If this brief gameplay video is any indication, Galactrix moves really, really quickly. We'd get our futuristic spaceship captain asses handed to us before we could even figure out what all those numbers on the top screen meant. We'll be content to lose to the computer, and to our friends, who can then console/mock us in person.
Posts with tag puzzle-quest
Puzzle Quest: Galactrailer
If this brief gameplay video is any indication, Galactrix moves really, really quickly. We'd get our futuristic spaceship captain asses handed to us before we could even figure out what all those numbers on the top screen meant. We'll be content to lose to the computer, and to our friends, who can then console/mock us in person.
DS version of Galactrix missing online play
What a bummer. We were all excited when we saw the first screens of the DS version of Puzzle Quest: Galactrix attached to IGN's preview. Then we had to go and read the preview."Galactrix will feature the same multiplayer modes as Challenge of the Warlords. That means the Xbox 360 and PC versions will be playable online, and the DS will include local multiplayer." And just like that, our dreams of Puzzle Questy Game Nights disappear like four contiguous red blocks.
This is less of an issue, of course, for people who have friends outside of the Internet, but we were really hoping Infinite Interactive would bring online play to the platform that made Puzzle Quest a household name (for certain values of "household"). And the screens do look nice.
Games to help curb your addictions
The "self-help" era is upon us, even finding its way into the video game industry as of late. Aside from the obvious fitness awareness game on Nintendo's other system (we mean Wii Fit, of course), there have been quite a few attempts to help gamers improve their lifestyles and habits. Take, for example, the upcoming My Weight Loss Coach and Ubisoft's "Easyway" title to help people quit smoking.Our favorite approach so far, though, was when DS Fanboy reader Dan used Pokémon to quit smoking. If there's anything we've learned from Dan's inspiring story, it's that the best way to curb an addiction is to replace it with another. We then decided that we wanted to help more of our fine readers that are suffering from such torments day in and day out. Pokémon may cure smoking, but what about other plaguing ailments? We're happy to say that after months of testing on monkeys and small children, we've finally come up with a few perfect video game cures.
So, look no further than Dr. DS Fanboy, and check out our ultimate self-help guide to find the fixes for your addictions.
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Master that addiction! |
Costco offers savings on DS games
Today's cheap deals post is brought to you buy the letter "o," and, uh, the word "costc." Get it? Costco?Now that we've sufficiently subjected you to the horrors of our evening humor (or lack thereof), those of you who are Costco shoppers might be interested in some of the games the retailer is offering for $10.99 thru 6/22:
- Puzzle Quest
- Sonic Rush
- Dragon Quest: Rocket Slime
- The New York Times Crosswords
- Disney Meteos
- Namco Museum DS
- Cooking Mama
Want to play Puzzle Quest: Galactrix early?
How do you get on board with this? Send an email with the subject "Puzzle Quest Research" to lisa[at]mindofthegamer[dawt]com before April 18th. Names will be chosen on a first come, first serve basis, and are also subject to "additional criteria" needed to qualify. We guess you'll find that out the day of.
The lucky gamers that do get to head on down for some quality time with new Puzzle Quest stuff will not only get to play Galactrix, but also that Xbox Live expansion, Revenge of the Plague Lord, along with "other" Puzzle Quest stuff. Any of our west coast readers going to sign up for this?
Gallery: Puzzle Quest: Galactrix
Rumor: Galactrix landing in October
Upon hearing this news, Eric's monocle fell right out and he sprang out of his leather chair, exclaiming "By Jove! I must arrange for delivery of this item immediately upon its release! To the phones -- post haste!" Alisha was more reserved, but we saw her teacup tremble a bit.
Gallery: Puzzle Quest: Galactrix
DS Fanboy poll: Would you buy Puzzle Quest '1.5'?
The Nintendo DS has a long way to go before it can match the Xbox 360's online features and capabilities, but that doesn't mean we're any less jealous of the XBLA-only Puzzle Quest "1.5" add-on. In addition to a new story and arch-villain (Antharg, Lord of the Plague), the expansion pack will feature new spells, items, and quests. The upgrades we're extra envious about, though, are the new classes -- Bard, Rogue, Ranger, and Warlock.Seeing as the DS edition of Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords doesn't allow for downloadable content, if the expansion pack were to come out for the DS, it would have to be on a new cart. We doubt D3 will bother with porting the game, but we're interested to find out if you'd buy a Puzzle Quest 1.5, provided that the game allowed you to migrate your old character, of course.
See also: GDC08: Hands almost-on with Puzzle Quest: Galactrix
GDC08: Hands almost-on with Puzzle Quest: Galactrix
Enjoy our gallery of spaceship concept art, screenshots, and this thing, and continue past the break for what gameplay details we could glean from the demo.
Gallery: Puzzle Quest: Galactrix
Continue reading GDC08: Hands almost-on with Puzzle Quest: Galactrix
Rock your DS's sound through the car stereo
We actually enjoy playing our DS in the car quite a bit. In fact, one of us even went so far as to enjoy playing Puzzle Quest at red lights while behind the wheel. It's a dangerous obsession that not only threatens our own lives, but those of everyone else in the world. It's the nature of the beast, we suppose.So imagine our surprise when we read this little piece and totally realized we could output our DS's sound to our car speakers, almost providing a surround sound experience. Sure, we have headphones for when we're trying to get our dual-screen on out in the wild, but sometimes they're uncomfortable. This just seems like an incredibly obvious thing we never thought of ourselves. We can totally picture playing Ouendan or Elite Beat Agents in this manner.
More awards, more snubs for the DS
It's something we've talked about a few times but still don't understand -- what does it take for the best-selling game system in the world to get a little attention? Alright, alright, we're over it. And at least the Game Developers Choice awards have a special handheld category, and we're extraordinarily pleased to see Contra 4 glowing brightly on the list. It's probably not going to win, but we're happy to see we're not the only ones who love beefy dudes with weapons.Maybe this time next year, we'll see some DS games breaking out of handheld-only categories, since there is so much complete awesome slated for the system in the coming months. We can't be the only ones who think DS titles can go toe-to-toe with their console brethren. In the meantime, check out the nominees for best handheld game after the break.
Readers' Choice: The best of 2007
We asked, and as always, you guys delivered. While the top-voted game of the year will probably come as no surprise to anyone, especially since it ran away with all the votes, the other five games that topped out in our readers' choice polls demonstrate not only the wide variety of content on the DS, but the depth of taste among DS Fanboy readers, as well. While the top games were above and beyond, every title feature snagged its fair share of votes. This can only mean one thing: it was one hell of a good year to be a DS owner.
So which six games were most deserving of attention this year, according to you guys? Mosey on past the break to see the winners.
Critics' top 10: 2007 vs. kittens
2007 is almost over, and the end of the year brings joyous tidings of List Season. It's the time for taking stock of the last 12 months of gaming, and trying to make sense of it by putting things in numerical order. Join DS Fanboy for our best-ofs, worst-ofs, and other categories-ofs.
When determining the best games of the year, it's a good idea to go at it from different angles: by referencing our own history of reviews, obviously, but we must also look to the wider journalism community. Our reviews, while insightful and entertaining, were not comprehensive. We just didn't play everything. In addition, one reviewer's opinion is simply not sufficient data to make definitive conclusions, even if that one reviewer is me.
So we turned to everyone else in aggregate to see what they thought of this year's releases. We've gathered the top 10 DS games of 2007 according to their Metacritic ranking. Keep in mind that many of these games tied in Metascore, meaning that if we were to rank the games, there would be fewer than ten positions. It's still sequential, but with a lot of tie scores.
We then carefully applied science to these games in order to convert the Metacritic numbers into a rubric we feel more accurately conveys the quality of these games. Head past the post break for Metacritic's top ten DS games of 2007, graded on a scale from adorable kitten video to unbelievably adorable kitten video.
DS gifts on the cheap
GameDaily put up a helpful set of cheap DS gifts, from games to accessories, that can help to take the sting out of shopping this season ... if, that is, you can find any of 'em, and if you want 'em when you find 'em. Example: Namco Museum Remix is on there, as it's priced at a modest $19.99, but if it's anything like the Wii version, you might not want it. Of course, it did receive better scores than its console cousin, so it might be safe. But you also get gems like Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords and the Nerf DS armor, so can you really go wrong? There's a hidden bonus of saving money as well.
Readers' Choice: The best of 2007
Tomorrow, we'll take a look at some of the year's other great games, those selections that didn't receive quite as much attention when we asked you to name your favorites, but all the same, games that are deserving of a little extra time in the spotlight.
DS Daily: Reformulated
We thought we'd do a little thought experiment today. The DS is home to a few games that combine two unrelated genres unexpectedly, to varying results: the (nominally) rhythm-based brawler Draglade, and the puzzle RPG Puzzle Quest, to name two.We'd like you to come up with a design idea for a game combining two divergent genres or styles? How about a real-time strategy game about one-on-one fighting? Or an abstract music-based racing game? No idea is too crazy -- not after Puzzle Quest.
