Technofranki's blog

A video of how to create a Mii character from scratch on the Nintendo 3DS.

Before the GameBoy and before the NES, Nintendo made the Game & Watch series. The first Game & Watch was released in 1980 and a total of 60 games was realesed.

Some of the Game & Watch games have been released in compilations on the GameBoy and Nintendo have now startet to release some of the games on Nintendo DSi as DSiWare at 200 DSi points.

I’ve been playing Donkey Kong Jr. which was released on DSi in Europe on Friday April 23rd, 2010. The game mimics the original game that was released in 1982 very well. The screen looks and feels like the old LCD screens on the G&W. I remember playing this game some 25 years ago, and the game is still fun to play.

There are some good G&W games to wait for, but until then, Donkey Kong Jr. is a great buy. Lots of fun for 200 points.

There’s a new trailer for Super Mario Galaxy 2. Looks like a good game.

Source: Kotaku.com

Wii Fit make me exercise some and have cool minigames. I’ve been playing the Ski Jump a bit and getting the hang of it. Managed to set a new personal record today with 377 meters total. First jump gave me 185, while the second was 192m. But I thing I can do better and will continue to try.

I’ve recorded the new record which you can watch bellow.

The Norwegian Game Award – Gullstikka 2009 – was held in Oslo tonight. Under you will see all the nomenies, winners are marked in bold text.

The big winner was Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 with five awards.

Best Racing game:

• Colin McRae Dirt 2
• Forza Motorsport 3
• Need For Speed Shift
• Need For Speed Nitro

Best Sports game:

• FIFA 10
• Football Manager 2010
• NHL 10
• Wii Sports Resort

Best Action game:

• Assassins Creed 2
• Batman: Arkham Asylum
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Best Adventure/RPG:

• Borderlands
• Dragon Age: Origins
• Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story
• Sherlock Holmes vs Jack The Ripper

Open Class:

• Guitar Hero: Metallica
• The Sims 3
• Street Fighter IV
• Tekken 6

Best Platformer:

• Lego Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues
• Little Big Planet
• New Super Mario Bros. Wii
• Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time

Best Childrens game:

• Knerten Spillet
• Lego Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues
• Mini Ninjas
• New Super Mario Bros Wii

Best game with Norwegian language:

• Buzz Norgesmester
• Little Big Planet PSP
• Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time
• The Sims 3

Critics Award:

• Batman Arkham Asylum
• Dragon Age Origins
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Best PC game:

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
• Dragon Age Origins
• Left 4 Dead 2
• Sims 3

Best Console game:

• Assassins Creed 2
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
• New Super Mario Bros Wii
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Best Handheld game:

• Gran Turismo PSP
• GTA: Chinatown Wars
• Little Big Planet PSP
• The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

Game of the Year:

• Assassins Creed 2
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
• Dragon Age Origins
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Best Online site:

• Gamer.no
• Gamereactor.no
• Spill.no
• Spillmagasinet.no

Årets Ildsjel:

• Bernt Erik Sandnes
• Kim «Iterium» Uri (MW2.no)
• Petter Røisland (FM Norge)
• Vegard Skjefstad (The Gathering)

Best Retailer:

• Gamestop Karl Johan
• Gamezone Kristiansand
• Spaceworld Megastore Oslo
• Spaceworld Strømmen

Best Downloable game:

• Battlefield 1943
• Shadow Complex
• Tales of Monkey Island
• Trials HD

Best Strategy:

• Anno 1404
• Empire Total War
• Halo Wars
• Warhammer 40 000: Dawn of War II

Best Multiplayer game:

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
• FIFA 10
• Left 4 Dead 2
• New Super Mario Bros wii

Best Cellphone game:

• Beneath A Steel Sky (iPhone)
• Flight Control (IPhone)
• Modern Combat: Sandstorm (iPhone)
• Secret of Monkey Island SE (iPhone)

Gullstikka translates to something like The Golden Stick.

There is one gaming company that I do remember from the 80’ies, Epyx. They made a lot of good games. One, which I’m very fond of, is Winter Games on Commodore 64. The games was released on ‘all’ formats under the sun. And since it’s time for the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, I thought it was time to digg the game up and make a small review of it.

This is the emulated Commodore 64 version on Nintendo Wii’s Virtual Console (only available in Europe I think).

Winter Games have 7 eventens, detailed bellow. The games was released in 1985 and is 25 years old this year. Is the game still good? Yes, I think so. The graphics is quite blocky by todays standards. But all those 8-bit games have some sort of soul that many new games don’t have. Remember that these games ran on a 64 Kb computer. It’s amazing what they achieved with so little memory.

The characteristic C64 sound brings back good memories. The game emulates very well, it only lack a Tac 2 joystiq.

Under my YouTube-video, you will see a small description of each event.

Hot Dog

This is a freestyle event. Make your twist and turns and try to land stright.

Biathlon

Find a nice pace with the left button to get a good rythm of your skier. Watch your heart rythm since you will get tired and slow down uphills. It will also be harder to hit your target while shooting. This is one of my favourite events.

Speed Skating

This event is pretty easy. Find a good rythm with the left and right buttons, and you will win easy.

Figure Skating

You have 1 minute to do your jump and spins. Sounds easy, but you have to land stright to get good score from the judges.

Ski Jump

The key in Ski Jump is to time your jump right, have a nice flight down the hill and try to land standing. As you see in my video, this is something I’m not good at.

Free Skating

My only criticism to this game is that this event is the same as Figure Skating, except that you now have 2 minutes to do your athletic movements.

Bobsled

This is my other favourite event. Learn the curves and when to press the button, and you will do great.

In other words: Play some Winter Games. It’s still a great game after 25 years.

Project Needlemouse is Sonic the Hedgehog 4. The new game will be released episodical on WiiWare, Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network. The Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 will feature HD graphics, while the Nintendo Wii version will use some sort of motioncontroll. The best part is that Sonic 4 is back to it’s original 2D roots, where Sonic belongs. The first episode will be released Summer 2010.

Here is the full pressrelease from blogs.sega.com:

SEGA® Europe Ltd. and SEGA® of America, Inc. today announced the first game developed specifically for the download market from the world’s fastest hedgehog. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I will be available via download on Microsoft XBLA, Sony PSN and Nintendo WiiWare, bringing with it the addictive classic 2D side scrolling action that Sonic fans have been waiting for.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I offers sublime 2D gameplay through beautifully rendered HD environments. Fans will be able to speed through each level with the classic Spin Dash move, and destroy enemies using the Homing Attack. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I sees the return of the much-loved special stages and takes players through a variety of different Zones, all inspired by the Mega Drive era.

Each level from Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I is separately selectable from the main menu, making it easy for players to replay their favorite sections as they wish. Long time fans will not be disappointed as they rejoin the action and face all new intense boss battles against everyone’s favourite villain – the ever devious and evil – Dr. Eggman!

“Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I is a return to the classic game style of the original Sonic games” commented Gary Knight, European Marketing Director SEGA Europe Ltd. “It’s great to be able to offer fans of the Sonic series the type of game they have been asking for in a high definition experience.”

Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I will be available in Summer 2010 for XBLA, PSN, and WiiWare.