The Argument Over Xbox Live Arcade
Now that you've had your fill of the Virtual Console, maybe it's time to check out This Week in Xbox Live Arcade. This is the part of our show where we take a look at the brand new Xbox Live Arcade titles, and then review them using our unique POINT/COUNTERPOINT style. In these reviews I will make a solid point about a game, and then I will argue the other side just to confuse everything. What do I really think about this week's Xbox Live Arcade game? I guess you'll never know. Instead you get what has to be the single least useful review ever posted on this website. Join us as we take an inconclusive look at Rare's Banjo Tooie and Sega's long-awaited Virtual On port (as reviewed by Defunct Games's own Lee Miller).
Banjo Tooie
POINT:
Fans of mediocre mascots and repetitive platforming action rejoice, because Banjo is back in yet another overpriced Nintendo 64 port. You know how all of the N64 games are a measly ten bucks on Nintendo's Virtual Console? Well, apparently Microsoft didn't get the memo, because they are charging a full $15 for what amounts to a second-rate platformer from ten years ago. While I'm sure there are people who will really enjoy this, I found this to be another Mario 64 clone that fails to have the same amount of humor and character as other similar titles (Conker's Bad Fur Day springs to mind).
COUNTERPOINT:
Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hang on just one minute, Banjo Tooie is one of the greatest Nintendo 64 games every released. It's full of exciting characters, cool bosses and plenty of items to collect. And as a fan of collecting stuff, there's more than enough to keep me busy until Microsoft decides to give us a real sequel to this series. You couldn't be more wrong when you say that this game doesn't have a sense of humor, I found myself smiling from beginning to end. Though, you're right, the fifteen dollar asking price does seem a bit steep.
Virtual On
POINT:
Come on, this is Virtual On. People talk about the controls more than they do the actual game. Sure it was an amazing game in the arcade or if you shelled out a hundred buck to import that controller add-on from Japan, but there is no such two-stick peripheral for the Xbox 360 in any country. Not to mention the game is fifteen bucks with very minimal upgrades, in fact compared to the Japanese version of the Saturn game there are no upgrades! Oh, there's a score attack mode with online leader boards? It would have been best to leave this game to the Dreamcast snobs with too much spare cash, now everyone who plays it without ever touching the arcade version is just going to say it sucks. Sigh ... it's the U.S. Dreamcast version launch all over again!
COUNTERPOINT:
No, you come on. So yes, it's a bit unwieldy at first without the mythical twin stick (*pause for enchanted choir singing praises*), but it's far from broken. It's just a new system of controls you have to learn. Suck it up, when was the last time you picked up a new fighting franchise and instantly knew all the moves? Well now add in the 3rd dimension, there aren't many games like this so of course there's going to be a steep learning curve. It's true, there isn't much added in here, but that seems about par for the course in games ported to XBLA. It's probably for the best; do you really want today's Sega trying to change Virtual On? Remember Virtual On: Marz? No? Well there's a reason you don't. Be happy they added online play, that's the real attraction to this fighter. Wait? There's no split screen 2 player versus mode? Never mind you were right after all!
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