RetrOS Special- the Alpha and the Omega review of Pokemon Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire (3DS)

 Ladies and gentlemen, start your emulators! It is time for another episode of RetrOS. This is the show where we give you your recommended dose of nostalgia by reviewing games from your childhood.

This episode is the big one! The anniversary special! This year, we take a look at the remake of the game that I remember playing before, and the immediate aftermath of my accident in 2004. Does this remaster truly live up to the game's legacy? Or should this game be lost forever in the pages of gaming history?

Let's find out!

This review is more of a follow-on to the review that I posted 2 years ago.

The date of posting marked 22 years since the day that my past, present, and future changed. And in under 24 hours, I have gone from an average 13-year-old boy to a person whose life is hanging by a thread and in an intensive care unit, with a survival rate of under 10%.

Even 22 years on, I still cannot understand why I have been able to fight off these odds and live the lifestyle I have been given.

Anyway, back to the review at hand. As I have said in my review of Pokémon Stadium, Pokémon was Nintendo's licence to print money, and still is! The series started in 1996, when the original Red and Green (or Blue over here in the West!) were released for the Game Boy in Japan.

The franchise went on to take the West by storm with the release of the original two versions in the US and Europe in 1999. During that time, Nintendo pushed that craze as far as they could. They accomplished this  by releasing an anime series, dubbed by 4 Kids Entertainment, a trading card game done by Magic: The Gathering creators, Wizards of the Coast, and, of course, video games.

Tell me, when you went to your local theatre to watch Pokémon the 1st movie, did you do it to watch the film, or to score the limited-edition trading card that was given to everyone who watched the movie? Let me know down in those comments!

In 2002, Nintendo released Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire in Japan for the Game Boy Advance. Players in the West had to wait until 2003 to get their grubby hands on a copy. In 2014, The Pokémon Company released this classic for the Nintendo 3DS.

The game is set in the Hoenn region, which was based on Japan's Kyushu Island. Your character has recently moved from the Johto region. 

 You and your rival, Brendan and May, are tasked with completing an encyclopaedia of all  Pokémon in the region, the Pokedex, by Professor Birch, while collecting gym badges, then going on to defeat the Elite Four, while stopping an organisation hellbent on waking an ancient Pokémon which has the power to wipe out humanity altogether!

The access ability scores are as follows –

Visibility 9.5

 In terms of this category, it's quite playable.  When selecting a move during battle, the icons of a particular move are colour coded by type. For example,  the icons of normal type attacks are in grey backgrounds, fire types are in red, ground types are in brown and grass type attacks are in green.

You know as well as I do, red and green are a no-no with players with visual impairments. But the text in the smaller icons should give you an indication of what type each attack is. So this game can be easily playable for players with visual impairments.

Audibility 10

As par for the course, there is no spoken dialogue in this game. All dialogue is text based. So imagination should be able to fill in the blanks.   From all the games from the series, none of them has spoken dialogue present.( Except for Stadium)

Mobility 10

You use the circle pad to move your character around. For series veterans, you can use the D-Pad to move too.  When navigating the ui, the  circle pad or the touch screen can be used. These options can make the game more accessible, and a great way to utilise one of the 3DS'  distinguishing features.

Gameplay  11

Take note Halo Studios, this is how you remake a game. When in contrast with the original  GBA version,  it's astounding, a true testament to what 12 years' worth of technological advancement looks like.

Nintendo used their own proprietary engine, the same one that X and Y run on.   The game runs smoothly on a 3ds  console, with little change in the game's assets.  There's a tonne of new features added from other entries. These features include Mega Evolutions, Secret Bases, and the new types of Pokemon that are present thanks to Y's engine. It's like going back to the original game with the additional features that you would normally expect from a modern Pokemon game.

I have said before I remember playing the original 2003 version of this game before the accident itself and it was one of the first games I played after my family member replaced my old Game Boy Advance SP that was in my pocket when I took the fall. So this particular game has a lot of sentimental value. 

This particular version is a pure nostalgia trip from the good old days. Seriously, this game is a reason why I bought a 3DS console from Forgotten Worlds.

This game as a must-have for any 3DS owner's collection. Sure, it can be expensive, but the gameplay experience it makes it worth every penny.

OVERALL SCORE 101.25%

 

RetrOS- StaR-Cade( Review of Star Wing SNES)

Ladies and gentlemen, start your emulators. It's time for another episode of RetrOS. This is the show where we give you your recommended dose of nostalgia by reviewing games from your childhood.

We're back in R-Cade to review the first entry of the legendary Star Fox series. Is this game worthy of remembrance, or should this game be lost forever in the pages of gaming history?

Let's find out!

RetrOS- Stadium of R-Cade Review of Pokemon Stadium (N64)

Ladies and gentlemen, start your emulators! It's time for another episode of RetrOS. The show where we give you your recommended dose of Nostalgia by reviewing games from your childhood.

 This time we were live and on location in R-Cade Glasgow!  This time, we duke it out on the first entry of the world-famous Pokémon series in 3D. Can R-Cade lift the trophy, or will they be a first-round knockout?

Let's find out!!!

 In the mid to late 90s, the world was gripped by a Pokémon craze. During that craze, Nintendo was trying to push that license to print money as far as they could. 

 There was a TV series and a trading card game created by Wizards of the Coast.  

I still remember my classmates queuing up to play a bootleg version of Pokémon Crystal I got from a Bazaar in Turkey on the last day before summer break from Primary school. That's how popular Pokémon was.

In 1999, Pokémon transitioned to the 3rd dimension with this classic.

Developed by Gamefreak and published by Nintendo,  the game revolves around the Gen 1 versions, i.e., Red and Blue versions of the game.

You play the part of a Pokémon trainer; it is up to you to advance through the cups and become a Pokémon master.

The accessibility scores are as follows

Visibility 9.5

Although the move types are colour-coded, the text in the centre of the icon should indicate what element each move is. Other than that, there are no colour-coded elements that cause issues for players with visual impairments.

Audibility 10

Now there is spoken dialogue in this game, only commentary over the battle, so it's not too important in the grand scheme of things. So you should be able to play this game.

Mobility 10.5

Due to the turn-based nature of the game, you have all the time in the world to think through your moves before you make them. 

Certain mini games can be a bit of an issue, but the main focus is on the battles.   In these battles, each move or Pokémon is bound to a button on the controller. You can use the R button on top of the N64 controller to check which button is assigned to which move or Pokémon.

In hindsight, it's an ingenious way of hiding your move when battling the same couch, as you don't navigate a UI to give commands to or change Pokémon.

However, the mini games will give you issues (more on that in a minute).

So, the vast majority of the game is easily playable, due to the turn-based nature of the franchise.

Gameplay 10.5

This game has a more arcade-style feel. Instead of catching Pokémon, the majority of the original 150 are your oyster. When you register for a battle or tournament, you have to register a team of 6 Pokémon. Before the battle begins, you pick 3 to send into battle. 

 

The sheer amount of tournaments to compete in, with their own rule sets, is a lot for N64 standards. The game has various mini games, which are similar to Mario Party, for up to  4  players.

What makes this title truly unique is the ability to use a peripheral to sync the data from your save file stored in your Red/Blue versions, so you can use the Pokemon you previously caught in the game.

 You can also use the GBA tower to continue your adventure on your TV screen.

In terms of lifespan, the main game can be completed in 11 hours. 

In summary, Pokemon Stadium is a solid addition to the Pokémon series. As I said before, this is the first 3D Pokemon game, alone or with friends on the same couch. If you are interested and would like to try it on native, N64 hardware, check out R-Cade, they are located on Saltmarket Street.

 You can hire a console for just 11 pounds an hour. R-Cade also has a plethora of board games to play. Go grab a drink, hire a console for a nostalgic trip down memory lane, or chill and play some board games.

OVERALL SCORE 101.25%

See you guys in the next review!

RetrOS- Banana Split GP Review of Diddy Kong RacingDS

Ladies and gentlemen, start your emulators! It's time for another episode of RetrOS. The show where we give you your recommended dose of Nostalgia by reviewing games from your childhood. In this episode, we will be taking a look at  Rare's attempt to replicate the Mario Kart formula on a DS console. Is this game a Mario Kart killer?  Or is this game just an imitator???

Let's find out!!

RetrOS - awakening of the Legend(Review of Legend of Zelda Link's Awakening (GBC)

Ladies and gentlemen,  start your emulators! It's time for an extra episode of RetrOS, the show where we give your recommended dose of nostalgia by reviewing games from your Childhood.

In this episode, we take a look at a classic from the Game Boy library. Is this game worthy of remembrance? Or should this game be lost forever in the pages of gaming history?

Let's find out!

RetrOS- Camo Kid (Review of Kid Chameleon (MD)

Ladies and gentlemen, start your emulators! It's time for another episode of RetrOS. The show where we give you your recommended dose of nostalgia by reviewing games from your childhood, as we turn another page of gaming history.

 This time, we turn the clocks back to the year 1992 to take a look at a classic platformer from the Sega Mega Drive library. Is this game worthy of remembrance, or should this game be left forever in the pages of gaming history??

Let's find out!

RetrOS- the Good, the bad, and the DOOM-Review of Outlaws (PC)

Ladies and gentlemen, start your emulators! It's time for another episode of RetrOS, the show where we give your recommended dose of nostalgia by reviewing games from your Childhood.

In this episode, we turn the clocks back to the year 1997 with  Lucas Arts' fusion of the Doom-esque Boomer shooter subgenre, with spaghetti westerns like the Good, the Bad and the Ugly, which received the remaster treatment from Nightdive. Is this game truly worthy of remembrance, or should this game be lost forever in the pages of gaming History?

Let's find out!