Nintendo 3DS Review Archives - Video Game News, Reviews, and Art

Super Mario 3D Land

Posted on November 27, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Super Mario 3D Land was a very nice addition to the library of Nintendo 3DS games. I found that it very similar to the original Mario games which were primarily in 2D, except it is all in 3D and has many features in which you could run forward in certain areas and collect items off the pathway and also run behind walls and it would show only your shadow.

Obviously I enjoyed the original, but this one was MUCH better due to the 3D integration into the game. I really liked how they brought in power ups from different Mario games, such as the Super Mushroom, Fire Flower, and the Super Leaf. There are also a few others that were quite fun such as the Boomerang Flower, which allows him to throw boomerangs, and the Propeller Box, which allows him to reach high places. Throughout the game as you go through all of the levels, you can gather Star Medals (new version of Star Coins) and use them to unlock areas further in. I found that some of these are very difficult to find or to obtain for that matter, but it made it just as interesting to go back and find them all once I beat the game.

Another thing that I really enjoyed on this remake was the levels. There are 8 worlds with maybe 5-7 levels each, ranging from regular grass levels with different towers to go up and underwater levels. There is also a few haunted house levels that proved to be extremely entertaining. All in all, this game was definitely worth waiting for, and I can’t wait for them to make more Mario games for the 3DS. This is definitely a very good reason, if not the best, to have the console.

Super Mario 3D Land Rates:

Gameplay 9/10 : I literally could not put this game down. The way they made the different lands and the way they integrated the 3D aspect of it made it one of my favorite games that I currently own. I’m really excited to see what they do with the upcoming Mario games, such as Mario Kart 7 and Paper Mario – 3DS.

Graphics 10/10 : I have never been able to give a game 10/10 rating, but this game takes the cake. I usually like to speed through my games so that I can either sell them or replay them to see if I can beat my previous scores, but with this I spent a lot of time just looking around the levels and checking things out. They really did a great job.

Audio 8/10 : This has a lot of the old Mario songs in it but I kind of wish they would make some changes to the songs to kind of perk it up a bit.

Replay Value 9/10 : Not only is there a lot of different things you can go back and do throughout the levels but it is really fun to see how much faster you can go throughout the levels to see if you can beat your previous times.

Overall, this game was a great buy and I can’t wait for the other Mario games to come out.

Lego Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Posted on October 29, 2011October 29, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Lego Star Wars: The Clone Wars has been one of the better games I have gotten the chance to play lately. My boyfriend and I started playing a few weeks ago and have learned that it has quite a lot of action and different areas that you get to experience. Which is awesome because the graphics are amazing and there are many small spoofs or outtakes, if you want to call it that, which are definitely silly little additions to the storyline? Such as in the Prologue, where you are taken to the Geonosian Arena and it shows Padmé, Anakin, and Obi-Wan tied to the pillars. In the beginning it shows a little outtake of the movie where Padmé and Anakin almost kiss and then when she is tied to the pillar she is putting some lipstick on. I thought it was pretty funny, and this continues throughout the game with different characters doing silly little things.

After the Prologue in the Geonosian Arena, there are three main storylines which lead you through many of the different planets following Asajj Ventress, Count Dooku, and General Grievous. Now within each of these different storylines there are six different chapters. This totals out to 18 different planets within just those three storylines, there is also the Prologue and the Epilogue, which together has 4 planets. All together there are about 24 different places you get to go within this game, this includes the Jedi and the Sith bases, which are the giant flagships.
Throughout the game there are also side quests that you can do to get more “studs” which is currency within the game and “gold bricks” which also unlock doors and build the “Stealth Ship, “ which is good for flying around outside the flagships gathering up more studs. There are also “mini-kits” that you can gather throughout the game on the different chapters. These mini-kits create different unlockable characters that are not available through the actual game play; such as Han Solo, Chewbacca, Darth Vader, and more.

All in all, this game was definitely worth the rent. I almost have the urge to purchase it just to go back and fully complete all of the side quests and get 100% “true jedi” (gathering a certain amount of studs on each chapter) on each level. It also made me very interested in the other games within the Lego world such as Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, and Pirates of the Caribbean. Shortly after renting this game through gamefly, my boyfriend and I decided to go and check out Legoland in San Diego. Needless to say, there were some rides that we found entertaining, but by entertaining I mean how silly the ride was. It is definitely a place that is geared more for families with children. It was something that everyone should experience at least once in their life though, because it was pretty crazy seeing all the different things built from Legos.

Lego Star Wars: The Clone Wars Rates

Gameplay 8/10 This game is a lot of fun if your a star wars or Lego fan. It does get repetitive after a while though so keep that in mind.

Graphics 7/10 The graphics are meant to look like Legos so they don’t really matter much in this game.

Audio 8/10 The background music is from all the old star wars sound tracks and definitely fit well into the game.

Replay Value 6/10 I wouldn’t go through this game again because of the repetitiveness but it would be fun to play as some other characters.

Cartoon Network Punch Time Explosion 3DS

Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion Review

Posted on October 4, 2011October 4, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion for the Nintendo 3DS is a nostalgic super smash brothers type fighting game that uses all the popular characters from Cartoon Network television shows. Finally, Cartoon Network brought back some of its classic cartoon characters such as Samurai Jack, Dexter, and the Powerpuff Girls (basically all Genndy Tartavosky cartoons). Playing through the story mode in this game will definitely bring back the memories of coming home from school and watching the classic cartoons for hours.

The Story mode is narrated by George Lowe the famous voice from the Powerpuff Girls, and moves the story along as if the player is watching an epic television episode that travels through different dimensions (t.v. shows) to save the world from turning evil. It’s basically the concept of the Justice League but for Cartoon Network characters.

There are a total of 18 playable characters in this game and 24 different levels. The characters list include; Blossom, Bubbles, Buttercup, Ben 10, Chowder and Kimchi (idk what they are from), Vilgax, Dexter, Monkey, Mojo Jojo, Flapjack, Captain K’nuckles, Samurai Jack, Numbuh one, Father, Mac and bloo (stupid show), Billy and Mandy, Grim, and Captain Planet (I wonder what attacks he uses..).

The story starts you out as Ben Tennyson reading a newspaper saying that his arch nemesis Vilgax has returned. Ben is then transported to Chowders world and realizes that Chowder has been corrupted and turned evil. After defeating the evil Chowder and freeing him from being corrupted Ben is met up by Dexter. Dexter informs Ben and Chowder that the corruption is happening to all the Cartoon Network t.v. shows and they must travel through his dimension traveling machine to save the others.

The fighting style is very similar to Super Smash Brothers titles where you have normal punching and kicking attacks by mashing the B button. Each character has a special attack and a super jump as well. The more damage you deal to an enemy the higher chance they will have of flying or falling off the stage and therefore losing a life. There are also items that can be utilized such as ray guns, val halla’s guitar, and similar things you would see in Super Smash Brothers (I have no idea how they got away with copying almost everything in smash).
Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion Rates:

Graphics 7/10 Not bad graphics for a handheld, but I have seen better 3D effects on the Nintendo 3DS before so I know they could have done a bit better. One thing I do like is the graphics stay true to the cartoonish look of each of the characters.

Game Play 6/10 The game play is a more dull version of Super Smash Bros and gets very tedious after a while. The special moves are fun for a bit but once you have seen them all they can get annoying to use because of the long cut scenes.

Audio 8/10 George Lowe lends his voice on this game and makes it a very fun feeling as if you are watching a Cartoon Network marathon. The sounds are all similar to the sound effects you would hear on the shows.

Replay Value 5/10 Other than trying to battle your friends through the wireless network I highly don’t you will want to run through the tedious button mashing storyline again.

Overall Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion for the Nintendo 3DS is definitely worth a rent, but beware this game will bring back memories of your favorite cartoons and make you want to watch them all over again.

Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters

Posted on September 28, 2011September 28, 2011 by feliciarosee

I was so excited to see the email in my inbox. “We have shipped Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters.” I had been waiting to play this game since the movie was out in theaters. Little did I know that I accidentally rented it for the Nintendo 3DS and not Xbox 360. At this point, I don’t know exactly how big of a difference it would have made. What I do know is that it was one of the worst games I have ever played, and I barely got through the training in the beginning. I was so disappointed because it had some pretty good reviews at first and seemed to follow its storyline pretty well, but I was terribly wrong.

For starters, the graphics were TERRIBLE. I felt as if I had gone back in time and I was playing a game from the ‘90s. With all of the cut scenes of conversation it was even worse. It showed the different characters as 2D on the screen with just a huge dialog box of what they were saying. It didn’t even scroll by itself; you have to press A over and over… It was even worse when I realized there was a part where the same person was talking and it had a separate box for every few words (this box could fit up to 10 at least) and they only worked in maybe 3 or 4. While playing, it doesn’t have much of a 3D affect, or at least to me it seemed as if they just labeled it 3D and threw it in there if you REALLY pay attention.

The game play was the worst part. I felt as if this game was just dragging on and on, without really going anywhere. In the beginning you obviously start out with the training sequence. This was one of the most annoying things I have ever experienced. At one point, you have to simultaneously press the touch screen, the joystick and one of the action buttons. Flying was the most irritating as well because you have to press A twice to jump and then stay floating. I kept pressing too fast or too slow and was never really able to do it the first time. Directionally, flying is just as terrible because you can fight while fighting but it is really difficult to aim and turn.

Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters Rates:

Gameplay 3/10 The game itself seemed to take forever just to get to the first stage after training. I didn’t play much longer after that but I felt as though it was all talk and not too much hands-on action and training. There were a lot of areas in this game that could have been improved upon and could have been done different to keep up with the new-age technology and gaming we have these days.

Graphics 4/10. I have no reason to even back it up for why I gave it 4 points, because I really don’t know. I just feel as though they tried a little bit to give it a good look, but in the end it was just terrible.

Audio 2/10 I felt as though I wasn’t really even sucked into the game or interested enough to listen. It is extremely unfortunate because I have never really had that happen to me before. I had absolutely no interest in this game after my first 20 minutes.

Replay Value 2.5/10 Although they did try to have the storyline in there, it just was way too slow for me and the graphics just didn’t catch my eye enough to even bother playing to see the rest of the worlds.

If you want to try it out I highly suggest renting or borrowing it from someone that already has it. I wouldn’t waste your time on this game though try playing my personal favorite Nintendo 3DS game Zelda Ocarina of Time 3D

Star Fox 64 3D Review

Posted on September 19, 2011September 29, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Just like the good ol days

Finally, another Star Fox classic remade for use at the palm of your hand. Star Fox 64 3D is the remake of the classic N64 game that made characters such as Fox McCloud and Falco Lombardi go down in Nintendo history as franchise characters. From the moment I turned my Nintendo 3DS on and started playing Star Fox 64 3D, I had immediate nostalgia from my early years. Nintendo did a great job revamping this game to have the same feel and story as the original Star Fox, but with updated 3D graphics!

As far as game play goes for Star Fox 64 3D, the stages and controls are very similar to the N64 classic. You know the same old General Pepper assembling the Avengers! (I mean Team Fox) to fly out of Corneria and save the Lylat system from the evil genius/giant monkey Andross. I think Nintendo had to much of an obsession with misbehaving Monkeys back in the day with Donkey Kong, Super Monkey ball, Andross…

I was somewhat disappointed with the lack of no new alternate stages or paths to unlock that weren’t in the N64 game, but there are the original 16 missions to complete in the game.

I understand that Nintendo wasn’t trying to mess with the original game too much and only update the graphics for the Nintendo 3DS, but if you’re going to charge $40 for a brand new game, then I would expect there to be brand new content. (But we’re all suckers and pay the $40 anyways :) )

One new feature that is impressive (besides the 3D graphics), are the gyro controls while flying your Arwing. The Gyro controls let you steer the Arwing by physically moving your Nintendo 3DS around, which adds an extra fun factor to the game play until you get a head ache from spinning around to much.

Other than the 3D graphics and the gyro controls for Star Fox 64 3D for the Nintendo 3DS, I really don’t see any giant improvements to the game but I guess Nintendo felt like sticking to the old saying “don’t try to fix what isn’t broken.” Don’t get me wrong, this game is definitely worth buying if you are a Star Fox 64 fan, but when you wait almost a decade for a new Star Fox game and it literally takes only 30 minutes to beat, it’s kind of a let down. Oh well, guess its back to repeating the same levels over and over again until you start having dreams of Peppy yelling out “Do a Barrell roll Fox”

Star Fox 64 3D Rates:

Gameplay 8/10 Star Fox 64 3D is still quite fun to take control of that Arwing and shoot evil zoo animals while flying around the updated 3D environments.

Graphics 8/10 The graphics definitely make this game worth the $40 to shell out for a remake, especially if your a fan of Star Fox.

Audio 9/10 The only reason I’m giving the audio a 9 out of 10 is because Nintendo kept the “Do a barrel roll Fox” phrase in the game.

Replay Value 7/10 The replay value could have been much higher if Nintendo added in some new stages but of course, they didn’t.

Now that Nintendo has released two of its classic N64 games Zelda Ocarina of Time and Star Fox 64 3D, one can only hope that more classic games such as Super Smash bros or Star Wars pod racers eventually will come out on the Nintendo 3DS as well!

Super Smash bros Announcement for the Nintendo 3DS

Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time Review

Posted on September 13, 2011September 13, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for the Nintendo 3DS is an amazing remake of the classic N64 video game. Playing it on both consoles, I noticed a lot of differences within the gameplay and graphics that changed it drastically. Let me start off by saying that it is a whole lot better in 3D. I have not put it down since I bought it three or four days ago. The 3D effects really help to bring you into the storyline and the way you can view what is around you and move the gameboy around to do so is awesome.

The storyline is obviously exactly the same as the Nintendo 64 version, but I feel as if the controls are a lot easier than with the controller. Not only that but I feel as if it is easier to play on than the console. I have far surpassed where I left off on the console while playing on my 3DS. My favorite part would have to be going through the game as young Link and learning all of the songs for the Ocarina, the songs are exciting and its very upbeat.

I especially enjoy having Epona as older Link because not only do you get places faster but I feel as if I am unstoppable while fighting on the horse. I had some doubts about getting it at first because I wasn’t sure how I would like it considering I never finished the game the first time around. I also thought about the 3D part wondering what that would bring to the table and if it would be worth me spending that much to get the Gameboy.

I can honestly tell you that it was $200 well spent and that I do not regret it at all. I now have three other classic games on my GameFly list that I am itching to play because the 3D aspects of it and the fact it is in a handheld console makes it that much better. I think it would be awesome if they made a new storyline for the 3DS like they made Twilight Princess for the Wii. A Zelda game specifically made for 3D would probably be extremely cool. All in all, this game was definitely worth buying and I suggest buying a 3DS as well because there are quite a few games that will be coming out soon that look amazing.

Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time Rates:

Gameplay 7/10 The game play is exactly the same as the original, and I feel as if it was a fantastic storyline and I have always loved the different mini quests that you can play throughout the game.

Graphics 9/10 The graphics on the 3DS really enhance this remake of the Legend of Zelda. Especially, while you play songs on the Ocarina.. instead of the usual flowing colors around Link, it looks like it is popping out at you which is actually really cool. The details are so vivid and the colors are amazing.

Audio 9/10 I love, love, love the soundtrack to this game. The songs for the Ocarina and the background music throughout the story and cut scenes is just perfect for the game and it makes you feel the exact emotions for the point in the game where you are so it matches perfectly with the visuals.

Replay Value 6/10 I wouldn’t give it a very high replay value for the fact that I feel as if after I finish the game I will not want to go and re-do the entire thing over. Yes, this game is a classic and it is really good but once you complete it (unless it’s maybe a year or later) it is kind of pointless and annoying in a sense to go through it over again.

Overall I would definitely recommend buying this game though, because it is a timeless classic that never gets old. You can pick it up at a later time and go over it all again.

Dead or Alive Dimensions Review

Posted on August 29, 2011September 27, 2011 by GameNinjaX

DOA Dimensions Gameplay

Dead or Alive Dimensions, hands down has the best graphics on the Nintendo 3DS system. The first game I played for the Nintendo 3DS was Super Street Fighter IV and I thought those graphics would be hard to beat but as usual, the developers of the Dead or Alive series, Team Ninja, out did themselves again.

Possible Xbox future consoles

The Graphics for Dead or Alive Dimensions make you feel like you entered a new age of technology, where hand held devices are becoming as powerful as consoles. This could mean that the new generation of consoles is going to come out soon. Look at the signs normally the “Slim” versions of a console come out a year or two (at most) before the new generation of consoles are released.

Anyways back to the Dead or Alive Dimensions Review, the game play is very smooth and much easier to play with the Nintendo 3DS analog stick. I actually have an easier time playing Dead or Alive on the 3DS rather than the Xbox, which I never thought would happen. The fighting style is very smooth and doesn’t frustrate me as much as the previous Dead or Alive video games, I don’t know if its just easier on the Nintendo 3DS or the developers worked on the overall game flow.

Another area that Dead or Alive on the 3DS surpasses the console video games, is the amount of playable characters in the game. There are a total of 26 playable characters for Dead or Alive Dimensions and 2 alternate costumes for each character, which is more than any previous DOA video game. The amount of unlock-able characters really adds to the game and keeps it interesting.

The chronicles “story” mode in Dead or Alive Dimensions covers the story mode for all the previous titles of DOA, and is a nice catch up on the history of Dead or Alive. The chronicles mode is a nice remake of all the original story lines, but there are two faults to its implementation. The first con is that the characters mouths don’t move during the cut scenes, it makes you feel like your game is possibly defective or frozen. The second fault of the chronicles story mode is that if you know the entire DOA series story, then this probably will be a breeze and just a rehash for you. However, if you haven’t played or missed out on a Dead or Alive game then this mode will be more intriguing.

The Arcade mode is another feature in Dead or Alive Dimensions that allows you to quickly unlock characters and alternate costumes. This mode is a time attack against a series of opponents that you only need to defeat them in one round to progress to the next stage. The Arcade mode is fun for a few hours, but it does get a little dull. I recommend playing through the arcade mode to quickly unlock characters and costumes before playing the Chronicles mode. You can also unlock figurines of characters in the Arcade and Chronicles mode to view and take HD pictures of the characters.

Dead or Alive Dimensions rates

Gameplay 8/10 The game play is very smooth and easy to control especially for a hand held fighting game. I still haven’t decided if I like DOA or Super Street Fighter 4 as the best Nintendo 3DS game yet.

Graphics 9/10 The Dead or Alive games have always been known for their very detailed environments and stages, Dimensions for the Nintendo 3DS is no exception.

Audio 7/10 No great theme song or anything, just your standard fighting game sound effects and music.

Replay Value 7/10 After you play the Arcade mode a few times and run through the Chronicles mode, I don’t think there is much left to do in this game.

Dead or Alive Dimensions is a must play for Nintendo 3DS owners, especially because of the short selection of games available for the 3DS currently. Here is a clip of actual cut scenes for Dead or Alive Dimensions

Super Street Fighter IV Nintendo 3DS Review

Posted on August 23, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Super Street Fighter IV is a must own for fighting game fans. I have played Super Street Fighter IV on the Xbox 360 and Nintendo 3DS and I must admit that it is much more fun on the 3DS. The graphics are actually comparable to the Xbox 360 and yet the Nintendo 3DS is in 3-D!

I know what you’re thinking, how can the Nintendo 3DS be better than an Xbox 360? The controls must be more difficult right? Wrong. The controls are actually very similar with the new analog stick for the 3DS and they make it even easier to do combos with the touch pad (kinda cheap really). What about being able to challenge people online? You can do that too on your Nintendo 3DS version of Super Street Fighter IV as well.

The only thing that Xbox 360 has over the Nintendo 3DS version is the ability to play with someone if you don’t want to go online.

Now lets get to the Gameplay, Super Street Fighter IV adds 10 new characters to the original Street Fighter IV set of characters making it a total of 35. The developers added more levels and achievements as well. You can also notice that this game flows a little smoother than the original Street Figher IV. The punches and kicks seem to be dead on with the timing of the visuals. One thing that they should have implemented was a new boss because Seth gets a little boring after the 20th time. If you play arcade mode with the default settings you can battle Gouken after the last match against Seth. You can do this if you did not lose a single round, have at least two perfect rounds, executed ten first hits, and performed five Ultra Combo or Super Combo finishes. That’s not hard right newbs!

Super Street Fighter IV rates:

Gameplay 8/10 A very fluid fighting game for the Nintendo 3DS, and it’s currently the top rated one. Not to mention the amount of characters available and it’s the first 3-D Street Fighter!

Graphics 8.5/10 I was literally amazed how well the developers implemented the 3-D graphics into a 2-D fighting game. It’s comparable to the Xbox 360 graphis except in the palm of your hand.

Auido 7/10 Just your normal Street Fighter sound tracks with the ever lasting “Hadouken” sound effects when utilizing special moves

Replay Value 8/10 Lets face it, Street Fighter has been around for over a decade (almost 2) this game can always be picked up and played.

Have Super Street Fighter IV for the Nintedo 3DS send me your friend code and we can play against each other! If you have it on Xbox 360 add my gamertag, ASG Bilbo. If you’re really into fighting games check out my review for Marvel vs Capcom 3

Check out this video of Super Street Fighter IV game play for the Nintendo 3DS!

Super Street Fighter IV Nintendo 3DS trailer