Dress To Play: Cute Witches is available for download via the Nintendo eShop for Nintendo 3DS and 2DS. It's usually $3.99 but you can occasionally catch it on sale for a little less.
The only reason why I can't give this game a TOT rating is because of the ability to let the game go 3D, and because the enemies can be slightly frustrating or younger gamers. Aside from that, this is one of the most harmless video games in existence. This is the perfect game for kids who like to play computer dress up games, but there's also an adventure mode that should keep kids entertained before bedtime. I say bedtime, because this game has a calming feel to it, making it a must for parents in need of something to make the little ones doze off quicker on a long car ride.
(I apologize for the picture quality.)
When you start the game, you enter your name, and then you dress up your little witch. At first, you will only have a few hair choices and one or two outfits. To earn more, you have to take your little witch into the sky for a short adventure. (More on that in a bit.) While your first choices are a little generic, unlockable hairstyles will allow you to dress your witch up like various anime and video game characters. My first day playing, I made (see above) Vocaloid's Miku Hatsune. It's also possible to make Fuuko from Conception 2 and a few Sailor Moon characters with their manga hair styles, but really, the possibilities are just about endless. You can save up to three versions of your little witch and even name them, and every time you play, you can always change their clothes before sending them out into the sky.
You use the circle pad to fly her past flying octopi, ghosts and green and red spike monsters. Tapping the buttons makes her go faster in one or another direction, but she does not actually attack back. In one way, this makes the game frustrating, especially with the ghosts, which eat up most of the screen, but it really plays on the idea of pure Wicca, in which modern witches believe in NOT harming the living, and that whatever you dish out comes back to you 10 fold.
You have a gas gauge on the bottom screen. When it goes to red, you only have a few seconds of gameplay left. To refill it, you need to grab a heart, but they are few and far between. Flying your witch slowly will help expand the gameplay an extra minute. You also collect stars as you fly. The more you collect and the longer your witch lasts, the more likely you are to find present boxes, which shoot behind her like a star. The presents each include a random hair or clothing piece. There are also around 50 challenges through the game, which also help you unlock new clothes and hair styles, but outrunning the enemies is the main way to earn extra goodies. If you are very skilled, you can make her travel through the night, into daylight, and then back into night.
Dress to Play: Cute Witches is short, simple and very easy on the eyes. It's a good way to introduce your child to the anime style in video games. Average gameplay for an adult is only a few minutes, which makes it great for when you need something to play during long wait times at the doctor's office.
For Wiccan families, it's a positive first entry for little ones that is devoid of outdated and harmful Wicca stereotypes. The soft, baby-cute graphics and simple animations make it perfect for sleepy gamers on long car rides. You can learn more via Coder Child's official blog! |
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The game is half in Japanese and half in English, but honestly, you don't need to speak or read either to play. The menu is self-explanatory, you just click on the round you want to play, click on the face of your Sumo Wrestler, click on a Street Fighter character, then hit "START" and wait for the game to load. Once you have been greeted warmly with the opening ceremony, it's time to play, and while the controls are simple, timing is key. See the blue and green circles? Those are little Taiko drums that make your horse speed up. Each time a drum hits the arrow on the left side of the screen, you need to hit one of the arrow keys on your keyboard. ↑ controls the blue drums, while ↓ controls the green drums. When you see a long drum line, you need to tap the ↑ or ↓ button furiously for extra points. If the drums fuse into one, extra long line, you need to tap both ↑ and ↓ as fast as possible, to activate your home stretch combo. And then this happens. Yes. Your horse will suddenly catch fire and speed you past the other horses. But if your horse makes it across the line, you are rewarded with a screen where you can enter your name, and bask in the glory of your score. But watch out! All of the Street Fighter characters are anticipating you catching up, and each one is ready to spring their famous attacks from past Street Fighter games. Which can lead to comical results, as seen above. Currently, Ryu, Chun-Li, Blanka, Dhalism, Guile and M. Bison are all potential opponents, while more characters are expected to be added soon. The overall serious nature of the polygonal Street Fighter characters just adds to the game's charm. It's energetic, goofy, and as much fun to watch as it is to play. Like most Street Fighter titles, it's pretty short, making it a good casual game, but the replay value is high.
When you first start the game, you are greeted with a colorful and cute video of Chibi Miku about to meet up with the other Vocaloids. After pressing "Start", you need to set up your "Mirai" name. This will be the name that pops up for anybody who spot/street passes you. Once that's figured out, you are asked to pick a Vocaloid, and then you are to hang out with your new friend in one of five rooms. Playing through the game will allow you to unlock extra rooms, songs, food, clothes, furniture and all kinds of cute items to share with your Vocaloids. You can even talk to them, and making them happy will allot for even more bonus content.
You unlock new features by playing through each of the 47 songs found in the game. As the Vocaloids sing, an animated line with command circles will appear. Depending on what mode you're playing and how you've set it up, you must either tap the screen or the buttons on the 3DS in time with the circles. The higher your score, the more points you get and the more you can unlock. The music should help you time your taps just right, but if you;re starting to annoy your parents with Japanese autotuned singing, (Or in my case, my husband, sorry!!) you can always challenge yourself by muting the game and just tapping when prompted. I doubt Miku would mind. You will later have access to a movie theater, which lets you play the music videos back again, and yes, all of it is in 3D if you flick the switch. A handful of songs also allows you to swap out one Vocaloid for another. To switch singers though, you must beat the song in easy, normal and hard mode, and each song has a different combo. For example, Snowman let me beat the game on tap mode in easy and normal, so I could choose between KAiTO or Len. But for Romeo and Cinderella, I have to beat the game on all three levels in tap mode (or button) and then in easy on button mode. (Or tap if I didn't choose it before.) I've beaten it only on easy and normal on tap, which lets me switch between Miku and Rin, but the other two will let me unlock Luka for the same song. Unlocking the characters for each song and finishing the tracks will unlock bonus outfits, room items and in the options menu, extra videos to watch. Here's a list of the singer-swap songs you can unlock:
The AR cards allow you to snap some incredible photos with your Chibi Vocaloid. The more the merrier and this does open up for replay value.
You can also play a Vocaloid copy of the SEGA classic Puyo Pop. American Sonic fans may already remember this game as the graphically lacking Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, but thankfully, the mechanics in this game are much smoother. For those who are new to the game, all you have to do is match color-to-color. If you've played Dr. Mario, then you already know how to master this.
Another bonus game is hidden in the "Hang out" mode. When you hit that button, press and hold the Y/Mic button to call your Vocaloid over. From there, you can choose to feed him/her, give him/her an allowance, or play Reversi with them. Reversi is a challenging game where you either get black or white pieces, and you have to take over the board with them. I'm sorry to admit, Miku has beaten me twice so far. The smart A.I. of the Vocaloids is incredible. They even know how to make "poker face" and when to mock you. If you're starring at the top screen, you can easily fool yourself into thinking you're winning. Project Mirai DX is colorful, fun, funny and the perfect introduction to the Vocaloid universe. It's a great game to have on a long car ride, and is neither too long nor too short. The replay value is heavy, and the launch copy is a must for any Vocaloid fan. |
Codename Sailor EarthCodename Sailor Earth first started tinkering with her mother's Atari 2600 when she was only a year old, and then branched out to PC gaming on a GeoWorks computer shortly after her 4th birthday. Today, she is an avid collector of all things Nintendo, but makes time for PlayStation, SEGA and XBOX. She is a huge fan of Retron consoles. Archives
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