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[maxcriden]

I'm so psyched for this game to hit Wii U this Thursday in NA and EU. To celebrate, I've got 3 copies of each to give away.

The Swapper is an award-winning, narrative driven puzzle game set in the furthest reaches of space.

The Swapper takes place in an isolated and atmospheric sci-fi world. Players wield an experimental device which allows them to create clones of themselves, swapping their entire consciousness into new bodies to overcome the challenges of the environment.

Features:

Think: Fiendishly designed puzzles with equally clever solutions that are never more than a few steps away.
Wonder: The art in The Swapper is constructed using clay models and everyday materials, which combine to create truly unique visuals in a detailed and atmospheric environment.
Discover: A powerful and thoughtful story, told through the game's environment with narrative design from Tom Jubert, the writer behind hits including Driver: San Francisco and Faster Than Light.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yk8ktOAwUgo

Ever since I was a kid, I've been fascinated by clones. So a game where you clone yourself is right up my alley. The name itself "The Swapper" is just bizarrely alluring to me. I've always been interested in the idea of clones, and I think it's because I read a lot of the Spider-Man "Clone Saga" comic books as a kid, which were universally maligned but as a kid really blew my mind. As a teen, fiction like Jonathan Lethem's short story about a clone fascinated me further, and as an adult, I've been enamored with shows like Fringe that take the idea of clones and twins even further. When I heard the game was coming to Wii U this year, I felt like November was light years away. But here it is already! So I'm super psyched. Anyway, you wanna know how to enter, right?

How to Enter

To enter, tell me about a memorable game you've played that involved any or all of the following:

-clones
-copies
-twins
-duplicates
-doppelgängers
-a theme of duality
-some creative variation on the above

Screens, videos, and OST are welcome.

Please specify your region in your entry.

I'll pick winners in a few days. You can enter as many times as you like, but you can only win once.

Disclaimer: I do not work for Curve Digital or any game company. If I'm giving away an eShop or Steam game in a thread like this, the codes are usually provided by the publisher or developer, but I am not being paid or asked to do this.

 

[Broken Joystick]

Lemmings. My god that used to frustrate me, especially when I was younger. I think I had it on the MegaDrive (?). I really should go dig it up, or find somewhere to buy it.

Felt guilty every time I let one die, it was essential Pikmin before Pikmin.

 

[Beer Monkey]

Cloning Clyde for X360. It keeps popping into my head when I think about those early 360 days. It wasn't that great, why do I keep remembering it?

You can't explain that.

 

[Hero of Legend]

I think I have a wonderful game that fits that criteria, one of my absolute favs of ALL TIME:

GIVE IT UP FOOOORRRRRR:

Yeah, this classic needs no introduction.

The variety of gameplay, the character selection, the CHAO GARDEN, the music, god it's pure bliss to me.

I think you know which character is the reason for its entry.

SADX is also just as good if not even better. I think SADX is above in its music and the exploration in the adventure fields, and does feel the closest to a classic Sonic game in 3D, none of that "lets rehash Green Hill and shit for the upteenth time and shoehorn 2D because its what people claim they only like of Sonic hurr durr".

Yeah I'm not fond of Sonic's direction these days, I'm tired of them chaining the retro games to their leg, they CAN'T go without a 2D section or a classic level rehash like Green Hill Zone or something these days.

Remember when they did amazing things in the DC/GC era?

 

[Orbis Tabula]

I always liked the way Destroy All Humans worked clones into the game. You played as Cryptosporidium 137 and every time you died, the alien mothership would produce another clone of you and your name would increment. So if you died once, now you play as Cryptosporidium 138. I thought that was the neatest thing.

Edit: Oh, NA Region

 

[BroggieDoge]

Definitely Splosion man for me. So much fun. XBLA was at its peak around the time they were releasing games like that. Made me a Twisted Pixel fan for life.

The humor, the gameplay were all spot on.

EDIT: NA Region

 

[Mazzo]

I've just realised that Link in Majora's Mask is a doppleganger >.> since he assumes the identities of dead people. Mikau, Darmani and the Deku Scrub's son. He even makes that old lady believe he's her deceased son.

In fiction and folklore, a doppelgänger, doppelgaenger or doppelganger is a look-alike or double of a living person who is sometimes portrayed as a harbinger of bad luck. In some traditions, a doppelgänger seen by a person's relative or friend portends illness or danger while seeing one's own doppelgänger is said to be an omen of death.

EDIT: SHIT! Almost every character in that game is a clone of another character in Hyrule...

 

[tebunker]

NA as akways

time to flex some creative muscle here;

Since you said game(s) not videogame;

To me, the best game to have a copying ability or a doppelganger or mimic/twins etc was and still is Magic the Gathering.

Here is a Link to the MTG Card database for creatures with copy abilities

But more specifically the insanity that can ensue when you play things like;


Phantasmal Image;
either copying your best dude or theirs or any number of great utility creatures that can create near infinite loop combos


I loved the Metamorph and played a deck that allowed you to use it in a multi-faceted role of either an artifact or a dude, and use him to chain your way very fast to other huge dudes.

Because you use dudes like the morph to go get guys like



And do all kinds of things the creators of MTG didn't envision. It leads to ridiculous game states and funny situations. And crushing one turn game ending moves.

Finally, you throw it in with carda like, this;

and



And you can start to see how silly things get with copies of copies of copies of copies of a massive army of weak dudes.

But what I really liked about it, since MTG is a timed game in competition, is that people who didn't understand the combo, would often screw up and not time it right, or they would waste too much time, or rush and not make enough copies, is that it made you a better player. It was the type of interaction that bent the rules and made you have to think about how you played, either with it or against it, so these copy mechanics really deepened the game for me.

I stopped play about 18 months ago, but these cards represent a lot of what made MTG one of the most fun experiences with a copying mechanic.

Lastly, here is am older video of a match with some decks using the copying ability

Kiki Pod v Splinter Twin

 

[isitstill]

Here's one that I enjoyed:

Giana Sisters (iOS pictured, also available on DS)

There's a couple of layers of clone stuff going on here. First of all, the entire game is a remake of a clone. The original Great Giana Sisters was a clone of Super Mario Bros. Even some of the level designs seem to be cloned from SMB (I've never played the original, BTW).

On top of the game being a clone, the main character has a dual nature. Regular Giana, and freaky Giana (I don't know any of the character names, either).

Anyway, it's just a kind of fun platformer.

But you know what my favorite clone in any game ever is?
THE SPELUNKY SHOPKEEPER

In my world, all of the shopkeepers are just one guy, cloned endlessly, and all hunting you down eternally should you cross one of them. I've played countless hours of Spelunky, and they add an element of unpredictable insanity that I just love.

I make a point to anger the shopkeepers, every time I play.

 

[QuixoticNeutral]

(Pardon the one line that was cut off in the log. I didn't know what the character limit was. So to inform the game of its exploitation was to what? To whaaat???)

[Edit: NA.]

 

[Bulzeeb]

tales of the abyss

1 word: REEEEPLIIIICAAAAAAAAA!!
2. image with some kind of spoilers http://33.media.tumblr.com/5f2131325147dddafab0e0e9b4d7faf4/tumblr_n5s1otynZ21sx6e69o4_500.gif

3.

Spoiler

I am going to skip most of the story parts since I can barely remember the game, but your main character is a clone of one of the bad guys who happens to be not so bad and is just angry at you because you took his place as the original while he lived some crappy life, also you are engaged to his girlfriend

edit: if anything, I am NA

 

[Dicer]

Bubby and Bobby Bitches...A game so sugary sweet, it'll make your teeth hurt just playing it.

Edit: NA

 

[Ondore]

Region: NA
When I think of games with duality, I look no further than The World Ends With You.

It took me a long, LONG time to get the hang of running two battles at once and getting the combos to work right. But eventually it just clicked for me and the chaos you see up there subsided, and what was left was one of the most fun battle systems I ever played.

Of course, it helped that I was doing it to songs like Hybrid, Calling and Transformation (remixed version)

 

[SUPERJEM94]

One of my favorite characters from Uprising. Great dialogue and personality from Pittoo! And not to mention, he has a kickass theme!
NA here!

 

[clay_ghost]

Just want to make more people know about this underrated game.
From the creators of zero escape series.

Ever 17: The Out of Infinity.

It's a game that make you think about cloning, AI, alternate dimension etc etc. Saying anything about the game will be a spoiler . One of the few games that make me reflect about existence.

It's focus a little too on duality which turns your expectations again and again.




Too bad it's hard to get an official English copy of the game.




Oh US if I win

 

[tebunker]

Bubby and Bobby Bitches...A game so sugary sweet, it'll make your teeth hurt just playing it.

I played the ever loving crap out of this, I was just wanting for more and more TG16 games I would buy anything, but this was actually a good game

 

[Dash Kappei]

Cool giveaway as usual!

 

[superpickleman]

Metroid Fusion comes to mind. The game starts with a fully upgraded Samus getting infected by a parasitic virus that nearly kills her. Parts of her suit are surgically removed in order to save her life which leaves her suit altered and her upgrades gone.

Later in the game you find out that the virus has created an exact clone of her former suit (named SA-X), upgrades and all, and it is hunting you. You spend the entire game in fear of getting caught in the same room with your former self.

Having played Super Metroid before it, I thought the final encounter with SA-X was particularly great because you're not only fighting an equally powerful clone of yourself, you're fighting a clone of yourself that has the classic weapons and abilities from SM. Throughout the game you do find some moves that replace your old ones but in the end you do end up a bit different.

Great, now I want to replay it.

 

[Dr. Black Jack]

Deadly Premonition. I don't want to post spoilery videos/summaries/etc. but I'll just say that the relationship between Francis York Morgan and Zach is the smartest and most surprising in all of gaming. I have never been blown away by a game's narrative more than the thirteen hour run I put in to finish this game. GOAT

 

[Texan365]

Hmmm, I'm not really sure how to post this without spoilers, so I'll just post the title and spoiler tag the rest.

To The Moon

This game is pretty much all narrative with some puzzles in between, so if you are mildly interested you should skip over this haha.

Spoiler

Basically, you play as two memory manipulation scientists that work for clients that want their memories altered before death to be more happy. This game is centered around one such client who is conflicted about disappointing his wife before she died and has the strange desire to travel to the moon. Long story short, the scientists find out he has scrambled memories in which he has a twin brother, which is subtlety hinted at throughout the game. He died tragically very young when the mom was backing out of the driveway, and her genius idea to stop being overcome with guilt was to pump the client full of chemicals to erase his memories and start fresh. Throughout the game, we see the memories of the wife, who has mild autism and problems communicating forthright, acting strangely during her last battle with a fatal disease. Turns out the client first met his wife for the first time when they were very young, which was one of the memories erased. When they met, they formed a special bond and he made a promise to her, that she was desperately trying to make him remember before her death. If they should ever be separated, they would both travel TO THE MOON to find each other again. *teardrop* Scientists eventually alter his memory so that he and his wife grow up to be astronauts on a flight to the moon, but sadly it is only a false memory.

TL;DR non-spoiler:
The game has some of the themes in the OP, a great story with many feels, a game-referencing meta humor, and is almost completely narrative-driven. Made me shed some man-tears. Also, has great music like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QfPDmzpC2Q

NA here

 

[maxcriden]

Oh, I forgot to say--please specify your region!

 

[Dambrosi]

IKARUGA BITCHES

Treasure's most famous game is a case study in duality, seeing as the game revolves around opposing polarities of black and white. For the two junior members who don't know, Ikaruga is a vertically scrolling arcade-style shooter where the enemies are colored either black or white, and fire bullets of the same polarity. To counter this, your ship can be switched between black and white, allowing its shields to absorb enemy bullets of the same colour, and also doubling their firepower against enemies of the opposite colour. Absorbed bullets add to a meter which, once filled, allows your ship to fire powerful guided lasers that can clear the screen of all smaller enemies at once, or inflict great damage upon larger ones. Also, if you can shoot down three enemies of the same polarity, a "chain" occurs, and you get bonus points for how many chains you can perform. The game then becomes a matter of the player constantly switching their ship's polarity depending on the situation, absorbing enemy bullets for the beamspam, and trying to shoot down groups of same-coloured enemies for the high score.

It sounds more complicated than it is, but not by much. Check some vids:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_dy9a8ElAQ (skip to 1:20 for gameplay)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToBdzV7w5Pc (one player, two ships, awesome ensues)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TimS33bIrPo (footage of the amazing Steam PC version)

The music's amazing too. Check these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMdJTGtwCVo Stage 1 Boss theme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dZB_q-i-x4 Reality (Stage 4 BGM)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk8b96Vd77w Metempsychosis (Final Stage BGM)

The easiest way to get this game is to buy the PC version on Steam for £6.99 or your regional equivalent, but there are both Dreamcast and GameCube versions as well. Either way, I frothingly demand that you try the game out today! There's a free demo on Steam, so you have no excuse! Download it today!

Oh yeah - if I win, EU code please.

 

[Mine01]

I love how bayo 1 and 2 handle the angel vs demon in both games.

 

[Fallout Phoenix]

Does this count?

Fresh in my memory due to the recent announcement.

 

[Lebon14]

(Pardon the one line that was cut off in the log. I didn't know what the character limit was. So to inform the game of its exploitation was to what? To whaaat???)

This guy needs a medal. This was awesome.

---

Otherwise, I don't have any memory of any duplicate, etc thing except for Dark Link in OoT. The first time you fight it, it's like "How the heck am I supposed to hit him". Well, you know, there is a really easy way. Just don't Z target.

 

[Dambrosi]

Oh, and some other entries I just thought of:

Fractured Soul is a Megaman-inspired 2.5D platformer which has you controlling two identical characters at the same time! The screen is split into two halves horizontally, with each character on either side of the divide. Their movements and actions mimic each other, so when one character jumps, so does the other; the same with jumping, shooting, climbing ladders, etc. The goal is to get both characters to the end safely, but each side has a different version of the level in it, so while it may be safe for one character, it may be really risky for the other. Thankfully, you can switch between them at any time, and the other character is invulnerable while they're not selected, which makes things manageable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=xL3t5ij4g1A Here's a gameplay trailer to show you what I mean.

The game is available on Nintendo 3DS and PC for $11.99 and $8.99 respectively.

----------------------------------------

Dante and Vergil from the Devil May Cry series were twins. In fact, DMC3's and DmC's plots both revolve around their sibling rivalry.

Everyone should know what Devil May Cry is by now, so I won't bother describing it, except to say that the series is generally awesome.

-----------------------------------------

The Enfents Terribles from Metal Gear Solid, namely Solid Snake and his BROTHERRRRRRR Liquid Snake. The whole plot of the game, again, revolves around them and their twisted origins, which I won't spoil in this thread.

Oh, not to forget Solidus Snake from the sequel.

----------------------------------------

How could I forget OutLand? A 2D platformer with Ikaruga-style polarity switching and metroidvania stylings with a distinctly Aztec/Inca flavour to its graphics. A very challenging game made by Housemarque, who also made Super Stardust HD and Resogun.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVNonqkjncE Here's a gameplay video of the beginning of the game.

 

[Gaiaknight]

Super Mario 3D world -north america

The double cherry power up was one of my favorite power ups mario has every had it lead to some very cool moments in the game like this.

 

[MissileTrick]

I have a hate/love relationship with doppelgangers. I think they appear too much and am usually turn off when I first meet said doppelganger, however they eventually grow on me . I do believe they make some of the best boss fights, it's so satifying beating a usually better doppelganger version of yourself. For the most part I won't cover typical choices .So here's a few to start it off. NA here btw


Viewtiful Joe and Alastor ( Viewtiful Joe series)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5h70N4hREo

Alastor constantly puts up a good fight and eventually he one ups Joe. They are some of the best fights out of the games. He first meets up with Joe while being disguised as him. Eventually he fights him in his true form. He workd for Jadow ( the bosses' organization ) , but doesn't have any real care for his job. He is also the one who called Joe's attacks Viewtiful , which is how the name stuck .




Axel Gear and Sparkster ( Rocket Knight series)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZD6EROM97Q

Both were raised by Mifune Sanjulo and were taught the ways of the Rocket Knight. However Axel grew jealous of Sparkster and Mifune Sanjulo's bond. So Axel kills their mentor and steals the book containing all the rocket knight techniques . With this Axel is able to bring back the Black Knights. Sparkster and Axel frequently face off.



Bayonetta and Jeanne ( Bayonetta )


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pcym5358z3Y

Jeanne is often the more serious one out of the two, however she gets enjoyment out of messing/fighting with Bayonetta .They basically function exactly the same just the names of their moves and weapons are changed. Jeanne is more experience in her powers though, but somehow loses to Bayonetta often. I hate this fight so much. It's the one thing that kept me from plantinuming the game. Jeanne was just a better Bayonetta than I was. ;-;



Wonder Red and Prince Vorkken ( Wonderful 101)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT4gjDVocPE

Now if this isn't a perfect example of a doppelganger then I don't know what is. Both are leaders of their groups which each group and they share pretty much all the same attacks. Vorkken is constantly stalking Wonder Red's team and will strike at any moment. He wants Team Wonderful to lose and join his team. Out of all the bosses in the game you see him the most. He ramps up his difficulty each time and will stop at nothing to accomplish his goal. He is excellent at commanding his group and even has Wonder Pink infatuated with him.



Fox and Wolf ( Starfox 64)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYqQGZ-ZYHE

The highly famous Starfox fight cannot be forgotten. Both leader of their crew are at a constant battle to appear the stronger and better leader. They have a strange sense of respect for another, but that doesn't stop them from fighting it out. A few times Wolf has saved Fox, mostly for the sole purpose so he would be the one to take him out. Wolf was involved with Fox's dad death, so he will never be forgiven.



Phoenix and Edgeworth ( Ace Attorney series)

Without going into too much detail since their game series is mostly story based. These two are night and day of the courtroom. Phoenix is seen as the more easy going more trusting of the two where as Edgeworth comes across as rather rude and snobbish. When Phoenix faces Edgeworth he's clearly at a disadvantage as Edgeworth is sharp and quick beyond his years. Again without going into too much detail their stories blend in together and eventually they are able to understand each other. While during their fights in the courtroom this song/ a version of it is usually played. Once this pops up you know you are in for a major breakthrough.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHhMH3__74M



Now my next suggestion is from No More Heroes , however I can see how it can be a bit of a spoiler so I will spoiler it .

Spoiler

Henry Cooldown and Travis Touchdown
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5zZawX-Xm0

The real ending of the game ends up with you ( Travis ) fighting your twin brother ( Henry).

Travis is loud, cocky, makes rash decisions and a huge nerd living out his fantasy of killing things to hopefully win some tail. Where as his brother is the exact opposite, intelligence, collected and very slick. The two are polar extremes of the other, even their last names play off of each other. They constantly break the fourth wall during their interaction and it's one of my favorite final boss fights ever.

That's it for now, but I know I played a lot more games with doppelgangers.

 

[Shauni]

Clones instantly make me think of Metal Gear Solid, specifically the first two games in which the fact of Snake being a clone of Big Boss plays a large role in the thematic elements of the game. I think it's the first Saga DVD where Kojima gave the analogy of the plump kid with bad generics who wants to be good at sports, though the odds are that he won't because of his genetics, mirror Snake being the "inferior" clone yet still being the best and overcoming that genetic destiny, so to speak. The thought has always resonated with me.

I'm in North America.

 

[LOCK]

A game that encompasses a few of the topics would be Metroid Prime 2: Echoes.

Main Characters: Samus vs. Dark Samus

Main Themes: Light vs. Dark, Aether vs. Alter Aether, Luminoth vs. Ing

The game was judged unfairly due to too high expectations after the Metroid Prime masterpiece. Some really great musical scores. The story and setting was great in it's implementations. Yes the backtracking was annoying, but that's Metroid.

Just take a listen to the opening and be in nostalgia heaven:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLOkc9MwFHs

I'm in America.

 

[Vazra]

A Gamecube game called Lost Kingdoms was one of my favorite games when I was younger. Basically I had what I thought was the craziest army of monsters until I got the doppelgänger card which literally takes the form of the lead character and just touching any character it would instantly kill that character. Then they added the doppelgängers combo on Lost Kingdoms 2 which worked as a way of revive or replacement to your character making basically an already OP monster even more OP.

Lost Kingdoms 2 MC is a twin
You duplicate cards/monsters in both games


NA GAF

 

[JCho133]

To the posters who chose Fractured Soul and Metroid: Fusion- super awesome choices. Up at the top of my list as well.

For more nostalgic choices, I'm going to go with Metroid Prime 2: Echoes. The whole aspect of traveling to the dark world was really cool at the time, and I remember being terrified to enter it, and really appreciated the atmosphere they crafted. Going back to it now, it is a bit of a nuisance, but at the time the dual worlds were really intriguing.

Second would be Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance. I really liked the extra twist that the two alternate universe castles brought to it. I really enjoyed revisiting old areas and seeing the aesthetic changes (the game's got beautiful art) as well as the enemy changes. The inclusion of the two alternate castles also made a kind of puzzle-y aspect, which I really enjoyed.

For a more modern choice, I'd pick Stealth Inc. 2: A Game of Clones. The atmosphere in that game is impeccable, with the visuals and the light narrative setting some really dreary tones. It touched on morality a bit, and definitely made me feel a bit more remorse for each clone I saw killed, something the first game never did or tried to do. On top of that, its got some fantastic puzzle platforming in it.

Wow, I didn't expect to write that much, haha. Thanks a bunch for these contests by the way! I've been absolutely dying to play The Swapper since its release (I'm an absolute sucker for hard, elegant sci-fi, ala 2001 and Blade Runner), but haven't had a system to play it on (my PC is a bit on the shoddy end...), so you can probably imagine me jumping with joy when I heard it was releasing on Wii U (and I heard the new after I bought the console 2 measly weeks ago!).

Anyhoo, I'm getting carried away again!

Thanks again!

Oh, and I'm in NA

Cheers!

 

[69wpm]

I'm going with Stealth Inc. 2 which was just released. The entire game revolves around clones. Although I didn't play the first one, this one is awesome but pretty hard later on.

 

[AvoidDaNoid]

Definitely Splosion man for me. So much fun. XBLA was at its peak around the time they were releasing games like that. Made me a Twisted Pixel fan for life.

The humor, the gameplay were all spot on.

EDIT: NA Region

Great game for sure.

 

[Orgen]

Great giveaway max as always! I didn't know this game but your thread made me curious so I'm going to participate with:

From a time when Konami still made games for Nintendo home consoles, here is this game that was known as the "Metal Gear Solid in N64 counterpart" for the time (but "Winback" was more similar than Hybrid Heaven).

The (convoluted) story is full of clones, doppledangers, substitutions, conspiracy, aliens and whatever you could think about these themes, so if you're a fan and haven't played it you should play it because it fits a lot of your points in this thread!

The gameplay is a mix between action/adventure (movement during the game), RPG (fights) and fighting games (combos during fights). It's not for everyone for sure but I had a blast playing it

It's a pity that the OST is nothing to write home about. Not bad but nothing spectacular.

EU region here and good luck to everyone participating!

 

[Cronee]

I'd have to go with The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds.

This counts right? There certainly seems to be doppelgangers (Zelda and Hilda, Link and

Spoiler

Ravio

), a sense of duality permeates the entire game.

Anyway, I got this for Christmas last year and the, what, 33 days I had to WAIT before I could play it, absolutely killed me. I knew someone had bought it for me as I was strictly forbidden from buying the game when it launched. The last few days I didn't sleep, I was itchy and twitchy like a person addicted to drugs who hadn't used in a while, oh it was maddening. (Ok, not really, but I did have some trouble sleeping as I was genuinely excited for this game and couldn't stop thinking about it. I even replayed ALTTP, twice.)

I can't think of any games that I've played where there were clones. I'm sure I have played something, I just can't remember any of them being memorable. There's always Lemmings, that's a blast but nothing else really stands out.

Anyway, thanks for doing this giveaway maxcriden!

 

[Conrad Link]

Kage Bunshin no Jutsu: Rise of a Ninja Believe it! Edition - Xbox 360

This game based on an anime based on a manga based on another manga (probably) is about a boy named Naruto, he is a ninja from the Hidden Leaf Village. He has a pretty sad story, both his parents were killed by a giant 'monster' Nine Tailed Fox on the day he was born - but its ok because they're complete bad asses and died saving him and the entire village.

Oh did I mention his Dad also sealed part of the Fox inside Naruto so he could tap into its powers later on in life and be a badass himself? Well he did!

So he eventually masters (among other things) the Shadow Clone Jutsu (Kage Bunshin) move to make copies of himself to fight bad guys with. What an awesome move! Get use to seeing that move as he uses it a lot!

I say eventually masters because early attempts ended up like:

Which is hilarious in its own right.

Anyway, this game is set in the earlier parts of the (awesome, I actually am I big fan) 10,000 episode series and it (and its sequel) really is a forgotten gem of a game. The later Naruto games get hype but this one is hardly ever mentioned and I think that is a shame because even though it is an early 360 game it is GORGEOUS and is a really really good adaption of the source. They even have music right from the show which they hardly ever do and it all made for a really authentic Naruto feel.

It was made by Ubisoft Montreal, I dunno why they got the Naruto license randomly just for those 2 games but oh well it was worth it!

The game was an adventure thing where you ran around exploring then mixed in with fighting game parts. I never really cared about the fighting but did it just to keep exploring the beautiful areas they made. Topped off with a wonderful recreation of the village itself - and for the Crackdown lover in me they added hidden coin things all around the place for you to jump around and find which is almost the most fun part of the game I think lol.

Such a shame they didn't keep going with the games, imagine later Shippuden story games when Naruto can do like a billion Shadow Clones now and is so Fetch!

I'm super passionate about the Naruto series in general and I really love these games. I think more-so because like I mentioned everyone raves about the new ones and while I do like them too I think these Ubisoft ones never get the props they deserve. Really beautifully created games that time has seems to have forgotten.

Believe it!

EU region here, well NZ/Aus to be exact but if thats not an option I can use EU codes fine on Wii U. Good luck all, and thanks again for your awesome comps. I see them mentioned in the eShop download threads a lot but this is the first time I actually sat down and decided to enter!

 

[mktrOOp]

As we all know F-Zero GX features the character Blood Falcon. He's a clone created from Captain Falcon’s DNA, which was stolen while he was hospitalized after the huge accident.

Since I was a kid I played the SNES game with passion and Captain Falcon symbolized for me justice and freedom. I didn't play F-Zero X in 2004 and it was quite disturbing to see a evil clone of Captain Falcon in F-Zero GX. And his vehicle is hard to handle. (I love this game though) (EU)

 

[maxcriden]

Some great entries so far. Just a friendly reminder that the giveaway will end Saturday AM.

 

[isitstill]

Oh, here's one from my childhood, before I ever knew what the word doppelgänger meant.

Abobo vs Abobo
Double Dragon

I played this for hours with friends. It's crazy, looking back on it. I don't think this would hold my interest for two minutes now, but I sure loved it as a child.

http://youtu.be/w20incys4tg

 

[Converse]

Big ups to Maxcriden for the giveaway, and to Orgen for mentioning Hybrid Heaven -- that was my first thought, and I'm glad others remembered that strange little gem just as fondly.

In lieu of Hybrid Heaven, I'll delve a little more deeply into a game that was briefly touched on by another poster, No More Heroes:

For all its flaws, NMH stands as one my very favorite games, mostly because it works as a piece of pop art, speaking both visually and thematically. On the note of literal twins, yes, the reveal of

Spoiler

Henry -- the protagonist's foil -- as Travis Touchdown's twin brother

intentionally plays to the "I am your father" trope. The game then recognizes and amplifies and ridicules the trope by revealing that Sylvia, Travis' "love interest" (more realistically, lust interest), is

Spoiler

Henry's wife, which makes her Travis' sister-in-law.

More than that, the game explores the doppelganger through Travis himself -- he is the satirical wink at the gamer. Here we have a self-recognized otaku who lives with his cat, his action figures, video games and wrestling collection, who wins a laser sword in an online auction and plows his way through meaningless empty cities filled with repetitive collectibles and -- in-between very theatrical and colorful "boss" fights -- decimates hundreds of assembly-line-ready, clone-like enemies, all while powering up his sword with an overt jacking-off motion.

And you, the player/doppelganger, feel like you should take this as an insult. But you don't, because the game allows for duality. Yes, you're engaging in virtual, ultimately meaningless digital masturbation. But you know what? It's also really god damn fun, and there is value in that.

(I'm in North America, by the way.)

EDIT: Oh, and since Max encourages OST samples, I can't help but mention this and this.

 

[maxcriden]

Big ups to Maxcriden for the giveaway, and to Orgen for mentioning Hybrid Heaven -- that was my first thought, and I'm glad others remembered that strange little gem just as fondly.

(I'm in North America, by the way.)

Hi Converse! Does this mean you got another Wii U? That's awesome!

 

[Converse]

Hi Converse! Does this mean you got another Wii U? That's awesome!

Wow, thanks for remembering, man -- crazy good memory you've got there. I've had some good gigs and things are back on track -- ordering a refurb from Nintendo this weekend! I've got Bayo 2 and Hyrule Warriors on deck, and much looking forward to catching up and getting back into it.

 

[Vanillalite]

Taking the Ikaruga idea of duality and bringing it into a creative take on a Metroidvania, Outland is probably my #1 XBLA title of last generation. Created by the masterminds behind such games as Stardust and Resogun, Housemarque made an enthralling adventure set in a unique setting of what appears to be native South American ruins.

While going through the adventure you must traverse the levels, collect power ups, dodge bullets, and tackle enemies. The twist being you can be neon red or blue where same color doesn't hurt you, but opposite color can. Yet you also do more damage as opposite color as well.

The game is a visual fest for the eyes with the amazing art direction coupled with all of the neon red and blue dancing through the night. The soundtrack is also aces. I'd go so far as to say this is Housemarque's best game despite Resogun being the current best game on the PS4.

Outland Youtube Trailer!

 

[maxcriden]

Wow, thanks for remembering, man -- crazy good memory you've got there. I've had some good gigs and things are back on track -- ordering a refurb from Nintendo this weekend! I've got Bayo 2 and Hyrule Warriors on deck, and much looking forward to catching up and getting back into it.

Oh, it's my pleasure--how could I forget someone with a Doom Patrol avatar? I mean, not quite as memorable as a Batman R.I.P., All-Star Supes or Invisibles avatar, but it'll do

Glad to hear things are going well for you! I do a lot of these giveaways so be sure to keep an eye out for them!

 

[FreedomFighter]

Ok, I want to enter.

I'm going to go with Metroid Fusion - Samus vs. SA-X

This screen epitomizes Samus' interaction with the SA-X throughout most of the game - her hiding and running like hell from a clone with far superior weaponry.

Here's some more fan art of Samus running for her life that I found pretty amusing:

SA-X also had a kick as theme song:

SA-X appears
Vs. SA-X

 

[SirUltimos]

North-American here.

I can't talk about games that feature duality with mentioning Ocarina of Time and Shadow Link. As a kid I thought this was the coolest thing ever. How could an evil, darker version of Link not be awesome? Of course, now that I think about it, it's actually kind of a tragic story. Some evil force has created this dark, twisted version of another being whose entire life is dedicated to mimicking, and eventually destroying, that which it is modeled after. It has no free will of it's own and is forever bound to just be a nameless, soulless clone.

Sad...

 

[Ossom]

EU.

The first memory of a doppleganger is from one of the early Tomb Raider games. You entered this room and this red figure was moving around. It took a few seconds to realise that it was mimicking you and that you were to complete the puzzle by putting it in the right place on the opposite side of the room. That was a very odd and weird experience at the time.

The new Mario 3D World. Duplicating Mario 2,3,4 or more times is so much fun, especially when you have one of the power ups. Who needs friends when you have 5 marios doing exactly as you wish (most of the time).

Brothers is the final game that comes to mind. Two different characters working on a single goal yet controlled by one person independently of each other. I had not experienced a play style like that before and the story and atmosphere made it a very memorable game indeed.

Also, after reading the Hyrule Historia and finding out about all the different branches to Zelda and the idea of concurrent Links in alternate universes. I wonder which path the next game will be on. Have Nintendo always planned this structure or did they have to make it up after making most of the series?

 

[SuperShadow271]

Thanks for the giveaway!!! If I do win, my region is NA!!

As for a memorable game that involves copies, my first and best thought was:

It's an incredibly fun game (at least to me) that actually uses the idea of copies to benefit its gameplay!! And honestly, that was what made it memorable to me. Plus the idea of having 10 Kirbies on screen was hilarious XD

Plus the aesthetic and gameplay were amazing (though I always expect that from a Kirby game)!! And the music was fantastic!!! Just listening to the title music reminds me how special the game is to me!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oMMP0Os_5A

 

[Refreshment.01]

Since "duality" is a theme for this give away, how about something where duality extends beyond the game to even the hardware you play it with. The DS.

It is formed by action, platforming and puzzle elements. Basically the user controls a character that exists simultaneously in 2 time periods. Taxing the player's concentration and multitasking skills, since the player attention is constantly been divided between both screens.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlwZvMDpnIM

http://youtu.be/Gcr-JMCQ8ZE?t=1m36s

Region: USA