Yoshi's Crafted World Guide (Hey Poor Player)

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I'm way late in sharing this here, the reason being I initially wanted to archive it after all the relevant work was complete. However, with the missteps and lessons involved, we still got a ways to go on that, so here we are.

And yet for all our trials and tribulations, we still struck gold -- I'm just as shocked as you to learn our Yoshi's Crafted World guide has, in total, accumulated over 100,000 views. It's a unprecedented milestone for Hey Poor Player, as the site's never reached this level of consistent traffic. Heck it's even earned the site another much-needed Google search suggestion! 

I had previously discussed my apprehensions towards this blog's future, but more than anything else, this project has rendered my presence on Hey Poor Player a top priority. Much as my passion lies within meditative escapism and retrospections regarding video games, I'm further recognizing just how vital it is to market myself via a constant presence within the public sphere, and as it currently stands, Leave Luck to Heaven cannot provide that.

Again, this is hardly to say it's curtains for the blog, let alone further contributions for said retrospection -- let's not forget I'm currently covering 80's gaming! -- but for the moment, I'm still evaluating what it truly means to be a gaming enthusiast/blogger, and so I have no choice but to re-prioritize my output here. Putting it this way: when I'm also juggling reading, political studies, exercise, and self-studying Japanese, I can't afford to beat myself up over unrealistic goals for the sake of writing for myself.

What this new direction will entail remains in gestation, but for the moment, you can expect some page re-structuring over the summer. I'll also probably establish a Mission Statement/About Me section or something that'll further outline my goals, so look forward to that.

US Government “Borrowed” Yoshi’s Island DS Music For EPA Flash Game (Hey Poor Player)

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I'm sharing this for no reason other than that this is the funnest article I've ever written. Yours truly took it upon himself to document the latest feud between Yoshi, tax-thieving extraordinaire, and our own US government.

(In case you were wondering, no, I don't buy the EPA's latest statement -- clearly Yoshi had a hand.)

Yoshi's Woolly World

In achieving borderline perfection in gameplay, sound design and possibly the most charming, captivating artstyle of the 16-bit generation, Yoshi's Island is easily one of the greatest games ever made, although you'd hardly know it from its successors. When considering Yoshi's Story's dubious quality and "made-for-kids" identity, the forgotten gimmicks of Yoshi Touch & Go, and how the awfully lethargic efforts by Artoon/Arzest are best not spoken about, it was more than a little frustrating Nintendo couldn't figure out how to forge a proper sequel.

Note the past tense: it's been over two years since Yoshi's Woolly World first graced our Wii Us courtesy of Kirby's Epic Yarn developer Good-Feel and I can still scarcely believe its success. Not that I didn't think it wouldn't be a worthy spiritual successor to their Kirby effort, of course, but that it actually achieves throwing distance within Yoshi's Island's glory is a testament to Good-Feel's talent as a developer. Yes, to say Yoshi's Woolly World is superior to Yoshi's Island would be silly, but it is the first Yoshi sequel to understand what it means to take that step: Yoshi's saddle does not need Baby Mario glued 24/7, but it does not need any babyish concessions ala Yoshi's Story to stand out as an individual entry. 

An Interview with Game Composer Tomoya Tomita (Hey Poor Player)

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Finally...FINALLY!!! After two months of drafting, asking, translating and waiting upon waiting for clearance, my interview with game composer Tomoya Tomita is finally up!!! I can't believe it!!

Again, I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG! To reiterate, this was not a case of my typical procrastination: it was on-track to arrive by the end of January when Tomita-san suddenly informed us he needed clearance from Nintendo, and unfortunately that was going to take some time. But now, it's finally here: my very first interview with a Nintendo developer! A former one, but who cares?!?

I can't be happier enough with his answers; in fact, I highly recommend you pay attention to his Kirby's Epic Yarn answers, as there's some never-before-seen info regarding the game's development! And by the way, a certain accepted fan theory regarding Smash Bros. and Wario may not be the case after all...

As stated in the interview, this would not have been possible without my translator buddy Masked Man (Matt). I already told you this on Twitter, but you are truly "the man."

And of course, to Tomita-san himself....ありがとうございます！！！