It’s time for what has to be one of the most “meta” episodes of the series, as this time the Nerd takes a look at games based on himself! Yep, Angry Video Game Nerd games are the subject of episode 115. This was done primarily as a promotional effort for the then new (and recently “remastered” Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures game marking one of the first cases of this kind of self-promotion in a Nerd episode (previous Monster Madness references not withstanding.)
We open with a game which James had some involvement in early on — “The Angry Video Game” by Eric Ruth, a person I actually have some familiarity with due to my history with the music game scene.
Anyway, the game is a typical platformer based on then-common traits and complaints made by the Nerd about the terrible games he plays. It’s nonsensical, intentionally annoying chaos all with the Nerd’s narration.
We move on to more titles – a shooter based on normal game references, an Atari 2600 style boxing game, a Metroid style adventure title and lastly another pair of platformer games as always based on the Nerd.
Moving on from Computer games to ones on actual consoles, we get an Atari 2600 cartridge with a space-invaders esq play style and a hack of Mega Man 2 featuring, you guessed it, the Nerd.
That’s when Board James, a character from another Cinemassacre series of the same name, comes in to show off Angry Video Game Nerd Monopoly. It’s exactly what you would expect it to be – AVGN themed Monopoly. It once again gets a bit meta by actually referencing the rather dark nature of the Board James series, but that’s another story for another time.
We get into the “official” games with “Texting of the Bread” before getting to the main event – Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures.
As you’d imagine, this game is quite the bit of fan service, but it’s also apparently quite difficult. Still, the references look worth the challenge. Honestly, I wish I could say more about it but the episode pretty much speaks for itself.
I find it kind of amazing I’ve never actually played AVGN Adventures 1 or 2, given how big of a fan I am of the series. Of course, I’m not a big fan of games that are difficult for the hell of it, so that’d be why. Ah well, maybe one day.
In the end, without being able to physically destroy the game which has now frustrated him so, he’s left with no option but to simply delete it. Hey, it’s a way to get rid of it, right?
Final Rating: 4.0/5
This is.. well, it’s an episode. While it’s nice to see the many fan games based on the character be acknowledged, in the end at its core the episode is just an ad for the then-new games. It’s entertaining, but it just isn’t the same and would be the first of many more recent episodes to not quite feel right.
Still, it is an entertaining video — no doubts about that one.