Grazza

I agree with mcj metroid about Zero Mission first, if possible. They're both absolutely brilliant though.

Spirit Tracks was announced at last year's GDC (I've just checked the first post in its thread and it was 25th March), so I am hoping to see something from Nintendo this year as well. As for Move, I'd have to agree that there doesn't seem like there's much demand for it. MotionPlus does everything I want a motion controller to do, and I don't have any complaints about it whatsoever, and yet I hate to say it but even that doesn't seem to have entered the public consciousness yet. I really can't see the "Wii" audience buying the PS3 (or Xbox 360 for that matter) and peripherals. When Nintendo invent some crazy new thing, however, then yes, they will buy that.

Thanks very much for that, Retro, I really do appreciate it. I still haven't tackled the 2nd king, but there are two things that have greatly impressed me about this game. One is the fan art hidden in the overworld. I wish some forthcoming games would do this (and accept submissions from Europe/North America). I'd submit some! The other thing is the writing. This is a complete lesson in politics for kids. It's dynamite! I love the way your aides urge you to conquer and slaughter, justifying it because they claim a rival king has insulted you etc. Any youngster who plays this thoughtful game will be a bit wiser towards the modern world.

I got myself into a right muddle last night. Foolishly, I decided to make everyone happier by changing their jobs if they had low health. Their health did improve, but more of them hate me than ever and I've wasted all the money I spent training the archers etc! Is there any way at all of telling who will be happy in which jobs? I've read GameFAQs but can't find much.

The link between these words is spurious.

Well, personally, I'm hoping to finish it before Fragile, because I quite fancy playing that on release. That's quite optimistic of me though, because I've only beaten one king!

And Dragon Quest VIII on the PS2! Only when you want a long game though. It's still cartoony, but it's one immense RPG!

On the one hand, it gets much easier to move through the dark world, in that you don't have to worry about safe zones or ammunition anything like as much. On the other hand, it just grates having to find your way through two different versions of the same map, especially when you find a doorway blocked off, so you have to go back into the light world, then back into the dark world, and so on...

Echoes is as high quality as the original. It's just that, for me, it becomes very arduous. The overall game isn't as fine-tuned, I'd say. Still great though, glad I've played it.

Well spotted, Fused King!

I'm definitely getting the vibe that Mario Party 9 is on its way. They've still not made one specially for Wii, have they? If I recall correctly, Mario Party 8 was 4:3 put in a 16:9 frame, and allegedly the motion controls were "tacked on". Not that I had a problem with that, but it still leaves a gap for a "proper" one. If nothing else, it'll give Nintendo an opportunity to sell 4x the MotionPlus...

That's a shame, it looks absolutely gorgeous.

Ah, that's interesting. I've just beaten the Cow and the Frog, and at the moment I've got 8 soldiers, 11 farmers and 1 construction worker. One person hates me, and I assume it's the construction worker because he hasn't got any workmates. The reason I made so many farmers is because I assumed they worked on their own. I've been reading your progress and I agree with you that a "restart from last save" feature would be welcome. I'm surprised how much Little King's Story feels like Pikmin. It's a must-play for anyone wanting Pikmin 3. What impresses me the most though is how subversive and satirical the writing is, such as the way people advise you to slaughter and conquer without worry! It also cracked me up when I got a letter from "Captain Beefheart"- a very rude joke for a 3+ game, although to be fair it would just fly over kids' heads!

Do you know if you can play this with the GameCube pad, please, or any other wired controller? Is the Classic Controller Pro wired, or does it use AA batteries or an inbuilt rechargeable battery?

Shame it doesn't run in 60hz. I think it was the bloom lighting I didn't like as well, but I lowered the brightness and I've got used to it. I am now well and truly hooked on this game! The funny thing is, I've only just built a Town Square, that's how early on I am, but I can tell it's going to be addictive. Should I choose carefully which townsfolk I make farmers, soldiers etc? At the moment I'm just doing it carelessly.

It hasn't been in any shops near me either since Nintendo of America deleted it. Even if Nintendo of Europe didn't delete it, it feels like they did.

Even so, you inspired me to play it last night and beat the Irishman and the Russian! Thank you, Fierce Link!

It's hard to explain. I like the general idea, and the graphics and tone are brilliant, but I don't find it easy enough to improve. The learning curve is too steep, I suppose. Not only do you have to memorise your opponents' moves, you have to do exactly the correct move to counter-punch. It all feels a bit too specific with not enough room for improvisation. At the moment, I'm stuck at the cheating Irishman (I hate him! It would feel good to pummel him, now you mention it!)

I started this last night. The gameplay seems OK, but is it my eyes, or are the graphics incredibly soft and hard to see? I'm playing it in 60Hz, anamorphic 16:9, so perhaps I should change it to 50Hz and 4:3, and maybe lower the in-game brightness too?

I didn't say any of them were unsuitable for kids, just that it's best when it's aimed at 12+, ie. ruder than you'd get on kids' TV, but not as rude as, say, Austin Powers. However, the protagonists in IX do look much younger than those in VIII, so I really can't imagine it being as risqué as that game.

It must have helped that Heavy rain has sex in it. This has made broadsheet newspapers and "lads' mags" take it seriously, as well as the other mature themes. It has to be said, it couldn't be done as well on the Wii, because a large part of the appeal is the cinematic, high-polygon HD graphics. People are accepting it as an interactive story, but it has to look the part.

I think it's because they're so intense. The harder stages in the 3D games can take 20-50 attempts (or maybe I'm just rubbish!), so after I beat it I think "phew!" and just relax. There's a big sense of achievement though. And yeah, I really loved Sunshine. It's one of those games, like Wind Waker, I just "got" and didn't identify with the criticism. As for Mario 64, it was great for its time, but even back in 1996 I remember thinking some of the stages were awful, like the desert and lava lands! I have downloaded it into my Wii, but I haven't been motivated to finish it again. I'd definitely say Galaxy is designed more towards fun. All three are excellent though, and none of them disappointed me. I'm buying Galaxy 2 on release, that's for sure.

OK, I got 120 Stars. The hardest part for me was Luigi's Purple Coins, which I found more difficult than anything in Sunshine, partly because of the terrible camera. There were some sharp turns and it just took a few split-seconds more to adjust the d-pad than it does the c-stick. I was very impressed with how much fun most of it was, particularly how it drops you in the right place for whatever challenge it is. One of the later stages reminds me of Mario 64's Hazy Maze Cave, but it's much more fun because of the way you can drop into different bits from above. Brilliant! Playing the first few stages again as Luigi, I'm not surprised I didn't much like it in the beginning - I still think the early stages (pre-Honeybee) are amongst the most confusing and disorientating. I feel the only really bad thing about the game though is that I don't feel any satisfaction at getting 120 Stars. With Mario Sunshine, when I got 120 Shine Sprites, I felt "Yes, I've mastered this game". With Galaxy, I have to get 240 before I can see the last stage, which I feel is a bigger chore than anything in Sunshine. Still a great game, and I always enjoy Mario more than I expect, but it didn't quite have the spark to make me truly LOVE it! If Ocarina of Time/Wind Waker is a AAA, this is a AA. Sunshine > Galaxy > 64