Thumbs Up for Grim Fandango. While the latest Monkey Island game seemed like heresy in 3D, Grim Fandango's art was ultimate. Perhaps it's because they got to design everything with 3D in mind, instead of trying to take a 2D classic and make it look similar in 3D. This game took "point and click" and removed both the pointing and clicking, opting instead for a keyboard control method that eliminated the dreaded "pixel-hunting" flaw of many graphical adventures.
Mine fluctuated a lot shortly after boot. Now, it's fluctuating within a 5 minute range - but fluctuating every few seconds.
Definitely annoying. The battery timer in 10.2.6 WAS very accurate. I think I'll switch to percentage display so that I don't have to see these minute fluctuations.
Same here. I switched my timer to a percentage, so as not to be distracted by it - but I found that my battery life definitely was reduced.
Too early to tell for the new update.
March 7th, 2004: Today, in the popular online game Star Wars: Galaxies, a player has achieved the level of Jedi for the first time ever in the game.
The character, "MastahOfDaP00n", has been logged in an average of 21 hours a day, according to server log figures provided to us by Verant.
The player behind the character, Timmy Gravis, was interviewed by GameSpy earlier today, shortly after accomplishing his feat. However, GameSpy was unable to use the interview in an article, as - according to them - it consisted of nothing more than incoherent babbling and the occasional semi-understandable phrase such as "pwned j00 all! I a/\/\ j00r fathah!!!!111 Wh00da MaN? Say it, 'y0da man!!' Say it p30nz!"
Verant representatives could not be reached for further comment.
I did, once, have one ask me how long it would take for me to learn a particular language that wasn't on my resume. I asked him how long it would take him to learn Portugese. He got the message.
Oh, you poor thing! Did the mean man try to make you learn Java? shhhhhhhhh, it's OK, the mean man won't hurt you anymore. shhhhhhhh..........
This discussion is based on the false assumption that a single game necessarily has a fixed (or variable within a reasonably tight range) "length".
The length of a game is determined by how long the player chooses to play the game. An obvious statement, yes. But there are no clear-cut answers to the question posed.
Japanese RPGs are talked about a lot. I played Final Fantasy VII for 30 hours. Some played it for 100. The range for a single game can be so huge that it's impossible for any sort of meaningful measurement.
Meanwhile, I logged MANY hours in NFL 2K3 last year. How long does a football video game last? An individual game is short, but the games are bought in order to play many virtual football games. How long is a game like NFL2K3 or Madden? Depends on the player, and the range can be vast.
Resident Evil 2 has four scenarios. They overlap a lot, but they have different endings and some different sections. Some played 1 and that was good, and some played all 4. How long is Resident Evil 2?
I won't even get started on a Vice City or a Falcon 4.0 or especially a Sims or Animal Crossing!
I don't totally disagree with you, but Nintendo's historical stubbornness/arrogance has cost them market share many times along the line.
Example: Nintendo refuses to recognize the need for an advanced storage format (CD-ROM: 650MB) and opts instead to release a "next-gen" system with a storage format that held 20x less and cost more. Texture artists the world over screamed bloody murder. SquareSoft, creator of many of the Super NES's classic hits, thumbed their nose and walked away.
Current example: Nintendo refuses to recognize the demand for online gaming. Repeatedly, they have made statements about how they don't see a sustainable business model in it. Meanwhile, Xbox Live and the PS2 Network Adapter each have shattered all sales expectations, and each system has surged mightily on the strength of online titles like SOCOM, MechAssault, and a dozen sports games. Each will also explode with the pending releases of SOCOM 2, Halo 2, Counterstrike, and other AAA online titles. Meanwhile, Nintendo sits on a gold mine - a game that, if taken online, would shake things up incredibly and even possibly could single-handedly spark a GameCube resurgence. Yet, Mario Kart will release with no online support. Likewise, other possible beneficiaries like F-Zero go without online play too.
Apple is an innovator. If Nintendo were Apple, they would have been at the forefront of online console gaming. Instead, they continue to drag their heels, even after both of their competitors have been wildly successful, and will only continue to be more successful in that realm. Apple, while not perfect, are forward-looking and try to bring the future to the present consumer. If Nintendo is Apple, they are the worst of Apple. They're not the Powerbook, they're not the iPod. They're the one-button mouse.
Nintendo CAN survive on a small market, but they have to serve that market in good faith. As a GameCube owner, I am part of that market - though I am also part of the PS2 and Xbox markets as well. I grow tired of Nintendo's stubbornness, and the failures it creates. My credit card does my complaining - I own far more Xbox and PS2 titles than GameCube. Next time, I may forego a Nintendo console entirely. Nintendo simply does not serve their customers the way Apple does.
Does KaZaA really have the financial resources to launch a successful legal attack on the RIAA? I mean, the media conglomerates are rolling in dough. I've never really understood KaZaA's business model and find it hard to believe that they stand a chance. Regardless of merit, the RIAA have got to have some killer lawyers.
I don't think it's even about winning, necessarily.
When one side goes around suing, completely unopposed, there's a mindset in the public that their claims might be valid. After all, nobody's opposing them. People curling up into a ball and taking it doesn't help.
However, when two camps sue each other, it's more often seen as squabbling, and the kind of thing that tends to end rather unceremonially.
The idea, I would think, is to tarnish the public view of the RIAA's efforts and perhaps get people to see that the RIAA is NOT operating on fair and solid ground here. Hopefully consumers won't just continue to take it up the ass like 12-year-old girls (oooops...)
I *really* wish this wasn't posted AC, because it's one of the most interesting things posted recently, but it's hard to take a completely anonymous post at face value.
It is impossible for an individual to know everything about everything.
If the average Slashdotter sat down with the average politician, and each spoke about political issues, the Slashdotter would educate the politician on computer issues, and the politician would educate the Slashdotter on a hell of a lot more.
Software (and copyrights/patents) is one tiny aspect of what these people deal with on a daily basis. It's important for people to step up and communicate with them, as the article writer did, because there's no way for the politician and assistants to keep up on EVERY issue with the kind of depth that people around here do on a small handful of issues that pertain to our careers/hobbies.
Slashdot Mirror
Definitely annoying. The battery timer in 10.2.6 WAS very accurate. I think I'll switch to percentage display so that I don't have to see these minute fluctuations.
Same here. I switched my timer to a percentage, so as not to be distracted by it - but I found that my battery life definitely was reduced. Too early to tell for the new update.
>> I was getting sick of people claiming that, despite the excellent games. Didn't stop them from doing it to the Dreamcast.
The character, "MastahOfDaP00n", has been logged in an average of 21 hours a day, according to server log figures provided to us by Verant.
The player behind the character, Timmy Gravis, was interviewed by GameSpy earlier today, shortly after accomplishing his feat. However, GameSpy was unable to use the interview in an article, as - according to them - it consisted of nothing more than incoherent babbling and the occasional semi-understandable phrase such as "pwned j00 all! I a/\/\ j00r fathah!!!!111 Wh00da MaN? Say it, 'y0da man!!' Say it p30nz!"
Verant representatives could not be reached for further comment.
(karma whoring from the future)
Stop playing consoles, kiddie.
(that's tongue-in-cheek, evil mods)
Great fiction.
Oh, you poor thing! Did the mean man try to make you learn Java? shhhhhhhhh, it's OK, the mean man won't hurt you anymore. shhhhhhhh..........
The length of a game is determined by how long the player chooses to play the game. An obvious statement, yes. But there are no clear-cut answers to the question posed.
Japanese RPGs are talked about a lot. I played Final Fantasy VII for 30 hours. Some played it for 100. The range for a single game can be so huge that it's impossible for any sort of meaningful measurement.
Meanwhile, I logged MANY hours in NFL 2K3 last year. How long does a football video game last? An individual game is short, but the games are bought in order to play many virtual football games. How long is a game like NFL2K3 or Madden? Depends on the player, and the range can be vast.
Resident Evil 2 has four scenarios. They overlap a lot, but they have different endings and some different sections. Some played 1 and that was good, and some played all 4. How long is Resident Evil 2?
I won't even get started on a Vice City or a Falcon 4.0 or especially a Sims or Animal Crossing!
The whole basis for the discussion is unsound.
JFK, blown away!
what else do I have to say??
Yup. Someone tells a movie exec about falling meteorites, and they make a big-budget movie out of it. Total devastation.
Better than the same games on the other systems.
Some developers do create games on each system that don't run well, but that's not something you can pin on the hardware itself.
Example: Nintendo refuses to recognize the need for an advanced storage format (CD-ROM: 650MB) and opts instead to release a "next-gen" system with a storage format that held 20x less and cost more. Texture artists the world over screamed bloody murder. SquareSoft, creator of many of the Super NES's classic hits, thumbed their nose and walked away.
Current example: Nintendo refuses to recognize the demand for online gaming. Repeatedly, they have made statements about how they don't see a sustainable business model in it. Meanwhile, Xbox Live and the PS2 Network Adapter each have shattered all sales expectations, and each system has surged mightily on the strength of online titles like SOCOM, MechAssault, and a dozen sports games. Each will also explode with the pending releases of SOCOM 2, Halo 2, Counterstrike, and other AAA online titles. Meanwhile, Nintendo sits on a gold mine - a game that, if taken online, would shake things up incredibly and even possibly could single-handedly spark a GameCube resurgence. Yet, Mario Kart will release with no online support. Likewise, other possible beneficiaries like F-Zero go without online play too.
Apple is an innovator. If Nintendo were Apple, they would have been at the forefront of online console gaming. Instead, they continue to drag their heels, even after both of their competitors have been wildly successful, and will only continue to be more successful in that realm. Apple, while not perfect, are forward-looking and try to bring the future to the present consumer. If Nintendo is Apple, they are the worst of Apple. They're not the Powerbook, they're not the iPod. They're the one-button mouse.
Nintendo CAN survive on a small market, but they have to serve that market in good faith. As a GameCube owner, I am part of that market - though I am also part of the PS2 and Xbox markets as well. I grow tired of Nintendo's stubbornness, and the failures it creates. My credit card does my complaining - I own far more Xbox and PS2 titles than GameCube. Next time, I may forego a Nintendo console entirely. Nintendo simply does not serve their customers the way Apple does.
Some mods are painfully dumb.
I don't think it's even about winning, necessarily.
When one side goes around suing, completely unopposed, there's a mindset in the public that their claims might be valid. After all, nobody's opposing them. People curling up into a ball and taking it doesn't help.
However, when two camps sue each other, it's more often seen as squabbling, and the kind of thing that tends to end rather unceremonially.
The idea, I would think, is to tarnish the public view of the RIAA's efforts and perhaps get people to see that the RIAA is NOT operating on fair and solid ground here. Hopefully consumers won't just continue to take it up the ass like 12-year-old girls (oooops...)
Drop-dead funniest thing I've read on Slashdot in a long time.
I love when someone talks about what Microsoft can't "afford" to do.
NEWS FLASH: Microsoft loses money on EVERY PRODUCT NOT NAMED "Windows" OR "Office".
The Xbox's situation is neither new nor special.
Yeah, who needs that?
If the average Slashdotter sat down with the average politician, and each spoke about political issues, the Slashdotter would educate the politician on computer issues, and the politician would educate the Slashdotter on a hell of a lot more.
Software (and copyrights/patents) is one tiny aspect of what these people deal with on a daily basis. It's important for people to step up and communicate with them, as the article writer did, because there's no way for the politician and assistants to keep up on EVERY issue with the kind of depth that people around here do on a small handful of issues that pertain to our careers/hobbies.
Gettin' jigga with it.
Windows: "We have the right to stick it to you anytime we feel like it. You will, in fact, take this lying down."
User: "I agree"
Windows: "By continuing this install routine, you agree to forefit all rights to your computer, worldly assets, and your wife."
User: "Next"
Windows: "Remember, Thou Shalt Not Worship Any OS But I. Are you still trying to fight this, or are you finished?"
User: "Finish"
Windows: "Thank you for installing. Your computer now has 5 new pieces of spyware. Your privacy is....
User: "Done".