Now Playing: December ’06

“Now Playing” is back at ya with last month’s carry over of Mortal Kombat II via the SNES and Final Fight One for the GBA.

Games that I’ve finished were: Call of Duty 2: Big Red One, Ridge Racer V, and Astro Boy: Omega Factor.

Astro Boy was a surprisingly simple yet somewhat difficult game that was extremely fun to play. I still like going back to it. The same can be said for Ridge Racer V even though it’s super short. That’s to be expected since the game’s on a CD and not a DVD. CoD’s Big Red One is unlike any of the other games from that series. It’s story sticks with one group of guys instead of shifting off to a different group right before you get to know the characters. It’s also a bonus that a couple of the cast members from the Band of Brothers mini-series did the voice work.

A game that I’m close to finishing is Gears of War. I’m near the end of the train segment with the big baddie that was the first to take out one of the Delta squad members earlier in the game.

Other games that I put my hands on this month were: Half-Life 2, Call of Duty 3 (PS2), Sonic Advance 3, Assault Heroes, Sega Genesis Collection (PS2), Capcom Classics Mini Mix, and Street Fighter II Turbo.

The Sega Genesis Collection had all new games, at least to me. I never had a Genesis during the 16-bit era so whether I knew of the games included or not, I had never played any of them before. I liked the two Sonic the Hedgehog games way more than I thought that I would. What helps with that is that you can save your game anywhere and at anytime. It’s just like “save states” in PC emulation. It’s an awesome feature that I’m super happy that was added thanks to Digital Eclipse! Shinobi III, Comix Zone, and five early Sega arcade games (ie: the original Altered Beast) are there to sweeten the pot. RPG fans will be really pleased that no less than four games from that genre are on this PS2 disc. The lesser known Sword of Vermilion and Phantasy Star II, III, and IV. Other multi-game series’ included in the package are Ecco the Dolphin (3), Golden Axe (3), Shinobi (2), and Vectorman (2).

All in all it was a great month of gaming!

2006 Game Awards – Platform Awards

Platform Awards are now revealed. Any system that had a game that I played for the first time this year was eligible.

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Best Game Boy Advance Game: Castlevania Double Pack

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Best DS Game: Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow

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Best PlayStation 2 Game: Prince of Persia: Warrior Within

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Best Xbox 360 Game: Gears of War

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Best Super Nintendo Game: Ninja Gaiden Trilogy

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Best PlayStation Game: Medal of Honor

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Best Nintendo 64 Game: Mortal Kombat Trilogy

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Best Saturn Game: Capcom Generation 5

2006 Game Awards – Genre Awards

Now it’s time for the Genre Awards for the games that I played for the first time during 2006. Enjoy!

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Best Action Adventure Game: Mercenaries (PS2)

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Best Shooter: Gears of War (X360)

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Best Fighting Game: Mortal Kombat Trilogy (N64)

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Best Platformer: Castlevania Double Pack (GBA)

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Best Puzzle/Rhythm Game: Guitar Hero II (PS2)

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Best Compilation: Capcom Classics Collection (PS2)

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Best Driving Game: Need For Speed Most Wanted (PS2)

2006 Game Awards – Special Achievements

It’s that time of year again for me to choose which games wowed me throughout 2006. I will say again that these awards include games that I played for the first time this year. They do not have to be released within the past 12 months. On with the show!

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Best Original Music: Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow (DS)

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Best Licensed Music: Guitar Hero (PS2)

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Most Surprisingly Good Game: Tomb Raider: Legend (PS2)

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Best Story: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (PS2)

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Best Sound Effects: Black (PS2)

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Best Graphics, Technical: Gears of War (X360)

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Best Graphics, Artistic: Guitar Hero II (PS2)

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Most Improved Sequel: Prince of Persia: Warrior Within (PS2)