10/06 Update: Since we no longer write for the Edmond Sun, this section is temporarily housing our podcast links for our iTunes feed. All of the columns are in the archives menu if you feel like exploring.

These columns (as well as the 'releases') come from weekly content that we write for the Edmond Sun, out of Edmond, OK (though we live in Chicago). This page contains the archives for said column, many of which are in their pre-published, unedited state. Some titles and editing by Brendan Sinclair.

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Feel the Magic / It's Mr. Pants Review
Tuesday, June 14, 2005

When this ran in The Buzz, Brendan Sinclair pasted the fantastic headline "Gamer Doesn't Feel The Magic, Prefers To Play With Mr. Pants" above the reviews. A moment of silence for his last act of greatness in Oaklahoma before moving onto the sunny shores of San Francisco and Gamespot.com.

It's not often I get a chance to write an in-depth review of two handheld titles that are not only well past their sell by date but, even in the best of circumstances, are little more than obvious distractions that deserve no real love at the retail counter. But seeing as the video game industry is run by certifiable half-beings who pile all their releases into one overwhelming, though undeniably glorious, three month buy-a-thon at the end of the year, I am left with little choice but to talk extensively about the two newest entries in my personal library.

I'll start things off with the more well known title - Feel the Magic: XX/XY. Yes, that is the actual title of the game. If you couldn't guess from the name, this game clearly originated in Japan. Shockingly, it has the most normal name of the two games I am talking about today and, at the very least, offers a minute glimpse as to what sort of game is buried within the silicon.

For those that were asleep last November when FtM made its American debut, this was the key launch title next to the remade Mario 64 for the shockingly popular Nintendo DS. Playing through this game now I feel my rather harsh words towards the system - I know "gimmick" and "waste of precious LCD screens" came up on more than one occasion - were well warranted. Feel the Magic is a love story combined with Wario Ware if imagined by the artists of the iPod ad campaign. While the premise of boy meets girl, boy tries to impress girl by doing various crazy stunts, girl falls madly in love with boy, boy feels smothered and ends up buying a pet candy apple instead, is charmingly simple. And the idea of competing in various mini games, such as making a man regurgitate swallowed goldfish, seems fun in theory. But clearly, this game is as much fun as, um, broiled salmon at a vegetable party.

The mini games all use the touch screen in some arbitrary manner that was clearly designed to show off just how different the NDS could be instead of trying to optimize the fun players could have. Yes, the DS can double as a calculator, but does anyone really think it's fun to frantically punch in numbers using the touch screen?

That idea that FtM was heralded as a one of the premier launch titles for the system is a telling sign that the NDS was simply rushed to the street before developers could really wrap their head around the concept. It’s not a bad game; it's simply repetitive and boring. Well, maybe it is a bad game after all...

Thankfully, I saved the best game I'm talking about today (best of two? Does that even count?) for last. Whereas Feel the Magic is bad because the execution is so wretchedly amateurish it makes playing for longer than 10 minutes straight an exercise as bad as naked treadmill running, It's Mr. Pants is virtually perfect... except for one minor annoyance the makes the game borderline unplayable.

First, a quick introduction – It's Mr. Pants not only sports one of my favorite names in the history of gaming, it just so happens to be made by my favorite developer. If you can’t guess I'll give you one quick clue: it's a Gameboy puzzle game that took more than three years to make. That's right, it’s a Rare game! The company that took 30 months to port an N64 title to the Xbox (the upcoming Conker: Live and Reloaded) had been working diligently on this extraordinarily simple game since before Nintendo sold them off to Microsoft.

The most startling thing about this game is that it isn't a simple block dropper like just about every puzzle game since Tetris came out. The main game mode is much more akin to a child's dinosaur-themed cardboard-based jigsaw puzzle than any sort of standard puzzle affair on consoles. You are given a set number of different shapes at the start of a level and you have to make an entire picture disappear by lining up those shapes in the correct manner.

The graphics, which look like a blind child's attempt at using crayons, add a lot of charm to what could have been a very bland title. And like in every Rare title, the music is catchy and hummable. In fact, the star of the game, a roundish stick figure known as Mr. Pants, actually does hum throughout the game. Simply a fantastic attempt at making a normally stuffy genre stick out.

However, the game falls flat on its face in one apparently major category: difficulty. This game is one of the hardest titles I have played in years. Consider that most Rare games are nigh impossible. I have had Perfect Dark for the N64 for more than five years at this point and have only been able to make my way through half the game, and don't even get me started on Platinum Metals in Blast Corps. Those games are simple action games so, with a little bit of luck and some dedication, you can get through any situation. IMP (even the abbreviation is fantastic!) is a cerebral puzzle game. What could have been the second coming of Chu Chu Rocket (still the best puzzle game on the GBA) has turned into a toe snappingly frustrating affair.

Still, I can't not recommend this game. If you are a member of Mensa or an avid video game collector you need this title. With only a few thousand copies out there this could be extremely hard to find. Just make sure you get a doctor's note before you fire it up.

- Tom


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