What Should Be Added in Super Mario Maker 2's DLC (Or Super Mario Maker 3)

Super Mario Maker 2 is the quintessential Mario level simulator. Nintendo has really stepped it up with taking everything that was great in its predecessor and thinking outside the ? Block by improving on certain mechanics and finding new and fun ways we could design Mario levels. What more could we ask for? Well, like Oprah at a Popeye's the answer is more. While Super Mario Maker gave us a lot, there is a lot more to be desired whether in an update, DLC, or in the a Super Mario Maker 3(we know it's coming). Here's some ideas on what they can add.

Add Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Land, or Super Mario Land 2 Themes

Super Mario Maker features some of Mario's most iconic 2-D games (Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros 3, and Super Mario World) as themes for you to create levels too. They've recently featured Super Mario 3D World for Super Mario Maker 2. Something does feel missing as we are missing another iconic game from the Mario franchise, Super Mario Bros. 2! It does seem a bit sad that even with Super Mario Maker 2, Nintendo still wants to not show it any love, but it could also introduce more gaming mechanics with lifting and throwing veggies and enemies at other enemies. Also considering that Super Mario Maker 2 does have the Super Flower from Super Mario Land as an unlockable, why not stop there. Why not give us the full Super Mario Land and Super Mario Land 2 treatment by featuring enemies, power-ups, and worlds based on those games.

Create Your Own World Map (Playlist)

We all know that Super Mario Maker 2 lets you create stages where you can think outside the box than your traditional Mario levels. While giving you all that creativity, and even giving you a Story Mode this time around, it still does seem a bit limited. Why not expand on not just creating levels but creating your own world as a Playlist you can share online and with friends? You can create a fire or sky world or you can make a challenge world full of insane difficult levels.

Add More Mario Enemies

Super Mario Maker 2 features an array of classic Mario enemies spanning from the entire franchise. Moreso the classic Mario enemies from goombas to koopa troopas, to boos. They've recently added Boom-Boom and Angry Sun to the mix. What more can you ask for? Maybe more enemies or at least more certain enemies from Super Mario World and Super Mario Bros. 3. It would be nice to see Rex and Choco Island dinos from Super Mario World or maybe Spike and Fire Bros and Boomerang Bros from Super Mario Bros 3 in their game themes or better yet mixed in other themes.

Add Specific Character Traits 

Super Mario Maker 2 includes Luigi, Toadette, Blue Toad. Fun? You bet, but what would be funner is if they can do their character traits. Luigi, in most of the games, can jump higher but have less traction. This, and maybe giving this feature to other characters as unlockables, could spice up the gameplay when designing levels as well. Give Toadette a double jump as well.

Add Peach and Daisy

I know what you are saying. Why add the Mushroom Kingdom's residential Monarch in Distress? Who will Mario save? Well, if you must know, Princess Peach has been on a few adventures where she wasn't a kidnappee and actually assisted Mario and co. in saving the day. From Super Mario Bros. 2, to Super Mario 3D World, which is a theme. Peach has been shown to be capable to hold her own. A matter of fact adding her would be almost revenge for all the times Bowser has kidnapped her as well. Daisy in Super Mario Run has shown that she can get the job done. It's all cool. Just don't add Peachette.

Bring Back the Mystery Mushroom

The Mystery Mushroom was a very popular item in the first Super Mario Maker as it allowed Mario to turn into your favorite Nintendo characters. This of course was supported through Amiibo. We are kinda bummed it didn't make a return in Super Mario Maker 2 due to Amiibo sales declining. That shouldn't ruin it for everyone. Just like everyone download it and have a set of characters available each month. Problem solved.

Add Slope Warp Pipes

Slopes were a huge demand for the first Super Mario Maker. They teased slopes for a Super Mario Maker stage in Super Smash Bros. for the Wii U and we thought we would get them in an update. Low and behold we had to wait a whole sequel to enjoy Mario slip sliding away through enemies and levels. No foul. Now let's up the ante with slope warp pipes. They could work just like slopes meanwhile providing a great aesthetic in levels. In Super Mario World some warp pipes also functioned as canons that could launch Mario through courses. Sounds like fun.

Add More Mini-Bosses

Super Mario Maker gave us bosses and mini bosses in the form of Bowser and Bowser Jr. It was a little neat but it got older quick where merely putting wings and making them bigger with the Super Mushroom was a bore. Super Mario Maker 2 did add Boom-Boom and Pom-Pom but it feels like it's still not enough. We need more bosses and mini-bosses that give new life to the level designer. Adding the Koopalings would be a huge step. Birdo from Super Mario Bros. 2 could work as well. Why not stop there? We could see a revival of old long forgotten Mario bosses return in the form of Tatanga. Maybe Wart too?

Where's Buffy in the New Buffy Reboot?

     Every generation a tv network decides to reboot a former tv show in order to get us to watch and try to get as much money and ratings from old fans as they could. Yes, you heard me or you may have been buried under a Hellmouth or have been a rat for a while, you may have not heard the news that we are getting a new Buffy reboot. The only tid bit we know about the new reboot is that Joss Whedon is involved and it will feel more like a sequel than a full on reboot. Oh, and that we will have a black actress as the lead. After everyone freaked out about the new lead being recast as the Buffy Summers we knew and grew up loving, showrunner Monica Owusu-Breen has clarified that we will be following the reboot with a new slayer, not a new Buffy.

pic.twitter.com/Sdz4oKh3gM

— monicaowusubreen (@monicabreen) July 26, 2018

     So, since we are going to be introduced to a new slayer and not a new Buffy, or the old one, where exactly in this reboot/sequel is Buffy? Here are some possibilities.

She's Fronting Her Own Slayer Organization

     In season seven of the original series we were introduced to the ideal of potential slayers, women who were predestined to take up the powers of the slayers should the current slayer dies. Think about it like being on a supernatural evil fighting waiting list. In the end of season seven Buffy and Willow made it that there could be more than one slayer and every potential slayer will actually become a slayer. What to do know that there are thousands of slayers in the world? Make your own slayer task force. Later on in the comic books Buffy started her own organization just like the Watchers Council to recruit her own team of slayers to fight vampires around the world. If the reboot is following the comic books, the new series could be the new slayer fighting vampires and demons in the new organization. The new reboot could be not only the new slayer coming to terms about her powers and growing up, like Buffy did in the original, but also doing it with other slayers who are dealing with the same thing, unlike Buffy. If Sarah Michelle Gellar is signed on to reprise her role, she could act as a mentor.

Buffy is Dead

     Why the new focus on a new kick ass slayer? Simple because the old one died. Like Spike said, every Slayer has a death wish and death is the slayer's gift. It isn't shocking that all slayers eventually die and Buffy is no different. Yeah, she died twice but third time's the charm right? So the new series could have Buffy could go down as one of the great ones and the new slayer trying to live up to the mantle. Hard, right? But it could make some great drama and show how she is doing things a bit different than Buffy. They could also go all Halloween on us and recon things that happened in season seven and in the comics where there are not thousands of slayers running around and it is back to the chosen one format. But that would mean Faith is dead too. That's not five by five...

Buffy is M.I.A

     I know, very Supernatural where the Winchester Bros. spent the first couple of season looking for their father, but it could happen. Something happened to Buffy so it's time for someone to a new slayer to lead and take charge and to do all the main kickassery in Buffy's absence or find out what happened to Buffy. Hopefully the new show will know how to not stretch things out to far and reveal where in the world is Buffy Summers, you like what Supernatural does alot.

     Again, these are all speculations (for fun) and we may find out where is Buffy in this new reboot when new details emerge. I've made mine, but that doesn't mean you can't make yours and I would love to hear them. What are your thoughts?

Should We Be Worried About the Spyro Reignited Trilogy?

     Nostalgia has hit us hard like a tsunami this week. We're getting a Spyro game. Not a brand new game, but a remaster anyway. There was an apparent leak that revealed that Toys for Bob was going to give Spyro the remaster treatment, just like Crash Bandicoot and the N. Sane Trilogy, and now everything has been confirmed. We will be getting the new, yet old, Spyro Reignited Trilogy this September, if it doesn't get delayed. It will be published by Activision who published the remastered Crash games and if that doesn't get you running down memory lane like it's an marathon on your childhood, Tom Kenney who voiced a majority of the old Spyro games will reprise his role as Spyro for the entire remaster.

      So for the millennials out there Spyro was platformer that came out during the golden era of 3D platformer games like Banjo-Kazooie, Conker, Super Mario 64, and another series that we've gotten the remaster treatment Crash Bandicoot. With this remaster everything should be cool right? Right?

       I'm sure lot of people had their nostalgia goggles as soon as they heard the news and thought back to days playing the game when they were young and how awesome the game was back then. I'm not saying that the series suck, it did everything but suck. I'm saying that maybe the gameplay could come off as a bit dated as in most cases things do not hold up as time passes. Things may not be as awesome as we remembered it and time has a funny way to make us aware of that by showing us how outdated things can be.
     We've seen this with Yooka-Laylee. Yooka-Laylee isn't what you call an old game, but Playtonic, the studio who developed the game, treated as a spiritual sequel to the popular Banjo-Kazooie series and got us all in the nostalgia feels.We were partially disappointed as we were treated to old and dated gameplay that gave the game a stale taste.
     Luckily this wasn't the case when remade Crash Bandicoot N.Sane Trilogy where Vicarious Visions did much more than just give the first three Crash games a facelift with updated graphics. They tweaked gameplay mechanics a bit that made it a bit more challenging and felt new. Hopefully that is what Toys for Bob has in mind for remastering the Spyro games as well.

What are your thoughts?

New Super Mario Bros Movie: Second Time's a Charm?

    It's a go on a new Super Mario Movie. Earlier this year we have heard rumors that Nintendo is considering venturing back into Hollywood and giving us a brand new Mario Movie. They have officially announced that the rumors are true. They will be partnering will Illumination Studios, the same studios that gave us the Minions franchise.
      This time around they will be fronting the movie as they will be in charge of supervising the whole thing and gaming god Shigeru Miyamoto will be directing the movie himself. Nintendo is really taking charge to make sure that this thing goes off without a hitch, and they should.

     We all remember or better yet would like to forget the live action Super Mario Movie that came out years ago. How was it? Bob Hoskins who played Mario described his experience making the movie as "a fucking nightmare" He was spot on. It was a good idea on paper but the execution was hellish. The directors Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel were reportedly nightmarish and shooting was a big mess. It wasn't until the studios actually got in and removed the directors that they were to salvage what ever they could but it was all for nigh as the movie did horribly at the box office and gotten even worse reviews. The Super Mario Bros movie is infamously one of the worst video game movies of all time and that says a lot with the damage Uve Boll did. After the Mario Bross movie Bob-ombed, Nintendo has been very selective in what they can make movies and shows out of. Can Nintendo do better?
     Well, a promised by Tatsumi Kimishima, Nintendo would think of ideas outside of the box and think of ideas  to expand the company. Reconsidering opening up to making films out of their beloved franchises could be thinking outside the box and a good way to expand things.
      As far as the studio, Illumination being that they've made a hit franchise with Despicable Me and  Minions would mean that potential Mario movie would most likely be in good, if not great hands, and Nintendo is dead set on supervising on what direction the movie can go. They have learned the lessons in the past, like maybe not casting John Leguizamo a Luigi and are wiser when it comes to who they let play around with source material. However this raises a few problems. We know that Nintendo and Miyamoto can make great games. Movies are however a different fire-breathing bull turtle dinosaur(?) beast. Whether or not they can make a good movie will depend on them and it's all up in the air at this point.

Is Super Mario Odyssey the Best Mario Game Ever?

     Super Mario Odyssey is out and holy goomba on a stick is it is awesome. This time Mario has to step out of the Mushroom Kingdom and brave a whole new world as he sets sail to rescue Princess Peach, again. It's no doubt that Odyssey is a great game with a ton of creativity in the many worlds Mario has to look for Power Moons in, new mechanics that spices up old traditional 3D Mario gameplay, and tons of stuff to explore in the many kingdoms, including secrets and easter eggs. With a ton of stuff to do and how great Odyssey looks and plays, you have to wonder is it the best Mario game ever?

     It is no doubt that Odyssey is modeled after past 3D Mario titles. Odyssey is the first open world Mario Game since Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario 64. The first Mario 3D title, Super Mario 64 is set the standard for ever 3D Mario game as its influence is not only calling back to the Mushroom Kingdom but to its exploration and gameplay as Mario is in these huge worlds looking for Power Moons which are the stars in the game, literally in the Mushroom Kingdom. While Mario 64 is the blueprint, Super Mario Sunshine is the biggest contributor to Odyssey's development.
       The goal in Odyssey's development seems to be to take things that were in both 64 and Sunshine and take it to newer heights like a P-Wing. Like Sunshine you do get traditional gameplay mixed in with a ton of puzzles elements, but Odessey takes thing and flip it on its head. The puzzles and puzzlier and funnier. What's also is on its head is Cappy which seems to be a huge step up than what FLUDD was in Sunshine. With Cappy, Mario is able to do all sorts of things from attacking enemies, using him to jump further, and possess enemies.

     If possessing enemies isn't enough then there are a ton of easter eggs and secrets in the game. Easter eggs and references isn't anything new to Mario games, especially the recent ones. Odyssey is however chock full of throwbacks to send you into a nostalgia coma for months. From almost everything in the Mushroom Kingdom (including Yoshi's house from Super Mario World) to Metro Kingdom referencing Mario's Jumpman days in Donkey Kong.
    Odyssey has up the ante in term of content and gameplay than its predecessors but is it a much better game than both? It's hard to make a definitive judgement as each Mario game have its charm. Odyssey is technically the better game, but it doesn't have the feel to it 64 exploring the castle grounds and the character that Sunshine had venturing Isle Defino. It is good that Odyssey does take things up a notch compared to 64 and Sunshine and it's great that it does those things without ruining classing 3D Mario gameplay.

What are your thoughts?

We Were Never Going Back To Kanto

     Sun and Moon came out during Pokemon's 20th Anniversary. With it's release we had a ton of call backs to the original Red and Blue games. We got to see a ton of generation 1 pokemon all throughout Alola along with Alolan forms of some of them, Alola, having its own variation of nugget bridge even re-enacting the time you had to fight trainers and a Team Rocket grunt at the end, and even fighting Red and Blue at Battle Tree. You even were treated a Machoke stomping the land flat in Sun and Moon's demo.
     So with all of these nods back to the gen 1 games, a trailer, a lot of fans were hopeful that with Sun and Moon's release we were going to take a journey back to the Kanto region a la Gold and Silver. Right? Wrong. Sun and Moon came out and it looks like *spoilers* the only one taking a trip to Kanto was Lillie in the game's ending. Ultra Moon and ultra Sun are on its way and Kanto journey hopefuls that wouldn't let the dream die got hopeful again with a screenshot where it looks like you would be back in Lt. Surge's gym and even Mega Sun and Mega Moon will be featuring Team Rocket grunts to name even more callbacks. Later it turns out it's just a new area in one of the towns in Alola. So, the dream died and people are sad that they won't be going back to the land that started it all. Should they?
     The only game that ever had you go back to a region from a previous game was Gold and Silver. And the only reason behind that was probably because Jhoto was a region literally across from Kanto. After Gold and Silver you only stayed in the current region and never went back to the previous one. You were treated however to some references to other regions and even some events that happened from past games. They've never broke away from this in the other generations so it wouldn't make sense to do it in this current generation even if it was the 20th anniversary. Nintendo and the Pokemon Company wants you to focus on Alola and there's nothing wrong with that.
     And even if they did decide to take you back to Kanto, it most likely wouldn't be the Kanto we all would remember. According to the timeline, yes there is a timeline, Sun and Moon takes place years after Red and Blue. Again, we see this now with Red and Blue being adults. We may not recognize towns and different places in Kanto if we ever went back. We may not even see the same characters and gym leaders. A lot has changed in Kanto during the events in Gold and Silver since we last been there three years ago. Cinnabar Island is gone, The Pokemon tower in Lavender town was changed from a spooky pokemon cemetery to not so spooky radio tower, and Blue and Janine took over gym leader duties in place of Koga and Giovanni (who is still on the run). It's maybe best to remember Kanto the way it was.

What Games Should Be in the Game Boy Classic (If There is One)?

     So Nintendo has been conducting the Nostalgia train with not one but two emulators. First we got the NES Classic which gave us a wave of 8-bit games that we used to play during that era. Then we got the SNES Classic that not only up the ante with all of our favorite SNES games, but gave us the unreleased Star Fox 2. Both emulators have sold well so it's no sudden surprise that Nintendo MIGHT keep the trend going by giving us a Game Boy Classic as well, according to rumors.
     I, like a lot of you all remember pestering our moms for one. I for one drove my mom up the wall playing my Game Boy so much that I literally wore them out and she had to buy multiple ones for me. I like a lot of took them everywhere and that was the whole appeal. You can play your favorite games anywhere, as long as you had a good pair of double A batteries. Anyway, if they do make it official what games will make the cut? Here's a list of what I hope will:

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

So the first one must've been so good that they had to make another one right? SML2 was in every way bigger and grander than its predecessor even to its graphics. Who can't forget playing this game. How difficult the star maze level was. Fighting the three little pigs in the Mario zone. Also this game was the debut of our favorite garlic eating money grubbing schemer Wario.

Super Mario Land

The original. This was almost like a Super Mario Bros remix as instead of Princess Peach, you had to rescue Princess Daisy in the four different kingdoms of Sarassaland. It was portable fun with classic Mario gameplay and a couple of screen shooter elements in it via Mario's toypop plane.

Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3

This was an excellent debut for Wario as he was on a mission to get treasure and a giant statue of Princess Peach. I remember trying to find all the secrets of the game to get a 100% and get the best ending.

Kirby's Dreamland

This was the debut of everyone's favorite little pink marshmallow. It has all true classic Kirbyness so why shouldn't this make the cut.

Donkey Kong '94

This is almost a remix of the classic Donkey Kong arcade game. It introduces the classic levels but also gives you a bunch of platform-puzzle levels. I remember how fun it was playing this.

Bomberman GB

We didn't get this in the US, not in its original version. So if Nintendo can pull a Star Fox 2, then they can very well do it again with this game.

Castlevania: The Adventure

You think the early Castlevania games were hard and fun on the NES, try a portable version of it. It plays just like the classic Castlevania games that we love without the truly horror induced 3D games that we weren't fond of. Also nobody's dressed up in weird BDSM leather crap.

Donkey Kong Land

The SNES port was so awesome right? Why not make a Game Boy version of it. For the most part it played like a condensed version of DKC, and that's not a bad thing.

Final Fantasy Adventure

Putting Zelda in a Final Fantasy game? What more could you want? This was one of the first Final Fantasy spin-offs they made where they experimented and tweaked with gameplay along with Mystic Quest. As I stated earlier this game was unique as it gave us the series' traditional battle gameplay elements mixed with Zelda gameplay with an top-down overworld screen and dungeon puzzle solving. This spin-off also gave way to the Mana series.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

More Zelda is always good. So this was like mini Zelda in that you were not in Hyrule and solving classic Zelda dungeon puzzles in an island trying to wake a giant magic fish. It's more awesome than it sounds. More so that the Zelda team recently did a call back to the game with a quest in Breath of the Wild.

Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge

More Mega Man. More good.

X

Want to know where that cool song from Super Smash Bros Brawl? This where it came from. This game was giving us 16 bit 3D before Star Fox.

Metroid II: Return of Samus

I know. We got a enhanced remake with Samus Returns. So why not compare both games by putting this on the list. Both seem to be great games in the series.

Tetris

This is the game you've wasted countless hours on playing. So it would be a crime for Nintendo to put this in the Game Boy Classic. This came out at a time where everyone was obsessed with lining weird shaped block in order. Hell, putting Tetris on the Game Boy was responsible for the Game Boy being as big as it was.

Game and Watch Gallery

Classic minigames from the Game and Watch series remixed with Mario. You can even play the classic versions.

Maybe Rare Is In The Right About Not Revisiting Past Franchises

     Rare dropped a bit of a bombshell on us recently in regards to fans asking to return to old franchises. In an interview with DK Vine, head of Rare studio Craig Duncan has said that they are not interested in going back to old franchises, even going as far as saying that it would be "the worst thing for Rare to do." He further stated.

 "I don't think it's OK to just go make the same game that people loved before but with up-to-date graphics, audio and all those things [...] Just making them again with whatever technology's available today - that's not Rare," Duncan said. "I think that what Rare is, is doing the kind of games that only Rare would go do."

He continues to say:

"If I went and said to Rare, 'hey, go remake all of the stuff that was kind of successful at the time but make it up-to-date,' I don't think it would be good, and I don't think it would be relevant, and I don't think people would really want it. I think they might think they do, but I don't think they would."

     This kinda upset fans who probably were looking forward and hoping that Rare would dust off old franchises like Banjo-Kazooie and Conker and get new games. I kinda understand where people are coming from being upset, but strangely enough I'm on the side of Rare.
     Yeah, it could be nice to see more Banjo-Kazooie and Conker games but realistically, not every old franchise can be like Mario or Zelda where you can do tweak the standard gameplay and keep the old fans happy and mostly everything works wonderfully. Making these games with out trying to improve on the gameplay and just relying on better graphics just so that we can live in a wonderful world of nostalgia™ would be a disservice to the series that we loved when we were kids.That's what happened when Rare gave us Banjo and Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts where it did have its great parts like its inside jokes and story, but left us with a sour taste in our mouths when they almost completely ditched the classic platformer gameplay and in Banjo's spiritual successor Yooka Laylee made by Playtonic, former Rare developers, which was a basic former shell of its predecessor with a lot of old, but not enough new to keep us satisfied. Also don't get me started on the Sonic series.
     It seems that Rare is interested in giving trying out fresh and new game mechanics, but in new games which it isn't a bad thing. In closing let the past be in the past where we love it and accept that, and probably get a really good emulator. What are your thoughts?

Jobs Mario Needs

Yes boys and girls, it's true. Nintendo has recently announced that Mario is no longer a plumber. Since 1981 Mario's debut in Donkey Kong it's been unknown what was his occupation and how the hell could he afford a gorilla named Donkey Kong. It wasn't until the game Mario Bros that Mario and his brother Luigi were officially deemed as plumbers, a matter of fact the game is them dealing with creatures that got flushed down pipes. Over the years as Mario went on to save Princess Peach, he kinda taken his plumbing job in the back burner with it being referenced in a couple video games. Now that it seems that Mario has officially hung up his... plunger? What will he do now to earn coins for a living?

Game Show Host

Mario sure knows how to throw a party. With doing all the zany mini games in the Mario Party series that he and other Mario characters do, why don't he become a game show host? The mini games almost have a American Ninja Warrior or Double Dare feeling to it, why not ad trivial questions to it and have it become a full fledged show? His friends be chased by boulders, boos, and wack each other with hammers for coins. Why not for other fabulous prizes? Maybe a BRAND NEW CAR!

Racer

Mario Kart is easily hands down the most successful Mario spin-offs. Its popularity was huge enough for it to be treated as a it's own thing in Super smash Bros with  not only stages dedicated to the games but items as well. It's time for Mario to take off on the sudden high wave of popularity and shift gears and become a race car driver.

Bodyguard

Let's face it. The Toad guards are not doing their job right. Even getting kidnapped themselves. Peach needs to up her security.

Actor

I know we all remember the Super Mario Bros movie and how horrible it was (We can never forget tragedies. They haunt us forever.) Horrible cinematography? Could be. Bad script? Maybe. Bad acting? Dennis Hopper wasn't a great Koopa in it so probably, but it was definitely missing something: Mario! Maybe if Mario himself could've saved the film from being one of the worst video game movies ever. The first movie he was in didn't suck... that much.

Doctor

So Mario has been a doctor for a while in the Dr. Mario games. No longer being a plumber could mean him finally putting on the white jacket permanently. The Mushroom Kingdom needs a prescription that only Dr. Mario can fill out! Wait, Mario is an actual doctor, right? If not at least he can play one like a certain one on TV.

Fuck It! Enjoy Retirement

Fuck it. Life's too good to be fixing leaky pipes and toilets. You can just live the retired life. You've accumulated a ton of money from busting blocks and traveling to countless worlds saving Princess Peach over the past thirty plus years. Plus I'm sure Ninendo and Miyamoto-san can cut you a check or at least give you a piece of the Mario game sales, right? RIGHT? No? Oh. I wonder if lawyers take gold coins.

Sonic Mania: Awesome Because of Nostalgia?

     Sonic Mania is out and holy crapballs is it amazing. For those who don't know and are new, Sonic mania is one of the two new Sonic games coming out this year. Mania seems to be a retro love letter to the previous Sonic games of the 16 bit era.  The constant work of nostalgia has seemed to garnered the love of fans and critics alike. But is the game's love and success due to the huge galore of nostalgia or is there something else behind why the game being so awesome?
     There's no doubt that Sonic Mania is a big pretty package of nostalgia and glory to the earlier Sonic games. It's return to full 2D and full retro feel. The return of the Blue Sphere mini game. classic retro zones returning, the Special zones being ripped straight out of the Sonic CD. It is even chocked full of secrets and easter eggs going back to that to Sonic's golden era of games. But we've seen the nostalgia card being waved before in the Sonic series and it hasn't worked or wasn't quite perfected, looking at you Sonic 4. Sonic Mania is the response to what the fans want: A simple Sonic game.
     The team fronted by Christian Taxman, who worked on the earlier Sonic games, stripped down and went with what worked in the past games, and went back to basics which ironically is what the series needed to do all along to stay fresh. No weird game mechanics. No Werehog, no dark and gritty reboot like Sonic '06 was, and whatever the hell Shadow the Hedgehog was. It is a far cry from some of the Sonic games I referenced from the series' later years where development teams tried piled on so much stuff in games that it just ended up being a big mess. The nostalgia is only a front.
      Hopefully Sega has learned learned something from this and maybe Sonic 4 that less is more and simple works. They seemed to be on the right track with Generations and it would be nice to momentum continued with Forces whenever that comes out.

Where The Hell Is A New Darkstalkers Game?

The 90s was some sort of a golden era for games. You had a SNES in almost every household. Mario was the king of games and Sonic was ever so quick on his heels to overthrow him. But most importantly quarters fell like rain in arcade shops. If it was one genre that thrived in the 90s, it was fighting games. It all started with Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat took it to higher places and knocked the genre off a pit. If you could claim a king of fighting game hits it would be no other than Capcom. Street Fighter, Final Fight, X-Men vs. Street Fighter which was introduction to the Marvel vs Capcom series. All amazing hit games, but there was never a more interesting game than Darkstalkers.

     If you don't know what Darkstalkers was it was Street Fighter meets Halloween where you had fighters based off of iconic monsters. You had Vampires, Succubi, and a Frankenstein monster that attacks you with his butt. It was great, great enough to not only get video game sequels but an anime series and one cartoon that was not so great. But just like everything good in the 90s and Santa after mom and dad lost their job, we stopped getting games. Now this doesn't mean that we stop seeing Darkstalker characters altogether, the series had enough of a fanbase that Capcom featured a couple of Darkstalker characters here in there in other fighting games, most noticeably the Marvel vs. Capcom series. But why did they stop making Darkstalker games and most importantly what will get them to resurrect the series again?
     Capcom producer Yoshinori Ono has said at Comic Con 2010 that it would be his dream to revive the series and that is exactly what he has tried. At the following Comic-con even he told fans that the series is not dead and took pictures of people at the panel that wanted the series back in order to spark Capcom's interest. A couple of years later Capcom announced Darkstalkers: Resurrection which was met with positive reviews, but was a commercial flop. Nothing new about the series came after that.
     Capcom has announced that they are considering blowing the dust off of some of their more dormant titles. Darkstalkers should at least be in the considering. It was obvious that Resurrection was Capcom testing the waters to see if they can revive the series and again, despite it not selling well that shouldn't have been the main reason to not make more games. There could've been a lot of factors behind Resurrection not doing as well as it did most importantly how Capcom treated and promoted the game and people not wanting to by a full fledged fighting game than a compilation best of. Things have changed since then. With the recent re-interest in fighting games, reviving the Darkstalkers series would be the best plan for them to make. Also considering the recent success with Ultra Street Fighter II it would be a big why not for Capcom. It is time to act now while the iron is hot but not with another best of, but they should gamble more with an actual new game. It is something their still prominent fanbase would want. Plus it seems it will be better than Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite is looking right now.

Will The SNES Classic Be As Big As The NES Classic?

     Nintendo is giving us a follow up to the NES Classic, the SNES Classic. Just like its predecessor, the SNES Classic is an emulator that is basically the best of video games during that era and it is just that. The SNES Classic has a lot of classic games that we all loved and played. From Super Mario world and A Link to the Past to Contra III, and Earthbound what's in it is just amazing. 

     If you didn't know, the first NES Classic was a monster hit. It was one of the hottest things to get in December of 2016 selling 1.5 million units during that month. It sold like hotcakes with a side of methberry syrup. It sold so much that Nintendo had to push more units. As of now it has sold 2.3 million. 

     Just as fast as it sold Nintendo decided to send it up the farm in order to sell this new SNES emulator that has everyone in a frenzy. Nintendo has already prepared for a repeat as they have ordered more SNESs made and you already have scalpers on eBay ready to sell the thing at insane prices as soon as they preorder. The question is however will it be a even bigger hit than the NES Classic?

     Nostalgia was the selling point behind the NES Classic and what will be SNES Classic. I feel that SNES will be more connecting to this generation that these were the games we truly remember playing and enjoying. I personally do remember playing Super Mario Bros., Mega Man 2, & Zelda on the original NES, but the games that stuck with me and I remember most are the 16-bit games from the SNES era. I remember unlocking the Special Worlds in Super Mario World,  trying to get 100% in Donkey Kong Country, and how badass Simon Belmont's theme made me feel in Super Castelvania. I'm sure others will too.

      Will it be bigger than its predecessor the NES Classic? Not sure. Again, it sold like crazy. I'm sure the SNES won't be a huge flop. Also it doesn't hurt that you have the unreleased Star Fox 2 as a way to incite people to buy it either.

Power Rangers - Did It Suck?

     After 10,000... no wait, a couple of years the Power Rangers reboot is in theaters. If you don't know what Power Rangers is first of all how? Second of all I'll tell you. Power Rangers is a TV franchise where a group of teenagers with attitudes are giving powers by a giant talking head in a tube called Zordon who are tasked to save Earth from evil aliens. It was Japanese footage from the series Super Sentai mixed with American footage and American actors that made 30 minutes of awesome. The series is still running after 30 years, but during the 90s it was a mega hit. I'm talking about HUGE. There were an insane amount of merchendise and toys that drove parents crazy, including my own. Now there the original story is being re-introduced to a new generation retold as an more grittier reboot. I saw it. Did it suck?

Story
You've heard the story before. Zordon recruits a team of teenagers with attitudes to become Power Rangers and save the world? The story is a bit different this time. We were promised that this movie will be a more darker and grittier reboot of the series. It wasn't darker or grittier as the movie gave the original characters from the show: Trini, Zach, Kimberly, Billy and Jason more character and backstory. It's very much teenagers with not only attitudes but with problems. Think Degrassi, with superpowers. You got a lot of character background in this movie. Billy is the nerdy outcast, Kim is the a not so popular popular girl, Jason is a football jock that once had so much promise but fucked things up by getting into trouble with the law, Zach has to care about his ailing mother, and Trini aside of a running gag of everyone getting her name wrong is basically Ally Sheedy. I think the director had the Breakfast Club in mind while making the movie. It's cute and all, but it's obvious that Breakfast Fast club had a better job with character development than Power Rangers. At least the movie in its two hours had better character development than the tv series did the original cast during their run on the show. Action did take a bit of the back burner in order for you to get to know the characters with all the serious stuff happening in the later half of the movie. The movie did have a lot of jokes. They were the saving grace of the movie which made it a lot more entertaining. It took the opportunities to poke fun at certain things not only in the movie, but the show itself, which is not a bad thing as the show itself is now considered to be camp and over the top watching it now.

Acting
Most of the cast except for Zordon, Rita, and Alpha are mostly unknown actors. When it was announced who will be the Power Rangers in the movie, we were a bit skeptical. Will they do a good job, being the characters? A matter of fact they did. The biggest surprise has to go to RJ Cyler who played Billy and Darce Montgomery who played Jason. Both actors were the break away characters in the movie. Most of the cast did a great job, well most meaning everybody except for Elizabeth Banks. Her rendition of Rita seemed off. Not the iconic screechy voice in the Tv series, off but let me using different accents in certain scenes off. This surprised me as Banks is usually good in other roles I've seen her. Brian Cranston was great a Zordon, not a surprise as this is Walter from Breaking Bad. Bill Herter did an alright Alpha that didn't turn out as annoying, like in the show.

Final Verdict
Power Ranger overall seemed to be cute. It was a nice throwback to the series and in most cases it was funny. However with it main focus which was character development, it did a good job, but there are other movies that do it better. It tried to be a superhero version of the Breakfast Club but it didn't do a morphinominal job at that. Despite that it was a good movie, not great. Good. It gets a 3 out of 5.

Goosebumps: Does It Suck?

I haven't done a review in a while, so over the weekend, I went out to see Goosebumps. For those who are new to Goosebumps or who wasn't born in the 90s, Goosebumps was children's horror book series penned by R.L. Stine. The books were scary. Really scary. The books launched a ton of spin-off book series like the Give Yourself Goosebumps books, which were almost as scary since you choose how the story goes, and a TV series, which was just as scary as the books. The books generated a ton or sales and money for R.L Stine and has stuck with a lot of people either as nostalgia or as we're still getting nightmares about evil lawn gnomes. Which is more than an apparent reason why there is finally a movie based off of the books and series, right? At first hearing that there would be a movie, I had two things run into my head. First excitement. I loved reading the books and watching the TV series growing up as a child so it's no shocker I would be stoked for this. Another thing was the notion of whether they would do justice to the series. To many of us, Goosebumps is in a part of of childhood memories. We grew up on this. We would like to see if things were done in a faithful way. Was it? Was it cool, of did it suck?

Story

Let's start off with story. The whole premise of the Goosebumps movie was that all of the monsters in R.L Stine's books are real due to him creating them with his super imagination.They are all unleashed on the town and it's up to him and a bunch of teenagers, who let the monsters out in the first place, to put them back before they ruin the town. The whole plot of the movie is almost like Jumanji for the millennials or better yet a nice little spin on the intro of the TV series. The pacing of the movie is a bit odd. The first half which introduces characters and set up their traits is a bit slow and it does lag on a bit. When the exciting stuff happens in the second half when the monsters are out and the protagonists have to go after them it's quick. I mean really quick. The first half felt longer than the second half. Also, what bummed me out were that there were some famous Goosebumps monsters that reduced to just cameo appearances, some that were used for promo. As many books Stine made you would've figured out that they would featured more than the ones they chose. One example was that they could've shown more of the monsters going on a rampage on the town and one of my favorites, the Haunted Mask, could've been that character making mischief attack people as the run from the chaos kinda like Gremlins. On a positive side there are some Easter eggs in the film. See if you can find them.

Comedy

As I stated earlier, Goosebumps stories were scary. People had nightmares about them. So what do you do when you have some of the scariest books of kid literature ever? You make a comedy out of them. I think you can say that the Goosebumps movie is a form of satire on the series. It pokes of its self. The monsters were portrayed in a sort of comical form as you would think they would be in the books. Overall, there were some jokes that worked and some that didn't and were forced. An example was all the scenes with the main protagonist's (Zach Cooper played by Dylan Minnette) mom played by Amy Ryan. They did try to do the cool mom thing but they couldn't. Perhaps they should watch Amy Poeler in Mean Girls and see how it's done. Jack Black is standard Jack Black, weird fat guy that does something funny once in a while, like in almost every film he's in. Take that as you may. The highlight of the film's comedy was Ryan Lee. He basically stole every scene he was in and was gold.


Final Verdict

Goosebumps was alright for what it was overall, a kids movie. It was good, but it could've been great. Some jokes were great, some could've been better. They had a lot of material to work with and utilized than the stuff they used. Despite that it was sorta enjoyable. Audience beware, you're in for a okay scare. It gets a 3 out of 5.