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Nintendo Gaming / StreetPass Glitch Experiment

« on: September 06, 2013, 06:10:01 PM »

Does anyone remember the StreetPass glitch that occurred when you replaced the battery in the original 3DS? After you put the battery back in and turned the system back on, the clock would be reset to zeros. You could simply readjust the clock back to the correct time. However, the clock reset indicated that you had activated the StreetPass glitch. From that moment on, you could no longer StreetPass with any Mii’s that you had previously StreetPassed with before.

Many people encountered this glitch when they replaced the standard 1300mAh 3DS battery with the Nyko PowerPak+. I encountered this glitch when I replaced my standard battery with a 2500mAh one. At the time I had only StreetPassed with two Mii’s, my brother and a Best Buy. I was my bro’s only StreetPass at the time too. So, he also upgraded his battery, but then he performed the only known fix for the glitch: a system format. After he formatted his system, we were able to StreetPass again. I never did reformat my system. I still, to this very day, have never been able to StreetPass with that Best Buy again.

Now, years later, I have purchased a black 3DS XL. I wanted to replace the standard 1750mAh 3DS XL battery with a 2500mAh one. This time I could replace the battery first, before I even powered the system on. However, I wanted to use this opportunity to test if the glitch still exists or if it has been fixed and is no longer an issue. Here is what I did and what I found out.

First, I powered on the 3DS XL and set it up so it could StreetPass and SpotPass.
Then I StreetPassed the 3DS XL with the 3DS twice.
I also performed any updates the came through SpotPass.
After the second StreetPass, I powered the 3DS XL off, plugged it into the wall charger, and then I removed the battery while the charging cable was still plugged into the system.
I waited 5 minutes before I put the new battery into the system.
After I put the new battery into the system, I powered it back on and checked the time.
The 3DS XL still showed the correct time!
Next, I unplugged the charging cable from the 3DS XL, powered it off, and then I removed the battery while the charging cable was unplugged from the system.
I waited 5 minutes before I put the battery back into the system.
After I put the battery back into the system, I powered it back on and checked the time.
The 3DS XL had reset its clock to zeros.
Next, I readjusted the clock back to the correct time.
Finally, I waited 8 hours to see if the 3DS XL and the 3DS would StreetPass again.
The 3DS XL and the 3DS successfully StreetPassed after I had replaced the battery and reset the clock in the 3DS XL. Apparently, the glitch has been fixed and is no longer an issue.
 

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Nintendo Gaming / A Change of Perspective - Full 3D Camera Controls for Super Mario 3D World

« on: August 01, 2013, 09:22:54 AM »

A fundamental and critical difference between Super Mario 3D Land and Super Mario 3D World seems to have been entirely overlooked. In SM3DL, you can only rotate the camera a little bit to either side, however in SM3DW you have the ability to freely rotate that camera all around your character like in previous 3D Mario games. Apparently, you can either use the motion controls of the GamePad or you can use the second analog stick to freely control the camera. This is a very significant difference between the two games that should give SM3DW a more Super Mario 64 feel than what SM3DL had.
 
Since camera controls are so important for 3D platformers, it looks as though SM3DW will be providing us the best of both worlds by defaulting to the parallel-track camera of Super Mario Galaxy 2 and SM3DL, yet also allowing us to freely control that camera, at will, by using the motion controls or the second analog stick as in SM64 and Super Mario Sunshine. I just wonder how well the camera controls will work during multiplayer.
 
“How co-op/multiplayer-centric is Super Mario 3D World, say someone wants to play it as a single-player game? What’s the single-player experience like by comparison?"
 
Mr. Hayashida: Yes, we spent a lot of time thinking about the single-player experience in this game, particularly when you’re using the GamePad while playing it, which is my personal choice as well. You can use the touch screen on the GamePad to interact with hidden coins and blocks and reveal them. Or you can activate the gyro camera controls on the touch screen, which you can use to look around in the game, much like you would look around in Super Mario 64 or Super Mario Sunshine with the camera controls in that game. I feel like we’ve gotten to the point where it’s feeling really good. And looking around in the 3D world is very important not just for navigation but also for being able to explore and to enjoy the fun of finding things that were hidden.”
 
http://techland.time.com/2013/06/14/exploring-super-mario-3d-world-with-its-development-team
 
If you listen to the E3 Super Mario 3D World Developer Direct video at around 4 mins 50 seconds, you will hear Koichi Hayashida explain that the camera system for the single player mode of Super Mario 3D World is similar to Super Mario 64.
 
“In past games, like Super Mario 64, you were able to move the camera around while you play. You can play just like that in this game, Super Mario 3D World.”
 
http://www.ign.com/videos/2013/06/11/super-mario-3d-world-developer-direct-commentary-e3-2013

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Nintendo Gaming / Touch Generations U

« on: July 31, 2013, 03:38:44 PM »

People don’t seem to realize that Nintendo has told us their strategy for the future of the Wii U. I have seen a few articles lately that say things like, Nintendo’s games aren’t making innovative use of the GamePad, the games that Nintendo needs most aren’t coming out until 2014, and Nintendo needed to release new experiences instead of relying on safe franchises.
 
Here is the basic story of the Wii U. Nintendo decided to invest money into creating the GamePad as a second screen experience instead of putting that money into either making the system more powerful or making the system less expensive. When the 3DS started to struggle, Nintendo had to reallocate resources away from Wii U development onto the 3DS. Due to the limited resources available and the new HD technology, software development for the Wii U took much longer than Nintendo initially expected. Although there were over 30 games available at launch, including New Super Mario Bros U and Nintendo Land; somehow, nothing performed similarly to Wii Sports or New Super Mario Bros Wii.
 
As the 3DS recovered, the Wii U development slowly regained its resources. Because none of the initial launch window games took off or performed particularly well, Nintendo needed to revitalize the Wii U just as they did for the 3DS. They planned to do that by first releasing familiar Nintendo franchises of proven sellers in order to build sales momentum. Then, they would release games that make new and innovative use of the GamePad.
 
Nintendo has recouped their development resources back for the Wii U, they have gotten familiar with developing on HD hardware, and they are pushing forward with familiar franchises first, in order to revitalize sales. Once Mario Kart 8 has been released, prepare yourself for some of the best, most innovative games that Nintendo has ever developed. At this point, we will see the games that are meant to sell like the Touch Generations games did. These games will make great, inventive use of the GamePad, and they will be fresh new experiences that will likely include new IP instead of old franchises.
 
Nintendo is able to remain confident instead of being worried about the Wii U’s current predicament because they know that what they will be releasing, in the future, will be incredible. Nintendo has pretty much spelled all of this out for us already, just like with their Nintendo Direct at the beginning of the year, where they told us what they would be showing at E3. No one seems to be listening, and they will be shocked and amazed at the software that Nintendo will showcase after Mario Kart 8’s release.

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Nintendo Gaming / Nintendo Network Communities

« on: July 20, 2012, 02:32:21 PM »

The Community feature from Mario Kart 7 should be included for all online games for all of Nintendo’s systems by being implemented at the system level within the firmware of the 3DS and Wii U. The Communities feature should be just as ingrained into the Nintendo Network online experience as the MiiVerse. The benefits that the Communities feature provide are deceptively significant.
 
There are several web sites that host online communities through blogs, forums, podcasts, and other communication methods. When members of these communities want to play games together, they usually have to post their Friend Codes up on the site using these methods of communication. Then, they must enter all of those posted codes into their systems. Next, they may schedule when they will be playing so they can actively look for each other and connect their games.
 
With Mario Kart 7’s Communities feature, that process is vastly improved. When members of these communities want to pay Mario Kart 7 together, each community posts its single Community Code. Multiple codes are only necessary if the communities want to host various modes or rule sets for play. Then, the members enter the Community Code and are able to simply join into the community play without having to enter many Friend Codes from many players. They may still schedule when they will be playing, but now it will be possible to just jump into the session at any time regardless of how many others are in play.
 
The Communities feature also allows the players within these communities to play with each other without having to divulge their individual Friend Codes on the Internet. This benefit should not be undervalued. It is reasonable to feel protective of one’s Friend Code. Many more players will likely join in the community games when they no longer need to put their personal Friend Code out there. The less intrusive Community Codes should help to grow Nintendo’s online population.
 
The Communities feature works spectacularly well for Mario Kart 7. It is, frankly, shocking to not be hearing about its inclusion as a standard feature of the Nintendo Network and MiiVerse. Its integration into the 3DS and Wii U at the system level should be a given, common sense feature that is only a matter of time. Nintendo thought about including the Communities feature in the 3DS’s firmware, but they did not have the time to implement it before launch. So, they put it in Mario Kart 7 instead. The Communities feature should be integrated into the 3DS’s firmware through a system update, and it should be included within the Wii U’s firmware from day one. Hopefully, this will come to pass when Wii U launches, and the Nintendo Network account system is set up to work with both the Wii U and the 3DS.

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Nintendo Gaming / What Super Smash Bros Can Learn From AKI’s Wrestling Games

« on: March 21, 2012, 10:14:09 AM »

I remember playing Karate Champ in the arcades and on the NES. It was fun, but it was too inconsistent. Too often, I would punch or kick my opponent only to be surprised that the hit was not registered by the game. Without reliably being able to convey my commands, there was no satisfaction for playing successfully. It seemed to be all up to chance whether or not my attacks would connect as opposed to relying on my actual skill at the game.
 
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/v/bd5q27kgbSs[/youtube]
I'm kicking your FACE!
 
Moving forward to when I played Street Fighter II in the arcades and on the SNES, I finally felt the satisfaction of my input accurately being represented on the screen. In the beginning, I did not even know what a Dragon Punch was; instead I learned to rely on crouching fierce punches and sweeps. I remember hearing cheers from behind me as I won a match by accidentally performing a Dragon Punch when I intended to do a simple uppercut. From that point on, I transitioned from accepting simple, reliable moves to committing to learn the complexities of the game.
 
I went from casually playing fighting games, through being engaged in the combat, to obsessing over being able to pull of any move whenever I needed to perform it. I was young, and I had the time to train. Looking back, however, I wonder if my time Dragon Punching from one side of the screen to the other, over and over again, could have been better spent just playing through the game. When I played Street Fighter with my friends, we were always very competitive. It got to a point where it wasn’t really as fun as it was exhausting. I was happy when we started playing AKI’s wrestling games as they were just as competitive, but allowed me to have more fun. How; by not forcing me to train my muscle memory in order to pull of the moves.
 
The control scheme for No Mercy allows you to use one universal list of inputs for all of the characters in the game. The moves are simple to perform, and they are accurately executed. At the same time, the same input will perform different moves for different characters. This allows for a wide variety of characters with a wide variety of moves without the need for complicated controls. Because of the implementation of timing for counters and the rock-paper-scissors depth to the striking-grappling-defending mechanics, the fighting can be very strategic. The result is a varied and complex, strategic fighter that can be played with a focus on what to do instead of how to do it.
 
The same concepts of controls, variety, and even the strategic elements can be found in Super Smash Bros. This allows for competitive play that is still very fun and intuitive without having to be stressful or tedious. If you think back to how you felt when you used to play No Mercy, or any of AKI’s wrestling games, and then think of how you feel when you play Smash Bros, perhaps you might notice some similarities. When comparing the two fighters, you may also notice a glaring disparity that has yet to be included in previous Smash Bros releases. That missing feature is character creation and customization.
 
There are likely other features that Smash Bros can and should look to No Mercy for such as combination moves for characters that have teamed up or having different “win” goals besides just using the number of ko’s or coins via the use of specialized match types. Also, both lack a co-op story mode. All of these pale in comparison to Smash Bros lack of character and move customization. Based on what was done in AKI’s games, it seems like a good practice to lock the move sets of the official roster. The magic is in having all of the different moves of all of the different characters at your disposal when creating your own characters. As we have seen with the weapon collection, combination, and items system in Kid Icarus, there is hope for a robust customization system in Smash Bros as well.
 
The move sets must be robust, but I’m not sure as to what kind of options we can expect in terms of character creation. Mii’s would be my first guess as to the type of characters that we may create in Smash Bros, but it might be a good idea to, say, copy over the Donkey Kong official character from his slot on the roster and paste him into a customizable slot, just like in AKI’s games. Then we could modify the move set using ones from other characters. This would allow us to not only make Mii’s with customized moves but also have personalized versions of each of the main characters too.
 
The addition of customization features in Smash Bros seems to be very likely thanks to Kid Icarus: Uprising. I would also like to see how Smash Bros can handle 3D depth of movement in the environments instead of always being 2D gameplay. No Mercy was not tethered to a 2D plane, so this might work. Again, Kid Icarus shows us that 3rd person gameplay through 3D environments is feasible. We’ll see just how far and how wide Sakurai wants to change the series. I’m confident that steps will be made in the right directions. It’s the giant leaps that I’m concerned about.

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Nintendo Gaming / Wii U Must Support An Equivalent of Direct X 11/Open GL 4.2

« on: October 24, 2011, 12:47:24 PM »

If you look up the specs for any next-generation game engine you will see that there is at least one thing they all have in common, Direct X 11/Open GL 4.2 support. The only other major commonality seems to be a focus on multiprocessor (around 20 processors) support. Rallying support for an equivalent of Direct X 11/Open GL 4.2 functionality is likely much more feasible than asking Nintendo to add a 20-core processor to the Wii U.

If the Wii U releases without support for an equivalent of DirectX 11/OpenGL 4.2, then it would be in a similar situation as the 3DS releasing without a second slide pad. Except I don't think an expansion would be able to fix it.

It seems fairly obvious that the next generation development efforts are based around DirectX 11/OpenGL 4.2 functionality (Feel free to include any engines that I may have left out):

Epic Games' Unreal Engine 4
id Software's id Tech 6
Crytek's CryENGINE 4
DICE's Frostbite 3
Techland's Chrome Engine 6
CD Projekt's RED Engine 2
Capcom's MT Framework 3
Square-Enix's Luminous Engine
Valve's Source Engine

I can’t emphasize enough how critical this is. As long as the Wii U can support DirectX 11/OpenGL 4.2 level functionality and features, it should be able to compete with the new systems that Microsoft and Sony will eventually release. Of course the Wii U can run ports of games developed for the PS3 and 360, but the Wii U's ability to run the next-gen engines, at their full capability, will secure its position as a viable console for developers to release their future multiplatform games onto during the upcoming generation of consoles.

If the Wii U can handle the next-gen game engines that require a DirectX 11/OpenGL 4.2 level of functionality and features, then it will enjoy the multiplatform support that the PS3 and 360 had. If the Wii U cannot run the next-gen engines, then it will suffer from having a similar level of multiplatform support that the Wii had.