12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now: Orbital (GameBoy Advance)

What you see in the photo below is one of seven games that were released as part of Nintendo's bit Generations series for the GameBoy Advance.

All seven titles hit store shelves in 2006 and remained Japan-only affairs until three of them--this one (renamed Orbient in the west), Dialhex (aka Rotohex) and Dotstream (light trax) were remade into WiiWare releases in 2008, 2009 and 2010. (A fourth, Digidrive, made its way onto Nintendo's DSi shop in 2009.)

Although I'd love to own each of these bite-sized Q-Games- and Skip, Ltd.-made titles at some point, I decided to start with Orbital because I've thoroughly enjoyed the time I've spent with its WiiWare counterpart thus far.

I should note that I'd been warned before I bought the copy of Orbital seen above that gameplay found in the original version is often considered to be a bit less accessible than what's included in the follow-up.

Unfortunately, I can't yet support or refute that claim because, well, I've only booted up this Orbital cart (using my hot pink GameBoy Micro) long enough for me to know it's in good working order.

I promise to give it the attention it's due soon. In the meantime, consider picking up Orbient (and Cubello, if you've got the dough) via the Wii's (or the Wii U's) online shop if you're at all interested in captivatingly unique digital games.  

See also: Previous '12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now' posts

12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now: Loopop Cube: Lup ★ Salad (PlayStation)

Before I go on, I have to mention that not everyone agrees that this PlayStation puzzler, developed by Fupac and published by Datam Polystar in 1996, should be called Loopop Cube: Lup ★ Salad. Some believe it should be called Loopop Cube: Loop ★ Salad, for instance, while others support Rupupu Cube: Lup ★ Salad.

I won't chime in with my opinion on the matter because: 1) as I've said a million times before, I don't know a lick of Japanese, and 2) I don't much care what this game is called as long as I can play it. Which, of course, I can now that I own a copy of it.



Why am I so hot to trot to play Loopop Cube: Lup ★ Salad? For starters, it's an adorable puzzler with a unique gameplay twist. The titular Salad is tasked with clearing each single-screen stage of its brightly colored blocks. To do so, she (with the assistance of the player, naturally) pushes them around until she can match three or more of the same color.

As a result, I guess you could call it a platformer-puzzler hybrid, although it doesn't feel like any other such game I've ever played.



I should note, by the way, that I was completely ignorant of Loopop Cube: Lup ★ Salad (or whatever you choose to call it) until I came across this now-defunct NeoGAF thread. I also should note that the game was ported to the DS in 2008 and the PSP in 2010.

Both versions feature modes that aren't found in the PlayStation original and also seem to be more widely available than the first release.



Since so little information is available on line about this precious puzzler, I'll do my best to get a review of it published soon. In the meantime, check out some of the links I included in the text above and enjoy the photos I've shared, too.

See also: Previous '12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now' posts

12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now: Gokuraku! Chuka Taisen (PC Engine)

Oh, hey, another game has graduated from being featured in a recent "Second Chances" post to, well, being featured in my games collection.

And "featured" it shall be, due to its stellar cover art.

Thanks to my strange obsession with taking skewed (as opposed to straight-on) photos of games, though, you probably can't quite tell how stellar Gokuraku! Chuka Taisen's cover art is.

I'll do my best to snap a few additional shots of it and post them on my Flickr photostream in the next few days, OK? In the meantime, you can take closer look at the box art in question here.



I've spent quite a bit of time playing Gokuraku! Chuka Taisen since I acquired it, by the way. And although I still wish it looked a little less muddy, I'm enjoying pretty much every other aspect of it at the moment.

Did you know this Taito-made quarter-muncher was ported to the Famicom, too? That version's a more accurate conversion than this one is, actually, as its art style is more in line with the original.

See also: Previous '12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now' posts

And the winners of the Elminage Original (PSP/Vita) giveaway are ...

... apricotsushi, Juan Garcia and Steve Pixel.

Congratulations to each of you! Send me an e-mail (I'll share my address in the comments section below) at your convenience and in return I'll send you a code that will enable you to download UFO Interactive's Elminage Original from the PSN store.

Sorry for taking so long to announce the winners, by the way. I intended to do so yesterday, but I got so caught up in all of those things folks tend to do on Christmas day (sleeping in, laying around, etc.) that it slipped my mind until now. 

Anyway, thanks to everyone who tossed their hats into the proverbial ring for this Gay Gamer Giveaway™.

12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now: Rainbow Islands Putty's Party (WonderSwan)

You didn't think I'd get through this series without including a WonderSwan game, did you? Well, even if you did, I'm proving you wrong with this gloriously WonderSwan-centric post.

Now, I know the word on the street about this game is that it isn't all that good, but I bought it earlier this year because, well, it's mother-trucking Rainbow Islands.

As I don't yet own a WonderSwan system, though, I can't tell you if the word on the street about Rainbow Islands Putty's Party is accurate or not. Actually, I gave the game a go via emulation prior to picking it up, but I only spent enough time with it to know it wasn't a complete turd.

I do remember thinking the pink-haired protagonist was a bit slow, though, so it'll be interesting to find out if my opinion of Putty's Party ends up mirroring that of its naysayers or if I have an altogether more positive experience with it.

Sigh. I really need to set aside a few bucks for a WonderSwan system (or better yet, a SwanCrystal system) in 2013, don't I?

See also: Previous '12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now' posts