Well, maybe the name will grow on me, but in case you missed it, the followup to Phantom Hourglass will arrive later this year on the DS. The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks will see Link ditch the boat for a train! Not sure how I feel about that either, but the initial gameplay trailer does show off some new moves for Link, and let’s be honest, it’s Zelda so it HAS to be good! We’ll be sure to discuss this in the podcast, but in the meantime, there’s a discussion about it in the forums now, so chime in there!

I had been meaning to get Scurge: Hive for some time now as I heard it was a bit like Metroid. I’ve been needing a quality DS game and when I saw it at Target for $7 on clearance, I didn’t hesitate to snatch it up. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the game in the couple hours I’ve put into it and just thought I’d pass this info along because I know our readers are Metroid fans. Honestly, I was a little shocked just how similar this is to Metroid. Female bounty hunter? Check. Upgradable arm cannon? Check. Aliens everywhere? Check. Meta Ridley? Well, no, but there is definitely a Mother Brain-looking thing in a cylindrical glass case.

This isn’t just a cheap Metroid rip-off, though. It’s got great production value, great visuals (especially the GBA version considering the hardware), and a musical score that really helps keep you engrossed in the game. The gameplay is unlike Metroid as it takes on the sometimes awkward isometric angle, but I got used to this rather quickly and find that it doesn’t detract too much from the game. The game always keeps a sense of urgency about it because you have been infected by the aliens and once the infection reaches 100%, you start losing health quickly. Your infection level is always increasing, even if you’re not getting hit, so it’s imperative to keep moving to get to the next recharge station. The game provides a nice challenge even on ‘Normal’ difficulty (there’s ‘Hard’ and ‘Insane’ as well).

I’m not all that far into the game yet, but so far it’s definitely worth the $7 I spent. It can be found on Amazon for $10 new, and less than that used. IGN actually recommends the GBA version because the DS doesn’t really add anything new besides having the map on the touchscreen, so either version you track down should be good. I think it’s deserving of a higher MetaCritic score than it’s gotten (even IGN’s 7.0/10 admits “A fantastic game, there’s no question about it”), but if anyone has played this game or plans to pick it up, let me know what you think!

Awhile back, Ray and I scoffed at Sega’s bold prediction that Mario & Sonic at the Olympics would sell 4 million copies worldwide. The game was pretty much crap mediocre and we had faith that consumers would recognize this despite the fact that Mario and Sonic were in the same game for the first time. We were wrong. Turns out they’ve now sold 5 MILLION copies worldwide between the Wii and DS and expect continued sales due to the fact that the Olympics are still 4 months away. Unfortunately, Ray did purchase the game and helped them reach that 5 million, but I forgive him because his 6.6/10 score for the game should have deterred others from buying the game. I’m a bit upset that this game sold so well because it just means more of the same from Sega, Sonic + Mediocre Game = Profit.

The massive DS on your screen is actually a playable demo of Ace Attorney: Apollo Justice, the 4th installment in the Ace Attorney series which is set to arrive in the U.S. February 12th. While this is the first game not to feature Phoenix Wright as the ace attorney, he does make an appearance in the demo above, so check it out! If you’ve never played an Ace Attorney game, here’s your chance to get a taste of it, but it’s only a small taste as the full games are more involved than just the courtroom proceedings.

Ray and I are both completionists when it comes to videogames, so we are just dying to get all the ship parts in Phantom Hourglass. Looking at some of the forums out there, many of you are also looking to complete your collection, so let’s help each other out! Leave your Phantom Hourglass Friend Code in the comments below and we promise to add you. Here are our Friend Codes for y’all to add as well:
Tim: 120 371 687 656
Ray: 081 717 962 761