KAZ

Did you have to specially mod your Playstation Gunstar?

If the copy doesn't work on the Playstation, I'd say it isn't much of a copy. Sorry you haven't found a working solution yet. For one thing, your Playstation must first be "modded", a microchip has to be swapped out or something. There is a hack solution involving a game shark, but I just don't know the details. Game sharks, as you know, bipass the startup screen. This "mod" works only with older model playstations, since the latter ones had even more sophisticated copy protection technology. I'm just giving you all the information I currently know about this, so take what you can

The time has come that I entered this old fabled contest. **checks billfold** Only a five? Dammit!

Trash talk Sony Playstation all you want, thousands of times over. Games such as Final Fantasy 7 and 8 Tekken 2 Street Fighter Collection 2 Armored Core Rage Racer have provided me with an awesome good time over the years. There is nothing you could say that would change that fact. Now, I WILL agree that compact disks are more vulnerable than cartridges. So while an Atari 5200 game might last for 100 years, a playstation disk may in fact seriously become warped, or scratched, or whatever over time. This does actually distress me. 10 years from now, for example, will I be able to collect for Playstation much as I do for Atari 2600? I certainly hope so, but I am nervous that disks are just not as durable as a cartridge medium. This is a problem with disks, not with Sony Playstation. This same phenomenon would occur with any cd disk based gaming system. Did you know that there is a certain mold that can actually grow ON compact disks if they are exposed to the right amounts of humidity, like if you took some disks with you on a safari in Africa or something. That is all, carry on

Yeah, sure I believe you. Search the web for a program called: CloneCD It allows for copying of the error segments of a copy protected CD, such as Playstation's disks. Regular cd copying eliminates these error sections....but they are needed. Manufacturers intentionally stick these "bad sectors" into their cds, because most copy programs are programmed to FIX errors when they encounter them (as if the programs think they are doing you a "favor" by fixing errors, hehe) So there should be an option in CloneCD for "magnifying bad sectors". So that it copies even these bad sectors. I'm not an expert at this, but maybe this will give you a good head start. I think a fast writer is required too, for some technical reason.

If hammering the buttons is your style of playing, play as some of these characters: Blanka (you can even repeatedly press a strong or a jab punch for electricity) Chun Li (you can also press forward or light kick repeatedly for her hyper leg move) Honda (same thing here, just press strong or a jab punch repeatedly fast for his hundred hand slap) Avoid Sagat, Balrog, and possibly Zangief for a beginning player. Set your strongest punches or kicks to two buttons close to one another, and use those primarily. Whoever blocks better will likely win when two people are just jamming on the buttons. Ex plus alpha is ok-and I actually own it, but I like the purity of gameplay of the very second street fighter (champion edition), without all the jazzy graphics, and 10 hit combo messages flying in your face. Zangief's spinning pile driver in the Ex alpha version is wonderful to watch. There are definitely parts in that game that are unbelievably cool. The semi 3 dimensional gameplay is a very nice touch!

How about Beat em, Eat em?

Well the part with the three crocodiles and NO vine is the most challenging, and here's what I suggest: Wait till the first one has its mouth closed, and then jump onto it, stopping on its head. Wait another cycle till the crocodiles close their mouths again, and then make two quick jumps onto the other two, and then to the other side. The opening and closing pits can be challenging, but you just have to be patient, and those won't kill you either. This is how I do it. Jumping the scorpion is just hard no matter how you look at it, no trick there, just timing.

Woodies can be fixed pretty cheaply too. This is just what I've heard.

I'd be all like blah, and then not say anything. And then I'd be all like blah, siscablah blah, and then I may comment about chocolate cake. And after that I might say nothing for about 5 seconds, and then I might begin talking about maple syrup. The hell's wrong with your Atari 5200 guy? How bad is it busted, like really or kinda? Do you have another working one that you play from er something?

Wow, that is really cool you have the actual arcade cabinet in your room. I envy you! Someday maybe I'll be so lucky. I have to settle for Playstation for the time being.

Street Fighter 2 Champion Edition (the first one with playable bosses) allows for mirror matches as well. The very first Street Fighter 2 (known as The World Warrior) doesn't automatically allow for mirror matches. Ryu and Ken are exact clones in this game (both of their moves are identical). Honda cannot move with his hand slap, and neither can Zangief with his spinning clothesline. In the champion edition version, Ryu is a little more powerful than Ken, and his hurricane kick is totally different looking. In the turbo version, Ryu and Ken can both do "mid air hurricane" kicks, where you can perform the move in mid air. A pretty neat move, all considered. I like Champion Edition the best, tho I actually like Blanka's vertical roll.

Sagat is my second favorite character, for the reason that it is the most rewarding to win matches with him, because the more technical your game is, the better you do with Sagat. My order of favorites: 1. Vega (not too surprising) 2. Sagat 3. Zangief 4. Ken Perhaps you didn't realize that Zangief's spinning pile driver does NOT need to be done by rotating the joystick (thumbpad) around 360 degrees, and then hitting a punch button. It can be done like this: Back, Back-Down, Down, Up + a punch button The up +punch button must be hit at the exact same time. I don't know why you can do it like this, but try it sometime, I think you will be pleasantly surprised that you can do his move. I am the master of the spinning pile driver (not the 360 degree way). I think it is neat when you throw out an ultra slow fireball with Sagat, and follow it up with a really fast fireball. You can actually achieve a "combo" like this, hitting your opponent twice before he can block the second I know too much about this game. Street Fighter Turbo (which I don't play often), adds a few moves to the characters. Honda's vertical thing. Blanka's vertical thing. Vega's "something". Chun Li's fireball (she shouldn't have a fireball). So we play the very first version where you could play as the bosses. Street Fighter Champion Edition.

Sagat suffers from a huge weakness, namely that his uppercut is not invincible. If it does connect it does an obscene amount of damage. He isn't terribly fast especially against characters like Chun Li, Vega, Blanka. His tiger knee combo is definitely the second most powerful attack (the spinning pile driver being the first). Ken's 4 hit combo is pretty nice too. Sagat has been fighting up the ranks for us, I've seen him move higher and higher. Whereas a character like Chun Li is starting to go down the ranks. The other "mover" is Dhalsim. He's currently my #2 character (within just the last 10 sets we've played) but it wasn't always that way. These stats I've listed above are over a long period of time, and don't show current trends very well. Dhalsim is much quicker than you might think. He can move around the screen with jumping down fierce, or jumping down-roundhouse. If you get your opponent in the corner, you perform the Yoga Flame trap. You hit your opponent on the ground, and you Yoga Flame. The opponent has to block (or possible do an ultra fast dragonpunch) and then Dhalsim simply moves a little closer and throws the opponent. Then he starts all over again, and does the flame throw again. Ways out of this tactic: Ryu's Hurricane Kick Dragon Punches Spinning Star Kick (sometimes) Guile's Flash Kick (sometimes) Balrog has no known defense to this tactic, so once you get him in the corner, you just finish him off completely with this single move. Bison has a rough time with this move too.

Here's a quote from that article: "Then there are the viruses," Widmar continued. "She said, 'I'm afraid to look at the Internet. What if my computer gets one of those diseases I read about in the paper?' I tried telling her that viruses can only be spread if you open attachments, and that she'd have nothing to worry about if she scanned attachments before opening them. She said she was afraid she'd forget or scan it wrong, and that 'the whole computer would break.'" I know this article was supposed to be poking fun at a beginner computer user, but seriously...you CAN scan viruses "wrong". If you don't keep your virus scanner up to date, you can get nailed by the next new virus that comes along. And tho your computer won't EXPLODE or anything, it will technically "break it". And what about those web sites out there that will attempt to automatically dial your modem? A real threat, since a beginner won't know what to do...and in a couple weeks they'll get a bill for $20,000 from their phone company. Or email that automatically opens up your browser, and then 9,000 pop-up windows come up. I know the trick: Alt F4. But a beginner wouldn't. The internet IS a scary place for those who aren't well versed on it. And the fact they are newbies, can cost them big time. I kind of laughed at that onion article, but it is more serious if you think more deeply about it. It would be best had that fictional woman not even been on the net at all, for it could cost her. She COULD have her identity stolen online (paypal anyone?)

You are absolutely right about Honda's "sumo missile" being easily stopped by Chun Li. Her "toe tap" does the trick every time. When he does his sumo missile, you just jump backwards, and press down+forward kick. If Honda gets too close to Ryu or Ken while they are throwing fireballs, it will result in them getting kicked in the face. Honda's jump is awfully slow tho (and he even does a little flip in the air too) and if not timed right, Ryu or Ken will simply counter with a dragon punch (if the fireball "retracts" fast enough) If Ryu can keep Honda back far enough tho, Honda MUST block the fireballs, and can't jump over them. If he does, Ryu can do a sweep kick. If Honda gets too close, Ryu must stop throwing fireballs, and use other tactics. If Honda stays close during the battle, Ryu will lose. But let's look at our stats...let's see who has faired better here I have the stats right here: My Ryu vs. My friend's Honda: 23/50 Therefore this match is pretty even up, 25/50 would be a perfectly even match. My friend's Ryu vs. My Honda: 36/50 Perhaps I simply can't play Honda right, because my friend just sends a constant stream of fireballs at me, pushing me back. I try my best to keep getting closer, but he keeps his distance. I realize that the computer Bison may be easy to beat. He does alot of jumping (the computer always jumps eventually). And then you just simply nail him with a dragon punch. But against a human competitor they won't do this. And Bison has good offensive power, and he defends well against hits. I don't know why my friend does so well with him (he doesn't even like the Bison character!!)

I didn't know what the heck you were saying with "Sisyphean", so I looked it up: SISYPHEAN Of or relating to an endless and ineffective task. This one comes straight out of Greek myth. Sisyphus was a king of Corinth, a son of Aeolus (the ruler of the winds, hence our word aeolian for something produced by or borne on the wind). In later legend he was the father of Odysseus or Ulysses. His name actually meant "crafty" in Greek: he was noted for his deception and he's the equivalent in Greek folklore of the master trickster who turns up in many folk beliefs, such as Coyote in American Indian mythology. He even managed to cheat Death the first time around, surviving the experience to live to a ripe old age. In Greek legend Sisyphus was punished in Hades for his misdeeds in life by being condemned eternally to roll a heavy stone up a hill. As he neared the top, the stone rolled down again, so that his labour was everlasting and futile. The word first appeared in English in the middle of the seventeenth century. It isn't used much these days because so few people understand the reference to classical literature. And aren't you happier now that you know this?

20 boxed consoles?? Omigod that's cool. Do you have them "on display" or something. Are they for selling? Or are they merely for viewing? Are any of them shrinkwrapped? Not sure if they did that sort of thing with consoles or not.

Well my friend used to work during the day, and I worked during the evenings, so we never would hang out during the weekdays. So this was mainly for like 3 hours or so on a Saturday or a Sunday. It doesn't take long for the matches to start adding up, just doing it like this for 2 years. As with the statistics, I suppose that does take some time, but I've always wanted to know the objective strengths and weaknesses of each character, and how they'd do over a long time. Here's another analysis that you might find interesting: For the beginner type player, you will do best with characters like: Chun Li Dhalsim Bison For the intermediate player, you will do best with characters like: Ryu Ken Vega For the advanced player, you will do best with Sagat Zangief What I mean is that the beginner won't do well at all if he picks a character like Zangief. Once he gets to an advanced level, Zangief will begin to totally conquer everyone. Chun Li on the other hand tends to become a really really bad character at advanced playing. I should know, I've seen Chun Li move down and down and down, from a relatively high position on our charts. Sagat is a pure nightmare at advanced playing. His knee combo is devastating, and most of his moves are the most powerful in the game. Some characters like Bison and Blanka will remain good all the time, no matter your skill level.

I'm not a slouch at the arcade coin-op version, but I just can't get that sheer perfection that I can with a thumb pad, like playstation's controllers. The standard moves are pretty much no problem with a joystick. The charging moves...and the repeated tapping moves. I can do a fireball pretty good with a joystick, and a dragon punch about 60% of the time. With a thumb pad, I swear, I will NOT miss a dragon punch. But here's something interesting about the Playstation game. Sagat's Tiger Uppercut is technically more difficult to perform than Ken or Ryu's. You have to be much more exact with it for some reason. I want to talk some about Honda....since he's your favorite. He is a tank like you say. His "sumo missile" is invincible if you do it with a light jab punch, right as your opponent is trying to hit you. If you get someone in the corner with Honda, it is pretty much over. You can do any number of cheap jump kick (make the opponent block) hug them, followed by the hundred hand slaps. His main weakness is against fireball throwing characters. If you play Ryu or Ken right, you can force Honda to jump the fireballs, and do simple sweep kicks to him forever. IF you mess up with Ryu or Ken, and Honda forces you in the corner....you need a well timed dragon punch to get out of that situation. My Honda is ranked #5 for me with: 302 wins My friend's Honda is ranked #3 with: 410 wins Over time my friend has gotton a better record than me, but you couldn't tell it by the intense battles. In fact his worse ranked character is better than my best ranked character, in total wins.

Some no-brainers first off: Vega will pretty much always beat Dhalsim. Dhalsim is much too slow when jumping, and often a missed move by Dhalsim will result in an easy hit for Vega. Plus, Dhalsim has a really tough time defending against the wall climb. Occasionally his head-butt move will work. If Dhalsim can trap Vega in the corner, he can utilize a "Yoga Flame cheap move". Vega's only escape would be a throw in this instance. Guile will beat Balrog alot, mainly because of the "sonic-boom cheap move". You trap Balrog in the corner (somehow), and throw a sonic boom, and while Balrog blocks, you can do a suplex to him. You just loop this move over and over. The only escape is for Balrog to attempt a throw, which doesn't work very often. Balrog will beat Blanka often, this has been found to be a really wierd stat. Blanka is always ranked really high, but his one main weakness is Balrog. Any roll that Blanka does will be countered by Balrog. If Blanka attempts to do any sort of jump kick, jump punch...Balrog can easily nail him with a ducking fierce punch (a regular uppercut), or the charging uppercut. Blanka's only weapon then is to slowly cut away at Balrog with strong punches...but Balrog's ducking fierce just simply has too much range. It is a no-win situation for Blanka all around.

Here's the breakdown for each character's best matchups: The maximum any character could get would be a perfect 100/100 battles won: Ryu: Guile (72) Honda: Dhalsim (83) Blanka: Zangief (83) Guile: Balrog (89) Ken: Chun Li (70) Chun Li: Dhalsim (67) Zangief: Balrog (91) Dhalsim: Balrog (84) Balrog: Blanka (82) Vega: Dhalsim (86) Sagat: Guile (65) Bison: Balrog (86) Some explanation might be useful for some of these. Let me try to analyze some of it, since I've seen it all in this game.

I'm posting this in case anyone is curious about what character is better than whom on Street Fighter 2. This is the Playstation disk: "Street Fighter Collection 2" The mode that it is set on is the 2nd one: Street Fighter 2: Champion Edition My friend and I started keeping statistics on our battles about 2 years ago. We set up a system where each character would meet every other character twice. A "set" would consist of 288 matches where each character would get a chance to fight every other an equal amount of times. I have kept statistics, for my own curiousity. It has been nearly as much fun as playing the game. These are just the most general comprehensive statistics. We've played exactly 8064 matches: Adding both my records and his, these are the results ranked in order from best to worst: Bison: 762 Vega: 742 Blanka: 732 Zangief: 717 Honda: 712 Ryu: 698 Ken: 665 Chun Li: 639 Guile: 636 Dhalsim: 634 Sagat: 585 Balrog: 542 I have more specific data, coming in later posts, for anyone who is interested.

Reminds me of "the artist formerly known as Prince". ET should be renamed to "that suckass game formerly known as shitty, but now is lore, but still sux, and it is buried in a cement tomb created for it because of its former suckhood"

Yes, I see...using equates in the first part of the assembly code. Assigning something to another, so it remains that throughout the rest of the code. I sort finished the first book I was reading, and although my brain is still frying from it, I did get some concepts in my head. I became familiar with Branch codes. It looks for a certain flag to decide whether to jump to a different address. I learned that hexadecimal numbers can be added together longhand, just using 0-F instead of 0-9 12+ 13 ___ 25 1A+ 33 ___ 4D A went to D I'm not gonna give up...I think I know a little more than when I started. When I look at a long passage of code, I sometimes panick! What the hell is that? Then I start recognizing some familiar mnemonics like: STA JMP TAX AND Understanding assembly coding is fine on the one hand, but then I have to specifically apply it to the 6502 that SITS IN THE ATARI 2600. That microprocessor is in Commodore machines for example. And I finally figured out that "Kernal" refers to the Commodore 64 operating system. But it has taken on a different meaning over time also I think.