S.C.G

I just got an e-mail through trying to sell me something game related, nothing too unusual until I started reading it... Apparently its been 25 years since the original Tekken... Who would have thought? Just to put it into context, if this was true then it would be older than Donkey Kong Country which I happen to know is twenty years old in a few days time. It still makes you feel old either way but damn, clearly someone didn't check their facts.

Each to their own but Watch Dogs just looks empty to me on any format. Also I 'fixed' the Sonic comment... Lost World really isn't that bad at all, there are far worse titles in the series than it, Sonic Boom however looks like an all-time low. *shudder* But anyway, if people enjoy Watch Dogs on the Wii U then that's good I guess but it sure as hell won't have been worth the unreasonable year long wait. (The Last of Us trumps both games easily, it's still not a perfect game but it's a quality title)

A little later than planned but here it is... : peace: VC Weekly #314 Starring... It would appear to be the first time the original DKC has been reviewed in VC Weekly as well which is explained in the article. Somehow it feels more appropriately timed though because in less than a week it will be twenty years to the day since Donkey Kong Country originally released in Europe on the SNES! Annnd... now I feel old(er) But anyway, enjoy!

Got my update installed in around 25 mins, not even at full speed, happy with that. This may just encourage me to get back into playing Destiny more often, will have a look at it in a minute. : peace:

Not at all, if anything it's inspirational to me. I've been trying to get out a bit more - not all the time but more than I did - and try to be a bit more involved in family trips out to shops or wherever - being that I'm still at home - I know it's not the same situation but it's the small steps that matter as they can lead to wider changes. : peace: Being that I've got time off currently I've been a bit more proactive which is good as it counter-acts the 'rut' that I seemed to be slipping into over the past few months; I'm going to try other stuff soon as well, just small steps in the right direction like hopefully learning to drive - again - and actually getting it sorted this time. I think half of it is motivation, the rest is just finding the time and resources, but anyway it's good to hear that you're feeling more positive toward things, it's genuinely good to hear.

All seems to be fine now, thanks @Shorty.

For Shovelry! N-Europe Review : peace:

I approve of the above video, I didn't realise that the animation for the series had come on so much over the years, using it as direct cross-promotion for the new games is brilliant. *sigh* yes I'll be keeping my pre-orders... like I do every time. As Hero said in the other thread, 'Nostalgia Wins' yet again.

Happy Birthday! I hope you're having a great day. : peace:

It should be £19.99 if you own both NES Remix games on the Wii U or £24.99 if you own one of the previous titles, promotion like that would possibly encourage more sales, plus the fact that it's supposed to be not quite as good as the original titles for some reason... or that seems to be the general opinion currently from reviews, so you would think that Nintendo would want to sell it cheaper as it's better than it not selling at all, for them anyway.

I just checked the Nintendo Network Premium site and I had a code waiting for me. Just checked and that's my sixth £5 code since getting a Wii U nearly two years ago, being that you need to spend around just over £50 to get one £5 code it's effectively a 10% discount over time which has been immensely appreciated up to this point as it actually feels like you're at least getting something back; in my case it's £30 back for spending over £300 over two years and it just goes straight back into buying more awesome games so there's no real downside to it. That's a point... the £5 credit vouchers earned go right back onto the eShop so in theory say if you'd spent £500 and Nintendo ended up giving you £50 in total in £5 vouchers then if you were in turn to spend that again in time on the eShop then technically you'd be getting more free eShop credit on top of your already complimentary credit so it gets to the point of Nintendo actually paying you to take their games away. Seriously though it's a really good promotion and I hope they decide to keep it on or extend it, if not perhaps taking to Miiverse and starting a campaign to bring it back is in order? : peace:

No but there is this deal on until the end of the year... Effectively both versions for around £20 - there was a free theme with the 3DS version too but that expired yesterday I think - it's a good deal. : peace:

It must also be said though that I'm very impressed with the free digital games that I've received since joining Playstation Plus as it's a really good deal and the discounts are decent too.

I understand why, it's principle of ownership. Even I would take a disc copy over a digital copy if they were the same price, with Plus getting games for free is fair enough because last month we got Batman Arkham Asylum which I was more than happy to download because I wasn't too fussed either way - I'd have bought it already if I was - so I wouldn't now bother picking up a physical copy of it being that I have it digitally and it's only a game that I might play at some point before the new 'Next Gen' Batman game comes out... I've also got the Armoured Edition of Batman Arkham City to play as well which I also got for free on the Wii U. But for games like Metal Gear Ground Zeroes for instance, that was a budget release to begin with so I'm sure I could pick that up for the same price on disc pretty soon... if not then if it comes to plus for free then that's fair enough, I'd still prefer to go with a physical copy where possible though because at least you can just put the disc in the console, it installs and then plays without fail whereas with a digital copy lets say that you buy it but don't download it yet, then one day you feel like playing it but... Oh noes... PSN is down. Most of the time it's fine but why chance it? I do agree that those digital prices are still very good though an worth investing in if the lack of a physical disc doesn't bother you. : peace:

Well I feel that I must say that Shovel Knight is nothing but a finely polished masterpiece which uses 8-bit style graphics to its credit, honestly there is more subtle detail in some of the environments that actually make you sit up and take notice than in many modern-day titles. Everything is produced to the highest standard so there are no vanishing projectiles or graphical artifacts which shouldn't be there, it's just pure wonderment from start to finish purely on a visual level; when you get down to things like the soundtrack with its multi-layered compositions with each theme for the stages being thematically different from the last helping to add distinction to each part of the world which is already there but just becomes further enhanced by the music, plus it really spurs you on during those challenging moments, plus lets not forget those finely sampled sound effects. All of the stages have been deviously designed by someone with a clearly sadistic streak as they are all challenging in their own way taking inspiration from Mega Man, Castlevania and Zelda II to a certain extent, yet it never feels brutally unfair - aside from when you get knocked into a bottomless pit for the tenth time over - at least giving you a chance to learn from your mistakes before retrying from the last checkpoint; this system in itself is genius because instead of having lives you actually lose a certain amount of the treasure you've collected with the option of reclaiming it if you can get back to the point where you departed without falling again. Indeed if you're over-confident in your skill level then you can even break the checkpoints with your shovel which will gain you more treasure but if you should slip up then just be aware that it'll be back to the start with you, I personally wouldn't advise it, nice as it is to at least have the option for perhaps more masochistic players. :awesome: Being that you need a certain amount of treasure to advance in the game - at least until you've purchased all of the available upgrades - it certainly will affect the way that you play; after clearing a stage with a few thousand gold do you then opt to cash it in for one reasonably priced but useful upgrade or do you risk another stage to try doubling your haul so you can go for that super-flashy armour set because it will all cost you, then you have the health plus magic upgrades to factor in which means you have a brilliant risk versus reward system that feels unique. Personally I would say that it's worth owning Shovel Knight on either platform - or both - because they each have their plus points, the Wii U version feels like you're playing a NES title which feels like it could have been in development since that very era plus the promise of the Battle Mode is tantalising; then you have the 3DS version which feels like you're playing a modern version of a game that's already known as a classic - if that makes sense - as the 3D elevates it to an entirely different plain of greatness being that you will notice so much more detail, there's the advantage of portability and of course the Streetpass Arena mode which feels like a Super Mario Bros arcade coin collecting challenge fused with a Zelda II style battle which you're only half aware of taking part in, it really is understated genius. : peace: Whichever version you pick though just be sure to enjoy what it most definitely without a shadow of a doubt one of the greatest games of this generation which you will find uniquely rewarding. If you're a fan of classic game design filled with fantastic humour, engaging mechanics and above all something that's fun to play from start to finish then I really can't recommend Shovel Knight enough; I find it hard to believe that such a finely crafted experience was created by barely a handful of people whose talents surely know no end, Yacht Club games really are a credit to this industry as is this game which I would really urge everyone to 'dig deep' for, I can verily verify that it is worth every piece of gold and then some. (I started writing this post after just finishing the game and wanting to share my thoughts but all of this is totally going in the review)

No we didn't but we did get the first game on the Wii U VC some months ago way back in mid April, worth buying both... sequel is superior from what I remember. They don't immediately but it would be a good idea to at least 'claim' your points turning them into codes before the end of the year, this extends the expiration date until possibly the end of 2015 from what I can recall.

Priceless! : peace: I must admit, I've only played this once since I got it, it's good in single player at least - didn't even attempt to try multiplayer yet - but so many games.

Really? :/ I seriously thought for a moment there that Nintendo had actually seen sense as a week earlier would have been so much better.

So both games are now coming out a week earlier? Plus all of that awesome stuff in the above video... I think I'll keep my pre-orders now.

I'm not sure if it's a bug or just a weird anomaly but today after logging in - and thanking me for doing so - on the main page it displays as if I haven't logged in - with the option to log in again - until I navigate to a different forum page then I'm displayed as logged in. Also thread topics still stay remain in bold even after I've checked them and returned to the relevant index - not by using the 'back' button either - which I thought was odd. I've cleared my cache and it's still doing it so thought it was maybe worth mentioning.

I've just finished a 150cc run of all the tracks playing as Tanooki Mario in the Blue Falcon for the first set and of course Link riding the Master Cycle for the second... Cat Peach? I'm sure she's great but I'll save her for another time. But otherwise the tracks are truly magnificent! I can honestly say that I enjoyed each and every one as they all offer something different from the retro tracks, to the brand new ones but my word... the amount of detail that clearly went into the F-Zero and Zelda tracks is simply astonishing. I'll leave people to enjoy all of the little things about the tracks for themselves, all I'll say is bravo Nintendo because today is truly a great day and if this is the future then I feel proud to have invested in it already. : peace:

Nope, not even me Blade... while I still stand by my 9/10 for Sonic Lost World due to sheer fun factor alone, a game like this I'm sure would struggle to get a 5/10 at absolute best, from what I've seen in those videos it would probably end up being one of my lowest scoring reviews if I were to be reviewing it as I honestly think it would come in at 3/10 but that's just pure conjecture and I expect we will never know because if they aren't even giving out review copies at this point to anyone then I suspect they might only give out a handful of codes to specific sites just to keep the metacritic rating artificially 'high' but I don't think even that would save it. I would have preferred a sequel to Sonic Heroes instead of this, at least that game was playable in places. Also, 'dat final boss. :awesome:

A powered USB Hard Drive only takes up 1 USB port, Lan adapter is optional - I've never had problems with the wireless - charging cable takes up 1 port so I have two ports free on the front of my Wii U ready for the GC controller adapter. The Wii U may have only four USB ports but that's still one more than both Xbox One and *PS4. *I realise that both the latter have internal hard drives but still, the USB situation for Wii U really isn't that bad.

ВДУ♀ЛЕТТД 2 N-Europe Review : peace:

They are very well hidden, here's a YouTube video of the PS3 version - in a spoiler box just in case - I would recommend at least watching the locations of the first two which will give you an idea of how well hidden some of them are because they aren't anywhere near as instinctively placed as the ones in Bayonetta 2 are which are still reasonably well hidden, for instance looking at the video I don't even recall going to the first one perhaps not ever - it has been a few years since I played the Xbox 360 version - but definitely not when I played the Wii U version the other night so it has surprised me anyway. : peace: