Week of 18 Feb 2024
“…Why does he always have to yell at me…?”
Achievements Earned In:
- Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2
- LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues
- Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway
- Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes
- Just Dance
All I really had of Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 I could easily finish Sunday night before the free-play period ended, but it was so boring! I had to complete an Arcade run with each fighter, along with getting the rest of my 100 matches played. There’s really no way to cheese it or shorten the time needed, so you just have to be passable as each character and make it through (on the Easiest difficulty, if you’re feeling nasty). I struggled with the “heavy” fighters (like Reptar and Plankton) but the gameplay is overall solid enough that if you’ve got years of Smash under your belt like me, it’s all very doable. I also needed to complete the “Pop the Slime Balloons” minigame with each character, and annoyingly completing the courses during Arcade doesn’t count! With those out of the way I switched over to getting my 100 matches, which is quick if you just have a 1-stock 1v1 match and one player walks off the ledge. Boom! Completed, like a boss, for “free”!
Achievements unlocked: 28 (+6) | Completed
We are laughing, old chap!
It was finally time to really get LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues out of the way. Now I’ve complained about this game the past two weeks, but I have to say that I definitely prefer the hub-based collectibles in this game compared to the previous entries I’ve played. Having to replay levels over and over, while scouring them for the collectibles I need after unlocking the one minifig with the ability I needed. Now, you have to just blow through the main missions as quick as possible, and scour the hubs for the collectibles, which just feels less tedious. For this game, you have to repeat this for each of the three original trilogy films, then for the 3-part Crystal Skull. There’s also a neat build-your-own level mode! I don’t think any other LEGO games I’ve played had that, but that’s actually kinda neat. None of this was difficult, and the most annoying part was having to replay the entirety of the Story over again in Quick Play. Lame, but a necessary sacrifice for The Completion.
Oh, and eff that UFO race in Crystal Skull 3.
Achievements unlocked: 38 (+26) | Completed
Judo kick! (It was the ‘80s)
Only jumped into Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway to get a quick achievement to extend my streak on Thursday. To do this, I walked forward a little and got my first Kilroy! It really was that easy, as the game more or less (or more) forces you to see and register the first one. Hard to miss!
Achievements unlocked: 20 (+1) | Completion: 47%
Time for my next game! Of the batch I started back for TA Bingo, Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes was one I was very not excited to get back to. When I originally loaded it up and worked my way to the first achievement, I just didn’t get it, y’know? I’m not sure why, but the mechanics of the game just didn’t make sense to me and I more or less stumbled to that first unlock. Now, as I have played a good bit more of it over the last three days, I have to say I can definitely feel a little more interested in playing this. The gameplay is lining up units of various strengths and skills to either attack or defend from your opponent on the other side. This is done in an almost card-battler style, but with the gameplay of a match-3 puzzler? It’s very hard to really describe, but once you get the idea you are off into the magical world of Might & Magic to… actually, I couldn’t care less about the story and have been Skipping all the dialogue. But there are five parts to the campaign, and I easily made it through most of the second one by the end of the week. Honestly, overall the game appears to be quite easy, though I’m also fighting any- and everything I come across and have been well-leveled as I progress. I’m sure that helps. I can’t believe this is turning out to be a fairly easy completion! I was so worried about it… One problem (for me) with this completion is that it’s a lengthier XBLA title, so the achievements are few and far between each unlock, meaning I’ll have to be playing another game alongside this one to keep my streak going. But, there also aren’t any missable achievements! So, good and bad. A few online achievements snuck into the full list, too, but I can and have double-boxed those. Not like anyone is playing this online anymore anyway.
Achievements unlocked: 4 (+3) | Completion: 29%
I’m still playing Just Dance on and off, and really haven’t been playing it “for achievements” like I normally do. After falling off for so long, I’m now just using it purely as a fun excuse to get my body moving. I even picked up the 2024 Edition recently, solely to have a larger song catalog to dance to. When my achievement for dancing to 75 songs popped on Saturday, I didn’t even remember I had more achievements to unlock! I’m nearing the end of this completion, but I doubt I’ll stop playing this any time soon.
Achievements unlocked: 13 (+1) | Completion: 93%
Shake that gyatt for me, my sexy son. No, wait. That came out wrong.
Highest ratio: 3.72
Leave Everything to Me! (Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2)
Lowest ratio: 1.12
Kilroy was here! (Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway)
