The DS is released and the crowd goes wild, buying up all things Nintendogs and Brain Age and anything else sanitized and generic enough to earn a TV spot. Somewhere else, a more discerning buyer walks confidently into a store, not looking for the next big thing–no, what this person seeks would more likely bring ridicule or questions into one’s sexual preference; this gamer knows exactly what he’s looking for. From a shelf of Pokemon and The Sims and Mario and Sonic wannabes, this person picks an unlikely, pink hero: Kirby!At the 16 year mark, Kirby has outlasted the fads and garnered the respect of core 2-D loyalists for the difficulty and quality of some 10 games. Kirby is classic simplicity. Stubby-limbed, powder-pink cream puffs with real, lasting appeal don’t come along that often in our era of impossibly-fashionable, overly-accessorized, precision computer-generated characters. Or in games that opt not to invest in the creativity to put a fictional face to the name. On the contrary, Canvas Curse is creative something fierce, and the addition of the existing Kirby tropes only makes it better.The player creates guides to take a permanently-ballified Kirby through the levels with rainbow-coloured strokes of the stylus. He moves in the direction you draw the line, which can mean in circles, off of ramps, or down slopes as required. He gets some new powers amenable to traveling big, wide-open levels, like a missile that you guide. The game remains the most stylus-driven I’ve played, and just about the best application of this technology of the DS.It’s colourful, it’s bubbly, and it will hurt your pride all the more when you can’t stop making a red candied Kirby in the lava. But it’s well worth it.

You have to have patience and time to reap the rewards of the THQ’s Drawn to Life for Nintendo DS–otherwise, you won’t make anything but a clone of the Yeti from SkiFree. The main draw here is the heavy use of the stylus and, consequently, the touch screen, with which you’re expected to illustrate the hero and various objects in the world–but is it worth the effort to see your creations given animation?

Yes, for Drawn to Life is more just a sandbox, and more than glorified MS Paint. There’s a folksy plot casting the player in the role of The Creator, lead artist of an entire world…okay, maybe lead chicken-scratch designer is more like it, but at least the setting appeals. Skilled artists and animators have drawn most everything to life in ways you never could with the color-limited editor and small resolution, but the end result is that magic combination of fluid- and sharp-looking 2-D. So while your creations are going to look a tad out of place no matter how good you make them, budding artists and coloring contest entrants will enjoy the many opportunities to draw platforms, weapons, and vehicles. For the rest of us, it’s nice that they give you a lot of preset patterns with more to find as you play, in case you hate your God-given lack of artistic ability. There’s also new music, if you can find it–and you should try, because it’s surprisingly catchy goodness.

On to the problems. It would have helped your sickly creation fit in better to have a back-view for those top-down parts–say, there really are a lot of those. I thought this was a platformer/collection game… which it is, just with a mystical structure. In a 2-D game nowadays, you need levels engineered to trounce the best Flash-game offerings, and thankfully there’s enough such variety in Drawn to Life. You start in the hub of all action, the unnamed town of the Raposa creatures, which you must stop from becoming deserted by dispelling big clouds of Darkness. As you bring back the people, you’ll be able to shop, talk, and do all other manner of RPG things, but then you set out on the side-scrolling action adventure that’s the meat of the game. You can hop on heads, fire snowballs, punch, and ground-pound; you must also scrub the screen of shadow goo in each area and find the missing pages of the Book of Life. Lots to do.

More than I deign to cover in 200 words, you’ll just have to see Drawn to Life for yourself.

With a vintage vehicle slated to roll off the line in two short weeks, Mega Man hype has hit a fever pitch. At least it has with me. Whether you celebrate with me or not, I’m starting early by revisiting the Blue Bomber’s other classic series, gathered (in large part) in Megaman X Collection. In reimagining their strongest-selling action series for the Super Nintendo in 1993, Capcom wound up creating an entirely more vicious, theatrical, and sophisticated animal. Unfortunately, it sort of broke loose and went on a rampage of mediocrity after X4–but, having come out before the PS2’s X7 and 8, the Collection only goes up to X6 anyway. That’s a lot of guaranteed good… seriously.The games paint a picture of humanity’s greatest hour, as a robotic race of ‘Reploids’ emerges to be tasked with all the hard menial labour we so want to escape, and with generally helping people. Early on, the series echoes Asimov’s short stories and foreshadows the dangers of mass production and free will among robots, which leads to an epidemic of virus-infected, ‘Maverick’ reploids. Later, I feel the creators lost sight of the most novel aspects of their creation and, most famously, just killed Zero off in every game to be brought back later. TOO much drama.The games are old, the graphics 16- to 32-bit 2-D. But like all Capcom efforts, they were well-executed at the time and remain the best-in-class today. They threw in the Rockman X3 CD audio and anime cutscenes for this release, and of course the later Playstation releases offer more where that came from. It’s all, uh, mega-rockin’. Plus there’s that crappy racing game that had previously only appeared in Japan and Europe to add some value to this package–but really, that’s what first, second, and third are for.

Gasp, shock, and amaze! X-Men Legends, released in the midst of the film trilogy, features an original story when it could have easily just retold the mysterious origins of Wolverine… or alluded to them some more. Early on, the 4-player role-playing game takes as its central character a blonde New Yorker named Allison, and as its mission to find out why the Brotherhood so badly wants her in their ranks….Okay, so maybe you do start as Wolverine. But you’ll quickly collect your fellow Mutants from Xavier’s Mansion, after which time the game lets you swap between your chosen four at any ‘X-traction Point’. The gang’s all here: Storm, Iceman, Beast, Gambit… even Cyclops, who was voted the least likable X-Man in a poll conducted for this post. 2 whole people agreed. Anyway, there’s stat upgrades with every level up, armor and item drops, and a slightly-skinny skill tree that represents all the best of homo-superior’s powers. To earn your keep, you’ll have to fight a pretty steep difficulty curve with all your button-mashing might, but there are the special moves and various combos to keep combat interesting.Legends adopts the at-the-time popular cel-shaded style in honor of its comic book roots, but to the effect of making the small character models look grainy and not…meshed with the big locales. It’s not a big issue, especially when they procured the voice-acting talents of several screen actors–even Patrick Stewart to renew his film role as Professor X. X-Men legends is fun alone or with company, and certainly offers a lot for fans of Marvel, superheroes, Marvel Superheroes, and action-RPGs alike.

A couple summers ago, Capcom joined photojournalism and zombie-slaying in eviscerating matrimony, and Dead Rising became one of the early-ish Xbox 360 titles to be the darling of critics and consumers alike. With this year marking its re-release on Wii, those of you who missed the original (if any) should check it out. You play Frank West, the world’s only photographer with less brains than the mall full of zombies into which he descends for his deathly-exclusive scoop. You have (initially) 72 game hours to uncover the cause of the outbreak, but you’ll more quickly uncover the fact that every zombie is hungry for a Frankfurter. To prevent your own death, you need to take pictures, kill zombies, and complete missions by saving the few (un)lucky surviving mall-rats. You’ll earn Prestige Points and go up levels, learning new moves and generally bettering your chances of not dying. Pick up all the mass-produced crap a mall can offer and use it to kill an endless supply of zombies, be it home hardware, medieval weaponry, lawn mowers, bicycles, benches, even food (which you can also cook and eat).Dead Rising might not– well, let’s be honest. It WILL not look as good on the Wii as it did on the Box, which had splendid model detail, great animations, and vibrant lighting that will be lost. But it will add motion controls… you’ll have to wait and see how it stacks up. There never was, and may never be more to do in any other video game. Capcom does a great honor to source material Dawn of the Dead and its ilk, surpassing the entertainment value of them all.

Though the diminutive hero has long been the posterchild for adorable RPG sidekicks and, consequently, heaps upon heaps of merchandise, the latest outing of the fluffy yellow steed is still a toughie. Of the same stock as the barely-graphical DOS games of yore, Diablo, and the unrelated-but-similar Mystery Dungeon titles, Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo’s Dungeon has, despite a surtitle fit for a bedtime story, the pedigree for pain.

Even with a side venture like this, and one that embraces the younger set, Square Enix still spins a thick and colourful yarn. The Learning Dungeon introduces Cid’s ongoing quest for an artifact modestly called Timeless Power, and from that point on, Chocobo’s Dungeon centres on primordial themes: once you arrive in the town of Lostime, where the tolling of a clocktower bell erases people’s memories, the value of memories becomes the central subject. The 20 main dungeons take players into psycho-analytical territory–quite literally, as using some manner of psycho-active brooch, you teleport into forgetful folks’ heads to restore their lost knowledge. It’s in these dungeons that players will meet several unhappy endings without the proper prudence, and an ample stock of escape items.

Here we have turn-based adventure that doesn’t operate on random encounters, but rather, where your every action sees the enemy take one of their own. In the randomly-generated dungeons, you’ll not only find obvious treasure (and less obvious traps) as you move along, but you’ll cause any enemies on your floor, whether onscreen or not, to take their turns–and if you’re close enough, this might mean a smack in the backside. Yeah, you’ll be minding your own business, eating some of Gysahl Greens (because Chocobo gets hungry, too) and equipping your newest Saddle, cause you figure no one is around–when, way off in the distance, a Flying Eye or Turtle Shade wakes up and promptly seeks you out for Wing Night. In the towns, you’re a free-range Chocobo, permitted to shop, talk, bank, and walk as you please. No one is counting your moves out there.

The production values on this little number are still Square Enix values, and as such, all kinds of talent went into the audio-visual components. Resounding performances of Final Fantasy pieces, from #1’s town theme to Setzer’s theme from VI, rear their orchestrated heads with regularity, and the super-emotive voice acting is perfectly pro. The FMV sequences have all the fluidity and detail possible on the Wii–which still means a lot of flowing hair and flawless complexions–and the in-game models are all crisp, inspired, and/or cute. Only downside is the jaggedness around the edges and some dullness in the colour palette.

I <3 Chocobo and you should too.

Ever so often, a game from Japan that you’d think would be perfect for Western audiences never gets picked up for localization. Like, a game that harkens back to 50’s B-movie horror (in this context, referring more to the unintended scariness of such films’ very existence). Now that special effects are no longer the obstacle they then were–on the contrary, they are often used to and sometimes actually can salvage an abysmal production–why aren’t there more digital likenesses of The Blob that Ate Everyone, or Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, or especially Japan’s own movie-monster speciality, Godzilla?

That is, why not more games like EDF, a.k.a. Earth Defense Force 2017?

Part of a cheapo label in Japan called Simple 2000, EDF stormed the import scene on the PS2 a few years back, and someone took notice. (That would be D3 Publisher, I guess.) So they made a pseudo-sequel on the Xbox 360, and the alien bug-blasting adventure was, finally and happily, playable by the monolingually anglophone. (Admit it, importers: other than blowing up a Big Ben that was crawling with space ants, you had no idea what you were doing half the time.) Basic reading ability is a great boon in navigating the menus and for matching the plethora of weapons to the appropriate missions, but what you really need is your best trigger finger, and a small side of brains, for getting out of–and into–harm’s way.

Giant ants, jumping tarantulas, and walkers straight out of War of the Worlds–the end of the freaking world never made better interactive entertainment fodder. Such all-out poly-pushing worked the poor PS2’s legacy innards a little too hard, but looks a lot better on the more capable hardware; one can see the sacrifices, such as ripping the flying female character out of 2-player mode, more than made up for within a single 360 screenie. Moreover, 2-player mode shouldn’t slow this version to a crawl, meaning fun EDF before should be really fun this time.

While almost completely free of urban convenience and amenities, the untamed paradise of my last week’s vacation wouldn’t have been complete without the relic of public recreation known as the video arcade. I think the town must have realized, when it contracted the beach-side lot (or whatever it is that towns do) to Subway and the adjacent funhouse, that they could use the type of establishment that so few developed areas have anymore to draw even more people out there. They certainly picked the good games you don’t find elsewhere–one of which is Ghost Squad.

Playing Ghost Squad in the arcade jogged fond memories of the Wii version. At under $30, Ghost Squad Wii can be yours to own (and beat) on the cheap compared to any bastard coin-sucker. It’s not an exact replica–the Wiimote doesn’t have that ratta-tat-tat that arcade assault rifles do so well (nor any rumble at all, really, as you’re likely expected to use a gun attachment), and the visuals are less lustrous high-res and more budget-title. But the content remains the same, with a made-up military squad out to thwart those durn terrorists in one of several missions. Choice branches split and re-split the route through each level, and lead you to pleasantly varied mission objectives that you don’t typically encounter in a light-gun game. For example, at one juncture, you might opt to save the hostages, smoke the place out with grenades, or just burst in with barrels blazing. Your choice brings new controls (like mashing to release handcuffs) and new rules (like don’t shoot the hostages, duh) into play, so you have to be thinking on your feet. Plus, for the Wii version, the designers have concocted some of the most laughable costumes imaginable–a must-see.

In the voluntary and gainful way, I mean: by playing a Treasure game. No dwindling number of gamers have elected the mental and carpal pounding that accompanies every Treasure release. Their feats of sprite-hemorraging, always comfortably leading the field like it weren’t no thing, have kept players’ synaptic activity off the charts since 1993. I’m sure medical science is just a hair’s breadth from discovering a neuronal imprint in the shape of the Treasure Cube amongst the oldest devotees.

The commonality amongst all Treasure games is that they do the same things over and over, but better each time. After all these years, that still sets them a universe apart from normal. Most recently, with Bangai-O Spirits, the bar might just have been irretrievably raised in Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellence. Consider 167 stages of kaleidoscopic mayhem with a tiny-giant robot at the centre of it all. A little bit Metal Warriors on SNES, a little horizontal space shooter, and–because Treasure works in everything Treasure wants–even a little sports game, Bangai-O Spirits equals a lot of crazy. For the sake of your own sanity–or at its expense, for attaining amaze-your-friends-and-impress-yourself gaming ability–don’t pass up Bangai-O.

Today we cover the official digital facsimile of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the aptly-entitled Beijing Olympics 2008 from SEGA. Related in name and make only to a certain sports-themed mascot mash-up, this outing is the full-blooded trustee in preserving the memory of the athletes and events of the world’s largest amateur sports meet–a lot of responsibility. But is it a lot of fun?

From the sounds of the more favorable reviews–which I will trust, because I like their sounds more–the game harkens back to Decathlete on Sega Saturn, which was as fine an exercise in button-mashing as was ever conceived. This is the control scheme that best simulates (or simulates as closely as is possible with a manually-operated input device) the act of running, peddling, swimming, or hurdle-hopping your legs off. Repetitive strain injuries to your finger muscles will put you in the shoes of any Olympian–but if you can withstand the current crop of Guitar Hero-like dexterity drills, this should be cake. While the older game featured–obviously–a mere ten events and few more athletes, things have come a long way since 1996: of the 30+ events in Beijing Olympics 2008, only a few are duds, depending who you want to believe (1Up.com in my case). And, while online play is declared lag-fully flawed, it’s just as in the real Olympics–there are those pendulous, precious metallic incentives for solo play. For some, such a simulation might be better left to the Wiimote-waggling of Mario and Sonic–but for those with a taste for real venues and real personalities, not to mention all other penchants for realism, this may be the way to go.