Got a Halloween party to go to tonight, so another post that's rather short on Game Blurb...hopefully I'll be able to get back to my endless waffling about the games in tomorrow's post...But for now, here's the next ten...
30 - Ghostbusters (Megadrive/Genesis) :
This is a pretty cool little game, based on the rather famous movie of the same name! It sees you take control of Peter, Ray or Egon and enter various buildings to sort out the spooks..
The representations of the cast are odd, super-deformed-style versions, but Peter's is still the best videogame Bill Murray I've ever seen! Anyhoo, it's a platform game filled with lots of freaky ghosts, including Slimer of course...and some of the boss ghosties are real weirdies! Check out the chihuahua-what-lives-in-a-top-hat ghost above, for instance!
It's all rather brilliant, and certainly different to the other versions of Ghostbusters I've played...
29 - Pocky & Rocky (SNES) :
Some mischevious goblins have come under a curse, and poor old Pocky & her pal, Rocky the Racoon Goblin, must go and put a stop to it all...
Love this game, and it's sequel, and spent ages playing them back in the day...even though they're quite tricky and I never got very far! Still, some awesome cutesy-shooter type fun is to be had and you should definitely go play it....
28 - Necronomicon - Dawning of Darkness (Playstation) :
More H.P. Lovecraft inspired horror with this...a point-and-click style adventure on the Playstation! Brimming with atmosphere and with an eerie dreamlike quality throughout, it's another must-play for any fan of large, many-tentacled space entities! Voice acting is pretty good, and the puzzles should keep you busy for a good few hours!
It might not be for everybody with it's somewhat slow pace though, and once or twice I got completely stuck and had to search online for a solution, but for a freaky treat and something to get your brain working again after over-indulging at a Halloween party, you could do a lot worse..
27 - Red Dead Redemption-Undead Nightmare DLC (360) :
Released just in time for Halloween last year, this DLC for the brilliant Red Dead Redemption sees the undead unleashed and roaming all over the map! You play the part of John Marston again, as he goes to look for a cure for his infected family...Starting with some hammy voiceover work, and a B-movie type soundtrack, you know that this isn't goingto take itself as seriously as the main game, though...
Zombies come in a few different types, and owe more than a little to Left 4 Dead's collection of freaks..They've overrun the towns, and you have to help the survivors fight off these zombie hordes...they'll reward you with much needed ammunition, which you'll need..as it's not just the humans that been infected, but Red Dead's copious wildlife too!
Speaking of which, you can even go hunting Bigfoot in this pack! But it's the zombie bears and cougars that'll give you the biggest problems! Not to worry though, as you can find one of the Four Horses of The Apocalypse to give you a hand....
It's all rather splendid and satisfyingly sizeable, and if you have Red Dead Redemption but have yet to get this download, there really is no better time than now!
26 - Shadowland (Arcade) :
Nice little platform game that has you zapping all manner of odd little beasties, as you make your way through Jigoku (Hell) so you can be judged by Buddha....
Depending on what route you take, you'll get one of five different endings, but I've never made it that far as it's quite bloomin' tricky and you only get 1 credit! Still, it's a fun little coin-op and comes recommended....
25 - Super Ghouls 'n' Ghosts (SNES) :
Great entry into a great series! After spending way too many ten pences on the original Ghosts 'n' Goblins, and playing Ghouls 'n' Ghosts on the Speccy and my mates Commodore 64 right through to the end several times..I picked up this hoping that it would be another great platformer filled with all the stuff I loved from before, but different enough to warrant me spending 40 quid on it!
I needn't have worried as that's exactly what it is! Although it repeats a lot of stuff from the arcade version, it changes some of the bosses and adds a new level or 2 to keep it interesting...but the tricky gameplay is still present, and you still have to complete it all over again once you reach the end boss first time round! And you still have to run around in your boxers if you get hit by enemies and lose your armour...
A true classic, this is one game that everybody should have in their collection! Now if only Capcom could come up with some sort of groovy update for the series, called something like...ooh, I dunno...Ghosts to Glory or something....
24 - Maximo - Ghosts To Glory (PS2) :
Well, whaddayaknow! It's a groovy update for the Ghosts 'n Goblins series! Playing as a chap called Maximo, you've got to go and destroy all the evil baddies who have kidnapped your lady friend! It features a lot of stuff from previous games..such as the running about in underwear, upgraded gold armour abilities and treasure chests that aren't what they seem....but successfully manages to shift it into a 3D platformer!
It also shares some rather difficult and often unfair gameplay with the rest of the series too, but if you struggle through you'll be rewarded with some pretty cool sights later in the game. You've managed to somehow persuade Death to come to your rescue too, and if you can keep him payed up with red coins, he'll stop you shifting from your mortal coil for a bit longer...
All in all, a worthy addition to the series! And it has a sequel which I've just bought too, so I might be hanging out with Maximo again in a future blog post!
23 - Haunting starring Poulterguy (Megadrive/Genesis) :
Hehe..if like me you love jumping out at people so as they suffer a massive fright, but fear the repercussions of said scares, this is the game for you! You control a little ghostly chap named Poulterguy, who has decided to scare a family from their rather lovely home...
You do this by possessing various objects around the house and loading them up with spook power so that when a family member goes to investigate, some ghostly going-on frightens the life out of them. This will cause them to drop some ectoplasmic energy, which Poulterguy needs to collect to stay in the land of the living...
If you run out of this ecto-energy, you have to take a trip to the realm of the dead (which seems to be in the basement) and try to collect enough blobs of ectoplasm to make it back up to continue your scaring!
It's excellent fun watching the traps do their thing and frighten the family. There's four houses worth of spooking for you to get through, so it should take you a fair wee while too....
22 - Dino Crisis (Playstation) :
Released not long after Resident Evil 2, this helped fill the gap waiting for Resident Evil 3 by putting a slightly different spin on the survival horror genre. Instead of undead zombie freaks, you had to battle it out with dinosaurs!
Sent to an island to recover a scientist who has faked his own death and is now carrying out bizarre experiments, you discover upon arrival that one of his crazy schemes has resulted in some sort of time slip, allowuing these scaly dino-fiends to enter our time and go around the island finding humans to snack on!
The game plays pretty much like any other survival horror, but has a pretty good story that's interesting enough to make it worth playing. The dinosaurs are a nice change from shambling zombies too...and it's a pity that after a couple of sequels this series seems to be being ignored by Capcom now! It would be nice to see a new entry on modern consoles, so long as they don't set it in the future...in space..(see Dino Crisis 3)...
21 - Deadly Premonition (360) :
Every so often, a game comes along that really splits opinion....some people love it and talk of nothing else for days, others hate it with a passion and wish every copy was rounded up and destroyed....this is pretty much the case with Deadly Premonition. The only way you can decide if you'll like this one, is by taking a leap of faith and trying it out for yourselves....and with this, it's quite the leap....
You play as Detective Francis York Morgan, an FBI agent who has travelled to the sleepy town of Greenvale to investigate the murder of a local girl. By travelling around the game's open world, you look for clues and find people to interview to try and find out what you can about the murder and work out who the killer is...all fairly standard and normal sounding so far, right?
Well, if it was as simple as that it would be a very different game. Howver, every now and then you'll sort of slip into a world populated by horrible, backward-walking non-humans intent on your disposal and they'll try to put a stop to your investigation. The game's villian will also often put in an appearance, and force you into a Quick Time Event or two....
Certain events only take place during certain times of the day, and whilst waiting for these you can drive around town in cars (which need to be washed and filled with petrol every now and then) and explore the surrounding areas, indulging in a spot of fishing or trading-card collecting...all the while, York (as he prefers to be called) chatting away to his imaginary friend Zach (which seems to be the player) about his favourite movies or actors.....
You can spy through the windows of peoples houses, play some darts, have some lunch and look for messages in your coffee....there really is tons of stuff for you to be getting on with! Just remember to shave and send your clothes off to get washed, or people might have something to say about it...the other weirdos in town do have lots to say....
The biggest problem most people have with this game, is the fact that it looks and feels like it should have been released on an earlier console like the PS2. With the amount of stuff to do, it would definitely have been an awesome game on any earlier system...but it's on the 360 and people expect more! For me, the fact that the controls are a bit wonky and the graphics are a bit rubbish only helps add to the charm...
It's a truly bizarre game, and I've barely scratched the surface of the weirdness on offer here. It definitely owes a lot to Twin Peaks, only this is a lot funnier...which brings to mind something else. You're never entirely sure whether the game is in on the joke, or if it's taking itself seriously, which only helps it's brilliance!
Like I said at the start, the only way you can be sure is if you try it yourself...a bit like the game's Sinner's Sandwich, wich now has it's own cult following...but if I was you, I'd consult my coffee and see if it says you should take a gamble and buy this wonderful, freakish, mess of a game....
No comments:
Post a Comment