The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds for the Nintendo 3DS

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds is a game that was released on November 22nd, 2013 Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS. It is the sequel to The Legend of Zelda: A Link To The Past and game that got released in 1992 for the Super Nintendo aka SNES.

FUN: By far the best sequel Nintendo has ever made. Some of there other sequel (like Super Mario Galaxy 2... another rating for a later date... maybe) doesn't come close to comparison to this game. The controls, the story, & the gameplay all are fantastic. FUN - 2.

REPLAY: Even though it's a Zelda game and Zelda games tend to not have any replay value. Well... this sort of does. Sure it only has Hero Mode after you beat the game, however... the game is so great players are going to be playing it over and over trying to do 100% Speed Runs just like A Link To The Past. REPLAY - 1.

STORY: Just like A Link To The Past, someone has been capturing the sages in order to revive Ganon. However, since it is the sequel, it the sages' kids. Yep... the descendants of the sages. The descendant of the lost hero, Link must do thing same thing his past self did years ago to save Hyrule and Princess Zelda. STORY - 1.5.

DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL: Well... the Original part can mostly go out the window here. It's more the Difference here that counts. It takes place in the same world map as the Light World in A Link To The Past (see... no Original here). Almost every dungeon is the same. Placement and everything except for a few minor details that only players who watch or played A Link To The Past can catch. The Difference is the instead of you gaining ALL you weapons and gear from the dungeons, you get them from a mysterious bunny guy named Ravio. However, the catch is that you RENT them. If you die, all RENTED items go back to him. Sure... after a while you can buy them off him to KEEP, but for a whole lot of Rupees (This game is very Rupee based... just like Skyward Sword... later date... again). Another Difference is of course, the Sages or Sages' Descendants. It's their kids. The next Difference is the Opposite World. In A Link To The Past... it was the Dark World (Light and Dark... creative...), but for this game it's a world called Lorule, a counterpart of Hyrule. Everyone in Hyrule has a complete Opposite way of think and most of them are quite rude in Lorule. However, some of them do keep a few things the same as their Hyrule counterpart (like the Blacksmith still love his work and swords). Of course... Princess Zelda has a counterpart named Princess Hilda. The Last difference is the way you go between Hyrule and Lorule. It's not the Magic Mirror in A Link To The Past, it actually you new skill... making yourself into a moving painting and going through tight crevices. DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL - 1.5.

DIFFICULTY: Nice Balance... not much to say about it. It a Zelda game. DIFFICULTY - 2.

TOTAL - 8.

There you have it. LoZ: A Link Between Worlds in a nutshell. Until next time, this has been Benjamin P. Parker aka the Nintendo Rater.

Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective for the Nintendo DS

Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective was released on Jan. 11, 2011 by Capcom. From the same markers of the Phoenix Wright series, Ghost Trick shares the same witty humor and suspense gameplay along with awesome music. There are no known sequels nor are there any rumors of one. Along with Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney (Rating on later date), Ghost Trick wasn't well known unless you kept up on the news about the makers of Phoenix Wright.

FUN: If you haven't play this game, you should. By far, this game had the best feel for suspense in any of the games made the makers of PW (Going to shorten it now. Save space.). Also great to play as a ghost with powers aka tricks. FUN - 2.

REPLAY: Just like a lot of PW games, there isn't much to replay value. Sure, I will give that it's fun to play over and over more than the other PW game in the series. REPLAY - 0.5.

STORY: You as a ghost (Later finds out his name) who has lost everything; his memories, his body, and most importantly... his life. When he woke up, the very first thing he saw was a red haired young woman at gun point. Not knowing what to do (Due to the fact that he was dead) he heard a voice saying that he could actually do something to be able to save her. The voice call it his 'Ghost Tricks.' Later after saving the young lady, he told the voice that he wants to find out why he was killed and who he was. The voice told him two things; that he only had one night and that the red haired young lady was the key to all his questions. STORY - 2.

DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL: This game is totally different from the PW series. First of all, time actually flows in each chapter. On top of that, you have to use your 'Ghost Tricks' to progress instead of a basic point and click game with a whole lot of reading. This game's major concept is the touch screen. You need to drag your character to many different kinds of items, each with an unique ability or nothing at all. On top of that, you will be needing to switch from ghost world to the living. DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL - 2.

DIFFICULTY: This game has a great balance between easy and hard. Some chapters are simple due to what to processed, but others use more unique 'Ghost Tricks' and even some logic thinking and timing. DIFFICULTY - 2.

TOTAL - 8.5.

There you have it! Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective in a nutshell! Hope you stay with me during these long waits. Very busy due to college, writing books, etc. Thanks for waiting! The Nintendo Rater.

Harvest Moon: A New Beginning for the 3DS

Harvest Moon: A New Beginning is the lastest of it's series from Nintendo for only the 3DS. Released on 11/06/12 for both the cartridge and the 3DS eShop. Made by Natsume, this Harvest Moon game went back to the basics and took bits and pieces from all there past games and put them together.

FUN: Even though Harvest Moon games are usually never ending and routine, this one, by far, is one of the best in the series. It takes the building aspect of the "Island" games, the design of the Wii games, and the humor in dialoge of "Harvest Moon 64" and "Harvest Moon DS". The main concept of the game is the building and the use of blueprints. Since you are the one who builds everything, you have the ability to place every building where you want it and if you have to move a building to make more room, you can just pick it up and carry it to a new place. A few downsides of the game are the fact that there are too many festivals too close together, so there are weeks where stores are closed for many days in a row. Another downside is that the single men and women in the game aren't really that great. Even though Neil (A Single Man) and Iroha (A Single Woman) are very easy to win over, Neil has a grumpy mood until you get him to a blue or green heart (Woman only). Iroha is usually series, but she is also cheerful on sunny days and festivals. Also, you can only have one Chicken Coop and Barn in each area of your farm (Total farm areas - 3). FUN - 1.5.

REPLAY: Let's face it... Harvest Moon games are never ending. The only way to be able to have any replay value is to choose a different person to marry and choose a different gender to play as. REPLAY - 0.5.

STORY: Like "Harvest Moon 64", you take over your family's farm. While there, you find out that the town is becoming a Ghost Town. It's up to you to rebuild the town to it's old self and beyond. STORY - 1.

DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL: There's really not much original content that wasn't used already in other Harvest Moon games. The only thing I can think of is the ability to place and move buildings at will. DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL - 0.5.

DIFFICULTY: It's a farming Sim. game... What is hard about that? DIFFICULTY - 1.5.

TOTAL - 5.

There you have it, Harvest Moon: A New Beginning. Just remember that I rate using only facts, not opinions. If you don't like the score, don't blame me. Thanks for reading my blog. Until next time, this was the Nintendo Rater.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star for the 3DS

Paper Mario: Sticker Star was made by Nintendo and was released on Nov. 11, 2012. Paper Mario: Sticker Star is only for the Nintendo 3DS, but is also can be bought on the 3DS' eShop for only 39.99 US Dollars. Sticker Star is the fourth game in the Paper Mario Series. After Super Paper Mario (Wii Game), Nintendo decided to go back to it's old Turn-Based Battle Style like Paper Mario (N64... I Already Rated it. It's under my It's By The Book Blog) and Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door (Gamecube).

FUN: This game was so entertaining, most people had a hard time putting it down. The dialoge, gameplay, and whole humor thoughout it was so fantastic that it was never boring. However, it ended too quickly. FUN - 1.5.

REPLAY: This game has no replay value, unless you count getting 100% Completion (Which I'm trying. Almost done, too). REPLAY - 0.5.

STORY: The game begins with everyone having a great time at the annual Sticker Fest. However, it didn't last long when Bowser went and touched the Sticker Comet, a comet that comes once each year to grant wishes (Seriously... why on earth does the Mushroom Kingdom have so many wish granting items!?!). Touching the Comet causes it to explode, spreading stickers everywhere and planting a special powerful sticker on Bowser's head. The sticker on Bowser's head causes Bowser to go crazy! After Bowser destroys the Sticker Fest, Kidnaps the Princess... again, and disappears, Mario wakes up to find the whole town a huge mess. After Mario gets up, he hears a voice calling him. Following the voice, he finds Kersti, a Royal Sticker in charge of protecting the Sticker Comet and the Six other Royal Stickers. She orders Mario to go and gets the missing Royal Stickers. It's up to Mario to Find the Royal Stickers and save Princess Peach Yet Again! STORY - 2.

DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL: Even though this game is like it's first two games of the series (Turn-Based), it has a unigue twist to it battles. You attack using stickers in your Sticker Album. That's right... No Badges, No Parners, No Magic, Just Stickers. On top of that, with the help of Kersti, you can Papertise (Outside of Battle ONLY) and use a Slot-Machine-Like Battle Spin for more power. To get more powerful Stickers that aren't like your normal items (Boot, Hammer, Flowers, Etc.), all over the worlds are items called Things. If you go to certain places, you can fling these Things against a wall and turn them into Stickers. Also... unlike the past three Paper Mario games (Only half of Super Paper Mario), each world is like New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Each world has a set number of stages that you can re-enter and re-collect the Stickers in that stage (Think W1-1, W1-2, and so forth). DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL - 1.5.

DIFFICULTY: If you don't have a battle plan for each battle and stage, then the game can be a little difficult. However, if you plan it out (And stock pile the Thing Stickers), it very easy and simple game. DIFFICULTY - 2.

TOTAL - 7.5.

There you have it! Paper Mario: Sticker Star in a nutshell! I got this game on Nov. 13 and just finished it today (Nov. 18). However, I did not get 100%. Since it saves the game after you beat it and brings you back to the last stage you played on the world map, I going back to finish getting 100% complete. I'm also working on a Sticker Museum Guide for Gamefaqs.com, so look for that within a week. Thanks for reading my post! Until next time... See Ya!

Benjamin Parker aka Nintendo Rater

The Legend of Zelda: Seasons & Ages for the GBC

Upon the new era for handheld video games, Nintendo started thinking of new ways to advance the techology of gaming. From the success of Pokemon Red and Blue, for the GameBoy, and their trading through link cables, Nintendo, with the help from Capcom, they created a Legend of Zelda set of games with that trade feature included. Seasons and Ages, a set of games that makes it impossible to get a 100% completion without using both games and trading between them, was the first and only set of Zelda games (Meaning that the two games are two halves of one whole game). Seasons & Ages were both released in 2001 for only the GameBoy Color, at the exact same day. If Nintendo didn't release them at the same time, the trade feature would not have any use (Just like the Pokemon games).

FUN: Let's face it... Zelda games are always fun and entertaining. When it comes to Seasons & Ages, two different stories, both with different bosses, characters, maps, dungeons, and overall completely different games, are not fully complete and satisfying unless you play both and trade between them. Both games feel like they are complete games, until you beat the game once. There you find out that you can connect the two games via passwords you get when you beat each game the first time around. FUN - 1.5.

REPLAY: For once, there are games from the Zelda Series that actually have some replay value. Seasons & Ages have a New Game + feature that only works if you or a friend had already beaten one of the two games. When you beat Seasons or Ages for the first time, you are given a password that you have to give to someone who has beaten the other game. For example, if I just defeated Seasons and recieved the password, I would need to give the password to someone who just defeated Ages and visa versa. When you type the password from the partner game into yours, you will earn you the New Game + feature. That feature will give you new items and a special dungeon. The game may be the same exact game you just beat, but certain items (Like your sword, shield, bomb bag, seed bag, etc.) that you could only level up to level 2, now can be upgraded up to level 3. A level 3 shield equals the Mirror Shield in Ocarina of Time or maybe Link's Awakening. The shield will reflex certain attacks. The Special Dungeons are the most difficult dungeon in the two games. If memory serves me correctly, at the end of those dungeons will give you something really powerful. REPLAY - 1.

STORY: Like I said before, the two games have completely different stories. In Seasons, Link meets Din, the Goddess of Power, having fun dancing and feasting. Suddenly, Onix, General of Darkness, blows Din away using a tornado, causing the Seasons to go crazy, thus sinking the Temple of Seasons underground to some sort of lava world with creatures that look like the Jawas that collected the robots in their big tank-like sandroller on the planet Tatooine in Star Wars: A New Hope. It's up to Link to get the Rod of Seasons, all the powers of the four Seasons, and the eight Essences of Seasons, in order to save Din from Onix. In Ages, Link meets Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom, playing her harp and singing songs to people and animals. Suddenly, Veran, Sorceress of Shadows, captures Nayru inside the shadows of darkness, causing the Flow of Time to go crazy, thus making random Time Portals. It's up to Link to find the Harp of Ages, get all three Songs of Time, and Essences of Time, in order to save Nayru from Veran. STORY - 2.

DIFFERNCE/ORIGINAL: Everything in Seasons & Ages are very similar to Link's Awakening. The main difference with these two games is the fact that the two games are connected. To be exact, they are two half of one whole. Like I said before, you need both games to get 100% completion. Along with the New Game + using the two games' passwords, you can trade Rings anytime to the other game. To new items are the Rings, many types of Seeds, Rod of Seasons, and the Harp of Ages. DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL - 2.

DIFFICULTY: Two Words... Very Balanced. DIFFICULTY - 2.

TOTAL - 8.5.

There you have it, The Legend of Zelda: Seasons & Ages, my first rating of two games. Thanks again and keep reading my posts. Nintendo Rater.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker for the GameCube

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker was released in the year 2002 by Nintendo. It was for the GameCube and was the first Legend of Zelda game for that system. Instead of a upgrade to 128-bit graphics, Nintendo decided to a more cartoon-like graphics. Many Zelda fans feared that this game wouldn't be up to par. However, most of them loved it even with that kind of graphics.

FUN: By far, the Wind Waker is the biggest free roaming Zelda game made. Once you have the boomerang, you're allowed to roam the great sea. Also the gameplay is great. It's enjoyable to the very end. I rate FUN - 2.

REPLAY: Like many Zelda games... no replay value at all. Sure, you can gather everything from side-quests, and every single weapon and item in the game (Thanks to my friend Sam Snapp for giving his point of view when I told him how I rated REPLAY for Zelda games). However, you always end up where you last saved. I rate REPLAY - .5 (For you, Sam).

STORY: It all started around Ocarina of Time time period (Timeline Attack!). After the hero of time left Hyrule, the great evil reappeared and sent the kingdom into darkness once again. Apparently, the darkness sunk that old kingdom to the bottom of the Great Sea. On a certain island (Called Outset Island), Kids that reach a certain age are forced to wear the outfit of the hero of time. The game begins on a young boy's birthday. It was his time to wear the outfit. After he puts on the outfit, he rescues a female pirate captain named Tetra, his sister gets kidnapped by the giant chicken that he rescued Tetra from, and sets off on a quest to rescue his sister. I rate STORY - 2.

DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL: Many things in about this game are firsts. The cartoon-like graphics, The Great Sea, certain items (Like the Key Items - AKA Wind Waker, Picto Box, Grappling Hook, and many more). I rate DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL - 2.

DIFFICULTY: The game can be easy at times, Hard at times, and Both at the same time. The only hard part is the beginning where you have to sneak through the Forsaken Fortress with no sword, Knocking out every searchlight, and not getting caught. I rate DIFFICULTY - 1.5.

There you have it... The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker rated by The Nintendo Rater. Thanks for reading my posts! Until next time!

Super Mario World for the SNES & GBA

Super Mario World was release in 1991 by Nintendo. The game was for the SNES (Super Nintendo), but then was remade for the GBA (Game Boy Advance). It was the first Mario game made in the new 16-bit graphics.

FUN: Let's face it... Super Mario World was like Zelda: Ocarina of Time in greatness. Everything about it was fun. I rate FUN - 2.

STORY: Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach traveled to Dino Island for a nice picnic. Once they arrived, the Mario Bros. grabbed a cape feather and started flying around, leaving Peach by the hot air balloon. When they returned, Mario and Luigi saw no sight of the princess. Later, as they searched for Peach, they found a dinosaur called Yoshi. I rate STORY - 1.5.

REPLAY: Like Zelda games, Super Mario World doesn't really have any replay value. However, The GBA version have a feature that if you beat the game after beating every level, almost everything turns into a Autumn/Halloween style. I rate REPLAY - 0.5.

DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL: Let see... II already talked about it being the first Mario game as a 16-bit game, as well as for the SNES. This game introduces the character Yoshi. Yoshi is a green, yellow, blue, red, or whatever color they added in the years Dinosaur that has a killer tongue that eats almost anything in its path. Also, Super Mario World introduces the Cape Feathers. The feathers allow you to fly and keep on flying, as long as you time it right. I rate DIFFERENCE/ORIGINAL - 2.

DIFFICULTY: Super Mario World is a very well balanced game. Some levels are hard while others are easy. Also, there's some in the middle. I rate DIFFICULTY - 2.

TOTAL - 8.

There you have it! The Nintendo Rater strikes again! Thanks for reading, Nintendo Rater.