My Video Game Library: Castlevania

    I, of course, knew of the Castlevania series well before I got any of the games. There was a 'Belmont' character on one of the old Saturday morning cartoons (more of that in a later post). The games were always being mentioned in the gaming mags. However, it wasn't until the news for the first Castlevania game for the PS1, Castlevania:  Symphony of the Night or SotN, that I became truly invested in the series. Those first preview pictures held a huge secret that would earn the game the "Best Middle" award from EMG (IYKYK).  The game ventured away from the linear path of the previous games to a more explorable situation, with sections locked away until certain upgrades were found. (In fact, this led to the creation of the term 'metroidvania' style of game that had such branching paths that had to be unlocked after this game and the Metroid series, which I never followed.) I started playing the afternoon I got it, after picking it up at the Game Stop at the Huntington Mall.  I think I even opened it and started reading the manual to get a head start. I was surprised at the opening, where my character flew across the screen past the first rooms, only to wind up into basically the first boss battle, pretty much unprepared. Somehow, I managed to work my way through the game, managing to get over 190% of the game explored (again, IYKYK). I worked my way to the final boss, Dracula, as Alucard, his half-vampire son. Yeah, silly, but the name was around before the series was started, I think. Yet, I could never beat him, even with the tips I found.  Still, I loved the game.  It is still the highest ranked game of the series. 

    Later on, a previously unreleased game for the US came out, Chronicles, and I got that for Christmas.  My mom had a cousin pick it up in Lexington somewhere. It was in the standard linear-style, so the change in play was tricky to adjust to. I made it about halfway through the game before I had to take a break. I was never able to get back to either of the games before I lost them in the flood.

    When the GBA first came out, a Castlevania game was one of the highlights. Circle of the Moon featured the same type of explorable gameplay from SotN, but with a different magic system. This time, I was able to complete almost all of the game, even beating the main boss and most of the unlocked challenges. I just couldn't figure out the one empty room with the soundbite of a skeleton.  The graphics could have been a little cleaner, though. The next GBA game was Harmony of Dissonance.  This one brought back the "Sorry, but our undead overlord is in another castle" schtick from SotN (once again, IYKYK). This game was a little underwhelming.  One of its side quests was finding objects to decorating a spare room in the castle. Yes, a challenge involving interior decorating. You couldn't even adjust the objects.  Just find them and, poof, they were arranged for you. Too easy.

    The third GBA game was Aria of Sorrow.  Of the GBA games, this one was the most like SotN. Set in a near-future Japan (?!), you play a college student who gets sucked into the castle where you get the ability to suck (?!) the spirits from enemies you defeat to gain powers from them that you get to decide which ones to use. I must say, this was my favorite of all of the games. While I had almost beaten the game in full before the flood, I had to wait until I got a new GBA to finally finish it.  In the interim, I had found great tips in a gaming mag. I had found every ability, beaten the real last boss, and defeated the unlocked boss challenge mode, getting the best weapon in the game.  Excalibur.  However, since my character wasn't the future king of England, it stayed in the stone. It was more of a hammer than a sword.

    There were follow up games to AoS on the Nintendo Dual Screen (DS), but since I never got the system, I missed out on them. I really hated that. There would be other Castlevania games afterwards, by the game company decided to go a different route, and get out of the console gaming market. There have been other signs of Castlevania in various media, such as a highly rated cartoon, but no new games in some time. I almost even opened my free Apple Arcade trial just to try out a Castlevania game, but I didn't since I don't think it was in the same style. I also didn't want to get stuck paying the monthly fee once the trial was over. Still, I think I would like to play the series again one day.

My Video Game Side Quest: Magazines

    I am always wanting to try something new, usually by finding out as much as I can about it before actually doing it.  When I started gaming in the 90s, there was pretty much only one way to find out about it.  Magazines. I got my first gaming mag just after I got my NES that Christmas.  I relied on mags throughout my entire gaming history, even after the internet started to become the dominant source for information.

    While it might not have been my first mag, Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) was the most dominant one. It had a great mix of news, articles, previews, reviews, strategy, and humor. Sure, I think I ever decided to buy only one game based on what I read there, but I still feel it gave me more than enough to make that and other decisions. As its height, EGM regularly broke 200 pages and came bagged with multiple inserts. They even had spin-off mags.  This included EGM2 (again, should be read as an exponent), a regular monthly published about two weeks after the main mag. It focused more on strategy and tips, but still had some articles. These articles were usually taken from the main mag, either in part or an expanded version. It didn't last that long.  [They also published a comic book mag, Hero Illustrated, that only lasted a short time, as well as the Official US Playstation Magazine. More on that one later.]

    EGM would outlast many of its competitors, but it was cancelled in the 2000s as online sources took over. A blurb in the final issue alluded to "hell freezing over."  To this day, I can't be sure if it meant a demonic-themed game or that they knew it was their final issue and I missed any other mention in the mag. I had gotten almost every issue for over a decade, and then it was over.

    There were other mags, such as GamePro, Nintendo Power, and the aforementioned Playstation Magazine, but I only picked those up whenever they featured a game I liked.  Although I did get most of the last mentioned one, for reasons that will be evident in a future post. Following is a list of most of the places where I bought gaming mags. I don't remember subscribing to any, so this list is mostly complete, baring any one-time stops. Closed stores are in black. Store still open are in blue, while those that still have mags are in blue and underlined. I will also add some extra facts when I feel necessary.

• Prestonsburg:  Winn-Dixie, Walmart, Readmore, Food City (Glenview Plaza location. The current larger location still has a small magazine section, but I don't think I have ever bought any there.)
• Pikeville:  Economy Drug (I bought many there, but they discontinued having mags years ago.), Food City (Town & Country. The current larger location has a small magazine section, but I don't think I bought any gaming mags there.), Page 3 Game Zone (They had a small newsstand section for a brief time in the late 90s when they were still downtown. I may have bought at least one gaming mag there. Currently, they don't have any mags, but they might be able to order some in the near future.), Winn-Dixie, Walmart (I bought many mags here, especially after I opened my store. The current magazine section is about 25% of what it was at its height, as well as in the back of the store after its major remodel from a few years ago.)
• Coal Run:  Kmart (Only store that regularly carried NP, but I bought a few others here. They got rid of magazines a few years before they closed.), Readmore, Magic Mart (final location), Walmart (Didn't get as many here as when they moved, but I remember an NP.), Kroger/Food City (I got mags at both places, but I can't remember any gaming ones in particular. They were about the last places I visited on shopping trips, so I usually had already gotten any mags by the time I got there. Not always.)
• Williamson/South Williamson:  downtown newsstand (I got many mags here over the years, but I can't remember if any were about gaming, but it's possible.), Kmart (I think I got at least one by the time I finally discovered the magazine section. They closed soon after, I think.), Kroger (I know I got a TCG mag there, so I may have gotten a gaming mag or two as well. Not positive though.)
• Norton/Wise VA:  somewhere, maybe (I am all but certain I got a mag during one of the few trips I took here in the mid-late 90s. Candidates include Food Lion, Kmart, Ingall's, Walmart, and Food City. The first three are closed, although I don't remember if Food Lion had mags. Walmart and Food City have since moved to new, larger locations, with the former still having mags as of the last time I went there. Food City might not, but I may have finally found the section hidden in one of the aisles I rarely went down on one of my last trips. Still not sure.)
• Paintsville:  Food City (Their magazine section was in the front of the store at times, so I didn't always get a chance to look, but I think I bought one there. Haven't been in years, so I'm guessing about mags.), Kmart (found an issue that wasn't out in Huntington once.), Read-a-lot/Kroger (I got mags at both, but rarely. I frequently stopped here after trips to Huntington, so I usually had already bought them by the time I got here. Still, I also had my dentist here for part of the 90s, so I may have gotten one of those times.)
• Huntington Mall:  Phar-more (This was usually my first stop most trips, so I think I got one of the lower tier mags here.), Waldenbooks, Game Stop (I got a TCG mag here, so I may have gotten a gaming mag once as well. The store was still open the last time I went to the Mall, but I don't think they still have mags.), Borders, BAM (The timeline may be off, but I might have gotten one of the last EGMs here. Still, I did get Mac magazines here, and they sometimes had game reviews, so it counts.), Kroger (Barboursville. I think I got an earlier/current issue of one I picked up at the Mall, thereby getting two issues in one day. Could be confusing it with somewhere else. They shrank their magazine section by over 75% when they remodeled/expanded, before getting rid of it completely.)
• Lexington:  Kroger (Regency Center.  The previous experience may have been here instead, or it happened twice. Haven't been in a long time, but they still carried a few mags that last time.), Joseph-Beth Booksellers, Waldenbooks (Fayette Mall), Walden Software (Fayette Mall.  A spin-off store that sold computer software and video games, as well as some hardware and mags. Felt embarrassed buying just a mag here just one time. The store didn't last long.)

        Aside from the occasional bookazine limited edition, such as recent one for the Pokémon anniversary, gaming mags can't be found on most newsstands. In fact, the only mags I see nowadays are imports. Only Joseph-Beth and BAM above would carry them. They are too expensive for me for what they are, and they usually don't carry information about things I want anyway. Never have bought them.

My Video Game Library: Street Fighter II/Alpha

    When Street Fighter II came out for the arcades, its success was phenomenal. I mean, the original game had its fans, but the follow-up was just huge. While I never played it in arcades, I did know about it from magazines. Mostly, from Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) and the infamous April Fool's Day prank about how to fight a hidden boss. (More on that in a later post.) Now, I didn't like fighting games, but there was just something about following trends that led me to ask for one of the later versions of the game for my SNES for Christmas. Probably the one after they added the new 'World Warriors' and the new boss. Akuma. Yes, he was technically based on the back story that led to the fake boss above, but it was still cool and amazing. Now, I wouldn't say that I was any more obsessed with this game than any other, but I did occasionally get blisters on my fingers from playing too much.  The SNES controller just wasn't designed for the smooth motions required for fighting games. I think I did beat the game for at least one character though. Or close to it. 

    I was glad when one of the updates finally came out for my PS1. My mom couldn't find that version in stores in time for Christmas. So, I had to settle for the SNES version.  I would get the other version later. I can't remember if it was for my birthday or later. Anyway, that game became to only one that I bought for two different systems.

    The game may or may not have been a version of Street Fighter Alpha. This was technically a prequel to the entire Street Fighter series, with elements from both previous games and my other Capcom fighting games.  It's just been so long since I played it, that I can't remember enough to give more details. However, it was a running joke that it was just a stopgap measure until Capcom could figure out how to count to three for the official sequel to II.

    Like some other fans, I did not like the 3D update to the new game. Of course, I never played it the arcade. Didn't even think about getting for any game system, although I might not even have been playing much by the time it was ported over to home consoles. I just wish I could remember more about the games I had. I know I got more than two or three different games, and that I beat some of them with at least one character, but that's about it. One of the games had a story challenge mode that I got about halfway through with Ryu, I think, but I just gave up trying to progress after a while. 

    I really liked the games, but not enough to want to play them any more.

My Video Game Library: MegaMan X

    When Capcom finally decided to update the MegaMan series for the SNES, they chose to go beyond what other developers did.  Instead of just adding new features and improving the graphics, they made a whole new game. Sure, the basic premise of the game remained the same. Beat eight preliminary robot bosses, and then use the powers you took from them to get to the main boss. MegaMan X was slightly different. First, it was set further into the future than the original MegaMan series. Next, the robot bosses were now animal-based. (Although future installments would stray from the definition of 'animal.') This allowed for greater styles of enemies. Then, lots of hidden power-ups and features were added. Special hearts that increased the health bar were in each level. Four levels had energy tanks that could be filled up with spare energy pellets, and then drained whenever needed.  The other four levels had armor upgrades that had special abilities. For instance, the leg upgrade added a special dash jump that allowed you to reach new sections of the stage. By tradition, this is the one that is usually the easiest to find. The arm upgrade allowed for powered up charges, that included special abilities when using the bosses' powers. The biggest surprise was the super secret "Hadoken" fireball power-up that, once found and installed, allowed you to perform the action from Street Fighter II to perform a one-hit energy blast, as long as you were at full power. While some new features would later transfer to the original game line, all-in-all, it was a new experience. It took some time, but I did beat the game. 

    When news broke on MegaMan X2, (Note: that should be an exponent, but it is just easier to type the number, especially once I get to the other sequels.) I was thrilled.  While the original game was tough, it was the type of challenge I liked. Unfortunately, I could never find the game. Neither locally or out of town. I don't know how I missed it, but I did.

    MegaMan X3 was found. Its main new feature was mech suits that you could pilot in certain sections.  There were four different suits to be found, each with different capabilities. It took a long time to find everything, and beat the bosses, but I did it. Too bad that the first of the main boss level had a closing wall segment in the middle that I just couldn't figure out the right jump moves to get through it. I never even tried to finish the game.

    X4 and X5 proved to be even harder games, which makes sense since they were designed for the PS1. I think I actually made it to the end of the game for the former, but I could never pull off the final win against the big boss.  The latter one was worse, aside from the fact that the US port changed the names of the robot bosses to ones based on members of the band Guns N' Roses. I don't remember even managing to get to the final levels for that one.  Its apocalyptic plot also was a little off-putting.

    I think that MegaMan X6 was the only one that wasn't a Christmas present, but I could be mis-remembering. I know I bought one of the PS1 games from the Pikeville Kmart, and this one is the most likely of them. This game was just way too hard. Some of the moves required were just barely beyond me. Also, each of the first stages changed depending on which one you just left. Things were just way more complicated than I liked. I was still trying to beat the game, maybe, when the flood hit.

    While there were more sequels, I never bought any of them. X7 came out just after the flood. I either forgot about it or just didn't bother to get it. I needed the money to buy replacements for other things that I had lost. I don't think I even knew about any other sequels until recently when I saw videos of people posting the play throughs. 

    A few years after the flood, a collection of the first six games came out. Not only did it include the X2 game I initially missed, it had bonus features including artwork and a MegaMan game that never made it to the US. I played X2, and maybe a bit of some of the others, but I never beat any of them or opened up all the bonus features. It would turn out that it was the last PS1, and probably the last ever, physical game I ever bought. 

My Video Game Side Quest: Accessories

    To gain extra enjoyment from playing video games, I got some accessories. Some were vital. At least one was unintended. I still got them all, though.

    As I have hinted at before, I got a Game Genie for my NES. Yeah, technically that was cheating, but I really needed some help.  I was just barely able to make progress into "Super Mario," but I felt like I needed a boost to really get through some of those games. I can't remember if this was a Christmas or birthday gift, or if I got it much later. Anyway, I barely used it. The most I used it was to see all of the victory animations in Tetris. One block wins made things much easier. I mostly used it in "Super Mario" so I could skip levels to save time. The Genie came with a booklet with codes for all sort of games, while newer codes would sometimes be printed in magazines. (More on those in a later post.)

    Yes, I also got the Game Genie for the SNES as well. Unlike the one for the NES, this one was definitely bought later on at Walmart, probably. Well, it was the opposite of the NES wherever it came from. I remember looking at the instructions in the car.  I used this even less than the one for the NES. The games I had never interacted properly, but I think I still used it for a few things.

    There may have even been a Genie for the GB, but I never got it, since I only played Pokémon with it. However, there were other things that I got, but I'll return to that later.

    There was never a Genie for the PS1.  It would have been to hard to do that with the disc format. Aside for the memory card, which was pretty much mandatory, the only accessory I got for it was a special controller. As I mentioned in the MegaMan post, I was having a hard time with an auto-scroll sledding section in an early level. I just couldn't get through it reliably. I thought that getting a controller with slow-motion features could help. I got one in Lexington, wither at a video game store (not Game Stop) at the Fayette Mall or at one of the large stores on the other side of Nicholasville Road. (both Kmart and Toys-R-Us were open back then.) All I can be sure of is that I looked at it in the car while my mom went into Red Lobster to pick up a slice of "Death by Chocolate" cake. It was third-party, but I felt that there wouldn't be any problems. When I tried it out, I found that it worked by quickly pausing the game, switching between the pause/inventory screen and the action. It actually made the game even harder, as I couldn't catch the notifications as to when I was supposed to slide or jump. I don't remember trying it for other games. 

    Fortunately for me, all accessories for the PS1 were backwards compatible with the PS2, so I didn't have to buy anything new, aside from another memory card, just to be safe. 

    When the GBA came out, I finally had the chance to trade Pokémon between games. This was the one part of the game I never got to try out before, as I had no one to trade with. However, I needed some special equipment to make that happen. I found a special connection cable that could attach various versions of devices together. Very third-party. I got it at Electronics Boutique at the Huntington Mall. I'm just lucky that the games could trade with each other through various generations and backwards compatible devices.

    When my first GBA got lost in the flood, I got a new one for that Christmas. It was in a bundle with an e-card reader. With it, I could swipe special cards that could either add new features to old games or play special games that originally came out in the 80s on special watches from Nintendo. I played the free games only once, as I didn't really like them. The extra feature for the Pokémon games was a new trainer that you could challenge multiple times. Meh. 

    [For completists sake, I will mention that I got a third-party mouse for my MacBook. While I am good with the trackpad, some actions are still easier with a mouse. My mother prefers them anyway. The mouse can also hook up with my iPhone, but I have yet to make the connection work.]

My Video Game Library: MegaMan

        The next Christmas after I got my NES, I started an entirely different game series. MegaMan 4.  I had heard about the first three games, from various sources, and I finally decided I wanted to try this one out. I have no idea where it was bought, though. I remember playing it instead of watching either a Christmas or New Year's Day parade. I started the game and got smoked on the first screen on the first level the guides suggested I should start on, RingMan. For some reason, I wanted to stomp on enemies, like Super Mario, only to take massive damage. Getting used to so many projectiles was another thing. It took a long while, and help, but I finally managed to defeat all eight bosses:  SkullMan, RingMan, DiveMan, DrillMan, DustMan, PharaohMan, BrightMan, and ToadMan. (I am pretty sure that MegaMan is one word, but I can't remember about the bosses. So, I am writing them as the same way, for now. Besides, spellcheck clears them.) The Dr. Wily boss levels were trickier, but I made my way through them and beat the game.

    The following years, I would get the next two games locally.  I think they came from the Pikeville Kmart and/or Magic Mart (last location). I remember looking at the games in my car, but not exactly buying them beyond the general locations. I enjoyed to improved features and gameplay. Then, the news came out that the game would finally be porting to the SNES. Sure, a spinoff was already there, but bring the original "Blue Bomber" to the system was terrific. I kept looking out for the game, after I was sure it was in stores, but I could never find it. I either skipped over it when I was on a trip and chose to wait to get it at home, or I just never saw it.  The only place locally that had it was the Coal Run Blockbusters, and it was only available for rent, not for sale. This was the first game that I truly hated missing out on. 

    MegaMan 8 would then be available on the PS, and another system that I never got into.  The two versions would be about the same, with only a few small differences. This time I made sure to buy it when I first say it. I'm thinking the Pikeville Walmart, but I may have gotten it at the Huntington Mall.  Perhaps Game Stop, but I honestly can't remember where I got it.  Anyway, I quickly started playing it as soon as I could. I then hit a wall.  One of the first levels involved an auto-scroll sledding area that I just couldn't get the hang of.  I had to stop playing the game, until I bought a special controller with slo-mo function.  Didn't help, but I managed to beat both auto-scroll sections of the level. I beat all eight bosses, but got stuck on the first Wily level by another sledding section, a much harder one.  I have yet to try and go back to beat the game.

    The last MegaMan game I got was actually the Legacy Collection for the PS2. It collected all of the first eight games in the series, plus a special ninth spinoff game that was never released separately in the US, as well as some other special features that were unlocked by beating the original games.  I finally got to play the seventh game that I had missed out on, as well as the first three games that were out before  I started gaming. While I played each of those four games, I only got close to beating one of them, before I grew frustrated and stopped playing.  I never even tried to replay the other four games as well.  I don't think I unlocked anything worth mentioning. 

    Since then, there have been other games in the series. A remixed version of the original game came out for the Playstation Portable (PSP) that featured a cutesy, chibi style, as well as two new levels with new bosses. MegaMan 9 and 10 came out for systems I never got.  Both were in an 8-bit style similar to the first six games.  Finally, the was even an eleventh game that came out that I never knew about. It featured an enhanced version of gameplay that brought out the best of whatever system it was made for.  I've only seen gaming videos of it in action, so I can't really comment on it beyond saying it looked incredible. [I've been seeing so many gaming videos, that I might be confusing the games I've actually played with those I've only watched.  It is crazy at times, but a lot of them are quite similar.]

    News broke recently that a new MegaMan game will be out next year. It won't be "12," and it will instead have a different subtitle. I think it is still a mainline game, though. Many s

My Video Game Library: Tetris

    As luck would have it, Tetris was ported over to the NES in an official version from the GB just before I got my NES for Christmas. (There had been an 'unofficial' version, but that one had some technical issues working with the game system.) So, of course, it became my first game, excluding the one that came with the console. As the game that led me into video gaming, it holds a special place in my life.

    I played with it a lot, since it was one of only two I had. I couldn't play competitively, as I had no one I could play with.  My mother would never get the hang of playing video games. And I couldn't really play against myself.  The solo version was okay. I even got to beat every level, including the hardest one, and got to see the winning graphics and to hear the special tunes for doing so. Okay, I had help to do that, but more on that in a 'side quest' post later on. As I got more games, I had less interest in playing Tetris, and it became one of the first games I pretty much put aside. 

    Years later, a version of 'Tetris" would come out on the PS1. It was one of the last games for the system I ever got. It was another Christmas gift. After so many years, I thought I would be still interested in playing the game on a better system. I played the game once that Christmas, but I don't think I ever played it again. Most of the game focused on competitive play, which I didn't have. Maybe if I had the internet connectivity, I would have played in more.  Instead, I just had solo mode, which felt strange. I don't think the game relied on the same grid system the original one did. The game was just too different and boring now. I let the game go. It was one of the many destroyed in the 2003 flood.

    I have since had the opportunity to play other line destroying games, but that sort of thing no longer seems interesting to me.