Lucas M. Thomas
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IGN Latest Reviews
F1 experts have probably already been racing their way through the home console versions of this title since September. With the 3DS version's odd A.I., it's hard to recommend that Formula fans give this edition a go. Codemasters knows racing -- but when they pass off portable development to other teams, you've got to be wary.
At the very least you should test the waters of Bloons TD through one of the free versions, to use them as demos for this download – and if you absolutely love what you see in your Internet browser and know for sure that you want that same kind of balloon-blasting fun accessible on your DSi or 3DS 24/7, then the five dollars will be more smartly spent.
There will still be more Virtual Console titles released after this. The Wii's service isn't over quite yet. But we're just days away from the launch of the Nintendo 3DS eShop and its new, second-edition version of the VC concept. So here, with this re-release of a title still rightly argued as perhaps the very best video game ever made, it feels right to call this chapter closed. So whether it continues to offer dozens more classics from yesteryear going forward, or if it really is winding down to its final conclusion, support the original Virtual Console with a purchase of this gaming great – it's a download service that has sometimes been frustrating to deal with, but at the end of it all it really has let us travel back through time.
Where each of the N64, Cube and Wii installments of the series have focused on multiplayer, more characters and more crazy items, though, this SNES original keeps things simpler -- emphasizing, instead, the actual racing instead of the combat within each race. It's a different take on the same idea, which is interesting since it's the original take on that idea. So stick with the other Kart games if you want the multiplayer chaos, but come on back to this very first racing adventure with Mario and his crew. It's absolutely worth 800 of your Wii Points to re-experience, or to play for the very first time.
And the quest is still one of the finest ever released for the NES in America. Though Japanese players ended up getting two 8-bit sequels to this game before their Famicom stepped aside for its Super upgrade, this is the only NES era Final Fantasy game that ever made it to us in the U.S. Its appeal, then, was never diminished in its own generation here -- it was never surpassed on its home hardware. And that intact appeal and lasting value for American gamers is more than enough reason to recommend owning it again now, for 500 Wii Points. And why this re-release may well sell tons again, even after the availability of this first Fantasy's many different remakes over the years.
As with other well-regarded classic games that have come to the Virtual Console, it would be easy to continue to sing Secret of Mana's praises for many more pages -- there are many more reasons it's been named to the Top 100 Games of All Time, so many times, over the years. But the important point to make is that Secret of Mana is well worth your notice, and your investment of 800 Wii Points. For just eight bucks, you can rediscover (or experience for the first time) one of Squaresoft's most loved 16-bit SNES classics. And, better still, you can play it in an improved form -- it's easier to experience the incredible multiplayer capability of this game through its VC version than it ever was on the SNES. So grab two friends, put down your cash, and enjoy. You'll love finding out just what Mana's secret really is.
And so the core gameplay of Gley Lancer likely isn't going to be the thing that motivates anyone to complete a 900 Wii Point purchase of the title, as there are plenty of other, more well-known 16-bit shooters already on offer in the Shop (and at lesser prices). Make the nine dollar commitment, then, if you're a fan of those other shooters but you just need something new to play, if you find the concept of the game's Gunner movement or speed adjustments interesting, or if you just can't get enough of screaming, wild, off-the-wall anime girls. Goodness knows that Gley Lancer's Lucia is insane enough to scratch that itch for some time to come.
And that’s what it all comes back to with Samurai Shodown. You should own this game in some format – there’s no doubt about that. It’s a classic fighting design that’s just as venerable as the original Street Fighter 2, and it hasn’t lost any of its fun factor in the past 15 years. The question is just one of personal preference for you, then. If you’re not much of an old-school Neo Geo fan, then you could justifiably get away with only owning this and maybe the original Metal Slug in VC form, and not bothering with any of the physical disc compilations. But if you do have fond memories of that arcade age when SNK’s multi cabinets rotated between Samurai Shodown and several other MVS hits, you’d probably be better off saving your Wii Points and not downloading this one – investing instead in the fuller variety offered by SNK Arcade Classics: Volume 1. The choice is yours. Pick your side in the format fight.
But all of these oddities added together somehow managed to created a cohesive whole, years ago, and Alex Kidd in Miracle World is a game that’s just too classic and unique not to recommend. For just five bucks you can invest in a download of the title from Nintendo’s Wii Shop and find out why there are so many fans of the game and the Alex Kidd character still today, almost two decades after he last headlined a new adventure. And if you’d like another perspective on the game before making a Wii Point purchasing decision, jump over to IGN’s Retro Channel for Levi’s own in-depth review of the game. You’ll be a believer before long, and you’ll likely come to agree that Alex Kidd in Miracle World, weird as it is, is the best platformer ever released for the SEGA Master System.