Jason Hidalgo|jhidalgo@rgj.com
If I were to describe my golfing expertise, I'd say they're on the level of my fishing skills.
To put that in context, my most memorable catch is best described by my then-baby niece's excited reaction.
"Uncle Jason, Uncle Jason! You caught a vegetable!"
All I can say is, thank goodness for being able to live my life vicariously through video games.
ON PAR: MARIO GOLF WORLD TOUR
I once tried playing golf in a virtual simulator.
Let's just say the results virtually were embarrassing — and my sister's got the pictures to prove it. Hey, I'd have pictures, too, if I didn't burn them all with Greek fire.
This makes games such as "Mario Golf: World Tour" for the Nintendo 3DS feel like a refreshing salve to my wounded ego. See, in "Mario Golf," I can hit beautiful drives past 100 yards and add some extra English to the ball in the form of fades and backspins. In "Mario Golf," I believe my ball can fly.
As with other sports games based on Nintendo mascots, this one puts a Mario-style spin on golf. That means unique golf courses and the ability to use Nintendo characters. Don't let the cartoony look fool you. The gameplay is as rock solid as a falling Thwomp inside Bowser's castle. Beginners can use a simplified system that does a lot of the grunt work for you. Eventually, though, you'll want to use the manual mode for greater control. The downside is that manual mode requires additional presses, providing more opportunities to mess up your shot. You also can use items if you find yourself in a bind during matches. For folks who like using their Mii, the game lets you do so and even buy equipment for improving performance.
Further adding to the fun is online mode, which allows you to play against living, breathing humans. One downside is that the game doesn't have a solid story mode. Instead, you have a cup system where you're updated about the progress of the competition via leaderboards, making you feel as if you're playing in isolation.
Still, "Mario Golf: World Tour" is another good entry in Nintendo's line of sports games.
Cost: $30, 3DS
OLD-SCHOOL DUNGEONS IN DEMON GAZE
There likely never will come a time when Loverboy is considered cool once again. At least, not as cool as the band was before Nirvana and the lumberjacks of the grunge movement killed their career.
In contrast, retro games are getting plenty of love after seeing their own near-death from 3D games. One old-school genre that continues to soldier on is the first-person Japanese-style dungeon crawler. After seeing "Etrian Odyssey IV" and "Etrian Odyssey Untold" last year, the West is getting another first-person RPG in "Demon Gaze." No, the title does not refer to the look in your ex's glare after an unscheduled encounter at Starbucks. Instead, it refers to the abilities of your main character, a "Demon Gazer" with the power to command, well, demons.
You start out at an inn that ultimately serves as your base of operations. Your lodging, however, comes at a price, so you need to make sure you earn your keep by doing missions. For the most part, the game is based on bringing your custom cast of fighters to bear on the game's enemy-infested dungeons. Just as the graphics within the dungeons have an old-school feel, so does the difficulty. It's quite easy to get wiped out by a swarm of foes if you aren't careful. This might be a turnoff for some folks, but masochistic fans of old first-person RPGs will be ecstatic. The story itself is your typical mix of quirky Japanese-style storytelling with stereotypical character types and lots of fanservice, though a bit lacking in depth.
Overall, "Demon Gaze" is a solid game but won't be for everybody. If you know what an otaku nerd is and consider yourself one, however, then this is one title you might want to gaze at.
Cost: $40, Vita
TAKE TWO: NES REMIX 2 FOR WII U
Nintendo dips into its well of 8-bit classics yet again with "NES Remix 2."
If you grew up with the original Nintendo Entertainment System or Famicom, NES Remix 2 will feel just like what "Dr. Mario" ordered. In fact, it features Dr. Mario, along with games such as "Kirby's Adventure," "Super Mario Bros. 2" and "Super Mario Bros. 3." Instead of featuring whole versions of old titles, however, NES Remix 2 features revamped snippets of the games with specific goals. These include killing enemies or reaching areas within a set time frame. You even get to use characters from other games in different settings. Finish each task and you unlock other challenges and games.
Although the goal-oriented stages are the game's main strength, they also serve as its biggest weakness. The piecemeal approach feels more like a collection of quick mini-games instead of one unified whole, though "Super Luigi Bros." does provide a full experience. Folks who don't have an affinity for the old 8-bit titles also might not find the game as attractive as old-school gamers. If you love new takes on classic titles, though, then you'll want to try this one out.
Cost: $15, Wii U
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