FULL METAL ALCHEMIST (2003 SERIES)

This anime has a special place in my heart for its heart. lol. There is no anime that brings such an attention to the little details and carefully crafts every little interaction like FMA. From the start of the story, Full Metal Alchemist brings its guns and shocks the audience with its candor.

Ed and Al Elrich lose their mother, and attempt to revive her using forbidden alchemy. Things go down from there, and Ed and Al go on a journey to fix the damage that was done. Along the way they get involved in a secret plot that is destined to unfold into war, and are targeted by the Humunculi, a group of non-humans with secret powers who are named after the seven deadly sins. This anime pulls no punches with its story - it fully fleshes out every possible detail and is never predictable.

While the 2009 Brotherhood series is a darker addition that takes the series down its manga route (the second half of the 2003 series was given its own original second half that is as different from Brotherhood as can possibly be), I think it lacks the charm and characterization of the original series. The 2003 series builds up well, has a healthy amount of filler to flesh things out just enough, and then moves into a pretty satisfying second half. Brotherhood rushes through the first half and never really stops to smell the roses - and while the main plot is compelling on paper its delivery is too forced and doesn't have the solid backbone of humanity that the 2003 series presented so well.

There's a stigma on FMA that I want people to be aware of - that the mainstreamness of the anime can have people judging it by its cover and not bothering to see the genius that lies beneathe the colorful characters. Don't make this mistake. It is one of the greatest animes of all time, only topped by the surprising #1 anime that is coming up next.

MAISON IKKOKU

Most anime include some form of action in their medium, but Maison Ikkoku does not. In fact, aside from one late in the story brawl that almost happens, fights do not occur in this anime. This can make most male anime fans cry foul, but I count myself among the lucky few who can appreciate this amazing anime despite its heart-heavy theme.

Maison Ikkoku is a romance story that spans the course of a building relationship between Yusaku Godai and Kyoko Otonashi. Godai is an inept baffoon and ronin who has failed his college exams and repeated countless years of courses. He lives in a dilapidated apartment complex known as "Maison Ikkoku" with the most inconsiderate group of misfits ever seen anime. While Godai tries to study, the other boarders will force their way into is room to party and seem to literally plan things to interfere with Godai's studies. When Kyoko becomes the new manager of Maison Ikkoku, Godai falls for her hard.

At first its a joke. Godai stumbles and mumbles all over the place for this girl and she barely notices him. But when Godai and his idiot friend Sakamoto get drunk around episode 8 or so, Godai openly declares his love for Kyoko (by standing on top of a trash can and shouting it to the open street). Kyoko overhears Godai's confession, and things awkwardly progress from there.

The cool thing with Maison Ikkoku is that it is unrelentingly devoted to portraying the full and realistic relationship with all the ups and downs, crazy happenings, rivalry, etc in a way that fits 1980s culture and is incredibly down to earth and real. It is unbelievably funny - with a knock out ensemble of likable characters and brings so much heart that I found myself crying at various milestones in the anime's riveting unfolding of the relationship and world. You can dismiss it as something for women, or you can allow it to enrich and fulfull you with its heart, humor, and clarity. Obviously, I recommend the latter.

If you're a guy I recommend watching this show behind closed doors. You know how people are.

DRAGONBALL Z

There are anime and then there are exceptions to the rule. Most anime focus heavily on telling a good, intricate story and intersparsing action, with story, with romance - in this perfect fantasy that blends all themes together. In that giant pile of the same, Dragonball Z stands out as a scion and an expert of very specific themes that are explored in depth.

The most obvious of these themes is heroism, where protagonist Goku undergoes the traditional coming of age tale through the original Dragonball series and emerges as an adult hero at the finish of the first series. Goku has established himself as a master of the martial arts and a hero, and has disappeared and settled into the woods with his wife Chichi and newborn son Gohan. From there, aliens invade and Goku learns that he is not of Earth, but was sent to Earth as an infant to destroy it. Goku is a "Saiyan," one of few survivors of an ancient warrior race that comes from the planet Vegeta. Goku and friends embark on on a journey to save the world from various threats over the next ten years. Before the end of its 300 episodes, Goku will die, be reborn, raise his son up as Earth's new hero, die again, and return to Earth as a God (basically) to face one last massive threat before the canonical series comes to an end.

Dragonball Z is a masterpiece. It is one of the few anime to excel in specific areas instead of trying to play all of the themes at once. It covers areas that people tend to dismiss as childish, and they tend to compare it unfavorably to other anime and call it unsophisticated. But the fact is, DBZ EXCELS in so many areas that other anime can't quite nail down. Dragonball Z is the perfect suspense story, drawing excitedness for the series with its grand, universal scale and the sense that things are on the line. It is also a true utopia, because in Dragonball Z there are no goodbyes.

There is no death is Dragonball Z. When a character dies, he is shown to be alive and well in a seperate dimension and is simply not allowed to return to the living world. But in Dragonball Z resurrection is possible and astounding easy, granted the death was not natural and the circumstances in the story didn't prevent certain characters from being revived. And the cool thing is that this explores a certain level of unknown that has the anime feel extremely genuine. What if you could die and go to another world that is almost exactly the same as this one (interpersonally, anyway) and just wait and have fun up there while your friends live out their lives and its certain there will be a reunion. What would it be like if you could die knowing that its possible for you to come back? Dragonball Z is a master at exploring this side of reality, and it creates a balanced system of chaos where characters die constantly throughout the series and the tension was high. There is one character who literally dies three times throughout the series. And the series ends with him still alive. The result is an anime that holds no bars, because essentially there was nothing to lose until there were beings introduced who had powers to distroy all existance, including the after life.

#5 - Death Note

Like any great story, Death Note builds itself up from a simple concept and keep going from there. Light Yagami, the most brilliant student in his class, happens upon a mysterious notebook that reads "DEATH NOTE." Inside the book are many rules - and one of them says "The person whose name is written in this notebook shall die." There are many other rules and cool stuff surrounding the Death Note, and I'm not going to spoil them here.

Light takes the notebook home with him thinking its a prank notebook. He sees a criminal on TV attempting to kidnap a bunch of kids for ransom, and writes the criminal's name in the notebook. 40 seconds later the kids slowlt file out of the school safely, and the news announces that the kidnapper has suddenly collapsed and died. Light looks in terror at the Death Note, realizing what he has done. Over time, Light decides to use the notebook for good instead of evil, and he starts killing criminals with the notebook. Criminals in prison are dying of heart attacks by the hundreds, and everyone is noticing that there is no way that these deaths are a coincidence. Someone is murdering these criminals, and the ICPO has declared the person responsible a serial killer.

Light is watching this unfold from afar... continuing to kill criminals and watching as the news and investigators are baffled and terrified. And then the ICPO brings in their trump card... a detective named "L." L is the world's best detective. He has never lost a case and is only called in for the most heinous crimes and mysteries. L lures Light into a trap on live television and narrows down Light's location to Japan's Kanto region. Light is now considerably less safe than he has been in the past, and decides that he has a new objective - to kill L. But L's secret identity prevents him from being killed by the notebook. Likewise, L cannot press charges on Light without first exposing him as the killer and finding out how he kills.

The above dynamic drives the entire 37 episode anime. It is Light versus L - each with their own idea of justice. Its a true thriller detective story, mixed in with the dark moral ambiguity, the gradual unfolding tactical battle between Light and L - even going as far as having them meeting and both working along side each other to catch the killer - but Light cannot kill L without knowing his true name, and L cannot prosecute Light without proving that he is the killer. The first one to be found out dies.

I cannot recommend this anime enough. It stands out as a gem of realism and thought provoking, thrilling, cat-and-mouse storytelling in an ocean of cliched anime.

My only real issue with this game is that its too easy, and that's been my chief complaint about NSMB from the beginning. The DS game was cool and I loved the quirky Wii game, but the NEW series really should have ended there.

Maybe the developers are just lazy and can't think of any new ideas? I don't know - but the excitement of the cool new world map goes away when I realize that they just patchworked the 8 usual areas into one big overworld and called it original. Its honestly kind of laughable. The gameplay itself is tight as ever and controls like a dream, but the main quest is just too easy. This is coming from someone who has beaten Super Mario Bros 2: The Lost Levels on SNES, which is arguably the most challenging mario game of all time. I know how to gauge the difficulty of platformers, and this one falls pretty much to the bottom in terms of difficulty.

Now, I haven't played multiplayer yet and I have yet to try out the lauded boost rush mode, so I can't speak for those and I'm looking forward to trying them out as I can get another Wii remote. Given how solid, albeit lazy, the game already is, I imagine these modes I haven't tried could warrant me jumping back on here and rewriting my review. But who can really say?

The graphics... are amazing. We're talking high quality HD mario the likes of which we've never seen. They could have added more and made the game look a lot better, but I'm content with this for now. What really disappoints is the music - Its all remixed from previous games and the developers were clearly rushing the game out to meet the Wii U's release. (Smart move)

Lastly, the coin stars. I am getting sick of the coin stars. I don't want to scavenger hunt levels as a replacement for a set of NES and SNES quality mario levels - so that I can get 8 levels in Star Road that are as tough as they were in Mario World. Donkey Kong Country Returns and Rayman Origins did it right - they didn't cater to new audiences and leave us longtime fans in the cold. They had a set of brutal levels and the extra levels were extra brutal. I want to see that from mario as well, and I really hope that the next side scrolling mario game meets the quality of Super Mario World, instead of trying to carbon copy its image.

I got a Wii U today. I'm really impressed by the system and what it can do. It is capable of a lot and has the potential to be the next SNES or n64.

New Super Mario Bros U is the only game I could afford, and I beat the main story today after about 4-5 hours of play.

Graphics are crisp and the added benefit of messing with the cool controller make this game a must buy - but unfortunately while its one of the best (if not the best) NEW Super Mario Bros. game, it still commits the sin of being a New Super Mario Bros game. Reliance on star coins as difficulty replacement, not really surprising or wowing at any point, and being more or less predictable prevent this game from ever reaching the lofty heights of the SNES game Super Mario World.

However, its still a great game despite these flaws and it doesn't skimp on difficulty, at least not in the later worlds. Its probably about as challenging as New Super Mario Bros Wii. But I honestly spent a lot of my time yawning and wishing the game could do anything more than give me what I expected of it.

Now, that said... I haven't seen everything the game has to offer. I've barely touched challenge mode and I collected almost no star coins during my first run through. I have yet to try out the game's multiplayer (which will take a while because I lack Wii remotes) and much of the game's content beyond the main story remains untouched by me. When I've experienced it all I will give my overall impressions.

As for the Wii U - great system. It doesn't have that gimmicky flair that the Wii had that made it so special at first. It reminds me of when I got an n64 and GameCube and was wondering what kind of experiences would be in store for me in the future.

I'm going to make a lot of people angry: The Wii wasn't much of a console. Nintendo really messed up with the Wii and assured Nintendo fans that Nintendo was going bye-bye for 5 years. We got 1-2 good games a year and almost no third party support. What's worse is that the Wii largely failed to provide a plethora of good multiplayer experiences, which was the highlight of the GameCube. Wii only succeeded at one thing: Buying Nintendo time. It sold well. It garnered an audience. It prevented Nintendo's bankruptcy and allowed them the time needed to prepare their first TRUE new console in 11 years.

Wii U is GameCube 2. That's what I'm going say. Remember the GameCube's potential? I sure do. I remember those magical first few years with my GameCube when it seemed that the system could do ANYTHING. I loved its unusual design, its charming controllers, and its baffling mini-discs. I don't think I'm the only person who was surprised when he opened his first GameCube game case and found the tiny disc inside. The system was packaged with Luigi's Mansion, Super Smash Bros, and Wave Race, and was downright AWESOME. There was no better day than the day I played my GameCube for the first time. That excitement has only been trumped by the moment when I opened up my Christmas Presents in 1993 and discovered that I now owned a Super Nintendo.

Wii U does not tack gimmicks onto an existing hardware - it is a fresh new system with fresh possibilities that hopefully Nintendo will take advantage of. If Nintendo is indeed serious about making the Wii U a hardcore console, then we may well be looking at the system that the GameCube should have been.

Unlike many video games, Super Mario Galaxy redefined gaming with gravity based physics and unorthodox platforming. With the Wii U's launch only 1 week away and only a side scrolling Mario in the near future, one must wonder what the next step for the giant is.

The thing with 3D Mario is that it tends to define the system that it is played on. Super Mario 64 revolutionized the 3D space. Super Mario Sunshine complimented the GameCube's unique nature and stood out as a challenging and innovative entry that polarizes gamers to this day. The Galaxy games did what no Mario has done before - Going to space and for the first time ever creating a Mario experience that is darn near flawless. 3D Land utilized the 3DS' capabilities in ways that point out that 3D is not just a gimmick and can be used for something.

Here's the conundrum - How will Mario on the Wii U possibly beat Super Mario Galaxy? We're talking about a game that redefined and perfected the platformer. We're talking about a concept that single-handedly took Mario and put him into a category that cannot concievably be beat. One has to wonder - are the developers scratching their heads on how to go about surpassing Galaxy?

Better graphics for sure, and Super Mario Galaxy 3 may even be the best option. Taking Mario into space yet again on Nintendo's most powerful console yet is a great way to ensure that Mario's next adventure will impress. But what if they went another route? What concept could Mario take on next and still have him retain his Mario roots?

Mario would need to move beyond the present - and the Wii U's unique controller could be the thing that may have us someday looking at Mario Galaxy as if it were "Cute."

Odd Ducks of the Industry that I Enjoy

10) Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town (GBA 2004)

This one kicks off my list. While Harvest Moon may be well known by name, I really think its an under appreciated gem in this industry. Particularly Friends of Mineral Town, which is considered by many to be the best entry in the series.

Harvest Moon relies heavily on monotonous tasks like farming, hoeing, planting seeds, watering, etc day by day in order to make money so that you can do X, Y, and Z. Harvest Moon is like real life - its accumulative. If you do enough of something, then you'll get an end result that corresponds with your effort. Putting in lots of time growing crops and shipping them can be incredibly addictive - in particular because you get to watch your wallet size increase day by day. And then with that bigger wallet you can expand your house, buy cool stuff, etc.

But the real draw of Harvest Moon goes beyond money making and into character relationships. While not as fully fleshed out as they could be (Developer Natsume is known for their lazy game design and poor translations) each character is a unique individual who has a lot to offer to you if you're willing to make friends with them. You can also court a girl of your choice and get married, which is particularly addicting as you find out what gifts she likes, find ways to increase her affection for you over time, and then watch as her heart level slowly increases. First white, then purple, then blue, green, yellow, orange, and finally red. Getting one girl to red takes about 1 year of in game time, and for me its the most addictive part of the game. As the girl grows to like you her facial expressions and comments towards you will change gradually over time, almost like a real relationship.

Harvest Moon is unique because it ends when you say it ends. Some games like Harvest Moon 64 have a set "ending" where you're rated for your performance after a few years and then the game decides whether you get to keep playing or not. If you did poorly, you lose your farm and its game over. If you did well, then you get to play forever. But most HM games let you play forever by default. And for me its cool to set my own goals (Make a million dollars, upgrade my house and tools all the way, get married, have everyone like me, etc) and then decide for myself when I've "beaten the game."

Harvest Moon is a unique gem in this industry, that relies of practice, hard work, and inevitable results over instant gratification. Anyone who likes Animal Crossing and wants a more realistic experience without going full-blown "Sims" should definitely play Harvest Moon.

9) Skies of Arcadia (Dreamcast, 2000/GameCube, 2003)

Here is a goliath that I love to talk about. Skies of Arcadia. This is one of the deepest and strangest RPGs I have ever played, and while its definitely not completely under the radar, it is obscure enough to warrant putting it on my odd ducks list.

Skies of Arcadia was released at the end of the Dreamcast's lifespan. As such, it didn't sell too well. This is unfortunate because a lot of people missed out on one of the most interesting gaming experiences around. Its 2003 re-release on the GameCube was also a missed opportunity.

Skies of Arcadia melds together many pieces from different RPGs and works of fiction. The typical Star Wars evil empire is here, and so is the unique sky setting that can only be found in the "Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword." Anime characters with different histories, motivations, and special techniques and customizations leads to a Zelda meets One Piece meets Final Fantasy 7 experience.

You are an Air Pirate named Vyse in Skies of Arcadia. The game begins with a simple routine raiding of an imperial airship, and at the end of the day your crew is kidnapped by the empire and sentenced to be executed in the Grand Fortress for their crimes. You make the bold decision to save them, miraculously pull it off, and become the first man to ever escape the Valua Empire alive. Making a fool of the empire, a bounty is set on your head as you turn your attention to the unexplored skies, creating your own crew, and exploring a huge world that you've wanted to see for your whole life.

Along the way you meet a number of typical characters that fight with you, and the RPG mechanics are par for the course. There's nothing new in any of the dungeon exploring or fighting, but the world exploration and ship battles more than makes up for it. If you were disappointed by Skyward Sword's empty sky, Skies of Arcadia can give a glimpse at what an amazing Sky Overworld can be like. It gives the gift of making you feel like a real explorer and adventurer, and that's something you have to experience for yourself to find out. The ship battles are also neat as they require a very "Battle Ship" strategic thinking and planning combined with stringing your best possible weaponry together to deal massive damage before your foes take you out.

It isn't perfect. Vyse has a special move that becomes a cheap crutch in battle because it does so much damage. I frequently charge up my skill points and keep my health up and just wait for an opportunity to use it instead of genuinely partaking in an exciting battle. Its just too tempting when you have such a powerful attack at your disposal. Also, the random encounters and sometimes trite dungeons can be a pain. But if you want a video game that offers an experience that you can't find anywhere else - a feeling a true freedom and exploring uncharted lands with hungry eyes - Skies of Arcadia's your gem.

8) Pac Man 2 - The New Adventures (SNES/Sega Genesis 1994)

Here's a weird game. Pac Man 2.

Pac Man 2 doesn't follow the traditional Pac Man formula. Actually, its anything but. Pac Man 2 consists of Pac Man walking through a world point and click style, and your job is to encourage him to do certain things and solve puzzles along the way.

This game is HILARIOUS. Pac Man is an expressive creature in this game, and its funny to see how he reacts to each situation. They are around 50 ways that he can "Die" if you make a mistake, and expect him to die A LOT in your search for clues that will eventually lead you to the enemy stronghold of the Ghost Witch. Sometimes its because he got ambushed by those pesky ghosts and you have no more power pellets and Pac Man faints shaking with fear. Other times you didn't warn Pac Man about some random obstacle, and he gets himself a hilarious death as a result.

At one point there will be a rock pac man will trip over if he doesn't see it, and if you don't warn him by telling him to look down (LOOK, LOOK! - you'll laugh at this later...) he will trip over the rock, onto a skateboard, and fly headlong into a tree. Pac Man's emotions are vital to success - and while in most cases he must be happy to succeed (Keep him happy by baseline not shooting him with your slingshot unless absolutely necessary), there are situations where the game will require him to be sad, angry, fearful, or even "crazy" to survive a dangerous situation. But in most cases these are detriments - such as when an angry Pac Man kicks a ladder a man is standing on, kills him, and then a bucket of paint spills on Pac Man's head. That's a gameover in Pac Man 2!

The world you will explore is huge. There are four chapters and each one requires you to visit different areas. The first is a simple stroll through town. The second you'll be hang-gliding through the wilderness and exploring mountains. The 3rd you'll take a train to the challenging city area. Finally, you'll need to sneak into the enemy stronghold through the sewers and defeat the witch once and for all. The progression is very layered and the game is an absolute blast to play despite being a little weird and at times unwieldy. Its a must play.

7) Radiata Stories (Playstation 2, 2005)

This one deserves to be higher on this list - at least at number 4 or so. But I'm cool with leaving it at number 7 because... nevermind. On second thought, just pretend this ones a bit higher up, because it definitely deserves to be.

This is my number one favorite role playing game of all time. It has no equal because it mashes together elements and creates a world and experience that combines the best of slapstick humor, amazing adventure, and Majora's Mask. Yes, I said it! MAJORA'S MASK!

If you thought the schedule system in Majora's Mask was cool, JUST WAIT until you play this game! It takes a few hours for it to be fully fleshed out and realized, but the character scheduling and night/day system surpasses Zelda's dark saga on every level. There are over 200 characters who are doing different things at different times of the day, and no matter where you are the game progresses in real time. This system expands throughout the whole world, and its incredible to see that the characters in the mysterious wilderness of the Radiata Kingdom and just as busy and full of life as the characters in the bustling main hub town of the game. The streets and alleys and different sections of the main town are more impressive than Clock Town. There is always something to do in town, and like in Majora's Mask, you can spend countless hours questing within the town alone. Most of these quests consist of recruiting different party members and customizing your battle team to your liking. The recruiting process is fresh and fun and just like the Kafei/Anju quest in terms of depth and fun.

Radiata Stories really shines because of one character - the man you are oh so fortunate to play as - Jack Russell. Jack is the most hilarious dope in all of gaming. He punches doors instead of knocking. He kicks things (and people!) instead of just checking them out. He leads an ensemble cast that is equally endearing and simultanously ridiculous. Ganz is a knight version of Dante from Clerks 2, and despite the best of intentions he always gets the raw end of the deal. Ridley is a pretentious princess and Jack's love interest, although its hard at first with them hilariously bickering all the time. At one point Jack enthusiastically exclaims: "The more fights I get into, the stronger I'll get! Soon enough, my legendary super powers will be unleashed!" Ridley stands there in silence for five seconds before going, "You read too many comics, idiot boy." The whole game maintains this comic tone while still delivering a tear-jerking and satisfying story in a balance that works amazingly well.

Combine the unbelievable characterization and story with true questing in the style of the greatest Zelda titles around, plus a surprise that awaits you at the game's halfway mark that gives me chills to this day (Make sure you keep a second file handy) - and you have a real winner on your hands. Radiata Stories may not have the most unique combat out of Tri Aces line up of RPGs, (and that's why its critical score is middling at around 75) but it flows with life and creativity in ways that no other game has ever accomplished.

Roasting Some Sacred Cows

We've all had those moments. Someone turns on a video game that is supposedly one of the "goliaths" of the industry. It has critical acclaim, massive followings, and is protected by hordes of angry, nerdy fanboys on the forums. And yet, despite all the fervor, all the fame, the game never quite does it for you. It may be fun to play. Exciting, even. But its not a game that generates the type of excitement that your absolute favorites do.

My personal list of those games would set any forum alight with criticism. Possibly even this one. Let's find out. This list will not include games that I have not put a significant amount of time into playing. For example, while I may dislike Call of Duty and Activision in general - it will not be on my list because I have not put in the hours required to make any worthwhile judgment.

My Top Ten Games That Are Highly Regarded By Others, But Not By Me

10) Final Fantasy IV

I can really go as far as saying that this is a bad game. The 4th entry in the Final Fantasy Series is arguably the first to really capture a lot of people. Frankly, I can't see how. The story is a string of events that are tied together by annoying dungeons, jarring random encounters, and a middling story that is given too much weight by fans. Honestly, the story in Final Fantasy 4 is blown up about as much as Star Wars by fans. In the meantime, the game constantly forces you to change party members so there's no long term build up of any meaningful skills. It has the dullest world (Or worlds) of any Final Fantasy game, and honestly I think its a flat out boring game. I much prefer FF5 and FF6 if I want a retro role playing experience.

9) Kirby Games

While Kirby has never been given a huge amount of importance and probably won't be defended TOO fervently - it commits the sin of never standing out. I yawn playing through most Kirby games, because the novel idea of power stealing never feels matched by unique, challenging gameplay. Even Epic Yarn wasn't enough to get my attention. I personally go back to Kirby Super Star for a reference point, and while it had my attention as a kid it never did more for me than being a passing obsession that I never picked up again.

8) Secret of Mana

Admittedly I wasn't there in its hayday - but I feel sick when I see people online talking about how this game brings tears to their eyes. The gameplay felt like a repetetive button mashing fest slowed down by the fact that a meter needs to fill between attacks for full power. Oh! I just got poisoned again! Time to drag out the annoying circle menu system to get an antidote or whatever its called. This is one that I'm willing to re-try eventually, but I'm not willing to do so until I have 2 friends by my side to enjoy the 3 player coop.

7) Pokemon Red/Blue

The amazing RPG phenomenon known as Pokemon actually began with an annoying game, imagine that. Pokemon Red and Blue were holy grails back in 1998 when there was still no such thing as Pokemon Gold and Silver. But now? They're borderline repulsive to me. The more streamlined, battling focus of the later titles is impeded by some of the most annoying puzzles, dungeons, and concepts I've ever had to put up with. Most notoriously the Team Rocket bases - especially in Saffron City - are asinine fortresses full of smack talking bad guys and stupid, frustrating puzzles. Another is the abandoned building on Cinnabar Island. Oh, and Victory Road. Thank god Game Freak learned their lesson in subsequent releases.

6) Mother 3

This one hurts a bit because I'm genuinely fond of the early hours of Mother 3 and most of the story (although I still don't understand why chapter 6 was given a full chapter...). I think a part of me secretly hates the game because I've seen the Earthbound 64 trailers and what the game could have been. The art style reminded me of a mixture of Harvest Moon and Majora's Mask - which is a SWEET combination. I digress, Mother 3 lost its magic as it moved into its latter chapters and I realized that I'd been tricked - this RPG is shallow. I'm actually only playing it for the story, I realized. There's no depth, no sidequests, and I would sooner replace my dog with Flint if I was given the choice. The game requires too much grinding - and playing it on the visual boy advanced emulator means I'm likely to give in to my temptation to turn on fast mode - and then miss out on the experience that Earthbound is supposed to be. For all of the amazing story moments I got with game (*Spoilers*I still get chills when I remember the first full fight with the "Masked Man" and when I knew for sure who he really was - when he used the same PK move that Lucas uses) I wish the actual game had given me something to sink my teeth into aside from pop culture references and the occasional knowing laugh.

5) Mario and Luigi

An RPG lacking any sense of depth or urgency, Mario and Luigi is a parody in the ilk of Banjo-Tooie. That said, it doesn't quite work out for Mario compared to his Thousand Year Door or his Legend of the Seven Stars. The gameplay's reliance on weird teamwork moves feels awkward to me, and the need to remember all the buttons during battle frustrated me more than it drew it me in. I think the reliance on Comedy as a primary backdrop was really what had me dislike the series - as it lacks the meaty, more solemn moments of its roleplaying forebears.

4) Yoshi's Island

Its hard to describe why I don't like this game. I just don't. The gameplay's solid, the level design's great, but I feel kind of "flat" when I play it. That's all I've got.

3) A Link To The Past

"Ocarina of Time is just a 3D remake of a Link to the Past." I hear that a lot. My argument usually is, "Sorry bud, Ocarina did it better." A lot of my opinions of the game are mirrored pretty well by peanutbuttergamer on YouTube (His top 10 Zelda video) so I'll direct you to him instead. I think his list and opinions of the series is really solid.

2) Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest

This one's gonna hurt. This is my first time publicly admitting this, but Donkey Kong Country 2 is my least favorite out of the 4 DKC titles. (My Favorite is DKC4, then 3, then the original, then 2) Again, its hard for me to pinpoint "Why." I really think a lot of my dislike for 1995 video games comes from me not exactly having the time of my life in the 2nd/3rd grade - and it may have leaked into my game time as well. That said, the level design in the game was spectacular from an artistic/expressionist standpoint - but I think the level design was flat out annoying. Especially in World 5.

1) Super Mario 64

Ouch. Yes. Super Mario 64 is probably my least favorite out of any highly regarded game in existence. I get depressed when I play it - 1996 was close to 1995... I may be onto something here - but I can pinpoint some logic on the missions not being very well executed. Red coins being the worst case - and there are some missions that annoy me so much that I will probably never try to beat them ever again. A lot of the "2nd Floor" levels like Wet Dry World, and Tiny Huge Island come to mind when I reflect upon why I don't like this game. Even Mario Sunshine felt more structured and polished to me, and that's saying something.

COMING SOON: THE ODD DUCKS OF THE INDUSTRY THAT I IMMENSELY ENJOY