Feel the Magic: XY/XX

This game is one of the titles that prompted me to go ahead and buy the Nintendo DS (see my review). I bought it alongside the DS and have come to the end of the "story". I'll start with the issues I have, then tell you what I like about this game.

1) The Music. The music is catchy, and vibrant. It absolutely catches the feel of the game - however, there are really only two "songs" that are played throughout the game and thusly they get annoying quickly - as most "vibrant" songs do.

2) Gameplay. Some of the "missions" require you to hold the stylus very carefully over a small area of space, while at the same time watching for "creatures" from either side of the screen. Holding the system, and styus, comfortably (at least to me) renders the lower right of the screen "blocked" by my hand - and therefore I am not aware of any baddies creeping up from that location. Holding it any other way tires my hands out after a couple of minutes.

3) Difficulty. Okay I have, at times, really good hand eye coordination. You REALLY need this to play this game with any positive effects. One of the "boss missions" was to tap on 100 bulls that show up, but NOT tap the people. So, a few "bulls" you have to tap more than one (7 or so). For people that cannot do this quickly - and for people that cannot distinguish between bull and person QUICKLY, it can be difficult.

Another scenario provides you with a number pad on the lower screen, on the top it gives you a number you must enter in a certain time. First it's a couple digits then three then four. The last one is quite long, and each time I played this particular scenario, I almost lost by that last number.

So, in the short of it, the bad things about the game are it's repetitive music, the ocassional "blocked" gameplay, and the extreme concentration and coordination required.

The good things about this game outweigh the bad, easily.

1) Unique. I love this game. It likens to a blend of Frogger and Bowling at times, at other times you need to literally blow on the touch pad to blow out candles. Each new scenario provides something new and interesting to gaming as a whole.

2) Difficulty. Here I will ask that you understand, I love the difficulty of the game. Average Joe Gamer will most likely get frustrated easily, and in truth this should be advertised as a game of high skill and concentration. If you get deep into the "Memories" mode, it can play out like a part memory game (and how well you can remember 4 digit numbers and enter them quickly) and then further as a real puzzle game.

3) The extended game mode. The "memories" section of the game allows you to play any completed scenario whenever you feel like it. Not only can you replay it, but it gives twice as many levels to complete, and each completed scenario in the memories mode can unlock new hairstyles or clothes for your dream date.

This is why DS will succeed, if developers will look at unique twists to add to their games, utilizing the touch and dual screens. Clones of Feel the Magic aren't going to do it for us, and this game alone will likely not serve the wider DS consumer, but it does show that there are developers out there with imagination and creativity - and that they are willing to use it.

There seems to be a lot of misinformation about this game, so I wanted to write a review to clear it up. Feel the Magic:XY/XX (FTM) is a cute game whose storyline is that you are a boy smitten with a girl. To win her affections you must do silly things to try to impress her (like swallow and then regurgitate goldfish).

Once you've got her attention, you must then protect her from a kidnapping punk, a snake, a killer plant, and various other threats. In so doing, you win her love and gratitude.

The game is rated T for 'Crude Humor, Mild Violence, and Suggestive Themes'. Yes, the woman is in a bikini, and yes, you are flirting with her, but there is more crude behavior on prime time television than can be found in this game.

Its only shortcoming is its length; it is only about 10 hours long, and only a bit longer if you want to find all of its secrets.

All in all, this game is very fun and its lighthearted flirting makes me nostalgic. It really makes good use of the touch screen, as all of the gameplay involves touching, breathing, or talking at the lower screen. A great launch title!

Today, I went to the local gamestop and traded in my SP, a DVD, and a GameCube game. I made $44, and used $31 of it to buy this game. I haven't completed it yet, but I'm on stage 13 and have spent about 4 hours playing it.

RATING

This title is rated T for Teen, but so far I haven't seen much innapropriate content except for a scene of your character looking at the girl's behind, and the girl making a few, er, suggestive sounds. If you're a parent, I'd buy this for any kid 10 or up. Anyone younger, I think you still could buy it for them, just turn off the volume and it should be fine.

FUN

This game is instantly addicting. However, many minigames are so difficult that younger ones may be more than a tad frustrated, and the older ones might even get even more frustrated. Many of the "scenes" make you unicycle across a narrow path, like stage 13. I've been working on that scene for over an hour!

REPLAY

A few of these, like Yaht, have high replay value and will make you go into Memories again and again to play it. Sadly, few of these are like this. Many you will play once and never want to touch again.

GRAPHICS

They are crisp and imaginitive. They aren't really 3D most of the time, but aren't exactly Paper Mario style, if you know what I mean. They are nice, don't get me wrong; I personally like them.

COST

This game is only $30, $5-$10 less than a few other DS titles. Not any more than a newly released Game Boy Advance game, so not a bad price at all.

COMPARISON TO OTHER TITLES

So far, I only have Metroid Prime: Hunters; First Hunt (comes bundled with the Nintendo DS), Super Mario 64 DS, and this game. Let's compare them so that you can tell which one of these is best for your money

FEEL THE MAGIC VS METROID; M = METROID; F = FEEL THE MAGIC

Cost:

M= Free with the NDS

F= $29.99 + tax

Graphics:

M= Full 3D, comparable to the Nintendo Gamecube.

F= True minigame style; not exactly 3D but way better than GBA mini game graphics.

Length of Game:

M= It's a demo! Morph Ball is 30 seconds, survivor is boring, and the normal training is 10 minutes. Haven't had a chance to play multiplayer yet. After 5+ times, it's very boring. Doesn't keep you occupied for too long.

F= Will take at LEAST 5-10 hours to complete, plus you probably will want to play through it again. However, many games are terrible in replayability, so some people will not pick it up again.

GOOD OL' FUN

M= Short and "training" doesn't exactly suggest fun either.

F= Frustrating at times, but highly addicting. B-

WINNER:

Feel the Magic

FEEL THE MAGIC VS SUPER MARIO 64 DS; F = FEEL THE MAGIC M = SUPER MARIO 64 DS

Cost:

M= $29.99 + tax

F= $29.99 + tax

Graphics:

M= About Nintendo 64 quality, maybe a little better.

F= True minigame style; not exactly 3D but way better than GBA mini game graphics.

Length of Game:

M= Wholy cow! 150 stars to collect?! If you finish it, it'll take a good long while.

F= Will take at LEAST 5-10 hours to complete, plus you probably will want to play through it again. However, many games are terrible in replayability, so some people will not pick it up again.

GOOD OL' FUN

M= Gets old, but will renew its "fun-ness" with time. If it gets boring, put it away for a week

F= Frustrating at times, but highly addicting. B-

WINNER:

Super Mario 64 DS

In conclusion to this review, Feel the Magic is an addicting game I'd recommend for anyone ages 10 up. It gets very frustrating at times but a few of the minigames manage to make this game worth the thirty bucks. I wouldn't reccomend it as your first Nintendo DS game, but if you have $30 to spend and see it on the shelf of your local game store, it's definitely worth a buy.