ReBootThe Magazine For Retro Games On Modern Consoles

May 2013

Pikmin 3

Luigi’sMansion

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The Latest News and Reviews

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2WelcomeHello and welcome tothe first issue ofReboot magazine. Thismagazine is aimed atlovers of retro gameson the modernconsole.

This week we have a sneakpeek at the new HDremake of The Legend ofZelda: Wind Waker, with acomparison of the beforeand after screenshots.

Also we have a review ofthe new Luigi’s Mansion 2and a preview of Pikmin 3,both games that havebeen in development forover five years.

We have a look at Luigi’slook through the ages. Aswell as a look at theHarvest Moon franchise.

Enjoy.

Louise Reilly

Editor

The Legend of Zelda:Wind WakerThe 2003 Smash Hit Comes Back in HDTHE LEGEND of Zeldafranchise is Nintendo’s giftthat keeps on giving. Asidefrom the bestselling gamesin the series, there’s evenmore money to be made forNintendo by rebooting oldgames.

This year saw the release of the1998 classic The Legend of Zelda:Ocarina of Time revamped in 3Dand the announcement that the2003 Gamecube smash hit TheLegend of Zelda: Wind Waker willbe released for the Wii U in HD.Wind Waker took the Legend ofZelda franchise in a completelynew direction. Gone were thedark and detailed graphics ofOcarina of Time, replaced withbright simplified colour schemes.It had the potential to go horriblywrong but the majority of gamersloved it.

My first experience of WindWaker was in a Gamecube demodisc, as soon as I played the 20minute demo level I knew I had tobuy it. The art style was unlikeanything I had seen before andthe combat was easy to pick upand play straight off the bat. Thissense of nostalgia was stirredwhen I first heard about thereboot and I knew I had to buy it

allover again. Wind Waker was agame for both hardcore andcasual gamers alike, so it is anatural choice for a remake.

In a crafty move Nintendo splitthe franchise into Wind Waker-esque games and classically darkZelda games. Meaning no matterwhat style you prefer they stillreceive your custom.

The initial screenshots of the HDrevamp look beautiful comparedto the original. A new filter has

been used to give every screen adewy glow, adding to thesimplistic and bright feeling of thegame. By comparison the original,which once looked so modernand smooth, looks clunky and outof date.

The HD update enhances thealready unique art style, althoughno combat scene screen shotshave been released which iswhere the art style really comesinto its own. The previouslyunseen blending of 2D and 3D artstyles was revolutionary for the

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Original HD Remake

games industry inspired one ofthe most superficially amazinggames of the last decade, Okami.

The audio from the original gamewill also receive a higher quality,more advanced revamp. Detailson the audio technology that willbe used have not yet beenreleased.

Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of theLegend of Zelda games, said: “wefelt that HD could really sort ofbreathe new life into thatanimation style and so that was

the reason we went into thatdirection.”

Is it enough for Nintendo tosimply add filters and improve thelook of a game and expect gamersto buy it all over again? Thisformula seems to have worked sofar, in part due to the nostalgictugging on customer’sheartstrings. The Wind Wakerstyle of game has let itself well toDS and 3DS games due to itssimplistic art style and combat,allowing the smaller processor ofthe DS to render quickly and

easily. It is a testament to thenewest technology that a gamethat ten years ago would havebeen played on a console cannow be played on a handhelddevice.

However the Wind Waker rebootis not the only Zelda game in theworks, a new Wii U Zelda title hasbeen announced for next year.

The Legend of Zelda: WindWaker HD will be releasedin 2014.

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LUIGI’S Mansion made itsfirst debut in the UK in Mayof 2002, nearly 11 yearslater the franchise now hasanother installment.

Luigi’s Mansion 2 was released onthe 3DS last month. The longawaited sequel has so far sold1.22 million units worldwide.

But has it fulfilled theexpectations of fans of theoriginal?

The graphics have certainlyimproved, gone are the glitchypolygons giving way to gorgeous3D visuals. The game still staystrue to its original artwork stylehowever, there’s no mistaking itas a continuation of the original.

The gameplay also harks back tothe original, which has beencriticized as being too similar andnot progressive enough. It is ahard task to balance betweenfans of the first installment andthose who want an entirely newdirection.

The Poltergust 5000 is Luigi’sweapon of choice, essentially avacuum for hoovering up ghosts,an updated version of thePoltergust 3000 used in the firstgame. This tie in is a pleasantaddition that links back to theoriginal game, nostalgic gamers

willdefinitely pick up on this.

The game does become slightlyrepetitive as there are severalmansions to exorcise, after thethird one it becomesmonotonous. This seems to havebeen noticed by the developersand the fifth mansion has sometwists to spice up the action andkeep the player interested untilthe end.

Two player co-operative modehas also been introduced named‘ScareScraper’ which allowsplayers to work together to hunt

ghosts. Although a two player co-op is a nice addition to the game,a head to head competitive twoplayer would have also been anice touch.

The kitsch factor that made thefirst game so successful seems toresonate in the newestinstallment. This is in no smallpart due to the plot, aided also byfun character names such asProfessor E. Gadd. This is a factorthat many games strive for butfew stop at a fun pun and thedevelopers end up making thewhole game a cheesy, cringeymess.

Luigi’s Mansion 2Eagerly Awaited for 11 Years

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THE BROTHER of the famousplumber, Mario, Luigi hasbeen in his brother’sshadow since his first ap-pearance in 1983 in the ar-cade classic Mario Bros.

Luigi then appeared in the NESgame Super Mario Bros. in 1985.

He went on to be a part of the next two Super Mario Bros.games.

Luigi’s Mansion on the Gamecubewas Luigi’s first starring role in2002.

Luigi also appears in a number ofspin off games such as Mario Kart

and Super Smash Bros.

Although Luigi wasn’t included inthe original Super Mario 64 hewas included in the DS remake.

Luigi is also a playable characterin Super Mario Bros. Wii U, thefirst HD installment in the series.

Luigi Through the AgesThe Perpetual Sidekick Has His Own History

Mario Spin-Offs

LUIGI is not the only MarioCharacter to receive his ownspin-off. Wario, Mario’s evil

brother, stars in his ownseries of games. Wario Wareis one such game in whichplayers battle against aseries of increasingly hardmini games.

Princess Peach, Mario’s loveinterest, also stars in games suchas Super Princess Peach. This was

an effort by Nintendo to attractmore female gamers to the brand.

Even Yoshi, essentially Mario’spet, has his own spin off series,Yoshi’s Island.

Nintendo has managed to makethis group of supportingcharacters into video game starsin their own right.

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Pikmin 3 - Five Years in the MakingPIKMIN 3 will be releasedon the Wii U later this year.

Pikmin started as a lower budgetgame in 2002 for the Gamecube,conceived by Shigeru Miyamoto.The game focuses on CaptainOlimar, a space ship captain, whohas been stranded on an alienplanet. To survive and escape hehas to enlist the aid of a nativespecies, Pikmin, tiny creatureswho work together to carry outlarger tasks.

The first Pikmin game was verywell received and a sequel soonfollowed in 2004. In thisinstallment Captain Olimarreturns to the Pikmin world tocollect items to make money,again aided by the Pikmin.

These games have alreadyreceived a new reboot onto theWii U virtual console but anotherinstallment has been longawaited. The new game washinted at in 2007 and officiallyconfirmed to be in developmentin 2008. Five years later and alaunch date has been set in Japan

and America, though Europe onlyhas a vague 2013 launch window.

The third game brings two newtypes of Pikmin to the mix, greyand pink for rock attacks and

winged attacks respectively.

No details of the plot have beenreleased thus far but more detailsare likely to emerge in the nextfew months.

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Harvest Moon - The Perfect Formula?HARVEST Moon is a relaxingfarming simulator, firstreleased in 1996 for theSuper NintendoEntertainment System.

Over the years 16 Harvest Moongames have been released, withvarying degrees of success. Somegames have been less successfuldue to game mechanics but thebasic formula has always beenthe same.

The game invariably transportsyou to a small town where youhave inherited a farm. During thecourse of farming life you acquiremore livestock, land and evenlove interests.

There are a host of recurring

characters such as the HarvestGoddess and the Harvest Sprites.These magical creatures help outaround your farm and set varioustasks for you to complete.

Some things have changed in the

games during the years, mostlytechnological advances, but theessence of the game stays thesame. In a world where franchisescan change radically it’srefreshing to see a franchise staytrue to its roots.

Virtual Console GemsTHE 3DS has given manyretro games new life bymaking them available onthe Virtual Console sectionof the Eshop. This sectionboasts games from the eraof the Gameboy, GameboyColour, NES and Sega GameGear.

The first game to receive thistreatment was the 1985 NintendoEntertainment System classicExcitebike. The updated versionfeatures a custom track creator as

well as all the fun of the original.

The excellent GameBoy gameMeteroid II: Return of Samus hasalso been revamped for theVirtual Console. This game wasfirst released in black and white in1992.

The prices for the Virtual Consolegames are reasonable consideringthe amount of work that has goneinto bringing them up to date.The 3D rendering alone takeshundreds of hours and the addedfeatures also take up developer’stime.

Upcoming titles for the VirtualConsole are The Legend of Zelda:Oracle of Ages and Oracle ofSeasons along with Mega Man 6.These are all due to be releasedlater this year.

The Wii U also has a VirtualConsole section, although thereare not as many titles, due to itslater release date. Only eightgames currently feature on theWii U’s Virtual Console, includingSuper Mario World and IceClimber.

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NINTENDO LAND wasreleased for the Wii Uearlier this year and is thusfar the most successful titlefor the Wii U.

The appeal of this game is that itshows new users of the Wii Uhow to interact with the consoleand controller. But don’t befooled into thinking that it is onlya tutorial demo, Nintendoland ispacked full of mini games that canbe played solo or with a friend.Players can battle against up tofour other players. Themultiplayer option cannot beplayed online however, onlylocally by connecting morecontrollers to the console.Nintendo Land allows players touse the classic Wii controllers forthe multi player experience, a

wise move as an extra Wii Ucontroller can be costly.

The mini games all come fromfeature Nintendo titles such as

The Legend of Zelda, Luigi’sMansion and Animal Crossing.The game also allows players todress their avatars in the clothestraditionally worn by the maincharacters of the mini game theyare playing.

This is a clever tactic by Nintendoto show fans how classic titles willlook on Nintendo’s first HDconsole. There are also a numberof games in which players canplay as a team and others inwhich they can playcompetitively.

By playing the mini games theplayer collects coins and items fortheir own Nintendo Land Plaza,which their friends can come tovisit. This adds a morecompetitive element that adds tothe longevity of the game.

Nintendo Land Tutorial or Real Game?

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Although the item gathering addsto keeping the game fresh themini games can becomerepetitive after a few games ofeach. The games include varyinglevels of difficulty but not muchchanges from level to level.

There are a number of items to

collect within the game, toimprove the Nintendo Land Plaza.Many of these items reference toolder Nintendo games, forexample players can collect aTriforce from The Legend of Zeldaseries.Players are escorted round thisnew world by Monita, an AImonitor, who explains how thegame works and how to use theWii U’s controller. In trueNintendo fashion Monita is anannoying sidekick, just one in along line of annoying NintendoAI’s.

This game is an innovative way toshow players how to use the newtechnology while also being a

good game in its ownright.Nintendo has reaped therewards of this choice as thegame has sold 2.6 million units,its popularity so far unmatched inthe Wii U games market.

Games Featured in Nintendo Land

The Legend ofZelda: Battle Quest

Luigi’s Ghost Man-sion

Donkey Kong’sCrash Course

Pikmin Adventure

Animal Crossing:Sweet Day

Takamura’s NinjaCastle

Metriod Blast

Yoshi’s Fruit Cart

Captain Flacon’sTwister Race

Mario: Chase Mii

Octopus Dance

Balloon Trip Breeze

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