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Messages - Pandareus

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126
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 380: Will the Circle Be Not Broken
« on: April 28, 2014, 06:07:37 PM »
Ha! It's true I could have chimed in with my experiences meeting up with Negative World people. I think I probably just ran out of steam, since my New Business was pretty long, and then I had the PAX East topic.

Also, the second segment was supposed to be shorter than it ended up being, and I think I was just staying silent waiting for it to peter out, while thinking about how much editing I'd have to do over the week-end. ;-)

127
Podcast Discussion / Re: RFN RetroActive #30: Goldeneye (Wii) - Nintendo WFC Edition
« on: April 20, 2014, 03:28:59 PM »
Sorry, should have done this earlier. Gonna play in about an hour (the time it takes to input all these codes?).


5199 5827 5106

128
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 377: When Fun Just Isn't Enough
« on: April 15, 2014, 11:33:14 PM »
I played a little of Kirby Air Ride for the first time at PAX and loved it. And it showed me concretely that a kart racer doesn't have to be exactly like Mario Kart "but with a few new bells and whistles" to be exciting, new and fun. The game was way faster than any Mario Kart game, with track designs reminiscent sometimes of F-Zero, a cool power-up system, and did gliding mechanics way before MK did. Not to mention all the unlockables we didn't get to. And I haven't played that single-player mode lots of people I know rave about, either.


Mario Kart is fun, yes. But more could be done with it, and has. In other franchises.

129
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 377: When Fun Just Isn't Enough
« on: April 07, 2014, 03:30:26 PM »
Quote from: Pixelated Pixies on April 07, 2014, 12:18:05 PM
I'm going to guess that an actual discussion of Altered Beast for the GBA took place, and that it was edited out.

If so, thanks be to Gui!

I wish it weren't so blatant. But you're welcome.

130
TalkBack / Shovel Knight Preview
« on: April 02, 2014, 10:59:18 AM »

Respect the shovel.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/preview/36995/why-shovel-knights-impending-release-deserves-your-excitement

At last! Shovel Knight's release is nigh! Has it really been over a year since Yacht Club Games splintered off WayForward and announced a Kickstarter for their retro-styled game heavily inspired by the "pogo stick" move from DuckTales? In the meantime, their old pals at WayForward have announced AND released DuckTales: Remastered. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze recently came out as well, and joins in on the pogo stick action.

Like many Kickstarter projects that quadruple their fundraising targets, Yacht Club games has had to push back the release date of Shovel Knight as the project became more ambitious. I'm a patient guy, but the backers might feel differently. It seems like it will have been worth the wait, though.

DuckTales: Remastered has come and gone, and while it was beautiful and expanded the levels of the classic game, it was content we had mostly seen before. As for Tropical Freeze, it might have adopted the pogo stick mechanic, but without the level design to match, it felt a little pointless.

Thankfully, this means Shovel Knight has not lost its thunder quite yet. And to the nostalgic retro look and precise platforming action of the original pitch, so much has been grafted. Towns! Fishing! More puns around digging! Music tracks by Mega Man composers! The scope and variety of environments and enemies seem to have greatly expanded: Vikings that are all beard in a frigid forest setting, skeletons in clockwork castles straight out of Castlevania, and much more to satisfy fans of old school action platformers.

Combat is quite a bit more involved than in Capcom's classic game, too. In addition to jumping on enemies shovel-ready, you can face enemies directly and swing the shovel at them at extremely close range. And some shield-wielding enemies can block, so you have to quickly alternate between side and overhead attacks, similar to how you would take on the Iron Knuckles in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. Moreover, who knew that a well-timed swing of a shovel can send fireballs back at the wizard who cast them?

The wait is almost over. There is no definitive release date, but the game is being tested for the platforms it will be released on (including both the 3DS and the Wii U) and should be out in "a few weeks." It's been almost a year since I played the still impressive PAX East 2013 demo, and I can't wait to explore the new areas and try out the new mechanics we've seen in the latest trailers.


131
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 375: Whatcha Been Shipping?
« on: March 24, 2014, 05:59:13 PM »
The $40 price tag will skew the results, though.

132
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 375: Whatcha Been Shipping?
« on: March 24, 2014, 04:49:11 PM »
Yeah, outside of JRPGs, that was my point.

It doesn't make sense to harp on the lack of JRPG announcements for Wii U when in all likelihood there just won't be many JRPGs on this generation of consoles overall, and when their relevance for home consoles has been on a steady decline for the past decade.

133
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 375: Whatcha Been Shipping?
« on: March 24, 2014, 01:48:12 PM »
Thanks, I try.

While editing that part of the podcast I was thinking of arguments that didn't occur to me during the discussion. For one, it's kind of weird to compare the RPGs announced for the Wii U's first years and the RPGs announced for the 360 and PS3. We should be comparing to the PS4 and XBO. And the fact is, lots of things changed for RPGs in the past 8 years.

It might have been a coup for MS to have Square announce a port of FFXIII on the 360 back in the day, but Japanese RPGs, and especially the Final Fantasy franchise, don't have the cachet and console-selling power that they had back in the PS2 days. The only PS4/XBO JRPG announcement I've heard of is FFXV so far, and while some people are inexplicably excited for it, I think the low sales of Lightning Returns show that there's not that much of an appetite for that franchise anymore.

So I don't think the lack of JRPGs on Wii U is as damning as the lack of 3rd party support in general. In the case of RPGs, we're just witnessing the continuation of their migration to portables.

134
TalkBack / Re: Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters, Bonsai Barber Lead the Latest Club Nintendo Games
« on: March 11, 2014, 12:19:01 PM »
Awesome, I had been waiting for Bonsai Barber to hit Club Nintendo!

No, seriously, I'm psyched!

135
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 371: Ghost Commander
« on: February 25, 2014, 02:57:04 PM »
When I said "character action game", I really should have used "DMC clone" because that's really the narrow definition I had in mind. As I explained in the show: heavily combo-based third person action games like DMC, Ninja Gaiden, God of War. Viewtiful Joe, Kid Icarus, or The Wonderful 101 or whatever else, while cool games that I enjoy a lot, don't fit the definition I had in mind. And they don't scratch the same itch for me, even.

136
Podcast Discussion / Episode 370: The Contemplative Podcast
« on: February 16, 2014, 03:12:17 PM »

Oven-fresh reactions to the latest Nintendo Direct, plus a Bravely Default roundtable and Listener Mail!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rfn/36597

Sometimes the timing works out perfectly. This week's episode was recorded almost immediately after the new Nintendo Direct was presented worldwide, simultaneously. You'll hear our reactions first thing, mutually processed within our own little group, having had little or no chance to absorb the larger community's snarky talking points. (We just make up our own as it goes.) With such a dizzying quantity of announcements for any February event, we spend a good amount of time going back and forth on the details. In general, we are all fairly pleased with the updates on known games, and we definitely have something to be excited for in the next few months.

Following that is a short New Business segment. We didn't need as much time because three of us have all been playing Bravely Default. That one gets plenty of love, and some criticism, but no doubt it's one of the best and most interesting games of the year so far. Jon also shares a few thoughts on the ending of Link Between Worlds, as well as his return to NES oddity Solomon's Key.

For Listener Mail, we have a hot trio of letters that start with us questioning whether region locking might go away, and why it exists in the first place. We next tell the stories about how we got into the lucrative volunteer game writer business/hobby. And finally, we tread into touchy waters with a discussion of Nintendo's approaches to console design and whether having unusual hardware is worth the trouble. Keep this train a-runnin' with your own email for the RFN crew!


137
Podcast Discussion / Episode 369: Super Meat Party
« on: February 09, 2014, 03:07:28 PM »

It's slim pickings the week before Bravely Default, but we fill the gap with... third-party Wii U games???

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rfn/36521

Note: You won't hear much from Jonny during the middle section of New Business, due to an audio problem, which also took out a good portion of Jon's Zelda update. Special thanks to Guillaume for editing around it!

We launch into weird territory this week as James catches up with Tekken Tag Tournament 2... yes, the weird and highly polished Wii U launch title! Gui keeps the third-party train rolling with Scribblenauts Unlimited for the same system. Jon is almost finished with A Link Between Worlds, and he ponders which game will be next for his upcoming travel plans. Jonny recommends indie puzzler The Swapper (on PC, and maybe more soon?), which wraps head-scratchers in a shroud of Metroid-like gloom. He also checks out anime series Attack of the Titan (now on Netflix for us Americans) and a couple of Japanese games based upon it, including the 3DS one beloved by Danny on the Famicast.

Listener Mail covers a couple of Zelda questions before allowing us some guarded optimism on Nintendo's future with third-party studios. We also, rather briefly, get to play CEO and check off what we would do if put in charge of Nintendo. Look forward to some weird ideas there, and send your email about them there video games!


138
Podcast Discussion / Episode 368: Is Your Heart Big Enough?
« on: February 01, 2014, 05:42:46 PM »

In which Jonny rediscovers Pikmin 3, and James exposes the true Quality of Life.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rfn/36452

Following our moderately epic live show with Greg and F-Zero, RFN gets back to normal this week with loads of weird games and a bit of Listener Mail. Jonny leads the charge with a fresh look at Pikmin 3, which he is enjoying far more the second time through. Jon catches up with 3D Galaxy Force II and admits that it may actually be better than Space Harrier. James is in love with and/or mortified by the ultra-Japanese weirdness of Yakuza 4 (from the developers of F-Zero GX). Simultaneously playing both Final Fantasy Adventure and its sequel, Secret of Mana, might seem like a tough challenge, but Gui has excelled in both and is now nearing their respective conclusions. Finally, Jonny comes back around with a strident recommendation for The Room 2 on iOS. It's great because it's not like any other iOS game (except the first one, which it's exactly like).

We only had time for a pair of Listener Mail questions in this slightly abbreviated episode, but they're both thought-provoking. The first asks us to assess Iwata's recent announcement of a "Quality of Life" platform, whatever the hell that means, and how it might affect Nintendo's existing (dwindling?) video gamer audience. James has already been studying the issue carefully and goes into his industry-speak trance. We also field a letter about our least favorite game genres and consider what might make us reconsider playing them. Let us know which genres miss the mark for you, or anything else about video games and Nintendo, by emailing the show! We really do read every submission and use the majority of them on the podcast, so your participation counts!

Also, in case you missed Jonny's guest appearance on the Back in My Play podcast, do check that out to hear a lengthy analysis/defense of the controversial Milon's Secret Castle.


139
Podcast Discussion / Episode 367: Rubbin' is Racin'
« on: January 26, 2014, 07:45:29 PM »

Here's the recording of our complete live episode, including RetroActive for F-Zero X and GX.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rfn/36416

Back in November's telethon, your donations carried us to a stretch goal for a live RetroActive with Greg. We chose F-Zero X (N64) and F-Zero GX (GameCube), and in the end, we decided to just do an entire RFN episode (including Now Playing...) for the live audience. This is the full recording of what went down.

It starts, as usual, with New Business. James immediately gets us into the racing mood with his thoughts on Need for Speed: Most Wanted U. Jon has a follow-up on Link Between Worlds, and it proves an opportunity for Greg to also chip in his thoughts on the new Zelda. Greg's own picks are DuckTales Remastered and, oddly enough, Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest. Guillaume is not really feeling D&D: Chronicles of Mystara on Wii U, while Jonny is ambivalent on StarTropics 2 despite loving the first one.

After a brutal, totally unedited edition of Now Playing (send all correspondence to James), we finally delve into the showcase pair of F-Zero classics. These games are certainly similar but also deeply divergent in several key aspects, making for quite an interesting back-and-forth among our live panel. You'll hear from a few callers, and we brought in chat room comments with the help of TYP, but most of this 90-minute RetroActive consists of fair and often frustrated discussion among the main RFN group. It turns out that yes, indeed you can have a good conversation about racing games!

As always, we welcome your emails on anything from this episode or elsewhere in the world of video games. Also, be sure to check out Jonny's guest appearance on the Back in My Play retro-themed podcast, in which he valiantly defends Milon's Secret Castle for NES! It's a really fun show that will prove an easy listen for any fan of our own RetroActive features.


140
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 366: Too Cool for School
« on: January 24, 2014, 05:06:33 PM »
Quote from: Tween20 on January 23, 2014, 03:01:39 PM
I haven't reached the prediction portion of the podcast yet, but I did want to comment on the (brief) discussion of Bravely Default--can the completion time really be 30 hours when the demo takes almost ten to fully complete?  If the full game is only 3x as long as the demo, I might be disappointed (as much as I am anticipating this game).

Well, I dunno. Maybe I misheard or misunderstood the "30 hours" figure. I just know that the game gives you a lot of freedom as to how you're going to tackle it. You can even do a "no random encounters" run.

The demo took me 5.5 hours to complete, not ten, so I'm hoping I can get through the full game relatively quickly. That doesn't mean that there is only 30 hours of content in the game, though. I'm SURE there are plenty of things to do in the game that can make it longer.

141
TalkBack / RFN RetroActive Live: F-Zero X/GX
« on: January 23, 2014, 09:31:59 PM »

Thanks to your donations for Child's Play, we are streaming Radio Free Nintendo live, right here, with your calls about two classic racing games!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/feature/36405

Bookmark this page and join us right here on Saturday, January 25th at 11am Pacific / 2pm Eastern. We're planning to do the entire episode LIVE, including New Business, Now Playing, and the main feature, RetroActive for F-Zero X (N64) and F-Zero GX (GameCube). Our old buddy Greg Leahy will join us for the entire event, and you can call in to share your own F-Zero stories. (Skype call information coming soon.)

To enhance the live show experience, we highly recommend joining the chat room below. We'll be watching and interacting with the chat audience throughout the live show. Having trouble? You can also connect with a dedicated IRC client. Server: irc.browsingtheinternet.com Channel: #nwr

To change your chat nickname, type /nick newnickname, where "newnickname" is the new name you want.


142
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 366: Too Cool for School
« on: January 20, 2014, 12:39:40 PM »
That's something I wanted to get across in the podcast but kind of failed: I don't think we're gonna see anything on that service that we haven't already seen. Sony is not gonna go to Konami and get then to release Suikoden II on that service all of a sudden. It's gonna be games that are already PSOne Classics.

And it Nintendo's case, it would be Golf, Tennis, Balloon Fight, Super Mario Bros... nothing we don't already have. So to me, the appeal is incredibly limited.

143
Podcast Discussion / Episode 366: Too Cool for School
« on: January 19, 2014, 07:48:40 PM »

You asked for predictions, so here we go!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rfn/36381

First off, no we didn't talk about December sales data. It was still rolling out during recording time, and maybe there's not much left to say anyway until Nintendo announces a concrete response. So instead, we kick off this packed episode with a big slug of New Business. Jon brings our first coverage for Call of Duty: Ghosts, and Jonny checks out Two Tribes' RUSH for the Wii U eShop. Gui looks back to Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth, while James peers deep into the well of Persona 3. Going back around, Jonny also tries the new Chibi-Robo demo, and Gui tries Spin Six from the current Club Nintendo download rewards.

Part Deux is a return to Listener Mail, and the first letter specifically asks for fresh 2014 predictions, so get ready for wrongness. We also discuss the history and adoration of game overworlds, get over our heads in the new Chinese console market, and ponder how Nintendo could match Sony's upcoming Playstation Now streaming service.

At the end of this episode, we announce that RetroActive Live will occur NEXT WEEKEND, on Saturday, January 25th. Specific time to come soon, but it'll be in the early/mid afternoon for our U.S. listeners -- and yes, Greg will be there to talk to YOU about F-Zero X and GX. Play either or both and bring your thoughts to this special live event! We'll have a page set up with the audio stream, chat room, and other useful info, so check back at NWR later this week for all the details.


144
Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 365: Demo Dogma
« on: January 14, 2014, 10:51:56 AM »
I admit I'm not following any protocol for that. It depends on a combination of factors, based on what zoom level I'm looking at the tracks with in Audacity, how much I want people to actually hear the zinger/bonus talk, and how sick I am of editing/how quickly I'm expediting the last few touches to be done. ;-)

145
Podcast Discussion / Episode 365: Demo Dogma
« on: January 12, 2014, 11:11:06 PM »

Bravely Default blows our minds, but not enough to further delay our Top 5 Games of 2013!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rfn/36350

Your four partners in gaming crime are here to celebrate video games for another week! The big story of late is that big, unique demo for Bravely Default. Jonny and James tag up to get very deep, very detailed on this enticing preview of the first huge 3DS release of 2014. If you have no interest at all, this would be a good opportunity to use our chapter system to skip ahead, because we actually spend the bulk of New Business just on this demo! Following is a nice early look at Jon's impressions for the new Zelda, which (like most sane people) he really enjoys. Gui wraps up with his thoughts on a Retro Game Master (Game Center CX) DVD set received for Christmas. It's been a while since we have discussed this unusual and thoroughly fun Japanese TV series, which was the basis for the beloved DS anthology called Retro Game Challenge.

Jon is back in business this week, so we took the opportunity to knock out our annual tradition of listing each person's favorite Nintendo games of the previous year. Despite an uneven year for the company's overall fortunes, we managed to pull together very diverse, very personal lists with no pre-coordination at all. If you've been hankering for more positivity on the show, this segment should do the trick!

We'll probably do a few predictions for the new year on the upcoming episode, as well as catch up on your Listener Mail. And don't forget to be playing F-Zero X and GX -- emotional support for Story Mode can be sought in the RetroActive forum thread!


146
General Chat / A friend of mine is in a bind, selling his Skull Kid figurine
« on: January 09, 2014, 10:21:25 AM »
If there is a Majora's Mask fan with deep pockets on here who wants one of the 2500 Skull Kid figurines, apparently the last completed auction for one ended up netting $900. So you get a unique figurine, and get to help someone pay his medical bills. Check it out if interested!

147
Podcast Discussion / Episode 364: Bland Boiled Chicken
« on: January 05, 2014, 12:04:52 AM »

Here's the cure for your holiday hangover -- RFN is back in 2014!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rfn/36310

Shorter episode this week, as Jon was too busy to join us, and Gui was too tired for a big show. No problem, we packed it a little tighter to make up the difference! First up in New Business is Guild02: Attack of the Friday Monsters, which all three of the present crew have now played. After a quick word on EDGE, Jonny passes the baton to James, who has been exercising the PS2 backwards-compatibility feature of his recently acquired PS3. He went for an ultra-Japanese theme with Persona 3 FES and Ace Combat 4 and Ace Combat 5. Gui puts us back in Nintendo territory with his return to a childhood favorite (and notable Virtual Console absentee), Final Fantasy Adventure for the original Game Boy. With the segment's remaining time, Jonny swings back in for a few thoughts on Tearaway, a good game that will certainly not save the Vita.

We pushed off Top 5 lists until Jon can be present, so this week has us catching up on more Listener Mail. We get meta in discussing our podcast's musical themes and which video game music we'd like to hear played by someone like Jason Ricci (look below this article for links to his last album). We get a much-needed lesson on brand marketing from a listener who actually does that for a living. Finally, we discuss what a shorter console cycle might mean for Nintendo fans who want to play their current games on future systems.

Hear your own email discussed on a future episode by emailing the podcast! Also, please remember to play F-Zero X and/or GX -- now with a special RetroActive forum thread to work out your thoughts before the upcoming live show! (Date is still TBA.) And don't forget... HAPPY NEW YEAR! We are delighted to bring you more of this show in 2014 and thank you for listening!


148
TalkBack / Re: 3D Galaxy Force II Review Mini
« on: December 19, 2013, 12:12:34 PM »
I... I like your idea. A lot.

149
TalkBack / 3D Galaxy Force II Review Mini
« on: December 17, 2013, 11:28:53 PM »

If you can only get one 3D Sega Classic title...

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/reviewmini/36223

Galaxy Force II was a hulking beast of an arcade machine, which had to be cordoned off due to its complex set of hydraulics that would move and shake the cabinet, and the player sitting in it, every which way. As a result, it did not see as wide a distribution as the other arcade games that Sega has retooled for the 3DS, such as Space Harrier and Super Hang-On, so 3D Galaxy Force II may not tickle as many players’ nostalgia glands as the ports of those games did. However, its relative complexity and magnificent graphics make it worth discovering.

Galaxy Force II has you pilot a spaceship to free five planets from the clutches of a galactic empire. You can shoot a continuous stream of bullets by holding down the Shoot button, but it’s with your seeking missiles (fired four at a time) that you do the most damage. In an asteroid field, enemies that vary from squadrons of small ships to gigantic cruisers continuously shoot at you before you enter the tunnels of a star base dug into a small moon. And that’s just the first level. The various planets are visually distinct, from fire dragons diving into an endless pool of magma to the weird botanical growths and grotesque rock worms of a jungle planet.

The action remains largely the same throughout the game, however: shoot down as many enemies as you can as your “energy”, effectively a timer, counts down. You can accelerate or slow down, but getting hit and flying into obstacles will hasten your end. The arcade game was designed to steal your quarters, so don’t hesitate to lower the difficulty or give yourself more energy through the game’s menus.

As with its other Sega ports on 3DS, developer M2 has gone to great lengths to make this the best possible way to experience the game. In addition to ensuring genuine arcade sounds and building a virtual cabinet, they have quadrupled the resolution of the original sprites. Combined with the stereoscopic 3D effect, it makes for a ridiculously good-looking arcade space shooter.

3D Galaxy Force II can’t escape its arcade roots, which translate into a short and shallow experience. But it’s quite a ride, and definitely the Sega 3D Classic I would recommend to anyone interested in M2’s passion and technical wizardry for restoring old games and providing players with the best experience possible.


150
TalkBack / Re: Yoshi no Panepon Review Mini
« on: December 17, 2013, 10:09:10 AM »
I want the SNES version of Tetris Attack on the VC so bad! The music was amazing. And the slowdown actually makes the game more fun to me than theN64's Pokémon Puzzle League, it makes battles so intense!

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