Topics

1

Nintendo Gaming / The Nintendo Switch Roadmap....Switch VR?

« on: January 17, 2017, 04:10:57 PM »

Hey, I'm not sure how much legs this thread will have but I figured it should be a decent discussion. Since the Switch disrobing this past Friday, I've been taking all the information in and a vision has started coming into place. I think Nintendo may be gearing itself up for an eventual push back into the VR scene.  Let me explain.


1.  Recently, there was a Nintendo patent that came out detailing every inch of the Switch.  In this patent doc, there was mention of a mounted VR headset that can be used for the Switch.


http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PG01&p=1&u=/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=20160361640.PGNR.&OS=DN/20160361640&RS=DN/20160361640


Now, the current Switch only has a 720p screen on it which I hear is no bueno for VR.  in a good 6-7 years, I believe Nintendo, and technology, will be a better position to bring out a Switch2 which can have a more robust cpu/gpu and a 1080p screen.  Nintendo seems to like to adopt things once they've been on the market for a while and has matured.  VR should be a little more common place by then.  Providing a packed in head mounted vr cradle for the future Switch should be doable as an added bonus to regular home console/portable play


2.  The Switch already comes built with VR in mind.  The joycons are nice small separate wireless remotes that have motion sensing capabilities and a new HD rumble haptic feedback.  These features will lend themselves very well to a VR experience. 


3.  Nintendo's art style lends itself well to VR.  They never really aim for photo realism.  They will not need bleeding edge technology to run the games they develop in VR.  Their current franchises lend themselves wonderfully to VR. 

• ARMS- perfect for VR
• Splatoon- I'd love to see how it'll work but it may be too fast for proper VR, I can see people really getting sick off this game lol
• Mario Kart- Perfect for VR
• Metroid-.... come on brah... you know you want it lol
• Punchout- same as ARMS
• F-Zero...... by this point you know where I'm going with this

4.  Nintendo's history-  Nintendo has already dabbled in VR years back with the Vboy to no success.  They may have been ahead of the times then.  Since then they have been playing around and laying some groundwork on forms of motion play.  All this experience could lead them to making another push to VR.  Looking at the Switch, I can already see it doing basic VR as is if it just had a higher resolution screen on it. 


In closing, I know the Switch isn't even out yet but looking at their present and past, one can't put it past Nintendo to try and get back in on the VR scene.  If its popularity inscreases, Nintendo is in a key position to provide probably the lowest entry into VR with their next Switch console.  Time will tell though as the competition in VR begins to release their revised models in the years to come.  Things could die down and go the way of 3d tvs or things can really pick up and usher in a new genre/aspect of gaming.

2

Nintendo Gaming / The WiiU debacle: Is Nintendo or publishers to blame.

« on: June 11, 2013, 09:59:43 PM »

It has gotten so bad that I'm actually contemplating whether or not publishers just want Nintendo out of the console race entirely.  If you think about it, of course they would want a Sony and MS world since that's what they are currently living in.  Everything will be streamlined to be developed for PC and the PSbone since they are all somewhat similar.  3rd parties always complain that they never get any success on Nintendo's hardware so maybe they have just given up supporting it entirely.  Now the discussion of who's to blame for 3rd parties woes on Nintendo hardware is something best left for another thread but particularly with the WiiU, I think 3rd parties are to blame.  Very few provided any support upon release or after.  Ubisoft is the only company that put up a decent effort, everyone else released old "updates" or nothing at all.  Some (EA and now SquareEnix) have gone and even sabotaged their own releases (Mass Effect 3 announced for WiiU and a trilogy for all others soon after, Dues Ex no longer WiiU exclusive) 
 
I think its the market's focus on AAA release that has hurt Nintendo and 3rd parties on their hardware.  Publishers seem to only be looking at AAA releases to which is too risky on Nintendo platforms, especially on one just released with a small install base.  I don't see how these publishers can't from small groups to make A or AA games on a smaller budget and release them on the WiiU.  There are absolutely no games coming out so if anything with any kind of effort was released, people might just go and buy it.  People did buy a WiiU to play it, so give them things to play.  They can even use these smaller budget releases to introduce new IPs at a lower risk.  If they catch on and become established then there they go, they have themselves a new franchise.  I honestly thought the Japanese developers would be at least giving the WiiU a shot as they often don't put out AAA games yet I don't see anything.
 
Something more than bad WiiU sales must be going on with these publishers and Nintendo.  Games coming out now are games that should've been green lit around 2 years ago at the minimum.  At that time, Nintendo was coming off the Wii which sold well and no one had any idea the WiiU would be struggling this bad at this point so what excuse did they have back then to not get something in development. 
 
3rd parties always complain that their games don't sell well against Nintendo's but at the moment, they have no competition what so ever from Nintendo software as Nintendo isn't releasing much.  This is the time for 3rd parties to make their money, not later on when every Nintendo fan has picked up the WiiU specifically for Nintendo's games.  The market by then will only be for Nintendo games.  I've always had a belief that Nintendo hardware is sold to Nintendo fanboys who only game Nintendo and hardcore gamers who love Nintendo games but also have one, if not more, (or a PC) of the competitors systems.  With this setting, the Nintendo fanboys won't purchase non Nintendo games and the hardcore gamers will more than likely pick up multiplatform releases on the other guys systems as apposed to their WiiU. 
 
How the hell can Nintendo fix that?  Nintendo can only do so much, can only control themselves and they are struggling with that as it is.
 
Honestly, to answer my own thread title, I think Nintendo has spread themselves too thin between supporting the 3ds and the WiiU which it seems they have underestimated the difficulty of transitioning to the HD generation.  Nintendo should get the brunt of the blame as this is their system and they should've had their situation on lock but 3rd party publishers have no one to blame but themselves. 

For all you Game of Thrones fans, this situation reminds me of the Red Wedding and Nintendo is Robb Stark.  Nintendo is in a vulnerable position and the publishers seem to be looking to take advantage of it in a negative way.  You can even say EA are the Lannisters.   

3

General Gaming / A ZombiU like MMO??? Sign me the F up

« on: October 20, 2012, 12:10:31 AM »

Sup everyone, I just caught wind of this game (mod) and I thought I'd share.  Its only in beta stage right now but the concept sounds really engaging, similar to that of ZombiU but to a larger scale.  From what I can gather, but don't quote me, the game is a massive open world where you must survive hunger, zombies, and other human beings.  I don't think there is an end to the game and its more about survival and for how long. 
The game basically starts you out at a random location.  I think you are given a gun, some rounds, a can of beans, and a bottle of water.  From then on out, you have to scavenge for food, supplies, and shelter.  Your character eventually has to rest and eat.  If you get hurt, you have to bandage the injury before you bleed out and pass out.  If you run into any vehicles, you can repair them if you have the right parts and use them to navigate the world. 

Zombies are not all you have to worry about as other gamers will be just as big a threat.  There might be wandering bands of gamers who might just be out to kill whoever they can outnumber and take their supplies.  You also might luck out and find a group that is willing to take you under their wings thus adding to their armada.  You really never know who you can trust though as in any given moment, that gamer you have been playing with for the past hour might have just been working to earn your trust just to shoot you in the back when you least expect it to take that sweet gun you managed to find.  Or, your partner could decide to leave you behind to a zombie hord in order to facilitate his own escape.  You really never know. 

To add weight to all these encounters, you only get one life in the game.  If you get killed, you have to respawn as a new character with just your initial loot again in another random location. 

Here's a trailer that can really give you a sense of the game.  I'll remind you again that this game is in beta stage so there will be improvements as time goes on. 
 

4

General Gaming / Guild Wars 2: If you thought Xenoblade was big, check THIS out

« on: September 19, 2012, 01:06:48 AM »

To help with the wait for the release of the WiiU, I decided to take the plunge on an MMO given that they are built to last, my budget is small, and I need to make my gaming dollars stretch.  Now, I've always been a big rpg fan, mostly JRPG and with the occasional big western releases such as ST:KotoR on xbox to Skyrim most recently.  I've never had an interest in MMO's as they primarily relied strictly to keyboard use (which I hate), a majority of them are pay to play (which I HATE evenmore) and for some reason I always imagined the experience to be filled with online Aholes that are out just to ruin your experience.

What drove me to try Guild Wars 2 though are 3 things:

1.  It looks amazing.  When I first saw the trailers, I was floored. The world is just full of beautiful vistas and the fantasy setting and style is just unmatched.  Based on my play time, I'd say the game looks like a mix of Fables graphics, Dragon Age 2's flashy combat, and Xenoblade's grander and scope (multiplied by 10 mind you).  I can't even begin to describe to you how large this game is.  I'm sure this is the norm with MMOs but given that I've never played one, the size of everything caught me completely off guard.  The map is enormous and there is always so much to do and so much going on.  Not since Xenoblade has a game filled my desire for adventure and exploration. 

2.  The game has no subscriptions.  That's all that needs to be said about that basically.

3.  The game mapped flawlessly to my 360 controller, so much so that its almost as if the game was made with consoles in mind.  Now, you still need your keyboard for streamlined menu navigation but all the fighting and interactions within the world can all be done with the gamepad alone. 
 
I was wondering if anyone here is actually playing the game or an MMO fan who can put in their input on what they think about this game.  My perspective is that of an MMO virgin so everything that I'm loving could be subpar to an experienced MMO gamer with an extensive pallet of experience.  Also, if anyone is as hesitant of MMO gaming as I was, I say jump in and send me a message.  We can go exploring together and we can help each other out navigating this new world. 

If anyone has an questions about the gameplay, feel free to ask and I'll answer them to the best of my knowledge. 
 
Update:  I found the trailer that sold me on this game.  Hope you enjoy, you really get a good look at the graphics in the game and the amazing locations. 

5

Nintendo Gaming / A WiiU/PC generation?.....That's starting to make sence to me.

« on: July 18, 2012, 02:10:05 AM »

So I've been lurking the Neogaf forums since around E3 (for all the sh*t the site gets, the community there is very knowledgeable and funny as hell lol)  and there is something that's been mentioned a lot there that I've never really put much thought of until now. 

A lot of members there are stating they are taking a WiiU/PC approach to the next gen so that they get their Nintendo fix from the WiiU and their western multi ports on the PC.  Now, I've never really been a pc gamer and have always given in to purchasing all the major consols to get the full sampling of what gaming has to offer but its starting to get really expensive.  As a result of the expenses that are associated with this hobby, I think the WiiU/PC approach is a good way to go.

I just recently decided to give Elder Scrolls 4:Oblivion another run through.  Originally, I played the game on the 360 when it had first came out and enjoyed it very much but eventually grew tired of it, especially after I found out the game levels up with you so your never really gaining much ground on the enemies no matter how much you grind.  Well this time, I picked it up for the PC and decided to mod the hell out of it since that's what I've always heard is the benefit of PC gaming. 

I finally got the game running, fully modded up and I must say, its amazing what the community has done to this game.  Its like a brand new game now.  New graphics, new weapons, quests, dynamic weather, the list goes on an on.  If this is the benefit of PC gaming, then sh*t, I've been missing out.  Now with all these programs like Joy2pad that let me play PC games with a gamepad, I have no more excuse anymore for not gaming on my PC.  For years, keypad and mouse controls are what kept me off PC gaming but more and more new games are coming out that support gamepad options right out the box. 

So after this revelation I've pretty much decided, it'll be a WiiU/PC generation for me these next 5-7 years or so.  If I end up missing out on a few key exclusives on the PS4 and 720 then so be it, there are already too many games to play as it is. 

I'll like to hear what my fellow members here have to say about this approach.  Do you already fall in line with this line of thinking or will you stick to the strictly console approach?  I know there are a lot of drawbacks to PC gaming such as upgrading your PC, installations, game updates and optimization but for those willing to put in a little more initial work, PC gaming isn't all too bad.

 

6

General Gaming / Dragon's Dogma....Fing wow

« on: May 24, 2012, 06:58:11 PM »

Hey everyone, I just picked up Dragon's Dogma and sh*t am I hooked lol, so much so that I had to come on here and sing its praises. For those that have not followed this game much, I'll give my description on how the game feels based on my brief experience so far.  I'm about 6 or so hours in and haven't really ventured too far out of the initial area.  I've only gone so far as to reach, what I would assume to be, the main castle village of the game.  So far, I'd say this game is a combination of Dark Souls, Monster Hunter, Skyrim, and D&D all rolled up in a JRPG wrap and flavoring. 

　
The comparisons I'm making to these games are limited to Dark Souls dificulty and look (venturing out at night without a lit lantern and a fully equipped group of 4 is deadly, I got slaughtered by a group of goblens near the start of the game)

 Monster Hunters huge monster battles that can last far longer than your average fight in a western styled rpg (during an escort mission that I pourly decided to embark in at sunset resulted in my group and the npc travelling through the roads at near pitch black with only my lantern to light the way.  Low and behold, just around a bend in the road, a cyclops apeared and then all hell broke loose.  15 minutes or so later, the NPC was dead, I exhausted all my restorative items, and barely killed the Cyclops.  Being strapped of items, I then decided to head back to the village as pushing forward was turning into a deathwish.. 

With Skyrim, the comparisons are the dragon theme and the scale of the world (although I doubt it'll be as large as Skyrim and its somewhat more limiting)  Its structured more like Xe noblade but everyhing is fully being streamed and there are very few loading points outside of entering large cities and caves. 

　
There are so many more aspects about the game that I won't touch on as I'm sure you don't want to read a massive post but I do have to make mention the online integration and party assembly.  I've never been one for MMO and have lived and died by the single player rpg but I'm loving what they did here.  In this game, you first create your main character and a subordinate main "pawn" as they call them.  Your main pawn is fully customizable and travels with you at all times.  The other two slots are filled out with secondary pawns which you recruit around the game world.  The catch is that these secondary pawns are other gamers main pawns that they created.  Your main pain, in turn, appears in other gamers worlds to be recruited as their secondary pawn..  The great thing about this pawn is that as your main pawn travels between the "rift"(online server), he gains knowledge an items through his adventures with other gamers.  He'll learn about areas they visit, missions they participate in, and monsters they battle and also bring back items they find along with those gifted to them by the gamers that used them.  Once you sleep at an inn, your pawn updates his knowledge base and then will assist you if you happen to be doing something he has knowledge of.  For example, if your doing a mission your pawn has participated in in another gamers world, he'll make suggestions to guide you as the game does not do much hand holding at times.  If your battling a particular monster your pawn has defeated, he'll yell out different weak points for you to exploit.  As you can see, this system is Fing great IMO lol. 

　
I'll leave it at that for now but if anyone has any questions, feel free to post and I'll try my best to answer them.  Even better, if you have the game, lets exchange Pawns lol.  I'll be back on later to post my pawns info for others to find. 

7

General Gaming / Video Game Music Lounge

« on: June 15, 2011, 01:23:58 AM »

Hey everyone, I've been going through my collection of MP3s and ran into some video game songs that have really stuck with me over the years.  I figured I'd create a thread where everyone can list their fav video game music and provide links  to allow others to enjoy.  Now I'm sure a lot of these songs will touch people in many different ways.  Some will probably not see whats so great about them while others will be floored with a sudden rush of nostalgia some of these songs provide.  I'm hoping this thread will introduce everyone to music they may have forgoten or never heard of.  I know I'll love to find some new gems to add to my collection.
 
Anyway, let me get this started.
Crono Trigger I believe had some of the most memorable music I've ever heard in an rpg.  A lot of these songs take me right back to the first time I played this game and was a point when jrpgs were a complete escape for me.  At that time, I didn't really have the internet so all the info I got came from magazines and the boxart.  This lack of information just made discovering Crono Trigger and experiencing it for the first time something magical.  Here are a couple stand out songs that I'd like to share.
Corridors of Time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ElH_eH171U&feature=related
Frog's Theme
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-ZuOxXXbKU&feature=related
Memories of Green
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDpPMu8EApg
Schala's Theme
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJtwEpQe6w0
 

Here's a song from Crono Cross, I'd have to go through my collection to  find a few more but these two I rememer right off the top of my head..
Dreams of the Shore Near Another World
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MV-FvxoR1PQ
Time's Scar
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J46RY4PU8a8
 

Now for a little change of pace and something a little more current.  For those that played Red Dead Redemption know that music was few and far between but when it was introduced, it really added to the atmosphere of the game and the feel of the story much like some music is used in movies.  These songs really lose their impant when taken out of context.  For those that have played the game though will instantly remember  the key moments of the story. 
Far Away
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IkvAb6THQY
Compass
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ9iflvCwok&feature=related
Deadman's Gun
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yag41F7eCLU&feature=related
 
 

8

Nintendo Gaming / Nintendo to publish Solatorobo in Europe....import here I come

« on: April 13, 2011, 12:51:23 AM »

Ran into this announcement a few days ago and I'm hoping this means we could be seeing this game come out in the US.  This game looks amazing in my eyes and gives me that feeling of a classic old school jrpg world, very colorfull with great animation and backdrops.  I'm also getting a skies of arcadia vibe with the blue whale in the sky among the many islands in the sky.  Anywhere's, if this doesn't get released here in the US, at least I can rest easy knowing its only an import away.  Here's a link to the article and a trailer.
 
http://www.n-europe.com/news.php?nid=15284
 

9

General Gaming / Streets of Rage fan remake

« on: April 05, 2011, 01:41:55 PM »

Here's a little something that I ran into that I thought some people would be interested in. It seems like, unknown to me, a group of people have been developing a fan remake for Streets of Rage 1-3 for the past 8 years, all from scratch. Its an amazing accomplishment and I'm glad to see its reached completion. I'm currently downloading the game right now but here's a link with all the info about the game and whats been added to it. Let me just say this, they've done A LOT with this game, its rediculous how much they've added to the original games. Here's the link

http://www.bombergames.net/sorr_project/
 
and hers a link to a promo pic
http://bombergames.net/promotional.JPG
 
 
 

10

Nintendo Gaming / AR games and its untapped potential

« on: March 22, 2011, 03:52:52 PM »

I decided to create this thread to talk more in depth about the AR games and what it could mean and do to gaming.  I'm not exactly sure how complex can these AR games be as I'm not exactly sure how they work.  I'm assuming the cards have some type of coding in them that the 3ds reads.  How complex can these codes be and what are the posibilities within this limitation?  Lets just say, for the sake of this thread, that you can produce some really complex games with these cards.  Here are a few of the ideas I've been mulling over.
 
Board Games.
I've seen these cards printed out in massive form and still be usable so I was wondering if they were made in board game size with, for example, Monopoly on the board.  Imagine laying this card on your table and having a 3d interactive Monopoly board.  The whole city is animated and as you progress you see each block develope with hotels and the like.  It'll be like having a whole Monopoly city on your desk.  This could then be applied to any board game.  This would provide many benefits to traditional board games in that you'll never have to carry around the box and its many pieces; No more missing pieses; and no more cleaning up after the game lol.  The posibilites are endless.
 
Traditional Console games
 
AR Advanced Wars
What if Nintendo were to release AR Advanced Wars with a huge board game type of card.  This would allow you to have an inveractive war map in 3d on your table or floor allowing you to walk around and access your battle situation from every angle.  It'll be so sweet seeing mini tanks running around your kitchen lol.
AR Fight Night
Now imagine EA's Fight Night on a board card.  You'll then see a boxing ring spring up on your table.  It'll be so sweet to have your own little Friday Night Fights in your living room lol.  Having the boxers move around in the ring would be amazing. 
 
AR Soul Calibur
This could be applied to any 3d fighting game of your choice.  Again, how sweet would it be to have your fights on the kitchen table where as the edge of your table would be the ring out lol. 
 
If AR cards can be this complex then the posibilites are endless with game adaptations.  I have to run now but I'll be back on tonight to continue with this discussion.  I really hope these ideas are possible with these AR cards, even if they are not to the extent of what I'm getting at in my post.

11

Nintendo Gaming / HDMI upscaler for the Wii available now, so it seems

« on: March 25, 2010, 07:19:16 PM »

Hey everyone, starting this thread to discuss an item I ran into about 2 days ago.  Now I do like to consider myself to be tech savy but not enough to really get into the details on how this might work or weather it is worth the investment.  What I'm talking about is a third party upscaler for the Wii which upscales the output to 1080p.  Here's the link to a page with further info on the item and a pic.
 

http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=118297[/URL']http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=118297"]http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=118297[/URL]
 
Now, I'm in no way trying to advertise this item by way of this thread, I just wanted to create some conversation on its possible merits.  I went ahead and took a risk and ordered the item, which is expensive for my taste but I figured what the hell.  As soon as it arives, I'll provide my impression of its quality and would be happy to field some questions any of you may have. 
 
For the time being though, can anyone with a little more know-how explain how this works and if the results could be considered decent?  I know that HDTVs already have upscaling features standard but I've heard the quality is not the greatest and that there is some lag.  Here's hoping this doesn't fall into that category.

12

Nintendo Gaming / Black Sigil: Blade of the Exile: trying to help out the underdogs....

« on: March 08, 2009, 12:05:58 PM »

Hey, how's everyone been?  I haven't contributed to this site in what seems like over a year as I've mentioned in my other thread.  I've popped in every now and then to see what the word is though lol.  There ain't a better place on the web, IMO, than this and N-sider to discuss video games. 

Anyways, enough of the formalities.  I'm here to try and spread the word on an indie rpg thats releasing soon for the DS.  Its been in developement for over 5 yrs now (maybe 8 but don't quote me on it lol).  I'm sure some of you might have got wind of it over the years under different names.  It was once called Project Exile when it was still being developed for the GBA.  It started off as a GBA game with no publisher but was eventually moved to the DS given the long developement time. I'm not in the mood to type in all the details of the game so I'll just provide links to the company's site and some previews that have been posted as of late.  I'm sure they will be more helpfull than I. 

Here's the developer's site (It hasn't really been updated much and its a little low budget but just give it a chance)
http://www.studioarchcraft.com/

Here are some previews that have come up, there are more around but these are the ones I can think of at the moment.
IGN.
http://ds.ign.com/articles/957/957773p1.html
Gamespot
http://www.gamespot.com/ds/rpg/projectexile/news.html?sid=6205117&mode=previews
RPGamer
http://www.rpgamer.com/games/other/nds/projexile/projexileimp2.html

As you can see, this game has an old school vibe to it.  It has been described in one of the previews I've read as having Secret of Mana's animation, Final Fantasy 6's visuals and Chrono Trigger's battle system (with a slight variation).  The developers claim its a throwback to the golden age of the SNES rpgs. 

I'm really excited for this game and will be purchasing it day one becuase, in today's business, I love to see the little guys survive.  Plus, the game has recieved some positive previews.  The release has been pushed back to Apr 14th but given how long some people have been waiting for this game (years), another month isn't going to hurt.  It's currently only available to purchase at Amazon.com for 27.99.  Here are some pictures to give everyone some idea how it looks if they aren't in the mood to hit the links.





Those images were before the transition to DS.  All thats new on the DS is a shoddy looking Map and info being added to the top screen.  Its a helpfull little addition even if it does look a little cheap.  Given the developers are so small though, its forgiven lol.

13

Nintendo Gaming / Magician's Quest: Mysterious Times: What AC:City Folk should've strived for...

« on: March 08, 2009, 11:59:36 AM »

Hey people, haven't been on this site since back during the PlanetGamecube days.  I created this thread over at another site but thought it'll be a good idea to bring it over here allso as I see this topic hasn't come up (searched the forums for the titile).  I think this game has a good chance to be a sleeper hit but hopefully more.  Magician's Quest: Mysterious Times is a DS game by Konami which could be called a mix between Animal Crossing and Harry Potter.  Someone over at the Gamespot forums has put some time into the japanese version and posted some info on his experience with the game.  I'll provide you with his post as I believe it provides key details which help showcase the differences with it and Animal Crossing. 

post on Gamespot by RayHorak

Yes, I played the Jap Version for some time to try it out, and although I couldn't read a single word, this one seems just soo much better than AC in virtually every aspect. The world feels actually alive and the residents actually do stuff instead of walking around randomly, sometimes holding a tool but doing nothing with it. The people do have real diverse personalities, also depending on your relationship with them and you can actually do stuff with them instead of just talking (adventures anyone?). There is some kind of storyline going on with the adventures you get once a week.There is much more to this game to do besides just collecting all the items (Although you can do that too of course, there are about 1,500 different items or so). You start out living in a dorm, but I read you can buy your own house later on (Other residents live in houses, in the doorm I believe and there is a hotel in the city where there are guys). Now also the people themselves are much more diverse than in AC. In Ac, you had all kinds of animals, with you being the only human. Here, you also have animals, humans, and other weird characters. Guys with Pumpkins as head, At least two robot-like guys (which you can date, yes, you can date a robot. And the robots actually TALK like robots too! It seems they spent much time for little details like that) In AC there were 6 different personalities in total (3 for male, 3 for female residents), so you ended up with not much diversity. Here the people do have personalities and wether you have a good relationship with them or not has actually an impact on the game.

The brooms are basically your vehicle in the game, you go faster with them and there are a lot of different brooms there.

Let's not even go how the whole game area has so much more than in AC, Here you have the school, the city, a beach, caves to explore, a haunted house, there are soo many places to visit and do stuff with.

Everything you do actually has an impact on the world and the people and they will change accordingly.

The whole magic component has so much to it too, spells for making yourself invisible and stuff just makes the game soo much fun and the wi-fi potential for multiplayer fun is basically endless.

There is also a thing called "Strange time" or "Mysterious time" that happens randomly when you play. In "Strange time", you guessed it, all kinds of strange things happen. Dead come to life, weird characters appear and possibilities for rare items open.

Yes, I am really anxiously awaiting a release of this game I can actually read, and so should all of you, this might just be the best game of its kind ever.

Here are some pictures also to give you an idea of how it looks.





Here is the info from the product page at Gamestop.

1,500 customizable features including clothing, characters, spell upgrades, furniture and accessories

52 mysterious adventures for players to solve using their magic abilities
150 in game characters each with unique reactions depending on how players interact
 
Time based evolution ranging from day to night, week to week over 365 days

Single player story mode, 2 player co-op or 4 player co-operative play

Use the standard alphabet or magic alphabet to chat with any player via Wi-Fi

Using the Nintendo DS download stations at retailers consumers can access additional items for their game

Magician’s Quest: Mysterious Times utilizes both Nintendo DS screens; one for casting spells and character interaction and the second for telling the game story.

Play with up to 4 friends via Wi-Fi to complete tasks together and combine magical abilities

As you can see, the game looks almost like an exact carbon copy of Animal Crossing but when you think about it, thats not such a bad thing.  For all of us who have grown tired of the AC formula that Nintendo has failed to significantly advance over the years, this is our game. 

I seriously can't wait to get my hands on this game.  Hopefully it'll give me that same special feeling of wonder and discovery that I got when I first played Animal Crossing on the Cube years back. 

If really hope this game gets the attention it deserves and succeeds enough to get Nintendo's attention.  I'm suprise its taken this long for someone to copy the AC formula but I hope this gets Nintendo to get off their ass and push out a legit AC sequal.

This game is due to release May 5 in the US but its coming out March 13th in the UK.  I'm more than likely going to import the game so as soon as I get it, I'll be more than glad to answer any questions.  Sorry for the lengthly post lol.

14

General Chat / Metriod Movie

« on: June 11, 2004, 11:53:01 PM »

I think its startin off on the right foot by having john woo involved.  Hopefully they leave the franchise as is and dont alter anything.  Ive read its supposed to take place during metriod 1's storyline.  If the production value is high up there and its taking in the right direction, this could be a sick movie.  What are your opinions on how the movie should be made and who you think should be casted as samus.  EGM had the girl from T3 (which I think is perfect after seeing her pic again).  On a side note though, what do yous think of a movie based on samus hunting down the predators from the predator movies.  I think that'll be insanely hot lol.

15

Nintendo Gaming / Gamecube+Squareenix+E3

« on: May 13, 2004, 11:16:08 AM »

Has anyone heard any news there showing at e3.  Last I remember they were supposed to have another gamecube game in the works.  This shouldve been the best time to drop some news.   Only thing Ive heard is that they have a nintendo ds game supposedly on display but I havent seen or ready anything on that either.

16

Nintendo Gaming / Legend of Golfer ???

« on: April 08, 2004, 10:33:19 AM »

just read an article over an igncube of a game nintendo is developing called Legend of Golfer.  They are sayin that some are speculating it to be nintendo returning to developing real sports game and this is a golf game.  Others say it could be a rpg.  I'm leaning towards it being an rpg (action or turned based) becuase the I dont see why if they are trying to make a return to realistic sports games, why would they use the world legend to describe someone by the name of Golfer which is clearly a fictional name.    

17

Nintendo Gaming / Final Fantasy:Guilty Wing???

« on: March 19, 2004, 10:32:12 PM »

I was just at gamecube europe and they ran a story on a rumoured ff game.  Visit their site for the info and link to a picture.  Basically Vjump (of Never Happening rumour fame) is goin to shed some light on the game in their next issue.  On the link on their site, they show a picture of a teaser wit the title Final Fantasy: Guilty Wing and at the bottom there is text where you can see ps2 and gcn.  If this is all true, its basically a definite we getting another ff on gamecube.  What do you think this game could be like.  Ive read that it could be a ff game combining some of the themes of ff 7-9 but I aint sure what that means lol.  Aint sure why gamecube europe is the only site that Ive found thats running the romour given that theirs a link with some info to go by.

18

Nintendo Gaming / New Final Fantasy Rumors

« on: February 21, 2004, 02:14:59 AM »

I was just at nintendojo and they were speaking of a new rumor goin about basically stating that all the ffs on the psx 7-9 could possibly be ported over to gamecube enhanced like metal gear and resident evil have.  I dont know what to believe anymore but I hope this turns out to be true.  What do you guys think of this rumor and if bloodworth or anyone else from this site can shed some light on if they've heard this or not.  

19

General Chat / CAPCOM AND SK CO DEVELOP GAMECUBE GAME!!!

« on: January 21, 2004, 10:09:53 PM »

Dont we wish lol, but wouldnt it be great if capcom and silicon knights co developed a survival horror game for gamecube (or n5).  I can only imagine how that can turn out.  SKs attention to detail and gameplay matched with capcom's production values.  A game with the writing, atmosphere, voice acting, sound affects and ease of control of eternal darkness plus the character design and capcom's level of graphic detail.  It would be a match made in heaven lol.  Hey, you never know, it could happen, SK is already working with Konami, maybe Capcom aint far down the ride.  Colabs seem to be the way nintendo and its affiliates are going now adays and I'm all for it lol.  Let me know what you think and of any other colaps you think could be good for gamecube (or n5 given the time frame of developement lol)  

20

Nintendo Gaming / N5 Nintendo's trojan horse for LAN gaming

« on: October 07, 2003, 12:59:52 AM »

Ive mentioned this in a few other topics so I decided to start a topic on this just to get some feedback on what everyone thinks bout it.  I was thinking, since nintendo seems to be getting into LAN gaming that maybe they'll use the N5 to help LAN overtake the current fad of the slow to grow and little profitable internet gaming.  

All that nintendo would have to do is release the N5 in a portable shape (such as the gamecube) and have it come with an lcd flip top screen.  Since they will most likely not be including dvd and whatnot that the competitors will be puttin into their next systems, they can use that money designated for those extra options and put it into the lcd screen.  The lcd screen cost wont be as big as a prob since it'll most likely bump up the price of the system to the range of its competitors.  Even so, if the price is still a lil much, nintendo should have the balls to release their system at a loss to stay competative, they can afford to do it.  A broadband connect will be standard on the system and the cables for LAN gaming will come bumdled with the system.  Another nice feature that nintendo has created with the gameboy advance generation is the ability to link up games on one cart.  This should be applyed with the N5.  Have games with limited LAN games if useing just one cd but full LAN options are opened when all systems have the cd.  This will give uneasy consumers a taste of LAN gaming and will hopefully hook them into havin everyone buy the game in order to get the full experience.

All these extras included with the system (lcd screen, broadband con, wires) will ensure that everyone that buys the system will be LAN enabled and thus will not segregate the consumer base as if they sold everything seperately.  The prob with LAN is that its too much work and too expensive to take advantage of.   In order to get the LAN experience now, one will have to gather as many tvs possible, all the required cables, the systems and all the games, not to mention a room big enough for all this.

All in all, I think its quite possible for nintendo to pull this off.  It wont be seen as a gimmick to the consumers IMO.  It aint as risky as goin into the internet fad and for everyone thats played counterstrike on a LAN network knows the pluses it has over playing through the internet.  You dont get all the extra downloadable extras but its more secure, besides you have to pay a price for glitch free gaming.  If marketed right, this could be the next big thing.  With the lcd screens, everyone can just bring their N5s over and gather around in a circle or whater, flip up their personal screens and play LAN with a crowd and have the excitement of seein everyone's faces after youve snuck up behind them fragged them and whatnot.  Its always good to see the person you talking sh*t to in a game lol, makes the win that much sweeter IMO.  I've made this long enough, let me know what yous think.

21

Nintendo Gaming / Apple & Nintendo in the sack???

« on: September 27, 2003, 06:38:30 PM »

I was readin over at the ny post bs thread and noticed somethin that nolimit19 had posted.  He mentioned bout the rumor of apple and nintendo, and up until now I hadnt even heard of this.  I went to the link he provided (http://homepage.mac.com/planetpm/macgamecube/first.html) and read the page and I'm sold lol.  I'm suprised I havent seen a discussion on this here yet ( I dont know though, I didnt do a search but I check up in the forums daily and never once seen anything of the such)  Basically I think this is highly possible and just starting this up to put yous on to the rumor ( if you havent been put on already) like nolimit19 did for me lol and to propperly start a discussion.

22

Nintendo Gaming / square enix's next gamecube game

« on: September 27, 2003, 05:12:20 PM »

We all know by now that square enix have another gamecube game in the works.  What do you think it'll be ?  I know there have been rumors in the past of a crono trigger sequal and with recent news, it doesnt look like we'll be gettin that sequal of ff7 since its a movie now.  Some wishful thinking of mine would be another installment in the secret of mana games.  One resembling secret of mana 1&2 on the super famicon as apposed to that booty legend of mana on the psx.  They can implement gba-gc connectivity with the release of the secret of mana game on the gameboy advance and they can also enhance the 4 player elements that are in final fantasy CC.  Besides, we all know that the 4 player co op will fit in better within the secret of mana games than in the final fantasy since co op play has been in almost every mana game before.  Anyways, what other educated guesses of wishful thoughts do you fellow gamers have on what square enix will have in store for us.

23

Nintendo Gaming / Rumors back FF VII & XII

« on: September 05, 2003, 11:59:48 PM »

Nintendojo is sayin that there are rumors goin around again  that there could be a remake/port of FFVII and/or possible release of FFXII along with its ps2 debut.  I know this has been talked bout before but seems like somethin could be up again.  What do you think of the possibilities of these actually bein true.  IMO I think maybe FF7 is highly possible and if we even get FF12, I dont see it coming out along side the ps2.  Sony will want to at leave have it exclusive for some time.

24

Nintendo Gaming / "N5" design ideas

« on: August 21, 2003, 06:05:50 PM »

I was just thinking of how nintendo's next system will look.  The codename right now that I'm hearin is N5 and for some reason it makes me think of the NES.  I have an idea for the N5's design and I want to hear what people think bout it and want to see your ideas for how it should look.  My idea is to make it squared resembling the US NES, platinum colored with an option for black but the platinum would be the promotional one.  would have 4 ( or more lol) slots for controlers in the front and where the NES flip up lid for the cartridges was, put in a loadin tray for the disks.  I know its kinda basic but they could put like a blue N5 (if they keep the name) on the top of the system or somewhere in the front of the system, like in the uper right corner or something.  It can retain its compact style that the japanese love and I think old school video game players will really like the look and feel of nostalgia.  Also it wont look so much like a kiddy's toy to the general public since there are already a few dvd players that are scared and silver/platinum even though they are slimmer and longer but you get the picture.  Well let me know what you think lol, hopefully you's can envision it like I have lol or maybe better.

25

Nintendo Gaming / Factor 5+ATI+Microsoft+Nintendo= ??rumors

« on: August 16, 2003, 10:02:09 AM »

http://www.nintendojo.com/infocus/view_item.php?1060968986

I was just thinking, Microsoft and Nintendo together in a joint effort would be insane lol.  The combined effort would solve both of their probs, for Nintendo, they would be able to do a better job moving systems outside of japan and it'll also bring them right to the forefront of online gaming with microsoft's xbox live structure.  For microsoft, it'll help them break into the steel wall (for an american company) that is japan.  We all know that microsoft alone cannot break into the japanese market.  I honestly dont think nintendo will do such an allience since it doesnt really seem to be their style but with their new president, you may never know.  Wonder how willing he is to put nintendo back on top.  What if nintendo is willin to team up for a generation or 2 to work out gettin rid of that "kiddie" image they have and once all this kiddie image thing blows over (since a generation or 2 from now, they'll be a new crop of gamers that dont know much bout Nintendo's old image becuase of the alliance) they'll go back to developing systems themselves and be in a better position to reclaim its throne.  I'm just talkin out ma ass lol and wondering what everyone thinks bout this but it does make some sence and will help solve alot of probs for both companies.  If this goes through, I see Nintendo benefiting the most from this, developing a new image and getting the know how on online gaming.