How about they rename it Mac OS Liger since it's pretty much my favorite animal. They're bred for their skills in magic, so it would be an appropirate name for Apple's new OS.
I agree. Beyond Good and Evil is probably the most underrated game this generation. It deserved far more exposure and recognition than it received. Like you said, an excellent story with characters you actually care about, top notch visuals, lenghty and well designed dungeons, and some unique gameplay elements. I paticuarly enjoyed how they worked the stealth gameplay in there. It's sad that the game probably wont ever spawn a sequel. BGAE was easliy one of the best games I've ever played and I encourage everyone to go pick it up (it was released for every platform including PC, so you should be okay no matter what your gaming prefrence is). I'm not sure if it "out-Zeldas Zelda", but it is excellent in its own right.
My biggest single complaint with Wind Waker is the whole traveling by ship thing. It took forever to get from one place to another. And if you wanted a map, you had to build it piece by piece by hunting down that stupid fish in all 47 sectors. Building a complete map took hours and hours.
Wind Waker was great. The dungeons were great. The music was great. The gameplay was great. The graphics were phenominal. But traveling was so time consuming that I got really frustrated with the game.
RPG is kind of a loose term. I mean, you play a role in just about every game. In Super Mario Bros. you play the role of Mario. So what makes a game an "RPG" besides playing the roll of a character?
In the console world, RPG has come to mean a game with an intricate story, and a fighting system based on statistics, just like D&D. See this guide for an example of how everything is determined. It's pretty intricate. "Action RPGs", meaning an RPG where the battles are realtime (an example being Seiken Densetsu), also qualify because aspects like damage and defense are also derived statistically. Zelda does not qualify because it does not use stats to determine damage etc.
But you say that isn't RPG enough. I haven't played very many PC RPGs, but it is my understanding that the battle systems are based mostly on statistics, just like console RPGs. What makes them more RPG than Final Fantasy? Just curious.
Heh, uour comment reminds me of when I was in high school and listened to NIN. One night (on New Years Eve) one of my friends had taken ten hits of LSD and we were all watched Nine Inch Nails music videos. My inebriated friend had a profound revelation and blurted out, "Everybody likes... Nine Inch Nails. Everybody... wants to see Trent Reznor. Trent Reznor... is God!"
No matter how you do it, it's still being obfuscated when copied onto the iPod. Why oh why cant you just copy the files onto the filesystem? Instead you have to have some software change the filenames and put them in some weird directory structure.
Anyway... I don't really like iTunes but thats what I use. Tried the ml_iPod plugin for Winamp, but it's too buggy. Haven't tried XPlay. What's so great about it?
Because their site is slow, and the search engine always seems to be disabled for "performance reasons". I would consider it if the DVD included an enhanced search feature.
Dude, you totally missed the grandparents point. He said that the Lynx was the more powerful system, as was the N64, but that more power did not equate to success. First to market, more games, and in the Gameboy's case, better portability lead to success, not graphics or power. That is still the case today, as proven by the PS2's overwhelming success, despite being quite inferior technically to its competition.
However, things are not looking good for Nintendo. They were first to market only by a few months, have few games even though the system has been on the market nearly half a year, and is vastly inferior technically. We'll see if "portability" is really what drives "portable" sales.
I live in a big metro (Bay Area), and I've always had the best luck with Best Buy for "hot new releases". I went there the day GTA: Vice City came out and while there were none on the shelves, they had an attendant in the games area handing them out to people who asked. I went there the day after GTA: San Andreas came out and they had piles and piles of them on the shelves.
Conversly, if I want a more esoteric game, Best Buy typically wont have it. They didn't have Beyond Good and Evil when I looked, they didn't have Disgaea, nor did they have La Pucelle: Tactics. They didn't even have the Megaman Anniversary Collection. So it's not a one stop shop for all your gaming needs.
Windows upgrade editions do not require Windows to be installed in order to install them. You can install XP Upgrade on a fresh system. The only catch is that it will ask you to insert an install disk for a previous version of Windows to prove that you are elegible for an "upgrade".
I hear you, brother. I live in Oakland and I get 680kbps down on my DSL connection. I was getting around 320kbps but then I bitched to SBC and they came out and did something to make it go faster. Still, they tell me I'm "too far away from the CO" to get anything faster, even if I was willing to pay more. I don't buy this "too far away" crap. I don't live out in the wilderness of Montana. I live in the middle of a fairly large city! And the fastest I can get is 680kbps?
The movie features the notable return of Katsuhiro Otomo, who hasn't directed an animated film since Akira...
Not entirely true. Otomo directed a segment of the rather excellent compilation Memories (1995). I'm not sure if that received a theatrical release, but it does have an MPAA rating indicating it did.
Otomo also was involved with Rojin Z (1991) and Metropolis (2001). So he hasn't totally been out of the game the last 17 years.
I got mine pretty much exclusivly for MGS: The Twin Snakes. It didn't disappoint. Afterwards I picked up a few Nintendo exclusives like Zelda and Metroid which are excellent in their own right. However the PS2 still has more games that I want to play. No MGS2 or MGS3 for the Cube. No GTA, no FF, no Silent Hill, no Suikoden, and worst of all no Katamari Damacy. Thus my PS2 library is about four times as large as the Cube.
This is pure FUD, and guess what? It's aimed at you, the slashdot reader. Apple's view may seem regressive to the average slashdot reader, but to the rest of the world, it's way ahead.
This isn't some Slashdotter's blog. This isn't even from a technology focused publication. This is Forbes printing this. So obviously this is the view of at least somebody at one of the nations leading business and finance publications.
I always liked rumble. When implemented well, it makes the game feel a lot more emersive. Plus there are other clever ways to use the feature. Ever play the original Metal Gear Solid? "Place your controller on the floor. I'll move it with my mind!"
I've got a 400Mhz iMac that a friend gave me, and while it does run Panther, Safari, Quicktime, and iTunes, it struggles with all of them. Flash animations stutter, iTunes skips if you try and do anything else while using it. It is incapable of decoding a 640x480 Divx file fast enough to actually play it.
For browsing simple websites or writing emails it works acceptably. For anything even remotely multimedia related, it is rendered useless.
Meanwhile a 400Mhz PII running Windows 2K can play flash, mp3s, and Divx files just fine.
The recent games are a blessing. Try the tutorial in older games like Final Fantasy Tactics. If you try to learn how to play that game using the tutorial, you won't get very far. Some choice quotes:
"CT is Charge Time. It's charged by Speed value in one Clock"
"Select the Job command that bundles up Action Ability by the Job in the unit's sub-command"
"This was darkened items wont appear"
"Moving ability is ability tat is move"
Yeah whatever. For one, most TV stations are owned by MPAA members, and we all see how they treat consumers. Two, wasn't it the CEO of Turner who said that "skipping commercials is stealing."? If that's the "good will" of the TV industry, I'd hate to see them hostile.
In other words, don't expect the TV industry to be the messiah of digital, downloadable content. They have too much invested in the current infrastructure, and they are too closely tied to the bass-ackwards film industry to have them swoop down to be our savior.
Baseball games needn't license players and team names from MLB to be a good game. Anyone remember Baseball Stars? It had no licenses but was probably one of the best baseball games ever. And I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of Mario Baseball which was recently announced.
The only thing that will be lost is the true sense of realism in non-licensed games, but to be honest, I don't always want realism in the games I play. Sometimes irreverence is more fun:) I'll watch baseball on TV if I want realism.
Microsoft is probably trying to phase out support for DOS and Win 3.x stuff. What's the problem with that? Neither has been in development for like 10 years. Time to let go. I'd say it's a good thing, as Microsoft's previous obsession with backwards compatability is one of the things holding them back.
If you REALLY want to Run your DOS stuff, you can always use DOSBox (a DOS emulator) or Wine for Windows (Windows "emulator").
Email and internet aren't attached at the hip. Exchange and Notes are email, and they need neither go over the Internet, nor do they use any kind of standard internet protocols (unless you count connecting to the server via TCP/IP, for which there are alternatives).
Ah yes, I remember the NES. The flashing purple screens. The futile attempts of blowing the dust off the cartridge. The crossing of fingers and praying that the game would load. Just trying to get the thing to start up was half the fun:)
Slashdot Mirror
How about they rename it Mac OS Liger since it's pretty much my favorite animal. They're bred for their skills in magic, so it would be an appropirate name for Apple's new OS.
I agree. Beyond Good and Evil is probably the most underrated game this generation. It deserved far more exposure and recognition than it received. Like you said, an excellent story with characters you actually care about, top notch visuals, lenghty and well designed dungeons, and some unique gameplay elements. I paticuarly enjoyed how they worked the stealth gameplay in there. It's sad that the game probably wont ever spawn a sequel. BGAE was easliy one of the best games I've ever played and I encourage everyone to go pick it up (it was released for every platform including PC, so you should be okay no matter what your gaming prefrence is). I'm not sure if it "out-Zeldas Zelda", but it is excellent in its own right.
Wind Waker was great. The dungeons were great. The music was great. The gameplay was great. The graphics were phenominal. But traveling was so time consuming that I got really frustrated with the game.
RPG is kind of a loose term. I mean, you play a role in just about every game. In Super Mario Bros. you play the role of Mario. So what makes a game an "RPG" besides playing the roll of a character?
In the console world, RPG has come to mean a game with an intricate story, and a fighting system based on statistics, just like D&D. See this guide for an example of how everything is determined. It's pretty intricate. "Action RPGs", meaning an RPG where the battles are realtime (an example being Seiken Densetsu), also qualify because aspects like damage and defense are also derived statistically. Zelda does not qualify because it does not use stats to determine damage etc.
But you say that isn't RPG enough. I haven't played very many PC RPGs, but it is my understanding that the battle systems are based mostly on statistics, just like console RPGs. What makes them more RPG than Final Fantasy? Just curious.
Heh, uour comment reminds me of when I was in high school and listened to NIN. One night (on New Years Eve) one of my friends had taken ten hits of LSD and we were all watched Nine Inch Nails music videos. My inebriated friend had a profound revelation and blurted out, "Everybody likes... Nine Inch Nails. Everybody... wants to see Trent Reznor. Trent Reznor... is God!"
Anyway... I don't really like iTunes but thats what I use. Tried the ml_iPod plugin for Winamp, but it's too buggy. Haven't tried XPlay. What's so great about it?
Because their site is slow, and the search engine always seems to be disabled for "performance reasons". I would consider it if the DVD included an enhanced search feature.
Uh... there's a ban on 2D? How does one explain the release of Capcom vs. SNK, Guilty Gear X2, and other 2D fighters for the PS2?
However, things are not looking good for Nintendo. They were first to market only by a few months, have few games even though the system has been on the market nearly half a year, and is vastly inferior technically. We'll see if "portability" is really what drives "portable" sales.
Conversly, if I want a more esoteric game, Best Buy typically wont have it. They didn't have Beyond Good and Evil when I looked, they didn't have Disgaea, nor did they have La Pucelle: Tactics. They didn't even have the Megaman Anniversary Collection. So it's not a one stop shop for all your gaming needs.
Windows upgrade editions do not require Windows to be installed in order to install them. You can install XP Upgrade on a fresh system. The only catch is that it will ask you to insert an install disk for a previous version of Windows to prove that you are elegible for an "upgrade".
I hear you, brother. I live in Oakland and I get 680kbps down on my DSL connection. I was getting around 320kbps but then I bitched to SBC and they came out and did something to make it go faster. Still, they tell me I'm "too far away from the CO" to get anything faster, even if I was willing to pay more. I don't buy this "too far away" crap. I don't live out in the wilderness of Montana. I live in the middle of a fairly large city! And the fastest I can get is 680kbps?
Not entirely true. Otomo directed a segment of the rather excellent compilation Memories (1995). I'm not sure if that received a theatrical release, but it does have an MPAA rating indicating it did.
Otomo also was involved with Rojin Z (1991) and Metropolis (2001). So he hasn't totally been out of the game the last 17 years.
I got mine pretty much exclusivly for MGS: The Twin Snakes. It didn't disappoint. Afterwards I picked up a few Nintendo exclusives like Zelda and Metroid which are excellent in their own right. However the PS2 still has more games that I want to play. No MGS2 or MGS3 for the Cube. No GTA, no FF, no Silent Hill, no Suikoden, and worst of all no Katamari Damacy. Thus my PS2 library is about four times as large as the Cube.
This isn't some Slashdotter's blog. This isn't even from a technology focused publication. This is Forbes printing this. So obviously this is the view of at least somebody at one of the nations leading business and finance publications.
I always liked rumble. When implemented well, it makes the game feel a lot more emersive. Plus there are other clever ways to use the feature. Ever play the original Metal Gear Solid? "Place your controller on the floor. I'll move it with my mind!"
For browsing simple websites or writing emails it works acceptably. For anything even remotely multimedia related, it is rendered useless.
Meanwhile a 400Mhz PII running Windows 2K can play flash, mp3s, and Divx files just fine.
"CT is Charge Time. It's charged by Speed value in one Clock"
"Select the Job command that bundles up Action Ability by the Job in the unit's sub-command"
"This was darkened items wont appear"
"Moving ability is ability tat is move"
In other words, don't expect the TV industry to be the messiah of digital, downloadable content. They have too much invested in the current infrastructure, and they are too closely tied to the bass-ackwards film industry to have them swoop down to be our savior.
The only thing that will be lost is the true sense of realism in non-licensed games, but to be honest, I don't always want realism in the games I play. Sometimes irreverence is more fun :) I'll watch baseball on TV if I want realism.
Right before he sends you to hell to suffer for not believing that his son was real. Thanks God. What a guy.
If you REALLY want to Run your DOS stuff, you can always use DOSBox (a DOS emulator) or Wine for Windows (Windows "emulator").
You can download without having to validate your license. Just select, the "No, leave me the hell alone" option when downloading.
Email and internet aren't attached at the hip. Exchange and Notes are email, and they need neither go over the Internet, nor do they use any kind of standard internet protocols (unless you count connecting to the server via TCP/IP, for which there are alternatives).
Ah yes, I remember the NES. The flashing purple screens. The futile attempts of blowing the dust off the cartridge. The crossing of fingers and praying that the game would load. Just trying to get the thing to start up was half the fun :)