Mediaholics Review: Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon

We were going to do Gates, but one of us hasn't got it, and the other can't get through it, so let's review the game that was the developers going "Ok, yeah we stuffed up with some of these changes" 

Youtube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7AOCOj1eJ0

Opinion Piece: Things I'd like to see in Pokemon Generation 8 (and beyond)

Ahh, the start of a new Pokemon generation. A new location, new characters, new Pokemon, new features, returning features, cut features, it is an exciting time to be a Pokemon fan. While many will speculate on what's going to come to Pokemon Sword and Shield, analyze the trailers to death, go to war to decide if Gyms were better or Island Trials were better, and cry for an Open World game once Generation 9 comes in a few years, I'd like to take a step back, to talk about things that I either hear some people talk about, or no one talks about at all. I wouldn't call many of these ideas small ideas, but certainly lesser appreciated ideas. Do I think all of these are ever going to be a real thing in the games? Probably not. Do I hope all of these become realised ideas? Absolutely! So come with me dear reader as we indulge the one part of my brain that many people think I should have chosen for a career path, and probably would have if I enjoyed, and didn't such at, coding. These are in no particular order, that's why this isn't a Top X List.

It should be noted that the images used in this post are themed to their points, as such some might seem weird at first.

Young Justice: The less edgy, and better looking Titans

Before anyone tries it, that comment is aimed more at the costume design rather than the casting.

By now it should come as no surprise that, while both have their ups and downs, I tend to lean more towards the animated side of DC's catalogue when it comes to watching shows and movies related to DC, the highs have been higher, and even some of the low points can still loom over parts of their Live action films, and shows at times. One that many held in high regard was Young Justice, a show focusing on a team made up of sidekicks and younger versions of league members handling more covert ops missions, which was at one point cancelled, then brought back on DC's new streaming platform. Was it for a good reason though?

Poochy and Yoshi's Woolly World: For when you really don't like knitting

Yoshi's had a weird history when it comes to games, hasn't he? Born into this world as a glorified power-up for Mario in Super Mario World, while he's had his own games, they tend to get lumped in with the Mario Spin-Offs in the eyes of the masses, myself included for a period of time when I was first getting into Nintendo games back in 2007-2008 (I grew up with a PS1 and PS2). What doesn't help either is that his games did have a sporadic release for a long time. I genuinely can't think of a Yoshi game for the Wii, or even the GameCube, the DS game was kind of a remake of the original Yoshi's Island, then there was the "Not a remake" on the 3DS in the form of Yoshi's New Island. It's why Yoshi's Woolly World came out of nowhere originally and felt like an odd next project for the team that worked on Kirby's Epic Yarn (to me at least), but after several delays, the game was released for the WiiU, and eventually got a 3DS port too in the form of Poochy and Yoshi's Woolly World, which is the main version I focused on for this review.

Mediaholics Review: Super Smash Brothers Ultimate

Link to video on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8hjmLUmjfg

Everyone might be in the game, but we couldn't quite get everyone for the review. Ehh, at least it's the usual two.

Link to the *ahem* "interesting" competitive ruleset: https://twitter.com/ScrubQuotesX/status/1088711432655405056

Kingdom Hearts Marathon; Kingdom Hearts 3.... D; Dream Drop Distance: So close, yet so, so far.

Kind of a low brow moment don't you think? This was the 10th-anniversary game, and to do that painful tease of calling it Kingdom Hearts 3D?

And so, with Kingdom Hearts 3 coming out this week, it's time to look at the game that's closely tied to the events of it, including pulling another Chain of Memories and justifying why Sora's back to Level 1. Kingdom Hearts 3D, the only Kingdom Hearts game on the 3DS, and lost the whole 3D thing when it went to PS4... which would make this Kingdom Hearts 3? It makes more sense then Nomura talking about it like it's 2.6 at least. Welcome to a review of that one game where two guys overdose on sleeping tablets and played Nintendogs a lot (or Pokemon Amie, your choice).

Kingdom Hearts Marathon; Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep: With the exception of Evil Mc Wigglefingers, did anyone want to know the answers to these questions?

As much as that might sound like a joke, the best way to describe Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep's plot is to ask that question because that's all this really is. Like with all the non-numbered games, it exists to answer questions. What doesn't help this though was that it was made for the PlayStation Portable, and until relatively recently, was the only place you could play it (unless it got a PlayStation Vita port on the shop, though considering how well that did, you could make the argument that my point still stands). Thankfully though, there are other ways to play it now. So how does it improve on from Kingdom Hearts 2, and the other handheld spinoffs?

Kingdom Hearts Marathon; Kingdom Hearts 2: What happened to the rails?

One critique often made against Tetsuya Nomura is that while he's great (most of the time) at self-contained stories, he struggles to follow them up with sequels and a continuous narrative. The biggest offender of this? This very franchise, because while the individual stories are relatively strong (provided you like the story structure), trying to piece them together becomes a nightmare worse than figuring out what is and isn't canon in a comic. Allow me to give you a taste of this as we tackle the sequel to Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts 2...

Kingdom Hearts Marathon; Kingdom Hearts: Time for a trip into absolute madness

My apologies for the sparatic content last month. Work, Christmas, and what happened to my grandfather took their toll on the sites and basically killed DCember 2018. The lesson of the day kids? Make a backlog, something that I will try and commit to this year. In the meantime, with Kingdom Hearts 3 on the horizon, let's begin to tackle a game series that, against all odds, somehow exists. Welcome to the Kingdom Hearts marathon.

Disney, Final Fantasy. Two things that most sane people would not think to put into the same sentence, let alone go the distance and make a game on it, and then to go even further with at least thirteen (oh Arceus I just thought of something about that... more on that next week) games, a card game, manga and novels. along with countless other bits of merchandise. It's honestly quite baffling that this exists, especially when you consider that all of this started cause one guy happened to be in the right place at the right time, yet here we are, with one of the biggest releases of the month being the Third game, while also being the thirteenth game, so long before I get to Kingdom Hearts 3 (as I still don't have the console to play it), let's look at the first game, that's also the fifth game? I think that's right at least... or maybe it's the forth because one of those is just cutscenes based on a mobile game...Kingdom Hearts.

In memory of John Mitchell

While it's rare that I do these "In memory of" posts, this is one time that I do feel that is justified, not to jump on a bandwagon or anything, but because of the personal attachment that this person has to me.

John Mitchell was one of the first people I ever got to know, one of a few that I saw first. My parents would tell stories to me of how much he tried to protect me when I was in the hospital, how he would stand guard over me while I slept. I don't think I would be where I am today if it wasn't for him. He helped inspire my passion for finding out how machines worked when I was a kid, helped me with construction projects when I was in high school, helped me improve in chess, and this year helped me get to and from the hospital when I had my broken foot during the winter. I owe a lot to him, as he was, and still is, one of only a few role models that I have. He has fought struggle he had to overcome, even when health issue after health issue piled up on him. Unfortunately, he just couldn't fight any longer, as two large surgeries, one for his leaking lung, and one for his bowel, took their toll on him. And when this is released, it means that he would have passed away.

I cannot begin to describe how much he has changed me, helped me through some of the hardest challenges I've had to go through. He was someone I looked up to, sought guidance from when I was lost or struggling, and I cannot begin to describe how much I will miss him. As he and many others have said, life does go on. Life will go on. But this world will not be the same without him.

Goodbye Pop. I know wherever you end up, you truly do deserve it. I just hope that now you can finally live without the pain of your aging body, and all that it's been though. You fought to the very end.