This Week’s Purchase: Bayonetta 2: First Print Edition
This week I purchased Bayonetta 2: First Print Edition for the Wii U, an item that has gained notoriety for its small production run and quick sell out time. In total 15,300 copies were produced, and whilst this wouldn’t be too unusual for a more niche game, Bayonetta 2 is the most exciting title to grace the Wii U in quite a long time. I was fortunate enough to pick up a copy myself, and today I’m going to open it up and go through what’s inside.
Review: Forza Horizon 2
I’m beginning to wonder if Playground Games have ever actually been to a music festival. In Forza Horizon 2 there’s no tent to pitch, no bands to watch, and no drugs to take. Instead you drive supercars, smash up the streets of Southern France, and steal old wrecks from barns. That’s not to say there’s no chance to party hard however, and an early cutscene reveals that the drivers stay up till 4am before the first day of races. Obviously a night of drinking it totally safe and responsible before a day of street races, theft, and destruction.
15 Underrated Classics for the Nintendo GameCube
The Nintendo GameCube is one of my favourite consoles. It has an extensive library of great games, although the majority of these have admittedly received the recognition they deserve. Mario is awesome, Zelda is awesome and Metroid is awesome. You probably already know this. However, over the console’s lifetime a small handful of great games went unnoticed, and today I’ve gathered together a list of my favourite underrated GameCube classics.
Review: Persona 4 The Golden Animation
I won’t deny that I approached Persona 4 The Golden Animation with an initial air of scepticism. We do, after all, already have a perfectly enjoyably anime retelling of the game’s story, and it’s only three years old. What sets this new show apart is a focus on the extra content found in 2012’s ‘Golden’ version of the game for PlayStation Vita. Because of this it exists comfortably alongside the original, and provides something that feels well tailored for existing fans of the series.
This Week’s Purchase: Japanese Xbox 360 + import CAVE shmups
This week I bought a Japanese Xbox 360 and a selection of import games. Most of these are made by CAVE, who specialise in manic shooters and have ported their arcade classics to the console. With few of their titles making their way out of Japan, and many enforcing a region lockout, their library is perhaps the main reason for purchasing a Japanese system. Today I will look at the advantages and disadvantages of importing, as well as some of the games doing so will give you access to.
Review: Black Butler: Book of Circus
Not all good things have to come to an end. Black Butler is one such thing, and the latest anime to suffer from a divergence in plot with its manga counterpart after overtaking the source material. Whilst this third series disregards over half of the currently aired episodes as ‘non-canon’, this risky move somehow pays off and Book of Circus proves itself to be the most compelling Black Butler story arc yet.
Review: Super Time Force
Time travel doesn’t have to be used responsibly. This is the ethos of Super Time Force, and a sentiment felt across both its story and gameplay. Whilst a humorous and nonsensical narrative gives the game great character, the way the its unique mechanics mirror this chaos is only clever until it results in pure frustration. For better and for worse, time travel isn’t the exact science it should be.
Review: Deathsmiles
Deathsmiles is a manic shooter made by CAVE; the undeniable masters of the genre. It takes many of the concepts found in their DoDonPachi series but instead of space ships and tanks you have a cast Gothic Lolita girls fighting evil demons with magic. Sure, it may be a little ‘Japanese’ for some, but underneath the weirdness (which you may actually quite like) you have an incredibly addictive, rewarding, and well made game designed to push you to your limits.
Dracula’s Cave is one year old!
That’s right, today is Dracula’s Cave’s first birthday! Thanks so much to everyone who’s checked out the site so far, I’ve met some really cool people and had a great year. Now let’s look forward to an awesome future!
Review: Harmful Park (Import)
The 1990s were a strange time. A game like Harmful Park should have been an instant classic, and lauded for its innovative level design, unique style and competent gameplay. Instead it never made its way out of Japan, and today is a rare gem usually selling for over £100 online. Ironically it’s a hugely accessible game that turns a niche genre into an experience any kind of gamer can enjoy.
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