Messages

13526

TalkBack / RE: Splinter Cell Sequel Delayed On GameCube

« on: February 04, 2004, 06:13:47 AM »

"Due to development issues, and the groups' commitment to making these versions the same high quality as the Xbox version, the PS2 and GameCube will launch at a later date."

Translation: MS gave us money hats again.  Let's hope Ubisoft doesn't complain if the Cube versions sells the least because it WILL if it's released at a later date.

13527

TalkBack / RE: New Nintendo Release Dates

« on: February 04, 2004, 06:12:15 AM »

So we ARE getting Custom Robo in North America.  That's cool.  Now Nintendo just has to give us the rest of the f*cking Earthbound games and we'll finally stop begging for localizations.  Until they release the next hot new Japan-only series of course.

It's nice to see Mario vs Donkey Kong returning to the spotlight again.  I haven't heard anything about that title for nearly two years.  Isn't it like a really fancy remake of the 1994 Donkey Kong remake for the Gameboy?

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General Gaming / RE: How do you know your desperate and have gone too far?

« on: February 03, 2004, 12:54:22 PM »

I would have prefered if they made the pillow a replica of Kasumi's bust with big fluffy boobs for you to rest your head between.  I mean if you're going to be that pathetic at least go all the way and give the fans what they REALLY want.

13529

Nintendo Gaming / RE: FF CC comercials? Thoughts?

« on: February 03, 2004, 12:51:19 PM »

"I can't believe how so many people fail to see the hilarity in that commercial"

Well it's a lot of people since nearly everyone but the two of you on this forum hated it at the time and for the first time I can think of Nintendo actually changed commercials for a current game.  Plus there's the lower-than-expected sales of the game itself which I'm sure is purely coincedental.

The hilarity in that commercial had to be the most subtle in game commercial history.  It's like the f*cking Doonesbury of game commercials.

13530

Nintendo Gaming / RE: Worst GCN Games of ALL Time

« on: February 03, 2004, 11:05:50 AM »

Super Mario Sunshine's camera was better than Super Mario 64's but still far from perfect.  It still did the same thing that nearly every camera does that just royally pisses me off: it got stuck on things.  If something was in the way of the camera's path the camera was stuck on it like a real life camera man would be.  If something got in the way of Mario all I could see was a silhouette which was ultimately pretty useless for figuring out where I was in relation to things.  I don't know why but a lot of cameras in games operate as if they're a real physical object that thus have to manuever around other objects.  That's ridiculous.  It's a game.  The camera should be able to do whatever I want it to.

When I first played Ocarina of Time I thought it was the perfect camera until I played Wind Waker which truly does have the perfect camera.  I can move the camera where I want and if I want to go behind my character I press a button and the camera instantly teleports behind.  It doesn't rotate around and get stuck on sh!t it teleports to where it should be.  Super Mario Sunshine's was decent but not even Ocarina of Time level.

However I overall liked Super Mario Sunshine and would never put it in any worst of all time lists (except maybe for worst Mario platformer).  It was a good game with some flaws that got overly-criticized because everyone (perhaps rightfully so) expected much better.  My main problem was with the controls that were actually too responsive.  Too many times I would try to take a half step back and Mario would take a huge step because I pulled back too hard trying to avoid a ledge or I would try to jump and ended up back flipping over the edge.  Other problems I have with it I've discussed in other threads.  They're mainly the island theme, the removal of flight, and the permanent waterpack stuff.

13531

General Chat / RE: Do people even rent games anymore?

« on: February 03, 2004, 07:26:52 AM »

"Nope. But it's only because all the video stores don't have GC games."

Bullseye.  That's exactly the reason I rarely rent games.  Now most of the video stores in my area do rent GC games but they don't get the games I want to rent.  Most of the games they have available are major titles like Mario and Zelda but I don't rent those games, I buy them because I know they'll be good.  I like to rent games that get a decent rating but are only like 10 hours long or are criticized for being too easy, or are from a genre I normally don't care for.  Pop, Luigi's Mansion, Burnout 2, and WWE games are all examples of game I rent.  Most stores don't have games like that.  Everything is either a major title or a hyped up title that I KNOW sucks and I have no desire to play (Enter the Matrix).  Cost is an issue too.  Blockbuster charges more for a weekly game rental than a weekly movie rental and that seems a little pricey to me.  Should I pay $10 to play a game for a week or risk it and pay $20 for a used copy that I have forever?

One thing worth noting though is that I've been thinking of getting a PS2 and if I get one I'll be renting games for it fairly often because there's no trouble with finding PS2 games to rent.  If Nintendo made a deal with a major video store chain to get good selections of Nintendo console titles in their stores I would rent far more often.  My friends and I used to rent NES and SNES games all the time because every game we were even remotely interested in was in every video store in town.

13532

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

« on: February 03, 2004, 07:07:34 AM »

Even though I personally couldn't give a sh!t the loss of Madden would be a pretty big deal.  As much as it just seems wrong Madden is usually one of the top sellers of the year and there is a fair sized chunk of casual gamers that play nothing but sports games and Madden in particular.  Not having Madden is likel not having GTA.  I don't think too many people bought a Cube specifically for Madden (those type of people usually would buy a PS2 for that purpose) but the fact that that game is not available is a reason not to buy a Cube.  If you want to make it in the console wars don't give people an excuse to not buy your console.  Nintendo has been pretty sh!tty at not giving people excuses but that's another topic.

I wonder why EA would do this anyway since the Cube recently had a sales increase.  If anything Madden 2005 will likely sell better on the Cube than 2004.  One thing that does bug me is that if EA is turned off by low sales those are partially their own fault.  The Cube version of Madden always comes out later than the other versions thus ensuring that anyone who owns a Cube and at least one of the other consoles will not buy the Cube version.  As it is only Cube exclusive owners will buy the Cube verison of Madden.  If there was a simultaneous release this wouldn't be as much of a problem.

This is always going to be a problem for Nintendo though if they don't do something about it.  Sports games don't sell on Nintendo consoles because sports fans tend to buy PS2s and Nintendo fans aren't as interested in sports titles.  Therefore Nintendo should make their own sports line.  It doesn't have to be a huge lineup or anything.  Football, hockey, baseball, and basketball should suffice for now.  They don't even have to release them every year.  They could alternate the releases by releasing football and basketball every odd year and the other two every even year.  This would give Nintendo an exclusive line of sports games thus giving sports gamers a reason to consider a Nintendo console and it would get Nintendo fans more interested in sports titles because they would be more willing to try something made by Nintendo themselves.

The amount of work needed to be done isn't so bad either.  Retro was already working on a football game so right there is a starting point that another developer (assigned to make just sports titles) can work from.  There already is an NBA Courtside game for the Cube thus having a completed design already in place to work from.  The other two have to be started from scratch but Nintendo does have to ability to use Seattle Mariner players as spokesmen.

13533

Nintendo Gaming / RE: FF CC comercials? Thoughts?

« on: February 03, 2004, 06:35:47 AM »

I've seen the FFCC commercial.  Most of the commercial is a bunch of actors doing stuff vaguely associated with the game, followed by three seconds of footage and no mention of what the game is about or why anyone should buy it.  Yep, it's the same sh!tty commercial Nintendo has been doing since the Cube launched.  How hard is it to make a commercial for a f*cking Final Fantasy game?  Show a bunch of cut scene footage to show off the graphics and music and say "Final Fantasy returns to Nintendo consoles this February!"  It's SO f*cking easy to do a commercial like that and it's cheaper (no actors or filming required) and it will actually get people more excited than the "Mr. Plow" commercials they're doing now.

Nintendo has to realize that this isn't 1988 anymore and you don't have to have funny skits and actors to hide the fact that the game looks like crap.  Cube games look amazing.  Just show the damn footage and people will buy it.  The Crystal Chronicles trailer got me more excited about the game than ever.  Why don't they just show the trailer as the commercial?

13534

TalkBack / RE: Konami Shows off Limited Edition Metal Gear Bundle

« on: February 02, 2004, 07:47:22 PM »

I want a Metal Gear bonus disc.  Konami, are you reading this?  I pre-ordered f*cking Rebel Strike for a bonus disc, you think I wouldn't do so for MGS?  Throw in the booklet too while you're at it.

13535

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

« on: February 02, 2004, 01:39:02 PM »

"You forgot that at the end of that episode (Mars University) it says Gunter later went on to become the president of Fox."

Heh heh.  I forgot about that.  Ironically enough Gunter would probably be president of Fox in the time period this movie takes place.

Man I love that college episode.  I recently saw Animal House for the first time and that episode is all the more hilarious now that I get all of the references.

13536

Nintendo Gaming / RE: Worst GCN Games of ALL Time

« on: February 02, 2004, 12:47:58 PM »

If you think most Nintendo produced games suck you either bought the wrong console or you're a troll.

13537

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

« on: February 02, 2004, 11:54:01 AM »

Obviously not everyone who is a business executive is a dolt but a lot of the ones in the entertainment business are.  And as I said it's because they don't have any real experience in the entertainment field.  I guess I should have specified execs in the entertainment industry.

And since it seems relevant I'm going to quote Futurama:

Gunter: "All I want to be is a monkey of moderate intelligence who wears a suit.  That's why I'm transferring to business school!"

Professor Farnsworth: "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!"

13538

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

« on: February 02, 2004, 09:06:34 AM »

"whereas with The Simpsons they own it completely"

That explains a LOT considering how long that show has been running and how the quality has just gone down the sh!tter.  I've noticed that Fox tends to do two things with their shows.  They either can them prematurely (Family Guy, Futurama) or run them until even the hardcore fans don't give a sh!t (X-Files, 90210).  Has there ever been a Fox show that quit while it was ahead like Seinfeld and Cheers.

What would be really funny is if some other network made a deal with Groening to show new episodes and Futurama became a huge success as a result and made tons of money for both the network and Groening.  Man that would be sweet.

13539

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

« on: February 02, 2004, 08:33:02 AM »

Who owns the rights to Futurama?  If Fox does then nothing can be done but if not I smell lawsuit.  Those two ideas are WAY too similar.  Mike Judge did direct Office Space though so at the very least from an artistic point of view this film could be pretty good.  I won't see it in theatre though just to f*ck over Fox.  Of course if the film bombs they'll be all like "See!  People hate this future stuff and that's why we canned Futurama."

Execs are 99% of the time idiots because they're always business school dipsh!ts with no real world experience.  They are then put in charge of something they are totally ignorant of but because they have a degree they don't realize their own ignorance.  They're not entertainers, they're business men and thus have no idea what entertainment is.  You see that everywhere where a form of entertainment brings in big bucks.

My biggest beef with Fox is that their promos for 24 completely blow the big shock of every episode.  If someone dies or turns on someone I guarantee that Fox will blow it in the promo.

13540

TalkBack / RE: Metroid: Zero Mission Preview Update

« on: February 02, 2004, 06:29:18 AM »

"You do know that if you play Metroid II on a GB Color or GBA it has color, right?"

Technically yes you can do that (and I do play it on the GBA) but it's not "real" colour.  Different shades are replaced with colours but those aren't the colours the different backgrounds and characters are supposed to be.  Playing Metroid II on the GBA isn't like playing Link's Awakening DX.  There are no copies of that game that have an official Super Gameboy or GBC colour scheme.

I'm aware that the guy said we would only make a remake if he changed everything around but I don't care what he said.  What I want is Metroid II in colour with a map but with the exact same level design.  Even if there are no plans to make it that's still what I want to see.

And I don't see how the level design of Metroid II is outdated.  They can make it so Samus can shoot up while ducking if they want, just leave the level design exact.

13541

General Gaming / RE: Microsoft cloning N?

« on: February 02, 2004, 06:13:27 AM »

"Also, Microsoft has miscalculated some things and decided to market the XB to kids (their former enemies ) as well (official press release shortly after the release of Grabbed by the Ghoulies)."

That doesn't seem like a bad strategy to me.  Although many people forget it the younger market is quite lucrative.  Nintendo of course has been able to be successful targeting it and the PS2 has a lot of younger owners as well.  To me it just makes sense for MS to try to target them.  They're trying to expand their demographic.  Hell we all complain that Nintendo doesn't expand their demographic enough so why is MS not allowed to do it?

If the next Xbox is similar to the Cube I imagine it will be mostly coincidence.  The smaller size isn't because of the Cube it's because people complained about the Xbox size.  The changes to the hardware seem to be more about being cost effective than anything else.  The Xbox is a money pit designed to get a foothold in the market.  Obviously the followup can't go the same route, it has to be a profitable machine.  Therefore it makes sense to ditch the hard drive because that was an expensive component and wasn't really that well used beyond save storage.  It's also more efficient to use custom designed hardware than the PC hardware that was in the original machine.  Going for raw power was more expensive and didn't really result in too many games that the other consoles couldn't handle.

These changes show that MS has learned a great deal about the console market.  If the new Xbox is similiar to the Gamecube it isn't necessarily because MS wants to copy Nintendo's formula, it's really just that the Cube was from a hardware point of view the best designed machine of this generation.  Hell, with Sony seemingly going in a more complicated direction MS is playing it smart by simplifying everything.

13542

TalkBack / RE: The Planet GameCube 2004 Louie Awards Talkback Thread

« on: February 01, 2004, 06:08:07 PM »

Overall those awards pretty much reflect my own feelings.  I don't quite like Mario & Luigi that much and I would pick Ikaruga as the sleeper hit.  Otherwise the games that won awards all deserved it in my opinion.  I also would have picked E3 as biggest disappointment since it really failed to blow my socks off and focused way too much of connectivity stuff like Pac-Man Vs.  No online is disappointing but it's not like I was expecting them to go online.  I did expect to see some cool stuff at E3 and I was for the most part let down.

Sorry to continue this online stuff but there was a point made I really feel needs to be commented on.

" If you're interested in online gaming it's kind of assumed you just don't sit tight with what you have. If you don't go out and get an online capable console/PC that shows you're not interested enough in online gaming to really pursue it."

The thing is I have a PC and don't play many online games (or even games period) on it.  That's not because I'm not interested in online games I'm just not interested in PC games as a whole.  I don't have a PS2 or Xbox and don't plan on buying them anytime soon, at least not for their online games.  I don't want to play SOCOM or Crimson Skies I want to play online Nintendo games.  I want to play Mario Kart, Wave Race, 1080, Mario Party and F-Zero online.  Obviously I would never be able to play those games on a non-Nintendo console.  It's not so much that I want to play online games on the Gamecube I want to play online NINTENDO games and I can't do that unless Nintendo gives me that option.  That's why I want Nintendo to go online.  So I can play THEIR games with people across the world.

13543

TalkBack / RE: Metroid: Zero Mission Preview Update

« on: January 30, 2004, 09:02:56 PM »

"I really doubt that would sell. It's a very outdated early GB game and is pretty short. I know I wouldn't pay full price if all it had was new graphics and a map."

Outdated?  Aside from the lack of a map Metroid II is, in my opinion, no more outdated than Super Metroid.  The graphics need to be touched up but that gameplay is quite timeless.  Unlike Metroid there aren't very many gameplay restrictions caused by the hardware.  The main reason I would want it relatively untouched is mostly because I never got to play it in colour.  If you change the levels around then we'll never get to play Metroid II as it was designed in colour.  I really wish it got a DX version created for the GBC like Link's Awakening did.  However if they made a complete remake with the original game in colour as an unlockable I would be all for it.

And I wouldn't underestimate the potential sales for an enhanced port.  Every body went out and bought all the Mario games all over again so why wouldn't they buy a Metroid port?

13544

Nintendo Gaming / RE: MP2 details and IGN Capcom hyping

« on: January 30, 2004, 01:49:10 PM »

Talk about a let down.  "Resident Evil 4 is playable!"  Well I should f*cking hope so by now.  "We played it but can't tell you anything else!"  So basically the big news is that IGN has played it and we haven't it.  WOW!

13545

TalkBack / RE: Metroid: Zero Mission Preview Update

« on: January 30, 2004, 12:16:16 PM »

Personally I'm pissed off that they told us that there's more beyond Mother Brain.  I would rather that have been a surprise.  It SHOULD have been a surprise.

As for anymore remakes I would like a remake of Metroid II with colour, updated graphics and a map.  Other than that I want it identical though so it's more like an updated port than a full-on remake.  I find that Super Metroid is perfect as is though I have no objection to it being ported since everyone should have a chance to play it and, unlike with Mario, Nintendo has already made a new 2D Metroid so I don't have to worry about ports being released instead of new games.

13546

TalkBack / RE: Latest DS Details

« on: January 30, 2004, 12:07:10 PM »

"later, COLOR TVs were thought of as a gimic..."

REALLY?  That seems like something that everyone would want.  Movies were in colour when TV was still black & white so it seems pretty natural to have colour for TV as well.  My dad sure didn't think it has a gimmick when he first saw colour TV.  He thought "it's about f*cking time."

Anyway this whole "what can you do with two screens that you can't do with one" question has a very simple answer.  A huge screen makes for a huge portable which is inconvenient.  Two screens allows one to fold the unit in half thus increasing portability.

13547

TalkBack / RE: Pokemon Colosseum Teleconference Notes

« on: January 30, 2004, 12:00:46 PM »

"'Q: Was there any consideration for online competition with the game?
A: Yamana – I was not thinking about online battles and I’m not planning for future online battles.'

Good..."

What's good?  The fact that they didn't put in online play or don't plan to in the future?  While I have no problem with no online play this time around I think that in the future online battling will be a must.  That would be such a great feature and along with online trading would really add to the Pokemon franchise.  The games are all about trading and battling with other people and an online mode would compliment that design quite nicely.  When (not if, WHEN) online gaming becomes widespread if the Pokemon games don't allow for online battling and trading I would consider it a flaw and if I was a reviewer I would lower the score as a result.

13548

General Chat / RE: Happy Birthday, Knowsnothing!

« on: January 30, 2004, 11:46:17 AM »

"Well I am 175+ cm at 13 ( 14 in 2 months ) ...so how does that translate in feet ?"

How do you only know your height in metres?  We use the metric system here in Canada but still everybody measures human height in feet.

According to my driver's license I'm 178 cm though that was how tall I was at 16 and I've grown a little bit since then so I figure you're about 5'10 or 5'9 which is pretty good for 13.  You'll probably be at least 6 feet as an adult.

13549

General Chat / RE: Happy Birthday, Knowsnothing!

« on: January 30, 2004, 09:40:45 AM »

I'm 5'11 and a half.  So close to 6 feet yet so far.  According to various stats I'm taller than the average adult male but that seems pretty wonky since nearly every guy I meet is taller than me or close to the same height.  I guess they're counting the huge asian population in that stat which would explain why I'm taller than the average but most guys I meet are white and are thus taller than me.

13550

TalkBack / RE: Latest DS Details

« on: January 30, 2004, 06:54:44 AM »

"I don't see the DS becoming a 'replacement' because it won't be compatible with the Gamecube. It's too late in development. But remember - the Game Boy Advance preceeded the Gamecube by only 6 months, and they started pushing connectivity with Animal Crossing, six months later."

Like anyone cares.  Seriously the GC/GBA connectivity stuff is a non-factor.  If the DS was backwards compatible but for some reason didn't connect with the GC the amount of people who wouldn't buy a DS because of that is ridiculously insignificant.  Besides if the DS is backwards compatible with the GBA I don't see any reason why it wouldn't connect with the Cube.  It would just be in "GBA mode" when connected.

A lot of you who are against the idea of the DS replacing the GBA are using arguements from Nintendo's point of view.  The connectivity issue, the third pillar talk, etc.  Think of it from a consumer point of view.  This "third pillar" stuff doesn't mean sh!t to the average consumer.  If they see a new portable from Nintendo they are going to think it's a GBA successor.  Therefore Nintendo might as well treat it as such or else risk pissing off all of those consumers who think it's a GBA successor and are pissed off that it's not backwards compatible and the game selection is small with little third party support.  That sort of misinterpretation among consumers could give Sony the portable market on a platter.