Visual Connection: Tony Hawk:Downhill Jam Soundtrack
June 27th, 2009
Not very visual, I know, but I’ve recently decided to go back and hunt down some licenced music tracks from the DS version of Tony Hawk:Downhill Jam. The skateboarding franchise usually combines a flavoursome mix of rock, metal, rap and hip-hop music to form the OST. Although the DS iteration was limited to a handful of compressed music tracks, most of them were pure awesome like the game itself. Here’s some of my favourites;
Game Boy Memories Part #4
May 9th, 2009
More to Come
The upright, grey brick may have already received its inauguration into the 20-Somethings, but it’s life is hardly over, at least for me anyways! While I’m rather up to date with the compulsory, must-play portable titles, there are a few holes that I’m still hoping to plug as well as a handful of titles that I’m simply curious to explore. Maybe you can lend a hand?
Peering over my laptop screen I can see Wario Land III, Metroid II, Kirby Tilt and Tumble (might give Kirby a miss) and Legend of the River King that all need proper play throughs. I unfortunately missed out on most of those titles the first time around. Actually Kirby T&T is imported, never came out in PAL regions, maybe I ought to give it a shot, I’m weary of having to wiggle around the GBC though, will likely hinder vision.
On the GBA I’d like to replay the two Pokemon titles as well as the excellent Kuru Kuru Kurrin which is more difficult than I remember it. On top of these three are Mario Kart Super Circuit (turned this down originally, gasp!), Castlevania Double-Pak and Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones, the last two which I’ve kinda started. Wow, certainly some heavy hitters to look forward too.
This post isn’t intended to brag about titles already within my possession though. I hate materialism, and don’t wish to whine over unfortunate dilemmas like which games I intend on playing next. Seriously, people complained about this issue last Christmas, if they don’t like having so much to play, maybe they can sell their unused games to clog up retail chains. I want to instead spew out a list of names that interest me, maybe if you’ve had some experience yourself, you can pitch in with ideas/suggestions.
As one of the few people to pimp ambitious portable developer Vicarious Visions, I’m interested to go hands on with one of the seven (is it really seven?!) isometric iterations of the Tony Hawk franchise. I remember the fuss surrounding THPS2 at the GBA launch, the hype leveling it with PSone quality graphics. That’s obviously a lie, but the titles are still a technical milestone.
Metal Gear Solid on the GBC is a game that I also ought to add to my collection. This game has received unanimous critical acclaim, and before GTA IV and the Orange Box ever showed up, MGS GBC was firmly holding a position in GameRankings top 5 best titles. I hear there’s an Aboriginal villain in it too!
My brother and I are avid fans of the Harvest Moon franchise, yet we’d dare touch anything but the sacred SNES original. Even though the quality of the newer titles tends fluctuate a little, the series appears to have evolved respectably, still that doesn’t shake hardened fans like us. I’m curious though, with the exception of the off-shoot Rune Factory series, how do some of the games stack up? The GBC titles seem interesting place to ponder that question.
Lastly, I am dying to play (probably through emulation, I suspect) Stranded Kids or Survival Kids, I’m not sure which is the PAL/NTSC name here. This GBC game is the precursor to the Lost in Blue series. I’ve been intrigued by this RPG since I first caught eye of it in NMS magazine, yet I’ve never seen it on store shelves. The premise seems to place the game in the same obscure, life-RPG niche as Harvest Moon and Legend of the River King.
And that concludes this week’s Game Boy retrospective. I wish this was done and dusted last we, but sometimes time doesn’t permit. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it. For now we return to the regular broadcasting content.
All images used in this series proudly swiped from MobyGames
Back to Back: Proving Ground + Metroid Prime 3
August 12th, 2007
There have been a few news bytes on two games that I am much anticipating. First details and media have been released for the new Tony Hawk game for the DS, once again created by the excellent Vicarious Visions. Also we have started to see some of the pre-release hype for Metroid Prime 3: Corruption.
Tony Hawk Proving Ground
I am a loyal follower of the Tony Hawk franchise, like most people I began with THPS2 for the PSone and held a steady interest in the series until the slim upgrades almost made me lose sight of the franchise. That was until the DS iterations of the series came along and rekindled my interest. I personally believe that these games have been a real under appreciated breath of fresh air for the series.
So far we have seen American Sk8land and Downhill Jam. Both excellent titles developed by Vicarious Visions; the developers for the also great GBA titles. These games packed a plethora of features such as online play, touch screen customization and voice input. These features combined with a solid soundtrack and unique visuals really pushed the console to its technical limits.
With TH Proving Ground they are once again testing their development wisdom and bringing this game to new and unseen levels. Here are some of the major differences with this iteration:
-no more cel shading, VV are aiming for a more realistic title
-new skatepark editor, your frinds can play in your park
-tweaks to the voice chatting
-new skate lounge area
-FMV of real skaters busting tricks
-much more on scren action/structures than prvious games
This is definetly one DS game for the ‘core’ audience. So if you haven’t played any of the DS Tony Hawk titles then go back and pick up the previous two or just hold tight for the upcoming release of Proving Ground.
Metroid Prime 3 Coruption
The Metroid Prime series so far hasn’t recieved the marketing and hype that it truely deserves. I’m not alone on this, IGN recently posted up an editorial on the matter. It really is concerning as my anticipation levels on this game aren’t as high as they probably shold be.
Thankfully Nintendo has release two awesome trailers for the game. Hopefully this is the start of a chain reaction of advertising/hyping. In saying that, the games coming out in just 3 weeks. Aren’t they a little behind?
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