolved far beyond what it was in the late 80’s-early 90’s so its was unlikely that the Sega Genesis would had as much success during that time period than it did following its initial release.

Gaming Hearts Collection 1990's Gaming, 2D gaming, 90s, 90s Gaming, Article, Electronics, Entertainment, Fun, Game, Gaming, Gaming Industry, Gaming Life, Gaming World, Nintendo, Single Player, Single Player Mode, Technology, Uncategorized, Video Games

Upcoming Switch Games- Moon: Remix RPG Adventure: (2019)

As far as classic RPG’s from the 90’s are concerned there are many titles that instantly comes Mind such as Chrono Trigger, Secret Of Mana, Earthbound, Final Fantasy VI-VIII and others that were very popular. Most of those RPG’s were titles that the whole world got to see back in the 90’s especially since they all appeared in other opposed to being Japanese exclusives. When it comes down to JRPG exclusive market one of the many titles that never appeared outside of Japan was a game developed by Love-de-Lic and published by ASCII Entertainment known as Moon: Remix RPG Adventure from 1997. Since its release approximately 22 years ago the game has been considered to be a classic by many fans and critics for various qualities such as its soundtrack in which 30 different composers had worked on prior to its PS1 release in October ’97. The graphics and visuals for Moon: Remix RPG Adventure was pretty cool especially since it utilized 16-bit sprites with 3D backgrounds similar to that of Square Enix’s Xenogears game from 1998. In fact, a couple developers who had previously worked with Square Enix in the 90’s prior to their respective departures from the company involved in the development of Moon: Remix RPG Advance.

Video Game developers such as Akira Ueda, Kenichi Nishi and Tarō Kudou had roles in the development of popular RPG’s created by Square Enix such as Super Mario RPG which was arguably one of the best games within its genre to have appeared on the Super NES during the mid 90’s. While Moon: Remix RPG Adventure was not nearly as big as other RPG’s that appeared on the PS1 such as Final Fantasy VII which was also released in ’97 it was a game that could have arguably shine a bit more outside of Japan if it came out between ’98-’99. Lucky, Moon: Remix RPG Adventure will be headed to western countries such as America sometime between now and January 2020. An official release date for Moon: Remix RPG Adventure has yet to be confirmed and hopefully it will be not be delayed until 2020. Based on what we know Moon: Remix RPG Adventure will have a different publisher known as Onion Games opposed to the original one ASCII Entertainment. It will be interesting to see how well this JRPG classic will be received in western countries approximately 22 years following its initial release in Japan.

Gaming Hearts Collection 00's, 00's Gaming, 1990's Gaming, 2000's, 2000's Gaming, 3D, 3d gaming, 3D Technology, 90s, 90s Gaming, Article, Electronics, Entertainment, Fun, Game, Gaming Industry, Gaming Life, Gaming World, Single Player, Single Player Mode, Technology, Uncategorized, Video Games

Will there ever be another Bloody Roar game?

As far as old school fighting games from the 90’s and early 00’s are concerned there are so many titles that instantly comes to mind. Retro gamers often remember titles such as the Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Tekken, Killer Instinct and King of Fighters series from back in the day. Despite, how popular each of those franchises were there were games such as the Bloody Roar series which began back in back in 1997 on the Sony PlayStation which are considered to be highly underrated especially since they were overshadowed during the 90’s-early 00’s. In fact, the Bloody Roar series definitely had strong fan base especially since it was quite unique in relation to gameplay such as the “Beast Mode” mechanic and eventually “Beast Drive” in Blood Roar 2 which was released back in ’99. As far as the overall appeal of the series is concerned many would argue that Bloody Roar 2 was arguably the last strong entry despite there being three more games that came afterwards between 2000-2003. The latest entry in the set known as Bloody Roar 4 came out about sixteen years ago and since then there has been no indication of the possibility of a new game especially since Hudson Soft became defunct back in 2012.

While video game developer Eighting has worked on just about every Bloody Roar title within the series Konami was the publisher for Bloody Roar 4 which appeared on the PlayStation 2 between late 2003-early 2004. Even though, Konami is still a major publisher within the gaming industry today its unlikely that they have any plans on bringing back the Bloody Roar series. Bloody Roar 4 was nowhere near as popular as the first two games that came out between ’97-’99. In fact, some would argue with the notion that a new Bloody Roar game is not necessary but the idea of having HD releases if each title within the series would be something that would definitely turn heads within the gaming world. Despite, the fact that the fighting genre of gaming is not quite as popular today as it was during the 90’s a new project or release involving the Bloody Roar series could definitely be somewhat of an attraction anytime from 2020 onwards. But as it currently stands the idea of a new Bloody Roar game is one that seems unlikely to happen anytime in the near future.

Gaming Hearts Collection Article, Electronics, Entertainment, Fun, Game, Gaming Industry, Gaming Life, Gaming World, Nintendo, Retro Gaming, Single Player, Single Player Mode, Technology, Uncategorized, Video Games

Retro Gaming 10’s- New Super Mario Bros U: (2012)

When it comes down to the Nintendo Wii-U there is no secret that the console itself was considered to be a flop in comparison to rival consoles such as the PlayStation, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One. A lot of people blame the Wii-U’s lack of success on the prices for the console itself along with its accessories but that is debatable. Despite, not being as successful as preceding consoles such as the Wii, GameCube, SNES or the NES one of the few games that was a huge attraction on the Wii-U during the early 10’s was New Super Mario Bros U which was initially released in November 2012. The cool thing about New Super Mario Bros U is the fact that it’s very similar to older installments of the series where players have to reach the flag at the end of each stage while traveling through various worlds. However, New Super Mario Bros U included 3D graphics opposed to 2D and allowed up to five players simultaneously which was one of the defining features of the game itself. Players were also given the option of using the Wii Remote or the Game Pad in terms of how they wanted to play New Super Mario Bros U which was another intriguing feature. The inclusion of a new villain named Nabbit who is known to be a power up thief was something that was also interesting especially since Nintendo usually recycled the same foes that have been popular in the series during the 80’s and 90’s and it was nice to see something new. Aside from the damsel in distress formula that we normally get in Mario games the co-op 2D multiplayer mode was something that really stood out in New Super Mario Bros U shout have been done a lot sooner than it was.

As far as sales are concerned New Super Mario Bros U managed to reach over 5.7 million copies worldwide. In fact New Super Mario Bros U ended up becoming third best selling game for the Wii-U behind Mario Kart 8 and Super Mario 3D World. New Super Mario Bros U was so popular that it was eventually ported and released for the Nintendo Switch in January 2019. There were various aspects about New Super Mario Bros U that fans and critics had praised from its level design and multiplayer gameplay all the way down to the storyline and has become one of the more memorable installments of the Mario series in relation to the 10’s decade.