Halli Galli – Extreme

It was late October 2018 in Korea. My school had a theme day and at the end of day I had a small class of two older boys who were tired on a Friday evening. They politely asked if we could play a game called Halli Galli. I asked them to explain it to me in English and they opened that dirty box, shuffled this tattered pack of cards and dealt each of us a pile roughly a third of the deck size, they put this old bell in the centre of the table. They explained that I must ring the bell when two of the same cards are face up and that I can’t look at my cards. After learning by playing we had an enjoyable relaxed class which really bought the three of us closer and the boys became very good, hard working students in my classes.

I enjoyed the game so much that I bought myself a version of it to take back home. Christmas Eve 2018, me and my family bust out Halli Galli Extreme and I proceeded to explain the rules to them.

The game needs over three players, the deck of cards is shuffled and then dealt out evenly to each player. The bell is put in the centre of the table so that every player can reach the bell. The decks are face down in the front of player so each player cannot see their cards. During each turn each player flips a card over towards the bell so that they cannot get an advantage as to the card that they draw. The faster the player draws the card the quicker they can see the card and then react. Each card is played on top of the previous card that they have played. After each player flips their card you need to press the bell once you see a match. First to press the bell then collects all the cards that are on the table, these cards get shuffled into that players draw pile and the game continues.

The extreme variation spices up the formula by adding in three animal cards – the elephant, the monkey and the pig. If an Elephant is turned over then the player can press the bell if there are no strawberries, the monkey if there are no limes and the pig can be pressed if there are no other animals cards. Pigs eat all the fruits. Also if a player presses the bell incorrectly then they have to give each player one of their cards.

This is a game centred around reaction speeds so it can be played with people of all ages. I feel that it is very accessible but if one person has insanely quick at reactions then the game can unfortunately get a little one sided.  While I enjoy playing Halli Galli I find it is best used a game that is easy to explain and play but not something with endless strategic value. This is game would be great to play with children or grandparents to create happy memories.

You can buy Halli Galli from Amazon at a pretty good price so if you have young children then I recommend this game.

Until next time.

R.

River City Girls – A Beat ’em Up Revival for the modern age.

When I saw River City Girls on the E-shop of the Nintendo Switch I initially passed it by. Beat ’em Ups have never been my favourite types of games, in my youth I had played the Simpson’s Arcade Game in a Spanish arcade and Altered Beast on my Sega Mega Drive (Shout out to Pal regions). I remember getting frustrated with the difficulty and the fact that I kept dying. Although I recall the power that I felt when I was playing as the characters. It felt exciting to grab power ups in The Simpsons and turning into the beasts in Altered Beast was always so cool.

As I grew into a teenager, I rarely dabbled with “Beat ’em Ups” I had the memories of them being so challenging recurring in my mind. I tried Viewtiful Joe on the Playstation 2 ,and I enjoyed it but still the difficulty was enough to deter me from truly loving it. This all changed however when a university first year was introduced to a Youtube channel called JonTron.

My friend showed me JonTron’s “Top Ten Boss Fights” and number one on that list was the final boss of Bayonetta. When I saw the final boss, I was entranced by the sheer size and scale of Jubileus and in awe of the battle. The next time I was out, I bought Bayonetta on Xbox360. I went home and I played it and got destroyed by the games difficulty on normal. Did I quit this time?

No, I kept going, I struggled through the game’s story and enjoyed the comedy and drama. I enjoyed the weapons and combos that I could string together. I like finding the secret LP’s and then unlocking new abilities in the shops. I loved the music, the characters, Bayonetta herself is such an exciting character to play as, everything in Bayonetta works together so well to create this perfect package of a fast paced action Beat ’em Up action game.

I love Bayonetta. It’s a game I play every couple of years, its charming and exciting. When I heard that the sequel to Bayonetta was coming to Nintendo’s new WiiU console. It was enough for me to consider buying the console. Come September 2014 I bought a collection of Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2. I played both games back to back and I enjoyed Bayonetta 2 even more than the original. I conquered both games on hard mode and had throughly scratched my Beat ’em Up itch.

I then proceeded to buy Lollypop Chainsaw on Xbox360 and thought it was wonderful. I played Battletoad’s Arcade on Rare Replay, Hyrule Warriors on WiiU, Castle Crashers, Fire Emblem Warriors on Switch and finally Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition on the Switch. Yet despite playing Battletoads Arcade the appeal of the 2D Beat ’em Up still alluded me.

September 2019. I joined Nintendo’s Online Service and was browsing the NES service and saw the classic NES game, RiverCity Ransom on the service. I tried it out and its probably one of the few NES games which hold up to this day. The gameplay is simple and fun and the sprites are really detailed and expressive. If you have Switch online you could try it. It’s refreshing to play a NES game that feels so fresh.

Afterwards I was also browsing the E-Shop and saw a new game – River City Girls. I watched a few trailers and gameplay videos and saw that it was getting a physical print in the west by Limited Run Games but in Asia it got a full print run. I picked up a Korean version from my local game shop and then sat down and played it.

This is a fantastic game.

On a visual level I saw the pixel art style by the wizards at Wayforward and I was in awe. The character models and locations look so vibrant and crisp. Sprite work might be looked at as archaic in this age of trying to get realistic as possible visuals but the appeals of Sprite art is that good sprite work will never age poorly. It’s the same reason why the original Disney animated movies convey more emotion and remain timeless rather than the quickly outdated live action Disney movies which fail to retain relevance.

The same is true in video games. There is a reason that games like Yoshi’s Island, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Shovel Knight, remain constantly playable – good game design and timeless visuals. Likewise in 3D games too, games with an appealing art style remain timeless whilst those game that opted for a realistic art style have aged and require HD Remasters to keep them relevant for a new generation but those are for another blog post.

River City Girls is a beautiful game that remains visually appealing to play the entire way through. The locations are memorable for each of the six city locales as they have a distinct personality and are fun to explore. Similarly, the spritework is masterful, the two leading ladies Misako and Kyoko are beautiful animated, each of their moves are filled with character. I was also impressed to find that both girls play very differently. Misako plays like a rushdown wrecker character while Kyoko acts as a combo heavy character complete with dabs. Your goal is to rescue your boyfriends (The original River City Kunio and Riki) and beat up everyone in your way.

That’s another thing I should say about this game too, the presentation. Misako and Kyoko are wonderfully written and their personality matches their animation. With Masako’s fists becoming enlarged during her combos and Kyoko being clumsy, it looks likes she is accidentally fighting. The other characters that you’ll meet on your journey are wonderfully memorable. The majority of side characters and bosses are voiced by famous internet personalities. While I’m not well versed in that culture, all of the voice actors do an excellent job. I particularly enjoy Kayli Mills’ performance as Misako. Her gruff sarcastic tone complements the playful youth of Kyoko’s Kira Buckland.

The game presents this glorious voice talent with beautifully drawn character cut-in’s during dialogue. Cutscenes are not overly frequent but when they do occur it’s always charming and funny. River City Girls also uses comic book/manga style panels to portray some cutscenes as well. I think it works but having three distinct art styles is odd, especially when so much care was put into all three of them. Personally, I like the manga panels for flashbacks and I think that the cut-ins and voice acting are beautifully presented and should have been used through the whole game alongside a couple of animated cutscenes like the introduction. Also the music. OOOooooooooo. The music is rocking and fits the theme of each area beautiful. The game also has some beautiful vocal tracks that are inviting and exciting when they play.

All this gorgeous presentation is nothing however if the gameplay isn’t up to the same level. I’m happy to say that River City Girl’s gameplay is magnificent. The game uses the 2D sprites to move up and down a map. You have a light attack, a heavy attack, jump, block and special attack button. All the moves have an variation which you can activate by the pressing the specific attack button and the control stick. While the game does have a light attack string, you can use all the moves to create your own combos which feel oh so satisfying. The fighting system is complex enough to encourage creation but not overly complex that it dissuades the player from experimenting with other moves. This also provides hours of replay value with each protagonist playing differently.

I have only one issue with the gameplay. Sometimes the Y/Z Axis is a little off. Sometimes I feel like I am in the correct spot to hit the enemy but my attacks whiff because I am just little shy of the hitbox. Also when the fight takes place next to a zone change then it is possible to accidentally transfer to the next zone. This is especially notable in multiplayer where once one player accidentally goes to leave the zone and the enemies swarm the other player. 

Lastly, I should mention the amazing multiplayer. Oh gosh! It’s amazing. This is what co-op beat em up games are supposed to be. The game actually benefits from being played in co-op as the enemies will spread out and the experienced will be more balanced. While the game is perfectly beatable in single player, having played the game in two player it is 100% better that way. The bosses pose a fair challenge to two players with the mad scramble when a team mates gets knocked down whilst avoiding the bosses attacks, it’s intense and exciting. Everytime you die you don’t lose progress you just lose half of the money that you are carrying, the system encourages you to upgrade and spend your money just incase you lose, it encourages progression in the best possible way. Especially in multiplayer, a loss simply restarts you outside of the room ready and waiting to go back in (Although I would like a complete skip button please Wayforward).

To give you an idea of how much this game is easy to resonate with, I was travelling back from Korea recently and I asked the young lad sat next to me on the plane if he wanted to play my Switch with me. I went though my collection of games (Including Smash, Mario Kart and Pokken) and after explaining what River City Girls was he was excited to play it. Over the next three hours we powered through the game and defeated second boss. I assume we were very irritating with our fist bumps, high fives and cheering. Complete strangers, brought together through River City Girls. 

You can pick up this game from the E-Shop for £26.99. If you have any interest in playing games co-op or love beat em up games, then you owe it to yourself to buy River City Girls. I hope you enjoy playing River City Girls. Please let me know your experiences with the game.

R.

 

Go Stop (Flower Cards)

When I visited Jeju with my girlfriend I bought a set of cards. They have gorgeous designs on them based around the island and the different seasons. As you can see by the picture they’re vibrant and distinct in their designs.

I always thought I had a set of these cards back home. When I visited Japan, I was allured by the attractive Nintendo Hanafuda box. I was disappointed once I opened the packaging to find black and white cards which did not look anything like the cards I had seen before. Then what does one expect from Don Quixote. Although, I will say that the box is very well made, so I have no idea on if the product is legitimate. If you know the name of the card game associated with these cards please comment it down below. I would love to learn more about it.

Anyway, after I bought the Flower Cards in Jeju, my girlfriend called them Hwatu or Go Stop cards and asked that I bring them with me to her place for Chuseok. I brought them along and over two hours her uncle taught me, my girlfriend and her cousin how to play Go Stop.

The game itself is a matching game where each card has a specific value. You match cards based on the different months of the year. You need three players ideally to play Go Stop but it does work with two. In a three player game you are dealt seven cards with six being face up on the table while in the two player game you are dealt ten cards.

A typical turn begins with you placing one of the cards in your hand onto the same month that’s on the table. You then turn over another card from the deck and if that card matches a face up card on the table you match those too. At the end of your turn you take the matched piles. If you don’t have any matches available then you must place a card from your hand face up and then turn over a card from the deck to try and score a match.

Each card has different values, your goal is to collect as many cards worth of value to score the most points and win the game. There are five main card values: Gwangs (These cards have a Chinese character on them in a red circle), Animal (Which include any card with an animal (Including a bird), Godori (Bird cards, if you can get all three you score huge points) Ribbons (there are three types of ribbons, red with writing, blue with writing and blank Red) and finally junk cards.

Once everyone’s hand is empty, the cards are scored and a winner is determined. The scoring in this game is pretty nutty. My friend said to me when I introduced it too him “I’m sure you’re making up these numbers.” Later in the week we bought a set of GoStop to play on the move and after reading the rules, he concluded that sometimes alternating the rules can streamline the scoring. My girlfriend’s uncle’s scoring method was based on the strength of the card with inflated values. The actual games scoring is very tight. While collecting Gwangs might sound like a good thing, if you can only get two you score nothing for your precious Gwangs.

I think the scoring is fair and frustrating. It’s satisfying when you have a Gwang that cuts off your opponent from finishing their set and in the games which I have played the scoring has always been close so no one felt disheartened when they lost.

I recommend this website https://www.pagat.com/fishing/gostop.html if you’re interested in learning the indepth rules of the game. I certainly have it favourited for when me and my family play.

You can pick up a set of Go Stop (or Hanafuda) cards at a reasonable price on Amazon. They’re pretty sturdy – more so than playing cards, so they’re sure to last a long time if you keep them in good condition. If you enjoy simple and fun card games that can be enjoyed immediately I highly recommend Go Stop.

I hope you enjoyed this little look at this fantastic card game. Please enjoy the pictures of the cards and until next time.  R.

Welcome

It’s always a scary moment when you load up an old blog or a place where you used to vent your frustrations as a teenager. Seeing the poor spelling and grammar, the offensive lash-out language and giving Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen a 9/10 and calling it a fantastic movie. It almost burns as much as giving Watchmen a 2/10 for being “too boring”.

Yikes.

Ten years have passed since I was in high school and my opinions and tastes have changed and hopefully matured. During those ten years I’ve gained a degree and a masters in “English Literature”, had my first job and lived in South Korea teaching English for a year.

One word of advice which my professors gave to me whilst I was studying was “Never stop writing.” Whilst I worked a part time job (which progressed into a full time job) I stopped writing and I did miss it. I had the opportunity to create a manual for new staff members and I adored working on this. Alongside some discussions with my parents and peers and thoughts about what I want to do in future lead me to apply for my masters. Getting back into writing academically was challenging at first, however I found that I had developed a more direct style of writing than my undergraduate writing. It was still rough though. Master Degrees are hard. I felt very pleased with what I learnt from my time studying as it helped me to get a job in Korea and begin traveling the world.

Recently, I’ve had an interest to get my blog going again. I’ve really enjoyed writing whilst I have lived in Korea. When I had time before my classes, I would write for half an hour and I’m happy with what I have written. Maybe someday you will be able to see it.  I’m nearly at the end of my time over in Korea and as a continuation of my renaissance back into writing I figured it would be productive to get this blog going again.

I’m primarily going to write about two things. First, I’m going to write about my travels in Korea. I have been to many fantastic places and I’d would love to share travellers tips  on what to do there. Second, I’ll keep writing about video games. If you know me, you know I love video games. I took my Nintendo Switch to Korea and the wonderful console has seen me through many cold Korean winter nights and I have quite the number of games to talk about.

Thank you for reading this far. I hope you’ll enjoy reading my blog posts.

Thanks

R.