QCF: Pokémon Alpha Sapphire/Omega Ruby

n what has gradually bloomed into somewhat of a subtle tradition from the gaming giant since the Gameboy Advance’s prime, the Big N has enlisted their subsidiary Game Freak, into unleashing yet another modern revamp of a past chapter out of their golden child’s past, for the latest incarnation of Nintendo’s pocket hardware.

While last year’s stellar X and Y entries went on to prove why the Pokémon brand is still a household name though, the inevitable remakes of franchise’s Ruby and Sapphire generation that we anticipated has sadly failed to keep the momentum that those previous titles had lent them.

No, what Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby does instead is quite the opposite, it falls victim to a wonted flaw that has infrequently plagued Pikachu and his Poképals in more recent years of the now tenured property—complete and utter fatigue.

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PPR Presents Play Play: Super Mario Sunshine

o matter what camp you’re in when it comes to this argument, no response to a Super Mario game has ever been this mixed or polarizing as the one that has the iconic plumber wearing a backpack with a super soaker attached to it.

Join Gil, Ser, and George, as they setup and gab about Super Mario Sunshine in this latest Play Play; an endeavor that will set the stage for Ideals to comes to blows, and sides to be challenged, and one of the most colorfully dangerous amusement parks you’ve ever seen. 

Mail us at our new email Mailbag@presspauseradio.com, leave a voicemail at 469-PPR-TALK, and be sure to stop by at our Forums if you haven’t already registered and post your thoughts about the show. Finally, make sure to rate and subscribe to us on iTunes and YouTube, follow us on Twitch page and Twitter, and finally take part in our Facebook and Steam group!

QCF: Bayonetta 2

here are certain games that are fully aware of the audience they’re intended for—the original Bayonetta was such a title.  The impression of vivacious action and the great deal of spectacle its sultry violence spurs on is the kind of experience that indulges in the very unique spirit of expressionism that can only be realized by video games.

And yet ironically, despite the many eccentric nuances exclusive to the culture of gaming that it did celebrate, it’s appeal and accessibility was arguably a bit niche-sized at best, finding a home within the hearts of only the most hardcore of action fans.

Bayonetta 2 rectifies a great deal of that with Nintendo’s influence, and much to the delight of everyone involved or interested for that matter, it doesn’t compromise any of the distinctive dynamics or personality of the Umbra Witch—quite the opposite actually.

The trifecta of Nintendo, Sega, and Platinum collaboration has not only produced title made of everything that a sequel should be, but Bayonetta 2’s subtle improvements help propel the approachability of it adrenaline-soaked quest into a significantly wider spectrum of player skill and interest that’s good enough to land the Wii U on some wish lists for this holiday season.

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QCF: Super Smash Bros for 3DS

hen a name becomes more and more distinguished over time like Super Smash Bros has, the occasional fumble or two can easily be overlooked, like it never even happened at all; and at the Chagrin of Super Smash Bros Brawl, the expectations for the latest sequels to bear the Smash name have never been higher.

While the 3DS version out of the pair of new games, has quickly gotten the label of being the B-choice release, the experience it has to offer is by no means the case. Everything that’s been jam packed into this port is very much faithful to those very same lofty expectations I mentioned earlier, and dare I say, Super Smash Bros for 3DS went on even further to surpass them.

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QCF: Hyrule Warriors

or the last twenty-eight years, we’ve all welcomed Nintendo’s taciturn hero of legend with open arms, navigating him through the most dangerous quests, filled with perilous trials like pushing blocks, and lighting conspicuous torches, and…yeah, that’s right folks—twenty-eight years of this.

The legend of Zelda has certainly earned its iconic stature within games today, but aside from a few exceptions, it’s becoming more and more apparent that the formula and design of the more recent entries have arguably reached a point of tedium. The Big N’s elfin princess and hero could use a change of pace, and Nintendo answered enthusiastically answered that call.

Hyrule Warriors was the farthest thing I honestly has in mind for the franchise, but after finally getting my grubby mitts on it; I humbly, and most fortunately admit that I was wrong—not only is this experimental spin-off a refreshing palate-cleanser, but it’s a direction I wouldn’t mind the series returning to in subsequent releases for years to come.

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PAX PRIME 2014: Searching for adventure in Captain Toad's Treaure Tracker

henever I think of must-own games for the Wii U, Super Mario 3D World immediately comes to mind, and my absolute favorite thing about the game has nothing to do with the main game at all.

Nope, the one thing I praise about it before anything else are the Captain Toad levels, the endearing yet immaculately crafted collection of distractions from 3D World’s main game that surprisingly became one of its biggest highlights. So when Nintendo announced that the adorable adventurer would be getting his own title later this year, I naturally became a little more than excited.

The big question though is whether or not Nintendo can really pull off an entire games-worth of content around the quirky puzzle-based dynamic of Captain Toad. The answer is a resounding, obnoxiously loud yes guys and gals, Captain Toad Treasure Tracker could very well be one of the most whimsically charming games that the Big N has crafted in years.

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PAX PRIME 2014: Hands-On with Super Smash Bros. Brawl for 3DS

t's no secret that Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. is eagerly being awaited by legions of Nintendo faithful, both on 3DS and Wii U. Every new announcement is followed with a fury of excited tweets, forum exchanges and general giddiness, and Nintendo is giving the gamers the goods with the debut of a new game mode: Smash Run. We got a chance to go hands-on with the very latest in the Smash lineup with Super Smash Bros. for 3DS here at PAX 2014 to get a closer look at this new mode of play.

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Nintendo reveals the new 3DS LL

arlier this morning, Nintendo surprised the world when it unveiled a new model of the 3DS XL, titling it, the Nintendo 3DS LL (I couldn’t tell you what the extra “L” stood for). The newer model will boast an extended battery life than all of its previous incarnations, two additional “ZL” and “ZR” buttons, a tiny right thumb stick camera control, and more.

The new system processor will also allow for HTML 5 to display, and the folks at the big N were thoughtful enough to include Micro SD support for storage this time as well. NFC compatibility is another impressive feature that will allow the handheld to use NFC scanning without the use of an external device required for the utility.

It’s slightly bigger than the XL and does boast a laundry list if improvements, but there wasn’t a whole lot of detail over the new firmware in the revision, which is a pretty big deal considering that the upcoming Xenoblade Chronicles port will only work with this new model, and none of the other previous 3DS models.

It’ll be dropping in the Land of the Rising Sun on September 14^th, no news on when it’s coming stateside has been announced so far.

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