It slices and dices

I have a bit of a fetish these days. It doesn't have an official name (yet), but it involves a love of everything hack and slash related. The more button mashing the better.

I'm not sure when it started. Or even why. All I know is I'm currently enjoying the purest of gameplay forms - mash lots of buttons, and you're on screen character responds appropriately with some impressive moves and combos. The gorier the better.

There's no technicality to it. No method. It's just all simple, one button is a quick hit, the other is a slower "heavy" hit, and one button jumps. Add any more to this and it just gets confusing. Remember Golden Axe? Or Streets of Rage? That's the level we're talking about.

See, I don't like "technical" fighters or action games. Both recent Ninja Gaiden games were excellent, but I had to play them on the easiest difficulty (Ninja Dog, since you insist). Not because the platforming was hard, nor the general fights, but the boss fights were lessons in testing your patience, and technical ability. The former I have little of, the latter I have none.

Give me a button masher any day. Sit me down, tell me the three buttons, and let me feel like I'm unleashing hell on the screen! A clever button masher makes you feel that randomly changing from mashing X to mashing Y causes a big difference. Bosses should require a little bit of technical know how, but still mashing away at the weak spot should do the trick.

It's just pure and simple fun.

My fetish is helped recently by a slew of excellent games. Remember, God Of War is a button masher, no matter what anyone tells you. It's just an extremely well done button masher, with some excellent puzzles and platforming elements.

Have a glance to your right (remember? the currently playing list? yes, it's still there :p) and you'll see that I recently finished Afro Samurai which is a great cell-shaded hack and slash with button mashing galore, and I'm currently playing Ninja Blade which is the simple, hollywood-like version of Ninja Gaiden, while Madworld tries hard to pretend it isn't a button masher, but it is, with a bit of button swinging as well (new genre?!).

Problem is, all the other "big name" games are on hiatus - I just can't play them. I love Killzone 2, but it's gotta wait till my thumbs are sore. Little Big Planet I've still played a few levels of, despite my screaming excitement... Not to mention Okami that's on hold, and I still haven't even installed Metal Gear Solid 4.

But who cares, I'm having a great time. I recommend button mashing hack em ups and slash em ups to anyone who's feeling a bit bored of today's technical and tasking stuff. Just grab a joystick, and mash away.

Enjoy the resurgence of the genre while it lasts.