The Nostalgia Spot

Nintendo makes good on its promise with 10 free GBA games!

It was a few months ago when Nintendo decided to cut the price of their new 3DS system by nearly 100 bucks less than 6 months after the system’s debut.  To combat the anger they were sure to receive from early adopters, they offered 20 free games to current owners of the 3DS whom they dubbed “Ambassadors.”  The first 10 of those games were released in September and all were downloadable versions of old NES games.  I went over them here.  These 10 NES games are set for a release to the general public sometime in 2012 for a small fee but will include all of the usual Virtual Console features other old releases benefit from (right now, they’re pretty bare-boned).

It wasn't a big hit, but I still have my GBA Micro and consider it a neat little device.

This past Thursday, Nintendo delivered the rest of the games it promised.  These 10 games are all from the Gameboy Advance platform (well, one is a port of a Super Nintendo game) and as of right now, there are no plans to make any available to non-Ambassadors.  I’m not sure if that’s supposed to give me and other Ambassadors a sense of pride, but it seems stupid to spend the time to emulate these titles and then not release them.  Anyways, this latest round of releases is much better than the NES games.  The NES games were of varying quality and a few were obscure releases given a new chance to shine.  They’re okay time wasters, but few kept me coming back either because they were too simple for my taste or because I already played the Hell out of them decades ago.  About half of these Gameboy Advance games I had never played and thus my impressions are some-what incomplete as a result.  I was a day one purchaser of the Gameboy Advance and have actually owned all three styles (the original non-backlit device, the SP, and the Micro) but didn’t really take advantage of the console.  It came at an awkward time.  It was basically a powered-up Super Nintendo but developers were mostly still focusing on simple, Gameboy type games, or were making ports (even Nintendo was guilty of this as many of their initial releases were ports, sound familiar?) and had a hard time pulling me away from my Playstation 2.  Now that I’m a working man in a commuter’s world, I think I’ll get more out of these titles.  Enough with the overview, what are the titles you say?  They are:

F-Zero:  Maximum Velocity – A solid addition to Nintendo’s flagship racer.  Well, I suppose Mario Kart is the new flagship racer, but F-Zero is a more straight-forward game.  Known for high velocity and punishing difficulty, this one isn’t too bad.  It’s kind of like a portable version of the original SNES game in terms of tech  The 2D and small screen add a bit of extra challenge to an already difficult game.  I’m not a big race fan, or even a fan of this franchise, so I probably won’t dabble in it much.  Those that did like the original though will find few faults here.

Yoshi’s Island: Super Mario Advance 3 – This one is a direct port of the SNES game Yoshi’s Island: Super Mario World 2.  In it, you play as Yoshi with the task of guiding baby Mario through the Mushroom Kingdom to safety.  Baby Mario is awful, this game will make you want to kill babies as any contact with an enemy causes Mario to wail and scream as he floats around in a bubble until Yoshi catches him or an enemy snatches him (causing you to lose).  Good news though, baby Mario is the game’s lone negative as the gameplay is a blast.  It’s a clever platform title and Yoshi’s new morphing abilities add some spice and variety to many levels.  The visual style is interesting (though it’s not as crisp as it was on the SNES) and suits the tone of the game well.  Unfortunately, the 2-player is useless for this port so a part of the game is missing to those experiencing it on their 3DS.  Still, if you missed this one on either the GBA or SNES now is a good time to experience it.

Kirby and the Amazing Mirror– Kirby, Nintendo’s small-screen star, arrived late

You may have missed this one when it came out in 2004, but it's a solid little title starring everyone's favorite pink puff thing.

on the GBA so this is a fitting port considering many gamers probably missed out.  Kirby is kind of Nintendo’s B mascot.  His games are usually pretty fun, and he adds different play mechanics than Mario, but rarely is one of his games heralded as anything special. Amazing Mirror kind of fits that bill as well.  It’s tried and true Kirby: he floats around, sucks up enemies, and copies their powers.  This time he has a bunch of clones that can be called upon to aid Kirby in his adventure, but they’re mostly a gimmick.  I will say, this one feels a little more challenging than typical Kirby games which is welcomed, and it’s good enough that I’ll play through it and finish it.

Mario VS Donkey Kong – This one’s title implies a far greater game than it really is (though I guess any of the old DK games could have bore that title) as this one is a puzzler.  Mario is once again the protagonist, and he has to get some mini Mario’s through each level to advance.  Apparently this has worked well for Nintendo as this game has spawned many sequels, all on their handheld systems.  I don’t see the appeal, but I’m not a big fan of puzzle games so this one isn’t for me.

WarioWare Inc: Mega Microgame$ – The original manic title that has spawned many similar sequels, WarioWare is an odd title that doesn’t sound very interesting on the surface but ends up being perfect for pick up and play gaming.  The game is a collection of mini, or micro, games that individually last less than 10 seconds each.  They’re usually really quirky like picking a nose and only involve a button press, but somehow it works.  They’re delivered in a rapid succession and after a dozen or so a “boss battle” commences that’s usually only slightly more advanced than what you were already playing.  This is a great title to have on the go, and the original is still the best (well, the Wii one was pretty good too so maybe it’s tied at worst).  Nintendo would be foolish to not release this one on the Virtual Console down the road, though I’m sure there’s a new one in development.

Wario Land 4– Wario, until very recently, basically took over the Super Mario Land

Visually, it gets the job done, but makes up for it with gameplay.

franchise in the mid to late 90’s with a sequence of games.  All were pretty good and received quite a bit of praise with Wario Land 3 perhaps representing the peak for the franchise.  Wario Land 4 is still pretty damn good.  Visually, it kind of lags behind some of the other games released here but it’s fun and differentiates itself enough from the other platformers put out by Nintendo.  Wario has moves unique to him that Mario or Yoshi do not possess like his shoulder tackle and ability to throw enemies like a baseball.  He also has a different feel as there’s no run button, making the transition from Mario to Wario feel kind of odd.  It has its own charms though, and this is another quality release.

Mario Kart Super Circuit – The handheld debut for Nintendo’s cash cow, Mario Kart Super Circuit was a welcomed release when it first debuted in 2001 though it has aged noticeably.  When it came out though, it was my favorite Mario Kart yet.  It’s kind of funny how time has chosen to view Mario Kart 64 with rose-tinted glasses, because at the time of its release it was kind of a disappointment.  Super Circuit better captured that manic feel of the original Super Mario Kart and returned all of the classic racers.  The only downside was the reduced tech which does affect how the karts handle.  This game also wasn’t as balanced as future installments, as the lighter vehicles have a distinct advantage over the heavy ones which is why seemingly everyone would use Toad or Yoshi and stay the Hell away from Bowser.  As an added bonus, the original tracks from Super Mario Kart are unlockable giving the player a lot of incentive to play through the single player mode, which is essential since this release won’t benefit from any 2-player mode.  Maybe that’s why Nintendo didn’t mind releasing this against the recently released Mario Kart 7, as Mario Kart without 2-player feels like only half a game.

Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones – For a long while, Fire Emblem was a franchise only enjoyed by Japanese gamers as Nintendo didn’t think it could be commercially viable in the States.  Thankfully, they had a change of heart when the GBA was released and The Sacred Stones was actually the second Fire Emblem release for the GBA.  Fire Emblem is a fantasy themed, strategy RPG that should be familiar to those who have played Advance Wars.  I prefer Fire Emblem to the Advance Wars franchise and this is a welcomed release as a VC title.  The gameplay is dense, and while it isn’t the best in its genre, it still proves quite rewarding.  Visually, it’s nothing special but since I never played this one I’m looking forward to spending time with it.  This should provide several hours of entertainment for me and other Ambassadors.

Metroid Fusion – Since release, this one has been retro-actively titled as Metroid 4 making it the most recent entry in the series from a story-line perspective.  Metroid Fusion takes the formula established by the original and refined for Super Metroid and points it in your hands.  For most fans of the Metroid series, the debate over which game is the best includes this one, Super Metroid, and the Metroid re-make also released on the GBA, Metroid: Zero Mission.  I’m partial to Super Metroid, but the fact that this one is even in the discussion is a good thing.  This is a great and challenging run n’ gun game with memorable boss battles and timely power-ups.  I still have this game on GBA so I almost didn’t download it but I figured, why not?  It’s a great game and if you missed this one years ago it may end up being your favorite of the 10 games released last week.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap– This one was a nice surprise.  I figured

Bright and colorful, this one is still a treat for the eyes.

since Nintendo has been selling us all on Zelda’s 25th anniversary that another Zelda title would get released, but I expected it would be the GBA remake of A Link to the Past.  The Minish Cap is a forgotten and overlooked entry in the Zelda franchise.  Stylistically, it resembles Wind Waker but plays like the classic top-down games.  Link has always had great success with Nintendo’s handhelds, and this title may be his best for any of them.  It’s not as gimmicky as the DS games, but more advanced than the Gameboy ones.  I would have easily paid 5 bucks to download this one, maybe more, and had been considering buying this for my GBA as recently as this summer (when the 3DS games kind of sucked).  I missed this one on the GBA, but it’s nice to know I won’t miss it this time around.

I consider it a great thing that Nintendo chose to reward the early 3DS adopters with free content.  I would have been disappointed initially at the price drop, knowing I could have just waited and not really missed out on anything, but that’s the price one accepts when buying new tech.  Often times, that tech is improved upon and made better, cheaper, or both not too far down the road.  In fact, I fully expect a new model 3DS will show up probably within the year that will have better battery life and a second circle pad.  If Nintendo had stopped with the 10 NES games it already released free, I would have been thankful for the gesture, but that’s all.  In truth, I’ve played very little of those games and they fall into the “nice to have” category.  These 10 GBA games though are games that I’m truly excited to have.  While I’ve already beaten or even owned some of them, there are others like Fire Emblem and The Minish Cap that I’m experiencing for the first time and am sure to spend dozens of hours on.  Nintendo, in my eyes, has more than made up for the difference in price between what I payed for my console and what current consumers are paying.  Not only am I getting some kick ass, free games, but I got to enjoy Ocarina of Time 3D during the summer and other freebies.  I’ve never been a Nintendo fanboy, but this is the kind of promotion that does create some brand loyalty.  Well done, Big N!

Super Mario 3D Land (2011)

The Nintendo 3DS had a sluggish launch and one I think I’ve chronicled fairly well here.  Early on it was really a lack of quality software that kept sales slow (and a rather large sticker price) until the arrival of Ocarina of Time 3D.  Not long after that title arrived, Star Fox 64 3D hit stores and represented another quality title.  Throughout that, Nintendo was able to supplement the true 3DS titles with some quality Virtual Console titles.  The problem was, we had already played these games before.  Sure, both Zelda and Star Fox received a nice visual boost but that merely hid the fact that both titles were nearly 15 years old.

Finally, the first Triple A, original, game has arrived and who else could it be in the starring role?  It’s Mario, and he’s back in his first original handheld game since 2006’s New Super Mario Bros. and his first ever original portable title in the third dimension.  And by third dimension, I mean both the game engine and that feature that is supposed to be the main selling point of Nintendo’s latest handheld, the stereoscopic 3D.

Super Mario 3D Land is a title that is right up my alley.  It’s an all new Mario adventure, but it features several nods to the old-school games, primarily Super Mario Bros. 3.  If Nintendo is going to focus on one game to emulate, why not SMB 3 which is in the running for greatest game of all time.  The homages to that title are numerous, the most obvious one being the inclusion of the tanooki suit.  Whenever Mario finds the brown leaf power-up he is given a cute, cuddly, tanooki suit that grants him a tail attack and a hover ability.  The suit is absurd looking, even more so today than it was on the NES, but it’s just as useful as it used to be.  Well, it does lack a true flying ability and initially lacks the stone-form ability as well.  The tail attack is certainly nice to have for those of you used to playing Super Mario Galaxy where Mario has a similar spin attack by default.  The hover ability is also a great safety net for those tough platforming sections and is needed to get some of the games numerous star coins.

Mario showing off his new boomerang suit.

If Mario only had the one power-up though, that would be pretty disappointing.  New to the Mario-verse this time around is the boomerang suit.  Like SMB 3’s hammer bros. suit, the boomerang suit outfits Mario as a boomerang brother.  He’s able to throw one boomerang at a time, that will always come back to him which can be useful for setting up return strikes on enemies.  It also can be used to grab items like other power-ups and star coins.  Also returning is Mario’s trusted fire flower.  You would think the boomerang suit would render the fire flower obsolete but it does hold some advantages, namely that Mario can shoot up to two fireballs in succession and their range is much farther than the boomerang.  There are also some Zelda-like puzzles in the game where Mario can use his fire power to light some beacons.  Unfortunately, Nintendo didn’t take the opportunity to throw in another SMB 3 homage and have the fire flower give Mario an orange suit, instead it’s the traditional white and red.

As for the gameplay, this is pretty much a mix of old and new.  The game certainly has a Galaxy feel to it, minus the funky the gravity.  I would say it plays most like a cross between the New Super Mario Bros. games and the Galaxy ones.  Each level has three hidden star coins to find and a certain quota is needed to advance in the game and to unlock bonus levels.  There are 8 worlds with 5 to 6 levels within each one.  Each world ends with either a trek through Bowser’s castle or an air ship battle with a returning Boom Boom from SMB 3 or Pom Pom, which I assume is his sister.  For some reason, Nintendo chose to go this route for this game rather than to resurrect the Koopa kids from SMB 3.  The boss battles are fairly painless, with the exception of the final Bowser confrontation which caused me to continue numerous times.

Outside of that though, the game is pretty easy.  Most gamers will max out Mario’s extra lives before arriving at World 8 .  Most of my deaths were the result of poorly timed jumps on my part or intentional because I missed a star coin.  The difficulty would have been the number one source of criticism for me if not for the Special Worlds.  The Special Worlds open up once the game is finished and represent a second game.  Opening up the Special Worlds also unlocks the tanooki suit’s stone-form ability and even lets you play as Luigi.  Some of the Special Worlds, like the castles, are just harder versions of the normal level but many are new levels entirely.  Some also include a shadow Mario to pester you and force you to move quickly.  The game will keep track of your speed runs for Street Pass purposes, meaning when you walk past someone who also has this game the system will exchange your best times and give you something to try to beat.

Practice your jumping because this game is loaded with sections like this.

The other criticism I have to levy at this game is the use of 3D.  Many media outlets are praising this game for its use of 3D, but I reckon most are just drinking the Nintendo kool-aid.  Yes, in this game 3D is practically required in some parts which makes this the first game to accomplish such a feat.  How ever, it still fails to elevate the 3D effect beyond a gimmick.  Most of the places where 3D is necessary are self-contained rooms and make for awkward optical illusions for target jumping.  Otherwise, I found it just made negotiating jumps even more difficult.  I did force myself to play with it on at all times, unless I found a section where it was really just pissing me off (like the final battle with Bowser) and shut it off out of frustration.  3D just isn’t a natural thing for the human eye and it just makes Mario feel hard to control.

And hard to control is what has always been in the background for the 3D Mario adventures.  Mario controls well-enough, but he’ll never control as tightly on a 3D plane as he does on a 2D one.  This game made me appreciate the approach the Galaxy franchise took as the use of gravity in those games cut down on death by falling.  Very few of my deaths are actually caused by enemies and mostly are caused by missing platforms.  Nintendo also took away Mario’s ability to double and triple jump for this game, but I found that to be a good thing as it allowed for section with lots of repeated jumping.  Mario can still do a long jump, but for some reason my ability to pull it off consistently seemed spotty.  I never got a great hang of it, but also never encountered a spot where I absolutely had to use it.  Mario can also do a quick side-flip, but I often found myself pulling that off by accident which would only lead to trouble.  He also has a power-up backflip that has its uses.

Annoyances aside, this is a great game.  Yes Mario could control better and 3D is still mostly a stupid gimmick, but he controls well-enough and you can always shut the 3D off if you please.  The main game is pretty easy to get through, but the Special Worlds will test the skills of most gamers.  And this isn’t a game where you should be settled with just beating it.  No, any gamer who picks this one up should aim to collect all of the star coins as that’s where the true challenge lies.  The game is just fun to play and takes me back to the days when I played games for the simple pleasure of it, not to advance a narrative.  Hopefully Super Mario 3D Land is just the beginning in a long line of quality original games to hit the 3DS.  It’s been a long wait.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011)

It’s been just over two weeks since my life was hi-jacked by a little (big) game called Skyrim.  It’s not just been my life either as apparently millions of gamers across the country are watching their free time dwindle away into nothing.  I figured I might as well post my impressions, since a full-fledged review is out of the question for such a massive title (by the time I finish this thing it will be considered out-dated), but first some background.

The full title for Skyrim is actually The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim.  Developed by Bethesda, The Elder Scrolls franchise began on the PC in 1994.  It was never on my radar and I’m not certain if I was ever aware of its existence before 2002 when the third numbered game in the franchise was released on the Xbox.  The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind also never captured my imagination.  While I longed to play a fantasy epic that could match the freedom of pen and paper RPG’s (without the geeky-ness) I found myself put off by Morrowind’s first-person perspective.  I also was able to get my high fantasy fix from Bioware’s Neverwinter Nights series, and while I found that game a bit clunky, I really hadn’t played anything better.  It wasn’t until when the fourth game in the series, Oblivion, arrived on PS3 in 2007 that I actually decided to give the franchise a shot.

Oblivion arrived at a perfect time for me.  I had only owned a Playstation 3 for a few months and nothing compelling had been released for it.  I probably was spending more time with the Wii at that point.  I was also in the midst of an RPG drought and needed a fix.  In the summer of 2006 I even resorted to going way back and getting a new copy of Baldur’s Gate II to try and slake my thirst but found the game so massive that I lost focus.  When I initially purchased Oblivion I wasn’t certain I was going to like it.  I’ve never enjoyed the first-person perspective in video games and tried to play the game in third-person but it was so clunky that I succumbed to the first-person.  While I still do not particularly care for it, I was able to deal with it and even grow used to it.  I played as an assassin and ended up spending over 100 hours with Oblivion, finishing every quest.  While the game had warts, it was certainly a compelling and entertaining 100+ hours that I did not regret.  When Skyrim was announced last December, it immediately vaulted to the top of my most wanted games list.

Like its predecessor, Skyrim also comes at a good time.  Not because of a lack of quality software, far from it, this fall is turning into one of the best fall’s in video game history, but because it’s been 5 years since the original release of Oblivion.  I’m ready for a new fantasy epic and nothing in between has really satisfied me.  Dragon Age tried, but couldn’t live up to its lofty expectations.  And even though my journey through the world of Skyrim was delayed almost immediately by a 10 day vacation I had planned starting on the 12th of November, I’ve still managed to log 40 hours with the game already.  I was purposely holding off until I reached my favorite quests from Oblivion, the Dark Brotherhood, before posting impressions.  Well, I found the Skyrim version of the Dark Brotherhood on Wednesday night and it’s only been my reluctance to put the game down (and the Thanksgiving holiday) that has kept me from making this entry.

Skyrim has, so far, managed to meet my expectations though not eclipse them.  Fundamentally it’s the same game as Oblivion but with a few new twists and upgraded graphics.  What’s new?  Well for one, the skill system has been refined.  You still improve your various skills (one-handed combat, archery, pick pocket, etc.) by performing actions related to that skill, but now increasing skills leads to building levels.  Once your level increases, you’re able to select a perk related to one of the many skills or schools of magic in the game.  In order to select a perk from, for example, the archery skill tree your skill level in archery must meet or exceed the perk’s requirements.  If your skill isn’t at the necessary level for a perk you want you can wait and save that skill point for when you can get the perk you want.  It’s not a giant change but it works for the better.  There are still ways to exploit the system if you so choose, but the skill point system helps to keep you check to some degree so even though you might manage to get your sneak skill to 100, you still need to level up several times to get the best sneak perks.

Combat has also received a few changes, though nothing major.  Supposedly the melee combat has been improved upon but it still feels floaty and unsatisfying to me.  As a result, I stick to bows and magic and only pull out a dagger when in close for a backstab attempt.  Magic seems much more interesting to me this time around in both a superficial and tactical way.  I’ve stuck with the destruction school of magic (fireballs and the like) and that’s my go-to method of combat when not sneaking around and picking off bandits with the bow.  In Oblivion I managed to rise to the rank of Arch Mage with the Mage’s Guild despite hardly ever using any magic but this time around I plan on investing some time with it.  At some point I’ll branch out to a second and third school but so far destruction has served me well.

While there are no character classes to choose from, I’ve basically stuck with what would be considered the assassin from Oblivion.  That is, I spend most of my skill points on sneaking skills while also investing quite a bit in archery.  I’ve thrown a couple points into light armor and lock-picking but have thus far neglected the pick pocket tree. My main approach to combat is to not be seen.  I get a triple damage modifier with the bow, and a 15 times damage modifier with a dagger, so I stick to the shadows.  When drawn into actual combat, I often switch to magic or run.  I also still end up doing a lot of the run backwards and shoot technique, even if it’s clumsy.  Despite that 15x multiplier on daggers, I still usually stick with bows.  Daggers usually only deal around 10 base damage, while a good bow and arrow for me totals over 40, so that 15x is quite deceiving.  I have yet to figure out if added enchantments are also multiplied or are just tacked on at the end.  As in, I have a bow that adds 10 frost damage to an attack, but I don’t know if that 10 frost damage is multiplied as well.

I don't think it's friendly...

There’s another major addition to the game that most people are probably already aware of as it’s one of the selling points:  Dragons.  Dragons roam the skies of Skyrim and can attack at a moment’s notice once certain quest obligations have been fulfilled.  When they do, they take precedence.  It’s interesting to watch any and all NPC’s immediately shift their attention to dealing with a dragon threat when the winged beast makes its presence known.  I’ve so far only encountered the standard dragons and the blood dragons, but there are more powerful ones lurking.  I’ve found that taking them down is easiest when there’s something to distract it.  Anything that keeps the dragon’s focus away from me is welcome, and if that means my trusty mount has to take one for the team, so be it.  I think I’ve killed five or six at this point, so it’s not like they attack all the time.  I’ve even had one circle a few times and then move along apparently not even interested in starting a fight with me.  The battles are fun though, and the inclusion of dragons is both welcomed and awesome.

As I mentioned, in order to see a dragon certain quest obligations must be met, but fear not as they don’t take a whole lot of time.  To say I’ve scratched the surface of the game’s main story-line would be an overstatement.  When the game first starts your character finds him or herself a prisoner headed for the block.  This is a spoiler free blog entry, but I don’t think it’s spoiling much to say your character avoids that fate and is able to escape.  That escape represents your first quest, and the next (for me, I’m not sure if it’s the same for everyone as there is a branching point to the first quest) was to speak to a local person and then head to Whiterun as a sort of ambassador.  It’s at Whiterun that you inform the Jarl there of the returned dragon threat and the Jarl organizes a little dragon hunt.  Completing that quest is what triggers the random dragon encounters, and also earns your character its first shout power.  Shouts are like magic, but have different restraints put on them in terms of how often they can be used.  Some recharge faster than others.  These shout techniques are found all through-out Skyrim, I so far have found 5, though the first one is given to you.  Killing a dragon causes your character to absorb the dragon’s soul which unlocks shout abilities.  So you can locate one of these shouts at any given time, but if you don’t have a stored dragon soul you won’t be able to unlock it.  To be honest, I haven’t found the shouts all that useful up to this point and often forget to use them.  Perhaps that’s because few suit my chosen battle technique but I still find their inclusion to be a positive thing.

That's a giant, one strike from that club sent my character soaring through the air like a baseball. He did not get up.

Aside from the main quest, there are dozens of other quests and tasks to soak up your time.  I probably have over 20 active quests right now, but thankfully none have a time constraint placed upon them.  I’ve done several for the Dark Brotherhood and so far have not been let down.  The Dark Brotherhood seems to always have very entertaining missions and their approach complements my play style perfectly.  As a result, I’ve neglected the other two factions that I’ve so far uncovered, that being Skyrim’s version of the Mages Guild and Thieves Guild.  In Skyrim, the wizard college appears to have taken the place of a proper guild.  I’ve done a couple tasks for them and have only just opened up the thieves ones.  Once I have finished with the Dark Brotherhood, I’ll probably focus on the mage ones and continue to build up my magic prowess while also investing some skill points in the more thief oriented skill trees before I dive into those quests.  I’ve also encountered several dungeons and old keeps to raid and clear along the way.  Some contain treasure, some almost nothing, but it’s the journey that is most rewarding.  I’ve also encountered all kinds of wildlife from lowly wolves to deadly sabre cats and giants.  Death is all around you at all times in Skyrim and it helps to be alert to anything.

And while there’s been an awful lot of enjoyment on my end so far, there’s also been some frustrations as well.  With any game of this size, there’s always the concern for glitches.  I’ve heard of many reports of glitches cropping up but so far my experience has been glitch free.  It has not been without technical problems though.  The framerate has become an increasing issue the longer I play.  I’m not sure if it’s because of the marathon sessions I’ve been having with the game or because my save file has become massive (which is rumored to cause problems for the PS3), but there have been many instances of clipping and severe slowdown at times.  I’ve also had the game freeze up on me a few times, one of which was quite an inconvenience as I had just felled a particularly nasty adversary, so I make it a point to save often.  Bethesda is set to release a patch in the near future that will hopefully help to combat these issues.  My last play session ended when the slowdown became too much to bare.  I had been playing for over 4 hours and I’m hopeful that’s the main reason why the performance had begun to lag.  If that isn’t the case and it’s because my save file has become too large I fear it could be a game breaker.  We’ll see.

One area where "Skyrim's" visuals outshine a lot of the competition: horses.

Outside of technical problems, the other areas where Skyrim comes up a bit short are common with that of Oblivion and reside in the AI department.  Sometimes the non player characters are just stupid and it’s especially noticeable for a sneaky character.  Example, I’m in the bowels of a ship and there are two corsairs in a room adjacent to the one I occupy.  I fire an arrow into the room killing one of the two outlaws.  This alerts the second one that danger is near by and she immediately starts looking around the room, but since she doesn’t find anyone, she says to herself, “Oh, must have been my imagination.”  Yes, darling, it was your imagination that killed your buddy who was sitting across from you at the table, and it’s your imagination that is about to end your virtual life as well.  Visually, Skyrim is mostly a pleasure to look at but character animations still leave something to be desired.  It’s very noticeable if you play in third-person as your character moves quite stiffly.  He also doesn’t really conform to the terrain and always has a floating quality to his walking and running.  Other characters seems to animate a bit better, but facial animations are almost non existent.  Everyone looks like a hand puppet with really only their mouth and chin properly animated.  Overall, the people of Skyrim are better to look at than those of Oblivion, but still retain those robotic traits.  Animals animate much better, though are some-what of a mixed bag.  Rabbits and fox tend to suffer from that same floaty thing people do, and some bears just don’t look much like bears, but the horses, dragons, and walrus-like creatures are quite convincing.

Flaws aside, this game has been quite a blast to experience.  It doesn’t reinvent the wheel but it has improved upon Oblivion enough for me to say that Skyrim is the better game, and I have yet to even finish it.  There’s still so much more for me to do and I can’t wait to experience everything this game has to offer.  The one issue lurking in the shadows does revolve around the frame-rate.  Certainly if that does develop into a game breaker I’ll be sure to update this entry, but for now Skyrim comes fully recommended.  Don’t sleep on this one!