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Messages - Mike C

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TalkBack / The D.I.C.E. 2003 Roundtable
« on: March 01, 2003, 09:08:29 PM »
Thanks guys, I'm listening to it now and it is really good to here this sort of thing which many of us miss out on as we will never get this close to the legends behind our fave games.  The Dyack interview is awesome too.  Keep up the brilliant work.

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TalkBack / Zelda Bonus Disc Comes to Europe
« on: February 18, 2003, 04:53:49 PM »
Yes, but at least we are getting it.

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General Gaming / Xbox loses $380 million for Microsoft
« on: February 11, 2003, 12:23:55 PM »
I don't think they car about lsoing too much money at this stage.  It will make itself up when all these new Xbox owners start buying software and accessories because everyone knows thats where the real money is. MS is just investing for the future

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TalkBack / Pokemon Pre-Sale Begins This Week
« on: February 11, 2003, 12:18:52 PM »
Heh, as if one needed anymore reasons to preorder this title.

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TalkBack / Ghost Recon To Appear Shortly
« on: February 11, 2003, 12:17:14 PM »
Well gee about blimin' time.  Only been waiting about 18 months for this title!

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Nintendo Gaming / Madden 2004 on GameCube?
« on: February 10, 2003, 01:19:15 PM »
Madden 2004 will be released on GameCube.  It's enivitable especially with NFL 2K* out of the picture.  Hopefully this years version supports online play for the Cube

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General Chat / Official Australian PGC visitors disscussion
« on: February 08, 2003, 09:54:00 PM »
Heh, I'm from New Zealand and we are gonna win the Cricket world cup

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Nice!  About time NOE worked hard on getting that sort of thing going.

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Reader Reviews / Rogue Squadron 2
« on: February 08, 2003, 09:25:46 PM »
When you go to see a Star Wars movie you aren’t going to see a something on a screen, you are going to be immersed intensely in a galaxy far, far away – for the experience of it all I guess, rather than to be just entertained. The whole Star Wars phenomenon has presented itself in this way and while there are periods of god-awful acting and dodgy special effects even the harshest critics can’t deny how magical the Star Wars experience is.

Capturing this experience into a video game has been one of the greatest challenges for those trying to develop the ultimate Star Wars game especially because they have often been limited by technology. Enter GameCube. It finally offered the processing power for experienced Star Wars developer Factor 5 to create one of the finest Star Wars titles ever made.

Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II is the sequel to the Nintendo 64 hit, Rogue Squadron. The original was a great game but lacked in visual and audio area’s where the Star Wars experience truly comes to life on the big screen. Factor 5 received GameCube development kits in March of 2001 and by November 2001 the game was complete and on store shelves – an incredibly fast development time which Factor 5 put down to the GameCube been incredibly easy to develop on. Even though they only spent 8 months on the game they still made one of the best video game experiences I have ever been able to play.

From the moment you turn the system on you can’t help but be amazed. The start up intro is gorgeous and it truly shows how far games have come since the good old Nintendo 64 days. The presentation is classic Star Wars with movie cut scenes running in the background of the menus and classic Star Wars music booming out in the background. This is what Star Wars is all about.

The basic gameplay revolves around you flying classic Star Wars fighter craft as either Luke Skywalker or Wedge Antilles. There are plenty of classic ships to fly across ten main levels which are all set in classic Star Wars battles such as the battle of Hoth, the Death Star Trench run and the incredible battle of Endor. Depending on the level players can choose from various craft including the X-Wing, Y-Wing, A-Wing and the Speeder. There are also plenty of unlockable craft and levels to keep the better gamers going for some time.

The flying in Star Wars is amazing with a variety of environments to experience, such as dog fights in deep space or tactical stealth missions on Kothilis. There are a variety of objectives to accomplish in a level before you can move on to the next and each is explained in the level briefing or in flight by your wingmen. But of course the most important aspect of Rogue Leader is the incredible amount of enemies to destroy ranging from the agile TIE fighter to the mammoth AT-AT’s. The biggest improvement in Rogue Leader from the original Rogue Squadron is the increased numbers of enemies on screen. There are sometimes hundreds of individual troopers, TIE’s and walkers on screen not to mention the incredible amount of laser fire darting across the screen every which way. The fact that the framerate never drops is a true credit to the geniuses at Factor 5. Overall the graphics are really quite amazing.

What really made me realize how great an experience Rogue Leader is was the first time I turned on the machine to be blasted away by the incredible sound. Boy-o-boy it is good, possibly the best audio experience outside of a real Star Wars movie. Music is dramatic, eerie and complete in almost every way with appropriate tunes for each level. Sound effects are also stunning with your wingman constantly in contact with important mission information and screams of doom when they get destroyed by incoming TIE fighters. Rogue Leader also enables to command your often inferior wingman. By using the D-pad you can order your fellow rebels to attack, stay by your side, protect certain objects or attack certain targets - it is all up to you.

Replay wise players are limited in the sense that there is no multiplayer to speak of unlike the brilliant online setup of Starlancer for Dreamcast – but that’s okay. What Rogue Leader loses in multiplayer it makes up for it in single player. This is the ultimate one player game for GameCube. With ten standard missions and another few bonus levels thrown in for good measure Rogue Leader certainly goes the distance. The levels are big and there is plenty to go back and do once you have finished the game. Hidden bonuses and weapon upgrades are scattered through each level and players can also earn medals depending on their success for each mission – a nice extra which will keep players going for a very long time.

Overall Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II comes together as one of the finest single player experiences out on GameCube at the moment. With the world slowly coming down from Star Wars fever (as a result of Episode II) this game certainly flew off the shelves when it launched in New Zealand and was equally successful in Europe and America. This is the ultimate game to prove to everyone that buying your GameCube was worthwhile. So sit back, turn the speakers up and enjoy.  

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Nintendo Gaming / Zelda Pre-Order Discs
« on: February 08, 2003, 09:06:12 PM »
This disc is certainly an awesome initiative from Nintendo... Does anyone know if it has been confirmed for release in Australia and New Zealand?

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Nintendo Gaming / What makes 2003 a big year for Nintendo?
« on: February 08, 2003, 08:59:06 PM »
Definitely the prospect of online versions of Mario Kart, Golf and Tennis (and others?).  Zelda of course and maybe Retro can fire out a quick Metroid game?

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TalkBack / Free Game With GameCube Purchase
« on: February 08, 2003, 03:30:39 PM »
About time we got a budget range and that logo is pretty cool! :cool:

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Nintendo Gaming / Soul Calibur 2 Controls
« on: February 08, 2003, 03:25:21 PM »
Quote

Originally posted by: Hemmorrhoid
Actually arcade sticks arent always the best for everyone. I prefer moving my arms/hand less while playing, a controller is just enough. Like some others, if the GCN standard pad doesnt work for me, which I doubt, ill get the Hori Snes GCN pad.


Totally agree, I much prefer the normal pad to arcade sticks.  Soul Caliber 2 better have customoisable controls tho


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Nintendo Gaming / Australian Gamecube sales
« on: February 08, 2003, 02:47:19 PM »
For those that are interested here are New Zealands aprrox sales to date since launch:

PS2 - 140,000
XBX - 25,000
GCN - 5,000

Cube is dying down under because the distributors barely advertise at all.  GBA sells strong yet Cube doesn't...

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Nintendo Gaming / RE: Code Veronica X
« on: February 08, 2003, 02:45:15 PM »
I hope it comes to the Cube because the PS2 and DC versions of this game were very fun and the storyline is pretty damn cool.  I won't get it myself but I recommend it to all those who haven't played it on other systems, graphic upgrades or not

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