Messages

376

TalkBack / RE: Wii Makes Toys

« on: September 26, 2006, 12:33:28 PM »

I agree with Windy.  Desparate moms and Nintendo fans will hunt down every last Wii until there are none left.  Better get yourself a preorder!

[Wii takes its place alongside 10th anniversary Tickle Me Elmo doll; Nintendo fanboys riot.]

377

TalkBack / Wii Makes Toys "R" Us "Hot Toy" List

« on: September 26, 2006, 11:24:28 AM »

Wii takes its place alongside 10th anniversary Tickle Me Elmo doll; Nintendo fanboys riot.

Toys "R" Us has added Wii to its list of hot toys for the 2006 holiday season.  Wii will be the first video game console to make the annual list.  Besides the obvious criterion of appealing to a younger audience, Wii will also meet the criterion of being available in sufficient quantities, something that newly launching consoles generally fail to do.    

Nintendo, with its "Donkey Kong," "Mario Brothers" and "Pokemon" game franchises, has found success with a younger audience.    

"The PlayStation 3 is really geared to a savvy gaming enthusiast," said Kathleen Waugh, a spokeswoman for Toys "R" Us, of the decision to add the Wii to the list. "The Wii system appeals to young kids as well as adults."    

...    

Waugh said one of Toys "R" Us' criteria of adding an item to its hot list is knowing it will have sufficient stock of the item for the holiday season, and she said that Toys "R" Us was able to ensure that by "taking a leadership position on the launch of Wii."    

Other items on the list include a 10th anniversary Tickle Me Elmo doll and a Fisher-Price digital camera.    

Special thanks to retired staffer Max D. Lake for the tip!

378

TalkBack / RE: Third Party Line Up

« on: September 14, 2006, 10:27:01 AM »

I would be discouraged if Nintendo's own titles weren't available.  With Nintendo's titles in the mix, the Wii is going to have a great launch and a great first 4 months.

379

TalkBack / RE: Madden Sells Two Million in First Week

« on: September 01, 2006, 02:57:47 PM »

Actually, I'm minorly interested in the new.... forgot the name, but it's a mode where you play one player on the team through a season (or seasons) rather than playing the whole team.  If you play an offensive guy, then you're on the bench watching while the defense plays etc.  Not only does that sound interesting, but it should also dramatically reduce the game's learning curve as you'd only be able to play one position at a time.

380

TalkBack / RE: Nintendo Annouces Two New Wii Titles

« on: August 23, 2006, 09:37:05 AM »

All the love for the original BW makes me want to go back and try it.  Wonder if it's 20 bucks yet.

[nolimit19]

381

TalkBack / RE:Minnesota Video Game Law Overturned

« on: August 03, 2006, 10:23:56 AM »

Quote
Originally posted by: nolimit19
I take back everything I said. And I was kidding about being a constitutional scholar. I didn’t bother reading the first sentence of the story. If the law had been fining retailers, it would have been different, but fining the people who buy the game is dumb.

Our judicial system distinguishes between adults and minors in most instances (sentencing, alcohol, curfews, driving, etc.)

If you want to protect the constitution, worry about the 2nd amendment, not the 1st. The US has just about the most liberal free speech laws in the world...almost to a fault. You can say anything about anyone, and it’s almost impossible to prove libel or slander. For instance, some books have to be edited from the US to UK versions for legal liability reasons (UK has much stricter laws on libel).

No it would not have been different to fine retailers.  In fact, all previous attempts at this kind of law have tried to fine retailers and they've all been struck down as unconstitutional.  The government should not be supervising all of America's children in anyway unless an overwhelming majority of Americans want said help.  And even then it's questionable if the government ought to be involved.  If an individual wants to raise their kids on violent video games, that is their own business unless someone can prove that raising a kid in such a manner significantly increases their chance of directing violent energy at other people or property.  It's unlikely that such a thing will ever be proven.  Most sane people, children included, can easily tell the different between reality and fantasy.  It's as simple as that.

As for constitutional amendments,  I'd say the first, the second, the fourth, the sixth, the seventh, and tenth are all being trampled on in one way or another.  The first isn't just about speech.  We're supposed to have freedom of religion and yet drug law and attempts to illegalize abortion and stem cell research suggest otherwise.  As for the second, gun control law is out of control.  As for the fourth, police are always trying to search without a warrant, generally by coersion (usually in order to enforce our unconstitutional drug laws).  The sixth, a right to a speedy trial, is greatly hindered by courts clogged with drug related cases.   The seventh, meant to protect trial by jury, is relatively ineffectual with 95% of all cases never going before a jury (because the defendent often has no practical choice).  Finally, the tenth is meant to reserve as much power as possible for the individual states, and yet the federal government has grown to behemoth size and grabs and retains as much power as possible as often as possible.  And no, I'm not a constitutional scholar either, just an amateur.  

[18 Days]

382

TalkBack / RE:Minnesota Video Game Law Overturned

« on: August 03, 2006, 10:04:06 AM »

Quote
Originally posted by: 18 Days
Why is USA dumb?

For the same reason every other democracy is dumb... which is that most people are dumb.  I'd take dumb over despotic any day though.

383

TalkBack / RE: Ubisoft Announces Seven Wii Launch Titles

« on: August 03, 2006, 09:51:08 AM »

I'm taking a wait and see approach to every game except Zelda and Metroid.  Some of those Ubisoft games look like they have potential though.  I'll be keeping an eye on them.  Along with Excite Truck and a few others.

384

TalkBack / RE: Nintendo Touts Mario Sales

« on: June 22, 2006, 05:55:28 PM »

I just finished getting all the gold coins.  The last one in level 7's castle was quite difficult.

Next objective, fight all the bosses without fire flowers.

After that, beat the whole game as mini-mario.

After that, cry

385

TalkBack / RE:Nintendo Reveals More Wii Details

« on: June 08, 2006, 02:20:27 PM »

I don't want to disect my console, but I've heard of the replacement connectors.  Is a soldering iron required?  If so, then honestly my little "ritual" isn't that bad.  It literally takes me maybe 5 seconds on average.

[The Omen]

386

TalkBack / RE:Nintendo Reveals More Wii Details

« on: June 07, 2006, 06:39:50 PM »

Quote
Originally posted by: The Omen
the prices are fine.  $4 is slightly much for an old NES game like Urban Champion.  But $9 is a steal for Snes classics like A Link To The Past or Shadowrun, not to mention N64 classics.  It ends up being a bargain in my eyes.

Besides, who feels like f'ing with the NES, and that hideous blinking screen?I'd sooner pay $4 even if I owned the game then drag all my wires and rubbing alcohol out just to play Tag Team Wrestling.

haha, everyone has their own ritual to make those old NES's work

My trick was to blow the dust off the contacts, then blow humid air onto contacts (make a slow breath from the back of your throat).  The humidity helps initial electrical conductivity.  Then I put the game in just a little more than I have to (don't push it all the way back).  Finally, I push the game down and take another game (a crappy one) and insert it into the nes on top of the other game holding it down (rather than the normal method where the game pops back up a little bit).  Using this trick I can get all but the most nasty or broken game to work on two or three tries.  If not one.

And I'd much rather play the original if I have it than any emulated version, including Wii's.  Metroid Prime's copy of Metroid 1 for example is just a little weird looking compared to the original NES.  The screen dimensions are slightly different and the colors or just a tad off.  Things are a slight bit blurry even.  I hope they do a better job with the Wii emulators.

387

TalkBack / RE: Nintendo Reveals More Wii Details

« on: June 07, 2006, 09:40:02 AM »

Unless you invest money in a bunch of equipment to connect controllers to your pc and your pc to your tv, the Wii will have an advantage over typical emulation, and that's assuming that pc emulators work well (they often don't).  5 bucks seems a bit steep for an old nes game, but they may be doing software testing on each game they release to ensure full compatibility (it is a retail product after all, can't have it crash the emulator during the last boss fight).

388

TalkBack / RE: Datel Ships MAX Media Dock for DS

« on: June 06, 2006, 12:08:11 PM »

Yeah that must be it.  Hey, aren't you on the staff now?  You need to get your forum handle updated.

389

TalkBack / RE: Datel Ships MAX Media Dock for DS

« on: June 06, 2006, 10:21:21 AM »

Compact Flash seems to be more prevalent for cameras and things though.  Maybe it's going out of of style though.

How could such a device be non-sanctioned though.  The only way to boot into DS mode is either with Nintendo's permission or by hijacking the header off of a real cartridge using a pass-through.  Unless someone reverse engineered the header and simply made a generic one.  You'd think Nintendo would take legal action otherwise.  Anyway, since you're probably right I edited my comments on the main site to account for that.

390

TalkBack / RE: Datel Ships MAX Media Dock for DS

« on: June 06, 2006, 09:11:55 AM »

I really like what I've read about this product so far. Allowing consumers to purchase a base version and use their existing Compact Flash cards or purchase smaller cards could save a lot of money for anyone interested in the homebrew scene. There are a lot of interesting applications and games being developed and this seems to be the first licensed product that allows players to run homebrewed code. Previously players had to use non-sanctioned hacking devices to bootup homebrew code in DS mode. If you're into the homebrew scene be sure to search for my falling-block puzzle game, Flux!

391

TalkBack / RE: Wii Price Ceiling and Shipment Forecast

« on: May 25, 2006, 11:07:01 AM »

I don't think they could give you two controllers and wii sports at 199.  Unless they leave out the nunchuks which is remotely possible.  If nunchuks retail at 25 bucks then that wouldn't be too bad.  I'd probably buy that pack, one or two nunchuks, Metroid and zelda to start.  Then I'd wait a week while I play Metroid and Zelda for reviews of the unknown launch titles to come in to aid in my additional purchasing decisions.

392

TalkBack / RE: Wii Price Ceiling and Shipment Forecast

« on: May 25, 2006, 09:26:57 AM »

I believe that they are considering a package with two controllers and a pack-in game like Wii Sports. That would cost $249.99. The intention would be to make things simpler for non-gamers who would be wary of adding additional games and controllers. The alternative is to stick with a traditional bare-bones system with just one controller and no game for $199.99. I'm fairly certain they don't want two retail packages though, so they will have to choose one or the other.

393

TalkBack / RE: IMPRESSIONS: Mega Man ZX

« on: May 17, 2006, 10:20:16 AM »

Mega Man Zero didn't sit too well with me.  The characters were too large for the screen so I felt really restricted playing it (it was like playing the whole game zoomed in).  It made boss fights more difficult than necessary.  Since I didn't finish the first one, I never picked up any of the others.

394

TalkBack / RE:IMPRESSIONS: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

« on: May 16, 2006, 09:24:38 AM »

I agree.  If the Wii version doesn't allow gamecube controller usage (like Smash Bros. apparently will) then I may very well get the GameCube version.  It will be a tough decision... it's too bad they split the games.

395

TalkBack / RE: Microsoft and Sony Unite to Support the Wii

« on: May 16, 2006, 09:04:17 AM »

I've been thinking this for quite some time now.  Wii is so cheap and innovative, it's almost a must-have second console.  But if enough people pick it up as a second (in addition to the ones who pick it up exclusively) Nintendo could eclipse both of the big guys.  It's going to be a very interesting "console war" that's for sure.

396

TalkBack / RE: PREVIEWS: Super Paper Mario

« on: May 16, 2006, 01:35:01 AM »

I almost didn't look at this game because I had to force my way through paper mario 1 and I couldn't play PM2 for more than a few minutes.  But this seems to be more of a platformer, like classic mario bros. with paper mario graphics and some twists and embellishments.  sound fantastic

397

TalkBack / RE: Sakurai Takes Smash Suggestions

« on: May 12, 2006, 09:33:55 AM »

I tried to make suggestions for 3rd party characters that I thought were possible

398

TalkBack / RE: Sakurai Takes Smash Suggestions

« on: May 12, 2006, 06:39:30 AM »

Rock Man, Simon Belmont and Sonic!

399

TalkBack / RE: PREVIEWS: Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

« on: May 11, 2006, 02:54:16 PM »

Ok, I'm a believer now.  For a minute there I thought Prime 3 wasn't going to make the launch...  that's great news.  And beam stacking... that's welcome.  No more switching to open doors.

400

TalkBack / RE: Super Smash Bros. Dojo Opens

« on: May 11, 2006, 12:35:41 PM »

Don't ever forget that Nintendo is a business and they want your money.  However, the reason they have so many loyal customers is that they believe it is important to build a solid fanbase on a good reputation.  They don't make good quality games because they're nice, but because it is the cornerstone of their business model.  It is a rare business model these days though.  Most companies are content to fool consumers whenever they can.