New Old Games: The Last Two Weeks

by Adam Robinson on

Okay, first thing’s first for this installment: thanks to all involved on the great discussions on the boards, particularly in llamapalooza’s Wii Ware/VC thread. Like I mentioned, we’ll be doing this on Wednesdays now, but I’m covering two weeks here, so I’m being preemptive. For more, hit the jump and we’ll get on with this Goddamn show.

With that out of the way, let’s rewind a week, as Thores gives us the lowdown:

Hitting the service today at approx 12PM EST: Mega Man 2 (NES VC)

Potpourrii (WiiWare)

Strong Bad Episode 2: Strong Badia the Free (WiiWare)

Like last month, Strong Bad is an instabuy for me. I might get Mega Man 2 in a couple weeks if I play through 9 when it comes out but still want more afterwards.

Swap the two for me, thanks. Mega Man 2 is just too classic to pass up. **BaggerMcGuirk** agreed with me, demonstrating not only that he’s a genius, but probably suave with the ladies, too. **Thores**, who will be henceforth be referred to as The Mighty Thores, acted again as our Moses, climbing Mount Internet and returning with two granite tablets with the following carved into them:
This week! Super Dodge Ball (VC NES)

Vectorman (VC Genesis)

Mega Man 9! (WiiWare)

Plattchen Twist and Paint (WiiWare)

Vectorman!? Wow that came out of nowhere.

I can be kind of a douche, like when Nintendo drops one shitty import vertical shooter a week, but this? This is a strong week. Outside of the obvious Mega Man 9 (more on that in a bit), but both Vectorman and Super Dodge Ball are badass games. Vectorman used to be *the* Sega Channel game for me. But alas, I digress! The big story this week is Mega Man 9, which has polarized people regardless of its awesomeness. Let’s explore this, shall we?

Firstly, my opinion on the game: it’s classic Mega Man, which is good. It’s a bitch-bastard to go from the X series, what with the dashes and other touches, back to this. Imagine the Coke/New Coke/Coke switches, except that in this instance the New Coke was a badass future robot that fought animals and shit. Mega Man 9 has good music, good level design, good bosses, a bitchin’ intro video (complete with stilted text at the bottom); in effect it’s the complete package. Or is it?

Many have commented on the fact that a lot of new features are being added in future downloadable packs, all of which cost a total of 800 points. Of course we remember the Horse Armor debacle, but for my money (ha!), I’m down with this. The things being added aren’t just cosmetic changes or stupid bullshit like different sprites for Mega Man, but actual features which alter (and most likely enhance) the game play experience. Do I feel like I’m being nickle and dimed by these despicable micro-transactions? Not really. $18 bucks for a plethora of options with which to enjoy this game is a fair deal to me. Besides, I’m making a conscious choice to support this type of release, because I’m a nostalgia whore and they might make a Castlevania game in the same vein as this.

Also, boobs.

What do people actually think about this game? RubixsQube, whose screen name is a crime against man to type accurately on the first try, thinks this game is shitass hard:

Arggghh, this game is pretty tough. I beat Galaxy Man, and then spent another hour just trying out the different levels. There is a point in Concrete Man’s stage where you have to jump down from a rocking pendulum onto a one-block wide platform at the bottom, and it made me really annoyed. Fuck you, Capcom.
Yeah, people say that’s part of the appeal, but I guess I just don’t see the appeal of getting raped in the ass by some pixels. Those things are sharp! The conversation again turns to the DLC–opinions are decidedly mixed, with multiple sides of the argument having legitimate claims–but in the end, **Baker** had the quote of the day, and an amazing box quote:
Hand coded – with LOVE and spite.
PLEASE join these [great](http://www.plinkomedia.com/nintendorks/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=18120&start=210) [discussions](http://www.plinkomedia.com/nintendorks/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=18181) even if your opinions are stupid and wrong. Oh, and the final word on Mega Man 9?
[![]/mrface4.jpg "Mr. Face say this game GOOD. Mr. Face never wrong!")

*Mr. Face say this game GOOD.

Mr. Face never wrong!*