End Game Thoughts: Donkey Kong Country!

Game Title: Donkey Kong Country
Platform: Nintendo 2DS XL (Virtual Console)
Hours Played: approximately 1 1/2

About The Game:

The original Donkey Kong Country for the SNES has been ported quite a few times over the years… and I’ve pretty much bought most of the ports. My SNES cart still works just fine, thank you very much, but I cannot help it- I feel the need to buy the game every time it’s re-released! The version I played most recently was released on the Virtual Console for Nintendo 2DS/3DS in 2016. I played it on my Nintendo 2DS XL, which my husband bought me specifically so I could download some of my favorite SNES games 🙂

Anyway, Donkey Kong Country is about Donkey Kong getting pissed because some lizard-looking asshole stole his bananas! He traverses through DK Isle with his nephew Diddy to find King K. Rool and get his bananas back.

What I Liked:

This is a port of one of my favorite games of all time, so of course there are so many things I like about it! First of all, the graphics are pretty sweet, even after almost 25 years.

The levels are just FUN to play! And some of them are not easy, either. I still find myself dying every now and then despite the fact that I have played through them many, many times.

And let’s not forget about the amazing music in this game! There are so many great tunes, it’s hard to pick a favorite.

Lastly, I just really enjoy the characters in this game. The Kongs are great, the Kremlings are dope, and King K. Rool is one of my all-time favorite villains.

What I Didn’t Like:

The fact that my hands still get sweaty during barrel-blasting segments. So stressful!

Closing Thoughts:

Donkey Kong Country is always a blast to play, no matter what form it’s in. I’m glad I got the chance to download one of my favorite games on a system I can take with me anywhere!

End Game Thoughts: Super Mario Odyssey!

Game Title: Super Mario Odyssey
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Hours Played: approximately 10-12

About the Game

Super Mario Odyssey was released for the Nintendo Switch in 2017. In this game, like most Mario games, Princess Peach gets her dumb ass kidnapped by Bowser, and Mario has to go save her! This time, Bowser has the help of some annoying rabbit things called Broodals, and he plans to force Peach to marry him. Along the way, you meet a spirit trapped in a damn hat named Cappy. Cappy becomes your BFF and as an added bonus, you can use Cappy to possess shit! Wahoo! Anyway, you travel through many different kingdoms to try to stop the wedding; it turns out to be quite the adventure!

What I Liked

Hmm, where do I begin?? First of all, the graphics in Super Mario Odyssey are AMAZING! Each time I traveled to a new Kingdom, I was in awe. I think my favorite kingdom is the Ruined Kingdom, because it is dark, gloomy, and has an amazing dragon battle! I also loved the bright, colorful Luncheon Kingdom- only in looks though, playing through it was quite annoying!

I also enjoyed how the different Kingdoms have different objectives and are all so different from each other. Plus, there are so many Power Moons to collect- this gave me motivation to explore!

I thought Cappy was a very creative character. At first, I wasn’t too sure about him, but the little guy grew on me. I tried to possess everything I could, and I had a lot of fun doing it! I especially liked taking control of the Cheep Cheeps in areas where I needed to swim around a lot. Oh, and possessing a piece of meat was definitely my most WTF moment in the game!

There are many other things I loved about the game: the characters, the music, etc. I could probably go on forever!

What I Didn’t Like

Well, there isn’t much that I didn’t like about Super Mario Odyssey! There are things that annoyed me here and there (like the Luncheon Kingdom…. uggh) but that’s just me being nitpicky. There was nothing that really pissed me off or made me want to quit playing!

Closing Thoughts

I loved this game! I thought it was so much fun, and there were so many times while playing that I had a smile on my face. Certain parts of it are more challenging than others, but Super Mario Odyssey has something for players of all skill levels to enjoy. Now I just need to go back and collect the hundreds of Power Moons I am still missing…

End Game Thoughts: WarioWare Gold!

Game Title: WarioWare Gold
Platform: Nintendo 3DS
Hours Played: approximately 3-5

About the Game

WarioWare Gold is a Nintendo 3DS game that was released in North America in 2018. Wait- you mean I actually played and beat a game that came out the SAME year is was released?! Amazing! Anyway, I’ve been a huge fan of WarioWare games since the very beginning, so I was really excited to play this game.

WarioWare games generally follow the same formula: Wario has some wacky plot to make money, and you play microgames to help achieve his goal. Or destroy his plans… What’s the point of these games again? Who cares! It’s all about the microgames!

I considered the game beaten when I completed the main story mode, though there is certainly other modes to play and other goodies to unlock!

What I Liked

Of course, the main thing I love about this game is the microgames themselves! For those unfamiliar, microgames are exactly what they sound like: short, 2-3 second games that often require split second timing to complete. Some are pretty easy (mashing the A button) while some might have to appear a few times to get the hang of it. It’s a pretty balanced set of microgames- I didn’t feel like there were any that were unfair, though a few were kind of cheap. Overall, most of the games were pretty fun.

Speaking of the games, I also love how this game is a nod to the WarioWare series as a whole. There are microgames from most of the other games in the series, along with many new microgames as well. The variety kept things fresh, and I never knew what to expect!

What I Didn’t Like

Okay, so my one main gripe with this game is something that most other people seem to enjoy: the voice acting. It annoys me. There, I said it. WarioWare’s wacky cutscenes are fully voice acted, and I couldn’t stand it! Wario’s voice is spot-on and made me laugh, but everyone else just made my ears bleed. WarioWare’s game plots are always ridiculous anyway, but I think hearing the silliness actually spoken out loud just made me cringe more than anything.

Closing Thoughts

Overall, I really loved this game! It’s fun, it’s easy to just pick up and play, and the experience is different every time you turn the game on. It’s great to play in short spurts when you have just a few minutes of free time. The story mode is just one of many modes to play, so there’s a lot of end game content to enjoy. WarioWare Gold is another solid entry in the series!