Three games I'm attempting to play in the run-up to Halloween

Every year (or nearly every year) I say I'm going to play through a handful of seasonally appropriate games in the run-up to Halloween, and every year I fail to make much of a dent in said wish list.

This year, I decided to make things easier on myself by scaling things back a tad. In fact, all I've committed to playing this month--other than Animal Crossing: New Leaf, Hometown Story (which releases tomorrow, by the way) and Pokémon X, of course--are the following trio of spook-tacular titles:



1. Akumajō Special: Boku Dracula-kun (Famicom)--I've been meaning to give this cute Castlevania spin-off for ages, but for all sorts of dumb reasons I've never gotten around to it. So, I'm going to do my best to do so in the coming weeks. And who knows, maybe if I can get through it quickly enough I'll be able to try its GameBoy-based remake-slash-sequel, which was called Kid Dracula outside Japan, as well.



2. Costume Quest (Xbox 360)--I actually played through a bit of this charming, Double Fine-developed RPG this time last year--and thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. Sadly, I don't believe I got anywhere near its end credits. So, this year I've decided to try again. Although I doubt I'll stick with it long enough to tackle the extra "Grubbins on Ice" chapter, maybe I'll come back around to it after winter hits the real world, too.



3. Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon (3DS)--Despite the fact that I pre-ordered Dark Moon far in advance of its release, I didn't even unwrap it until a week or so ago. I've since played it for a few hours, and already I'm satisfied with my purchase. My only issue with this 3DS game so far: it seems to be less of an open-ended affair than its GameCube-based predecessor. Of course, that's also likely to make it a better portable experience in the end, so maybe I shouldn't complain just yet.

Are any of you also playing any Halloween-ish games this month? If so, which ones?

Hubba hubba, part quatre

Can a single blog publish too many posts about the hottest hunks in video games? I hope not, as this is my fourth such post on the subject. (The first three can be found here, here and here. Oh, and the quatre mentioned in the headline is French for four, in case you didn't already know.)

Will I pen more of them in the future? I'd say it's pretty likely, although I don't have any particular studs in mind right now.

In the meantime, here's a look at the game-based beefcake that's been bouncing around in my brain as of late:

1. Simon Belmont (Castlevania: Lords of Shadow--Mirror of Fate)--Truth be told, I have little to no interest in the gameplay of this Konami-published 3DS title. I have quite a bit more interest, though, in two of its main characters: Trevor Belmont and Simon Belmont. As for why I decided to highlight the latter rather than the former in this post: Simon isn't afraid to show off his guns. Oh, and he's a ginge.

2. "Conversationalist" (Ana Holic!!)--Don't worry if neither this character nor the game in which he appears ring any bells. After all, Ana Holic!! is a Japanese PC game (a rather adult RPG, more specifically) made by the folks at Underground Campaign and, as such, it hasn't received much press outside of its home country. Given this guy's, er, "fashion sense," I'd have to say that's a crying shame, wouldn't you agree?

3. Marlon (Pokemon Black 2/White 2)--I realize that this choice is a bit suspect at first blush. In fact, I didn't even consider Marlon (aka Shizui) until after I came across the piece of fan art that can be seen above. Now that I've seen what a few years and a little time in the gym could do to him, though, I can't imagine this post without him.

8-bit terrariums

When "Game Over IV," the show at Giant Robot San Francisco that "pays homage to the continuous evolution of videogames and their massive influence on popular culture," opens on March 4 (it runs through the end of the month), it will include a trio of "8-bit terrariums" created by Philadelphia-based artist Jude Buffum.

The terrarium below, "Toadstool Terrarium," was inspired by Super Mario Bros., while Buffum's other 8-bit terrariums--"Belmont Terrarium" and "Hyrule Terrarium"--were inspired by Castlevania and The Legend of Zelda, respectively.

On his blog, Buffum explains what prompted these earthly endeavors.

"I am actually a bit of a terrarium enthusiast myself, so this idea sort of evolved naturally from that interest. I see a lot of similarities between video games and terrariums; they are both closed systems that seek to nurture and sustain an entire world within a small viewing space. And I get equal enjoyment out of interacting and watching both."

Prints of each of the above-mentioned pieces can be purchased--for between $40 and $70--from Buffum's online shop.

I hereby declare March 15 'Hug Your PC Engine (or TurboGrafx-16) Day'

If you don't have a PC Engine or TurboGrafx-16, you can participate by hugging your Wii--after you purchase, say, Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, which hit the Virtual Console service this morning.

You'll have to hand over 900 Nintendo points ($9) before you can download the Toru Hagihara-designed title, but if you're any sort of Castlevania fan I think you'll find it's well worth the premium price.

PS3 owners with Japanese PSN accounts can get in on the PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 love, too--though they can't (yet) buy Castlevania: Rondo of Blood.

In fact, the "Game Archives" section of Sony's download service currently contains just 15 cartridge-based PC Engine titles at this point. (It'll get its first CD game--the guitar-laden Gate of Thunder--on Wednesday, according to andriasang.com.)

See also: 'Better late than never: 'The best Castlevania ever' is coming to the States'