Messages

301

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 553: A Top Five Is Easier When More Than Four Games Come Out

« on: January 08, 2018, 12:00:51 AM »

I hope Jon has been suitably corrected. I wouldn't wish missing out on the Sonic zeitgeist on any man.

I loved James's difficulty before the break. Don't fight it, James! Like the Force calling for Rey, Now Playing is calling for you. And Jon. Don't let that beautiful siren's call go unheeded!

If I were doing Top 5 lists in 1999, Jet Force Gemini would be number one with a laser blast! I hold out hope that one day JFG will make it into a RetroActive. Have you ever read Dave Halverson's review of JFG in Gamers Republic? If you can't trust Dave's discerning judgement on action platformers, who can you trust?!

Sorry about the Bills, Greg. You're ever the realist, so based on what you said in the episode, I'm sure you were prepared for a loss. Still, that was a hard one. It was such a badly played game on both sides, that the ratings may have went up just from people wanting to see the trainwreck.

EDIT: Reading ClexYoshi's edit lead me to a shocking but completely rational conclusion. In order for the Bills to make the playoffs, Brexit had to happen! There were backroom deals made at a neutral site (probably Toronto). I can only assume Greg was stabbed in the back in some way. Surely, he wouldn't have sold out his country for a loss in the Wild Card game. A Super Bowl win, maybe. Stiff upper lip!

302

TalkBack / Re: Nintendo News Report: More Switch Milestones

« on: January 05, 2018, 05:50:17 PM »

When I saw that the episode was an hour and a half long, it was like Festivus had come around again!

Congratulations, Neal. You're the man! Literally! 

Justin's Rants should be a regular feature. He's so knowledgeable and passionate. It's all from a place of love, not  hate!

Donald didn't seem like he was under the weather this time. Yay! I'm sure the deep freeze that Canada is currently under doesn't help.

Good to hear from Zach on NNR again. Repping Power Girl is always a good thing.

Alex is the consummate host as always. Keeps the show moving, but doesn't give short shrift to letting people get their thoughts out.

May the new year be as exciting for NNR as 2017 was!

303

TalkBack / Re: WWE 2K18 (Switch) Review

« on: December 10, 2017, 10:39:36 PM »

I didn't realize you were a wrestling fan, Daan. If you haven't listened before, I suggest looking up the podcast Smart Wrestling Fan. They've been at it longer than RFN and Radio Trivia. It might be right up your alley.

304

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 548: Podcasters of Influence

« on: December 03, 2017, 01:44:02 AM »

Great episode guys and gal, especially the end, lol. I noticed that in this and 549, there is talk of standards concerning emails. I don't know about other letter writers, but as for me, I take inspiration from Jon and James's old Now Playing segments. You two didn't just set the gold standard, you set the iridium standard! If you don't know what that is, just ask Zach Miller. Here's a hint, it took out the dinosaurs because they fell short.

We're all just walking in the footsteps of giants, hoping we don't trip on the way.

305

TalkBack / Re: OVER 8th Annual NWR Live Podcast Telethon for Child’s Play Charity

« on: December 03, 2017, 12:46:47 AM »

Had a great time listening this year. I can't access Discord through this machine despite various efforts. I'll have to try through a VM next time, see if that does the trick.

So many good segments this year! Radio Trivia is always a highlight. I didn't realize puzzle game music is enough to make James fit for an asylum. ;p Great to hear from the one and only Serebii. That guy from the South on Nintendo Mania was a hoot and defintely told it the way it was back then. The Mario + Crossovers segment was suitably over the top.

Liked hearing the discussion on Terranigma, a game I've known of, but didn't know alot about. I thought the Game Making 101 segment went alot better this year than it did last year. I think taking written questions instead of peiople calling in made for a real improvement. Only heard about half of Zach and Carmine's dinosaur segment. Can't wait to hear what I missed. In addition to the dinosaurs, it'd be nice if Jonny brought back the Space Q & A segment some telethon.

"Jon Lindemann and James Jones Are Making A Segment". What can I really say about this portion of the telethon? It's always a joy to see real masters of their craft at work, especially Jon. He seemed locked, loaded and ready to go. Once he got going, James rose to the occasion as well. Since all of Japan will fit into this time capsule/biodome, perhaps we've found the perfect spot for the RFN Hall of Fame!

Since the telethon is audio-only, I suggest that next year, Jon do his segment near a bowl of water that he can splash around occasionally. Make people think that Tub Time (TM) has truly arrived.

I wish James would put multiple photos as chapter art for the Shenanigans segment to truly capture its flavor for those who weren't in chat or are listening later. I think the segment lived up to its name!

Congratulations to everyone who worked so hard to plan and produce the telethon. It's always one of the highlights of the holiday season.

306

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 546: The Influence of Classical Waggle on the Modern Metropolis

« on: November 17, 2017, 07:19:17 PM »

I relistened to 546 and there's no doubt that Gui is significantly more negative about the game than the others. But he articulated his reservations about Odyssey pretty well. At no point did I feel he was spitting "hot fiyah" and being contrarian just for the sake of it, which is what you get with a certain segment of the podcast/youtube casters. I've had some fun with Existential Crisis Gui in the past, but there was none of that here. Just an in-depth discussion about the design of the game with differing opinions.

"It was just so different from the conversations i've heard about this game before."

What does that have to do with anything? That sounds close to what people complain about when a review score is out of line with the majority. Gui's concerns aren't yours. What he enjoys or what annoys him, may be different from you. As long as he can explain why he feels the way he does, I don't see the problem.

I thought Gui's post in this topic discussing co-op was accurate to how he expressed it on the podcast and pretty much sums up the situation. He even acknowledged that others may enjoy the co-op mode more than he did. Not being afraid to express your viewpoint while realizing how and why others may feel different seems the best that anyone could expect of anyone on any subject. Most of your "constructive" criticism seems to be: Gui thinks differently from me and others and that is harshing my buzz.

Gui's criticisms probably don't even rank in the top 50 most negative things ever expressed on this podcast. Heck, it may not even make it into the top 10 of this year. My email back in April about Switch hitting 16 million for this fiscal year (hey-oh!) was probably more negative than Gui's Odyssey talk!

307

TalkBack / Re: Rock ‘N Racing Off-Road DX (Switch) Review

« on: November 16, 2017, 04:24:13 AM »

For a split second, after reading the article title, I thought this was a sequel to Rock 'n' Roll Racing for the SNES. Got excited for a second there. :p

308

TalkBack / Re: 8th Annual NWR Live Podcast Telethon for Child’s Play Charity

« on: November 14, 2017, 06:07:41 PM »

Intriguing lineup of segments this year. Wrestling and Terranigma jump out to me at the moment.

I do wonder about the scheduling of Jon and James though. Wouldn't that make the following Shenanigans segment feel anti-climactic?

For a stretch goal at say $4500 or $5000, I suggest RFN at The Movies. A commentary on their choice of say, Masters of the Universe or Beastmaster II. With that incentive, it could be a record-breaking year!

Carmine's list of prizes looks great!

309

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 547: Touchin' on Tub Time

« on: November 14, 2017, 05:32:22 PM »

If I had to recommend a recent episode that represents the typical quality of RFN, it would be this episode. Top notch. gentlemen! You continue to put more smiles on more faces.

Before I continue to heap praise on you, I must mention one disappointment. Side Loading came up in the context of porn. Yet no mention of the N-Gage and Side Talking in that context. I feel like that was a fat pitch down the middle that not only did the gang whiff on, they didn't even swing! This is in an episode that mentioned the Zodiac Tapwave of all things.

Keep singing Greg! Singing "God Save The Queen" in Gollum's voice could be a stretch goal!

Golf clap at the pic used during Jon's discussion of the NG XBO.

Wonderful discussion of Super Mario Odyssey. Really in-depth about how the game and its world function.

I think not continuing Miiverse on the Switch was a mistake. The popularity of various social networks ebbs and flows with time, so I thought Miiverse served as a useful hub/starting point for Nintendo sharing/discussion. They could have altered it in such a way to make it easier to share on other social media so it wouldn't become balkanized.

Panel de Pon smashup: Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts. To stay true to the inspiration of the Capcom classic, the blocks fall down faster than you can flip them. A magician will appear on a regular interval to turn your cursor into a baby to slow you down even more. An occasional wave will come by and wash away all your progress if your cursor happens to be on the wrong row of blocks.

And... again, I promise I'm not going to try and get outsiders in on this sort of thing in the future unless I can guarantee listener retention and participation.

Notice the qualifying and wiggle room he gives himself people! Since it's impossible for anyone to guarantee participation, I assume this is the end of such attempts. #notmyretroactive #thebestretros #brisketorbust

310

TalkBack / Re: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Nintendo Direct Breakdown

« on: November 07, 2017, 11:07:20 PM »

Tremendous article, David! I liked how you related what we saw in the Direct to other RPGs.

I'm excited for the game, but the more I find out about it, it feels a little daunting. Systems on top of systems, etc. Plus, with the enormous scope of the game, it feels like it would take a lifetime to experience it all, especially if you're the type to take your time.

FYI, Monolithsoft created the engine for Xenoblade X, which was then used for Breath of the Wild. I'm sure they modify it as needed, but it's essentially the same engine. The crazy part is when engines are used for totally different types of games. I remember reading that Ocarina of Time used the Super Mario 64 engine.

311

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 546: The Influence of Classical Waggle on the Modern Metropolis

« on: November 06, 2017, 07:13:09 AM »

Allow me to explain that in detail.

When I found out this poll went live, I went to several discord servers I frequent, my tumblr, and other forms of social media I have and told folks I really want to hear RFN talk about one of my all-time favorite games, and maybe have an excuse to properly revisit it after all this time!

I hope the people who voted actually listen to RFN and didn't just vote because you asked them to. That'd kind of suck otherwise. If not, James, start your FFCC campaign so we can get advice/commands from the oddly-dressed chancellor/prime minister.

312

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 546: The Influence of Classical Waggle on the Modern Metropolis

« on: November 05, 2017, 11:10:59 PM »

Jon's absence, so mysterious! I'm beginning to think he's become a Secret Agent Man. According to the song, they give you a number and take away your name. Just to throw it out there, what do you think Jon's number would be?

Greg once said that Jon was still subject to the Queen's wishes and could be called in at any moment. That's it! Jon's been called in and Greg's his handler! Jon, if you need help, on the next epsiode, when James asks you for your impressions of Odyssey, say you'd give it a 8.5. We'll get you to a safehouse in Atlanta. Philips Arena during a Hawks game. No one in the stands to report you and all your bodyguards will be 7 feet tall.

The Odyssey discussion at the end was absolutely excellent. The kind of in-depth analysis RFN shines at. Sorry, moons at. Great to hear Jonny again. Wish he had given an update on the interview podcasts for the book (perhaps he didn't mention it because there's nothing to say at the moment).

Gui's experiences at Nintendo of Canada events are always a hoot to listen to. Seems like a neat event, though it can be improved like Gui said. Feels like most of the deficencies of NoC's handling are due to lack of planning and/or creativity more than anything else.

Donald and Gui's tag-teaming of Fire Emblem Warriors went well. Interesting details while making fun of the usual Musou 'features'.

313

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 545: Gangsta-Ass Console

« on: October 30, 2017, 10:10:07 AM »

Nothing gets the ladies in the mood quite like Jon talking about MMOs. That's why Greg cut so much of it out of RFN over the years. It was just too powerful! Greg knew more than 15 minutes every three months would contribute to rampant overpopulation. I guess that was what the Magic The Gathering podcast was for: To stem the tide.

Absolutely delightful conversation concerning Owen's email for thoughts on 2018. Nothing too out there as far as predictions. Pretty reasonable outside of Pikmin for WiiU. What's the theory about that game? What is Miyamoto's definition of "finished"?

Little disappointed with your safe, albeit entirely probable, Retro Studios prediction. Personally, I think Retro is being allowed to create a game in the Zelda Universe. That's right, you're Malon and you're in charge of Lon Lon Ranch. You have the choice of continuing the milk production or branch off into bringing to market as much prime brisket as possible. Watch out Harvest Moon. There's a new bull in town!

To mereel: Hear hear! I think RFN is the best Nintendo podcast and one of the best podcasts out there, period. It's too bad the NWR staff don't work out of some central location. Could you imagine a 1UP Show-like program from these guys?

314

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 543: Podcast Seeking Tax Credits

« on: October 16, 2017, 01:05:46 PM »

Clearly, Wanderlei's post should be framed in a place of honor in the Disaster: Day of Crisis exhibit. Only the manliest tears will be shed upon reading it.

315

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 543: Podcast Seeking Tax Credits

« on: October 16, 2017, 01:04:59 AM »

At the risk of tooting my own horn, I thought the mailbag section was amazing this week. All three letters made for great conversation.

Jon being accused of writing my letter. I feel like a real breakthrough has been made! I try to bring the spirit of the old Now Playing at NWR to the Mailbag. Since James and Jon are my inspiration, maybe I'll try playing that song from Elite Beat Agents in the background when I write future letters.

Since the RFN Hall of Fame's focus seems to embrace all of RFN, a few moments I think are worthy of nomination for some future class of this sure to-be august institution: The stinger where Jon and Jonny are podcasting in the same room, Jonny has a cold and Jon asks him if he wants some medicine. James and Greg's reaction to that is hilarious.

Perhaps there could be an exhibit dedicated to the games created by J&J Dream Factory. A wax figure of Roger Goddell as a mail boy in Megaton Commissioner of Rage, etc.

To up the interaction, you could have a bowling alley dedicated to Kimberly Keller's RFN appearance and review of Undead Bowling. She could make a weekly appearance and bowl with the HOF's customers. But only if they're dressed up as zombies. We don't want anything weird going on.

Maybe every time a customer goes through the turnstyle, we could hear a whip-snapping sound, to symbolize Gui's wiping the floor with his nephews at videogames.

My earliest Nintendo memories would have to be playing Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong on the Atari 2600 or playing Donkey Kong on one of those mini-arcade Coleco units. I believe they used vector graphics. It was always so neat when the Icemen showed up in the later levels of Mario Bros.!

Not Nintendo-releated, but when I was really little, I remember playing Atari Football on the 2600. You couldn't control individual players. When you moved, the whole team moved in unison. Though it was a few years before I got the NES and became aware that there was such a thing as technological progfress in games, even at that time, I thought that football game was bad and stopped playing it. I hear people really wax nostalgic about 2600 games. There were some gems, but many of them, even the celebrated ones, are so bad! IMO.

Just to be clear about WiiWare, this isn't like the DSiWare situation where almost all the games can still be bought on the 3DS right? Once the shop goes down on Wii, we won't be able to buy them on WiiU right? Seems silly that they can't just keep it going on the WiiU, even if only for a few years (since they want to drop the WiiU ASAP).

316

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 235: Galaxy Princess feat. Luma

« on: October 09, 2017, 08:00:02 AM »

lol. Good commercial Nick. The music fit right in!

It's too bad Miyamoto had his way with SMG 2 and got rid of the story. I don't know why he seems to have this view that you can have a good game or a good story, but not both. Best to have done it the way it was done in SMG, where if story and cut scenes set your heart to skipping a beat with rage, you can easily ignore it, while fans who want a story, can still enjoy it.

SMG really shines in Dolphin and shows how much Wii games were held back by the technology. It also shows how talented Nintendo's artists are, that their art can usually hold up at high resolutions they weren't originally inetended for.

SMG is a strange Mario game in that, I won't say it's forgotten because that would be untrue, but it doesn't seem to be talked about as much as other seminal Mario games such as Super Mario 64, Super Mario World,and Super Mario Bros. 3. Does anyone else think that is so, and if so, why do you think that is the case?

I remember before SMG was revealed, I wondered where Nintendo could take Mario next. The character was 25 years old at the time and I wondered if Nintendo would run out of new ideas for Mario games at some point. Mario is really the only videogame character to have lasted long enough and been in enough relevant games to have that be a concern. They've tried to shoehorn Pac-Man in various games to only occasional success. Donkey Kong is the only other contender, but he hasn't been the star of, and in as big a variety of, games as Mario has.

The revelation of SMG put all those doubts to rest and now 10 years later, we have Odyssey which looks to raise the creative bar yet again.

317

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 542: Just to Get Alexey's Beak Wet

« on: October 09, 2017, 07:28:26 AM »

Looking forward to Karen appearing next week. It's been awhile.

Greg's dramatic reading of NES box art is epic and I hope will return someday.

"we determine how to ice Mario so Starfy can shine" Yeah, baby!

I liked the Star Fox 2 discussion and Jon's views on Forza 7. I know how MS handled the virtual money situation has been poor at best.

Let's talk about something near and dear to RFN's heart. I recently watched Cobra for the first time in many years. I remembered some of the classic lines, but I was shocked to realize the sheer number of lines uttered on RFN over the years that come from the movie. I still think you guys should start a irregular podcast where you just watch and give live commentary (easy to edit!) on 80's movies (and movies with an 80s heart released in the 90s).As a stretch goal or instead of the regular Shenigans, imagine a RFN commentary on Cobra or Masters of the Universe to end the telethon. The money would just pour in, believe me!

In a previous episode, Greg mentioned Marion's deadly aversion to bikers. He mentioned him killing about 14 bikers. I'll admit that in the frenzy it was hard for me to do an accurate count, but if you assume that everyone in the gang rode motorcycles and that everyone Cobretti shot died (since we never see if they live), then I think about 28 bit the dust. I'll let more learned film scholars watch it again, to nail down the facts.

I noticed near the end of the film, when Stallone sent the main villain to his death, that he seems horrified by his actions. It felt that a real acting/character moment was happening, having to face all the violence he had wrought, but being an typical (!) 80s movie, it wasn't delved into at all after that brief moment.

Stallone wrote the script, of course. He is a writer of varying ability, that is for sure.

Was Brigette Nielsen not that good an actress or was Red Sonja simply more suited to her range?

No mention of the Bills' victory over the Falcons? I truly feel that some of RFN's best moments aren't recorded. Surely there is a way, that is also convenient, that can prevent tragedies such as this.

318

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 541: Toad of a Particular Colour

« on: October 09, 2017, 06:48:27 AM »

If I had to sum up this episode in a word, it would be "feisty." I don't know if it was Greg's absence tthat did it, but it felt like Jon, James and Gui were "freeballing" it as it were, recalling a past episode title. The blossoming of nubile women in Steamworld Dig 2, Mario Party making one want to leave this mortal coil, the electircity was in the air!

Speaking of Greg's absence, I would normally not think too much of it, but the Bills' 23-17 victory over the Falcons raise my suspicions. I had heard reports that the head of the UK branch of the Bills Mafia was spotted at Flowery Branch and Mercedes-Benz Stadium. No known photos of this man exist, only a cartoon drawing on a t-shirt. Greg. Can you confirm or deny that you made a transatlantic flight the week of the game, thus precluding your appearance on RFN? Can you confirm or deny that you took actions that would benefit Buffalo at the expense of Atlanta? Finally, why didn't Jon also take the week off, to counteract any possible moves you may have made? Too busy dreaming of the San Jose Sharks upcoming season to have a care for the Brotherhood? Tsk, Tsk.

Alex was a good guest. I enjoyed his segment, though he pretty much disappeared from the podcast after that. People accuse Jon of doing that, but he generally doesn't go a whole hour without talking!

319

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 540: Reset the Metroid Clock

« on: September 25, 2017, 12:55:15 AM »

Jon's simply too far ahead of his time. His Metroid: Samus Returns performance art from last week was too ground-breaking. I suggest we all shave (and wax?) our heads (both of them?) in solidarity with Jon until his return next week. We can also wear a gold headband to symbolize our appreciation of head gold, knowledge of the streets.

Appreciated the in-depth look at Metroid. I do echo Justin Berube's disappointment that they didn't focus on remixing Metroid II music rather than having most of the game's music sound like it came from a Prime game.

I really enjoyed James's dismantling of FF XV. An unexpected treat! I do wonder what the people get out of the game that like it. It feels like the problems with the game are so obvious that they should have been fixed or accounted for by the dev team long before release.

320

TalkBack / Re: Pokken Tournament DX (Switch) Review

« on: September 18, 2017, 11:19:52 PM »

Nice and thorough review. Glad the game turned out well.

Couple of notes: Thankfully, Pokken provides enough single player content to provide training while at the same time keeping the experience fresh and funBattling your way --- Add a period between 'fun' and 'Battling'

There is a good selection of modesto provide an accessible online experience to all players --- modesto to 'modes to'. I'll admit this one confused me for a while, because my brain didn't process that they were two words rolled into one. I was like, what is this sentence saying? lol

Liked your recent appearance on NNR. Hope you can drop by again, soon.

321

Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 539: Y Can't Fancy Dan Crawl

« on: September 18, 2017, 02:14:59 AM »

For the first half of the episode, it sounded like a man offered to all-comers five dollars to sing in his can and Jon took him up on it. I just wonder if he had to travel to the South to do it! His Metroid segment at the end was perfection. Felt like a long-form Now Playing segment..

James mentioned wanting Arm Wrestling as part of the Nintendo Arcade Classics. I hadn't even dared to think of it as possible and now I want it! It would be great if they would go all the way and eventually release all their old arcade games, particularly any last ones that haven't made it to MAME. Important for historical purposes, even if some of the games are just okay.

It's nice to see that boards are confirmed for Mario Party: The Top 100. It was unclear when it was shown in the Direct. I really like Khushrenada's idea that the series go in a Mario Kart-like direction and have a mix of remade old games and new games in each entry of the series. Heck, why not go the remake route? The earliest games are so old at this point, might as well remake them (while replacing the lowest quality mini-games in each entry).

I do wonder how the top 100 was determined. Bloodsport at Mario Club?

It's interesting how I thought Octopath Traveler and Xenoblade 2 looked meh, artsyle-wise, at the January presentation. Yet, their artstyles really grew on me after watching the recent Direct.

Thanks for talking about Final Fight 2 and 3, Gui. Good conversation. Always nice to hear you guys talk about games I wouldn't necessarily expect you to.

322

TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Direct To Air Wednesday

« on: September 14, 2017, 04:19:35 AM »

Who would have thought that Yoshiaki Koizumi would become the main Nintendo Direct spokesman and that he would start looking so comfortable doing it? The man defintely has a way about him. Kind of cool, but not conceited?

323

TalkBack / Re: New Designs Announced For New 2DSXL In North America

« on: September 14, 2017, 03:06:04 AM »

When I saw the annoucement of the orange and white version, I thought of you saying on NNR that you wished you could have gotten that 2DS color scheme at launch.

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TalkBack / Re: Alliance Alive Among Atlus Titles Releasing On 3DS In Early 2018; Etrian Odyssey V Demo Out Toda

« on: September 14, 2017, 02:58:31 AM »

One of the big takeaways I got from this Direct is that the 3DS is going to be lit in 2018! Nintendo weren't just talking when they said they would support the system through next year.

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TalkBack / Re: New Details of Super Mario Odyssey Revealed

« on: September 14, 2017, 02:50:13 AM »

I don't know if I'll ever be able to finish this game. Might be too busy snapping photos!