Saturday, November 12, 2011

I know what my first 3DS game is going to be

Most of you are expecting me to say Super Mario 3D Land or Mario Kart 7, right? Although I'm definitely planning to acquire both of those games shortly after I buy (or, hopefully, receive as a gift) a 3DS, neither of them will be my first pick-up for the system. No, that honor, at least as of now, will be the downloadable curiosity known as Freakyforms, which hit the North American eShop on Thursday.

The fact that this game has leapt to the top of my 3DS to-buy list is as surprising to me as it likely is to some of you, by the way--especially since my first reaction to it was something along the lines of, "eh, a lame-looking kiddie game."

After scrolling through the game's official thread over at NeoGAF, though, I decided it had to be mine, $6.99 asking price be damned. I mean, just look at some of the "Formees" owners of the Japanese version of the game have concocted:

This may be the cutest Link I've seen since Wind Waker.

Yep, that's Poo from EarthBound/Mother 2!

That's not to suggest North American owners of Freakyforms are a bunch of talentless slouches. All you need to do is look at the following creations to see that's far from the case:

Inspector Chelmey, courtesy of NeoGAF user artwalknoon.

Prinny, courtesy of NeoGAF user BooJoh.

To see more Japanese-made Formees, check out this site. For more North American-made ones, check out the NeoGAF thread mentioned earlier.

For more information on this wonderfully odd-looking game, check out its official site: freakyforms.nintendo.com. Also, check out this "Iwata Asks" video, which sheds a light on Freakyforms' history (for instance, that it began life as a DS title) and how Nintendo's president, Satoru Iwata, pushed producer Kensuke Tanabe and director Hiroshi Moriyama (creator of Chibi-Robo!) to "make it so people won't get bored of it."

Have any of you picked up this game, or are any of you planning to pick it up? If so, let me know--and share some of your creations in the comment section (if you can).

16 comments:

coolpowers said...

I was going to guess Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove 3D.

LottieTwintails said...

Your comments are among many I've seen about this game, which makes me increasingly interested in it. I have to admit I didn't figure this would be your potential first 3DS game, but I can see why you'd choose it!

Has the announcement of the Zelda 3DS bundle for NA piqued your interested in getting one, or are you still holding out for pink?

Bryan Ochalla said...

Are you joking, coolpowers, or are you serious? (It's hard to tell over the Internet sometimes.)

I was actually pretty interested in Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove back when it was a DS game, by the way. For some reason, though, I'm less interested in it as a 3DS game.

coolpowers said...

No, I was serious - I know you like your rhythm games. I bought the Wii version even though I know it's pretty shallow, I find it adorable. I also called it research because I'm designing an iPad board game with fairytale characters and the character design I want is about half Gabrielle and half Animal Crossing :)

Bryan Ochalla said...

Hey there, Kamiwoo! Yeah, I've been reading a lot of positive comments about this game around the Interwebs myself -- and a lot of people seem to be mirroring what I said in this post (that they first thought it looked kind of lame, but now think it looks cool thanks to the awesome Formees you can create).

Also, yes, I can understand finding it a strange choice as a first 3DS game. To be honest, though, if I get a 3S for my b-day or Christmas, I'm unlikely to get a game along with it. So, a downloadable game as my first purchase for it won't really be that weird.

That said, I'll definitely be ordering either Mario Kart 7 or Super Mario 3D Land (not sure which one yet) as soon as that 3DS is in my hot little hands :)

Oh, and as for the Zelda 3DS bundle coming to the States: Although I like the design on top of that particular system, I think I'd rather get a red 3DS or wait for a pink one.

As it stands now, I have a feeling the pink one won't be released here until next year. So, I'm going to ask for a red 3DS for my birthday and/or Christmas and see how it goes. If I actually get a red 3DS for one of those holidays, great; if not, I'll wait until the pink one is released and then buy one for myself :)

Now, I can't remember if you already have a 3DS or if you're still waiting for one. If you're waiting for one, are you planning to buy the Zelda bundle?

Bryan Ochalla said...

Coolpowers: Oh, yeah, I definitely like my rhythm games :) It's nice to hear that you've enjoyed the Wii version of Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove, by the way. Would you recommend it? I should search for some impressions of the 3DS version to see if they're good, too.

Speaking of that version, by the way, I really wish they had decided to release the original DS version alongside it. For some weird reason I much prefer its, er, chunkier graphics to the smoother ones that appear in the 3DS version. (Weird, I know.)

LottieTwintails said...

Bryan, I caved and got a blue 3DS a few months ago! I really wanted those ambassador titles among other things, and this particular shade of blue is my favorite color anyway, so I decided to jump in. Admittedly, most of my gaming on it so far has been Gameboy/NES game downloads and DSiWare, but I'm having fun with it!

I'm hopeful we get the pink 3DS soon, though. It seemed as if we weren't getting this Zelda edition at first, so I'm hoping pink follows suit shortly!

Bryan Ochalla said...

Ah, I *thought* you had said before that you already owned a 3DS. Sorry for forgetting :)

I'm jealous that you got those ambassador titles, BTW! I really hope they make them available for sale to the rest of us soon, as I'd really like to play some Balloon Fight, etc., on the system.

As for the pink 3DS surprising us like the black Zelda one: I hope you're right! I honestly can't understand why they're waiting, esp. since it's already been announced for Euro release. Maybe they think they don't need to announce/release it with Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7 just around the corner?

Granted, they're probably right, but it certainly couldn't hurt to give consumers more options this holiday season.

Anyway, I won't mind at all if "all" I get is a red one. Like I said earlier, I really like the color. Also, after the first day, all that really matters is that you have the system and can play games on it :)

Viewtiful_Justin said...

As soon as I get paid on Tuesday, I'll be adding some $ to my 3DS eShop account and buying it for sure. I love any game that lets me create whatever I'd like and then play with it.

After seeing these amazing formees, though...WOW!!

Bryan Ochalla said...

Ah, that's great, Justin! I can't wait to hear what you think of it :)

Also, it's amazing how inspiring it can be to see the Formees created by other folks. I can say with certainty that I wouldn't be at all interested in the game if people hadn't started sharing their creations on line.

Adam said...

I saw Nintendo's press release on it, and I have to admit it looks interesting for sure. I do wish I owned a 3DS.

Bryan Ochalla said...

Oh, we're in the same boat then, Adam :( Hope you get one soon. What games do you want most?

Viewtiful_Justin said...

I bought it two nights ago...I was bad.

It's a super interesting game. The creation part is way fun, and watching your creations come to life is entertaining. The actual meat and potatoes of the game, though, leaves a little to be desired. But I've only scratched the surface, so maybe it's just me...

Bryan Ochalla said...

Hey there, Justin! Oooh, I'd glad you were bad :) I'm not so glad to hear your opinion of the game is mixed at the moment. I have heard, though, that things continue to open up as you make more Formees and complete tasks, etc. -- although I obviously have no idea as to how much things open up. Anyway, let me know what you think about the game after playing it some more, will you? I'm still planning to buy it at this point, but if you come back in a few days and say it's not worth it, I may have to change my mind.

coolpowers said...

I'd reccomend the Wii version of Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove if you have $5 burning a hole in your pocket and like cute things and dancing around.

The dancing part is important. Because it's motion-activated and very generous about gesture detection, you could just sit there waggling the controller and do just as well, but if you get up and dance around it's more enjoyable.

Bryan Ochalla said...

Huh. Well, I'll consider it, coolpowers! I don't currently have $5 burning a hole in my pocket, but who knows, that may happen soon :) Thanks for reminding me of this game, BTW!