Topic: Now this guy has the right idea (concerning te VC)

[NWR_pap64]

NOTE: I know we have talked about the VC to death, but I thought the editorial was very interesting and offered a great idea as to how to handle the VC.

The editorial talks about how Nintendo should consider demos of the VC games so that you can try before you buy. The guy offers some really good points and I agree with him. I think the prices for the VC games are a robbery, and it would suck that you spend money on a crappy game, so trying it before you download it sounds logical and not that hard to pull off.

Read the rest here.  

[Leck]

I'm too lazy to read the article :p, but demos of VC games definately be cool.  My first console was an N64, so I haven't played many of these games and I'm looking forward to trying a lot of them.
However, I already regret getting Wario's Woods and Toejam and Earl :|
Even if its just a time limited thing, say you can play for an hour or two then it deletes itself.  Shouldn't be too hard to do.

[Mario]

The point of VC isn't to let you download every crappy game you want, get games you would normally buy with it, and its a great deal.

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But then that got me thinking. What if I don't like it again, even after playing through more than just the beginning? I'll have wasted at least 800 Wii Points which I won't get back, on a game I'll wind up removing from my Wii's memory.

Then you're a MORON for downloading a game you aren't interested in.

Never happening.

[18 Days]

But what if you download Soccer thinking that it is actually Nintendo World Cup? WHAT THEN?

[Nephilim]

I know both my mates download 90% of xbox arcade demo's, which normally leads to them buying them if they are any good
demo's do work

[JonLeung]

Quote
Originally posted by: Mario
The point of VC isn't to let you download every crappy game you want, get games you would normally buy with it, and its a great deal.

*sigh* I wish it was made with collectors in mind.  I was hoping to have every NES game ever made on the Wii.  At $1 a game I'd gladly spend around $700.  At $2 I'd consider spending $1400.  Any more, forget it, the dream of every NES game is gone.  As it is I only have Super Mario Bros. and Street Fighter II.  (Since I can't really collect them, now I'm going to regret those purchases if Super Mario All-Stars and Super Street Fighter II come too soon.)  See, now Nintendo's making a lot less money off of me.  Though I guess the average consumer who'd only buy a few games, they'd get a better return from.

Not that they'd release every NES game anyway.  And even if they could come close, they might spread all their releases over more than just the lifespan of the Wii.

Oh crap, what if the next game console doesn't support the VC games you got for the Wii?  I suppose since they keep a record of which games you bought, they could let you access the same games even if you had to re-download them.  But if the download record is wiped clean, that would really suck.  >_<

[Artimus]

This is a silly idea. How exactly do you make a demo of Tetris? Restrict the levels? It would be dumb because it would increase production costs (you need to MAKE the demo) and you didn't get demos for the real games. For original games, sure, that's possible. But for old games? Right. Him buying or not buying Chrono Trigger should be based on similar thoughts as whether he bought the latest Final Fantasy or any other RPG.  

[ryancoke]

I like the idea of timed play.  For example. You download the demo for NES Tetris and it would allow you to play for an hour and then it would delete itself. Or with a game like tetris they could restrict you to 5 minutes per game.  I think it would work.  I never owned a Genesis but I did play some of the games on it. I've never played Gunstar Heros or Ristar. I won't download them even though they are supposed to be really good just because I don't know if I will like them.  If I could play a demo I would definately buy more games. As of right now I only have SM64, Ice Hockey and Donkey Kong because those are games i've played and liked.  Come on Ninty, give us some demos!

[Smash_Brother]

Quote
Originally posted by: Mario Then you're a MORON for downloading a game you aren't interested in.

And we've come to the biggest issue the VC has: how do we know these games don't suck a whole pile of ass before we pay money for them?

We don't.

Demos exist for a REASON: the cautious consumer likes to TRY before they buy, and like Deadly said, demos work.

I'd recommend a 5 minute timer or something and after that the rom resets. Just enough time for people to get a sample of the game to see if they'll like it or not.

I've read the descriptions of some of the games and I honestly don't think these are any way to determine whether or not you'll enjoy the game. That's one of the reasons I won't touch the VC until I see a game I know is worth the multiplayer hours.

[Ian Sane]

I like the idea of timed demos.  To avoid people from abusing a title like Tetris they could just make the demo time limit permanent.  Instead of five minutes per play you get to download the demo version and get an hour total with it.  After that you cannot download the demo again on that Wii.  I figure considing the time it takes to download a title you probably should get more than a couple minutes.  But this way no one can abuse it.

Of course there is a way to test the game before you buy.  It's just of questionable legality though I've used it many times to determine which used SNES games to buy.

[Requiem]

Roms are "legal" if you own a copy of the game...

[MarioAllStar]

I would love for demos of the games. I feel like my purchase of Altered Beast was a total rip-off and wish I could have tried it first. On the other hand, there are some games that I have a genuine interest in (and NWR has reccomended) that I just can't get myself to buy because I am not 100% sure.

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Originally posted by: Requiem
Roms are "legal" if you own a copy of the game...

From what I understand, you have to make your own back-up for it to be legal, at least by U.S. law. Owning a physical copy of the game does not entitle you to download the back-ups of others. I do not want to start a ROM discussion, so I'll leave it at that.

[Hostile Creation]

I thought the whole point of it was nostalgia.

What about game reviews?  Someone should start a retro review site for VC games, seeing how they stood the test of time.  Or at least dedicate a portion of a site to it.
I wouldn't be dumb enough to buy something I didn't like.  I'd ask around.  It's like buying any other game.

I'm not saying demos are a bad idea.  That'd be good, if it were feasible.  But it really shouldn't be necessary.

[Ian Sane]

"Roms are 'legal' if you own a copy of the game..."

That doesn't work out to well if your goal is to try the game before you buy it.

"I feel like my purchase of Altered Beast was a total rip-off and wish I could have tried it first."

Hell that's probably an incentive for Nintendo and the rest to not offer demos.  There is obviously SOME incentive, at least from Nintendo's own offerings, to get us to buy weaker titles.  Why else is Urban Champion being made available before Super Mario World?  Why else did all these NES sports titles that were seen as dated in 1988 get released before Super Mario Bros?  Not having demos might encourage sales of crappy games that don't stand the test of time.

In real life you can always rent a game and here you can't so I think demos are much more necessary than they are on consoles that use physical media.  Maybe renting is the answer.  For a lower price you can rent games for a time.  Nintendo would probably like that because they'd get money from it.

[The Omen]

I still cannot fathom how people have such a huge problem with the VC prices as if they're obligated to buy them.  I think the prices are fine as is.  Would I pay $5 for Soccer?  Nope.  Nor would I pay $2.  I just don't care about the game.  I will gladly pay $8 for both Super Castlevania, Street Fighter II, and $5 for SMB.   $21 for 3 of my favorite games of all time is pretty much a  bargain to me.  

Get a stinking job!

[Leck]

To be honest, I'd be satisfied with a little more information in the VC screen itself, before I buy.  I want to be able to view MORE screenshots, and FULLSCREEN, and perhaps they could even link to some reviews, since you could easily read them in the Opera browser.

[NeoThunder]

my point is what about games you never played, and have no clue what they were like, with only two small screenshots to go by in the shop channel, I'd be ok without demo's as long as you could see a little video, or more bigger screenshots

[IceCold]

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And we've come to the biggest issue the VC has: how do we know these games don't suck a whole pile of ass before we pay money for them?

We don't.

How would you know that new Wii games don't suck a whole pile of ass before you pay $50 (way more than VC games) for them? You look at media, impressions and reviews of them. That's why NWR has the Retro Recommendation thingy, and why so many sites have VC reviews.

I don't generally rely on the scores of the reviews. Rather, I read them and pick out what I would like and what I wouldn't, then look at the game in motion, then buy it if it interested me enough.

[Infernal Monkey]

Three second timed demos. It'd be great! Here comes the title screeee-END.

The games come with a desciption before you download. "In this game you save the world! Give us your points!" What else do you need? And there's a rumour that the internet has more than just tranny elephant porn on it, you can research the likes of 'Tennis' and 'Super Mario Bros.' (sounds like a dumb game no way I'd pay to download that!)

[Requiem]

It's kinda strange how nobody has even asked if VC games will eventually fall in price...

Normal games do, so what's the difference.

[Infernal Monkey]

If R-Type being 800 instead of the usual 600 is anything to go by, VC games will be about $4000 each this time next year.

[ryancoke]

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How would you know that new Wii games don't suck a whole pile of ass before you pay $50 (way more than VC games) for them?

That's why I rent games before I buy them.  Unless it's a definate must have like Zelda or Superman 64

just kidding on SM64  

[Donutt007]

Wow...I've been gone from this board forever...anyway..

For VC reviews check out this page
VC Review

It's a page based in the UK but has all the US info too.

They seem to give pretty decent reviews. Such as Altered Beast

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Considering it's one of the first games for Sega's Megadrive, it would be foolish to expect this to be a 'must have' title on the Virtual Console. However Altered Beast has a charm that few other games have. The speech is priceless (who could forget the first time they heard the immortal words: "Wise Fwom You Gwave"?) and although the gameplay is pretty basic, it's fun while it lasts - which isn't very long, to be perfectly honest. Even a gamer of average skill should be able to complete this in the space of a day or two

Is it worth 800 points? Probably not. You could probably pick up a Megadrive and a copy of the game for less. But if you were a fan of the game all those years ago, you could do a lot worse than give this a spin

[vudu]

That's a pretty horrible Altered Beast review.  A better one would be this game sux dont bye it k thx bye

[Smash_Brother]

Quote
Originally posted by: IceCold How would you know that new Wii games don't suck a whole pile of ass before you pay $50 (way more than VC games) for them? You look at media, impressions and reviews of them. That's why NWR has the Retro Recommendation thingy, and why so many sites have VC reviews.

I've been renting them through Gamefly, actually, because I would have regretted paying $6 to rent them from Blockbuster.

Here's the thing, though: if I buy a craptacular game, I might be able to return it to the store. At the VERY least, I can sell it back for store credit and get some of my purchase refunded.

If I buy a crap VC game, I'm f*cked. I can't return it, I can't sell it back. I don't recall Nintendo having a "lemon" game policy and some of the games on the VC are CERTAINLY lemons in my book.

Also, were I to follow NWR's retro recommendation, I'd already own at least two games which I'd hate.