Tomorrow, we're due to finally find out what Nintendo has been cooking up next for the Zelda franchise. There's no question that there are few games as beloved as the Ocarina of the Time, which puts Nintendo in an interesting position for this remake. As we all know, the Zelda formula has been totally shaken up with the latest entries, prioritizing emergent gameplay and sandboxes that allow players to explore and create, a total departure from the Ocarina-style that previously defined 3D Zelda.
In console gaming, there is a legend known as the Third Console Curse. Most consoles are not successful enough to receive a follow-up. If they are, then a third console is still not guaranteed. It is a hard industry not only to break into, but sustain a market share in. Yet something happens with the third console every time. It fails to meet the company's initial goals. Maybe it still sells fine, maybe the console has a wonderful library of games. Even if that is the case, the company loses market share and is in a worse spot at the end of the console's life than they were going into it. It could be arrogance from success. It could be a lack of perspective from being too used to success. Maybe it's just rotten luck. But it's consistent.
Hey everyone! It's been a while since I've written anything for PixlBit and, honestly, life has just been a bit too crazy to focus on much. So instead of jumping back into the writing fray, I thought it'd be fun to start doing some Twitch streaming. I did a short stream a couple months ago showing off Quickie World, a kaizo SMW romhack (for those following me on Twitter, you've probably seen my growing obsession with Kaizo). Since that went pretty well, I thought it'd be fun to actually announce this one and try to get a bigger crowd involved. Part of the motivation is the release of a really awesome looking Banjo-Kazooie mod called Banjo-Kazooie: The Jiggies of Time. I'm really looking forward to playing it and showing it off to the community.
Halloween is here! A time of all kinds of scary things like werewolves, zombies, and diabetes! Not to mention plenty of great games. Whether you want something fun and lighthearted, something that will scare the pants off you*, or something in the middle, the Pixlbit staff has you covered as we talk about our favorite Halloween video games!
With a myriad of wrestling games available on the Nintendo 64, even the now-defunct Extreme Championship Wrestling got their own game. Released in the year 2000 however, there was no shortage of competition. Does Acclaim's wrestling game stack up to the series from AKI/THQ?
Earthworm Jim 3D is the third and final game in the series, and also the first to feature 3D gameplay, which gives the title a sort of double meaning. Bringing the series' trademark wackiness and irreverence to the third dimension, the game stars Jim's super-ego as he takes a trip through the crazy worlds of his own twisted mind. Although it lacks the polish of a Nintendo-published platformer, it still contains a decent amount of variety and somewhat interesting design.
Duke Nukem 64 must have put up decent sales numbers or something, as here we have what was a brand-new Duke Nukem title created exclusively for the Nintendo 64. Changing perspective from first-person to third-person, Zero Hour more closely follows the gameplay conventions of the PlayStation games than its Nintendo 64 predecessor. Although I prefer first-person to third-person, this game is still a solid adventure that spans many time periods, though its multiplayer mode switches to first-person for its frantic action.
Following in the footsteps of the likes of DooM and Quake, the PC release of Duke Nukem 3D offered similar alien-busting action with an added layer of raunch, swears, and spoofs. The Nintendo 64 version of the title brings with it a few additional features and levels, but at the same time heavily censors the content. Removing most of the personality from a game that sold itself on its attitude and mature themes results in a bit of a dull shooter, as its design leaves something to be desired.
It seems like there’s a fairly big movement to get back to the roots of first person shooters lately, with games like Toxikk, Xibalba, and even the Doom franchise returning to the mechanics and sensibilities that started it all. Wrack began this journey six long years ago and has almost reached its full release. If you have great memories of those early “Doom clone” days, share one with us in the comments and you can win a copy of Wrack on Steam! To get things started, some of the staff has shared their own. Just add your memory from those early corridor-stomping days in the comments, no matter how brief, before August 19th at noon Eastern time and you’re entered to win one of five Steam codes for Wrack!*
PixlBit brings you a peek into QuakeCon 2014 through (mediocre) photographs of everything that's happening. Check back periodically for more pictures throughout the day!
Not about to let Disney's Donald Duck hog all the fame and fortune, Daffy Duck starred in his own Nintendo 64 platformer as well. Unfortunately, this is another case where I'm not very familiar with the source material, having seen the show maybe a few times when I was younger and don't remember a lick of it. However, the game is plenty decent enough to stand on its own, or maybe it's just my love of platformers talking.
The Nintendo 64 wasn't really known for fighting games. Just as well, I don't really like them and am particularly rubbish at them as a result. There were a decent number of them released, unfortunately for me, as I will have the (dis)pleasure of trying them all. Dual Heroes advertises a couple of gimmicks such as training a robot to battle virtual gamers, maybe that will make this one more interesting...
As one of the final games released for the system, Dr. Mario 64 was a budget-priced title. Introducing a couple new game modes and a 4-player option, it was the definitive version of Dr. Mario for the time and remains a solid entry in the series.
Though it wasn't the first of its kind, the original DooM is often credited as the game that popularized the first-person shooter. With detailed graphics for the time, heaps of ugly baddies, a handful of cool weapons, and endlessly challenging gameplay, it's no wonder it was a hit. Despite a slower gameplay pace than the previous PC games, DooM 64 is a worthy followup and an enjoyable run 'n gun shooter in its own right. For better or worse, they don't make 'em like this anymore.
Licenced games can be a real crapshoot, but surprisingly enough, this one didn't make me go quackers. I'm not very familiar with Disney or Donald Duck in particular, but this game turned out to be decent enough by its own merits.
Hot off the heels of Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64 was Rareware's second platform adventure on the Nintendo 64. Requiring use of the Expansion Pak accessory, the game promised to not only ape Super Mario 64, but provide a bigger, prettier adventure. With five characters, huge worlds, and hundreds of collectables, there's a lot packed into this little cartridge, but that also unfortunately becomes its downfall. This would typically be the point where some crack would be inserted about driving the player bananas, but this article is 100% guaranteed to be free of all monkey-related puns. Honest.
Link has jumped from one generation to the next while reinventing his style for saving princess Zelda with every iteration. Unfortunately, the most recent games have been much less groundbreaking than the golden age from the original through Ocarina of Time. Whereas the player had become accustomed to at least a few new mechanics and drastically different artistic styles between each installment, recently players have been fed mostly regurgitated ideas. Even so, the new technological capabilities of Nintendo’s 3DS and Wii U should provide plenty of new places to take the franchise.
Sometimes, it seemed a bit odd how quickly Nintendo used new characters to star in spin-off games. A bit less than two short years after his debut game, Donkey Kong's nephew Diddy Kong switched his pursuit of tasty bananas to silver coins in this kart racer from the once-proud Rareware. Even stranger, Donkey Kong himself is nowhere to be found. Weirder still, most of the other characters are original creations just for this game. Regardless, this ragtag racing team appeared in a game that offered just enough variation from Mario Kart 64 to have made it worth a look.
The Nintendo 64 emerged in 1996 as one of the most powerful consoles of its time, producing 3-D visuals that not even the Playstation or Sega Saturn could produce. At a time when franchises were attempting (and often failing) to make the jump to 3-D, along came Super Mario to save the day yet again.
This Sunday only, it's the cavalcade of carnage, the duke of demolition, the agonizing abolition of Destruction Derby 64! Twelve cars enter, only one emerges as champion! Witness the spectacular sights of vicious vehicular-crushing action, hear the grind of wreckage under wheels, smell the molten metal masses that remain! It's an all-out, anything goes, bone-shattering, nail-biting, no-holds-barred, punch-you-in-the-gut, edge-of-your-seat rock 'em sock 'em good time! Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!
Nintendo is known for many things, and chief among them would be their amazingly popular library of games. While that has kept the company firmly in the hearts and minds of millions of gamers, most hardcore fans would admit that the Big N hasn’t quite leveraged the digital space as well as they could. Nintendo is hoping to turn that sentiment around when it comes to the 3DS eShop. The eShop has seen some impressive original releases and some classics on the Virtual Console, but Nintendo is coming strong with a lineup of titles and content from October through the end of the year.
A while ago, I made the decision, as most parents do, to involve my children in my hobbies. I did this by playing catch with them in the backyard, going to baseball games, playing video games, and most recently, writing a co-op review for PixlBit. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from the experience, it’s that kids will surprise you with just how mature their perspective can be, even if they aren’t able to properly articulate it yet.
Released by Konami in 1998, Deadly Arts appears to have attempted to capitalize on the lack of fighting games for the N64 at the time. The game strives for something more like martial arts than fantasy combat, which just means that it contains a limited variety of moves and generic characters. A couple of novel modes try to spice things up, but it isn't enough to make the game worthwhile.
As the first fighting game appearing exclusively on the Nintendo 64, Dark Rift is expectedly as barebones as they come. Perhaps if it took advantage of the system's added power it could have made a name for itself, but instead it's practically no different from the fighters on previous systems. In my case, it may be a good thing the game lacks content; I'm no fan of the genre so at least I don't have to play this one much.
