Topic: RFN RetroActive Game Nominations

[TJ Spyke]

Now that you've told us the next RetroActive will be on DS games,

Did they say that during a RFN podcast? I haven't listened in a few weeks and they did not mention that on the forums.

Also, what is that last game you want to nominate? No such game exists. The two DS Advance Wars games are Advance Wars: Dual Strike and Advance Wars: Days of Ruin. Actually, I just checked ad apparently DOR was called this in PAL regions (who knows why).

[Halbred]

If the DS game thing is real, I'm nominating Kirby's Canvas Curse.

[Killer_Man_Jaro]

Did they say that during a RFN podcast? I haven't listened in a few weeks and they did not mention that on the forums.

Also, what is that last game you want to nominate? No such game exists. The two DS Advance Wars games are Advance Wars: Dual Strike and Advance Wars: Days of Ruin. Actually, I just checked ad apparently DOR was called this in PAL regions (who knows why).

Episode 201. Someone gave a shout-out to The World Ends With You, and Jonny mentioned it would appear in an upcoming DS poll.

And yes, Dark Conflict is the European subtitle for Days of Ruin. If I say a game title that's slightly different to one you know, it's safe to assume it is the PAL difference, which I agree often makes no sense.

[TJ Spyke]

I didn't know you were European until I just checked your profile, I apologize (for not knowing you are European, not that you are European LOL). I haven't played the second AW DS game, but I did like the first (including the dual screen battles, which seem to not be that popular on message boards).

[Shaymin]

Pretty sure the only systems that haven't been covered on RetroActive would be the DS and the Wii. So unless there's another Second Chance poll or another theme poll coming, the DS and Wii would be up.

[UncleBob]

If the DS game thing is real, I'm nominating Kirby's Canvas Curse.

You know, I didn't care much for Canvas Curse, but I recently (finally) picked up Squeak Squad... good game, so far.

[Mop it up]

I'm nominating New Super Mario Brothers. What impact did it have? How does it compare to other Mario platformers? How much better is the Wii version?

[TheYoungerPlumber]

If the DS game thing is real, I'm nominating Kirby's Canvas Curse.

You know, I didn't care much for Canvas Curse, but I recently (finally) picked up Squeak Squad... good game, so far.

UB, I respect your opinion, but I hope this is some sort of perverse joke. Squeak Squad has horrible level design, crummy music, and lazy visuals. Canvas Curse isn't a "normal" Kirby game, so I can understand your distaste, but it's a far better game....

[UncleBob]

Sorry - So far, I'm liking Squeak Squad.  I've only just beaten level 3, so, perhaps something later in the game will sink it.

I'm not sure where your dislike of the music comes from.  Unoriginal, perhaps, but it's all pretty much classic Kirby tunes.  I will say, some of the power ups could have used some work, but the system for unlocking new abilities is nice.

As for level design, Kirby games (at least, the ones I've played) are generally pretty straight forward.  There are some secrets (a lot in Great Cave Offensive), but, mostly, it's about getting from Point A to Point B.

I'm nominating New Super Mario Brothers. What impact did it have? How does it compare to other Mario platformers? How much better is the Wii version?

Considering I play NSMB virtually every day (at least three times a week, unless a certain co-worker is on vacation). I'd have trouble putting this game in RetroActive.

[TJ Spyke]

I don't see how any DS games could be part of RetroActive, NSMB came out about 4 years ago.

[NWR_insanolord]

Jonny said on RFN recently that there's going to be a DS RetroActive poll coming up. It was an offhand mention; I don't remember the exact context.

[KDR_11k]

RetroActive can be about whatever they damn well want.

I'll nominate:
Glory Days 2 (nobody played it but it can be found cheaply in many places, I often see new copies for 7€ at GameStop)
Giana Sisters DS (again not played by many and around 15€ in many places now, would offer a comparison to the NSMB games)
Eledees: The Adventures of Kai & Zero (not sure about availability)
Anno: Create A New World (bargain bins are now filled with it, guess not many played it)
Barnyard Blast: Swine of the Night ( : )

I think all of these aren't commonly played so many people would have a new experience.

[TJ Spyke]

How is it "retro" to talk about a game that is only 2 or 3 years old? Would a movie like I Am Legend be considered retro since it came out in 2007 (considering you want to nominate Elebits: The Adventures of Kai & Tai, which came out in June 2008)?

The only way I could really see DS being even new retro would be if the games were limited to those that came out between November 2004 (the systems launch) and June 2005, MAYBE the rest of 2005 too. The staff are free to do what they want, but I don't think that a game which is only 2 years old fits the spirit of what RetroActive is supposed to be. Anno: Create A New World is even worse since it is only slightly more than a year old since it came out in mid-2009.

[KDR_11k]

Considering how short lived games are I think any game that's "dead" is fine. I don't think retro is realy the point of it, just going back to things that haven't been popular and checking them out together.

[TJ Spyke]

But it is RetroActive, keyword. Besides, if a game bombs and is no longer being published after 2 months you think it should be eligible? I'm sorry, but I don't think recent games should not even be considered for the feature.

Assuming they do intend to go through with DS, I will stick with the spirit of RetroActive and nominate only early DS games:

Advance Wars: Dual Strike - Great strategy game, I really loved the matches that took place on both screens. If you have one of the GBA games, you can buy additional maps in the Shop.
Kirby Canvas Curse - First game to really take advantage of the touchscreen and a real departure for the series.
Mario Kart DS - Many people consider this the best Mario Kart ever, and for good reason. The only complaint I have is that online play became crap due to the screw-up Nintendo made called snaking, if you weren't snaking too you had zero chance of winning.
Nintendogs (any version) - I think it's safe to say that this is the game that finally helped the DS pull ahead of the PSP and stay there, this game was the system seller for awhile because people love having a pretty realistic looking dog to take care of and play with.
Super Mario 64 DS - Yes the base game is no stranger, but the DS one had a lot of changes (like three new playable characters, the different powers, levels having different star objectives, etc.). The main issue many people have is that the game does not control as well as the original due to the lack of a analog stick.

[Stratos]

Stop reading into the name of the feature. They have said multiple times that any Nintendo system is good for nominations. In fact, one of the first polls for the feature had Link's Crossbow Training as an option. There is no restriction like that.

[Mop it up]

Considering I play NSMB virtually every day (at least three times a week, unless a certain co-worker is on vacation). I'd have trouble putting this game in RetroActive.

I know, I imagine a lot of people have played it recently. Since I don't own a DS, I have to stick with the three games I've played, and New Super Mario Brothers likely has a better shot than Super Mario 64 DS and Mario Hoops 3-On-3.

As far as what games are eligible for RetroActive? Wiktionary describes "retroactive" as "Extending in scope, effect, application or influence to a prior time or to prior conditions." Technically, any game released qualifies for that. But I think the RFN crew are looking for games that they feel will breed interesting discussions, both from users of the forum and on the podcast. And so age and popularity don't really matter when it comes to this feature.

[vudu]

Assuming they do intend to go through with DS, I will stick with the spirit of RetroActive and nominate only early DS games:

Advance Wars: Dual Strike, Kirby Canvas Curse, Mario Kart DS, Nintendogs, Super Mario 64 DS

How about we nominate some games that everyone hasn't already played?  Most of us have played most--if not all--of these games.

[TJ Spyke]

I didn't want to nominate crap, or games that are still pretty new. We have also played for RetroActive other games most of us have played before (like Super Mario World). Besides, these are all better than a game that requires people to illegally mod their game to play in English.

[Stratos]

I'd like to nominate Diddy Kong Racing DS for the potential DS game poll. It always felt like it slipped under the radar for me and a lot of other people. I don't even know of anybody that bought it. We could discuss the changes that were made for it to allow it on the DS. Plus we could all play the multiplayer together during the event. Make it a sort of NWR Wifi Night since those appear to have died off...

[Sundoulos]

I never played the DS version, but I did rather like the N64 version of DK racing.  It had a lot of variety, and I liked the hidden paths in the track design.

[Killer_Man_Jaro]

I don't think it's worth reading too much into the feature's title. Any game that we play a while after the release, we are technically playing retroactively.


I do think it's more interesting if we haven't played the winning game. For one, it is a new experience, though it also paves way for a fresh discussion on the podcast.


As long as it's not another RPG, I'm not terribly concerned what wins the poll next time. Mother 3 is the fourth role-playing game on RetroActive, so I'd rather there were no more, at least for a little while.

[vudu]

As long as it's not another RPG, I'm not terribly concerned what wins the poll next time. Mother 3 is the fourth role-playing game on RetroActive, so I'd rather there were no more, at least for a little while.

I agree with this, which is unfortunately a huge strike against TWEWY. 

[UncleBob]

How about Trace Memory?
It's a game anyone can pick up and play, is pretty easy to find (and can be had for about $5) and is awesome.

[Mop it up]

I don't understand what is the problem with a similar type of game winning each time. The nominations are decided by everyone, and are voted on by everyone. Clearly people want to talk about RPGs; it just so happens to be a type of game that has a lot to discuss. If you look on GameFAQs at the top ten message boards for any given system (most notably systems like the SNES and PlayStation), you'll notice a lot of them are RPGs, sometimes even all of them. I don't see why we should be concerned with something people want to discuss.