lifebeginsat8bit

[lifebeginsat8bit]

It was not readily apparent, thanks in large part to the naming conventions of the day, that “Secret of Mana” (1993) was a follow up to “Final Fantasy Adventure” (1991) on the GameBoy. In Japanese, the games are called “Seiken Densetsu” or “Legend of the Sacred Sword” parts one and two. 

Still, “Secret of Mana” was a big game for its publisher Squaresoft (now Square-Enix) and for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System thanks to its bright, colorful graphics, epic plot, and real-time battle system that let you whack foes with a button press rather than a menu prompt. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central: Our odyssey into the games of 1993 continues! After a brief pit stop to play “Final Fantasy Adventure,” we’ll claim the mana sword and begin our adventure in “Secret of Mana” for the SNES. twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#secret of mana #seiken densetsu #squaresoft #snes #gameboy #final fantasy

[lifebeginsat8bit]

Mirror’s Edge (2008) introduced gamers to parkour-based, first-person platforming with an emphasis on flow, not combat. It’s hard not to think of Ghostrunner (2020) and its 2023 sequel Ghostrunner II as the other side of the parkour coin. Both games empower you to use lightning quick reflexes and parkour skills to dispatch your opponents with all the precision of a cybernetic ninja. And it is kill or be killed because one successful bullet or misstep is enough to take your robot butt right out of the action. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central: We’re getting our steps in (virtually) with a little Ghostrunner II on PS5. And if we get winded? We’ll enjoy the stompy mech action of Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon (2023). twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#ghostrunner #ghostrunner 2 #playstation 5 #ps5 #parkour

[lifebeginsat8bit]

Have you ever considered moving to a remote island so you can go fishing underwater and open a small sushi restaurant? I mean, who hasn't at this point? We certainly have! And if you're like us, then “Dave the Diver” (2023) might just be the perfect cozy game for you!

“Dave the Diver” is a (mostly) relaxing game where you spend your day scuba diving and impaling all manner of underwater life so you can spend your evening helping your friends work a busy sushi bar. Everything a good, cozy game needs is here including relaxing music, cute pixelated graphics, inventory management, low stress fishing, and monstrous boss battles. Wait, what? 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we’re plumbing the depths for adventure in “Dave the Diver.” And if we need a break from being underwater, there’s plenty of buried treasure from 2023 to enjoy. twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#dave the diver #nintendo switch #nintendo #indie games

[lifebeginsat8bit]

Buried under a seemingly ever-increasing pile of open-world explorathons, and free-to-play multiplayer shooters, it’s easy to miss games that focus on contained, single-player experiences. Somehow,”Evil West” seemed to come and go like a blood-drenched tumbleweed with little to no fanfare. That’s a real shame because if you ever wondered what would happen if “Resident Evil 4” (2005), “God of War” (2018), and “Doom” (2016) had a baby, “Evil West” would be that baby. 

Part third-person shooter, part over-the-top brawler, “Evil West” puts you in the spurs of vampire slayer Jessie Rentier. Jesse’s on a quest to keep the Wild West safe from the creatures of the night one bullet (or electrified punch) at a time. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central: We’re tangling with the undead in “Evil West.” And just in case you need another throwback action game, “Gun Grave G.O.R.E.” (2022) is also on deck.  twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#evil west #flying wild hog #third person shooter #playstation 5

[lifebeginsat8bit]

When word dropped that we were getting a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game in the style of fan favorite TMNT arcade game, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles In Time” (1991), we just about came out of our shells. And the more we learned about it, the more the hype sustained us like an extra-large pizza with marshmallows and pepperoni. 

“Shredder’s Revenge” (2022) came to us from “Streets of Rage 4” (2020) developers Dotemu and Tribute Games, who worked on “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game” (2010) and previously developed TMNT games for the GameBoy Advance. A beat ‘em up pedigree established, we also learned that the actors from the 1987 television series would return for one last ride in the Turtle Van. Combine that with a soundtrack featuring Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Mega Ran, and Mike Patton and you’re in for a shell of a good time. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we’re playing Shredder’s Revenge with you! Head to the Life Begins at 8-Bit discord to share Switch friend codes. What other 2022 games await us? Only one way to find out.

twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#tmnt #shredders revenge #dotemu #tribute games #teenage mutant ninja turtles #nintendo switch

[lifebeginsat8bit]

In a grand departure from that other high-fantasy adventure, “Elden Ring” (2022) is a game largely about repairing the eponymous ring and becoming an Elden Lord. To do this, players will die and die again while exploring an open-world, appreciating bits of world building from George R. R. Martin, and engaging in white knuckle, Soulsborne-style combat. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central: We’re adding a death counter to the stream to keep track of our “Elden Ring” exploits! Join us for our first stream featuring games from 2022! twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#elden ring #from software #dead souls #bloodborne #george r r martin

[lifebeginsat8bit]

“Wytchwood” (2021) is a crafting adventure game set in a land inspired by fairytales and fables. If you don’t know how crafting can be an adventure, you’ve clearly never been to a Michael’s (or Joanne’s) on a Sunday afternoon. 

This cozy indie title comes to us from the developers at Alientrap, who formed in 2002 to create a first-person shooter called “Nexuiz”(2005). 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we’ll manifest Fall with a little help from “Wytchwood.” And with Halloween right around the corner, what better time to get started with “Resident Evil Village” (2021)?

twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#wytchwood #indie games #nintendo switch #cozy games #cozy gaming community

[lifebeginsat8bit]

Graphics aren’t everything! Need proof? Check out “Monster Hunter Rising” originally released on the Switch in 2021. Though lacking in graphic detail compared to “Monster Hunter: World” (2018), this new game in the series made up for it with canine companions called “palamutes.” These took the form of horse-sized dogs that made traversing the various areas searching for prey an absolute breeze. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central: We’re polishing our hammers and sharpening our switch axes for “Monster Hunter: Rise” on the Nintendo Switch—and with a special guest! twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#monster hunter #nintendo switch #capcom #monster hunter rise

[lifebeginsat8bit]

2021 wasn’t all about long-awaited sequels and justifying reasons to seek out and purchase a PlayStation 5. In the indie scene, there was plenty to crow about. “Death’s Door” (2021), for example, sets players on the path to secure souls in order to open the aforementioned door belonging to Death. To do this, players become a small crow armed with a sword and bow, not unlike a certain Nintendo protagonist. However, this adventure is fraught with ideas ripped right out of Soulslike games including (but not limited to) using souls as currency for upgrades. 

What you may not know about “Death’s Door” is that developer Acid Nerve worked in aspects from their previous game, “Titan Souls” (2015) with an aim to create a more polished experience. Some story elements tie the two games together as well, but that’s approaching spoiler territory. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we’re opening the door on one of 2021’s indie darlings, “Death’s Door.” But there’s more death on tap in the form of Arkane’s excellent “Deathloop” (2021). So come for the death and stay for…the death?

twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#deaths door #devolver digital #soulslike #indie games #video games #twitch

[lifebeginsat8bit]

When fans unhooked their katana-wielding fingers from their wii remotes and finally wrapped them around the actual third game in the “No More Heroes” series, “Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes” (2019), they could only speculate that this new game might have something to do with a proper “No More Heroes” sequel. “Travis Strikes Again” certainly contained the wacky humor and visual aesthetic that made the previous games cult favorites, but gave up the standard third-person, motion-controlled, assassin simulator gameplay for an indie-inspired hack and slasher. 

It was during the secret ending of “Travis Strikes Again” that fans got their first glimpse of “No More Heroes III” (2021) in the form of a playable test stage with Travis controlling like he used to and hinting that, “we’re in development.” 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we’ll venture once more into the garden of madness with the conclusion to Travis Touchdown’s story, “No More Heroes III.” What other delights await from 2021? Find out tonight! twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#no more heroes #suda 51 #travis strikes again #grasshopper manufacture #nintendo switch

[lifebeginsat8bit]

We may not have fully grasped it at the time, but when “Doom Eternal” and “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” released together on March 20, 2020, we desperately needed both. Returning to “Doom” meant catharsis in the form of laying waste to hordes of demonic baddies, this time with the added blastitude of a blood punch and ice bombs. The addition of new enemies like the marauder, meant ripping and tearing that would test the limits of your average Doom guy. 

In “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” we balanced our inner rage with the tranquility that comes from collecting fossils, decorating an island, and paying a mortgage to an anthropomorphic raccoon.

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we close out a month of 2020 streams with the two games that saved our sanity, each in their own ways. Don’t miss it! twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#animal crossing #doom #doom eternal #animal crosing new horizons #id software

[lifebeginsat8bit]

For the last 37 months, we’ve examined 40 years of video game history one year (per month) at a time. One of the major takeaways? Remakes and ports sure have ramped up as we approach the present day. 

With the PlayStation 5 launch in 2020, it was up to a scant few exclusives to demonstrate the power of the new hardware. Most of the burden fell to “Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart” (2020) and a remake of “Demon’s Souls” (2020), a game that was originally released on PlayStation 3 in 2009.

Development of the 2020 version of “Demon’s Souls” was handled by Bluepoint Games, the same folks who brought us remasters and collections of several Sony titles including “Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection” (2015), “Gravity Rush Remastered” (2015), and “Shadow of the Colossus” (2018). 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we’ll get properly introduced to the PlayStation 5 with “Demon’s Souls.” And in keeping with the theme, we’ll turn things up to ultra violence with “Doom Eternal” (2020). twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#demon souls #elden ring #from software #dark souls #soulsborne #playstation 5

[lifebeginsat8bit]

Part love letter to the original games on the Sega MegaDrive/Genesis, part modern spin on the beat ‘em up genre, “Streets of Rage 4” (2020) is a full-fledged sequel in the side-scrolling series that started in the 16-bit era. To tug on your nostalgia strings, “Streets of Rage 4” includes music from the legendary Yuzo Koshiro. In addition to composing music for the first three games, Koshiro’s studio, Ancient, helped develop “Streets of Rage 2” (1992) and “Streets of Rage 3” (1994).  

Tonight, we’ll attempt to clobber ruffians who would attempt to rule the city in “Streets of Rage 4.” When we’re done with the streets, we’ll take to the seas in “Maneater” (2020). twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#streets of rage #yuzo koshiro #dotemu #nintendo switch #sega

[lifebeginsat8bit]

After seven mainline entries, a zombie spin-off, a few games set in Feudal Japan, a spin-off series and a couple of remakes, the Yakuza series (better known as Ryu Ga Gotoku” or “Like A Dragon” in Japan) traded in street brawls and goofy mini games for turn-based combat and more goofy mini games. “Yakuza: Like A Dragon” (2020) follows the exploits of series newcomer Ichiban Kasuga whose obsession with Dragon Quest is used to justify combat taking place as turned-based battles with everyday objects and unhygienic maladies filling in for melee weapons and spells. A belch from a homeless man’s mouth produces a noxious poison cloud, for example. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we hit rock bottom with Ichiban Kasuga in “Yakuza: Like A Dragon” as Life Begins at 8-Bit continues with the games of 2020.  twitch.tv/lifebeginsat8bit

#yakuza #ryu ga gotoku #like a dragon #ps5 #video games #twitch streamer

[lifebeginsat8bit]

After more than two years of threatening to do it and joking about it, we're finally doing an ALL BOWLING STREAM this Sunday, August 6, 2023 at 2:30 Central. To mark the occasion, I'm sharing this track from the ultra-talented Lazersaurus Rex. It is a chiptune cover our the Life Begins at 8-Bit theme song, that dramatically morphs into a cover of Bob Dylan's "The Man In Me" — famously used on the soundtrack for The Big Lebowski. Please enjoy.

#bowling #the big lebowski #twitch #twitch streamer

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We have been playing the same Mario Maker 2 level by a troll master named Jac on our stream for a few weeks off an on. Here's generally how it's been going...

#twitch streamer #mario maker #twitch #super mario

[lifebeginsat8bit]

Sucker Punch Productions bestowed the PlayStation 2 with the anthropomorphic raccoon master thief Sly Cooper and brought moral choice to third-person action in the Infamous series on the PlayStation 3 and 4. After several years of depicting somewhat realistic cities in which super-powered individuals caused chaos and took fetch quests, Sucker Punch moved their next game to Feudal Japan. 

“Ghost of Tsushima” (2020) puts players behind the blade of Jin Sakai in his quest to rid the Island of Tsushima from Mongol invaders while embracing tactics and strategies that go against his samurai code. If that sounds like the plot from a Kurosawa film, it should. The game is a Samurai epic that not only takes heavy inspiration from Kurosawa’s work, but features a Kurosawa mode that filters out the color of the world in favor of the black and white look of the late director’s films. 

Streaming tonight at 7:30 Central, we’ll take a stab at beating back the Mongol hordes as we unsheathe “Ghost of Tsushima.” This is but the first adventure in a month-long look back at the games of 2020.

#ghost of tsushima #sucker punch #playstation #ps4 #samurai