Category Archives: video games

I’m Batman

Arkham Trilogy, Batman, nintendo, switch, video games

Well the title of this blog post had to be this really considering the subject matter.

Before I get on with the actual content of this post I should give you a brief peak behind the curtains on the process I used writing this post.

Although you are reading this post in December. I actually started writing it back in mid August a couple of days after Amazon informed me that I would be getting Batman The Arkham Trilogy slightly earlier than expected.

Initially when I preordered the Batman game collection the estimated arrival of the game was after Christmas, early January iirc. But a couple of days ago as I write this part of the post I had an email from Amazon to say that I would be getting the game mid October. Which has now fallen to back to early December!

What a pleasant surprise. And oh does it put so much pressure on me in the meantime to make progress on Tears of the Kingdom (and many of the other games I have on the Switch).

So the plan is I write my relationship and history with Batman now in August, and then when I finally get my grubby mitts on the game give my initial impression.

Batman and Me

Back in the seventies when I was just a young innocent little boy playing soldiers with my younger brother, and dreaming one day of following dads footsteps into the army and the parachute regiment (a dream that died in my teenage years as I discovered I was a nerd/geek and not para material). The 60’s Batman tv show starring Adam West as Batman was my first exposure to the hero and his rogues gallery of colourful villains. Boy did I have a crush on Catwoman.

I did have the Batman action figure which I played with along with my Action Men. But my main object of desire was the Corgi die cast Batmobile. I remember a friend had one. I was very envious.

Luckily during my childhood episodes of Batman were regularly shown on tv. I love the show. It’s camp, lighthearted, comedic tones did influence the comic. And it appealed to a lot of people.

I was lucky enough to see the 1966 movie on the big screen at the local cinema. Obviously I didn’t see it back when it was released. That would have been impossible without a time machine. It came out two years before I was born. But back then in the late seventies and early eighties cinemas used to show films like the Batman movie, or theatre versions of popular tv shows like On the Buses, Morecambe and Wise, the Spider-Man tv show, or Battlestar Galactica.

I do remember the Batman cartoon from around the time but not getting to see that many episodes. I think this was The New Adventures Of Batman as it had the tv series cast doing the voices and it had Batmite!

My next run in with Batman was during the home computer boom of the eighties and the 8 bit computer games that came out then, such as Ocean’s 1986 isometric classic Batman on the Spectrum. Followed by their 1988 release Batman: The Caped Crusader.

But it was the events later in 1988 that would give me a really strong bond with the character.

On the morning of 10th September 1988 my dad took his own life. I did try to revive him to no avail. Even now decades later I can’t forget the taste of his breathe from my attempts to resuscitate him.

After the funeral I returned to Brighton to finish my second and final year of my HND in Computer Studies (Software Engineering).

It was a very rough year for me to say the least.

However I got into comics in a big way whilst I was going through all the emotional turmoil trying to deal with the loss of my dad.

It was at this point in time that I came across Batman in the comic books. The Death in the Family four part story line had just started. I was hooked. But it was the issues of the various Batman comics after the events of Death in the Family that resonated so much with me. As Batman dealt with the loss of Jason Todd I too was going through similar. Obviously I wasn’t taking out my grief on the criminal elements of the UK. However I was in a bad place and was taking out my grief on myself.

As a now die-hard Batman fan this late eighties, early nineties for me was a golden age of the comic.

Obviously we had the Tim Burton movie, that had Sam Hamm (he wrote the script for the movie) write some issues of the comic. There were some amazing Batman graphic novels that became classics.

Like all good things my time with Batman in comic book form had to come to an end. I had to ween myself off my comic book addiction during the early nineties. My comic habit was unsustainable.

It didn’t help that Michelle Pfeiffer was an incredible Catwoman in Tim Burtons Batman Returns, along side a very dark portrayal of the Penguin by Danny Devito. Plus I was catching odd episodes of the Batman Animated series that captured Burtons Batman and Gotham so well. Plus it introduced the world to Harley Quinn!

Obviously I had to endure the very painful to watch Batman Forever and Batman and Robin. The movies that killed Batman in the cinema until Nolan did Batman Begins.

I love The Dark Knight and you know I will say the predictable thing of I just love Heath Ledger as the Joker. My favourite Joker of all time.

In the intervening years I have enjoyed the more recent cinematic portrayals of Batman. I love that the last Batman movie took the character back to his worlds greatest detective roots. The DC animated movies have been out of this world. And in my opinion easily out shone anything that has been put on the big screen.

I did come to the Batman Arkham series pretty late and have only played a bit of Arkham Asylum on my PS3 back in 2010 or 2011. The memory is pretty fuzzy on precisely when. But it was a GOTY edition I got cheap. I couldn’t even tell you exactly why I stopped playing it. It was most likely due to a move back to my home town. But I do remember enjoying it. Naturally I was nowhere close to completing it.

I think it was around 2014 time when I had a spell of getting some copies of classic GameBoy games I wanted for the collection and the Batman: The Video Game was one of those titles I picked up. I played it briefly to make sure the cart was working.

Latest additions

Obviously I have a small Lego Batman minifig collection. With my pride and joy of it being the Heather Ledger Joker figure (that is worth a bit of money).

I even currently have a dvd project that I am doing on a Saturday morning of trying to capture that Saturday morning magic of my childhood. By watching cartoons (not necessarily the ones from the time) such as the Dungeon and Dragons cartoon, Thundercats, and the Batman Animated series with my morning coffee and pan au chocolate. Come pay day I’ll be adding more series that I grew up with including the The New Adventures Of Batman, the 1960s Batman series, and Hong Kong Phooey. Maybe I should do a post about this project (which by the time this sees the light of day will have happened).

So all the above established I am a Batman fan of many years. Which means at least we know where I am coming from when I start talking about the Arkham video games below.

I wouldn’t say I’m a hardcore fanboy. But I am a fanboy with a connection to the character that I don’t think I will ever break.

For such a big Batman fan I surprisingly don’t have that many Batman themed board games. I have the out of print Love Letter Batman. Which is my favourite version of the Love Letter family of games. I have the Batman the animated series dice game that is loosely based on the zombie dice game. Plus I think I have the Batman story cubes.

You’d have thought I would own a copy of the Batman game that was based on the Conan board game. But that was a Kickstarter thing that at the time was something I couldn’t afford or justify. The miniatures were amazing for it. Sadly I heard once people got their hands on it that it was not as good as the original Conan. So dodged a bullet there.

I did own the Batman version of Fluxx. But that was donated to the game box of the Gaywood store I was working at.

I’m just gobsmacked at the lack of Batman games I own or have played. Think we should move on and talk about the latest video game.

The Arkham Trilogy on the Switch

I don’t know if it has shown but I have been trying to improve my writing especially when it comes to talking about video games. Like the section above I’ve been including more personal bits to show where I am coming from when I talk about the game. So that folks can see my biases and experience into account when they read my words and opinions on the game I am playing.

A big influence on shaping those posts is the book Introduction to game analysis by Fernández (details at the end of the post).

I’ll talk about how I am playing the game, such as the platform and any additional hardware, if I am using a players guide etc. I think this is useful information for whoever is reading so they know how I am experiencing the game and if they think that is relevant to the information that I provide.

I still have a long way to go before I am happy with the posts I write about games. But at the moment they seem to me more a diary of my experience as I play than any academic article or review.

In the past I have said I don’t like to review a game (video or board), and that when I talk about a game I like to talk about what works for me and what doesn’t.

There are folks out there that review games far better than I could ever do. So I kind of like the approach I take of play experience diary. It’s different.

And that’s the way I plan to cover the Arkham Trilogy as well.

So let’s get started and cover the hardware etc that I am using to play Batman Arkham Trilogy.

How I’m Experiencing the Batman Arkham Trilogy

For those that have read my previous words on video games the following will be familiar.

I’ll be playing the trilogy on my Switch Lite. Which makes sense since this is the Switch version of the games I am playing.

When I’m playing the game at home I will be using the inbuilt speakers of the Switch Lite to listen to the audio. However any game play away from home will use my usual setup of VANKYO C750 Bluetooth active noise cancelling headphones. Which are over ear, Hi-Fi Stereo, and apparently deep bass.

Like all the other Switch games I’m playing at the moment I’m not spending hours at a time playing the game. But grabbing “moments” when I can. I also have too many games I want to play. The knock on affect is I don’t focus on one but flick between them. I think currently I have four games on the go. If you have read my recent life, the universe post you’ll know playing anything has been a real struggle.

This is the physical version of Batman Arkham Trilogy that I’m playing.

Batman Arkham Trilogy has the following three games included Batman Arkham Asylum, Batman Arkham City, and Batman Arkham Knight.

Both City and Knight need to be downloaded first before playing. They are not on the cartridge. Now this is a pet peeve of mine. There are other physical released titles like Resident Evil that include supposedly have three games on them. When in fact like Arkham Trilogy there is one and the remaining titles need to be downloaded. I bought the physical version for a reason. I wanted a physical version and not having to rely on an eshop.

My play through of this trilogy will be in the following order Batman Arkham Asylum, Batman Arkham City, and Batman Arkham Knight (which is their release order I believe).

For all three games if given a language choice I will be playing the games in English. I will also be playing the games on a normal difficulty level. I may live to regret this decision. But somehow my young mind thinks my gaming skills should be still sharp enough to play the game.

Paratexts I’ve Used

Para what?

I’m going to get you to read a couple of quotes that explain way way better than I ever could what a paratext is, and how they can apply to video games.

“If we consider games texts, we can also understand them better by analyzing what Gérard Genette calls paratexts—texts that surround the main text being analyzed, which transform and condition how the audience interprets that main text.” (Fernández,2019)

“In videogame terms, paratexts would include the box of the game, the instruction manual, the game’s commercial website, reviews, and interviews with the developers, as well as other media, from other games to commercials or films that may have been inspired by the game or spawned by it. Extending Genette’s concept to videogames allows us to understand how they become complex media artifacts in the light of these paratexts, since they provide further layers of interpretation.” (Fernández,2019)

So with the above in mind after a gap of over thirty years I’ve reread the Grant Morrison penned, and Dave McKean drawn 1989 Batman classic graphic novel Arkham Asylum. Which according to Wikipedia was an influence/inspiration on the developers Rocksteady whilst developing the videogame. It wasn’t the only influence, the darker, grittier Frank Miller was also one, as was the work of Neal Adams.

Although Arkham Origins (which I’ve never played) isn’t part of this release there was an animated movie called Batman: Assault on Arkham that sits between Origins and Arkham Asylum. It’s meant to act as a way to bridge the gap between the two games. So I’ve watched this for the first time.

Obviously my comic book collection, the movies, tv series, previous video games also fall into the paratext camp. They shape my interpretation of Batman, and to some extent my enjoyment of the games. On a mechanics level the game maybe fun. But if the portrayal of Batman in the game doesn’t align with how I see the character. Or even one that I can accept then will I actually enjoy the game?

I’m not sure what direction these posts will take as I progress through the game. Or even when the next post will be. But we’ll see where the wind takes me on this.

This post has been rather long, and I haven’t even started looking at the game itself yet! So I better call this post to an end and see you in the next one (whenever that happens).

Fernández-Vara, C. (2019) Introduction to game analysis. Second edition. New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

Busting ghosts the Nintendo way

Luigi’s Mansion, nintendo, switch, video games

Late to the party (by about three years or so) but I did finally cave and purchase Luigi’s Mansion 3 for the Switch around the middle of the month.

I’d been wanting to get it since the Super Mario Bros. movie came out earlier in the year. I’d come out of the cinema in Basingstoke having seen it wanting to buy a Mario game. Job done on that front for Nintendo. But the game stores there put me off buying any Mario game with their inflated prices and my tight budget at the time. I was hoping a second hand copy would have been within range. But sadly that was not the case.

I didn’t complete Luigi’s Mansion 2 on the 3DS, and I never played the first on the GameCube (or 3DS). The first one would have come out during the married, step parent phase of my life.

I did enjoy my brief time playing Luigi’s Mansion 2. This action adventure game I describe as Nintendo does Ghostbusters. It kinda had that vibe for me. Obviously there are official Ghostbusters video games (which will one day have a post or two of their own).

However this is a Nintendo Luigi-fied take on Ghostbusters. Very family friendly. It doesn’t have Slimer but Luigi does have a pet ghost dog called Polterpup in Luigi’s Mansion 3.

There are other similarities between the two. Such as Luigi’s Poltergust being the equivalent of the Ghostbusters proton pack and trap combined! Or the rooms throughout the hotel you are exploring being populated with various ghosts doing their thing. Very Ghostbusters-esq.

The boring bit about how I’m experiencing the game

For the record and those coming across one of these types of posts for the first time. I’m playing the game on a Switch Lite. No surprise there.

When I’m playing the game at home I will be using the inbuilt speakers of the Switch Lite to listen to the audio. However any game play away from home will use my usual setup of VANKYO C750 Bluetooth active noise cancelling headphones. Which are over ear, Hi-Fi Stereo, and apparently deep bass.

This is the memory card version of the game that I purchased that when first played downloaded and installed the 1.3.0 update for the game.

Obviously I won’t be experiencing the multiplayer side of the game, but playing it through its single player story mode.

Like all the other Switch games I’m playing at the moment I’m not spending hours at a time playing the game. But grabbing “moments” when I can. And if you have read my recent life, the universe post you’ll know playing anything has been a real struggle.

Potential Movie/Ride Threat to Disney!

I really enjoyed the cut scenes I’ve seen so far they set up the story, the current level or introduce ghosts etc really well. With no words just sounds that convey the meaning in place of words. These cut scenes felt like they could easily be from a Mario/Luigi movie. They have that cartoon quality to them.

Twice now Disney have done a Haunted House movie trying to capitalise on the popularity of the ride/experience with the same name in their parks. More importantly trying to replicate the success of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.

Both movies haven’t been a massive box office hit. I don’t think the latest one even broke even at the box office.

I think Disney have to be fearful of Nintendo and Luigi’s Mansion.

I can easily see this game series becoming an animated movie like Super Mario Bros. did. An awful lot of children were introduced to Mario and Luigi this year via the movie.

With the Super Mario Bros. movie Nintendo showed they can produce an animated movie that stays true to the source, appeal to gamers, and a wider audience. My friend Diego was familiar with Mario, hadn’t played many if any of the games. His 5 year old daughter certainly had no idea who Mario was. She loved the movie, and Diego enjoyed it also.

Obviously that’s an antidotal point I make there. But considering the amount of money the movie made world wide at the box office I suspect that experience was not a one off.

Plus in the Nintendo parks that are starting to appear around the world you have the perfect source material to produce a Nintendo version of the Haunted Mansion themed around Luigi’s Mansion.

I love the cartoon Ghostbusters-esq look and feel of the game. It really does feel like you are playing a cartoon. Probably more so than any other Marioverse (has that been used before by others?) game I’ve experienced.

And on that note I’ll end this first look at Luigi’s Mansion 3.

Obviously like all my other game plays at the moment these posts will be sporadic (see reasons above). Plus who knows where they will go?

Size of an elephant!

first look, Mario, nintendo, switch, video games

Super Mario Bros Wonder is the latest entry in the Mario franchise to hit the Switch.

I’m going to briefly summarise how I’m experiencing the game so that any first time readers will know where I’m coming from. Long time gluttons for punishment of this blog can skip this part as you will be very familiar with it by now.

How I’m Experiencing Super Mario Bros Wonder

I’m a Switch Lite owner so will naturally be playing the game on that.

When I’m playing the game at home I will be using the inbuilt speakers of the Switch Lite to listen to the audio. However any game play away from home will use my usual setup of VANKYO C750 Bluetooth active noise cancelling headphones. Which are over ear, Hi-Fi Stereo, and apparently deep bass.

I bought the physical version of the game, and there were no day one updates.

These days I’m not a spend hours in a single session playing a video game person. It’s more casual. Along the lines of pick up play for 30 minutes to an hour. Depending on how tired I am, and how much free time I have.

As the image below shows I’ll be playing a single player game as Mario.

I’m playing as Mario, naturally!

Mario and I go way way back…

Welcome back longtime sufferers…

I do get excited when new Mario games come out or are announced.

The maths might not be exact. But for approximately four fifths of my long lifetime I’ve been playing Mario games of one kind or another over the years. Starting with his supporting role as Jumpman in the game that started it all Donkey Kong.

That makes it sound like I’ve played a lot of Mario games. But in reality it’s more like I’ve dipped in and out of them. I think it’s best described as old friends that keep bumping into each other over the years. My main Mario gaming being his handheld outings. That was my Nintendo console of choice especially during my married years. Most of my gaming was handheld based on my daily commute on the train. I was aware of Mario’s transformation to 3D on the GameCube as my sons played the various releases and I saw them playing them.

However parental duties and any free time left after that gladly spent with my ex-wife meant I missed so many GameCube classics that also included Mario’s outings on the platform.

This was repeated for the Wii also.

I have played some of Mario’s outings on the Switch. Sadly they should be best described as brief visits. Although I did get pretty far in the Rabbids game.

But now I’m back with Super Mario Bros. Wonder on the Switch.

The devils in the details

Super Mario Bros Wonder is a 2D scrolling platform game. From my limited play so far it has all the things you’d expect in a Mario 2D platformer plus new twists. I love the mix of the familiar and the new.

Whilst playing a Mario game you can’t help but have a big wide grin on your face. It’s the little things that Nintendo put in to each level that are a delight and a pleasant surprise.

And Nintendo hit the ground running on that front. Whether it’s from changing Mario into elephant Mario so early on in the first level (amazing decision btw), to the musical blocks that play notes as you run across them, to the green pipes moving along like caterpillars. I adored the singing and walking Piranha Plants on the second level. Such Willy Wonka vibes. I didn’t want to leave the level.

I’m not sure what direction these posts about the game will take. They aren’t reviews, more this is my experience playing the game and past experiences that playing takes me back to. Like all my video game posts are. There are lots of great reviews out there for the game. I most definitely have nothing new to add to that space. Besides do you need a review to know if you are going to get the game? You already know if you are a Mario fan and enjoy 2D platformers. If that is the case you already have the game.

Finally did you get the reference in the posts title? It’s something Bez ,the Beast from the Arabian Knights cartoon (shown during the Banana Splits Show) said before changing into an elephant. Which I thought was apt for this new Mario game where he can become an elephant.

The eternal struggle between ape and plumber continues

nintendo, switch, video games

In the recent Nintendo Direct Nintendo announced some pretty cool additions coming the the Switch catalog in the next few months.

But one stood out to me more than the others I was a big fan of the GameBoy game Donkey Kong.

I had been known to enjoy a game or two of the original arcade Donkey Kong back in the day. Obviously I was not even in the same universe as those giants depicted in the documentary King of Kong when it came to playing the game.

Heck a lot of the time my access to a wide variety of arcade machines of any kind was when the fair came to town or a visit to the coast. Such was life in a fenland market town in the late seventies and early eighties.

So you can imagine my surprise and delight when playing Donkey Kong on the GameBoy when instead of repeating the same four levels once the fourth and “final” level had been completed defeating Donkey Kong and rescuing Pauline. There was a new level to complete.

The original Donkey Kong had been turned into a platform puzzler!

The game offered 97 additional levels to the original 4.

How far did I get back in the day when I was playing it? I didn’t complete it for sure but I got pretty far.

Now for some reason I missed the actual Mario vs Donkey Kong and its sequels that were released on the GBA and DS. I think it was parenting/married life at the time distracting me, and maybe a Pokemon addiction.

So to get a second chance to play Mario vs Donkey Kong on the Switch next year is quite exciting.

As far as I can tell looking into the game that my assumptions that this is a more colourful (ie not black and white) version of Donkey Kong with some new game mechanics might be correct.

The game introduced the Mario minis a kind of Lemmings influence on some levels. Which in the sequels became the focus of the game.

Nintendo and the developers they have entrusted with doing the remasters have been a fantastic job. I wish some others would take a leaf out of their book. And this is why I’m excited for this release. Nintendo have earned my trust and I know this release will be faithful to the original.

Other titles announced that I’m excited about, the original first three Tomb-raider games, Paper Mario remastered, Contra: Operation Galuga, and Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD. And I’m sure I’ll talk more about them in the future. Some I’m aware of and have never played!

ToTK too long in the tooth?

nintendo, switch, Tears of the Kingdom, video games, Zelda

SPOILER ALERT! I think I should start adding these. During these posts I will be talking about where I am in the game and my experience as I play it. Some of that might just spoil the game for you if you are planning on playing it.

It’s been well over a month since I last spent anytime on my Switch Lite. Let alone continued my journey in Hyrule by playing Tears of the Kingdom.

I could come up with excuses as to why this is the case. But that is all they are. Just excuses.

Whatever the reason it doesn’t get away from the fact I’ve not played a video game for over a month.

Back in the eighties and my teenage years I had all the time in the world to play video games, read about video games in the pages of such publications as ZZap64!, Crash, or C&VG.

Some games I completed (not many), others I enjoyed but was just crap at them and never got very far. Sometimes you just didn’t have time to complete the game or get good at it before another game came along and demanded your attention and time.

Now decades later there just doesn’t seem to be the time available. Adult stuff like earning a living gets in the way. Age catches up, and energy levels are just not the same after a long day at work. All I want to do in an evening is unwind a little and sleep. Early nights are a thing for me. It’s surprising how drained I am physically and emotionally after a days work.

In fact it is well over a decade, nearly fifteen years since I last had a significant amount of time that I could dedicate to gaming.

Before that my gaming whilst a step parent was hand held titles for one of the Nintendo systems or the Sony PSP (I had both) on my daily commute. Whilst the kids got to play on the Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo consoles. That would give me a couple of hours gaming a day during the week.

Today it feels like I’m stealing moments here and there.

When last I played Tears of the Kingdom I had failed to take out the boss Colgera at the Wind Temple.

Unusual for me these days I had been playing the game after work one evening! Some how I had some energy left over from a day in front of students. Maybe I was feeling energised from having received the players guide a day or two earlier.

I finished the last two locks that would release Colgera, and had an attempt to defeat him fail. I was running out of arrows or more importantly things to meld on to the arrows to increase their damage.

So I retreated.

Sadly the amiibo stuff doesn’t work during the boss battle. I had to retreat to a shrine so I could unlock some supplies.

By that time it was nearly 10pm and I had work the next day. So I left it there, ready for another assault on Colgera.

I’d like to think that a younger me, even when I was playing Links Awakening on my GameBoy in my early twenties, and blasting my way through Doom, would have beat Colgera.

But as Shahid Kamal Ahmad said in the latest Remaster podcast (and I’m paraphrasing heavily here, maybe even putting words in his mouth, but I think I captured his meaning) “I ain’t getting any younger and my reactions are not the same as they were” when he was talking about the latest Street Fighter game and how his kids are thrashing him at the game (is this his “the student becomes the master” moment?)

Memory keeps telling me games were much tougher back in the day. And they probably were. They definitely were much less forgiving. But game design was in its infancy back then. It felt every other game was pushing boundaries, exploring what games could do, or redefining what a game was.

But back then I had youth and time on my side. Time to spend learning patterns to defeat that boss, or advance through the levels. Plus the reactions, hand eye coordination of a teenager.

Now I have greatly less time. And like Shahid my reactions are no longer the stuff of legend (well in my mind they were legendary) but more like that boxer passed their prime trying once more to capture former glory against a much younger opponent.

Am I finding Colgera hard to defeat because I’m old. Do I have to swallow my pride. Admit defeat and get Nathan to get me pass this bit?

Hell no! I’m not ready for the long walk yet (Judge Dredd reference there for you folks).

Time to remind myself of the controls (that drawback of long gaps between plays) and dispatch this boss.

TotK I’m playing a platformer!

nintendo, switch, Tears of the Kingdom, video games, Zelda

Oh yeah SPOILER ALERT!

As I was bouncing and gliding from one flying ship to the other, ascending so that I was above the storm clouds. It occurred to me this part is a bloody platformer! Why hadn’t that fact clicked earlier?

Since accepting the mission to catch up with Tulin I have been playing a massive platform game. It only really becomes that once you catch up with Tulin and then start ascending towards the mountain top and then onto the storm cloud. Gliding from one chunk of sky island to the other.

Unlike a regular platformer falling off the platform doesn’t mean you are dead. Well as long as you remember to use your paraglider just before you hit the ground you aren’t (I love that you can free fall and at the last moment pop your paraglider and land safely without a scratch. The sound effect used as you pull off this maneuver is so Batman, it instantly made me think of Batman). It’s just a major bloody inconvenience. Or not so major if you activated the shrines on your way up that you passed.

I know I should have taken the time out and completed the shrines. But I wanted to move on. I can always come back to the shrines to do them. Which I plan to do. Sooner than later. I want those extra heart containers.

I jump off the flying ship dropping into the eye of the storm clouds descending like Mary Poppins with my paraglider towards the rather large boat in the middle of the storm.

Does Mary Poppins have a stamina timer when she uses her umbrella to fly? I think not. She’s Mary bloomin Poppins!

However I do as Link. So I have to use it sparingly to get me safely onto the decking of this large flying ship.

Welcome to the temple…

We’ve got fun and games. (A very bad G ‘N R misquote)

Yes this flying hulk of a ship is my first temple in the game.

I think temples are the new dungeons. Or more specifically the return of dungeons to the Zelda series with a twist. The temples seem more task orientated than puzzle. Although some of the tasks seem a bit puzzle like, or the obstacles in the way do. Often requiring the use of one of Links cyborg powers! The tasks can be attempted in any order. Or it appears that way in my first temple. I like this non-linear approach.

I swear my first instinct is not to jump off of a perfectly good, safe, solid place like this wind temple.

But that’s what I’m having to do.

As I write this I’ve not finished the first temple. Board gaming and a car repair has taken priority the last couple of days on my free time. But as soon as I’ve finished this post I’m back in Hyrule and the Wind Temple.

TotK – Into the clouds

nintendo, switch, Tears of the Kingdom, video games, Zelda

SPOILER ALERT! I think I should start adding these. During these posts I will be talking about where I am in the game and my experience as I play it. Some of that might just spoil the game for you if you are planning on playing it.

Back in the early days of the video game industry we never had these fancy players guides, official and non-official, to turn to when we got stuck in a game.

We couldn’t just go online to look for a solution from the many websites carrying walk throughs of the game.

No we had to struggle and try and find a solution for ourselves. If we were lucky a friend or class mate might be playing the same game and know of a solution.

Otherwise our only hope was in the pages of the monthly video game magazines and their help pages. If luck was on your side some-one had already written in and had a solution published. Other wise it would mean putting pen to paper, and sending in your question, hoping you would get selected for publication. Or sometimes the magazine would publish a map for the game that you could use.

You had to be a lot more resilient back then. I’m not saying I was. As memory tells me I didn’t finish many games at the time.

The official Tears of the Kingdom players guide did indeed arrive Wednesday. Nearly a week earlier than Amazon had planned to deliver my pre-order. A fact I am still baffled by.

Wow what a weighty tome the player guide is.

I went for the soft cover version. I dread to think how heavy the hard back version is. This is 500 (498 if you don’t count the covers) glossy pages.

I do like the use of screen shots and art through out the book. The book although packed with a lot of information still manages to look amazing in side.

Player Guide Quick Start providing a summary of whats in the guide.

For me this players guide has the right level of detail. It’s not a micro guide talking you through every step as some of the online walk throughs do.

Apparently I am going after the Wind Sage on my current path through the game. The player guide has spoiled the fact there are four of them and I am apparently going for the right choice as the first one to go for. That’s pure luck.

I don’t remember anything in the story line that I’ve come across so far that mentions these sages.

Oh wait I have. They will be the anomalies I have to investigate round Hyrule.

I have made a new friend in the game called Tulin from the Rito Village. Tulin is really cool as he is able to generate gusts of wind that can carry you over longer distances using the paraglider.

I’m sure that after I have defeated or freed the Wind Sage I’ll get a similar ability. Or I hope so. As I think having Tulin shadow me everywhere is going to get annoying.

But this bit of the game where I am jumping/gliding from one sky island to another ascending to this boat hidden in the storm clouds above has triggered that feeling I get when when heights are involved in the game. I did talk briefly about this in my initial thoughts on Tears of the Kingdom.

It’s weird.

I’ve done Crib Goch in Snowdonia, walking along it’s knife edge ridge with drops either side. I’ve done a via ferrata in the French Pyrenees starting at the bottom of a gorge, climbed up the side of the gorge under a bridge, death slid across the gorge 300ft above the ground into a net the other side. And neither of those times did I ever feel like this game or others have made me feel while playing them.

I don’t like heights. They make me very nervous. Doing the above was possible as I was able to block out the drops, and just focus on what is directly in front of me. Having tinnitus does make it easier to do things like this. I practice the skill daily.

But come video games I get so immersed in the game when I get to a level like the sky islands with sheer drops in Tears of the Kingdom I get triggered and an irrational fear kicks in.

I know it’s not real. I know I can fall and nothing will happen to me. But those butterflies in the stomach still kick in.

It’s only a game.

Still my mind and body are fooled into thinking it’s not.

How much do games like Tears of the Kingdom or Doom fool my mind and body. Watch me playing an FPS like Doom or Half Life and as I look round corners etc my body moves too!

Yeah I get totally immersed.

I could do with scanning some amiibo cards to top up my swords. But I’ll do that once I reach my final destination in the clouds.

I think that my favourite ability for Link’s cybernetic limb is the ascend ability. I just love the cool animation showing him move through the solid object, and then half emerging on the surface.

In the meantime it’s onwards and upwards.

If you are interested you can catch up with my other posts about Tears of the Kingdom HERE.

How I’m Playing TotK (if it wasn’t obvious already)

nintendo, switch, Tears of the Kingdom, video games, Zelda

“Oooh you are so big… So absolutely huge.” Monty Python The Meaning of Life

That quote came to mind when thinking about Zelda Tears of the Kingdom (TotK) when I started playing it again on Sunday evening.

Hyrule is massive. It just feels massive as you wander round exploring and following which ever plot line or side quest takes your fancy.

But I’m sure I’ll talk more about that in a later post.

I know I do this every time I write about video games on here, but I think it helps for anyone who stumbles on these posts and none of the others to know what my setup is for playing the game.

Obviously I’m using a Nintendo Switch but it is the Switch Lite I use and not an original Switch or the newer OLED model (although I’d love one of these).

I’m currently not using any headphones with the Switch Lite. So all sound is from the built in speakers of the Switch Lite. Although I am tempted to sync it with a small Bluetooth speaker I have.

Taking the advice of the hosts of the The Remaster podcast I did purchase for a very reasonable sum of money from Amazon 38 NFT Zelda amiibo cards. They arrived at the weekend and I was taken aback how small they were.

All of them except the 8 bit Zelda art one worked with TotK. I’m expecting or hoping that one works with the Links Awakening remake. It almost felt like a chore scanning in that many amiibo cards. But I was thankful I wasn’t having to use the actual amiibo figures.

The great advantage of these is they are so portable. These can easily be carried around with the Switch. Unlike their official bigger counter parts. Plus for the asking price of less than an amiibo much much cheaper as well. With some of the amiibos being rather hard to get hold of. Those that are for sale normally have a high price attached to them as well.

I am pretty glad I got these amiibo cards. I love the unlocks they give. Such as horses! Yep two of the cards unlock horses. I’ll never be without one now. You also get food/ingredients, rare rocks and gems, swords, shields, clothing. All useful stuff.

It was funny when I first used them because I am currently in a very cold, snow covered area called the Hebra Mountains. As soon meat or fish appeared they froze! All I can do with them is eat them frozen, they are not usable as an ingredient.

In May I preordered the official players guide that came out yesterday. However the day before it’s release Amazon updated my expected delivery date until next Monday. Yet if I bought the players guide on day of release (yesterday) I could have it the next day! How does that work? Surely it should be delivered to me on the day of release? So I cancelled my preorder and ordered a copy which is due to be delivered today (as I write this).

I know I can just google a solution/walkthrough if I get stuck. But I’m old school and I love the physicality of the players guide. And I’m sure once I have it in my grubby mitts I will let you know what I think of it.

My life style doesn’t give me many (if any) gaming sessions where I can play for hours on end. These days I grab an hour or two here and there when I can. Especially on a week night when I am absolutely shattered once I get home.

Which does present it’s own set of challenges when it comes to playing the game. Such as remembering the controls of the game and how to perform certain moves etc. That was really an issue when I returned back to the game after the “break”. That first hour or so of playing again is trying to remember what does what when you need to do it.

So you now know how I’ll be playing TotK from now on as I write further posts about my experience of the game.

TotK excuses excuses

nintendo, switch, Tears of the Kingdom, video games, Zelda

It’s been hard over the last month or so to get any time on the Switch and Tears of the Kingdom.

Work has been super busy during the day with marking and getting students across the finish line before the end of term. Which has left me really drained in the evenings and at weekends. I’ve just not had the energy to pick up the switch.

It sounds like I’m making excuses for having not played the game. And it’s true I am.

There is a bit of I think trying to convince myself that’s the reason why to ease my sense of guilt.

Earlier in the week I was listening to the latest The Remaster podcast where they discuss Tears of the Kingdom. I like how the hosts talk about video games. It’s some of the most intelligent discussion online. And I was waiting for this episode to hear what they had to say. Sadly Shadid wasn’t taking part in this episode. I assume because he hasn’t had a chance to play the game yet.

One interesting suggestion by the hosts Myke and Federico in this episode for Tears of the Kingdom is to get hold of some amiibo cards to use with the game. These are not official products. However they are much much cheaper than trying to purchase the official amiibos. So can be very expensive. These amiibo cards when scanned act exactly like the official thing and will unlock bonus items etc in game. I have a set on the way now.

But go click the link above and listen to probably the most interesting discussion on Tears of the Kingdom on the Internet. It’ll certainly put any words I throw together to shame.

We are days away from the official players guide landing through letter boxes, and in particular mine. I should try and get the Breathe of the Wild one. So I’m looking forward to that arriving.

I am avoiding the many many YouTube videos out there of all the amazing and clever devices and vehicles players have been building in the game.

I’m feeling guilty as it is not playing Tears of the Kingdom. No need to add feeling inadequate as well.

In the meantime I need to think about my future coverage of the game for this blog.

Early impressions of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom

nintendo, switch, Tears of the Kingdom, video games, Zelda

Friday for many a Switch owner was the much anticipated highlight of the year, with the long awaited release of the latest entry into the Zelda series and sequel to Breathe of the Wild, Zelda Tears of the Kingdom.

I had been hoping that my pre-order with Amazon would arrive the day before. But sadly it did not.

Instead Friday morning I woke to an email saying my pre-order had been dispatched. There was no indication of when in the day it would arrive.

Lunchtime the only clue Amazon were prepared to give me was I’d have my copy of the game by 11pm. It wasn’t even showing as out for delivery.

If I was lucky maybe it’d arrive before I got home.

Next time I checked I had a delivery estimate of between 3pm and 5pm. It would most definitely be waiting for me. I could breathe a sigh of relief.

Mum said the game had arrived in the morning. So much for Amazon’s tracking of your package.

But I had the game that’s the important thing.

After tea it was time to return to Hyrule.

Tears of the Kingdom is beautiful.

I love the art style. It looks amazing on the Switch Lite lcd screen. The soundtrack is pretty awesome too. There is some speech in the game that is reserved for cutscenes. Otherwise it’s little speech bubbles you have to read.

After the initial cutscene and limited interaction that launches the plot for this instalment you are starting up in the clouds on some of the floating land masses.

I was pleasantly surprised by this. I had been expecting to start on the ground and having to wait and open up visiting the floating islands. But instead I’m right up there experiencing the new mechanics in this sequels version of the plateau.

As you gradually get introduced to the new mechanics that power up the artificial arm Link has (yes technically Link is a cyborg now!) you get to start crafting stuff that you need to access bits of the map, reverse time, or pass through solid objects.

I love the crafting. I can’t wait to start trying stuff out. Although I’m not that creative.

Definitely as I’m moving between floating land masses I was getting Bioshock Infinite vibes as I rode along rails.

As I get near to the edge of the floating land masses I start to feel nervous. It’s hard to describe the feeling for sure. But with the long drop mere pixels away my fear of heights is kicking in.

I don’t know why this happens when I play video games. But it does. I first noticed it as a thing back when I was playing Half Life 2 on my Xbox360 up in County Durham.

Maybe it’s an immersion thing that I’m so immersed in the game that it becomes real to my senses.

So you can imagine how I felt having to jump off the floating land mass and sky dive down to ground level on Hyrule.

I did not enjoy that initial having to look down and jump off the edge. But once I was falling the feeling went away.

Although visually Tears of the Kingdom looks just like Breathe of the Wild, it does feel different as you play it.

I’ve only just started to the scratch the surface of what Tears of the Kingdom has to offer. This is such a rich rewarding game I can’t wait to see what treats the game has in store.