WayForward Switches Things Up!

This glass crack effect looks so real in 3D...

If you know anything at all about WayForward, you know that they’re a small company that mixes classic sensibilities with innovative ideas. While most popular for their Shantae games, they’ve had success with the DSiWare series commonly referred to as Mighty. The newest entry, Mighty Switch Force!, is available for 3DS and continues in the vein of innovation that it’s predecessors are lauded for. Does Mighty Switch Force! measure up to those that came before it?

The gameplay premise of MSF! (I like this acronym!) is simple. Your awesome female cop is chasing after awesome female thieves, and in order to catch them, she needs her trusty gun and the power to alternate or “switch” blocks. Each stage is a platforming puzzle where you must switch blocks around to continue forward, avoid obstacles, move objects, even fight enemies. Some blocks are in the background and some in the foreground, ones in the foreground are solid, while the background ones can be passed through. But be warned, if you’re standing where a block is and switch it into the foreground, you’ll lose a heart! You have three hearts before you die and have to restart the levels. The 3D aspects of the game, while not necessary for completion, add a layer of depth that makes the switching a little easier to see and, I believe, improves timing slightly.

Visually, this is a well made game. The character animations are smooth and really stand out amongst the futuristic scenery, something very important in this game. Fans of the Metroid series will notice little shout outs, such as the fact that the heroine dies just like Samus, with her body floating in the air while her suit explodes off her, revealing some mildly sexy sportswear! It just adds to that classic sensibility and charm that WayForward puts into their games. Everything is highly detailed and the 3D depth is used very effectively. For example, whenever you or an enemy are squished by a block, they smack up against the very front of the 3D and make a glass cracking imprint which you could SWEAR was on the screen itself. The designers clearly understood the way we perceive stereoscopic 3D and made sure to leave that foreground 3D level free for this effect. It makes every single death from block squishing that more unexpected when you think for a second it might pop OUT of the screen. One of the things I’ve noticed after playing MSF! for long periods of time is that my eyes begin to see an optical illusion 3D effect on everyday things like websites or…this blog (the text looks like it’s coming off the page to me right now). Complementing this visual design is the music which, while not the greatest music in the history of gaming, certainly does a great job adding to the quirky, fun nature of the game. It’s clear that the music designer (look Jake Kaufman up, he’s EXTREMELY talented) had a feel for the direction of the game, creating some catchy tunes which get under your skin just as much as the gameplay itself does.

Hey look, I segued into gameplay! This is the real beauty of this game; WayForward has managed to take a really simple concept that you’d perhaps see in a classic Mega Man game (remember those AWFUL blocks that alternated, and you had to time the jumps across?) and made it fun and complex. At first it seems simple, just switch the blocks until you get the result you want. The first few levels seem easy, as you quickly get the hang of the switching mechanic. However, it isn’t long before MSF! starts throwing challenges at you. The puzzles get more complex, and as you’d expect, the mechanic evolves. The game introduces rocket blocks which propel you through the air in a certain direction when switched onto where you’re standing. Then there’s the still confusing red and blue off/on blocks which will stay in place when you switch if you’re standing on them. What first seemed like an easy concept gets really tough, and by the last 5 levels, you’ll be dying a lot more than you’d expect out of a game like this.

There are a few minor complaints, the biggest (and only one I can remember) being that there are only 16 stages in the whole game. While this seems really short, and it is, many of these stages take a lot longer than you’d expect to beat them. On top of that, every stage is timed, and there’s a set par for each one that you can attempt to beat. In another shout out to Metroid, the image of the heroine at the end of the credits *seems* to be different based on how often you managed to beat the par time. The only other complaint I had is that the 3DS’ size makes switching and jumping at the same time a little tough on the hands after a while, as everything is kind of cramped. A, L, and R can be used to switch, but unfortunately, none of those are very easy to get to without straining just slightly. This, however, is a limitation of the system and not the fault of WayForward by any means. It’s likely that there’s nothing they could have done to avoid it…it could also be that I played it for several hours.

In closing, MSF! is a game everyone with a 3DS should own! I’m not just hyping this one, it’s really fun, engaging, and worth the $5.99. Its fast pace and unique gameplay makes this easily the best 3DS Downloads game in the eShop right now.

Absolute Destiny

I’m sticking this under Yaoi Reviews, but it’s not a review so much as it is a philosophical discussion from the standpoint of three series: Shoujo Kakumei Utena, Kingdom Hearts, and Earthian. The themes I plan to discuss are somewhat deep and often convoluted, but also very much my favorites. Since it is long and involved, I don’t expect everyone to want to read it, but if you take the time to delve into it, you may find it very interesting and even useful for your life!

“Zettai unmei.” Absolute destiny. This is a phrase that is repeated throughout Utena, but as a larger theme,  exists in all three of the series I’m discussing. What does it mean to go up against not just destiny, but an absolute destiny? What even IS absolute destiny? Is it just the concept of fate or predestination and the fight for free will which humans naturally seem inclined to, or is it something more? Before trying to answer that question, it should be noted that the other major theme that goes along with fate in all of these series is dualism. Dualism is a difficult subject, with several meanings, especially in this post-postmodern world which we live in. The two most commonly used meanings of dualism is that of good/evil, and body/soul. Good/evil dualism lays the premise that there exists in all of reality both an overarching good and evil force active in nature and life. While most people today tend to believe that the world is full of grey and has little black and white in it, most people would accept that there is at least a conflict between order and chaos in the natural world. The second meaning deals with whether our selves exist as physical beings only, or if our selves exist in the consciousness. This is important because while our physical selves take in information about the world, our mental selves process it and make decisions, altering our reality. When you combine both of these meanings, you have a struggle between good and evil which we perceive and use to help shape our own realities, determining what is real or illusion. This meaning is most obvious in Utena and Kingdom Hearts, where dualism is a driving force that leads the heroes down a path where they must fight to understand what is right or wrong, what is real and imaginary.

So, back to destiny. In Earthian, we witness the lives of Chihaya and Kagestsuya, two angels who have been sent to Earth to study the good and evil sides of humanity. Right away we are introduced to dualism, as each of the characters have their own very different perceptions of right and wrong, and both shape their views based on what they experience. Chihaya consistently believes in the goodness of humans and often causes great difficulty for his partner by helping humans who are in trouble. Kagetsuya, however, sees only evil and wants to leave humans to their own devices, but because he must defend Chihaya (and cares for him and what he believes in deeply) he finds himself in the middle most of the time. Herein lies the first question of destiny. Can humans ever cease to be evil and eventually become creatures who live solely for goodness, or rather, are humans destined to always struggle between light and darkness? Heaven itself does not know the answer, and instead must send observers to inform them of humanity’s progress. The next question of fate comes from Chihaya himself. Unlike other angels, Chihaya has black hair and black wings, which is extremely rare. The only angels who ever have black wings are” Lucifers” or fallen angels, whose wings turn black because they rebelled against heaven. For Chihaya, this is a crisis of existence; he does not know his future, but is worried that it is his destiny to one day become a Lucifer. What further complicates this question, and brings both of them to the brink of absolute destiny is their feelings for each other. Because homosexuality is not allowed in Eden, the two are forced to decide whether or not to hide their love forever and choose the “good” of Eden, or to rebel against Eden by continuing with their “evil” love, an act which will ultimately cause them to become Lucifers. For these two, their absolute destiny is a love (both for each other and for humans) which they cannot fight against, but can only fight to protect. For Chihaya, this is the ultimate question of his existence; will he become a Lucifer and be cast out of Eden just for being himself and loving everyone equally? Is being “cast out” of the world he knows into a new one in order to freely share his love for humans and Kagetsuya his purpose in life? This question becomes more important as we dig deeper.

Shoujo Kakumei Utena, in every incarnation (they’re all different), deals with good vs. evil, absolute destiny, and the truth of our reality. At the heart of these themes is the conflict which Utena is caught up in, a series of sword  fights (duels) over control of the Rose Bride and the power of miracles. Utena is beset from all sides by people and ideas which cause her to question her own beliefs and morals, as well as the value of the ideal she fights for. The series as a whole, especially the movie, go to great lengths to use symbolism and metaphor to relate these ideas to us. The show seems to be less about enjoying the story and more about forcing us as real people to evaluate our own lives. While it is easy to view Utena as the principle force of good and the major villain as the force of evil, this is a flawed way of looking at the show. If you look closer, you’ll find that the “villain” is both the major force of evil AND good (I can’t explain how without spoilers, but it’s there). Utena is the personification of ourselves, and as she asks herself questions about right and wrong, about what is real and illusion, we the viewers ask ourselves those same questions. Very rarely do we know more than Utena does about the truth of things, except where it is necessary for the storytelling to reveal some details (and even then, they are shrouded in mystery). Where does absolutely destiny play in all of this? The question Utena struggles with the most is an existential one. Who is she? Utena is a character with an intense “prince” ideal, and she spends most of the series searching for the person who gave her that ideal as a child. It is this ideal which gives her the strength to fight the duals, day after day, playing the game in order to achieve her own personal goals. And yet with each new person she comes into conflict with, she is presented with a conflict of existence, something which causes her to question some part of herself and find a new reason to keep on fighting. In this way, every dual that Utena fights is a physical metaphor for the personal conflicts inside herself. It is only her strict adherence to her ideals and the search for that special person which keeps her from giving in and falling back into an ordinary life. And so, you would think that her absolute destiny is to fight for her ideals. However, every version of the story ends with Utena leaving her ideals behind in some form and moving on. Throughout it all, Utena has questioned what is real and what is illusion, and in the end, she decides that it is ALL illusion, and gives it all up to live her own life, free from the illusions that shaped her own view of her world. This rebirth from a character who knows everything about her world to a character who breaks free of the world itself and emerges as a new person is hinted at in the infamous “chick speech” given repeatedly by the major antagonists in the show (the speech itself is a direct quotation from Hermann Hesse’s book Demian, which discusses similar themes). This spiritual and existential awakening is what absolute destiny truly means for Utena.

Unlike the other two, Kingdom Hearts is a video game series, and while there is no homosexuality in it (unlike Earthian and Utena), a large section of the series’ fans love to create homosexual fan pairings. Most fans know what major theme Kingdom Hearts deals with. DARKNESS! Lots and lots of DARKNESS! (You heard it in Ansem’s voice. Or whatever you wanna call him.) But seriously, it deals with light and darkness, and whether or not the two are inherently good and evil, as well as reality versus illusion, and fate. Practically all of the major characters in the series impact other characters in one way or another, and in doing so, a twisted, tangled web of fate and illusion is created, which our heroes Sora and Riku (Yes I know you could argue for other heroes) must fight their way through. With massive keys. SYMBOLISM! The whole story is constantly evolving and deepening with every new game that is released, and it’s quickly becoming difficult for us, the players, to perceive truth from reality, good from evil, and the meanings of the characters’ destinies. And I would argue that this is exactly what the series creators’ want, because in a lot of ways, Sora is like Utena (albeit a lot more dorky). Sora has ideals which he consistently and unwaveringly fights for, such as friendship, truth, and light. And yet Sora finds himself being attacked from all sides, beset by betrayals, friends who become enemies, enemies who become friends, darkness that becomes good, light that becomes evil, truths that turn out to be illusion, illusions that turn out to be truth, and a massive Heart which shapes the reality of existence and all humanity. His fate is entwined with the souls of at least two other people, and his friends also have similar fates lying hidden within them. Also ahead of them lies destiny, which at this point in the series is (aside from a set of islands) to protect Kingdom Hearts, the heart of the world. Is this, however, his absolute destiny? Without the series being finished, it is very difficult to say, especially with all the unanswered questions which lie ahead of us. The theme of the next game in the series does suggest that both Sora and Riku are going to undergo massive internal changes which help them evolve into stronger, more complete people able to defend what they believe in. Reality, however, is still very much distorted and illusion is everywhere. But at the central focus of all reality and illusion lies Kingdom Hearts, and I would not be surprised if the series ends with Sora (and maybe also Riku and Kairi) smashing through Kingdom Hearts itself to find that their whole existence was an illusion and that beyond it lies the true “other world” which they’ve been chasing since the opening cutscenes.

In all three of these series, we see an absolute destiny which is beyond the control of free will OR fate. It is something which is so interwoven into our existence that we cannot separate ourselves from it, no matter what stands in our way. What part of life can be so absolute that it permeates the very threads which bind every human to reality? The absolute destiny is that part of each and every one of us that makes us a specific being with a specific purpose in life, and it is the concept of absolute destiny which ties us to that purpose. We all struggle, we all fight, we all attempt to go our own way, forge our own path, and make sure that no predetermination bars our way. And yet, as we continue our lives, struggling forward, trying to find our purpose in life, we are slowly inching closer to that absolute destiny, that state of being which helps to complete us. We always think as humans that we are fighting against fate, but in reality, we are fighting against those things that would distract us from our true perfect fate…that place in life which we are supposed to be. That person we are destined to become. That love that we are destined to give. This is absolute destiny. Many people live their entire lives never understanding how to pursue their absolute destiny or in many cases attempt to fight it out of fear, ultimately ending up feeling miserable and unfulfilled. No matter how much one tries to deny it, each of us has a purpose, a true spiritual self, and a love which, if pursued, will help us to break free from the illusions and rise above the mundane status quo. While I am not completely there myself, I know the journey from experience, as my own fight to be my true self, to find my purpose, and to love who I should is something which I fought against for most of my life, until recently. We believe so many things that we are told in life without questioning them at all, and we shape our opinions and even our worldview on these things without any examination. I let many of those “things” control my feelings and hold me back from my own absolute destiny, but now I am finally beginning to break free of those, and little by little I am finding true happiness. Anybody who knows me well and talks about anime has probably heard me talk about how Utena helped change my life (I watched it at the same time I began to realize I was transgender), and it is this soul searching that made it have such an impact. Kingdom Hearts also had a similar impact when I began playing it a couple years ago. I highly recommend all three series! (See, it WAS a review! Sorta.)

Fishing Resort Makes This Girl Happy

Does Fishing Resort Stand Out in a World of Shovelware?

This is Michelle. She likes this game. A lot.

Before I get criticized for leading with such a provocative title, THE ANSWER IS OMG, YES. Good, glad we got that out of the way. Now on to the important part. Why.

The first part of this answer is found by asking what makes shovelware so hated. Lack of content? Yes. Poor coding/design? That too. Bad controls? Sometimes. A focus on putting out anything with a cute picture on it and a gimmick to sell to an uninformed mass market? UGH. And so we form our (often valid) opinions, and judge everything we see on the shelf that looks like shovelware by them. And if you aren’t knowledgeable or aren’t looking carefully, you may mistake this game for more of the same. But hear me out, because looks can be deceiving. At first glance you say “Fishing game. Wii. Cute characters. Gimmicky controller. Low selling point.” and assume this is every other low budget Wii game.

You’re wrong. I’m not ashamed to say it out like that, either. First and foremost, a quick look into this game through reviews, videos, or even the back of the box shows that there’s a lot more to this game than just fishing. In fact, it was the initial trailer that got me interested. I thought “Ok, this looks cute. I like cute.” It should be noted that I have liked the idea of fishing games since I played Black Bass on the NES as a kid. Few fishing games in recent years have caught my eye, so when I saw fishing I thought “Hmm, this may be interesting.” But then I saw the exploration and all the different environments. “Exploring?” I thought, ” I LOVE exploration.” And then I saw the costumes. “WAIT, I CAN DRESS UP TOO?” Suddenly this game was looking like something special. A minute had passed. I was hooked.

When I actually got the game, I put it in and prepared to be excited. I spent an hour at the character selection screen trying to decide if I wanted slightly bigger boobs (adult character) or freckles (teenage character). In the end I went with the freckles because they were just so cute. And that’s most of this game, really. The whole thing is SO CUTE. Seriously, the only way this game could have been cuter is if the Hidamari Sketch artist had worked on it. The only thing that isn’t cute are the fish; instead they are photo-realistic and honestly look very detailed and smooth for the Wii. The first day was spent catching fish, learning the area, exploring, renting a bike, looking at the clothes shop, and getting a few rewards. That’s a lot for the first day. And here we reach the first argument. There is  A LOT of content in this game. Unlike most shovelware in which you just barely get your money’s worth out of it, Fishing Resort gives you your money’s worth and then some. There are so many places to explore and so many things to do that it could almost be overwhelming if they hadn’t been smart enough to give it to you in increments. It isn’t Skyrim, obviously, but there’s still a lot to do here.

So what about the controls? I’ve seen a few minor complaints about the controls, and honestly, I don’t really see it. I’ve been playing the game using the fishing rod attachment and a Wii Motion Plus controller, and I think it controls well and is incredibly realistic. I particularly like the way you have to lean your rod left and right as the fish changes it’s angle in the water to break your line. If you’ve ever been fishing in real life, you know that fishing is about patience and endurance, as both you and the fish will try to tire each other out. Fishing Resort actually simulates this, including forcing you to reel slowly at first and give the fish slack to tire itself out. If there is any complaint to be made with the controls, it may be in that the casting seems a little wonky. You’d think the harder you through your rod, the further the line will go. But then, that’s not really true in real fishing, either. It’s more the angle and timing of when you let go of the line that determines how far you’re going to cast.

So far the quality of this production has been top notch, something which I think has to do with the series creator, Yuji Naka. In recent years, him and his team had been criticized so much for his inability to make a “good” Sonic game anymore, and because of it he shifted his focus away to more personal projects. Fishing Resort is one of those, and it shows. A lot of work was put into the polish of this game, and if you’re paying attention, the game really shines. The fish look amazingly realistic, the water and sky effects are vibrant and clean, there’s tons of fun clothing options for people who enjoy dressing up, and the Aquarium not only looks great but gives players the added level of micromanagement that players enjoy from Pokemon and or Harvest Moon. In many ways, Fishing Resort IS Pokemon, except with fishing instead of monster battling. It’s also very cute, has varied environments (including an ice fishing area), different modes of transport, quests, even an online ranking system.

In conclusion, I would be a bad reviewer if I didn’t go ahead and state the obvious. If you can’t stand fishing or find it tediously boring, this might not be your game. If, however, you don’t mind fishing and you’re a fan of games like Harvest Moon, I would highly recommend this little gem. If you’re willing to put in the time, this game will easily last you well beyond the amount of gameplay you’d expect from a $20/$30 game on the Wii with cute graphics.