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Messages - TheBlackCat

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1
TalkBack / Re: Nintendo's Expansion Ports
« on: October 31, 2011, 08:31:13 PM »
You didn't mention any of the problems with the N64 RAM expansion pack.  For instance it pretty much broke Space Station Silicon Valley.

2
TalkBack / Re: Extra Life: Jurassic Park
« on: May 06, 2011, 05:55:11 PM »
I may still have the game boy cartridge lying around somewhere.  I never got past the second level, it was way too hard.

3
TalkBack / Re: Wii Successor Could Use Flash Memory and 25GB Discs
« on: May 04, 2011, 12:50:11 PM »
Going to put another bit of my 2 cents in here.  Flash is fast. 
Flash is fast for reading, but it is slow for writing.  The things people are talking about here, using it is a temporary storage location for streaming or in-game content, would see no benefit because they require both reading and writing. 

As I pointed out before, Microsoft tried using flash memory as a temporary storage location in Windows Vista, but the slow write times meant it had no real benefit.  Intel even released a dedicated mini flash memory drive to take advantage of this, called Turbo Memory, but once again the slow write times meant it didn't help in real life.

So it does not offer any benefit as a temporary storage locations, the space is too small to be useful as a permanent storage location, this is a console not a handheld so the small difference in power consumption is not a real issue, since this is a console it isn't going to move while running so the moving parts are not a major issue, and it costs about ten times more per GB.  There are simply no benefits whatsoever to using flash memory in a console for consumers.  None.  The only possible benefit is that the lowest-price flash memory might cost less than the lowest-price hard drives (it is already hard to find any flash memory below 2 gb these days, by late next year 4 gb will probably already be on the way out).  But that is simply Nintendo cutting corners to the detriment of consumers.

4
TalkBack / Re: Wii Successor Could Use Flash Memory and 25GB Discs
« on: May 04, 2011, 03:16:42 AM »
Maybe this is a misunderstanding and it is really the controllers that have 8GB of flash storage.  That would actually be reasonable, probably adding $3-4 to the price of the controller by the time the system actually comes out.

5
TalkBack / Re: Wii Successor Could Use Flash Memory and 25GB Discs
« on: May 03, 2011, 02:34:29 PM »
This has got to be a joke.  There is no reason to use flash memory.  Yes, it has faster read times, but it has slower write times so there is no benefit there.  Intel and Microsoft already tried using it as a high-capacity temporary storage location and it was a total failure for that very reason. 

But the biggest problem is it costs about 10 times more per GB.  Besides, right now you can get 16gb drives for $30, yet this thing isn't coming out for over a year and a half?  By that point 16 gb drives will probably be $10.  So 8 gb is nothing right now, not to mention in 18 months.  If they just bundle it with whatever SD card costs $15 at the time we would have more storage capacity than this. 

If this is true it is an absolutely stupid decision in every imaginable way, and I guarantee that 3rd part DLC content providers will reject the new system because of it.  The next Xbox and PS3 will certainly have at least 320 gb hard drives, more likely 500.  If this announcement is true then Nintendo has already lost the hard-core market with just this one decision.  There is no way any hard core gamer will take a system with 1/20th the storage space of current-gen systems as a legitimate next-gen system.

6
TalkBack / Re: If I Were in Charge of Zelda
« on: April 11, 2011, 11:53:32 PM »
And now we're back to "make Zelda more like Metroid".


I should add that the Link's Awakening and the Oracle games did have some basic platforming elements to them, especially in the side-scrolling areas.

7
TalkBack / Re: If I Were in Charge of Zelda
« on: April 05, 2011, 09:35:29 PM »
Quote
The overworld would have to be a far larger place than any previous 3D Zelda game, in order to have many caves and other areas that the player would have to explore. I want the player to be able to go in pretty much any direction that they want right off the bat, like the original NES Zelda. I want to break away from a set path through the game, which is why I took the items out of the dungeons, it would allow people to go and get items in different orders.
I agree there shouldn't be a set path through the game, but I also don't think it should be too open right away.  For me, seeing an area I can't reach yet is one of the big reasons to go find new items.  Without that I think you lose the whole reason to get items in the first place.

Doing both at the same time, however, is difficult.  That is why I suggested that there should be multiple ways to accomplish most tasks, and multiple items with particular abilities.  Players will still have to get new items to access new areas of the overworld, but there are multiple different items they can use in any given situation and thus multiple different orders in which they can access areas.  If you have maybe 3 ways of solving any given puzzle, and a large number of items, then the number of routes through the game will be so large as to be essentially unlimited.

8
TalkBack / Re: If I Were In Charge of Zelda
« on: April 05, 2011, 04:14:28 AM »
One issue that occured to me that you didn't address is how the overworld is structured.  The 3D zelda games, for the most part, seem to have one large, open central area with other small areas branching off from that.  This results in a few fairly isolated area with limited, well-defined connections between them (if there are connections at all).  The central area is relatively empty and boring, with a few token enemies and fences and maybe one complex in the middle, but mostly empty space.  Travelling between areas is a pretty well-defined affair, you either go to the hub then go to another area, or you travel through a specialized passageway like big door or a tunnel.  There was never any doubt or ambiguity as to what area you were in, no transition zone that had some features of one area and some features of another.

Most of the 2D games, on the other hand, had a lot of interconnected areas with trees, hills, rivers, and other obstacles that prevented you from going directly from one place to another.  Besides Zelda II they didn't really have a central hub area that just served as a a way to get from one place to another, traveling directly between areas is just as easy and common as traveling through the center (except in cases like LTTP where you couldn't travel through the center at all).  They tended to have transition areas between environments, like a rocky area with some dry vegetation between the planes area and the desert area, or increasing density of trees before you get into the forest. 

I would much prefer to see a return of the 2D overworld model.  No more isolated areas, it is just one big world map.  There could still be a fire area, a lake area, and ice area, and so on, but rather than being fully separate areas, they would flow into each other, with numerous criss-crossing paths leading between them.  Many of these paths would need items to access or open, but once you get the necessary items moving between areas without going through the central hub area (if there even is one) would become the more common approach. 

The central area should also not be just a big open field with a building in the middle, either.  It should have a much more complex environment with large groves of trees, rivers with bridges, hills and cliffs, random buildings, valleys, and areas you can see early on but can't access until late in the game.  It should actually be an environment with things to do (in addition to a few token treasure chests), rather than just a way to get from one area to another.  It shouldn't necessarily be the fastest and easiest way to get from one area to another, it should be sufficiently complex, time-consuming, and dangerous to cross that players want to find more direct routes between areas.

9
TalkBack / Re: If I Were In Charge of Zelda
« on: April 04, 2011, 08:36:04 PM »
So basically, your proposal is "make zelda more like metroid" ;)

I do agree that putting most of the items in the overworld is a good idea, but putting players on more fetch-quests isn't.

I'm not sure I like the idea of smaller dungeons.  It makes the exploration aspect of the dungeons much less.  Dungeons are supposed to be mazes that you need to explore, with various different passages twisting and interconnecting, with you being able to see an area you can't reach right at the beginning but not actually getting there at the end.  Making the dungeons short would defeat the purpose.

It would be easy enough to put tests very early on in the dungeon that make sure you have the necessary items, or to let you enter and leave the dungeon at pre-defined points rather than only at the main entrance and exit.  Personally I think the latter approach is the better one.  Don't have more smaller dungeons, have fewer larger ones.  Dungeons would contain multiple items, and you would have to leave the dungeon part-way through, only to come back to it much later.

A possible solution would be to have even smaller mini-dungeons, which contain a single item, 5 rooms or less, a few enemies (including some specialized for the item), some puzzles to learn how to use the item, then a mini-boss that requires just that item to beat.  These would serve purely to give you items and teach you to use them.  Many of these would be available up-front, but others would need items to access.

You would get some items from characters, but those would restricted to mini-games, side-quests.  There would only be a few of these.  There be lots of side-quests, but these would be restricted to getting upgrades for your existing items.  So many if not all of your items would initially come at a basic level, but you could increase their power or give them new abilities by doing side-quests.  This would also allow for alternate ways to accomplish certain tasks.  For example, say you need to freeze something.  You could do the mini-dungeon for the ice staff weapon, or you could do side-quest and get the ice arrow upgrade.  To cross a large gap over a volcano, you could either do the mini-dungeon to get the Roc's cape, or you could do a side-quest to get you a longer version of the hook-shot.

The main dungeons would be larger than the existing ones, would contain multiple items, and like the mini dungeons would have mini-bosses dedicated to those items.  However, like in the game boy zelda games, after defeating a mini boss you would open a permanent two-way portal between the former mini-bosses  and the exit of the dungeon, allowing you to then leave and come back later.  This would also allow you to jump between different areas of the dungeon.

You could not beat a dungeon in a single go, you would need to leave and visit other dungeons (mini and full) to get items necessary to proceed.  The final boss would need multiple items to defeat, including ones from other dungeons and mini-dungeons, and likely you would be able to beat the bosses in several different ways.  A portal would automatically open when you reach the room immediately before the final dungeon boss, letting you leave to get items if you don't have everything necessary to beat the boss (it would also let you save and refill your health, so you could easily try again if you can't beat it).

10
TalkBack / Re: 3DS May Be Brickable if Flash Cards Used
« on: March 10, 2011, 02:16:36 PM »
I think it all depends on how this Sony otheros lawsuit goes.  I am not a lawyer, but if that succeeds I think Nintendo would have a much harder time legally justifying bricking systems in such a way.

11
Wait, the villains want equality for Pokemon?  What sort of message are they trying to send kids?

12
TalkBack / Re: New DSiWare App for Custom Games
« on: February 27, 2011, 06:57:17 PM »
I wonder how long it will take them to hack it so you can program games on your computer

13
TalkBack / Re: Zelda 25th Anniversary Photoshop Contest
« on: February 22, 2011, 11:50:31 AM »
I'm not understanding the contest.  Are we supposed to come up with a new item for Link and photoshop something totally unrelated into the picture, or are we supposed to photoshop the item into the picture, or are we supposed to photoshop the item or something totally unrelated into the picture?

14
TalkBack / Re: Cars 2: The Video Game Announced
« on: February 15, 2011, 04:24:45 PM »
It's obviously going to be goldeneye-style deathmatch multiplayer game with cars in place of people.

15
TalkBack / Re: Cars 2: The Video Game Announced
« on: February 14, 2011, 05:24:05 PM »
WHAT!?  A CG movie getting a video-game cash-in?  Who would have guessed?

16
TalkBack / Re: A Trio of Staples
« on: January 26, 2011, 10:02:41 PM »
I, on the other hand, never even owned MK64.  The original, however, was one of my favorites in the SNES.  However, I don't think it has aged well.  When I played it on virtual console I was pretty disappointed. 

17
TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Blocks Use of Mario Theme in Bieber Movie
« on: January 22, 2011, 11:50:06 AM »
Nintendo has had no problem letting people use its IP in the past, as others have noted.  It sounds more like the problem is with the use or the user rather than with the Nintendo being obstinate.

18
TalkBack / Re: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX Impressions
« on: January 21, 2011, 04:54:19 PM »
I love link's awakening, but I am a little sad that I won't be able to do the map teleport glitch. :(

19
TalkBack / Re: Nintendogs + Cats Impressions
« on: January 11, 2011, 10:01:29 PM »
Reminds me of a sign a saw in a store once:

"Unattended children will be given a cappuccino and a free kitten"

20
TalkBack / Re: Super Meat Boy WiiWare Cancelled
« on: December 28, 2010, 05:54:44 PM »
The developers thought that the 40 MB size limitation for Wiiware games was too strict.  Since they are not in the position to change Nintendo's policy internally, they decided to apply external pressure to the situation by making a great game that does not it within the (arbitrary) limitations.  I'm not sure Team Meat expected Nintendo to necessarily give them an exclusive exception, rather that they would change the policy for ALL developers.  If enough companies wish to release high profile downloadable games on the Wii that are over 40 MB, it's reasonable to expect Nintendo to change their policy because they stand to profit so much from changing the rules.
Nintendo gave no indication that we know of that they intended to change anything.  So Team Meat made a decision to develop a game they had no indication would ever have any chance of coming out. 

Have you ever heard the saying "hope for the best, plan for the worst"?  The reasonable course of action would have been to develop the game strictly for the size limit, but develop in such a way that they could add more content given time and a change in policy.  At the very least they should have been developing the game for a larger size limit, but leaving themselves ways to cut it down if the limit didn't change.  But they developed the entire thing based on the hard requirement that Nintendo changed the rules, and then had to scramble to totally re-design the game at the last minute.  I don't see how any half-competent business could put themselves in such a position, at least not ones outside of a field like law where changes are inevitable. 

Could you imagine someone writing a flash program targeted at the iphone, despite the repeated assertions by Apple that it will not support flash?  Does that seem like a reasonable business decision?  Would it be reasonable for them to play the victim card when Apple didn't change their policy by the time the software was finished?  I think the decision by Apple to not support Flash is as bone-headed as Nintendo's limit (assuming the limit is indeed arbitrary and easily fixed), but that is not excuse for developer making a program that they had no reason to think would ever actually work.

What about someone developing a program aimed at windows running on ARM processors?  It seems inevitable that Windows will eventually be ported to ARM, but that doesn't change the fact that a software developer who wrote such a program has no right to complain that it isn't out yet, since Microsft hadn't announced it was even going to happen, not to mention when.

Even if Nintendo's decision is arbitrary, even if it is stupid, even if it should be changed, it is still theirs to make, and it is not an excuse to ignore it.

I also think that Team Meat must have spoken to someone at Nintendo who at least implied that the limitation could be changed at some point in development (probably early on).  That's just a hunch though.
I strongly suspect that if Nintendo had done so Team Meat would have used that as a defense for their actions already.  The fact that they have made no mention of such a discussion despite all the flak they are getting for this indicates to me that no such conversation took place.

21
TalkBack / Re: Super Meat Boy WiiWare Cancelled
« on: December 28, 2010, 02:02:19 AM »
Sorry, personally I have absolutely zero sympathy for the developers.  I am no fan of the size limit, but you do not develop software for a system while totally ignoring the capabilities of that system.  I am frankly dumbfounded that even the most incompetent developers in the world could ignore something as simple as a file size limit for the game's entire development cycle.  The only possibilities here are that either the developers have no sense whatsoever, are extremely arrogant, or were never intending to release it on wiiware to begin with. 

Based on the interview, it seems it was the second.  The developers just assumed that Nintendo would bend to their whims.  If that is their attitude, then frankly they deserve to go out of business.  Game development is a business.  In a business some small-time provider can't just assume that distributors will break the rules for them, and any one that does deserves to be smacked down hard.  If I was Nintendo I would personally be tempted to deny their request just on principle.

Imagine a company was contracted to build crates for oranges.  The truck company, based on some totally arbitrary rule, decided years ago to only allow crates up to 3 ft square.  The company building the crates supplies crates 5 ft square, since they think it would be better to carry more oranges per crate.  The truck company refuses to carry the crates.  Should the company that hired the builders praise them for making crates that can't be used, or should they be fired?  Obviously any sane person would fire them for failing to take into account the constraints of the job.

To put it bluntly, the developers did not do their job.  They developed a game, from square one, that could not possibly be a wiiware game, yet they marketed it as one.  So I think the blame of their failure rests solely with them.  I don't like the size limit Nintendo has imposed, I think it is seriously hampering wiiware.  But that doesn't change the fact that the developers didn't do their job properly.

Sorry if I seem gruff here.  There are few things I can't stand, but one of them is a business that tries to make itself seem the victim for its own poor business decisions.  And frankly I see no other way to describe this.  They knew what they had to do, and they made a conscious decision, over a prolonged period of time, not to do it.

22
TalkBack / Re: Beyblade: Metal Fusion Review
« on: December 11, 2010, 04:42:02 PM »
I think fighting tops were pretty popular back in the day.  There was even a short-lived fad about them when I was a kid, although I think their heyday was way before my time (I remember them making a big deal about it in the sequel to A Christmas Story, which was so great I can't even remember its name).

Of course, that is the game the world has been missing!  A pogs video game!

23
General Chat / Re: Your #1 meal at Fast Food Restaurants
« on: November 14, 2010, 10:30:23 AM »
The Black Cat does not like condiments or toppings!

What tipped you off? ;)

I'm not as bad as my friend in undergrad who wouldn't eat sandwiches.  She took them apart and ate the meat, bread, and veggies separately.

24
General Chat / Re: Your #1 meal at Fast Food Restaurants
« on: November 13, 2010, 07:39:48 PM »
McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy's, Checkers, etc:
Double cheesburger (only cheese and ketchup), large fry.  The girl who used to be at the cash register at McDonalds memorized this order, even though I only go maybe once a month tops.  If it is a place with larger burgers, scratch the second burger (or even the double, depending on the size).

Subway
If they have it, seafood salad, aseigo cheese bread, american cheese, nothing else.  Otherwise Philly cheese steak, onions, otherwise the same.

Quiznos
French dip

Panera
Clam chowder bread bowl

Taco bell
Steak Quesadilla

Dairy Queen
Foot-long cheese dog, nothing on it.  Fries, vanilla milk shake float (if they still have those).

Pizzaria Uno's
Chicago classic deep-dish pizza

Pizza hut
Stuffed-crust with only cheese

Pizza (any other)
Cheese

Panda express
Death.  I always regret eating there.

KFC
Popcorn chicken

Popeye's
Catfish sandwich, biscuit.  I sometimes go here just for the biscuits to eat with canned clam chowder, since there is one right near my house.

Favorite Sushi
Unagi (or anything with it), followed by anything with dynamite in it.  After that it varies a lot depending on what is available, but snapper, shrimp, crab stick (or better yet crab if they have it), or tempura shrimp or soft-shell-crab are good.  When I make it, usually either dynamite shrimp, fried fish, or baked chicken.

25
Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo vs Apple: FIGHT!!!
« on: October 27, 2010, 07:09:14 PM »
Trying to push the switch to HTML5 made sense back when people were grudgingly accepting H264 as the de-facto standard, but now that everyone besides Apple has jumped ship to webM it will probably end up biting them in the ass.

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