Messages

13501

Nintendo Gaming / RE: New Miyamoto interview over at IGNCube

« on: February 09, 2004, 08:57:25 AM »

"lol, didn't he say the exact same thing about Mario Sunshine?"

He says that about EVERY game.  I love him but man does he over-estimate the potential of his own ideas.  Fun fact: people don't copy Miyamoto any more because his games aren't the big money makers in the industry anymore.  Water packs and vacuuming ghosts doesn't sell so no one copies those ideas.  The only EAD title that really got copied before it was released was Super Mario 64 and that's because it WAS an industry changing game.

Actually I was hoping that the next Mario didn't have anything that needed to be hidden.  I don't WANT some new big change to the Mario formula.  I just want a good Mario game that doesn't focus everything around some gimmick no one cares about.

13502

Nintendo Gaming / RE: All these Mario titles, WHERES MARIO DODGE BALL!

« on: February 09, 2004, 08:50:13 AM »

"That's why Camelot and Hudson are doing the spinoffs..."

Yeah but Nintendo still gets the reputation.  People see Mario everywhere and think Nintendo is all rehashes.  It makes no difference if technically it's another developer making those games.

13503

General Chat / RE: MTV=The Evil Empire... music is dying...

« on: February 09, 2004, 08:47:59 AM »

Definition of irony:
In 1981 the music industry was stagnant.  Radio station playlists were nothing but generic corporate trash formulated by focus groups and polling.  Original content had no way of seeping into the average person's lives.  Then a savior came down and introduced a new medium called the music video that jump started the careers of several acts and introduced whole new styles of music to a wide audience.  That "savior" was MTV.  A few years later the music played on MTV would gain mainstream popularity and since then MTV has been the authority on the tastes of the American youth mainstream.  What had saved music two decades ago is now killing it.

I find that I just don't "get" today's music at all.  I feel like an out-of-touch old fuddy duddy and I'm only 22.  I SHOULD "get" this music.  I graduated high school the year Britney Spears debuted.  "Hit Me Baby One More Time" should in theory be my anthem.  Most of the hip "artists" in the industry are the same age as me.  Surely I should be able to relate to them and them to me.

But I don't.  The last really great year for music for me was 1995.  That was the last year where I liked 99% of everything released.  And it isn't purely nostalgia either.  I can go back and listen to nearly any of that stuff now and it's still Relevant and I still love it.  Interestingly enough that's the year Lenny Kravitz sang "Rock 'n' Roll is Dead".  I think I should ask Lenny for some lotto numbers.

I think one thing I really don't like about today's music is that it sounds very, very fake.  Everything is very overproduced so nothing sounds like a real instrument anymore.  Every song has all sorts of DJ stuff and sound effects thrown in.  I'll accept that sort of thing to an extent in pop or rap music but not rock.  Rock music is supposed to be a bunch of friends playing guitars in their garage.  The only "fake" instrument that belongs in rock is a keyboard.  No major part of the sound should require any studio trickery.  If you can't play the song live with real instruments it isn't rock.  I hear a song like "Numb" by Linkin Park and it sounds like it could be a song I would like.  It has some good lyrics and the melody is pretty solid.  Unfortunately it has all sorts of weird effects and looping vocals and whatnot.  That just hurts the song for me.  It's like a pretty girl who wears so much make up that she becomes ugly.

I personally think the music industry is in a slump right now (ie: low album sales which are blamed on pirating of course).  This sort of thing happened in the late 70s and it happened in the early 60s during the post-Elvis pre-Beatles period.  What the industry needs is some talented group to come out of nowhere and set a new standard.  Bands like The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, U2, Nirvana, etc all did this and the industry benefited because of it.

I think I should start playing my guitar more often and play with my friends more often.  The opportunity is there for a band to grab the industry by its nuts.  I just need a drummer.  There's like no one I know with my music tastes that plays drums.

13504

General Chat / RE: Is there a hidden grudge/bias towards Nintendo?

« on: February 09, 2004, 07:41:16 AM »

"Games were good back then because the competition was just right, no one company outright dominated ot dominate, nor could one or the other ingore each other. Also the mind set of the developers were different back then, with most of the with the solid knowledge that a good game will sell well and a bad game will not."

Make no mistake: even then it was still about the moolah.  But I agree that games as a whole were better then.  And I know this isn't just nostalgia talking.  I play licenced games from that time period today and they're actually good.  It's unreal to be playing a game based on a popular movie like Alladin and having it be actually really good.  Anyway I think the big difference between then and now is that then the two major console makers were both also quality developers.  Sega and Nintendo made the best games in the world back then.  They TRAINED their userbase to appreciate quality gaming so if you wanted to sell your games on the Genesis or SNES it BETTER have been good.

Sony and MS are NOT quality game developers.  They aren't even really game developers period.  One is an electronics giant and the other is a major PC developer.  Both publish some decent games once in a while (ICO, Halo) but neither is really known for making quality games.  Thus they haven't trained their userbase to appreciate quality gaming so a huge chunk of the market has considerably lower standards, favours graphics and realism over gameplay and fantasy, and doesn't take as many risks with new ideas and games.  The industry NEEDS companies on top that have a real passion for gaming as well as good business sense.

13505

General Gaming / RE: Metal Gear 1&2 for NES

« on: February 09, 2004, 07:02:49 AM »

"I think Nintendo could learn something from Metal Gear as a franchise - a new or just pseudo-new (like MGS) series can reap some big bucks, instead of just the same game series every generation."

Actually they kind of did do that with Metroid Prime.  That's pretty much a brand new series that uses an old franchise.  Anyway it does sound like a solid theory to me.  The only problem I see with it is that Nintendo doesn't really have too many old series to resurrect.  Kid Icarus is pretty much it and I can't see that working in 3D too well.  Maybe Star Tropics would work but that is very similar to Zelda.

13506

Nintendo Gaming / RE: All these Mario titles, WHERES MARIO DODGE BALL!

« on: February 09, 2004, 06:55:14 AM »

I agree with Zoidberg.  I think.  If he thinks Mario gets pimped out to too many game then I agree with him.  If he's worried about Mario losing weight by participating in too many sports ("he won't be the tubby mario") then I, um, guess I agree with him though it's not a major concern.  Maybe I'm just reading too far into his choice of words.

Anyway I personally think Mario has been overexposed and that's why Super Mario Sunshine didn't sell as much as it should have.  Most people just see at least one Mario title on the shelves every year so they fail to get the significance of a new Mario platformer.  These endless Mario sequels are also creating a stigma that Nintendo isn't innovative and just releases the same crap over and over again like some Japanese THQ.

Personally I think Mario should be limited to only three series: platformer, kart racing, and RPG.  One kart racing game and one RPG is released every generation while two platformers are released each generation.  That way at most Mario has only four games released every five years thus keeping him more fresh and making each individual release a big deal.  Those three series are the only ones the fans really go nuts over anyway.  Does anyone really NEED to have another Mario Golf game released?  Oh Mario can continue to be in Smash Bros as well of course.

Not only would this make Mario seem like a bigger deal but it also would free up other devs who work on those spinoffs (Hudson, Camelot) to make something original thus giving Nintendo consoles a wider variety of titles.  Nintendo NEEDS some new stuff anyway since, judging by Cube sales, Mario doesn't sell consoles to non-Nintendo nuts anymore.  Nintendo is arguably the most innovative developer on the planet.  They should NOT have a reputation for being sequel crazy.

13507

Nintendo Gaming / RE: GCN SHORTAGE??????

« on: February 09, 2004, 06:33:18 AM »

"No, it's a bad thing, because Nintendo could be losing potential customers, if someone went to the store to get a GCN, but the store didn't have any GCNs left, then there is a chance that they could just buy a PS2 or Xbox instead, or just not buy anything but lose interest in GCN."

How many people would actually decide to buy a Cube but would then buy something else if it wasn't available?  I mean casual gamers can be pretty dumb but I figure that if you decided ahead of time to buy a Cube you wouldn't settle for something else.  Of course I actually do research before making major purchases and don't settle for stuff I don't want so maybe I'm just falsely assuming that other people have as much common sense as I do.  The problem I can see is someone going in with the idea of just buying a console period and having no idea ahead of time of which one to buy.  Naturally with no Cubes available in the store they're not going to purchase one.  But let's face it those types of customers never buy a Cube anyway since the salesman will always push them in the direction of the Xbox or PS2.  I'm just happy that these people aren't buying a console that's sold out instead of blatantly ignoring it.  

13508

TalkBack / RE: Burnout 3 Swerves to Miss GameCube

« on: February 09, 2004, 06:17:33 AM »

F*CK! F*CK! F*CK! F*CK! F*CK! F*CK! F*CK! F*CK!

I think that pretty much sums up my feelings on this.  Have I mentioned lately that EA sucks and the very fact that they're so successful is exactly what's wrong with the gaming industry today?  Oh and just to REALLY piss me off these clowns are also publishing Timesplitters 3 thus putting the Cube release of that title in doubt.  I guess they realized I might actually have bought Burnout 3 and thus decided to keep the "Ian doesn't buy any of our sh!t" streak alive.

13509

General Chat / RE: I found the underground lair of all things NIN

« on: February 06, 2004, 01:36:25 PM »

I would have failed those questions for sure since I never owned an NES.  I think it's unfair to ask questions about a game like 1942 since it isn't even a game made by Nintendo.  If they expanded the questions to cover the entire history of Nintendo then I probably would do much better.  Plus it's not like the questions really have to be that hard.  You could ask a no-brainer question like "who is the main bad guy in the Zelda series?" and most people beyond videogame nuts would probably not know.

The whole club sounds kind of cool.  And if I think it's cool that of course means it's pretty dorky.

13510

General Chat / RE: I....hate.....Fox....so....much

« on: February 06, 2004, 12:04:08 PM »

I find that Family Guy is overall a really funny show.  However its jokes are really only funny the first few times.  I borrowed my friend's Family Guy DVD sets and while I had a blast watching them I really found most of the episodes to be boring as hell the second time around.  I don't have that problem with Futurama and I can watch virtually any Simpsons episode from seasons 3-6 again and again and still find it pretty funny.  Like Omen said it has to do with the depth of the writing.  The best comedies are subtle.  An obvious comedy like Family Guy is still funny, it's just wears itself thin quicker.

For example compare the writing style of the two different Cosby parodies?

"Coo coo ca choo.  I'm skiing.  Zip zop bibbity bob."  or

"You see jazz music is kinda like Kodak film, no actually it's more like a Jello pudding pop, no actually it's a lot like the new Coke.  It'll be around forever."

13511

Nintendo Gaming / RE: Only the Best?

« on: February 06, 2004, 11:52:02 AM »

"If I can't have Battlebots in my life then I don't want to live, this is my last post, goodbye forever"

Gadzooks!  He's trading in his paper bag mask for a plastic one... with no eye holes.

You can talk all you want about how most cancelled games on the Cube are crap but you have to remember that "crap" is a relative term... unless you're talking about literal fecal matter in which case it's a factual term.  Anyway what's crap to you may not be crap to someone else and the lack of a certain title could turn them away from the Cube.  You never know what's going to be a hit regardless of quality.  I would rather have more crappy games on the Cube if it meant I got some more good stuff as well.  Cancellations of only one version of a game always sucks.  Ideally you want as much variety in a game library as possible.

13512

TalkBack / RE: EA Teams with Marvel Comics

« on: February 06, 2004, 08:09:34 AM »

I think it's safe to say that there's no way in hell that this will top Capcom's efforts with the Marvel universe.  When I think of fighting games the last company I think of is EA.  But then when I think of games I care about period the last company I think of is EA.

Marvel vs Capcom worked because Capcom has tons of original cool characters.  EA doesn't really have any.  Their most popular "mascot" is John Madden and he's a real person.  EA games just focus on realism and sports too much to really have any characters that I would want to put up against Marvel heroes.  Marvel vs SSX just doesn't have any dream match appeal.

13513

Nintendo Gaming / RE: NINTENDO IS SOOO CHEAP!!!!!

« on: February 05, 2004, 10:56:10 AM »

"btw, if you couldn't tell i aam never posting here again."

So, um, why are you still here?

I think I'm going to make "AND I FORGOT THE BASE THING TO HOOK YOU THING TOGETHER BUT I DON'T KNOW THE PRICE FOR THAT THING" my new sig.

13514

Nintendo Gaming / RE: NINTENDO IS SOOO CHEAP!!!!!

« on: February 05, 2004, 10:25:30 AM »

Here's hint.  Buy a different game.  There is only ONE title on the Gamecube that requires a GBA and it technically doesn't require it for single player.  ONE GAME is no big deal and not worth freaking out over.

13515

General Chat / RE: Is there a hidden grudge/bias towards Nintendo?

« on: February 05, 2004, 10:23:25 AM »

"Ian: Considering the number of good fighting games on the GC it wouldn't have been hard for DoA to sell on it, either."

True but there is a good number of decent Japanese games which is not the case with the Xbox.  DOA3 isn't just the top Xbox game in Japan because it's a decent fighting game, it's the top Xbox game because it's the best game that appeals to a Japanese audience.

13516

TalkBack / RE: New Nintendo Release Dates

« on: February 05, 2004, 07:22:18 AM »

"Oh, and Ian, you might be even more irritated to know that Star Fox 2 was the name of the Japan-only SNES sequel to Star Fox..."

It's not a Japan-only title, it's vaporware.  It was never finished or released so I don't count it.  It's assumed that development on it was scrapped to concentrate on making an N64 version.

13517

General Chat / RE: Is there a hidden grudge/bias towards Nintendo?

« on: February 05, 2004, 06:36:58 AM »

"I think Tecmo being pro MS is because they are anti-Nintendo."

I think it's because they realize that they're a second tier Japanese developer at best whose only claim to fame for the last few years is a generic Virtua Fighter/Tekken clone with hot chicks.  Thus they support the Xbox exclusively so they don't have to compete as much with Capcom, Konami, Square, Sega & Namco and are by default the top selling Xbox developer in Japan.

13518

TalkBack / RE: New Nintendo Release Dates

« on: February 05, 2004, 06:28:48 AM »

Is anyone else irritated when the new Star Fox game is refered to as "Star Fox 2"?  I mean wasn't Star Fox 64 "Star Fox 2"?  I'm not blaming WesDawg, Nintendo themselves for some reason has referred to it as such.  Curse Capcom for making Street Fighter II: Champion Edition and screwing up numbering series forever.

13519

TalkBack / RE: Splinter Cell Sequel Delayed On GameCube

« on: February 05, 2004, 06:15:48 AM »

Why are the PS2 and Cube versions of Splinter Cell considered so inferior?  I have the Cube version and it seems like a pretty solid game to me.  What specifically are the problems with it?

13520

General Chat / RE: Is there a hidden grudge/bias towards Nintendo?

« on: February 05, 2004, 06:10:47 AM »

"They paid off Ubi Soft for timed exclusivity of PoP and BG&E in Europe."

How is this a bad thing?  Ubi Soft gets some extra change in their pocket and Sony gets the games first.  Seems like win-win to me.  Maybe gamers don't like it but I'm pretty sure Ubi Soft had no problem.  All three companies do it and third parties have no problem with it.  They like money hats.

"One company that I think may have a grudge towards them is Tecmo. I believe they have the monster rancher series on the GBA, but considering that the the upcoming Ninja Gaiden for the 'Box is supposed to have the original NES games hidden, is kind of a slap in the face. Itataki(?) from Team Ninja has been slick in not directly mentioning Ninja Gaiden's origins in interviews; I'm surprised he didn't blast the big N."

I don't quite see why Tecmo would have a grudge against Nintendo.  It's not like Nintendo screwed them over or anything.  They're fiercely pro-MS which thus would make them a little anti-Nintendo.

13521

General Chat / RE: Funny discussion with an Xbox owner

« on: February 05, 2004, 06:02:03 AM »

"CS is better b/c you can shoot people, whereas Super Monkey Ball is for kids, and is stupid b/c it has monkeys in plastic balls."

That's kinda like how bicycles are better than sandwiches.  I mean you eat a sandwich and it's gone forever but a bike lasts a long time and you can ride it and stuff.

While disliking a console because of image is pretty dumb there's still no point in trying to convince those people to buy one because they won't enjoy it.  If you're so self-conscious that you can't play a game that looks like a cartoon then you just plain aren't going to enjoy owning a Gamecube.  So consider them a lost cause because you can't force someone to like something even if their reasons for disliking it don't make any sense.

13522

TalkBack / RE: New Nintendo Release Dates

« on: February 04, 2004, 11:58:24 AM »

"(Don't take this the wrong way...I just believe that female characters > male characters ^_~)"

Well this goes beyond playing as a girl character.  In Harvest Moon for Girls you also will be wooing a GUY and trying to get him to marry you.  Are you cool with that?

13523

General Chat / RE: Is there a hidden grudge/bias towards Nintendo?

« on: February 04, 2004, 11:43:23 AM »

Let's face it.  Back in the glory days of the NES Nintendo was a bunch of assh0les.  They charged high licensing fees, they made every developer promise exclusive support, they limited the amount of games released by each third party per year, they censored content in North America, etc.  Sony doesn't do any of these things so it makes sense to me that once third parties had an excuse to leave Nintendo (in this case an expensive cartridge format) they went for it.  I don't blame them.

Now there is no major hardware restriction to give third parties a reason to not support the Cube and many of Nintendo past strong arm tactics are no longer enforced (though the license fees are apparently still higher than Sony's).  Why don't the third parties all go back to Nintendo?  Because they don't have to.  The PS2 is the cash cow and with the largest userbase PS2 games have the highest potential sales.  Plus Sony still provides developers with the freedom they have always offered and STILL charges lower license fees than Nintendo.  There's no reason to return to Nintendo consoles aside from the Gameboy of course.

As mentioned Square Enix supports the Cube so they can support the GBA which is the portable equivalent of the PS2.  That's the only reason they made FFCC.  They also got Nintendo to publish it.  Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me.

Sega's support is dependent on what console the individual team likes.  Amusement Vision and Sonic Team like the Gamecube so that's why all of their games go on that console.  I'm not sure why they like it but I figure it's because they make games that are a lot like Nintendo's so they figure the userbase would fit best.

Capcom and Namco seem to support Nintendo for reasons I can't really explain.  I think they want Nintendo to survive so they're helping out to the point where they can still make money on the PS2.  The reason they want to keep Nintendo alive is because they are predicting that if Nintendo dies and the industry is run solely by corporate electronics giants, things won't be as peachy for Playstation developers as they are now.  I figure they're trying to avoid a monopoly.  Note that with Capcom it's not the company as a whole that supports them but rather a few teams that strive on creativity (ie: artists that feel threatened instead of company execs who only see green).

As for why any third party would seemingly hate Nintendo (aside from past issues) well I figure they don't want the Cube to succeed in hope that all of those Nintendo fans would then buy a PS2 and thus contribute to the sales of PS2 exclusive games.  Of course if that's the case the joke's on them because then they would have to compete DIRECTLY with Nintendo, a company that could easily become the top Japanese third party.

13524

Nintendo Gaming / RE:Worst GCN Games of ALL Time

« on: February 04, 2004, 08:50:36 AM »

"I would play anything over this and I couldnt be more sincere."

You would even play it more than this game?  

If you legitimately hate Super Mario Sunshine you're allowed to.  What bugs me though is when someone hates Super Mario Sunshine so much that they sell their Cube and claim they'll never buy anything from Nintendo.  I believe there's a guy on the Penny Arcade forum who sold his Cube just because of that.

13525

Nintendo Gaming / RE: Madden 2005 may be canceled-hold your applause

« on: February 04, 2004, 06:22:06 AM »

"Ian: You forgot soccer."

Yeah soccer is a pretty major sport so I guess they should make that too.  I just didn't think of it because soccer isn't popular enough in North America to really affect sales.  Since that's the biggest market an exclusive soccer franchise overall wouldn't be as important.  Maybe they could get a European developer to make it for them.