*Originally Published In Penmen Press*

Nintendo has recently turned to mobile titles to pay tribute to some of their most beloved intellectual properties. From “Miitomo” which personalizes the interaction between players, games, and their own avatars to “Super Mario Run” which gives new players a basic introduction to the wonderful world of gaming’s favorite platforming superstar. Perhaps no mobile title yet has been as strong a tribute as “Fire Emblem Heroes” which takes the beloved series to new territory.

A beautiful celebration of the beloved strategy franchise, “Fire Emblem Heroes” takes the most base elements of the core series, and adds enough pull to lure in new fans. As mobile titles take over the world in their influence (largely due to free-to-play models making them accessible) it’s great to see a title that uses that influence to keep traditional handheld titles relevant.

“Fire Emblem Heroes” is essentially, a lite strategy game that allows players to participate in 4v4 battles featuring a combination of a new original cast and the most revered heroes in the franchise. Take the role of tactician, as you use your rare ability to summon heroes from many worlds. Whether it’s Marth or Roy (commonly known for their appearance in “Super Smash Bros”) or Eirika and Eliwood, players will get to delve even deeper into the franchise, perhaps finding an interest they didn’t know they had.

The combat of “Fire Emblem Heroes” is substantial, keeping most of the core elements of the original games while maintaining some level of simplicity. The visual style is new and fresh, as well as somewhat humorous. The sound design is brilliant, and true to the series’ roots. The social experience is also quite well executed, with adding players as friends being as easy as the click of two buttons. Perhaps eliminating the friend codes for specific requests would be ideal, as friend codes have never worked particularly well for Nintendo.

The launch of this title incredibly well timed with “Fire Emblem Echoes” coming out in a few months, and “Fire Emblem Warriors” coming out next year. Nintendo is clearly trying to capitalize on what was once an incredibly obscure franchise. With “Fire Emblem Heroes” now being available on IOS and Android, the franchise will no doubt hit the homes of many players far and wide.

Welcome aboard, Game Roomies!

I’d like to take this time to share in an intimate discussion with my favorite readers about the nature of this year in games. I realize it hasn’t been the best or the easiest for a lot of people, so I’d just like to take some time and discuss some highlights and low points of this year’s launches.

A lot of people really don’t like No Man’s Sky, and that’s reasonable, but I think it has the potential to become a beautiful comeback story about what our industry is capable of achieving with enough time. The game may not have launched being of the quality represented by Hello Games, but over the course of the next few years, it has the potential to be a good game. I doubt it will ever regain the love and popularity it had before launch, but that comes with the territory.

Now in discussing some good launches, I don’t think I can mention games of the year without talking about Overwatch. While I myself don’t care for shooters, as loyal readers already know, this game has had a major impact on the culture surrounding Blizzard in a way I enjoy. While I may never play the game, I’ll hold out for an animated series of sorts.

Back on my side of the coin, Fire Emblem Fates also launched this year, and I got the privilege of playing all three paths of the game. They were incredible.

Nintendo announced their newest console, the Switch, and Sony and Microsoft have been releasing iterative versions of their consoles as well, emphasizing the 4K visuals that seem to be sweeping the gaming world.

But you know, I get to talk about best games and whatnot on MMOExaminer, so I’d really like to zero in on some of the best stuff that we got to do here.

Starting with PAX East, where I got to be on Nintendo Minute and meet numerous independent developers, the true destiny of Mustapha’s Game Room became unmistakably clear to me. My job through this blog was to create an online portfolio, giving me access to countless opportunities, as well as a chance to interact with the gaming community on a daily basis.

Through podcasts, E3 Live Coverage, and tons of written posts here and on MMOExaminer as well, I got the privilege of becoming a far better writer than I thought possible.

In May, we were just a blog with big ideas, but now we’re growing, and it’s thanks to the readers who have stayed loyal over all of this time!

As always, if you’d like to read more of my written content, head on over to MMOExaminer for daily game news and discussions from yours truly! Make sure you like my Facebook page and follow me on Twitter as well!

I’d just like to extend my utmost gratitude to everyone, and make sure that you all come back in 2017 for more from the GAME ROOM!!!

*Originally Published in Penmen Press*

No holiday season is complete without blockbuster games. Especially if you’re a student, you might find yourself needing a game or two to kill time over break. Let’s dive right in and look at some of the biggest titles you should be playing this holiday season.

First and foremost, after a ten year development cycle, fans of the critically acclaimed “Final Fantasy” series should rejoice. “Final Fantasy XV” has finally launched, and to quite the acclaim. This game, known for its large open world and emphasis on the relationship between its main party, has been quite the topic of conversation. If you’re looking for a game to pour yourself into over break, this is it.

In the mood for a more thoroughly challenging experience? Be careful what you wish for because “Super Mario Maker For Nintendo 3DS” is now available. The Wii U title that changed the face of our favorite plumber’s franchise has now gone handheld, meaning you can torture yourself on the go. From giant flying Bowsers to Pirahna Plants falling from the sky, you’ll never be able to stop moving in this user-generated dungeon of well crafted levels.

Interested in adding a bit more strategy to your life? While “Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft” is far from new, its
newest expansion, “Mean Streets of Gadgetzan” just launched, giving players the opportunity to battle with over 100 new cards. With this game reaching its height userbase, it’s a better time than ever before to jump into one of the biggest collectible card games on mobile and PC.

“Furi” was previously reviewed in the Penmen Press, and though it’s not a new game, it is launching this month on Xbox One. If you missed out on a chance to try this incredibly balanced action game, a whole new world of possibilities is being opened for you.

Finally, if you’re looking for something a bit more “in the theme” of this season, “Steep” is an open world winter sports game developed by Ubisoft. Unconventional? Yes. The formula still finds a way to be unique and fun, despite being based on something as niche as winter sports.

The options for a gamer hungry for adventure are as plentiful as ever, thanks to the launch of numerous incredible titles. Have a happy holiday, and happy gaming!

If you’ve been missing out on daily content from me, what are you waiting for? Head on over to the Facebook or Twitter page for Mustapha’s Game Room to see written content from various sites, written by me! Everything is posted on the daily. In the meantime, get your hands on some of these games. Thank you for reading, and come back soon for more from the GAME ROOM!!!

*Originally Published in the Penmen Press”

If you’re like me, “Undertale” was a game you intended to try, but the incredibly vocal fanbase may have turned you away. Having now passed that threshold, it’s clear that there’s far more to this game than meets the eye.

“Undertale” is a game worth revisiting, for numerous reasons. First and foremost, it offers fans of classic RPGs such as “Earthbound” and “Final Fantasy” a familiar interface, taking the traditional nature of turn-based battles and building on that formula. However, the deeper you get into the game, the more you will start to find that the mechanics of combat don’t quite match up with a classic RPG at all.

“Undertale” truly puts you in the driver’s seat. It gives you the opportunity to customize your experience as you go, allowing your style of play to directly mirror the narrative. Whether you kill or spare enemies, attack or dodge, defend or run, the game will be an entirely different experience.

Despite taking the classic RPG aesthetic, “Undertale” has some very advanced and modern game design principles at play, including an incredibly reactive and relevant soundtrack. Gripping narrative moments as well as comical scenes bounce off of the incredibly dynamic tracks.

Finally, the narrative. The story of “Undertale” is progressive and modern, without being preachy and overbearing. You’ll find the question of morality, but it’s not shoehorned or self-righteous. It’s incorporated in a way that allows you to act on instinct, and rewards or punishes you accordingly, by presenting some incredibly emotionally gripping scenes and characters.

“Undertale” is genuinely a modern masterpiece, utilizing the style of an RPG to really give insight into some of the more psychological aspects of video game design. If you happened to miss it when the game was popular, now might be an even better time to give it a try!

This review was originally written for my school newspaper. For more of my written content, please follow my Facebook and Twitter pages, where there are 2-3 new posts per day. In the meantime, thanks for reading and come back soon for more from the GAME ROOM!!!

*Originally Published in the Penmen Press*

Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon Review

The first brother of gaming is back with his signature vacuum in “Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon.” Step into the quivering shoes of Luigi, who is out to restore balance to Evershade Valley. The once benevolent ghosts of the land have gone mad thanks to the shattering of the fabled Dark Moon. Professor E. Gadd calls the one ghost buster he knows he can count on, and just like that the adventure begins again.

luigis-mansion-dark-moonWhile the first “Luigi’s Mansion” had a legitimately spooky undertone, this game takes a much more comical approach. A lot of Luigi’s style and movement are inspired by Mr. Bean, so one could imagine that he’s a very goofy rendition of this lovable character.

This game also has a more action-oriented approach, with a far more involved set of mechanics for ghost catching, including a button that unleashes a special attack.

Dark Moon offers a competitive/cooperative game mode called ScareScraper that allows players both online and locally to pursue the ghosts of a special mansion. This mode has a lot of ghosts exclusive to multiplayer, so there’s some extra completion value for those who want to play with friends and strangers alike.

The story mode of this game is filled with hilarious antics, with Luigi being one of the most reluctant heroes in gaming history. The world is working against him, as he almost never wants to go on the missions that the Professor asks of him.

To conclude “Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon” is an incredibly quirky and character driven game, that really manages to bring out the best of one of gaming’s most lovable heroes. If you’re looking for a fun “spooky” Nintendo 3DS game to play this Halloween, this is definitely the title for you.

Another review for you, my Game Roomies! Thank you all for reading, and come back soon for more from the GAME ROOM!!!

*Originally Published in the Penmen Press*

Furi is a rare breed of game. It combines the classic “bullet hell” style of retro games like “Galaga” with the quick-witted parry dependent nature of a “Dark Souls” to make a great blend of action and tactics. This consecutive boss brawler has no grunts for you to do battle with. Just you, and the fierce warriors who stand to destroy you.


You star as a nameless protagonist, waking up in a prison and attempting to set yourself free. As you escape this cosmic entrapment, you will do battle with the guardians. These beings each have specialties and themes relating to the past of your playable character.

FuriWhether you’re zipping and dashing around the map to avoid an onslaught of enemy fire, or getting up close and personal to unleash devastating sword combos, you never stop moving in Furi.

This game requires a reactive and proactive mode of thinking. There’s room to wiggle on your style, albeit not much. If you decide to be more forward you can trigger attacks from enemies early on. Enemies have attacks that can be parried, and attacks that must be dodged. So there’s never room in this game for comfort to set in. In a sense this is part of what makes this game so intense.

Furi’s visual style and atmosphere are reminiscent of the stylings of “Afro Samurai” and some other older anime. It combines elements of urban themes with Bushido art, and some pretty deeply rooted philosophy. For instance, the old sage character in this game has headphones similar to “Dre Beats” on his head.

Smaller segments of story come in between the boss gauntlet as you’re given context for some of the characters before you proceed to battle them. This is narrated by a friendly character with an interesting perspective.

Furi has interesting combat, unique visuals, consistent style, and underlying culture. All of these elements make it an example of the truly great content a player can find in modern games. This title, available on PC and PS4 is well worth a purchase.

I don’t think there’s much else to be said. I know it’s been a while, but I’m going to be introducing something new to the site pretty soon so I can interact with you guys more regularly. In the meantime, thank you for tuning in and come back soon for more from the GAME ROOM!!!

I know, for those of you that follow the blog exclusively, it probably seems like it’s been a super long time since I’ve written anything. I assure you that is not the case. The logistics of the podcast are most definitely in limbo right now, but my written content has been on full blast.

If you haven’t, you should follow me on all social media platforms. Through my Facebook and Twitter pages, I share all of the written works I do for MMOExaminer and MMOsite. Anything I have to say about a recent event in the industry, or anything remotely close, can be found there. So please check those out.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MustaphasGameRoom/

Twitter: @mgameroom

So don’t worry, if you still miss my sweet writer’s voice, best believe you’ll be able to find everything you need on these two pages. So for more on what we’ve been up to, and any updates on the podcast, please stay tuned for more from the GAME ROOM!!!

As our summer nears its end here on the Game Room, I just want to thank you all for being part of such a brilliant experience with me. From starting the new site to our live E3 coverage, to our weekly podcast discussions, those of you that have supported this site and its growth are irreplaceable.

I return to campus next week, and I have a lot of big ideas on the way. I’ll start giving official announcements when we get closer to those times.

I stated earlier in the month that my aim was to complete five new games this summer and I managed to do just that. Regular reviews should start up again on a biweekly basis when I’m back on campus, and in the meantime, I’ll still be writing content on MMOExaminer. At the end of the month, I have another huge announcement, so be excited about that everyone!

Also, if you haven’t been keeping up with the podcast, head on over to the page and check that out! The format of the podcast will change in coming weeks, so more on that soon too. The above episode is my favorite that we’ve done so far.

In the meantime, thank you all for reading and come back soon for more from the GAME ROOM!!!

I know this isn’t a game, but nerd media can kind of be interchangeable, right? So Bleach is a manga that is sort of near and dear to me. I’ve been following it for probably close to ten years now, and while I haven’t always loved the plot direction, it is something to see it coming to an end.

I get a lot of flack for this, because it’s not a popular opinion, but I am a man of strong narrative, as I’m sure I’ve demonstrated on this site. For this reason, while stories like Dragon Ball Z resonated with me as a child, as an adult I find them ridiculous and bad. I think Dragon Ball Z is the example I use because it’s probably the biggest culprit of this style of writing.

But I don’t want to get off topic, if you want my opinion on DBZ I can write a separate post for that on another day. But Bleach is a story that I’ve had an incredibly hot/cold relationship with. I found the first several seasons to be golden. They had a good cast with a lot of chemistry. The battles were epic, the weapons were well designed. It wasn’t the deepest story in the world, but it was good and consistent and a fun ride.

From this I mean the first arc all the way up to Hueco Mundo. Everything had lore and backstory and mystery. Then Ichigo confronts Ulquiorra, and from there the story takes a dive and doesn’t stop until it hits the core of the planet. Deus Ex Machina has been the name of the game since Ichigo’s fight with Byakuya, but never in a way that feels so disgusting and unfair.

From there, Aizen claims to be this omnipotent all-knowing mind and the story just collapses. It’s kind of atrocious. Now the following arcs aren’t even worth mentioning, with the exception of the last 10 chapters or so. Ichigo is fighting the true main villain, Ywach, and all of a sudden we’re watching this philosophical bout unfold in a way that is brand new to this narrative.

I’m so impressed, and I’m excited to see where the final chapter goes!

That’s all I have to say about Bleach right now, but thank you all for tuning in. I know it’s been scarce with the posts lately, but writing for so many other sites really does take up a lot of my time. Regardless, this is something. And I’ve also been continuously doing the podcast, so if you’ve missed that make sure to head over to that section of the site to catch up on what you’ve missed! A lot of good discussion there!

In the mean time, thank you all for reading and come back soon for more from the GAME ROOM!!!

I love Zelda. Isn’t that obvious? I mean you guys already know me to be a pretty big Nintendo fan. I didn’t grow up with the Zelda series. In fact, my first time playing one of the games from beginning to end was Ocarina of Time 3D. Since then, I’ve played Majora’s Mask, Minish Cap, Skyward Sword, Wind Waker, and yes, even the original from beginning to end. Now with Breath of the Wild being the next in line, I wanted to talk about why I love the games.

It’s mostly because of the epic narrative. Zelda lets you taste its world in such an incredible way, not even the Elder Scrolls games have captured this in the same way. I don’t think any game is a better example of this than Wind Waker. Architecture, characters, themes, they all come together in this weirdly silent story.

I’ve never experienced something quite like it. Seeing the Hylian Crest on a wall suddenly makes you question how such a place came to be. The sound of Zelda’s song rings across the series, signalling lore and story from decades past. This is a game series that really does stay true to its lore. So much so, that the horrific mess that is the timeline is arbitrary in the grand scheme of the series.

I don’t have a very popular opinion in the sense that I consider Skyward Sword to be the best in the series. This is largely due to its charming cast. I like the villains. Ghirahim is probably one of my favorites in the franchise. His mind-games and fighting style make him a very fresh face in this world of pigs and pitchforks.

I’m sort of getting off on a rant. Tomorrow we’re having the podcast, where our topic will be MULTIPLAYER GAMES! Games we play as a group, and games we think capture the essence of co-op and competition alike. You may even see a familiar face there. So come along and join us here on the GAME ROOM!!!