XBLA Today: Review Times Two

Well too much turkey and football makes sedington a sleepy boy, and so, I have the last two weeks of XBLA games full reviews of both ready for you today. So sit back, relax, and enjoy as I tell you tales of a lazy bear and bird friend, and people who really like to fight.

Banjo-Kazooie

Banjo-Kazooie is what a lot of people would call, a platforming classic from the N64. You play as a lazy bear Banjo and his talkative bird friend Kazooie. The goal is simple, rescue your little sister Tooty from Gruntilda, who wants to steal Tooty’s age and cuteness for herself. You travel to Gruntilda’s lair to save Tooty after you finally wake up and get some tips from Bottles, and go through numerous worlds inside her lair, collecting musical notes and “jiggies” (puzzle pieces) as you go along to access new levels.

The game is classic 3D platforming at it’s finest, in a genre that has been more or less non-existent as of late, it’s great to have it back in one way or another.

Graphics: Good, especially for an updated N64 title, it really looks great being how long of a game it actually is crammed in there.

Sounds: The sounds are the same as they were for the original, and I still love them. Depending on whether you like the older sounds or not, it still works well.

Some minor facts and details:

Best Experience: Reliving the classic game, for a minute, felt like I was a kid again, with my biggest problem being some chore from the parents.

Biggest Complaint: The camera is still fairly frustrating, but people still haven’t fixed this problem with a lot of todays games.

Will You Continue Playing: Till I get every jiggy in the game.

Final Thoughts: It really is a platforming classic and a good sized game for a low price on the Arcade, it’s a must have for almost anybody.

Super Street Fighter II HD Remix

Super Street Fighter II HD Remix is another edition of everyones favorite release of Street Fighter II. Done with full redrawn graphics, new net code, and an amazing amount of tweaks in the settings for those real hardcore players to get drawn into. For those of us who grew up when the original was huge, we all remember calling next at the arcade, or in your room with a bunch of friends holding your own tournament. Either way, a lot of people hold the original with high reguards for the many hours put into perfecting whatever character they chose.

Now coming on with Super Street Fighter II HD Remix, the game comes out with an almost perfect rendition of the original, and an updated version with more balanced characters as well. You can tell that they put their heart and soul into it to make this the best Street Fighter II game ever.

Graphics: The redrawn sprites look amazing, especially in HD, very smooth, very crisp.

Sounds: They have the classic music and new remixed music created with the help of people from Overclocked Remix (and it can be downloaded for free), done again with all the passion for the game put into it.

Xbox Live: The first Street Fighter game for arcade, well, you couldn’t play online. The lag was unbearable. This time, I haven’t has a laggy moment yet, so I get the full animation of my character getting beat into a pulp every time.

Some minor facts and details:

Best Experience: Playing with my brother again, and feeling the rivalry reborn, ready for flying controllers and tackles for a perfectly timed throw to finish the match.

Biggest Complaint: No car stage… why?

Will You Continue Playing: Of course, in a hope that one day, I will win more than I lose online.

Final Thoughts: For any Street Fighter fan, this is the must have version. Great graphics, great sound, flawless netcode, and great times to be had for years to come. Yes I know it’s 1200 points, but it’s still fantastic and totally worth it.