Now that I've finished StreetPass Mii Plaza: Monster Manor, let's talk about how brilliant it is

I've played most of the StreetPass Mii Plaza games Nintendo has made available to 3DS owners since early 2011, and I've had a blast with pretty much all of them.

The ones that have given me the most joy in that time: Battleground Z, Find Mii, Flower Town, Mii Force, Monster Manor and Ultimate Angler.

Besides Find Mii and Monster Manor, though, none of the just-mentioned titles were able to hold my attention or maintain my interest for more than a month or two.

The Prope-made Monster Manor, in particular, has enthralled me since I first bought and downloaded it. I can't estimate how much time I devoted to it in 2013, 2014 or 2015, but I can say it was almost singlehandedly responsible for me dumping more than 39 hours into StreetPass Mii Plaza in 2016.

I've also put a good number of hours into it this year. The reason: I wanted to finish the climb to Monster Manor's top floor before Nintendo pulls the plug on StreetPass (or, you know, before StreetPass encounters completely fall off a cliff).

Well, I did just that a couple of weeks ago. And now? I'm sort of depressed, to be honest. I was so sucked into this bite-sized adventure that I basically never wanted it to end.

As for what prompted me to develop such feelings about Monster Manor, well, the short answer is I loved--and continue to love--every aspect of it.

I love its deeper-than-it-first-appears gameplay, which bizarrely, yet successfully, combines elements of Tetris with those of a bare-bones RPG. I love the ghouls you encounter in the titular mansion's haunted hallways. I love the creatively designed and upgradeable weapons you find hidden in treasure chests that are tucked away in its rooms. I love its appropriately spooky--as well as jaunty--soundtrack.

And of course I love that it can be played in short spurts. Hell, I'd say it's supposed to be played in short spurts--whenever you get a handful of StreetPasses and whenever you have a few spare minutes. At any rate, games that don't ask for much of a commitment are the ones that are most compatible with my life at the moment, which only added to Monster Manor's appeal.

Sadly, as much as I love this digital morsel of a video game, and as much as I loved slowly but surely making my way through its 50 stages, I can't imagine I'll ever return to it now that I've seen its credit roll.

I know I could pick it up again down the road by StreetPassing myself (assuming Nintendo doesn't make that impossible by disabling the app entirely), but right now that sounds about as appetizing as returning to my aborted playthroughs of Hometown Story or Harvest Moon: The Lost Valley. (That's overstating things a tad, of course, but I'm sure you get the drift of what I'm saying here.)

Oh, well, at least I was able to experience Monster Manor in all its glory once.

How about you? Have any of you finished, or at least spent some time playing, Monster Manor? If so, share your thoughts and impressions in the comments section of this post.

Another option: share how you feel about the fact that we're unlikely to see games like this on the StreetPass-less Switch.

Raise your hand if you, too, are looking forward to the two new 3DS StreetPass games that are being prepped for release

I know not everyone loves the handful of StreetPass games Nintendo has released for the 3DS so far, but I'm guessing most of those negative feelings are born out of the fact that not enough folks outside of Japan regularly have their 3DSes "on their person," as the saying goes, to make playing these digital titles worthwhile.

Thankfully, I live in a city that's packed with enough people that I nab at least three or four StreetPasses (if not more) every day while commuting to and from work.

As such, I'm pretty darn smitten with each and every one of the StreetPass games that currently are available--and I'm also pretty darn stoked to buy and play the two new ones that will be made available in North America on April 16.



The trailer above offers a peek at both of them--one of which will be known here as Battleground Z, while the other will be known as Ultimate Angler--along with something called "StreetPass Mii Plaza Premium," an app I know next to nothing about at the moment.

It appears that Ultimate Angler was developed by the able team at PROPE, previously responsible for Ivy the Kiwi! and a number of other wonderful games, and Battleground Z was made by Good-Feel, which most recently showed up in the credit roll for Mario & Luigi: Dream Team.

Will any of you be buying any of the above offerings on day one, or even at some point down the road? If so, let me know which ones in the comments section below and also let me know why you're planning to buy them.

Nice Package! (Rodea the Sky Soldier)

Maintaining an acknowledgeable level of interest in Rodea the Sky Soldier has been a tough ask the last couple of years.

After all, back when it was first unveiled (in 2010) as a Wii game, it had Sonic the Hedgehog creator Yuji Naka's name attached to it and NiGHTS-esque hype surrounding it. Today, it seems to be more of a Kadokawa Shoten product that was inspired by Naka's earlier, shelved work--which, to be honest, sounds far less appealing to me than the originally announced game.

Still, I'm curious to find out whether or not Rodea the Sky Soldier found a way to survive this painfully drawn out hand-off and wind up a halfway-decent title.

One thing that's already clear to me: Rodea's box art didn't survive that same transition. Don't believe me? Feast your eyes on the following cover mock-up, which apparently was created for the Wii version of the game.

And then check out the two pieces of box art below, which are for Rodea's 3DS and Wii U releases, respectively.

Actually, the 3DS cover illustration above isn't the worst thing ever, but that big, blocky and crude logo does all it can to ruin the experience, in my opinion.

Also, both the 3DS and Wii U box arts serve to reinforce my dislike of Rodea's protagonist. There's just a bit too much going on with his design, don't you think?

The Wii U cover also reiterates for me that the branding that's used on all of the system's cases pales in comparison to the simpler, more elegant branding that appeared on Wii cases. I find that teal-and-yellow "swoop" that appears at the top of every piece of Wii U box art to be visually jarring, and even when it doesn't clash with the art beneath it, it still threatens to pull your eyes away from it.

What do all of you think? Do you find any of these covers appealing? And are you at all interested in the games that are going to be packed inside of their cases?

I'll be pre-ordering the 3DS version of Rodea: The Sky Soldier, too--as soon as somebody allows it

How's this for a blast from the past? A game that first made noise all the way back in 2011, but has barely been heard from since, is roaring back onto the scene courtesy of the latest issue of Japan's Famitsu magazine.

The game in question is Rodea: The Sky Soldier, a unique-looking action game that, a couple of years ago, was being prepped by former Sonic Team-er Yuji Naka and his team at Prope for an eventual release--courtesy of Kadokawa Games--on both 3DS and Wii.

Unsurprisingly, the Wii iteration has been moved to the Wii U. Aside from that, though, it appears that little else has changed in regard to the "NiGHTS into Dreams meets Shadow of the Colossus meets Sonic the Hedgehog" action that was showcased in this old trailer:



The only thing that doesn't thrill me about all of this: I'm still not the biggest fan of the design of Rodea's protagonist.

Still, I'm all set to put some money down on the 3DS title--as soon as somebody allows me to do so. Considering Rodea doesn't yet have a specific release date (it's supposed to be released "next spring"), I have a feeling my pre-ordering is going to have to wait at least a few months.

In the meantime, I'll save up a few bucks, as the 3DS version is set to be released with a 5,800-yen (about $50) price tag attached to it. (The Wii U game will cost 7,200 yen.)

(Via neogaf.com)

Animal Crossing + Endless Ocean = Yuji Naka's Fishing Resort

Up 'til now, my experience with fishing games has been limited to the enjoyably relaxing mini-games that were included in the Animal Crossing titles and in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

That shouldn't surprise me as much as it does, as I've fished just a handful of times (if that) in the 34 years since I was born. Also, the only fishing game that has even slightly piqued my interest since I began gaming as a youngster was the Dreamcast version of Sega Bass Fishing--and that was due, mainly, to me suffering from "Dreamcast fever" at the time.

Interestingly, the fishing game that may finally get me to bite into this genre has a connection to the company responsible for that wonderful little system. The title in question: Yuji Naka's Fishing Resort (Family Fishing in Japan), which will be released stateside for the Wii this fall courtesy of the folks at XSEED Games. (Naka, currently the head honcho at Prope, used to work for Sega's Sonic Team.)

Why am I so interested in this game? Watch the following (Japanese) trailer and see for yourself:



Don't worry if you couldn't make it through all three minutes and thirty-one seconds of the trailer. The following description should do a similarly bang-up job of helping you understand why a non-fisherman like myself would be intrigued by this title.

"Players are put in control of their own island vacation and free to do as they please--get up early in the morning and try to grab massive fish in the deep sea, or rent a bicycle and travel to a remote lagoon. Players are free to fish wherever there is water, and a variety of locales are available, from tropical ocean fishing on the high sea to ice fishing atop the island’s mountains. With over 20 fish-related mini games and over 200 varieties of fish available--not to mention four-player competitive modes and online leaderboards, which show players how they stack up against other anglers around the world--there’s plenty of content for both casual players and completionists alike."

Sadly, the "special controller" the folks at Namco Bandai created for the Japanese version of the game (check it out here) won't be accompanying Fishing Resort to our shores. It's hard to complain about, though, since it likely would have made the title more expensive--and thus less appealing--to a lot of potential buyers.

A few more thoughts on Ivy the Kiwi? (No, that's not a question)

I spent some additional quality time with the Wii version of Ivy the Kiwi? this past weekend, and as a result of that experience I've decided to expand upon my earlier impressions of this Prope-made platformer.

* For starters, forget what I said earlier about the colorized backdrops that appear in the North American iteration of this game. Not only have they grown on me, but I think I now prefer them to the mostly monochromatic ones found in the Japanese version.

* Although I'm not willing to do a similar 180 on what I said a few days ago about the title's background music--I still think it's too loud compared to the sound effects--I am willing to augment those thoughts by saying the tunes are pretty spectacular. I especially like the moodier tracks, which remind me, in a way, of some of the music found in the Professor Layton series.

* Speaking of Professor Layton, this game's difficulty curve, much like Level-5's popular puzzler, is a bit like an up-and-down roller-coaster ride. Sometimes you'll lose a whole slew of lives trying to finish a level--such as 5-3, if you're like me--and then breeze through the follow-up with nary an issue. It's more of an interesting fact than an annoying one, though, so don't worry about it if you're on the fence about the game.

See also: 'No question about it ...'

No question about it ...

... the recently released Wii version of Prope's Ivy the Kiwi? is a nice little platformer.

What's to like about it? There are the title's graphics, for starters, which have a sepia-toned, watercolor-ish sheen to them. And then there are its controls, which are surprisingly tight considering you don't directly control your character.



What's not to like? You remember those sepia-toned graphics I mentioned a second ago? Well, I would have preferred it if the folks at Prope had left them mostly monochromatic (as they were in the Japanese release, above). The colors that have been added to the North American version are distracting, not to mention garish, if you ask me. Oh, and speaking of distracting: The game's background music, while suitably charming, is a bit boisterous compared to its sound effects.

Given the good and bad, I'd say Ivy the Kiwi? is a keeper--although it would be more of an impulse keeper (if such a thing exists) if it were, say, $10 cheaper. (It currently retails for $29.99 in my neck of the woods.)

Buy: Ivy the Kiwi? (Japanese) or Ivy the Kiwi? (North American)

Do kiwis dream in color?

When Yuji Naka's latest platformer Ivy the Kiwi? hit the streets in Japan a few weeks ago, it was a little slice of sepia-toned heaven. When the storybook-ish DS/Wii title hits the streets in the States (courtesy of XSeed) this summer, though, it'll have a shiny, Technicolor sheen to it.

What does that mean? Well, here's a screenshot from the Japanese version of the game:

And here's a screenshot from the North American version of the game:

Although I understand why Naka and his cohorts at Prope Ltd. added a bit of color to the title before bringing it to our shores, I personally prefer the subdued tones of the original--in part because the backgrounds of the new-and-supposedly-improved North American version seem to swallow up the titular Ivy.

See also: 'Screw Sonic, I'll take Ivy the Kiwi instead' and 'I still don't understand why there's a question mark in this game's title'

Is there any chance I'll get to be this good at Ivy the Kiwi?

Hey, for once the question mark at the end of Ivy the Kiwi? worked for me instead of against me!

Anyway, back to the point at hand: Prope's upcoming DS/DSiWare/Wii/
WiiWare title, Ivy the Kiwi? Specifically, how much I'm going to suck at said game (assuming, of course, I actually buy it).

Why do I think I'm going to suck at it? Take a gander at the following:



Now, I'm guessing the person playing the game in the video above is one of its developers, but I'd be lying if I told you that made me feel better about my own prospects with this so-cute-I-could-puke platformer.

(Via siliconera.com)

I still don't understand why there's a question mark in this game's title

Is it possible the protagonist in Yuji Naka's upcoming DS/Wii platformer, Ivy the Kiwi?, isn't, in fact, a member of the genus Apteryx and family Apterygidae?

Hopefully the Prope founder will answer that burning question before the titles are released on April 22. In the meantime, enjoy this "fresh out of the oven" trailer for the DS version of the game:



See also: 'Screw Sonic, I'll take Ivy the Kiwi instead'