On the Download: Super Smash Bros. Mewtwo Impressions

In recent years, Nintendo has gotten more comfortable with creating and selling downloadable content for their games.  From weekly DLC packs to haggling NPCs to buy new content for a cheaper price, Nintendo has tested multiple approaches to tackling DLC in an effort to determine what model their fan base finds acceptable.  Tests found in games like Fire Emblem Awakening, Pikmin 3 and Rusty's Real Deal Baseball have all led Nintendo to adopting the best practices for their major franchises, in particular, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS, and Mario Kart 8.  Since there isn't enough room to cover impressions for both games in this one articles, the Super Smash Bros. DLC will be covered in this article with impressions of the Mario Kart 8 DLC coming next week.

The most anticipated aspect of any Super Smash Bros. is the final roster.  Everybody wildly speculates what iconic Nintendo characters will return for the next entry, what new characters will join the ranks and what third-party characters will interrupt the proceedings.  Out of all the characters people were craving to see in the newest Smash Bros., a large group of vocal fans got behind the return of one psychic Pokemon—Mewtwo.  While Mewtwo did not make it into the initial release of Super Smash Bros for Wii U and 3DS, Nintendo heard the fan outcry and you can add him to the popular fighting game on Tuesday, April 28th at the price of four dollars for one version or five dollars for both.

Fortunately, those who registered both versions of Super Smash Bros. on Club Nintendo received Mewtwo for free last Wednesday.  That includes yours truly.  As it has been a long time since I last played Melee, I can't delve into the minute differences between Mewtwo's Melee move set and the updated move set.  The only noticeable difference is Mewtwo's Final Smash, the Psystrike, which sees him mega evolve into Mega Mewtwo Y to blow opponents away with a huge ball of psychic energy.  After playing through multiple matches (on and offline), Classic and All Star modes with Mewtwo, I found this psychic powerhouse to play similar to his Melee iteration.  Due to his floaty movement and weak standard attacks, Mewtwo is meant for seasoned Smash Bros. players that are attuned with charging Smash attacks and playing on the defensive.  In particular, Mewtwo's side and down B moves are only useful for deflecting projectiles or setting opponents up for Mewtwo's smash attacks as they don't have any real offensive use.  Once I got accustomed to Mewtwo's strengths and weaknesses, I found him to be a great new addition to the roster.

For the Super Smash Bros.'s DLC fighters, it comes down to how you personally enjoy the characters available.  Unless you want to get the full roster, it is easy to pick and choose which fighters you want to buy.  At four to five dollars a piece, the DLC offers a great amount of value for the asking price especially when compared the Mii Fighter costume DLC also available.

Bit by Bit: February 2015

February usually marks the beginning of the first quarter game rush.  Despite not being as jam-packed with titles as past years, this February has been a good month for games.  Nintendo launched the New Nintendo 3DS XL in North America with two highly anticipated portable games, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D and Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, and some big AAA titles like Evolve and The Order: 1886 dropped.  It's easy to say February was quite an eventful month.  As midterms and major projects will soon be a constant part of life, best to utilize the little free time I have to deliver another exciting edition of Bit by Bit.

Game of the Month
As much as I love the core Pokemon RPGs, I can honestly say Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire didn't excite me that much before their release.  Nintendo and GameFreak have been releasing Pokemon RPGs every year since Pokemon Platinum released for DS in 2009 and I was starting to get sick of the yearly releases.  Although I planned on buying one of the remakes no matter what (sorry, I'm a sucker for Pokemon), I seriously thought Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire were going to be as disappointing as Black and White 2.  Much like past entries, differences between the two versions are relegated to minor story alterations and Pokemon exclusive to one version over the other.  While I only played Omega Ruby, my opinions on the game can be applied to Alpha Sapphire as well.

It may have taken a few hours of play, but oh was I ever so wrong about these games.  Applying the 3D graphics of Pokemon X and Y to the third gen Pokemon games may be the most noticeable addition to these remakes, but it isn't the biggest.  First, story has become a bigger part of recent Pokemon games and Omega Ruby makes huge advances in this area.  The story is far more engaging than any Pokemon game before it especially the Delta Episode.  Unlocked after beating the Elite Four, the Delta Episode links capturing Rayquaza into a Hoenn-wide adventure that has major implications on the series as a whole.  Instead of skipping through story moments, I felt compelled to read through all the lines of dialogue for once.  The other big additions change the means of exploring the world and capturing Pokemon.  The DexNav app of the PokeNav makes finding and capturing Pokemon in each route a lot more approachable as it tells what Pokemon are in the immediate vicinity and helps in finding rarer Pokemon.  Also the Soar ability adds a new dimension to exploring as you get to see Hoenn from the skies.  Soaring makes the act of flying far more engaging than the fast-travel of regular flying and allows trainers to go off the beaten path to find Mirage Spots, special locations that offer the chance to catch rare and legendary Pokemon.  After experiencing the wonders of soaring, I hope that it replaces Fly as the prime form for aerial travel in future Pokemon games.

Despite my early skepticism, Pokemon Omega Ruby turned out to be a great game that I gladly sunk my precious time into.  Although I thoroughly enjoyed the game, enough to pick it for Game of the Month over The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D and Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, I still feel I am at my wits end with these yearly releases.  I love Pokemon, but Nintendo and GameFreak please give us a year off!

Most Anticipated Game of the Month
It seems Intelligent Systems is dominating my Most Anticipated Game of the Month section this year.  Last month, I gushed over the announcement of a new Fire Emblem for the 3DS.  This month, I am eagerly anticipating Intelligent Systems' new intellectual property, Code Name: S.T.E.A.M.  First announced at last year's E3, Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. along with Splatoon represent the first new properties for the Big N since the early years of the Wii.  Code Name: S.T.E.A.M.'s interesting look and the pedigree of Intelligent Systems sold me on the game initially then the demo came out and everything changed for the better.

Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. is one of those games that you can't capture the quality in screenshots or trailers—you need to get your hands on it.  The demo takes players through the first few missions of the game, which slowly teach you the core mechanics of the game.  Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. takes aspects from both Valkyria Chronicles and the newest X-Com and blend them into an extremely engaging turn-based strategy game with turns that play like a third-person shooter.

After getting hands-on with Code Name: S.T.E.A.M., I have a feeling this will be one of those great titles that gets lost in the shuffle because its a new IP and doesn't have much marketing from Nintendo.  I highly recommend 3DS owners download the demo and give Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. a chance.  It is well worth it

Video of the Month
There are times when a trailer comes around that just sells you on a game.  It may only be a few minutes long, but everything contained in that video just leaves you in awe and wonder.  That happened this past month with the newest trailer for Persona 5.

In all honesty, I am still fairly new to the Shin Megami Tensei franchise as I have only played the fourth entry in the main series.  Despite my current unfamiliarity with the franchise, the trailer caught my full attention with its stylish UI, jazz soundtrack and unique gameplay mechanics.  Seriously, traversing through the world like an action-platformer or sneaking up on enemies using cover in a JRPG is freaking awesome!

Thanks to this trailer I want to dive headfirst into the world of Persona.  Be it Persona 3, 4, Q or Arena, I am really excited to get into this series when I have the time.  Also I will definitely be there day one to buy the newest entry when it releases later this year.

Bit by Bit: January 2015

With Silver Bit's Year in Review 2014 ending last week, it is time to look forward to everything coming out in the next 12 months.  Aside from a few games, most being re-releases, this January has been slow on the games front.  On the news front, there has been a steady flow of new information on upcoming games already known or recently revealed.  An onslaught of news came from Nintendo as their January Nintendo Direct revealed their entire winter line-up from the launch of the New 3DS to Mario Party 10.  Keep reading for more on the latest Direct.  Also keep reading as I have lots to cover in the first Bit by Bit of 2015.

Game of the Month

When I write The Games I Missed article of the Year in Review, it takes me a while to actually start playing any of them.  Thanks to the Steam Holiday Sale and a greater desire to play games on my computer, things were different this year as I jumped into playing a couple games on the list.  Playing one game, in particular, would go on to influence my decisions for the Game of the Month.  The Game of the Month was about to go to Pokemon Omega Ruby before I got into The Wolf Among Us.  While I spent a shorter amount of time with The Wolf Among Us compared to Omega Ruby, it left quite a impact on me.  

The Wolf Among Us is Telltale's Game first game after the incredible The Walking Dead Season One.  Coming after such a lauded game by both gamers and critics alike, Wolf Among Us had high expectations to live up to.  After beating the game, it is safe to say that Wolf Among Us demolishes those expectations.  Although it has some beautiful character moments that bring to light the intricacies of Bigby, Snow White and other fables, the game is a lot more plot-driven than The Walking Dead.  Speaking of the plot, The Wolf Among Us delivers some mind-blowing twists that had my mind racing in speculation for hours on end.  While story takes centre stage, the conversation-based gameplay and quick-time action sequences brings the entire experience together.  Despite needing to complete school readings, each episode had me eager to sit down and play more, the one thing all episodic games should do.  

Most Anticipated Game of the Month

Last week, Nintendo delivered their first Nintendo Direct of 2015.  The 45-minute presentation was great as the Big N announced their entire line-up for the first quarter of the year including release dates (something they usually withhold until the very last minute).  While the New Nintendo 3DS's reveal for North America headlined the show, I am not as enamored with the update as the vast majority.  Personally, I am not spending upwards of 200 dollars to get new features which can be added to my 3DS through peripherals.  It is a wise choice for those with the original 3DS, but not for those with an XL.  I can continue with this tangent, but it is time to get down to business.

My favourite piece of news from the Direct was the announcement of the new Fire Emblem for 3DS.  From the trailer, the new Fire Emblem looks to be very similar in gameplay and art style to Awakening, which isn't a bad thing considering Awakening is, in my opinion, the best 3DS game released to date.  Also the rumours about Fire Emblem's potential release in 2015 has spiked my anticipation for the game tenfold.  More Fire Emblem is always a good thing in my books.  Now, if we can only get an update on Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem from Nintendo.

Video of the Month

Usually when a Nintendo Direct is released, I am hard pressed to include a video of or from the event as the Video of the Month.  This time around that precedence isn't the case as there is a video even better.  Funny enough, my video of choice is Nintendo related as well.  It comes from a great Youtube show called Game Theory, a show which seeks to use video games as a tool for education.  The episode dives into the tragic hidden lore of the Super Smash Bros. series.  It is quite fascinating especially when MatPat looks at the lore's connections to creator Masahiro Sakurai and the possible inner dilemma the famed creator faces with Smash Bros.  If you enjoy this video, I highly encourage watching past episodes of Game Theory.  You might learn some interesting connections between academic theories and video games such as applying multiverse theory to Pokemon.

Amiibogeddon

Every year around the holidays, there is usually one item that everybody wants to get their hands on.  Last year, it was the PlayStation 4.  A few years ago, it was Activision's Skylanders figures.  History loves to repeat itself as this time it's Nintendo's line of Amiibo figures.  If you have not heard by now, Nintendo's Amiibo figures are selling out across the globe due to limited supplies.  Along with that news, rumors about the discontinuation of certain figures, namely Marth, Wii Fit Trainer and Villager, have sent people into a fervor over the Amiibos as a whole.  People are pre-ordering  every figure, buying multiples to cash in on the demand and relentlessly searching for hard-to-find Amiibos.  The Amiibogeddon name may sound really cheesy, but the magnitude of this ongoing craziness is being felt by Nintendo fans who want to pick up their favourite character or collectors who want to own them all.  While Nintendo is the only one that can fix this situation, they are highly notorious for being slow to restock retailers after the initial shipment of their products.

Despite Nintendo's frustrating practices of building demand for certain products, their handling of this entire situation has left a lot to be desired.  First, they completely underestimated the demand for the Amiibos especially the figures involving characters from franchises with a cult following like Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing.  Activision did the exact same thing when Skylanders initially released in 2011.  Since Amiibo is directly inspired by the Skylanders line of games and toys,  it is baffling for Nintendo to not at least learn from Skylander's growing pains.  Second, Nintendo hasn't done anything to dismiss these rumors of discontinuation.  In fact, they have added more fuel to the fire by not giving a definitive "yes" or "no" answer to the question.  All that has been clarified is more popular characters will be in regular stock while certain sold-out figures may be restocked at a later date.  No definition of what characters are deemed popular enough for regular stock, outside of Mario and Link, and no concrete timetable of when these figures will be restocked if ever.  On top of all this wonderful news, the Captain Falcon, Luigi and Pit figures from the second wave of Amiibos have been delayed until further notice.

Not everything surrounding the Amiibos is negative.  As a matter of fact, the figures are really well made and their uses in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, Mario Kart 8 and Hyrule Warriors are really cool.  They have a lot of potential that hopefully Nintendo can capitalize on.

The feelings on Nintendo's mishaps surrounding the Amiibogeddon fiasco can be boiled down to one word--frustrating.  These figures were made to capitalize on the toys to life market in order to make back the money lost on poor Wii U sales.  It is puzzling that Nintendo isn't making greater efforts to meet the demand, even with "niche" characters like Marth, Wii Fit Trainer and Villager.  If these figures are making a profit, there should be absolutely no reason to consider discontinuing or limiting the stock for any of them.  While I personally don't believe Nintendo will fix this fiasco before the new year, the longer they wait to actually address the issue, the more they will alienate the Amiibo's target audience.

Bit by Bit: July 2014

July has been an incredibly busy month.  Funny enough, it has been busy for every reason except gaming.  Once the final article for E3 2014 went up at the end of June, my life has consisted of endlessly working on a large report for an online course, picking up numerous shifts at my two jobs and volunteering for the university newspaper.  The little free time I had was spent away from the keyboard and either with friends trying to make the most of the summer or in front of a television re-watching Gundam Wing (one of my favourite animes) in its entirety.  To sum things up, Silver Bit has been the least of worries for the past month, but those priorities change now as I have a lot planned for August in order to end this summer as strong as it started.  Stay tuned to Silver Bit as the best is yet to come, I promise.  Before we get ahead of ourselves, let us look back at the month that was July 2014.

Game of the Month
When I snuck in some time to play games, there was one game which dominated my time.  If you paid attention to Silver Bit at all during July, you would have seen the review of said game posted a couple weeks ago.  Yes, Shovel Knight is the Game of the Month and rightfully so, the game is phenomenal.  Even after completing the game on Normal, I return to play a few levels in New Game+, search for hidden music sheets and maximize my treasure count.  I can rant and rave about Shovel Knight for hours on end, but I highly recommend reading the review to get my full opinion on the game.  If you are already enjoying Shovel Knight especially the music, the soundtrack and arranged album for the game are both available on composer Jake Kaufman's Bandcamp for any price you would like to pay.  Both albums work as excellent accompanying pieces to Shovel Knight and are highly recommended to anyone who enjoys video game music.  With that all said and done, I cannot stress how wonderful Shovel Knight is.  It is a game that needs to be experienced and at the low price of 15 dollars, there is no excuse to miss out on this adventure.

Most Anticipated Game of the Month
July 17th marked the start of the most anticipated beta in years, the Destiny beta.  The last time a beta was so highly anticipated was way back in 2007 with the Halo 3 beta and coincidentally the Destiny beta comes from the studio that originally created Halo-- Bungie.  A mere pre-order for Destiny gave you full access to the beta upon its release.  Even with that extremely low barrier of entry, those already in the beta received two addition beta codes in order to encourage others to play the beta and gain access to all the content in the beta including the cooperative strike mission (Destiny's equivalent to raids found in other massively multiplayer online games).  If you owned any Microsoft or Sony console, there was no reason not to play the Destiny beta during the last two weeks of July.  While I will be going into much further detail in an upcoming edition of First Byte, I want to share some of my initial thoughts on Destiny here.  Considering my youngest brother hogged the PS4 almost day and night to play the beta, I enjoyed the limited time with Destiny I snuck in between his long sessions.  It blends the expertly polished gameplay of Bungie's entries in the Halo series with the unique RPG elements of Borderlands to great success.  Nowadays, the FPS genre is full of shallow experiences that aim to imitate the latest Michael Bay action movie rather than create a compelling game with actual depth that Destiny feels so refreshing.  While I do not have a high opinion on the current direction of the genre, Destiny stands out as a first-person shooter that I am actually excited for and in all honesty that does not happen often.  I cannot wait to spend some quality time with Destiny come September unless my brother decides to commit every waking moment to playing the game.

Video of the Month
Another month, another Smash Bros. reveal.  This time around we did not get just one new addition to the roster, Nintendo dropped three.  Newcomers Robin and Lucina from Fire Emblem Awakening join the returning Captain Falcon as the newest members of the Super Smash Bros. for 3DS and Wii U roster.  The reveal trailer blends the anime-style graphics of Awakening's cutscenes with gameplay footage from the new Smash Bros. in a way that makes both art styles compliment one another.  Much like the other reveal trailers, the video speaks for itself.  So sit back, relax and let Mr. Sakurai take you for a ride.

Top 5 Game Boy Advance Games

Handhelds have always been a generation or two behind the technology found in video game consoles.  This significant technological disadvantage has never hurt the popularity of handheld gaming.  In fact, it is a non-factor to most except those most obsessed with graphics and hardware specs.  The ability to play quality games in the palm of your hand has captured the hearts and minds of gamers around the globe.  From black-and-white pick-up and play arcade-like experiences of the Game Boy to fully featured time-consuming 3D worlds of the 3DS and Vita, the landscape of handheld gaming has drastically changed in the past two decades.  Nintendo's Game Boy family of handheld systems, which just celebrated its 25th anniversary, has played a major role instituting this change.  In particular, the final entry in Nintendo's legendary line of Game Boy systems pushed the bar the furthest before the Nintendo DS brand took over.

The Game Boy Advance put the power of the Super Nintendo, arguably one of the greatest video game consoles ever created, in the palm of your hands.  Although small in size, Game Boy Advance cartridges housed some of the best experiences from that beloved era of gaming such as A Link to the Past, Super Mario World, Donkey Kong Country and Final Fantasy VI along with brand new classics like Advance Wars, Golden Sun and Drill Dozer.  The Game Boy Advance was the one video game system that introduced this writer to likes of Castlevania, Metroid and Fire Emblem, easily some of my favourite video game franchises.  In honour of the Game Boy's silver anniversary and the launch of the Game Boy Advance Virtual Console on Wii U, I would like to share my Top 5 Game Boy Advance games.  For this Top 5, I will be excluding any Super Nintendo port because they can overshadow the original titles released for the Game Boy Advance which deserve the recognition.  Enjoy the Top 5 and hopefully Nintendo will bring some of these titles to the Virtual Console for all to enjoy.

5. Mega Man Zero
Over the years, Capcom has developed various different iterations of the Blue Bomber from a robot-hunting mercenary to a living computer AI.  Each iteration focuses on a different aspect of game design such as the infusion of an overarching story in the X series to the RPG elements of the Battle Network series. The best iteration of Mega Man in this writer's opinion is Mega Man Zero for the Game Boy Advance.  Introduced as a character in the X series, Zero finally got the top billing that he was originally meant to receive in Mega Man X with Mega Man Zero.  100 years after the events of Mega Man X, Zero is awakened to help the Reploid resistance in their fight against his former friend X and the Neo Arcadian army.  While the story of Mega Man Zero spans four games, it is the first game that set the gold standard for the series with excellent action-platforming, fast-paced combat, challenging yet rewarding difficulty and heart-pumping music.  For those who missed out on Mega Man Zero on Game Boy Advance, the Mega Man Zero Collection for the Nintendo DS is a perfect way to experience this series in its entirety.

4. Mario & Luigi:  Superstar Saga
No one ever though Mario and RPG mechanics would ever be a good combination.  In actuality, Nintendo's iconic plumber is more than well-suited for the RPG genre as proven by both Super Mario RPG and Paper Mario.  Inspired by Mario's previous ventures into RPGs, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga took Mario RPGs in a different direction by limiting your party to just two characters-- Mario and Luigi.  The battles were ultimately turn-based, but involve much more input than your regular RPG.  Mario and Luigi always need to be on their toes at all times as they can cause more damage or even outright avoid attacks with a perfectly timed button press.  Exploring the overworld in Superstar Saga was not limited by gravity as Mario and Luigi could platform their way through areas to further the story and find hidden items.  The Mario Bros. repertoire of special moves and items like hammers and propeller jump allowed them to solve puzzles interspersed throughout the game.  Along with the gameplay, the love for Superstar Saga comes from its signature humour which ranges from Luigi dressing up as Princess Peach to allude the main villains to all the hilarious results of missing button presses to initiate Bros. Attacks.  While the series has only got better with each entry, Superstar Saga still stands as one of the best RPGs on the Game Boy Advance.

3. Castlevania:  Aria of Sorrow
Before the Game Boy Advance, portable Castlevania games were among the worst entries in the series.  With the power of the Game Boy Advance and later the Nintendo DS, Konami reversed the stigma firmly placed on portable Castlevanias for the better.  Their quality easily outclassed every console Castlevania following Symphony of the Night.  In fact, each portable entry has added their own additions to the Metroidvania formula introduced in Symphony of the Night such as Circle of the Moon's Dual Set-up System or the two interchangeable versions of Dracula's Castle in Harmony of Dissonance.  Among the three Castlevania games on the Game Boy Advance, Aria of Sorrow is the best.  Set in 2035, you play as Soma Cruz, the reincarnation of Dracula, as he stumbles upon Dracula's Castle hidden within a solar eclipse.  Trapped in Dracula's Castle, Soma must use his abilities as Dracula's vessel to escape before transforming into the iconic vampire.  Aria of Sorrow refines the same action-platforming and RPG mechanics used in the other Castlevania games for the Game Boy Advance to perfection.  What differentiates Aria of Sorrow from other entires in the series is the Tactical Soul system.  Instead of interchanging a select number of sub-weapons, Soma is able to absorb the souls of fallen enemies to acquire new attacks, summonable familiars, stat boosts and abilities which open up new areas to explore.  Equipping different combinations of souls allows you to create your own unique Soma with the attacks and abilities you want to use.  With the poor direction Castlevania has taken in recent years, Aria of Sorrow is a shining example of how great this franchise can be.

2. Fire Emblem
Fire Emblem is a series with a long and storied history.  Sadly that long and storied history was exclusive to Japan until 2003.  The first Fire Emblem to reach North American shores is one of the best tactical strategy games on any game system.  Following the adventures of Eliwood, Hector and Lynn, three lords from the continent of Elibe, Fire Emblem tasks players with taking an army of allies to stop the evil forces of the Black Fang and their pursuit to unleash the powers of the Dragon Gate on the world.  Fire Emblem's greatest strength came from the gameplay which has one managing the strengths and weaknesses of weapons and magic, the durability of items, character stats and the range of allies and enemies to overcome insurmountable odds.  At the game's best, it feels like playing a game of chess with medieval knights and wizards as your chess pieces.  Along with introducing North American audiences to the core mechanics of the series, Fire Emblem introduced players to its most signature feature-- the permanent death of ally units.  This feature caused plenty of chapter restarts from yours truly, but it made you feel connected to your units in a way no other tactical strategy game has done before.  No longer were these units expendable pawns; they were living, breathing characters that you cared for and grew attached to over the course of the game.  Their loss packed much more weight than losing a unit in a game like Advance Wars or Starcraft.  This emotional weight along with excellent game mechanics made Fire Emblem a defining experience for the strategy genre in general.

1. Metroid:  Zero Mission
Out of all the experiences available on the Game Boy Advance, one stands taller than the rest.  This experience comes from gaming's favourite bounty hunter, Samus Aran.  Actually, it is the remake of her first adventure to Planet Zebes in the original Metroid.  Metroid may be an iconic achievement in video game design and development, but certain aspects of the game, namely the graphics and the unguided structure of the game, have not stood the test of time.  Zero Mission took the original Metroid and upgraded the gameplay, graphics, level design, music and story to the masterful quality of Super Metroid.  Zero Mission made Metroid better in every conceivable way and that was not the only thing it did.  Zero Mission expanded on the original story of Metroid.  No longer was defeating Mother Brain the final thing Samus did on Planet Zebes.  In trying to leave Zebes, Samus is shot down by Space Pirates and stripped down to her Zero Suit.  With no power to fight regular enemies, the game changes from your standard 2D action-platformer to a compelling 2D stealth game as Samus tracks down a brand new Power Suit in order to finally escape the clutches of Zebes.  This incredible twist gave the final act of Metroid a greater sense of danger and vulnerability than fighting off countless waves of metroids.  Hands down, Metroid: Zero Mission is the definitive version of a classic which preserves it against the negative effects of Father Time.

Year in Review 2013: Game of the Year

It has taken a long time to get to this point, but we are finally at the very end of Silver Bit's Year in Review 2013.  To end off this month long journey is the most prestigious award of any year, the Game of the Year.  There were many Game of the Year caliber games that released in 2013.  Tomb Raider, Rayman Legends, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds and Super Mario 3D World were all in top contention for this writer's pick for Game of the Year, but they were all beat out by one game.  Released very early in 2013, this game could not be dethroned as the best video game experience of 2013 in my humble opinion.  I easily dumped well over one hundred hours into this game and could easily dump hundreds more.  This game is Fire Emblem Awakening.

What have I not already said about Fire Emblem Awakening?  While Awakening might not be the 3DS's killer app (that title easily belongs to Pokemon X and Y), it is the greatest game released for the handheld to date.  Fire Emblem Awakening easily combines the past, present and future of the series in one game.  There are tons of nods to older entries in the series even allowing you to battle and recruit characters from past Fire Emblem games.  Awakening takes on the present with key refinements to the core Fire Emblem mechanics to create some of the most superb tactical gameplay found in any game.  The future of the series comes in the drastic improvement of the support system from boosting stats in battle to even marrying other characters (along with the results of the marriage) and the game's incredible StreetPass and SpotPass functionality.  On top of all the great mechanics, there are hundreds of hours of content packed on Awakening's 3DS cartridge from sidequests to extra skirmishes and even more to download from SpotPass or the Nintendo eShop.  Although all the Fire Emblem games are all excellent games in their own right, Fire Emblem Awakening is hands down the greatest game in Nintendo and Intelligent System's storied strategy series and the 2013 Game of the Year.

Favourite Games of 2013 So Far

The first half of any year has a good amount of new releases to play.  Not as many as what will be releasing this holiday season, but a good amount nonetheless.  With June in the rearview mirror, we enter the second half of 2013.  Before we look ahead to all of the games releasing during the summer and holiday seasons, it is time to look back on the past six months and all the great games that are already available to play.  The games will be listed by order of release and only the games that this writer has beaten or played a considerable amount of before the writing of this article will be included.

Fire Emblem Awakening
What has this writer not already said about Fire Emblem Awakening?  Easily the greatest game to grace the 3DS, Awakening packs well over 100 hours of content into such a small 3DS cartridge.  There is even more hours of content to download through the 3DS' SpotPass functionality or DLC for the game.  The amount of content does not matter if the gameplay does not entice you to play for all those hours.  Awakening has the already superb tactical gameplay of the Fire Emblem series, but with a couple key improvements to the support system.  For Awakening, the support system is brought to the forefront as it allows the player to strengthen bonds, improve stats in battle and even have characters marry, which allows you to recruit their children later in the game.  Fire Emblem Awakening is easily the frontrunner for this writer's Game of the Year.

Bit.Trip Presents Runner 2:  Future Legend of Rhythm Alien
Do not overlook Runner 2 for its incredibly odd title because you would missing out on one of the most enjoyable downloadable games of the year.  The Bit.Trip games were retro-inspired rhythm games that made a name for themselves on Nintendo's WiiWare service.  Runner 2 is a sequel to the gruelling Bit.Trip Runner.  The difficulty may be scaled back for gamers of all ages to enjoy, but that does not mean Runner 2 is a walk in the park.  Runner 2 will put any gamer's hand-eye coordination to the test in trying to rack up the most points, collect all the secrets and Perfect+ every stage while listening to the incredible ever evolving soundtrack.  Odd name or not, Runner 2 is pure unadulterated fun.

Tomb Raider
It was a long wait for Crystal Dynamics' new direction for Lara Croft to reach store shelves, but it was well worth it.  Tomb Raider takes the iconic and pristine image of Lara Croft and throws it in the mud.  The mature tone of this new Tomb Raider is a breath of fresh air for a game series that seemed a little dated this generation especially competing with Sony's action-adventure giant, Uncharted.  Tomb Raider does an excellent job of placing gamers in Lara's shoes, which makes her much more relatable than in past entries.  Apart from the story, the gameplay is phenomenal as the interplay between the gunplay and stealth is well balanced, the puzzles are always engaging and the optional tombs and collectables offer a lot of opportunities to traverse the interconnected island of Yamatai.  The multiplayer may not be the greatest, but it is still a fun diversion for those who cannot get enough of Tomb Raider's combat.  Since Tomb Raider's release, the game has not gotten as much attention as it deserves.  Hands down, Tomb Raider is one of the best games of this year and should not be overshadowed by some games in this writer's honest opinion are extremely overhyped like BioShock Infinite and The Last of Us.

Lego City Undercover
On the surface, Traveller's Tales first original Lego game may look like just another clone of Rockstar's immensely popular Grand Theft Auto games, but it is a fun and charming experience that gamers of all ages can enjoy.  The gameplay is the tried and true Lego formula of breaking and building Lego objects to collect studs and open up new objects to interact with that many gamers are well too familiar with.  Even with this tried and true formula, Traveller's Tales has added on a simple combat system similar to that of the Batman Arkham games, various disguises to switch between in order to reach different areas or interact with certain objects and the freedom of an open world to explore at will that all keep this Lego game fun and engaging.  The gameplay may be great, but it is the personality and charm that exudes from Lego City Undercover that make it a standout.  Hilarious dialogue, amazing pop culture references and one wacky story keep a smile on your face at all times even through the excruciatingly long load times.  Young or old, Lego City Undercover is a game that everybody can enjoy.

Luigi's Mansion:  Dark Moon
The first Luigi's Mansion was a launch title for the Nintendo Gamecube.  Being a huge Nintendo fan, yours truly was very eager to play Luigi's first big adventure.  After breezing through Luigi's Mansion in a week, this writer was very disappointed with the end result.  While length does not determine the quality of the game, Luigi's Mansion felt a more like a tech demo than a full-fledged game.  The mechanics were never fleshed out enough to feel rewarding in the mid to late hours of the game and there was not much to do in the mansion after capturing all the ghosts other than collect more money.  After revisiting Luigi's Mansion about a year ago, I enjoy the game a little more than my initial reaction, but it still was not a home run.  Well Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is that home run.  It improves on everything the first game lacked.  The bite-sized mission structure sets an excellent pace for the game, the multiple mansions offer more places to explore, the length of Dark Moon is two to three times the length of the original and the Poltergust 5000 is so fun to use with the upgradable suction, stunning white light and secret-finding dark light.  Also there are tons of secrets to find and Boos to capture and there is a full-on multiplayer mode to boot.  This writer can go on and on about everything great about Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, but this article will run far too long.  In summation, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is one of the premier experiences on the 3DS and definitely worth owning a 3DS just to play.  Do not miss out on the greatest ghost-busting game on the market.

Games for the Summer

When new game releases start to slow during the spring and summer months, many gamers get very impatient.  Instead of a steady stream of new games to play, they are left with a little trickle.  One option for gamers to turn to during this drought is the realm of downloadable games, which release more frequently during the summer.  Another option is for gamers to resort to their backlog.  For those gamers who rarely trade their games like yours truly, we have accumulated a massive library of unfinished games to work on.  During the spring and summer, most older gamers (ages 19 and above) have much more time on their hands to dedicate to gaming.  This list below are the games that I personally want to dedicate a significant amount of my gaming time to with the ultimate goal of beating these games.

BioShock
After playing the great yet somewhat disappointing BioShock Infinite, I have had an urge to go back and experience the very first BioShock.  Having missed out of the revolution that the original BioShock was, I impulsively picked up Infinite just so I would not miss out on experiencing the revolution again if BioShock Infinite actually lived up to the hype.  While I did enjoy my time with BioShock Infinite, I was left wanting to experience that revolutionary first-person shooter that could possibly give Half-Life 2 some competition for my favourite FPS game.  Considering I own BioShock, it is finally time for me to really experience this game more than an hour.  Time to fight splicers, get scared crapless by the Big Daddies and learn about the underwater dystopia known as Rapture.

Darksiders II
I have put a good amount of time into Darksiders II, one of my favourite games of 2012 and currently my most-played game for the Wii U.  Even though I have invested 20 hours into this game, I have not finished the game.  That is what usually happens when a game gives me a massive open world and numerous side quests to complete.  I am in no rush to complete Darksiders II because I am loving it.  Although to move onto newer games, you have to beat your older games.  Eventually, my time with Darksiders II will have to end and I want to make it this summer.

Half-Life 2:  Episode 2
I love Half-Life.  Valve has easily created the greatest first-person shooters on the face of this planet in the Half-Life games.  While I have still yet to beat the very first one on PC (I hit a random bug that completely halted my progress and I have not picked it up since), I tore through Half-Life 2 and Episode 1 on the 360 edition of the Orange Box a couple years back.  I was about to get into Episode 2 and then I stopped.  I cannot remember why, but I have not played it since.  When thinking about games to work on these next four months, Episode 2 just sprung up right away as I game I have to finish.  Not only in preparation for whenever Valve decides to grace us with the next instalment of Half-Life, but just for my own gamer pride.

Pokemon White Version 2
Before Fire Emblem Awakening sucked up all my game time on the 3DS, Pokemon White 2 was taking up most of my game time.  Currently 28 hours into the game, there is still quite a bit to do in my second trip through the Unova region.  More Pokemon to capture, trainers to defeat and evil forces to stop.  Especially with the worldwide release of Pokemon X and Y this coming October, I want to finish Pokemon White 2 so I will be able to dedicate most my game time this Fall to the next Pokemon game.

Rayman Origins
While Ubisoft ripped my heart out of my chest, and repeatedly stomped on it with their delay of Rayman Legends just a couple months back, there were a couple good things that came from this heartbreak.  One was having some more money to spend on games during the game rush that was March.  Another is now having time to finally beat Rayman Origins before playing Rayman Legends.  I have been working my way through Origins for a while now, so I know I am closing in on the end of the game.  This summer is just the right time to make one final push to beat this game in preparation for the September release of Legends.

Bit by Bit: Q1 2013

Freedom at last!  Finally my first year of university is over.  Now with a little more free time on my hands, I can dedicate much more time to blogging.  As the season transitions from winter to spring to eventually summer, the release of games slow significantly.  While game releases slow, game news starts to pick up with big announcements leading up to some huge conventions like E3, Comic Con and PAX Prime.  The slowing of game releases for the spring and summer help with working on the immense backlog that has been building since last Fall.  Along with a few new games I am looking forward to in the next four and a half months, there are quite a few I want to work on this summer break.  I will get to those games in my blog tomorrow.  Before we look to the future, it is time to look back at the best of the first quarter of 2013.

Game of the Quarter
Even with the busyness that is university, I did make some time to pick up and play a good amount of new releases.  The games I picked up this quarter were Tomb Raider, Lego City:  Undercover, Luigi's Mansion:  Dark Moon and BioShock Infinite.  All these games are great and deserve your time and money, but none of them could compete with the 3DS's masterful strategy epic that released this past February.  Yes, Fire Emblem Awakening is the best game of the first quarter of 2013 and quite possibly could go to be this writer's Game of the Year.  Intelligent Systems has produced many great games over the years be it strategy, role-playing or even puzzle games, but Fire Emblem Awakening stands as their crowning achievement in this medium.  The countless hours of content, great story and vastly improved support system are the stars of Awakening bar none.  Combining these elements with the excellent tactile battle system and challenging yet fair difficulty that this series is known for easily makes Fire Emblem Awakening the best game in Nintendo's venerable strategy series, on the 3DS and of this year.  Personally, I have put just over 100 hours into Fire Emblem:  Awakening and I still have a handful of sidequests and DLC levels to play and plenty SpotPass teams to fight with tons of more content being uploaded daily.  Fire Emblem Awakening is a game that no 3DS owner should pass.  It is the 3DS's killer app.

Video of the Quarter
One moment in the past three months captured the hearts and minds of gamers around the world and put Capcom in a much better light after the hellaciously bad 2012 they had.  That moment was the reveal of DuckTales Remastered at PAX East.  Nobody saw this reveal coming, but when it happened jaws dropped.  Gamers have been clamouring for another DuckTales game for years now and finally got their wish when Capcom showed this trailer.

Bit by Bit: February 10-16

It has been an exciting two months.  Things have been falling into place in my life and for this blog.  This Sunday is WWE's Elimination Chamber PPV, the final PPV before WrestleMania, and that marks the return of my Road to WrestleMania series on my wrestling blog, The Silverdome.  I would love to have a weekly post on both blogs, but with all my school work I cannot get around to writing two blog posts a week.  For the time being, I will be taking a little hiatus from Silver Bit.  I will most likely try to put up previews for Tomb Raider and Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, two games I am personally excited for, next month.  Things will return to normal once WrestleMania has past.  Now without any further ado, let us get down to business.

Game of the Week

Game of the Week, Game of the Month and a possible frontrunner for Game of the Year.  I am talking about Fire Emblem Awakening for the 3DS.  It has been a while since a game has blown we away like Awakening has done.  Intelligent Systems has improved their already masterful strategy series to astronomical heights.  The excellent pair up system, a support system that adds much more than bonus conversations and a seemingly endless supply of missions to play, teams to fight through SpotPass and StreetPass and bonus challenges and maps to complete.  I have played Fire Emblem Awakening for close to 30 hours and I am only halfway through the main story of Awakening.  On top of all that, Nintendo is releasing new DLC missions every week for gamers to buy that adds much more value to this incredible game.  The more I play Fire Emblem Awakening, the more I love it.  It is a masterful game and possibly the best game on the 3DS and the best game in the Fire Emblem series.

Most Anticipated Games of the Week

I have two Most Anticipated Games this week.  Both games have out for a while, but this week they will be going on sale.  They are F-Zero for the Wii U Virtual Console and Crashmo for 3DS.  The former will be on sale for only 30 cents, while the latter will be on sale for 6 dollars.  It is a no brainer for someone who has been wanting to buy these game for a while now.  I highly recommend also checking out these deals if you own either a 3DS or Wii U.

Video of the Week

The Nintendo dominance continues here in this week's Bit by Bit.  This past Thursday, Nintendo gave us the best Valentine's Day present we could of ever asked, a brand new Nintendo Direct.  This Nintendo Direct focused on the 3DS games that will be released later this year and it was amazing.  Announcing Mario Golf World Tour, Mario & Luigi: Dream Team and Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D was the most newsworthy announcement from the show, but we also got a plethora of information on new eShop games for both 3DS and Wii U and some smaller Wii U announcements.  If Nintendo keeps releasing these Nintendo Directs at a regular pace, it could be an excellent year for us Nintendo fans.

Launch Station: Fire Emblem Awakening

It has been a long long time since we have had a Launch Station.  Seeing this is the first Launch Station of 2013, we start the year out right.  The first big release in February goes to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems with Fire Emblem Awakening.  Well known for the Paper Mario and Advance Wars series here in North America, Intelligent Systems' premier strategy RPG franchise, Fire Emblem, did not reach our shores until late 2003.  Ever since then, it has been a struggle to get Nintendo to localize each game in the series.  The first Fire Emblem game developed from the ground up for the 3DS almost did not see the light of day on this side of the pond.  It is a good thing that Fire Emblem Awakening will soon release in North America as it looks to be the biggest and most polished entry in the series.

At the forefront of every Fire Emblem is the story and Awakening is no exception.  You take control of Chrom, the prince of Ylisse, and his band of soldiers known as Shepherds in a world on the brink of war.  The forces of Plegia, commanded by the Mad King Gangrel, start attacking the borders of Ylisse and it is up to Chrom and the Shepherds to defend their homeland of invading forces.  Everything is not what it seems to be as unholy creatures known only as Risen start appearing out of nowhere.  Along with this new threat comes a masked swordsman who claims to be the legendary hero Marth.  This swordsman's message, that the world is not on the brink of war, but its own destruction.  While the story does take centre stage in Fire Emblem Awakening, you cannot count out the series' iconic turned-based gameplay.  If you played any Fire Emblem game, you will be very familiar with the grid-based moving and rock-paper-scissors combat system.  It may seem very simplistic at first, but the gameplay offers a whole lot of depth that few games can match especially with the new concepts Intelligent Systems has added in Awakening.  A lot of effort has been made in improving Fire Emblem's relationship and support systems.  On the battlefield, pairing up characters or even placing two characters side by side offer stat boosts in combat.  The more you pair characters together, the stronger their relationship gets.  Aside from the increase of stat boosts, some characters may even get married and have children due to these strong relationships.  Other big additions come on the side of online functionality.  At any point in the game, you are able to connect to the Nintendo Network to download items, maps, challenges and even teams to fight.  Also you are able to purchase new map packs that has its own stories and features characters from past Fire Emblem games such as Roy, Lyn and Ike that you are able to recruit to your party.  That is not all Fire Emblem Awakening's online has to offer as you are able to exchange avatars in StreetPass and fight others in local multiplayer.  Fire Emblem Awakening offers plenty of value outside of the epic and long story missions.

As a huge Fire Emblem fan, I have been looking forward to getting my hands on Fire Emblem Awakening since the game was first announced back in 2011.  Thanks to a little blunder by EB Games Canada, I got Fire Emblem Awakening a week early.  So far I have put close to eleven hours into the game and I am only on the seventh chapter.  It is an incredible game that is very to put down.  If you are looking for a game to play on your the 3DS, look no farther than Fire Emblem Awakening.  It is a deep strategy RPG that will keep you occupied from hours on end and a portable experience that is not to be missed.

Nintendo Direct 6.21.12 Impressions

Nintendo Direct is a mini-conference where Nintendo announces new and exclusive Nintendo announcements and showcases their upcoming games.  Nintendo Direct serves as a way for Nintendo to keep Nintendo fans up-to-date on the newest happenings in the Big N directly from them instead of through video game websites or magazines.  It is a very cool idea and personally these videos have always been fun to watch.  Last night, Nintendo hosted another Nintendo Direct that focused mainly on Nintendo 3DS, but had a little section to showcase a game or two for the Wii.

First and foremost, I really did enjoy this Nintendo Direct as it did wrapped all the information about 3DS and Wii into one concise 20 minute video that flowed perfectly.  My one big grip is that a lot of the big announcements that Nintendo shared with us should have been at E3, not this 20 minute mini-conference.  The major announcements of the Nintendo 3DS XL and Namco Bandai helping develop the new Smash Bros. games along with the reveals of Fire Emblem and Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask should have been showed E3 because it would have definitely improved Nintendo's okay showing at the event and it would gotten out to more people than just this little mini-conference that usually is only viewed by Nintendo fans and video game journalists.  While I can criticize Nintendo's decision to omit a lot of this huge announcements, the Nintendo Direct did what it was suppose to do.  It got Nintendo fans excited for the next wave of 3DS games and the Kirby Dream Collection for Wii.  I would have liked if Nintendo gave a concrete release date for The Last Story, but that is just minor.  We got a price and date for the 3DS XL, a rundown of all the third-party 3DS games, looks at New Super Mario Bros. 2, Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask, Kirby's Dream Collection, Fire Emblem, Pokemon Dream Radar, Pokedex 3D Pro and Pokemon Black 2 and White 2.  One of the other big announcements for me at least was the 8-Bit Summer initiative for the Nintendo eShop.  If any of you have read some of my On the Download posts, I have been crying to the heavens about the lack of Virtual Console games on the eShop.  It seems somebody at Nintendo of America has heard my prayers.  There will be two Virtual Console games released each week in July starting July 5th including Kid Icarus: Of Myths & Monsters, which should of come out alongside Kid Icarus: Uprising in my opinion.

All-in-all, this Nintendo Direct mini-conference was very good.  It was packed to the brim with great content and announcements.  While some of this stuff should have been at E3, I cannot fault this mini-conference for Nintendo's obvious gaff.  If you want to check it out, I have provided the video for you to watch below.  Enjoy and have a nice day.

E3 2012: Most Anticipated Games

E3 is home to the big reveals, huge surprises and incredible showcases of the biggest games of the 2012, 2013 and possibly 2014 and farther in the future.  Going into the big show, there is a good number of games and products that we know will be showcased.  This list of games contains the ones I am most looking forward to seeing in all the E3 coverage around the net and on TV.  A few are carryovers from my Most Anticipated Games of 2012 list from the beginning of the year along with some newly announced games that I am most looking forward to seeing more about.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow- Mirror of Fate
Just revealed in the newest edition of Nintendo Power, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow- Mirror of Fate is the first Castlevania game for the 3DS and serves as the bridge between Lords of Shadow and Lords of Shadow 2.  Mirror of Fate is a 2.5D sidescrolling adventure that is very similar to the other Metroidvania style handheld offerings like Dawn of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin.  You begin the game as Trevor Belmont and in later stages of the game will be able to play as up to three other descendants of the Belmont clan including the iconic Simon Belmont.  From the screenshots I have seen and the cover story I read, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow- Mirror of Fate has quickly jumped up my list of anticipated games.  Really looking forward to see the game in motion at E3 next week.

Fire Emblem: Awakening
Another 3DS game highly anticipated by yours truly.  The newest Fire Emblem has been doing well in Japan since its release earlier in the year yet nothing has been said about a North American release.  E3 seems like a perfect time for Nintendo to announce the newest installment in this incredible strategy game series is coming to our shores complete with accompanying DLC.

Resident Evil 6
Ever since Capcom announced Resident Evil 6 way back in January, I have been hanging on every little thing Capcom drops on the game.  Apart from the trailers and screenshots, nothing else has been showed on the next game in this classic survival horror franchise.  Resident Evil 6 looks to blend the tension-filled atmosphere of the original Resident Evil games with the high-octane action of later installments in the series.  Being Capcom's biggest game of 2012, there should be no doubt that we should see at least one or two demos of the game being showed off next week along with another excellent trailer to boot.

Tomb Raider
Tomb Raider was easily one of my most anticipated games of 2012 until it got delayed until March 2013.  Even though I am a little sad, it means more time for the Crystal Dynamics to make the best Tomb Raider game of all-time.  More visceral, more gritty and more mature than all the other installments in the Tomb Raider franchise, Tomb Raider serves as Lara Croft's origin story.  The E3 2012 trailer was released earlier today and it is just incredible.  If this trailer is a sign of the things to come this year at E3, Tomb Raider should definitely impress.

Wii U
I have stated this fact many times before and I will state it once again.  I am a huge Nintendo fan and the one thing I have been patiently waiting to hear and see more of is the Wii U.  First shown of last year at E3 to some confusion, this year is the full unveiling of Nintendo's next generation console.  The uses of the controller, the final specs of the console, the first-party games, the third-party support and the plan for online are among few of the topics that will definitely be addressed this coming Tuesday.  My anticipation for Wii U has been building for a year now as I have patiently waited for this year's Nintendo Press Conference.  Tuesday honestly could not come any sooner.  It should be incredible.