Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure: Battle Mode: Arena Rumble Basic Controls

Spyro vs Trigger Happy at the Troll Factory

This is just a quick video that introduces you to gameplay in the Arena Rumble segment of Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure.  We covered the basic controls for the characters, highlighted the standard elements of the arena, and showcased the special features of the stage. 

I don't think anyone will be blown away by this gameplay, but the fact of the matter is you can have a lot of fun with some friends and all of this is in addition to the already stellar Adventure Mode.  Seeing how all of Battle Mode is really a bonus, you certainly can't complain. 

You can experiment and find out which characters perform best in certain stages and which elements fair the best against others.  I think many will enjoy the Arena Rumble feature!

Poll #2: What Nintendo Game Do You Want the Most this Holiday Season?

Hey, pretty simple...the poll is located on the sidebar.  All you have to do is click your favorite and the results willl be tabulated.  I am closing this poll December 20th, 2011 so act quick!

Here it is as a recap...if you must expand on your vote, feel free to reply here on the blog, or YouTube:

What Nintendo Game Do You Want the Most this Holiday Season?

Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure
Kirby's Return to Dreamland
Super Mario 3D Land
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Mario Kart 7

No bias in the listing, just the release date:

Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure (Wii, 3DS): Sunday, October 16th, 2011
Kirby's Return to Dreamland (Wii): Monday, October 24th, 2011
Super Mario 3D Land (3DS): Sunday, November 13th, 2011
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii): Sunday, November 20th, 2011
Mario Kart 7 (3DS): Sunday, December 4th, 2011

Poll #1: Official Results: Wii Fit Plus vs Wii Sports Resort

Well, the poll has been closed awhile, I've just been too busy to create this to archive it.

The poll was very close, here it is for a reminder:

Which do you prefer?

Wii Fit Plus
Wii Sports Resort

The final votes gave Wii Sports Resort the win! 

This is actually surprising since at the time most of my YouTube vids were Wii Fit Plus and all of the blog posts were...nonetheless, you voted, Blogger counted, and I delivered the results.  Hopefully we can keep this trend going and get even more votes for the next poll.  Thanks to all that voted!

Happy Halloween!

Hey Everyone!

First off, I am not sure how many "devout" follwers there are of this blog, if any lol, but regardless I feel obligated to provide a few updates.

It has been 25 days since the last blog post (SSE Part 36).  I have actually recorded SSE 37-41, which is putting me very close to being ready for Tabbu...The Great Maze is really something you need to do consecutively, or at least just a day or two between sessions.  When you wind up going 2-3+ weeks from your last save to just "jumping back in" it is really cumbersome to remember where you had been, and perhaps more importantly where to go. 

The irony is how much I stressed that in at least 2 different recording sessions, but alas things have not lined up as one might have hoped for this playthrough.  I do enjoy it, but finding the time here lately has been tough.  I basically have been forced to pick between x hours of sleep, or y hours for SSE, where x is a number less than 6 and any input on y results in z, a total deficit resulting in complete infeffectiveness for the next day....very rough to say the least.  I'm actually strapped with time before factoring in SSE here lately.  I will get it done, just not going to rush it.  I'm pretty sure if anyone was relying on me to guide them through the Great Maze or SSE they would have commented by now, lol.

On the bright side, I have been trying to get back to playing 30+ mins of Wii Fit Plus every night...I like to workout anyway and with it getting colder it is easy to plug-in...after the wrap-up of the complete playthough I got off on NFL Training Camp, which was great aside from random exercises not registering.  I actually quit that a few weeks ago for the simple issue of not having AAA batteries on hand...bummer.  I got some, just haven't put them in...I think I'll upload the "cool" parts of that game and then gauge interest in any team workouts.  I believe there would be more viewers for other games than a "60 Day Challenge" on NFL Training Camp. 

(Side note: Wii Fit Plus just never gets old to me...I've even been breaking some records, setting new personal bests, and playing a few I don't spend much time with!).

So, as things settle down (hopefully, I think...maybe?!) I hope to work back into 30+ mins of WFP and 30-60 mins for SSE.  It shouldn't take long to complete, unless Tabbu requires a ton of replays.  Then it is just a matter of editing and uploading (which I am behind on anyway).

I have/had my next playthrough lined up...I got it new with Training Camp, but have yet to even play it :(  I might try it out and then sort out doing a blind playthrough on it or Spyro's Adventure...

Which brings me to the big news as of late (ie Saturday).  I picked up a copy of Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure for the Wii!  I didn't stop there, I also got a few of the expansion packs...it looks like a great game. I'm actually uploading some gameplay footage from the Battle Arena end of things.  Adventure Mode looks great...and is going to be a big reason to wrap up SSE (if I can resist the temptation to put it on the backburner).

I also picked up another "big" item Saturday...it was a good deal (best I've seen on it) and will no doubt come in handy for the future!  More to come on that one...

Lastly, I will finally post the poll results for Wii Fit Plus vs Wii Sports Resort and then make a new one...check it out and vote!

If you miss the blogs, I do provide quite a few updates in the sidebar via Twitter.  Not as detailed, obviously, but it kind of keeps you up to the minute.

And in closing...Happy Halloween!  Halloween has always been one of my favorite "holidays."  It is just nice to have something totally different that is so widely known and practiced...I won't bore folks with the history, or debate the intent etc...It is really just a chance for kids to get a costume and some candy...and for some adults a costume and a night out.  I hope you all have a great Halloween!

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 36: The Great Maze Part 6

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 36: The Great Maze Part 6

Part 36 of our SSBB SSE Playthrough has us pick up right after ending the Galleom battle.

We headed right to check the door and it put us out at the Canyon, just as we expected.  Go back in the door, go left, take the elevator up, clear the Floows, and then take the door.  Continue left, dodge the flames, and battle the Mites and Shaydas.  Proceed left and you will enter a Boss Door to face Pokemon Trainer.

He starts out with Charizard.  We got luck and landed the Smart Bomb and beat him in no time!

This door takes you to a series of green platforms where you can go down.   If you don’t move right quick enough, go back left and hit a switch.  Go right and you can pick up a trophy base, I bagged the Mites.  Continue right while dodging the flaming sphere.  If you jump up you can snag a Lucario trophy. 

Jump up and take the door.  This takes you to an elevator.  When you come up, you will be back where you started.  Take the door and head left.  Take the elevator down and continue right.  Watch out for the rising and falling spike blocks.  Continue right and you will battle Floows and a Roturret in a cycling room.  If you go right you can take a Boss Door to battle Princess Zelda. 

This stage is pretty neat.   Ike was taken out pretty quick just based on his really high damage.  King Dedede came in and landed a few big hits on Zelda, thus making quick work of her. 

This put us out in an area with lowering and raising blocks and tons of Jyks!  Dedede does not fare well here, but continue right to take down the Armank.  Once you’ve made it all the way right you will enter a Boss Door and battle Princess Peach.  King Dedede managed to land an ice crystal and defeat her.  This is a dead end now.

Backtrack left and take out the Armank.  We lost Dedede, but Kirby came in and had a really hard time just finishing it off.  They are definitely easier to beat with a heavier character.  Work your way back through the Jyks and to the door…this is conversely much easier with Kirby than Dedede. 

Proceed left and take the rotating room…I just exited to the left and went back through the spiked area.  Take the elevator up and head right to the save point and to reset your characters.

Progress: 79%

Bosses Battled: Pokemon Trainer, Princess Zelda, and Princess Peach

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 35: The Great Maze Part 5

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 35: The Great Maze Part 5

Part 35 of our SSBB SSE Playthrough picks up right after we beat Bowser and Mario in the Cave portion of the Great Maze.  We picked back where we left off, and headed to the top door (where you battle Mario), and took off to the left.

You emerge from the Cave to the Canyon and have to deal with a Buckot and Big Primid.  You step out onto a series of platforms.  As you go up you’ll have to contend with Boulders.  You can sort of catch them before they fall and subsequently avoid them.  When you get to the top, continue left (can’t go right).  You’ll face a few pits and some Hammer Bros.  Take him out as soon as possible to deal with the Gyam Base.  The best strategy is to stand below it and jump attack it until it is gone.  Continue left and take the door.  This puts you out into the canyon with a strong wind blowing you back to the right.  Watch out for Turlows and the Roturret.  There are Bytans , Bombeds, Nagagogs, and Primids up ahead.

Drop down and enter the tunnel.  Be careful as the spikes will drop down, and then rise back-up.  Take this door and proceed left.   Take care of the Floows as best you can and ump to the next rock to deal with a few Armights.  We lost R.O.B, primarily due to the crappy camera and Kirby came in to finish them off and use the sliders to break the bomb blocks.  After the first few you’ll need to take out a Borboras, you should know my feelings on these by now. 

Continue left and watch out for the Buccului.  Get past them and take the Boss Door.  This will put you up against Galleom.  Kirby didn’t fare well against this heavyweight.  Fox came in and was KOd.  We continued and battled Galleom with a full fleet of four characters at max health.  This made all the difference.  Marth did quite a bit of damage, R.O.B. did the best he could, but Kirby came in to actually do a good bit of damage before getting KOd with his upper cut once again.  The good news is Fox made him look pathetic and quickly cleared the boss battle.

This put us out right near a save point.  We elected to save here and reset the characters for the next adventure.

Progress: 78%

Boss Battled: Galleom

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 34: The Great Maze Part 4

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 34: The Great Maze Part 4

Part 34 of our SSBB SSE Playthrough has us continue in the Great Maze.  We pick back up in the Cave area.  Jump to the platform and hit the switch to clear the poisonous gas.  Enter the door at the bottom and move up to find an Item Box and a trophy.  Drop down and continue left.  Watch out for flames that will come from the wall, ceiling, and floor.  You can use the Pink Switches to kill the flames momentarily.  You will need to use projectile attacks to clear Koopas, ParaTroopas, and Hammer Bros. as you progress.

If you get to an area with flames all around, backtrack to the nearest switch.  You will also encounter a few Bullet Bills from time to time.  When you get to the end of the ledge, , jump to avoid Fireballs.  Take the Boss Door and you will face none other than King Koopa himself, Bowser!

This was also cool as we entered with Mario.  Unfortunately we had high damage and lost him very early.  R.O.B. came on to replace him and made fairly quick work of him…I must say that the subspace look on Bowser was pretty cool! 

Exit the door and progress back to the right.  This is the exact same set-up, but it is a bit easier having been thru it already and knowing where the switches are and having a little knowledge of the time frame on the flames.  Work your way right while watching for enemies and flames, and then exit out the door.

Now, hit the Pink Switch and take the cycling rocks upwards to avoid the poisonous gas.  Jump to the right and you can enter the top Boss Door.  This pits us against Mario.   R.O.B. was lost right at the start of the battle.  Marth came in and performed admirably.  The main thing is to just try and land a power attack on Mario.  We did just that and defeated him.

Jump back to the left and save your progress!  More importantly you can reset your characters before you progress to the left.

Progress: 77%

Bosses Battled: Bowser and Mario

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 33: The Great Maze Part 3

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 33: The Great Maze Part 3

Part 33 of our SSBB SSE Playthrough picks up with the Great Maze.  We just made it through Hyrule and found a save point.  I messed around with the teleporters at the save point and didn’t really make headway, so we just went back through the door.  We headed left, and this took us to “The Jungle.”

Once in, continue left, dodge the enemies above the swinging platforms and then take care of the Hammer Bros. and a few Bytans.  I got a trophy base and managed to snag one of the Bucculus.  We took the door and found ourselves in battle with none-other than Donkey Kong himself!  This was a cool stage because of the multiple platforms (six).  The battle is straight forward, just avoid DK’s power attacks and get in hits when you can.  Unfortunately we were stunned and got hit with a power move, loosing Mario.  Kirby came in and was helped by a Fire Flower, but was able to get him after a series of upward smash attacks.

As soon as we beat Donkey Kong we took the door to an area with all of the remaining trophies in it…I’m not quite sure why we didn’t battle anyone, but we headed back to the swamp and went down and left to yet another Boss Door.

This one took us to a showdown with Samus.  Kirby made quick work of her with the classic Bob-omb strategy!  As soon as we defeat Samus we were taken to a fading screen and emerged in the Research Facility.  Take out the Primids and continue left.  If you exit out of the door you will actually emerge back at the Swamp.  After my “research” on the door we came back to take on Sword and Scope Primids.  Sadly we lost Kirby, but Marth came in to continue moving rightward. 

When you get to the platforms that move “up” make sure not to stay put too long as they will continue to rise up into the blue flames.  Get the key, backtrack and take the elevator down to battle a Big Primid.  The door to your left will take you to a Save Point where you can reset your characters.  Come back and move right past the Big Primid and take the door to the left.  This takes you to a platform with a boss door.  In order to open the Boss Door you have to find the Red, Blue, and Green switches.  The Red Switch is up top…drop down and take the right door to find a very cool area with water and platforms.   Go all the way left to get the key.  Come back, take the locked door, hit the Blue Switch, and open the Item Box to find a Heart Container. 

Exit out, go to the right door and move all the way left to find the Green Switch.  Along the way you’ll have to deal with a conveyer belt, Mites, and more.

When you hit the Green Switch, you can take the Boss Door to the left to battle R.O.B.  This is a tough battle, but Marth made pretty quick work of him.  Come back in and drop down, then move left past all of the Primids, Buckots, and Mites.  IF you drop down and go right you will find an Item Box that contains the Star Rod trophy.  As I checked around for stickers, I found that the Mites were coming from a spawn point.  I took it out, and of course…got no stickers!  Exit back out, and you now have access to the previously locked Boss Door.

This one is actually a battle against Ridley.  The battle is exactly the same as it was before.  Your experience from the first few battles with Ridley will definitely be a plus.   Just try to dodge his attacks, and hit him when he is stationary.  Marth and Meta Knight both failed to defeat him, but Mario came in and finished him off…

This will drop you down to a cave like area.  Enter the door to the left of the ladder and save your progress!  I ended this segment here.

Progress: 76%

Bosses Battled: Donkey Kong, Samus, R.O.B., and Ridley

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 32: The Great Maze Part 2

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Subspace Emissary Part 32: The Great Maze Part 2

Part 32 of our SSBB SSE Playthrough has us continue through the Hyrule-esque portion and go right.  There are Shellpods and Puppits as you enter.  Again, the downside to the Wiimote only is that you have heck jumping and not going in doors.

Take the Yellow door and hit the Bomb block.  If you continue right you’ll have to battle Primids and the diving birds.  Continue right and take out a Shellpod.  You get to a point where there are 2 blue doors on the right edge.  The top door will drop you down against two Nagagogs and you can’t go right…Armights will follow as you beat the Nagagogs.  You can collect stickers though.  There doesn’t seem to be anything to the left of the tree stump…my advice is to not go in the door at all!

Now exit back and take the door at the right edge on the ground.  You can not go left, but you can now break the wall blocks to advance right.  You will now need to take the Yellow Door, jump the spikes, hit the bomb block and then take the blue door in the sky.  This puts you out where you can break the green blocks below your character.  Don’t break the ones below the door or you will drop to your death.

Take the door, come back and you can clear the area with a bomb-block.  Take the blue door and then open the boss door with the black haze around it.  This will take you to battle Yoshi.

We lost Fox right off the bat, but Marth came in and finished him off pretty easily.  This put us back in Hyrule.  Take the yellow door and continue right to the regular red door.  This will take you to an area with Buckots and Roaders.  Use the railed objects to defeat them.  Do the same for the Gyam Base you encounter.  An Item Box will give you a trophy.  Continue right and you’ll enter another Boss Door. 

This time we battle Diddy Kong.  R.O.B. was up the challenger and used the bumper to KO Diddy.  This put us out at a point where we can go down, right, or take the save door.  This took us back to the main entry point where we saved our progress and reset our characters.

Progress: 70 Something percent

Bosses Battled: Yoshi and Diddy Kong