3DS Games to Look Out For

      For a while now, the 3DS has been somewhat deprived of a library of good games to define it. It's only recently that a collection of good games have made it to the scene. I'm not going to list the obviously big titles like Pokemon or Animal Crossing, but some somewhat lesser known titles that may have passed you up. These aren't the "end all" best games on the system, but some seriously good ones to consider.  But enough of the formalities, let's get down to the list!

1. Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millennium Girl

     A re-imagining of the first entry of the series, this game is your typical dungeon-crawling JRPG with a sprawling story (What more do you expect from Atlus?), lovable characters, and extremely well done animated cutscenes. It sounds simple at face value, but for those new to the series, it has a twist to it (Which may or may not be a pleasant surprise). Through the dungeons, you are given a map of the area. Instead of filling it out by exploring, you must draw the map yourself using the touchscreen. So not only are you trying to find the next floor, you must create an accurate map of the area so you don't get lost.

     I wont lie, this title isn't for everyone, the entire premise is hard to grasp at first and perspective matters, but get it down and you'll be in for one heck of a good ride. If you're unsure, there is a demo on the eshop for it, it'll last you a good two or three hours depending on how thorough you are.

2. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies

     I believe most people have seen the "memes" of this game (OBJECTION!), but I don't know how many people have actually played it. For those unaware of the actual game, you play as a defense attorney trying to prove your clients not guilty. Mainly through blind accusations and finding contradictions in people's testimonies. It operates much like a visual novel in the fact that dialog is very important and interaction is minimal. This particular entry is actually the first to achieve an "M" rating in the series, so if that means something to you, you may want to research a little (But let's be honest, does it really matter?).

     Again, if you're unsure of this one, there is a short demo available in the eshop. It's good for showing off the game's mechanics. You may want to play the earlier entries to experience the story of the series, but it still does a good job of filling you in on some key plot points. I've only played the demo myself, but I plan on purchasing it myself soon.

3. Sonic Lost World

     This one is kind of hard to recommend, its received mixed reviews from critics ranging from 4/10 to 8.5/10 for the 3DS version. So take those as you will, but I had fun with it. Not too much to say about this one though, it's a platformer using the character we all know and love (Most of the time). It has it's quirks and problems, sometimes things break up the speed too much and some level designs are odd, but it's a fun experience overall.

     If you want to try it yourself, there is a demo on the eshop that you can play. It features only the first two levels but it leaves you with an impression with what it is.

     Those are some games that I think are worth a good look at if you're hungry for some decent games, and there are more for sure. These are just the ones I've been introduced to recently. Put your favorite 3DS games in the comments to share some good games!

(I'll also try to update this blog more often, Twitter has my writing juices flowing)

My little 3D world

I've been bored lately, so I decided to give 3D a shot. I wanted to show off a few pics of my results here.

A very early example of what I was doing, nothing too exciting.

After I had some fun with trees, terrain and a sun was next.

This is a pond that I built, although it just kinda looks like a big hole because it is a very similar color to the sky.

My favorite shot, it shows a flyby view of most of the map. You can see the pond to the right.

Best part is that it is fully explorable, you can move, jump look around with the mouse, all from a first person perspective. It truly is amazing to jump from mountain peak to mountain peak.

Adobe Flash CS5 Tutorial Pt. 1

This is going to be a tutorial on the basics on Adobe Flash CS5. In the end of all the tutorials, you should be able to make yourself a simple game. All Actionscript tutorials will be written in 2.0. So without further waiting, we shall go over the basics.


You must either download a trial of Adobe Flash CS5(Although any version supporting Actionscript 2.0 will suffice, the layout of the program may be different.) or buy it. It's quite expensive so I'd suggest the 1 month trial.

After installing the program, start it up, and you should come to a screen like this:

Select Actionscript 2.0 in the second column. You now will be at this screen:

The screen may look different if you are running a different version or setup.

We will get into what each part of the workspace does in a later part as it is unimportant at this moment. For now, let's get our hands dirty with some basic Actionscript.

Yes, we will begin with the basic "Hello, World!" example if you were curious. Press F9 on your keyboard to open up the Actionscript window. A rather large text box should open up. Inside, type this: trace("Hello, World!")

Let's explain the different parts of this basic code."trace" is used to send a message to the output box. Assuming your setup is like mine, the output box should be in the bottom left and middle(Although it may be replaced with a timeline, do not worry, it is there). The opening parentheses begins the message being sent to the output box. "Hello, World!" is just some text, you must have quotation marks around your text. You can also "Trace" variables, although you don't use quotation marks for variables. The closed parentheses ends the message. Fairly simple, no?


Now that the explanation is done, let's see it in action. Press Ctrl+Enter. A blank box appears! Lame, right? But check the bottom left corner, what does it say? Assuming it worked correctly, you have successfully written some basic Actionscript! Don't worry, in time, you will be coding like a pro. Or at least like you know what you are doing.

REVIEW: We learned how to open an Actionscript 2.0 file, and written some very basic code. We learned that tracing sends a message to the output box, and that message can also contain a variable, or even multiple variables if you wish.


Next lesson: We learn about variables and their purpose.


I hope you enjoyed this small tutorial. Let me know in the comments if you need any help on completing this tutorial. Feedback is also appreciated!

A little about this blog.

I wanted to create a blog where I could share my ideas on games, programming, and maybe some other general things.What you may find here could be reviews for games or tutorials on how to create your own game. My writing style may be simplistic, but it gets the job done. So sit back, and wait for something more interesting than this garbage.


Quick shout-out to my friend Paul's blog: Sports Soapbox, feel free to check it out.