Messages

176

Movies & TV / Re: New Movies/TV Shows we should keep an eye out for!

« on: July 24, 2012, 09:22:10 PM »

Again, this one's not new, but Sherlock is absolutely fantastic. The 1st season's on Netflix. It's essentially taking classic Sherlock Holmes stories and setting them in modern day London. It works surprisingly well.

177

General Chat / Re: The Dark Knight Rises with SPOILERS

« on: July 24, 2012, 12:48:13 AM »

Just gonna say that the last 30 or so minutes probably ties with the last bit of The Prestige and the middle of TDK (from the interrogation till the hospital) as my favorite section of any Nolan film. Just....wow. It started out WAY too slow, and it lost its focus in the middle, but MAN is that last bit good.


Also, can we please leave the shooting out of this and take the movie for what it is? Please?

178

Podcast Discussion / Re: RetroActive #23: Wario Land 4 (Official Discussion)

« on: July 24, 2012, 12:39:39 AM »

Ok, I've finished the game with the exception of one level and three bosses. And now, to defend my statement:

@PixelatedPixies

True, not every game has to be a revolution. Heck, some of my favorite games (such as Mario Sunshine and Portal 2, thus my username) are downright derivative. However, the difference there is that the games that those two are imitating (Mario 64 and the original Portal) are absolutely fantastic, and the tweaks made on the original formula (Fludd and the gels, respectively) are very effective. The same goes for SMB3. It was a perfected version of an already amazing formula. This game is nowhere near "amazing". It's a pleasant, decent puzzle-platformer. End of story. I know I'm sounding like a broken record at this point, but I STILL can't see why people voted for this as the RetroActive game. The discussion should be....erm....interesting, to say the least.


(Also, does anyone know if the segment will be this week or after the big 3-0-0?

179

Podcast Discussion / Re: RetroActive #23: Wario Land 4 (Official Discussion)

« on: July 17, 2012, 10:38:31 AM »

Well, this is my first Wario Land, I just played it for a bit, and I think it's a good game. Not great. Just a decent, almost run of the mill, puzzle-platformer.

I have to be honest, I never thought I'd hear Warioland 4 being described as 'run of the mill'. True, it is just a puzzle-platformer, but one which in my opinion is completely bonkers. What other series would have you turn into a zombie so that when you fall and hit grating below your body turns to pulp and slides through? Everything from being stung to get an inflated head and float to deliberately lighting yourself on fire so that you run at high speeds but with limited control. For me this game was anything but run of the mill.

Yeah, I kinda worded that wrong. No, the art style and certain gameplay elements are certainly not run of the mill. And heck, even the "strange" powers are essentially normal gameplay elements dressed up in crazy costumes. Floating upwards, falling through platforms, jumping high distances -- they've been used before. However, this game just decides to spruce those, dare I say it again, run of the mill elements up. But yes, the way the game looks is certainly unlike no other, I'll give you that.


I'm about two-thirds of the way done with the game now, and my opinion is virtually the same as before. However, one particular level stood out to me as being the absolute pinnacle of what this kind of game could be. And that level is......The Big Board. That level's flow, its concept, the puzzles -- everything about it was pretty much as good as Wario Land 4 could possibly get. It introduced a completely new, one time only gameplay concept (the board), and it also had a great level surrounding the new concept. By far the best level I've played so far.


But y'know, I still can't shake the feeling that this just isn't that fantastic of a game. I mean, if I was rating it, I'd probably give it a 7.5 or so. It's still worth playing, but for my money most of the other GBA Ambassador games are better. Just my two cents.

Sure it's pretty badass to zip through a level like a motherfucker, but you pretty much had to know the level off by heart and it really detracts from the enjoyment when you have to crawl your way through a level.

Sonic is as much about noob traps as it is about rings and terrible voice acting.
Spikes follow slides/loops/rails/other speed inducing stuff like night follows day.

That is probably the perfect way to describe Sonic games, if you ask me. Although if you count the Dreamcast and beyond stuff, you have to add horrible glitches and even worse mini-games to the list of what Sonic's about.

180

Podcast Discussion / Re: RetroActive #23: Wario Land 4 (Official Discussion)

« on: July 16, 2012, 04:02:27 PM »

Well, this is my first Wario Land, I just played it for a bit, and I think it's a good game. Not great. Just a decent, almost run of the mill, puzzle-platformer. I kind of wish the levels were a bit more linear, so it was a little harder to get lost, but generally it seems to be just about the right difficulty. By far my favorite parts of the game occur after you jump on the frog statue's head, as the races against the clock back to the start are really fun. As for getting to the frog? Eh, those parts are alright, but it doesn't really play like a Nintendo game to me, for whatever reason. It looks like one, what with the wacky powers and all, but it's just not as tight and enjoyable as other comparable Nintendo games. I'll post more thoughts after I play some more.

(As far as what has been said above me goes, I'm with Einstein on this one -- the "feel" definitely hasn't clicked with me yet. Hopefully it will. Also, for anyone who hasn't started yet, I HIGHLY recommend starting with the chamber directly to the right of the intro chamber. It's by far the easiest.)

181

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 298: How Many Licks Does It Take?

« on: July 16, 2012, 03:51:55 PM »

Your talk about Tales confused me... You talk about being forced to auto-battle: I assume you aren't talking about the part where you play Ash instead of Luke? I recall playing that guy manually though it was kinda annoying because he has some spells on his quick skill slots which are kinda suicidal to pull off in the middle of melee combat.

My thoughts exactly! I actually preferred playing Luke to Asch. Also Jonny, you do realize that you can set to the control style to "auto" at any time, don't you? I believe you press "select" when you're in the Artes menu until "auto" lights up.  (Also, I actually had no idea that you could change your main character for battles...thanks, James)


In other news, I really enjoyed the episode, guys. Great, per usual. Also (and I may be completely wrong about this), for some reason I get the feeling that next week's rumored "replacement" may have something to do with a certain Metallica and Treasure-loving Briton.....but I've been wrong before....

182

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 298: How Many Licks Does It Take?

« on: July 16, 2012, 10:25:41 AM »

Haven't listened yet, but I have to say that I'm SO glad that James picked up Tales of the Abyss. It's a fantastic game, and it seems right up his alley.....now, I shall listen to the episode.






Btw, did anyone else notice that this is the longest non-telethon or Famicast episode since 105?!?!

183

Podcast Discussion / Re: RetroActive #23 Poll: Second Chance Edition!

« on: June 27, 2012, 10:31:13 PM »

I chose Beyond Good and Evil simply because I own it, and I need a good reason to play it!

184

TalkBack / Re: SiNG Impressions

« on: June 27, 2012, 10:28:41 PM »

....As soon as I saw that subtitle, I wanted to punch my computer...

185

Podcast Discussion / Re: RFN E3 2012 The Half at Home Reacts

« on: June 06, 2012, 12:52:42 PM »

My main disappointment was that there wasn’t much time allocated to Pikmin 3 and NSMBU. They should have demonstrated NintendoLand first, and saved Pikmin until last, with a thorough showing.  They devoted extra time to Just Dance (which was shown yesterday); but didn’t show Assassins Creed on the GamePad (that alone would have capsized the other conference briefings of the game). Why?

My thoughts exactly. Did they REALLY think that the people there (adult male games journalists) would be interested in things like Just Dance or (especially) Sing??? Also, did they not think that nearly everyone had already played Arkham City eight months ago?!? Ugh....there were some great things shown, but they could have done a LOT better. Oh, and also, that ending with the "fireworks" was the dumbest things I've seen at an E3 conference since Microsoft spent half an hour detailing Internet Explorer.

186

Podcast Discussion / Re: RFN E3 2012 The Half at Home Reacts

« on: June 06, 2012, 12:46:45 PM »

BY FAR, the best surprise of E3, guys! Funny enough, after the press conference yesterday I was thinking, "You know, I wonder what Greg thought of this..." and would you look-a there! Can't wait to listen.

187

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 291: Good Night, Sweet Prince

« on: May 28, 2012, 04:50:25 PM »

Ha, I love how this heartfelt thread eventually fell into football talk. In true Greg fashion, I suppose. Anyway, I just want to say that this was one hell of an episode, and Greg, you will be truly missed. Also, James's speech was probably the saddest thing I've ever heard on a podcast. The only thing that could have made it greater would be if the theme from Twin Peaks had been used as the outro music.

188

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 293: Four on the Floor

« on: May 28, 2012, 04:42:32 PM »

Great episode, as always, gents. I had never heard of Cloudberry Kingdom before this, but it sounds GREAT. I'll have to pick it up. Also, the E3 coverage was spectacular, as usual. Greg just can't stay away, can he?

189

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 291: Good Night, Sweet Prince

« on: May 13, 2012, 08:39:08 PM »

OK, so here's my prediction as to what happens:

We soon discover that Ben Linus killed the real Guillame, and after bringing Guillame's dead body back to the island, The Spirit of Greg will then take on the form of Guillame. "Guillame" will then lead Jon and James to kill Jonny in a giant foot, after which they will find out that Guillame is actually Greg, as "Guillame" will then transform into a pillar of black smoke and kill Jonny's bodyguards.


All joking aside, I haven't listened to the episode yet. I'm looking forward to it, but...I'm kind of dreading it too. I feel like I've grown to know Greg over the years, even if I haven't actually met him. (Well, we played Mario Kart 7, but that doesn't really count.) More thoughts after I listen.

190

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 290: BOMZALDROPPEN

« on: May 09, 2012, 10:11:54 AM »

Wow, a Greg co-hosted Discover Music Project would be pretty epic.

191

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 290: BOMZALDROPPEN

« on: May 06, 2012, 10:35:42 PM »

This is quite possibly the saddest episode of RFN I've ever heard. But, I can't say I'm not surprised...but still, Mr. Leahy, you will be sorely missed. Can't wait until next week's big "say goodbye to Greg" episode. It's been great.

192

Podcast Discussion / Re: RFN Panel Edition Tridux: Live at PAX East 2012

« on: April 10, 2012, 08:38:15 PM »

In a way i secretly hope for a RFN UK Mini Panel featuring The Greg and Karlie and co.

Greg can even wear a joker costume to preserve his mysterious character.

This sounds oddly compelling. Well, not the joker part...

What do you mean?!? The Joker costume would be the best part! And Greg could do a Mark Hamill impersonation...

193

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 284: BB Action

« on: March 19, 2012, 12:47:08 PM »

Gasp! Greg didn't open with Ahoy, Ahoy! Maybe the world's ending in 2012 after all....

194

Nintendo Gaming / Re: RollerCoaster Tycoon 3D slated for end of Spring release

« on: March 17, 2012, 10:17:02 PM »

I am SO looking forward to this. RCT3 was freaking amazing. Man, I spent a lot of time with that game...

195

NWR Forums Discord / Re: The "Maxi Is Just a Little Too Involved In My Little Ponies" thread

« on: March 17, 2012, 10:09:48 PM »

OK, so I have a question. Maybe Maxi can help me out here. Why is it that MLP is popular among gamers in their mid 20s over other series that seem to fit the bill more, like say, Regular Show or Adventure Time?  Those are both (arguably) children's shows that include interesting characters, and loads of references to other media (i.e. video games), which are both things that fans of MLP (including Maxi) cite as some of the main reasons they enjoy the show. So, why has MLP caught on in the online community over other shows?

196

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 281: Y'all Come Back Now!

« on: February 27, 2012, 11:14:54 PM »

Bravo, gents! That was, in my opinion, the best of RFN in months. No features, nothing too special, just good ol' fashioned RFN goodness. Well done!

197

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 280: Sand in the Ointment

« on: February 20, 2012, 09:11:29 AM »

Also, while "Sand in the Ointment" was a great title for the episode, I can't see how you didn't name it "Like a Fine Coffee". Or, you could have just named it "Boom".

198

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 280: Sand in the Ointment

« on: February 20, 2012, 09:07:47 AM »

To me, the only games that I can think of in the last generation where gameplay and story were both equally well-done and integral are Portal and Portal 2. Other games like the Mario series, the Uncharted series, Ghost Trick, the Zelda series, and many, MANY others have really nailed one of the two, but not both. IMO, the Portal games are the best of the past generation.

199

TalkBack / Re: Radio Free Nintendo Hits PAX East for the Third Time

« on: February 16, 2012, 03:56:20 PM »

Who's up for Greg making the trip from across the pond?

200

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 279: Fo' Slo'

« on: February 12, 2012, 11:35:31 PM »

...make a Newt Gingrich JOKE. Excuse me. I didn't mean to imply that Greg actually MADE a Newt Gingrich. That would be incredibly uncomfortable. And now I have a horrible picture in my head.