novogamer.com

Top 10 Cutest Creatures in Video Games

Archive — Mon, 24 Apr 2017 12:36:00 +0000

For the most part, video games usually appeal to a very wide range of people. While many are gritty, realistic games that have a very strong focus on crime and/or warfare, there are many others that are much more iconic because of the cute and lovable creatures and animals found within them. I'm going to be focusing on the latter in this article as I present to you my top ten cutest creatures in video games in no particular order.

(Only creatures that are non-playable in their source game are eligible for this list. Also, please keep in mind that my opinions may or may not reflect your own, this list is entirely biased)

Lumas from Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2

These lovably squishy, star-shaped beings are the adoptive children of the elegant Princess Rosalina, the guardian of the universe who sails amongst the stars in her home, the Comet Observatory. The lumas are are found strewn about the cosmos helping whoever is kind enough to help them. They can also shapeshift into different objects, like sling stars, mushrooms, and even whole planets and galaxies if they are fed enough of those honey flavored star bits that continually crash into the planetoids that Mario traverses. What is probably the most lovable trait about them though is their child-like innocence as they are so inquisitive when they first meet Mario.

Pikmin

Speaking of child-like innocence, here were have the Pikmin, alien life forms that are indigenous to the planet PNF-404. They are curious and scrappy little things that love shiny objects and they can't help getting into situations that would likely be too dangerous for them. Their minds act like that of a child as they are prone to do what they want if they are left unsupervised, but their tenacity just makes them all the more lovable. They were even the stars of their own animated short films which portrayed their curious and scrappy natures even better than in the games.

LocoRoco

These bubbly little creatures are the residents of a living planet that protects them from the evil Moja that only wish to eat them. LocoRoco come in seven different colors and each have their own names and their own songs that they sing when you guide them around the world. Their helplessness and child-like wonder along with their big, expressive eyes can just make your heart melt. Only the truly heartless wouldn't find these creatures cute.

Slimes from the Dragon Quest Series

These are one of the most common and most iconic enemies from the Dragon Quest series, and for good reason. I mean look at them! That big grin on their face just makes me want to smile along with them and their round bulbous design just makes me want to hug them forever. Also, the fact that there are so many different kind of slimes is likely evidence enough that these so called monsters are cute enough to stick with the series since the first game on the NES (called Dragon Warrior). I wouldn't want them to go away for anything.

Tamagotchi

These were a HUGELY popular virtual pet during the 90's. They were easily accessible, cheap, and they came in many different colors. But the little alien creature that you took care of in the device was what made them popular. Depending on how you raised them, a tamagotchi's form would be different for each variable that attributed to its growth, and as they aged they kept getting getting cuter and cuter. One form in particular, Mametchi, ended up becoming so popular, that it became the mascot for the whole Tamagotchi series. It even spawned a spin off toy called Digimon that gave you the ability to connect devices together so you could have your digimon battle. Tamagotchi is much more lovable though. Even I had one when I was a kid.

Chao from the Sonic the Hedgehog series

Speaking of virtual pets, these little tykes are the plump, sky-blue little babies that appear in many Sonic the Hedgehog games starting with Sonic Adventure. Since you start caring for them the instant they hatch from their egg, they are impressionable to how you raise them, what character you use to raise them, and they even react differently to what kind of food they are given. They can even take the forms of little angels and devils which make them all the cuter. You can even place them in school to teach them skills and manners and even have them participate in athletic competitions. They just want to give it their all.

Chocobo from the Final Fantasy series

I've always been fond of birds (owls specifically), but these nine foot tall ones in particular are just too damn adorable to pass up. Even when in the wild, these birds are extremely tame, so much so that they'll even allow people to ride on their backs. They are also very fluffy and their young is so small that they'll fit in the palm of your hands. They even come in different colors, and those ones have special skills that the normal yellow ones can't do such as fly, dig, or even cast magic spells. All in all, BEST bird.

Pichu from the Pokémon series

These little, electrically charged mice from the Pokémon games are the pre-evolved form of the series' mascot, Pikachu. They are most well known from the Pichu Brothers cartoons that have been shown before some of the Pokémon films and in Pokémon Channel on the Game Cube. Unlike their evolved form, Pichu are unable to properly regulate the electricity they generate from their cheeks and they wind up shocking themselves in the process. They are also very mischievous and wind up getting into trouble quite frequently. Their antics are adorably cute and are only outmatched by their appearance in groups.

Nintendogs

While I'm not really all that much of a dog person, these lovable pups are some of the cutest virtual pets that you can possibly get. They can learn tricks, play games, and they can even be taught to recognize their name. They're always happy to see you and when you get close to them, they greet you by licking your face. Don't EVER ignore them though. Not only is that unbelievably cruel, but they need food and baths to stay healthy and leaving them alone for too long will cause them to run away. These are probably the closest thing you can get to a real puppy without the actual responsibility, plus the 3DS versions of the games even have kittens for bonus interactions with the puppies.

Lynians from the Monster Hunter series

I LOVE CATS, that's why I was so excited to find out that the Lynians from these games could join you on the field as Palicoes. Just look their cute little faces! I just want to snuggle up with them and give them fishy treats and little mousy toys as gifts. I just can't get enough of them, so much so that I can't even bring myself to dismiss them from my total collection of Palicoes. It's just too damn depressing for me. I just wish I could take more out onto the field with me. THEY ARE SO FREAKING ADORABLE!

Ahem...Well that was my list. If you disagree with my choices, tell me why in the comments and what you would have chosen instead. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to take a sledgehammer to a shed wall in order to reclaim my manliness. Until next time, I'll be seeing you.

Honorable Mention: Viva Pi√É¬±ata

I would've included at least one pi√É¬±ata from this game in the list if it wasn't for the fact that all of them in the game are pretty much equal in cuteness, but only in large numbers. It wouldn't have been fair to just choose one.

Review: Pokemon Sun & Moon

Archive — Wed, 14 Dec 2016 11:47:00 +0000

Well it's been about a month since Pokemon Sun & Moon wowed the gaming community with its Hawaiian influenced theme and I've spent a pretty good chunk of my personal time playing it over that month in order to get a good feel for the game. Although, with all of the hype that built up over the month before its release, was it wise to present nearly all of the game's features beforehand? Did the hype kill the game before its launch? Well let's see if the drastic changes that were made to the series formula with these two games were what the series needed in order to stay fresh.

First of all, all of the game's battle mechanics are the same as they've always been: Your and your opponent's pokemon take turns attacking each other until only one is still fit to fight; there is the usual pokemon type match-up system where certain types are weak to or strong against certain other types; and there is the 3 starting pokemon that you have to choose one of being of fire, water, or grass in element. So with all of this formulaic stuff that has been virtually unchanged since the series beginning back in 1996, what makes this one so special? Well let me tell you because it's actually a pretty significant alteration.

Unlike the previous 6 generations of Pokemon games, Sun & Moon do not have gym battles or a Pokemon League. Instead of gym battles, "Island Trials" exist in their place where you must complete a unique task presented to you by a trial captain and then fight a special boss fight with a "Totem Pokemon" which has the ability to permanently boost one or more of its stats before a battle starts and can summon a fixed number of pokemon to help it fight. And if that wasn't enough, after you finish each trial on the island, you then need to fight the island's strongest trainer, called the Kahuna, who was specifically chosen by that island's guardian deity or "Tapu." This provides a much needed change of pace and it keeps it from getting stale too quickly.

Now when a trial captain or Kahuna is defeated, you are presented with a Z-Crystal as a reward for successfully completing the challenge. This is where the game's new battle mechanic is introduced: Z-Moves. These crystals have the ability to greatly boost the ability of the moves that your pokemon has available, assuming the move's type matches the type of the crystal AND for only one time per match. This adds an unusual new kind of strategy to the game that makes it battles much more interesting and more stressful if you don't expect them to happen. I especially like Z-Splash because it makes the original move no longer useless.

In addition to Z-Moves, a new battle style called Battle Royal is introduced where 4 trainers with 3 pokemon each face each other in a no holds barred competition to see who knocks out the most pokemon before one trainer loses all three of their fighters. This is a very interesting inclusion to the series and I would love to see it expanded upon in future installments of the series. While we're at it, another thing from this game that I want to see return in a future installment are the ride pokemon which completely replace HM moves from the previous games. HM moves were moves that you could teach your pokemon that allowed you to better traverse the world map. This was extremely annoying and I'm so glad this game got rid of them.

Now as for the villains this time around, what pokemon game would be complete without an evil crime syndicate for the player to face? Well things feel a bit more realistic this time around as Team Skull isn't your usual villainous affair. All members, with the exception of Guzma, are all trainers that attempted the Island Trials when they were of age, but bailed when it started to overwhelm them. It makes them feel more believable and pitiable this time around. It is a very nice touch overall.

Now the one feature that enjoyed the most about this game was the Poke Pelago. After you get the ability to fly to anywhere you've already been, you can visit this place at any time from the pause menu and I don't think I've ever been this enthralled before by a feature that feels like a mobile game. All of Poke Pelago is based around waiting for various actions to finish and it usually takes around 24-48 hours for anything to get done, but the beauty about it is the multitasking. It streamlines everything that was annoying about the previous generations into this compact waiting game system. While that sounds bad at first, I love it so much because of the ability to train and level up pokemon WHILE THE GAME IS OFF. As someone who rarely has time to play through RPG's any more, this feature was sorely needed.

Now I know I've only touched upon a fraction of the game's content in this article, but if I were to cover absolutely everything this game had to offer, we'd be here all day. I mean, I didn't even touch upon the Alolan form pokemon, Ultra Beasts, or the Aether Foundation, but I think that's best left to be experienced yourself. All in all while it isn't completely perfect, I haven't been into a Pokemon game this much since Pokemon Diamond on the original DS. The music is quite catchy, the graphics are splendid to look at, the battle mechanics and new game modes are top notch, and the story starts to get wonderfully dark toward the end of the third act. I give this game very high praise and I hope this marks the start of a new trend of mixing up the Pokemon formula every once and a while. So until next time, I'll be seeing you.

Score