I'm there with you. I had a roommate who I introduced to BG2 back in 2001. He still puts hundreds of hours into the game every year. Come to think of it, I never got the expansion. There goes my weekend...
It's my hope that Nintendo can pull it off, and I'm with them all the way. I believe you're right that their pricing model (should be) is thier strongest point (if I read your post correctly). The more reasonable price is like the box is saying, "Hey, we're still in this for the fun."
They make most of the best games I've ever played (Zelda, Mario, Metroid, Smash Bros, Mario Kart...). I'd hate to have to sift through everyone elses trash to find a descent game for all time (I've had to do so as often as I was waiting for a new system from Nintendo, like now).
Not like Ultimate Fantasy I, II, III, IV, V,... Mystic Quest (oops) would make any more sense. If something is Utimate, then it really shouldn't be 'top'able... ever. Or I'm wrong.
Allow me to clarify. When I say that Miyamoto may be staring at the Hemlock, I mean the idea that consumers (will) view the Rev as a completely differt product. Your average non-gamer consumer, or what have you is not nearly as well informed. I'm surprised all the time by people who don't know what an X Box is (no, I don't live on a farm). Or people who buy a game expecting it to work on any old system (mostly parents). Just listen in on a few conversations at Wal-Mart or Target. Many people genuinly have no idea what games are. The same people have trouble understanding why a DVD player won't play their old VHS cassetts.
Nintendo says they're a company that makes games. The other guys say they're making multimedia living room computers or whatever. Joe Consumer sees the word "vidoe game" when he reads Nintendo, Playstation, or XBox (Not really on Microsoft). That's a mighty hurdle for any company to vault.
My friend was the same way. Last time I visited him he showed me that game (knows I'm a sucker for any kind of shooter). I immediatly decimated his measily 18k high score. Quickly I found that it takes a very analytical mind plus good reflexes to get that game down (reflexes are the most important). I don't have a link, but I think the best score attained so far has been somewheres around 12 mil. Makes my 128k seem like chump change. Then again, I've only been able to play it a few times. If I did some grinding for a few hours, might be able to break 1 mil.
... can Miyamoto's vision of a PS3/XBox 360 peacefully coexhisting with a Revolution in the same living room be real? He states it himself when he said that the customer sees the systems as competition. He's going to have to find a way to convince everyone in the world that they are both worth the time and money.
I love Nintendo, but it seems like Miyamoto's sitting there, looking at the cup of hemlock. Just like Socrates. Both are/were in high spirits and thought their course of action was for the best. Hopefully Nintendo avoids this fate.
On further reflection, it's not quite that good of an analogy, as Socrates was ordered to drink his...
I remember having a problem with that boss long ago. I think what I ended up doing is casting barriers (the damage shields for magic and physical damage) on my heavy hitters and pinch-hitting like crazy. Also, make sure Rikku stays alive and uses those special potions that heal everyone for 1k (Al Dim potions or something? long, long time ago...). Also, make sure everyone is at or close to their limit breaks or whatever they call it in that game.
IIRC, there are multiple targets, and one of them can be destroyed to stop his bigger attacks. Keep pounding away with the old guy and the main.
Well, FFVII had Ruby and Emerald Weapon. FFX had the monster breeder who made creatures that were orders of magnitude more powerful than anything you would normally find. FFIV had Bahamut (he was easy if you timed your attacks correctly). Hmm...
Try Skies of Arcadia for the Game Cube. There's a boss in there that is incredibly powerful compared to the final boss. It's like climing a mountain vs. stepping over an ant hill. I don't think he's in the Dreamcast version, but his minions are. Some treasure hunter guy. He can throw out his minions (which are each about as powerful as a normal boss) basically at will, up to two at once. So you're fighting uber-boss, and his normal bosses. It sucks.
Another game this occurs in is Tales of Symphonia. There's a boss with 100x the HPs of the main boss and he hits 10x harder.
and I'll say it again...(Disclaimer, can't read the article, so if there is content about the style, I only get the summery).
As long as the ads are unobtrusive and fit the style and content of the game I'm fine. For instance, racing games advertising cars or tires, no problem. If there was an advertisment in WoW for hand lotion, however, I would be less than pleased.
Oh, and I think everyone would agree with me. If there's ads in the game, I best be getting some sort of substantial discount. Say, at least 5 bucks a month. Or maybe the game for free as a good will gesture.
You'll have to forgive me, I can't read the review because I'm at work. I posted this based on only the old information I had from the last time I heard about the game. Which was from a Gamestop employee who was over excited about the game concept. I had heard about the game a few times after that and everthing I had seen and heard (obviously not enough) seemed to confirm to me that the game was about bullying kids. Bad post on my part.
Although there is not legal grounds for the school board to do anything, there is a moral standpoint here. There is really no reason for a game like this. I've got a big problem playing a game that puts me in the position of an antagonist like this (I know, and I don't plan on playing it).
From a phylosophical standpoint children are inherently innocent. Heck, even the Bible says they are up to some unknown "age of accountability." They are acting upon thier surroundings and developing. It is a pity that some turn out to be bullies. I'm not equating schoolyard violence to, say, rapists and murderers, but I am equating the exploition there of to be equal. Make a game about harnessing your ability to beat the tar out of (relatively innoccent) school kids, and, in my mind, you may as well be developing a game that lets you rape and murder kids. Developing a vice either way.
Like I said, one is definately worse than the other, but in my mind exploiting childhood violence, fear, and the feeling that you don't want to go to school because of what's happening to you is just wrong.
I've played GTA and a few others like it. I'm just saying, please, don't mess with kids. They've got it hard enough.
in a handheld battle with Sony if not the console battle
Not much of a battle. The DS is decimating the PSP right now, espsecially with all the new colors. I'm at work and can't get to the sites that have the stats (therefore no link), but I know the PSP has been way outsold right now and game for game the DS has a massive lead.
"What is making this decision so horrible is the fact that these Blu-Ray drives will push the PS3 to around double the price of the 360 even when selling at a considerable loss."
I somewhat agree. I think if Sony merely had a way of loading regular DVDs faster (IE low to non-existent load times) then they'd have something. Perhaps two lasers. Speeding up the spin seems to do suprisingly little these days.
I hear you on the books. For some reason I can't read a book if I'm riding in a car. I once pulled out my brother's GBA and tried playing that on a 45 minute trip. I think I loaded the game up (Bionic Commando? Not sure) and after the screen scrolled for a few seconds I shut it off and had my brother pull over. I leaned out the window and though I was going to lose it. Didn't lose it, but I never play games in a vehicle now.
Movies aren't too bad if it's dark out, and I can always type and do bits of work on my laptop, but no side-scrolling.
Okay, my best friend who lives in Duluth, MN owns a 360 that has overheating problems. His old X-Box sat in a relatively well ventilated spot on the shelf and didn't have any problems. The 360 sits in the same spot and, being a bit smaller, has better ventilation. The P/S sat behind the set up. Whenever he played DOA or CoD 2 the game would freeze up and the console would shut down. I have witnessed it.
The solution was to put a few nails in the wall and hang the P/S about a foot off the ground and half an inch away from the wall surface. It works and it's still out of sight, but by all practical matters, this should not be required to play any console game.
I'd go buy a PSP right now if PS1 games were playable on it. Or if there was a descent Gran Turismo with online play. Hell, I'd buy some high buck, high capacity Duo's if I could throw PS1 games on it. Granted, like in the article, it doesn't have two analogs, but who cares. Lots of games didn't need both or either.
I remember writing in Pascal and Turbo Pascal back in high school. It looked a lot like C, but just never gained the popularity. That and doing sturctures was a royal pain. I'll have to look for the PC version of the new Bard's Tale. I've played it on PS2 and it was okay. If I find it for 20 bucks, it'll definately be worth playing (and perhaps getting somewhere) in the old games.
On an off note, were you ever able to find the level up guy in III?
Wow, I remember playing The Bard's Tale on my dad's Mac years ago. I remeber having to go to the old sage and leveling up. I didn't know how it worked when I was young, so I worked on getting better armour and weapons for my guys first. When I finally found out how to level I think I made it to level 7 or so by talking to the guy over and over.
Do you know if it still exists? Every once in a while I'll peruse the 'net looking for how to get a copy, but never find it.
Pharmacist: "I'm sorry, sir. We don't have anything called... hmm.. am I reading this correctly? X Box? And if we did, I don't think we'd have a 360mg dose. It's an awful lot of medication to be on for... 4 hours a day? Hmm.. must use a neubulizer."
Don't want to flame you, but just look a little closer at my original post.
"considering as far as I know, Mario Kart and Animal Crossing are the only two games to utilize this service stateside"
I suppose I could have said in the US, but since, general, we get games after Japan and the rest of the world next, it's pretty synonomous. But, no, I didn't know about Tony Hawk.
Slashdot Mirror
Remember, Overheating is a feature. Microsoft calls it a new form of "Force Feedback."
I'm there with you. I had a roommate who I introduced to BG2 back in 2001. He still puts hundreds of hours into the game every year. Come to think of it, I never got the expansion. There goes my weekend...
They make most of the best games I've ever played (Zelda, Mario, Metroid, Smash Bros, Mario Kart...). I'd hate to have to sift through everyone elses trash to find a descent game for all time (I've had to do so as often as I was waiting for a new system from Nintendo, like now).
I hear you on cheesey, though.
Nintendo says they're a company that makes games. The other guys say they're making multimedia living room computers or whatever. Joe Consumer sees the word "vidoe game" when he reads Nintendo, Playstation, or XBox (Not really on Microsoft). That's a mighty hurdle for any company to vault.
My friend was the same way. Last time I visited him he showed me that game (knows I'm a sucker for any kind of shooter). I immediatly decimated his measily 18k high score. Quickly I found that it takes a very analytical mind plus good reflexes to get that game down (reflexes are the most important). I don't have a link, but I think the best score attained so far has been somewheres around 12 mil. Makes my 128k seem like chump change. Then again, I've only been able to play it a few times. If I did some grinding for a few hours, might be able to break 1 mil.
I love Nintendo, but it seems like Miyamoto's sitting there, looking at the cup of hemlock. Just like Socrates. Both are/were in high spirits and thought their course of action was for the best. Hopefully Nintendo avoids this fate.
On further reflection, it's not quite that good of an analogy, as Socrates was ordered to drink his...
IIRC, there are multiple targets, and one of them can be destroyed to stop his bigger attacks. Keep pounding away with the old guy and the main.
Try Skies of Arcadia for the Game Cube. There's a boss in there that is incredibly powerful compared to the final boss. It's like climing a mountain vs. stepping over an ant hill. I don't think he's in the Dreamcast version, but his minions are. Some treasure hunter guy. He can throw out his minions (which are each about as powerful as a normal boss) basically at will, up to two at once. So you're fighting uber-boss, and his normal bosses. It sucks.
Another game this occurs in is Tales of Symphonia. There's a boss with 100x the HPs of the main boss and he hits 10x harder.
As long as the ads are unobtrusive and fit the style and content of the game I'm fine. For instance, racing games advertising cars or tires, no problem. If there was an advertisment in WoW for hand lotion, however, I would be less than pleased.
Oh, and I think everyone would agree with me. If there's ads in the game, I best be getting some sort of substantial discount. Say, at least 5 bucks a month. Or maybe the game for free as a good will gesture.
Now You're Playing with Power!"
You'll have to forgive me, I can't read the review because I'm at work. I posted this based on only the old information I had from the last time I heard about the game. Which was from a Gamestop employee who was over excited about the game concept. I had heard about the game a few times after that and everthing I had seen and heard (obviously not enough) seemed to confirm to me that the game was about bullying kids. Bad post on my part.
From a phylosophical standpoint children are inherently innocent. Heck, even the Bible says they are up to some unknown "age of accountability." They are acting upon thier surroundings and developing. It is a pity that some turn out to be bullies. I'm not equating schoolyard violence to, say, rapists and murderers, but I am equating the exploition there of to be equal. Make a game about harnessing your ability to beat the tar out of (relatively innoccent) school kids, and, in my mind, you may as well be developing a game that lets you rape and murder kids. Developing a vice either way.
Like I said, one is definately worse than the other, but in my mind exploiting childhood violence, fear, and the feeling that you don't want to go to school because of what's happening to you is just wrong.
I've played GTA and a few others like it. I'm just saying, please, don't mess with kids. They've got it hard enough.
Not much of a battle. The DS is decimating the PSP right now, espsecially with all the new colors. I'm at work and can't get to the sites that have the stats (therefore no link), but I know the PSP has been way outsold right now and game for game the DS has a massive lead.
I somewhat agree. I think if Sony merely had a way of loading regular DVDs faster (IE low to non-existent load times) then they'd have something. Perhaps two lasers. Speeding up the spin seems to do suprisingly little these days.
Movies aren't too bad if it's dark out, and I can always type and do bits of work on my laptop, but no side-scrolling.
The solution was to put a few nails in the wall and hang the P/S about a foot off the ground and half an inch away from the wall surface. It works and it's still out of sight, but by all practical matters, this should not be required to play any console game.
I'd go buy a PSP right now if PS1 games were playable on it. Or if there was a descent Gran Turismo with online play. Hell, I'd buy some high buck, high capacity Duo's if I could throw PS1 games on it. Granted, like in the article, it doesn't have two analogs, but who cares. Lots of games didn't need both or either.
On an off note, were you ever able to find the level up guy in III?
More like hot coffee... sorry. Someone would have said it...
Do you know if it still exists? Every once in a while I'll peruse the 'net looking for how to get a copy, but never find it.
Pharmacist: "I'm sorry, sir. We don't have anything called... hmm.. am I reading this correctly? X Box? And if we did, I don't think we'd have a 360mg dose. It's an awful lot of medication to be on for... 4 hours a day? Hmm.. must use a neubulizer."
I would weep as no man has wept before. I'd been really looking for a way to port SNES and NES to my DS when I had it.
Wow, didn't even know that. I really should keep up a bit more. Once we get the DS light, hopefully I will.
"considering as far as I know, Mario Kart and Animal Crossing are the only two games to utilize this service stateside"
I suppose I could have said in the US, but since, general, we get games after Japan and the rest of the world next, it's pretty synonomous.
But, no, I didn't know about Tony Hawk.