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Musical Journey To White Park

Sega's recently released Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode IIfor the Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, PC, and mobile devices is turning some heads with its improved take on attempting to match the Sega Genesis highs of the original beloved Sonic titles, but not everything in this latest adventure copies from the early 1990s.  Consider the music from White Park, Act 2 that starts out with a mildly catchy original piece before delightfully transitioning into a snippet of the Pleasure Castle / Twinkle Park theme from 1999's Sonic Adventure.  Its inclusion is a fun surprise for those of us who logged plenty of hours on Sonic's first real 3D adventure, and the more that I play White Park, the more that I find myself waiting for the Twinkle Park piece to repeat.  "Ooh, here it comes again!"

Rock Band For iOS Ceases To Function Soon

UPDATE: Rock Band now pops up with this message declaring that all is well and to disregard the previous expiration message.

If you've been enjoying Rock Band for Apple's suite of iOS devices then I suggest that you spend all of the leftover enjoyment that you've been meaning to use on the game before the end of the month, because effective May 31, 2012, the app will expire and cease to work.  Mobile Rock Band fans are finding that the app is tossing out a casual little popup box warning that the game will no longer work come the end of the month and thanks players for "rocking out with us".  No explanation was offered for the shutdown, but the speculation is that publisher EA Mobile has come to the end of its licensing agreement for the songs contained within the iOS version of Rock Band.  Here's Polygon with the limited details:

In a comment on the Rock Band forum Harmonix community manager Aaron "HMXhenry" Trites states he has "No clue as to the specifics."

"My guess is that it has something to do with the MTV Games and EA logos that pop up when you load it. Since we are no longer partnered with them, I have no idea how that has affected projects like RB on iOS. But, as we've seen with the recent DLC delays, there's a lot of work being done behind the scenes now that Harmonix is independent and I wouldn't be surprised if this was related.

"Again, that's mostly guesswork, but I'm not at all familiar with the particulars of the partnership or how content is managed on iOS."

Electronic Arts has flipped the killswitch for parts of its games before (usually underplayed multiplayer modes in older sports titles), but breaking an entire game in this way is a new one for the company, I think.  Compounding the problem, Rock Band is still for sale on the App Store for $5.  There's no mention that this game is a dead app walking.  This sort of thing is why I still prefer old fashioned physical media that doesn't necessarily need an Internet connection when it comes to video games.  The old cartridges and discs of yesterday still work.  EA cannot swoop in and banish their, say, PlayStation 2 back catalog.  Revoking an iOS game, on the other hand, is a trivial exercise.  It makes me wonder how many other fun games and useful apps are a step away from being remotely wiped out by a publisher.  For some reason, my guess is that there are no refunds in this instance.  Thanks for rocking out with us!

Swordigo Review At Gamezebo

And now for something completely different.  I wrote a review for mobile gaming site Gamezebo, and my first piece out of the gate is a review of Touch Foo's action RPG platformer Swordigo for the Apple iPhone and iPad.  Check out my thoughts in which I explain why this charming little title channels great side-scrolling titles from days gone by such as Zelda II: The Adventure of Link and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.  As I continue to play the game I find myself more impressed by the way it makes use of familiar tropes, and each time that I end up stuck at a dead end I find that the solution to the puzzle at hand is simpler than I'd expect.  I'm overthinking this stuff.  I suppose that's the kind of problem that I want to have instead of the opposite.

Quick Facts About Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Episode II

Sega's Sonic the Hedghog 4: Episode II is building some decent buzz as screenshots and trailers reveal a game that might actually get the old school Sonic feeling right this time.  Adding to that excitement is a feature at GamesRadar that lists fifteen things that you probably don't know about the new installment including two-player cooperative multiplayer action, Sonic's new animation for gulping down underwater air bubbles, fun nods to Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and much more.

We've long-since given up on the idea that Sonic's old physics can return in modern games. The movement in Sonic 4: Episode 2 does have slightly more inertia than its predecessor, but it still feels similar. As a result, as you're running down a slope, your best bet for acceleration is not to go into a ball as you would on Mega Drive, but instead to stay on your feet and let Sonic's legs bring the power. Disappointing, yes, especially as the recently re-released Sonic CD's slightly tweaked physics are an absolute joy. Still, that team-up move as seen here moves VERY quickly.

This is the best part of the Sonic Cycle: the time when the game is nearly finished yet not yet available in which we can all bask in the renewed hope that the new Sonic game will actually be as much fun as Sonic the Hedgehog 3.  Who knows?  Maybe Episode II can finally crack the cycle.  I'm certainly optimistic about this one, anyway.  It just looks so polished, and I seem to have a blind spot when it comes to Sonic the Hedgehog titles.  Either way, enjoy what you can from this next episode.  According to Sega, there are no plans at this time for Episode III and beyond (unless Episode II blows away sales expectations, I'd imagine).

See Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Episode II Run

Following on from those impressive screenshots of Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II from last week comes this trailer of the game in action.  Check out Sonic and Tails working together as a team as they traverse snowy mountains, rickety carnivals, and other hazardous zones in pursuit of Metal Sonic.  It's impressive stuff and appears to be a definite improvement over Episode I.  The game has a release date of Spring 2012 and is headed to the Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3, PC, iOS, and Android.  If I had to take a wild guess, I'd venture that we'll also see it for Nintendo's Wii U toward the end of the year.  That's just an educated assumption on my part, of course.

A Brief History Of Handheld Gaming

As Sony officially sends the PlayStation Vita out into the world in North America and Europe this week, 1UP has taken a look back at the many other handheld video game systems that have come before it and points out how each one succeeded, failed, or met somewhere in the middle.  You've heard the story of the Nintendo Game Boy before, sure, but the piece also includes some notable also-rans including the Watara Supervision, Wonderswan, Neo Geo Pocket Color, and the infamous Gizmondo.

Gizmondo arrived stillborn thanks to the shady dealings of its parent company. Even disregarding its terrible (and possibly criminal) business model, the Gizmondo wasn't a particularly compelling piece of hardware; its design bore a bizarre resemblance to a black rubberized taco with valves sticking out of the top. Its software lineup featured a handful of noteworthy third-party games and a whole lot of nothing. And let's not forget that Gizmondo's entire existence has been theorized to serve entirely as an excuse for its creators to fund nice cars and have fancy parties with the media.

It's impossible not to notice that the article ends up being a look at Nintendo vs The Other Guys across the history of handheld gaming.  If the company wasn't striking down Atari or NEC, it was matched with the likes of Sony or Sega.  Through it all, Nintendo is still there and still finding success.  There's certainly room in the market for two handheld systems and competition keeps everyone on their collective toes, and it's interesting to see how more recent handheld systems were designed in an attempt not to make the mistakes of the Lynx or Neo Geo Pocket.  Lessons have definitely been learned over the years.  Those who don't learn their history are doomed to repeat it with a Tiger Game.com.

Weekly Poll: Fool Me Many Times

An overwhelming majority of you are not buying a Sony PlayStation Vita at launch.  I'm passing for now as well.  I've been over my reasons several times over the past few weeks, so instead of explaining again how I feel that the hidden costs are a dealbreaker, I'll share a quick story.  My girlfriend and I were out at the mall over the weekend and while browsing around a GameStop, I picked up the demo unit to see what was installed on it.  The Vita had been in my hands for less than ten seconds when the clerk behind the counter immediately started the hard sell, urging that I buy a system bundle because they only had seven left.  Now of course GameStop employees are going to push the system, but I can't remember ever being aggressively pushed to buy anything from the chain like the Vita.  There was a desperation in the clerk's voice mixed in with the forced enthusiasm.  I can't be the only PlayStation fan sitting out the Vita for now, and I'm very curious to see some sales numbers on all of this stuff next month.

Moving on, last week we were able to see a fresh look at Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II.  The previous episode of the sequel didn't please as many Sonic fans as Sega expected, and it would seem that Episode II has learned from some of the last installment's visual mistakes.  Are you willing to take a chance on Episode II?  Let's hear your thoughts.

Next Sonic The Hedgehog 4 Episode Looks Really Good

Microsoft's Xbox Live Marketplace website has some surprisingly impressive screenshots of Sega's upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II that are leaps and bounds above the comparatively simple visual style of 2009's Episode I.  Perhaps the creative team behind these downloadable releases has been paying attention to constructive criticism after all because some of what I see here looks like it's on par with last year's Sonic Generations in places.  Check out the the detailed character models!  Marvel at the lighting!  Swoon at the the textured objects!  This looks downright gorgeous and probably explains why a Nintendo Wii release isn't happening for this installment (every other current platform will see it though; it's coming to Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, iOS, Android, Windows Phone 7, and PC).  Episode II is expected later this year, but if the game plays as well as it looks, then its release can't come soon enough.

Mega Man X For iOS Looks Disappointing

It's been a tough year for Mega Man and his many fans, but 2011 isn't going to end without a new adventure for the blue bomber. Capcom has arranged for its 1993 Super NES title Mega Man X to land on Apple's App Store as a $5 iOS game for iPhone, but the game is a bit different than you remember it.  Specifically, it seems to embody the worst aspects of bringing a popular classic video game into the mobile world.  While changes to the visual style are the most obvious alteration, there are now load times, level structure has been chopped up into separate screens instead of one continuous flowing design, the camera angle has been zoomed in to give X and his enemies more visibility at the cost of losing some details from the edge of the screen, and there's now an in-game store in which players can pay real money for X's upgrades rather than earning them the old fashioned way (although paying for them instead of collecting them is not required).  There's even a replacement music pack for sale that replaces the traditional X soundtrack with the Maverick Hunter X remake's music.  Have a look at the trailer and tell me if you get a sinking feeling while watching it.

It's a shame to see Mega Man X half-assed this way (I think the in-game store is the biggest insult of all), and while I think that there is a way to do Mega Man on the iPhone, this is not it.  Perhaps it's time for Capcom to build a new Mega Man title from the ground up for the mobile market with that platform's limitations in mind.  While I admire and appreciate the attempt to bring Mega Man X back for a new platform, the end result appears to not do the original game justice.  I never thought I'd say this, but Capcom should take a page from Sega's book.  The latter company's recent release of Sonic CD for iOS is a perfect example of how to adapt a console game from yesteryear for the mobile platform.

Extra Levels Cut From Rereleased Sonic CD

Sega's recently released remake of Sonic CD is turning some heads due to how well-done it is, but like any captivating game, it's hiding a few secrets.  Specifically, two additional levels were planned to be included in the new version of the game, but were cut towards the end of development.  All that remains is a secret unlockable screenshot of one of the lost zones.  Here's developer Christian Whitehead discussing what happened to the now-lost Desert Dazzle and Final Fever areas:

Basically, earlier on in the remake's development there were 2 new levels: Desert Dazzle & Final Fever (another boss).  Neither level was fully complete, and we had to make the call whether or not to go ahead and finalize them. Sonic Team felt the game should not deviate too far from it's original form, and in retrospect it was for the best since we had a lot of other work to do anyway.

It's understandable why Sonic Team wanted the game to remain true to its roots, but personally I think that there is no harm in introducing a few new elements.  After all, the remake already includes Tails as a playable character and a revised spin dash maneuver that matches up with Sonic's trademark attack from Sonic the Hedgehog 2.  What's one or two more changes?  If Sonic Team is so concerned about maintaining the integrity of the original game, why not make the extra levels optional via the options screen?  Y'know, the more I think about it, the more I realize that while these new zones were cut from this initial release, the great thing about downloadable games is that it's always possible to update them with new content...