Toronto Thumbs

Preview Hype
Swords & Soldiers

In need of a noble holiday side-quest this year, I took part in some grass-roots promotion of Nintendo’s WiiWare service. Despite the emergence of solid titles during 2008, North American marketing has been tepid to non-existent, leaving Wii owners to discover the service through self-exploration and word of mouth. Even with releases like Mega Man 9 and the critical success of World of Goo, I’ve met many who remain in the dark regarding exactly what WiiWare is. The service certainly merits attention, not only for (so far) avoiding the shovel-ware plaguing the Wii and DS, but also for offering access to a wider audience that may prove more willing to interact with unique and experimental releases.

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Posted in Previews, WiiWare | 3 Comments »

Comment Contest
Win Kung-Fu Panda / Lego Indiana Jones

Toronto Thumbs simply couldn’t continue to exist and grow without our readers. As we work to expand our coverage of the gaming industry, our direction should be guided by and reflect your questions, concerns, and feedback. And though ice picks might do a better job, we feel the best way to break the ice is by giving away a game.

The Toronto Thumbs Comment Contest is your chance to win a copy of the Kung-Fu Panda / Lego Indiana Jones double game pack that was a pack-in for Xbox 360 systems this holiday season. All you need to do to enter is leave a comment on any article on the site (or in the Game Bar) between Monday January 5, 2009 and midnight ET on Friday January 9, 2009.

This contest is open to residents of Canada and the United States. Commenting is the only way to enter. Whether you want to tell us that you agree or disagree with any article is entirely up to you. The winning comment will be chosen based on a spirit of creating dialogue and representing the depth of our readership. First-time commentors please provide your real email address so we can contact you if you win. Good luck!

Posted in Contests, Xbox 360 | 4 Comments »

Preview Hype
Fragile : Farewell Ruins of the Moon

While Square-Enix seems to spend more time talking about development rather than delivering on product, Namco-Bandai has quietly brought compelling entries to all three platforms.

Developed by tri-Crescendo (Eternal Sonata), Fragile : Farewell Ruins of the Moon releases for the Wii in Japan on January 22nd, and appears as another unique entry from a development/publishing duo that is single-handedly rejuvenating the RPG genre.

Taking place in a world where the population has vanished, players explore abandoned cities while attempting to solve that mystery, but more importantly searching for someone to keep them company. The Wii-mote functions as a flashlight used to penetrate the thick fog that encompasses environments. The world is dubbed post-apocalyptic, having lost its light and become covered by this fog. But while this sounds like the premise for a survival horror title, the trailer illustrates an eerily serene landscape that feels more sorrowful than fearful. There’s an aesthetic of abandonment present that speaks to my sense of wonder more than the destroyed environments that ruled 2008. That’s not to say I don’t enjoy roaming through an apocalyptic wasteland, rather that the quiet tones and scenes of life mysteriously interrupted seem fresh in comparison.

But click to watch the TGS ‘08 trailer and decide for yourself…

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Posted in Previews, Wii | 2 Comments »

When Video Games Go Too Far
Pass The Pigs

During what little holiday shopping I did, I managed to come across an odd game in stores: Pass the Pigs for Nintendo DS. I wouldn’t have known what this game was about had my father-in-law not given me the “real” game as a joke present weeks ago. For those of you who sadly don’t know what Pass the Pigs is, it’s a dice game where players take turns tossing pig-shaped dice and scoring points depending on how these pigs land. Different landing combinations result in different point outcomes, and the first player to reach 100 points is declared the winner.

The game can be funny, if not fun. I mean, how could you not have a laugh at tossing a tiny pig across a table? But isn’t having an electronic version of this game missing the point? A party game that’s normally priced at around $10 has a $20 video game incarnation that can’t possibly be as fun, and that’s just plain wrong.

Or maybe I’m the one who’s wrong. I have never played the video game version of Pass the Pigs, nor do I want to. In fact, I barely see the appeal of the real-life dice game (sorry if you’re a fan of it). It’s funny for a little while but after a few rounds you just want someone to reach 100 points so you can go onto the next game. I suppose an electronic version can help if you’re poor at math, but that’s about it. This is just one of many cases of video games going too far.

Posted in Board Games, DS, When Video Games Go Too Far | 8 Comments »

Fashionably Late Reviews
Castlevania Order of Ecclesia

When Koji Igarashi appears with that iconic whip on his hip, he wants us to believe that he IS Castlevania. But considering how the series has developed through recent handheld iterations, I often wondered why he would want to perpetuate that idea. And then when I initially heard that Order of Ecclesia would be radically different BECAUSE you play as a female character, I wondered if I should get back to that novel I’ve been working on from time to time. I wasn’t alone in my early disinterest, which may well serve as Konami’s theme for 2008. BUT finally taking the time to play Ecclesia, I’ve discovered an immense void between what Konami PR focuses on and what the game actually achieves. Perhaps games can’t be properly explained with words. Perhaps developers do a poor job explaining their creations, having worked in the absence of a journalism that presses for the rationale behind creative decisions. [Honestly, can you believe no one questions these statements?] BUT, as a favour to Konami, for a nominal charge, I present the following marketing assistance;

Order of Ecclesia IS a glorious Bitch-Goddess.

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Posted in DS, News, Reviews | 1 Comment »

Valkyria Chronicles CONTEST
Win the On the Gallian Front Art Book

Valkyria Chronicles is arguably the best PS3 game of 2008 that you have yet to play. It’s a masterpiece that evokes memories of Sega’s past classics and shows that the company still has what it takes to remain relevant in today’s gaming world. We sincerely hope to see more of this kind of attention to detail from Sega in the future.

In the meantime, however, we have some excellent Valkyria Chronicles prizes to give away, courtesy of Sega of America. They’ve graciously given us a stack of Valkyria Chronicles art books entitled On the Gallian Front – Field Reports from the Second Europan War. These were pre-order bonuses for the game, and they’re now quite sought-after on the aftermarket.

To enter to win one of these awesome art books, simply send an email to torontothumbs@gmail.com with “Valkyria” as the subject. This contest will run from January 1, 2009 to midnight ET on February 1, 2009 and is open to residents of Canada and the United States. Three winners will be drawn at random on February 1 and will then be contacted to provide additional information so that prizing may be fulfilled. Good luck!

Posted in Contests, PlayStation 3 | 7 Comments »

MOST IMPRESSIVE
Gadget Orchestra with RockStar

YouTube user jetdaisuke has posted an impressive video showing a real-time audio mix of several devices using Belkin’s RockStar as the mixdown hub. The RockStar can combine up to five audio sources but its small form factor leaves no room for level control, so that’s done on each individual device. This video is all kinds of awesome and has me wanting, among other things, another DS.

Via: tinycartridge.com

Posted in Awesome, DS, Music | 2 Comments »

Super Happy Happy Mega-Fun Monday!
Samba De Amigo

Good morning, fellow Thumbs! Do you know what day it is? It’s Super Happy Happy Mega-Fun Monday!

We here at Toronto Thumbs know that there are so many ways you’d prefer to spend today rather than going to (or being at) work. Perhaps you could be standing in line at a Boxing Day sale while children clamor around you with armfuls of shovel-ware and you just wish you were dead. But before I suffer a complete seasonal breakdown why not let us distract you with the lighthearted remembrance of games past…

The final week of 2008 belongs to the budget title around our office. Shaun has been lost to the black hole that is N+, while I’ve been locked away ever since opening a copy of Space Invaders Extreme. It’s a title people tell me they meant to buy, but didn’t. Perhaps the Square-Enix logo looms large on the box, people fearing a thirty minute cinematic sequence that gives grudgingly misplaced emotions to those iconic aliens. Fortunately the game begins with the first press of a button. New sequences of colored invaders fill the screen, capable of varying patterns of attack and providing bonus stages that quickly pulled me into core game-play that hasn’t suffered any loss for its age.

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Posted in Super Happy Happy Mega-Fun Monday!, Wii | 1 Comment »