Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance

"You there, in the bushes. You have until the count of five to show yourself before I start throwing sharp objects"

Tactical, turn-based video games. I seem to like them. Advance Wars is some kind of phenomenon, though as time has gone on I've mellowed on it a little. The likes of Tactics Ogre appeal, but I'm still yet to dive into them full-time, so to speak. Is there, perhaps, a game that blends the two together? A simple enough system to get my head around, but with a fantasy setting?

It is an understatement to say that Intelligent Systems have been busy working with Nintendo platforms, and now they've gone and answered my pondering in the form of Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, a fantasy tactical role-playing game that requires no prior knowledge of any Fire Emblem game.

Perfect.

Chibi-Robo!

Plug into adventure!

Everyone likes robots. I think. Obviously, some robots are nasty pieces of work. We don't like them. But little robots who just want to help out around the house? They're alright, aren't they? Slaving away on tasks we can't be bothered with. Good little robot.

Chibi-Robo!, then. A dinky little robot who just wants to pick up trash. Tiny scraps of paper and crumbs and whatnot - I don't think he's going to be hauling the trash bag out anytime soon. Every little helps, however, so let's roll up our robo-sleeves and get stuck in.

Battalion Wars

Boys and their toys.

Thanks to this 1001 list, I'm a fan of Advance Wars. It still clings onto the tenth spot on The Topper Than That Top 10 list. I doubt it'll still be there when we come to judge the next batch of fifty must play video games, but the point is that it made quite the lasting impression.

I know nothing of Battalion Wars. I read that it's a spin-off of Advance Wars. Huh. Is it now? I guess we better investigate this one on the double.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures

I thought you were the blue one.

The formula for a Legend of Zelda game is well known by now. You know not only what you're going to get in a game, but who you're going to get as well. Characters may share a name, signature costume, role in life, and so on, but they're not identical from game to game. Each title is different from the last. Except for all the similarities.

You'd think, then, that The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures would be similarly filled with Links, and Zeldas, and Hyrules, and Hyahs!, and you'd be right. You'd think it would have swords and shields, and puzzles that require the use of an item or two, and you'd be right there as well.

But you'd never guess the form the game would take. Semi co-operative. Four players. Multiple gaming systems working together.

What's going on in Hyrule this time?

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

"Bah Gawd! He killed him!"

Several Mario titles have caught my eye now, thanks to the 1001 list. There's no disputing how good this plumber is at platforming, but sometimes you want something more. You want a solid plot. You want an open world. You want to be able to explore.

We do, of course, have those types of Mario games too - Mario is a jack of all trades, really. But those titles didn't always sit well with me. The Paper Mario series, however...

After the success of the original comes the inevitable sequel, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, a GameCube RPG that will have us teaming up to tackle the many obstacles en route to our goal, which probably involves a princess named Peach, let's face it.

I'm looking forward to this one.

Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes

Metal Gear?

You probably know that I'm quite a fan of Metal Gear Solid. I've played the games, I've bought into the spinoffs, I've read the graphic novels. But I draw the line at having the buy an entirely different console to play a remake in the form of Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes.

Emerging onto the GameCube in 2004, this remake slapped Metal Gear Solid onto the bones of MGS2, allowing for a greater degree of control, updated mechanics, and graphics you could actually see. Look! These people have faces!

As great as MGS was, however, in 2004, I was playing Snake Eater on my console of choice, the PlayStation 2. I wasn't bothered about The Twin Snakes, mostly because it wasn't available to me. I was aware of it, and it's noticeable differences, but I was in no need to play it.

Did I miss out? Is this the game we've all been waiting for? It's finally time for me to find out.

F-Zero GX

Go, Speed Racer, Go!

199 games ago on this 1001 list, I played F-Zero X for the first time. I liked it but would have liked to see some firepower coming out of these futuristic racers. With the chaos of 30 drivers on track at once, however, weaponry would probably have been a bad idea...

That was back on the N64. How does the GameCube up the stakes for the anti-gravity racers amongst us in F-Zero GX? Are there even more racers on track? Do we finally have some offensive capabilities? Is it more of the same, but better? What does the 'G' even mean?

I've absolutely no idea, but I'm ready to rev up my engines and find out.

Wario World

Have a rotten day!

I write this with quite possibly the worst cold I've had this year. I groan when I talk, my nose is stuffed, I'm wearing a neck warmer indoors. It's October, sure. Winter is fast approaching. The days are growing darker, life is gloomier, and I'm feeling it - and it's not fun.

What I need is a game to surprise me, and get me so engrossed in what it has to offer that I forget about the real world for a little while. I need a damn good time to cheer me up before I head in for an early night, and roast on the electric blanket.

Can Nintendo's grumpiest of characters, Wario, offer that to me in his first outing, Wario World? Can a platformer beat 'em up grab my attention and turn my day around? I sure hope so...

Donkey Konga

Chump

Source // Moby Games

While I can't see the point in playing games like Amplitude, I can see the point in playing games like Donkey Konga, the rhythm game where you slap a giant plastic bongo in time with the music. Like Samba de Amigo and it's plastic maracas, doing something vaguely similar to the characters on screen seems to add some sense of achievement to what is, essentially, an utterly pointless task.

That could open up a can of worms. Let's rephrase: Playing some plastic bongos makes you feel like you're sitting there on the beach, with Donkey Kong and pals, jamming to the beat of the music for no other reason than to have some fun.

Sure, there are high scores to go after, but that's not the point, is it? The point is to have a good time. Will we have a good time?

Super Mario Sunshine

Shine!

Super Mario 64 told the gaming world how 3D platforming was possible, and in the years since, an awful lot of games have taken its ideas and ran with them in their own directions. The genre can be found everywhere, and each of us has our favourite games from it.

When the Nintendo 64 was replaced with the GameCube, you knew it'd only be a matter of time before the next Super Mario 64 came along. After all, Nintendo is now competing with the PlayStation 2, which has so many 3D platformers that they're already fighting amongst themselves. How do you stand out?

You take a holiday in Super Mario Sunshine.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

I've got the bloody pig!

How many Zelda titles have been on this 1001 list so far? It seems like all of them. The series can't be that good, can it? Well, I ought to know by now if it is or isn't, having played those previous entries, to some degree... I mean, that was sort of the point in this whole endeavour, wasn't it?

Picture the scene, then. The GameCube is on the horizon, and a new Zelda title has been teased. It's grown up, and moody, in stark contrast to the colourful entries of the past. This is a new age for Zelda, a time where it tackles the tough stuff.

And then The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker is released, and our hero is a stumpy little Funko Pop figure, and the graphics are the absolute opposite of dark and moody. Fans flipped, I'm told. I wouldn't know. I wasn't fussed about the GameCube or Zelda back then.

But Wind Waker has stuck around and looks like it hasn't aged. It even got an HD re-release. Why? What's there to improve here? What even is The Wind Waker?

Eternal Darkness

"You too will come to understand fear, as I have."

When I bought this game a year or so ago, I suppose, the guy behind the counter said something along the lines of "You'll enjoy that one." I forget what he said precisely, but my response was "Yeah, I missed out on this one fifteen years ago."

Boy did I. Back in 2002, Eternal Darkness wasn't on my radar at all. The Game Cube it was playable on didn't interest me. But over the many years since, I've picked up more and more info about this fourth-wall-breaking psychological horror title, and I really want to see it first hand - and I don't really care for horror.

Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader

No Medal Awarded

Source // MobyGames

I liked Star Wars: Rogue Squadron quite a bit. I wasn't good at it, but it made me feel like a kid again, reminding me of when Star Wars was cool. Enter a new console generation and a mouthy sequel: Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader.

Once again, we get to pilot all the letter-Wings throughout the galaxy, beginning with the destruction of one Death Star, and ending with the destruction of another. The better we do, the shinier our medal cabinet becomes, and the more bonus content we unlock.

Strap in, get your targeting computers set up, and get ready to hear those TIE Fighters scream...

Super Smash Bros. Melee

[I LITERALLY CAN'T EVEN]

I don't like Super Smash Bros. - I thought I'd get that in early just so you know where I stand. Fighting games I can get into and get behind, but this kind of brawler... it has never worked for me. I simply can't get behind it in any way.

So, when the 1001 list says you must play Super Smash Bros. Melee, what do you do? You play Super Smash Bros. Melee and see if you can justify your stance on the series, else revise your position on the matter. Let's dive right in before we get kicked right back out.

Luigi's Mansion

"You made my dark and stormy night!"

For the longest time, I thought the closest I'd get to playing Luigi's Mansion would be its arcade release, a decade or so after the release of the twin-stick Ghost-capturing GameCube adventure that found its way onto the 1001 list. Thanks to grabbing a disc from somewhere, though, I'm able to play it in the comfort of my own home, as Nintendo originally intended.

For once, the bigger, lankier Mario sibling, Luigi, gets the starring role as he turns cowardly hero to save Mario from the clutches of spooky ghosts. Armed with a vacuum cleaner, because that's funny.

Do we have the courage to venture into Luigi's Mansion?

Super Monkey Ball

FALL OUT

A long time ago, back in the days of SMS and MSN Messenger, when emoticons were a thing, I'd often find myself using variations of this vaguely monkey-looking chap: @('_')@

I don't know how I stumbled across it, but something tells me I might have been inspired by Super Monkey Ball, a strange little game that I was aware of, but only peripherally. Its premise is simple. Take a strong hint of Marble Madness, but replace the marbles with monkeys in spheres.

Job done, game on.