The Cormorant is the third book featuring the on-going misadventures of Miriam Black.
Miriam has a gift, or curse as she usually sees it, skin on skin contact with a person gives her a detailed vision of how and when they are going to die. This has made Miriam’s life somewhat complicated to say the least.
Getting an immediate and detailed view of how family, friends and anyone else is going to die just by touching them has made Miriam into a loner. The endless visions, a mixture of the brutal, burning to death in a car crash, the tragic, cancer ,and the pathetic, choking-on-a-sprout-whilst-eating-dinner have made her shun her fellow man for the most part or use them when necessary .
Miriam is a street smart, foul mouthed outcast with a scathing razor sharp wit and a contempt for the whole of humanity who learned the hard way that people can’t be saved, ‘fate finds a way’.
Along with her gift Miriam is also plagued by horrific hallucinations of those whose fates she has been involved in which often mock her and question her actions . She named this tormentor The Tresspasser, Miriam is unsure whether these are just manifestations of her guilt at failing to save those she encountered or something else.
This story finds Miriam in the custody of two individuals with an interest in her gift, it’s through Miriam telling them her story via flashback that the events unfold. The catalyst for her current situation? After heading to Florida, to pick up a fat payment from a wealthy businessman with an interest in how is he going to die, she sees that not only will he be brutally murdered but the murderer has/will leave a message for Miriam.
It should be said Chuck Wendig isn’t for everyone, the easily offended should go elsewhere. The Miriam Black books are pretty no holds barred and have smashed through various taste barriers like a runaway freight train.
Wendig’s prose is coarse and strong like a shot of whisky. He also proves time and time again that he is the master of the metaphor, ‘you look like a tracksuit wrapped around a bunch of trashbags’, and memorable chapter titles like ‘ The sunshine state can go fuck itself’, are an indicator of what to expect. The Cormorant is slick and well crated, rejuvenating the much maligned urban fantasy with a dash of the supernatural, plenty of hardboiled noir and a twisted sense of humour.
Miriam’s scathing and savage wit is one of the delights and her take on the ‘friend zone’, when a would be suitor questions her refusal to sleep with him, is as sublime as it is caustic.
With Miriam Black Chuck Wendig has created an enduring character, not only an afflicted outcast but a fearless heroine in the guise of the anti-hero.
Also you can’t talk about Miriam Black without mentioning Joey Hifi’s amazing cover art.
A few days ago Whovians were treated to the first official ( i.e. not sneakily leaked) look at what Peter Capaldi’s Doctor is going to dress like. In short, he should probably front Joy Division in this get up:
“Livin’ after midnight, rockin’ to the dawn”
This style seems a bit darker than the Doctor’s last few regenerations, possibly this is to reflect a darker tone in the upcoming series.A dark coat with vampire lining and DMs that could deliver a kick to the groin that would make a Cyberman cry, it would seem that this Doctor means business. As excited as I’m sure you all are, the few comments we’ve heard from the Capaldi/Moffat camp are somewhat worrying to say the least.
When asked about his choice of costume, it seemed that Capaldi made a dig at the doctors of the past stating that the style was “Simple, stark, and back to basics. No frills, no scarf, no messing, just 100% Rebel Time Lord”
This has the connotation that we might be seeing a more angry, or possibly even violent doctor. This of course could be on purpose, lest us forget that just before The Doctor’s latest regeneration he straight up murdered 3 Daleks with the magical, never-been-used-this-way, wasn’t-that-a-useful-plot-device powers granted by the parallel dimension bound Time Lords (also, conveniently, granting him umpteen more regenerations).
This sentiment was echoed by long-time series’ writer Stephen Moffat, who issued the warning that it was a “New Doctor, new era, and of course new clothes. Monsters of the universe, the vacation is over – Capaldi is suited and booted and coming to get you.”
Shooting has already started in Cardiff, so it’s only a matter of months until we can confirm or deny any of these theories/rumours.
Excited for the new era? Think Moffat’s lost the plot? leave your rage/love below. It’s okay, we understand.
As the dust settles on a rather controversial edition of the Royal Rumble, the inquisition can now begin, as wrestling geeks around the world try to piece together the implications of last night’s events. The quality of the action was above average and actually pretty damn great at times. Most of the complaints circulating among fans are surrounding the absence of Daniel Bryan (and indeed most of the top stars) from the rumble match itself. The number of surprise entrants was also rather lacking, with Kevin Nash and Sheamus the only noteworthy returns. Apart from the New Age Outlaws‘ shock victory on the pre-show, the results of the card were exactly what everybody expected. Some of the stuff that went down raised some eyebrows, but that was mostly negative.
So what’s next for WWE? This week’s episode of RAW should shed some light on proceedings, and let’s hope that there are fireworks. With the network about to be launched, pay-per-views need more than ever to be enticing. Last night’s efforts certainly didn’t cut it. You only had to listen to the live crowd to know that. When they weren’t displaying silent indifference, they were crapping on the entire presentation from a great height. There were numerous major flaws with the show. The discontent of the fans needs to be addressed and quickly.
Before all the doom and gloom sets in, it’s important to point out the positives. The pre-show match – in which the Rhodes Brothers lost their Tag Team Titles to the Outlaws – was very good indeed. Considering the fact that 3/4 of the competitors in the match were middle aged, the athleticism on display was astounding.
It was a really cool blast-from-the-past to see Billy Gunn hit the Fame Asser and pick up the win, but I expected that to lead to some kind of family warfare in the rumble match. No such luck, as Cody and Goldust were both eliminated unceremoniously and not by each other. I guess we will have to see where they go with that. Everybody expected them to lay the groundwork for a brother versus brother match at Wrestlemania, but I didn’t see any such thing. At least we saw a title change hands, and if the Outlaws are to be transitional Champions, this could mean a long overdue run with the belts for The Usos.
Fan favourite Daniel Bryan opened up the main card against his nemesis Bray Wyatt. After the referee banished the other members of the faction to backstage, everybody was expecting Bryan to finally get his revenge, once and for all. Speaking of which, why are the referees only able to do such a thing once every few months? Now there is a logic gap! I for one, found it refreshing to see Wyatt get the clean win. I don’t think anybody saw that coming. The only problem with that is the damage it will do to his opponent’s credibility – talk about a fall from grace. The army of Daniel Bryan fans in the arena were outraged, and that sentiment was carried over into the rumble match itself. His future is not looking bright, and he looks destined to be another guy with huge potential who was needlessly put down, against the will of the majority of fans. Let’s hope there is an upside around the corner for him. It must be noted that the match between them was excellent. Bray Wyatt performed brilliantly and finally looked like a legitimate main event star, and Bryan was flawless as always.
Brock Lesnar absolutely annihilated Big Show with a vicious steel chair attack, before the referee had the chance to start their contest. He then officially got the win, with the giant putting up no resistance. This was perfectly done and there can be no complaints. My only grievance concerns Lesnar’s absence from the rumble. After barely breaking a sweat and only performing one wrestling move, he would surely have been capable of appearing again. His inclusion could have gone a long way to propping up the show-piece and adding some much needed star power, but no.
Cena vs Orton
In the final singles match of the night – Orton v Cena 325 – the crowd were treated to a predictably boring contest. There isn’t a lot that these two could have done to surprise the fans, to be fair to them. We have all seen them battle countless times. The crowd made it clear how bored they were. The two of them attempted to get a reaction by doing each other’s finishing moves, but it didn’t sound like it was overly effective.
The one exciting moment came when The Wyatt Family showed up surrounding the ring apron. That distraction was enough to help Orton retain the title. Bray and his crew then beat Cena down in the ring. Wyatt v Cena at Wrestlemania has been rumoured for some time, and now that seems certain to be happening. I can’t see that being a classic, but at least the Wyatts’ arrival was unexpected.
After seeing their hero Daniel Bryan lose cleanly to Bray Wyatt, Brock Lesnar practice his swing for ten minutes, and Cena v Orton for the – insert wildly exaggerated figure here -, the fans were crying out for a classic Royal Rumble match! They were hoping for surprise stars of the past, big name star power and never-bef0re-seen moments of brilliance. Kofi Kingston pulled off his annual show-boat at least. He was thrown over the top, caught by NXT rookie Alexander Rusev (who’s inclusion was one positive surprise) and left draped over the barricade. He then ran along it and leaped back onto the apron, thus avoiding elimination. This was nowhere near as cool as his previous two rumble exploits, but I guess they are running out of wacky things to do in that respect.
The twitter fans weren’t happy…
Aside from that, it was very forgettable. Kevin Nash and JBL were the only non-regular competitors to return and neither did anything important. In fact, Layfield walked from the announce desk into the ring (still in suit), was eliminated by Roman Reigns almost immediately, and then returned to his commentary duties. Aside from those two, Sheamus was the only surprise. He was booed heavily by the crowd as he made it to the final two, despite returning from a lengthy injury absence. After the final entrant, the crowd knew that Daniel Bryan wouldn’t be coming out. That’s when they turned on the other guys in the ring. Rey Mysterio was the unlucky Number 30 and his elimination was cheered. El Torito made a novelty appearance, and eliminated Fandango. As the brilliant Aaron Rift pointed out, this was akin to career murder. Not since Chavo Guerrero jobbed to Hornswaggle has there been a worse situation for a wrestler to be put in. Ryback was booed, Rey Mysterio was heckled and Batista was hated.
The rumble match was an indictment of the way in which WWE operates these days. The many fans in attendance made their feelings known, but ultimately it doesn’t matter what they think. It doesn’t matter what any of us think. The company will do what they do, for better or worse. Bryan, Lesnar and Cena would have really legitimised the match. They didn’t have to win, but they should have been included. Gone are the days when top stars would compete in grudge matches on the card, but still appear in the rumble at the end of the night. Those spaces were filled by jobbers like R-Truth, Damien Sandow and The Miz. At least Dolph Ziggler was included, and boy did he get a positive reaction.
Yup…
There were a few things that came as a surprise, but for the most part, it was what everybody expected. That predictability was summed up by Batista winning the rumble match for a second time. As it came down to him and Roman Reigns in the final two, the company decided to go for the old rather than the new. The Samoan did break Kane‘s record for most eliminations in one match and came off looking incredibly strong, but his journey to the very top seems to be temporarily on hold. The corporate monster even made an appearance in the match himself, and screwed over CM Punk. I’m actually excited for that feud, but I’m not entirely sure why.
The ending of the rumble match summed up the way most fans felt about the overall show. Three so-called babyfaces in Sheamus, Batista and Roman Reigns stood in the ring as the final three, to a cascade of boos. The volume was just crazy. However, there was hope for a more positive response when the Shield member eliminated Sheamus. Every time he got the upper hand on Batista, the crowd went nuts. The guy put in the performance of his short career and the crowd were right behind him. When he was thrown over the top rope by the returning hero, the crowd let out an immense boo. It was clear who they thought should have won, going against everything that WWE wanted them to feel about this match. Unlike those who question whether or not he is “ready”, I just look at the facts; He has been great in the ring throughout the faction’s run, he is good on the mic and has a tremendous look. Roman Reigns looked every bit a Champion last night, but they decided to play it safe and go with the old guy.
Aside from the few highs and the many, many lows, the big talking point coming out of the Royal Rumble is the crowd reaction. The legions of disgruntled Daniel Bryan fans in the arena hijacked the show on many occasions and made it perfectly clear to everyone watching at home, that WWE does not care for the desires of it’s viewers. They need to make some repairs, put some muscle behind their popular wrestlers, and pick up some momentum before the network launches. If they fail to do this, it could be a doomed venture from the start.
Legendary former three-time WWE Champion Mick Foley summed up the general feeling among fans on Twitter: “Does @WWE actually hate their own audience? I’ve never been so disgusted with a PPV.”
For those of you who don’t know, Empire is one of the greatest movie magazines out there and comes out once a month with all sorts of cool features. This month, with the upcoming release date of X-Men: Days Of Future Past (May 23rd), they’ve decided to give us the motherload of all content on the latest addition the X-Men saga by delivering their biggest ever world exclusive.
Page upon glossy page, dedicated to what looks set to be cinematic adamantium. Oh, and as if the feature itself wasn’t enough, in tune with the fact that 2014 is Empire’s 25th anniversary and they’ve decided to celebrate in truly epic style with a yearlong celebration of film greater than anything they’ve gone for before, they’re delivering 25 DIFFERENT COVERS. Let that sink in. 25 alternative covers for you to choose from, ranging from the sheer awesomeness that Peter Dinklage brings to every role he ever takes, this time that of Bollinger Trask, summed up on the cover with the words “Robotics Genius, Mutant Hater, Smooth Political Operator”, to Beast and even director Bryan Singer.
Peter Dinklage. Any More Questions?
At the time of writing, 13 of the covers have been released, the latest being that of Future Wolverine, and you can find them and take your pick here. On top of the cast of well established characters; Havok, Xavier, Magneto, Beast, Wolverine and Mystique all appear, there is the joyful return of Toad and a young William Stryker (the bad guy in X2) and the addition of newbies Trask, the Sentinel and Quicksilver.
And though some of the covers may be more… questionable than others, we can but hope that the acting performances will shine through over the slightly dubious costume choices. Either way, if nothing else, the sheer fact that the story of Future Past and the bleeding Sentinels are being brought to the big screen should be enough to get your fan juices flowing. I mean, it’s the bloody Sentinels, how can you not be excited to see the X-Men facing off against giant, mutant hunting robots?
I’d rather not comment
If you haven’t already seen it, the squeal inducingly exciting trailer can be seen here. The movie is set to take the story in a slightly different direction the original, and awesome, comic in that Wolverine will take the place of Shadowcat in as the time traveller, probably due to his well established fandom credentials but the story still looks to be pretty true to the source otherwise and with the brilliant First Class cast returning alongside their older counterparts and Bryan Singer back in the director’s chair, Days Of Future Past looks to be truly epic. If it’s as good as Empire are making it look, it may just blow all competition out of the water.
Oh Han, shoot me first if you want, it won’t matter – Lucas will just change it around anyway. Art by Jonathan Moore.
On Thursday the 23rd of January, 2014, the Star Wars Twitter account introduced the #askstarwars hashtag. Amid the usual questions on what precisely can be done to Jar-Jar Binks in a family film and how teddy-bears could adequately produce an insurrectionist movement, Marvel joined in and it became, well, really rather geeky.
Incidentally, the Deadpool/Solo pic up there is from IGN here. That article has a bunch of similarly great images by artist Jonathan Moore.
You should follow @Marvel and @Starwars on Twitter. Collected tweets mage from 9gag.
In 2003 the ESA (European Space Agency) launched the satellite Rosetta. Shortly after launch the craft went into “hibernation” to preserve power and resources until it had reached it’s desired orbit. After 11 years the world received a tweet from the satellite itself, it simply said “Hello World.” Back in the control rooms at ESA, it was a little more tense as controllers awaited the much needed information to arrive. Cheers and applause could be heard all throughout the building when the spike in the graphs finally came.
Rosetta will be transmitting information regarding a comet that has been spotted near its current orbit and hopefully answering questions our species have long asked. In a recent press release from the EPA answer the questions the public has about the satellite itself.
…first, essential health checks on the spacecraft must be completed. Then the eleven instruments on the orbiter and ten on the lander will be turned on and prepared for studying Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
“We have a busy few months ahead preparing the spacecraft and its instruments for the operational challenges demanded by a lengthy, close-up study of a comet that, until we get there, we know very little about,” says Andrea Accomazzo, ESA’s Rosetta operations manager.
Rosetta’s first images of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko are expected in May, when the spacecraft is still 2 million km from its target. Towards the end of May, the spacecraft will execute a major manoeuvre to line up for its critical rendezvous with the comet in August.
After rendezvous, Rosetta will start with two months of extensive mapping of the comet’s surface, and will also make important measurements of the comet’s gravity, mass and shape, and assess its gaseous, dust-laden atmosphere, or coma. The orbiter will also probe the plasma environment and analyse how it interacts with the Sun’s outer atmosphere, the solar wind.
Using these data, scientists will choose a landing site for the mission’s 100 kg Philae probe. The landing is currently scheduled for 11 November and will be the first time that a landing on a comet has ever been attempted.
In fact, given the almost negligible gravity of the comet’s 4 km-wide nucleus, Philae will have to use ice screws and harpoons to stop it from rebounding back into space after touchdown.
Among its wide range of scientific measurements, Philae will send back a panorama of its surroundings, as well as very high-resolution pictures of the surface. It will also perform an on-the-spot analysis of the composition of the ices and organic material, including drilling down to 23 cm below the surface and feeding samples to Philae’s on-board laboratory for analysis.
The focus of the mission will then move to the ‘escort’ phase, during which Rosetta will stay alongside the comet as it moves closer to the Sun, monitoring the ever-changing conditions on the surface as the comet warms up and its ices sublimate.
The comet will reach its closest distance to the Sun on 13 August 2015 at about 185 million km, roughly between the orbits of Earth and Mars. Rosetta will follow the comet throughout the remainder of 2015, as it heads away from the Sun and activity begins to subside.
“We will face many challenges this year as we explore the unknown territory of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and I’m sure there will be plenty of surprises, but today we are just extremely happy to be back on speaking terms with our spacecraft,” adds Matt Taylor.
It’s a Supernova!!
Space has had a lot to offer this week! In the irregular galaxy M82, there is a spectacular supernova that is visible through a telescope and has the astronomy world scrambling. There have been 10 events this year regarding supernovas and this one is absolutely splendid. The beautiful and mind-boggling colours and activity have star gazers and scientists alike, just watching in awe. Currently the spectacle is not visible with the naked eye but it is guessed that you would be able to see it through binoculars in a dark area. There isn’t much to report as of yet, but people are encouraged to follow on Twitter for the latest updates. We aren’t positive on how bright it will get but, it is now at an 11th magnitude and expected to get to 8th. It will be fascinating to follow this development and see where it goes. Maybe a fun date night for the astronomy lover in your life? http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2014/01/23/supernova_adam_block_photo_of_the_exploding_star_in_m82.html
Ceres has Water
The Herschel Space Telescope has detected water on the dwarf planet Ceres. Scientists have long speculated that the surface of the planet is made up of ice, and it has now been confirmed. Using Herschel, scientists were able to observe readings from the radiation deflecting off Ceres and found water vapor. It is believed that not only does Ceres have ice, it appears to contain more water Earth itself. I really try to not make this a science class report so as not to bore you wonderful readers so if you are interested in reading more about the classification Ceres and the current research being done on dwarf planets, please follow this link. http://www.iflscience.com/space/herschel-detects-ceres-has-large-amounts-water
Reading by Plantlight
Do you like to read? I like to read. We should be friends.
OK, Idiocracy references aside, we can now get to the awesomeness that is glowing plants. Researchers have developed a plant that actually creates it’s own light and is bright enough to read by. The biotechnology company, Bioglow has engineered these plants called “Starlight Avatar.” The plants use their natural glow for several reasons including scaring off their predators and attracting prey. Bioluminescencecan be found naturally in several species including jellyfish, bacteria and insects. If you would like to be one of the first people to own one of these awesome plants, Bioglow will be holding an auction for its first 20 plants. The auctions will start at $1 plus appropriate shipping costs. It won’t cost you anything to sign up but you do need to register with their website. The date has not been set yet but Bioglow will keep you updated via e-mail once you register.
Think our Hawaiian hottie missed any sciencey stuff this week? want to rant about GM plants evntually becoming Triffids? Love space? drop us a comment below on the Geek Pride facebook page or at Twitter on @GeekPride1
I came upon this particular Public Service Announcement via my dear husband. You see, my other half has a pet hate, a pet hate that he gets far to ranty about far to often. That pet hate, my friends, is vertical videos and it’s becoming a problem.
Luckily the folks over at Gloves and Boots have recognised the spread of this terrible affliction and decided to help make people more aware. Made with puppets and a good dose of funny, this should appeal to even those with very little brain cells and help them understand the consequences of vertical videos. DAMN YOU LUCAS!
So folks – if you do just one good deed this day – share this very important PSA. Spread the word, inform the uninformed and let us hope for a future where vertical videos have been wiped out.
It would seem Marvel are stepping it up; first the announcement that Lady Sif to make a guest appearance and now the addition of a classic. Through season one of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D we have unknowingly witnessed the origin story of Marvel classic character Deathlok – a cybernetic soldier with enhancements granting super strength, super speed and a high tech eye among other advantages.
Marvel have today confirmed that recurring character Mike Peterson – played by J. August Richards – is to be reintroduced as Deathlok in the 4th of February episode. It was obvious Peterson was going to become something more and I expect the fans will be happy it has turned out to be a classic character from Marvel canon; something the series has been lacking.
[box_light]”We have been waiting all season for this moment where we can reveal that Mike Peterson’s story arc is an origin story,” said Executive Producer Jeffrey Bell. “We’re thrilled to have J. August Richards playing Deathlok and to have our audience enjoy this favorite Marvel character on the show.”[/box_light]
It would seem J August is just as thrilled about playing a superhero:
[box_light]”If you would have asked when I was nine-years old what I wanted to be, I would have said a super hero and I’m so excited to be one now as an adult on TV!” added J. August Richards. “It’s a dream come true.”[/box_light]
Coincidently or not, this year marks the 40th anniversary of the Deathlok character who first appeared in Astonishing Tales #25 and has had at least three different characters take the name – including S.H.I.E.L.D espionage agent Jack Truman. The last time we saw Mike Peterson he had been captured by Centipede, probably to be used as a weapon. Marvel say this incarnation will have to “struggle to find the man in the machine” and it can be assumed the “struggle” will involve switching sides and may be joining the S.H.I.E.L.D team…who knows? Of the answer is Marvel but for now they are keeping quiet.
Are you excited about this reveal? Which Marvel classic character will be next? Who do you want to see? As always comment below!
This week saw the emergence of a precious antique in the gaming world : a cartridge for Nintendo World Championships.This cartridge was given to players of the championships ; it included 6 minutes of Super Mario Bros, Rad Racer and Tetris, the goal being to rack up as many points as possible.
Another variant of the cartridge was gold, and given out during a different Nintendo Power (not a hate group) competition some years later.
The cartridge in question is beaten up, and has simply the word “Mario” hastily scrawled in biro. The seller claims that the damage was done “decades ago” . The current bid stands at $5,500 , but many speculate that the bidding will reach well into the $10,000 mark.
This is some plastic that you can swap for some paper. That person can then use that paper to buy a new car or a speadboat. Let that sink in.
The real question is: How much do you REALLY love the geek in your life?
The Bidding has closed and left the owner a rediculous $99,000!!!!!!
It’s no secret that the Wii U hasn’t sold well at all. It’s been partly due to lack of new first-party titles and also because what we’ve seen so far is a small collection of recycled old games, some being no more than HD remakes of ones from older consoles. So Mario is back to try and save the day in a new adventure – well, it’s a direct sequel of the 3DS hit Super Mario 3D Land so not entirely new, but it does feel fresh enough though.
The story is the same as any other Mario title has but with one major difference; Bowser doesn’t kidnap Princess Peach. This time he’s captured seven fairy-like princesses called “sprixies”, and Peach joins Mario and friends to save the day – a somewhat refreshing change, although not much different at all.
Although this is a 3D platformer, the gameplay is much closer to the 2D games than the other 3D ones. Both Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Galaxy featured new gameplay mechanics; the first featuring a water cannon and the latter featuring tiny planets with varying gravitational forces but Super Mario 3D land sticks to the classic platforming action we’ve all experienced for years. That doesn’t mean it lacks new features of it’s own though.
The cat suit is really cool
Many of the power-ups featured in this game have been seen countless times before; the super mushroom, the fire flower and the super leaf are among these. However, this time there are a couple of new ones to set it apart from the others; the main one being the super bell, which transforms your chosen character into a cat.
When this was first announced by Nintendo, I must admit that I was a bit skeptical about it; the reason being, it seems that whenever they find a new transformation for Mario, they always go for a mammal with a long tail, usually giving it the ability to fly, so this didn’t really sound that new to me. However, I have to say I loved it as the abilities the cat suit provides are very different to the usual ones.
While wearing it, your character can use a both claw attack and an aerial pounce to defeat enemies as well as the ability climb walls to reach areas you wouldn’t normally be able to – resulting in the discovery of secret areas, stars and super pick-ups. Also, if you’re wearing this suit when you jump on to the flag pole at the end of the stage, you will automatically climb to the top for maximum points – it’s very cool.
Another new power-up is the double cherry. Picking this up clones your character and if you keep finding them within the same stage, you can end up with several clones at once. This ability can both help and hinder you as all clones mimic your actions and can be used to defeat multiple enemies at once, but when it comes to platforming if their formation isn’t quite right, they won’t be able to follow you through pipes and some platforms and you can easily lose them. This seems to be intentional; the idea being, it adds a puzzle element to the game-play. If you get to a certain point in the stage with enough of them left, you will be rewarded. This pick-up only features on a few stages so it’s not as big as feature as the cat suit but still a good one.
The cloning feature is cool & adds a puzzle gameplay element
I was quite disappointed to find that Yoshi was absent from this game but standing in for him is another dinosaur, called Plessie. He is much bigger than Yoshi and only features on certain stages – water slides. This adds a bit of variety to the usual platforming and can be quite tricky to master. Due to fast-pace, the stages featuring him are very fun, even if they can be a little bit frustrating at times.
As with some of the other Mario games, you can choose between multiple characters and if you have some friends with you, you can play with up to four at once. This time though, as a single player, you can choose between any character at the start of each stage. My favourite character is Luigi and usually I can only play with him if I’m in multiplayer mode, but I played through this game from start to finish, only using him. The playable characters are Mario, Luigi, Toad and Princess Peach. Rosilina from the Super Mario Galaxy games can also be unlocked. Each character has it’s own ability E.g. Toad can run faster than the others and Peach can float after jumping. If you get stuck on a certain stage, sometimes changing character can be the key to finishing it more easily.
Play with friends
There’s also a good variety of enemies; all the classics with a few new ones in the mix. The bosses are more varied than usual too. The Koopa kids are still the boss of some worlds but there are also a few giant enemies like boulders and snakes as the bosses on others. To defeat them, they all require the same tactics; learning their pattern, avoiding their attacks and then either jump on them or throw something at them, repeating 3 times. It’s a classic formula used in pretty much every Mario and Zelda game and as they say, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.
One thing I love is the variety in gameplay between the stages; of course, there’s the usual mix of rotating, moving and disappearing platforms, underwater stages etc, but there’s also others to mix it up, for example, a stage using shadow-play, another being a platform version of Mario Kart, complete with turbo pads and also the Plessie stages; there’s many more than just those though.
The main bonus stages on each world consist of one with a number of challenges, where you have 10 seconds to complete each one, with a star as the prize. The other is a stage featuring a tower, where you take control of Toad and need to collect all stars to complete it. The catch is that you are unable to jump so you need to find a path to each one.
The shadow levels are another new addition
There are 8 main worlds and 3 bonus worlds so there’s plenty of game-time there. For those seeking more of a challenge, there are 380 stars to collect; 3 on each standard stage and varying amounts on the bonus stages. This also gives the game some replay value but even before you finish the main worlds, you may find yourself revisiting stages purely to find the stars as you need at least 170 of them to unlock the final showdown with Bowser.
As the stars can be fairly challenging to locate or obtain, I think some less experienced players may find that too many in order to finish it; usually they’re just optional challenges. However, if you fail a stage too many times you will receive a Invincibility Super Leaf, which transforms you into White Tanooki Mario; this allows you to float while being invincible, making the game more accessible for the younger or casual players.
White Tanooki Mario
As with most Mario games, one of the best things for me is that it’s very easy to pick up and as the stages are quite short that makes it easy to kill short pockets of time. Also, if most games are put down for a certain length of time, they can be hard to get back into as you may have forgotten the controls or how to play in general but you’ll never have that problem with Mario – you just pick up and go!
The graphics look very nice and every inch of the game has very vibrant colours. The classic sounds you would expect are there and the soundtrack features new tunes, which will have you toe tapping as with any other Mario title.
As you would expect from Nintendo, there’s no online multiplayer but they have incorporated their newest online feature, the Miiverse, into this game. This allows you to post and receive messages relating to game, to and from other players respectively. The gamepad can be used to hand write these and there are also collectable stamps depicting Mario characters and items, which can be found while playing each and every stage. These can be used to make your own scene and posting it in a message for all to see.
Of course, being a Wii U title, this has some Gamepad features but it keeps it simple and it’s not used for gimmicky control methods. It’s just used for off-TV play and for Miiverse handwriting/drawing, so has a very practical use.
There’s also an added bonus included for fans of Mario’s early adventures, Luigi Bros; a reversion of the 8-bit title, Mario Bros; simply replacing Mario with Luigi as the main character. It’s no more than that but it’s a free game so nothing to grumble about there.
Luigi Bros – get your fill of retro revamp Mario!
Overall
Although not the revolution Super Mario Galaxy was, this is a very solid Mario title and by far the best reason to buy a Wii U. It’s perfect for all ages and skill levels, and it proves how strong Nintendo can be as a game publisher/developer. A few months back Rayman was hot on Mario’s heels but he’s now been kicked back big time and Mario shows he’s still the King of the platformer. If you’ve been contemplating buying a Wii U, now is the time to stop thinking about it and go and buy one.
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