Kururin Series - Under the Radar

In the minds of any gamers when you ask "Hey have you ever played Kuru Kuru Kururin?" their first thought is usually always "oh kuru kuru... kuru... kururururrin I've heard of that! Isn't that some 'shovelware' launch title for the GBA..?" WRONG there are actually a total of 3 separate games in the Kururin series and they are among some of the most challenging puzzle-adventure games I have ever played to date. For those of you that have never heard of Kururin heres a brief break down on this exceptional series:

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'Kuru Kuru Kururin'

Released: 2001 (launch title)

GBA

Developer: Eighting

Simple concept, you are flying a 'Helirin' which is a helicopter viewed from the top down but to the player it is a constantly clockwise rotating stick. You must navigate said stick through increasingly difficult extremely well designed stages without touching the walls, bump your ship 3 times and your dead. You cannot stop the stick from spinning, it always spins and this is where the challenge is. 

Reaching the end of the maze without bumping the walls is harder than it looks.

The game has you guiding your Helirin through gut wrenchingly narrow gaps, changing directions on springs, dodging giant objects and bullets and around tight bends that require perfect blink-less timing. Other than the ability to speed up the navigational movement of the spinning stick  into 2 slightly quicker speeds, its a death run through a maze and your the one under the pressure. There are also some 4 player levels you can play with friends where you race to the end. although typically by the time you feel like giving this a shot your a full blown Kururin master and your mates don't stand a chance against your vast skills... its fun to watch them try though!


Kuru Kuru Kururin trailer:

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'Kururin Paradise'
Released: Late 2002 (Japan only)

GBA

Developer: Eighting

Kururin Paradise was a Japanese only release but requires almost zero Japanese to play. Paradise advances on the formula set in the first game but adds a few new elements such as now being able to hold down the R button to also increase the speed of rotation of the helicopcter, this is immensely useful as you no longer have to sit and wait for the stick to be on the right angle to slip through a gap, you can hurry it up. It also adds challenge as now some levels require you to use this function to glide around super tight corners and alleyways. 

Kururin Paradise throws even more obstacles at you then you can shake a stick at.

The game also has a slight graphical upgrade, the visuals are a little sharper, animations smoother and the color pallet is no longer dull and faded tones its bright and sparky candy colors that genuinely catch your eye. They have also added in alternate paths that contain secrets for you to collect, things like decorations for your chopper and new ship designs. Again like its prequel  paradise includes 4 player multiplayer levels, however now there is the inclusion of some truly hilarious minigames that break the usual stick-through-maze formula and have you doing other things like pong and bird herding. These mini games can be played solo also.


Kururin Paradise trailer:

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'Kururin Squash'
Released: 2004 (Japan only)

GC

Developer: Eighting

The third and final release to date in the Kururin series and is the first home console title. Squash once again expands on the graphics this time by a huge margin, the game is still played on a 2D plain but all the levels are fully 3D rendered, the graphics are a big improvement. Also whilst keeping the new rotation speed function from paradise, squash pushes the formula again this time adding a whole new depth to the gameplay. This time however there are coins through the levels some of which are far off the beaten path to grab, if you collect all of them and dont bump a single wall you receive a star rating on that stage.

Collecting all the coins in a stage along secret side-paths extends the lengths of the levels.

Another big new feature are the different variants of helicopters each with their own level changing ability. There are water levels where you must dive under water and navigate below the surface hastily before your air runs out (about 3 seconds), there are levels where you have giant boxing gloves on the ends of your ship and you must bash your way through the level whilst maintaining control over your ship around twists and turns without hitting the walls. There are 2 more types of ships as well all bringing their own new challenge to the table. The game is split up into themed worlds that progressively more difficult until they are hellish, this is by far the toughest kururin in the series by the final levels. This game has a boss at the end of each world that requires you to use a different type of ship each time to win. Again there are multiplayer challenges, mini games and level races.


Kururin Squash trailer:

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Overall

Its a very underrated sometimes even totally unrecognized series that is a tremendous amount of teeth grinding challenge and a lot of fun. The first game is very easy and affordable to pick up as it was out at launch and sold very well, however the 2nd and 3rd titles are much harder to find as they are japanese only, although they dont fetch too higher price point. Paradise can be imported and played on any GBA systen regardless of region as GBA consoles are not region-locked, but Squash on the gamecube is. In order the play Kururin squash you will ether need a GC boot loader disc for your gamecube, a modded GC console or a modded WII system. Modding your wii is free and extremely easy, i recommend doing it as its a great way to bypass the region lockout and go import crazy. DO AT YOUR OWN RISK***** a great guide written by somebody else can be found here.


- Alexander Bruce

Croc - 3D Platformer Hidden Gems

'Croc: Legend of the Gobbos'
Released 1997

PS1 PC SAT

Developer: Argonaut Software

Croc: Legend of the Gobbos is the first in a two game series of 3D platformers released during 5th generation of consoles in the 90's. Back when it first came out Cros was well semi-received by gamer's and eventually sold over 4 million units world wide, but shortly after this little guy was swept under dusty rugs. Many people actually haven't heard of Croc even though he has 3 games total(including the one on the Gameboy color). This title had a lot going for it, some argue the controls feel far too robotic and mechanical compared to the smooth fluid controls of Crash Bandicoot and Spyro for the PS1. Once you get used to Croc's controls they are actually quite precise. Its like the developers took a game that was a side scroller and shifted it into 3D, all the mechanics are carried over, there are literally so many floating platforms in the game. 

Swimming in the same pool as Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon, Croc was pushed under.

Croc has a simple tail whip to take out enemies which is clean and accurate, none of this 1 meter away hit detection some games seem to screw up. He also has a ground pound just like Super Mario 64  The formula is simple, reach the end of the level whilst grabbing the 'high score' collectibles that guide you through the level. Collect the five colored gems scattered about if your a completionist and search for creatures called Gobbo's that are a well hidden. As expected after few stages and you get a boss, beat him and on to world two, rinse and repeat. The stage design is really decent, there are always lots of bonus secrets to discover and they tend to be rather challenging, I really wish games did this as often today. The writing has a cheeky charm and the characters actually have personality without being too look-at-me-I'm-hilarious especially the bosses. Common and easy to locate and in-expensive, go grab Croc. You can even play the GBC version for free here.


- Alexander Bruce

Croc trailer:














Similar games:
- Croc 2 (PS1, SAT, PC)
- Croc 1 (GBC entirely new game)
- Croc 2 (GBC entirely new game)

Scaler - 3D Platformer Hidden Gems

'Scaler' 

Released 2004

PS2 XBOX GC

Develper: A2M (now Behavior Interactive)

Scaler is a great 3D platformer that borrows elements from all sorts of titles in the same vein of the platforming genre such as Sonic, Super Mario, Banjo Kazooie and even Ratchet and Clank. You play as a young boy named Bobby Jenkins who is forcibly transformed into a shape shifting lizard creature. In this new form he now has the ability to transform into 5 very different types of mutant lizards. Bobby, now sarcastically dubbed 'Scaler' is escapes through a portal into another dimension where he stumbles into an evil plot and has to save the universe pretty much. 

Scaler offers a great deal of gameplay variety with its impressive moves list.

The controls in scaler are tight, its not always easer with platformers to get the controls to be to feel like a smooth extension of the human body, since games like Super Mario 64 we have become overly fussy when it comes to controls, scaler is great. What sets this game apart is the transformation you can morph between, although the player cant transform at will, parts of the levels are specific for certain types of abilities dictated by varying enemy and environment types. The different forms allow for exceptionally varying gameplay. Cheap and easy to find i often spot Scaler in the pre-owned bins at gamestop, go grab Scaler.

- Alexander Bruce

Scaler trailer:

What is Smug Pandas

Welcome to Smug Panda's!

This is a blogsite where you will be able to find all sorts of much more specific gaming goodness such as more obscure 'top games' lists such as top hidden gem titles of different genres you may have missed amongst the deep crowded waters of todays generations of games. Here you will also find TONS of brilliant retro games of older generations of console you might have also missed.

I want to bring to the stage all the games i definitly think are well worth mentioning

Please follow and enjoy

Thank you

- Alexander Bruce