Gabriel

Just play on Easy. You can't be more uncoordinated than me.

I'll probably pick up Persona 5, but only because of hype and not because of any great love of the Persona series. I have a bad feeling about this one, though. The series is riding high just like Final Fantasy was in the late 90s after Final Fantasy 6 and 7. A lot of the atmosphere around Persona 5 is reminding me of Final Fantasy 8, and that turned out to be complete shit and that's when Square descended into absolute craptitude never to recover. I'm interested in Omega Quintet, Hyperdevotion Noire, and Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory II, but not anywhere near enough to buy a console for them. There's that other dungeon crawler for the Vita whose name escapes me right now, but that's still less priority than Persona 4 Golden and Demon Gaze and those aren't even enough to make me drop the cash. Hmmm. Even if I did have a Vita, I might skip Hyperdevotion Noire. Some of the gameplay clips I've seen make it look like a list of top things I dislike in latter era TRPGs. I'm not interested in any of the other titles.

Get Fire Emblem: Awakening. In my opinion, it isn't a TRPG worth playing more than once, but that one playthrough is absolutely fantastic. I spent a lot of time with Project X-Zone. It's a TRPG with crossovers from Capcom, Namco, and Sega characters. I liked it, but the individual battles were starting to take 2 hours apiece to play. Gameplay was samey throughout with no expansion of game mechanics as the game progressed. Plus, every boss was just a huge attrition battle of hammering through a few hundred thousand HPs with my best attacks. I'm making it sound bad, but it was pretty fun. I just burnt out on it and didn't complete it. There's a game called Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars. I own it but haven't played it. It's a TRPG. It's supposed to be fairly middling, but it's something other than a fantasy setting. Plus, it's really cheap. Amazon has it for $15 right now, and I bet you could probably find it cheaper if you hunt around. So it's probably worth it for novelty. Other than that, I spent a lot of time with Animal Crossing: New Leaf. But I haven't spent any appreciable time with my 3DS for about a year.

It lost me completely with those two quotes.

Yes. I obviously did. But both appear to have been well after Pac-Man.

You know what? You're winning me over. Still, Breakout is kind of an early game. Night Driver obviously has the whole Night theme going for it. Backgammon is... well, it's Backgammon. I think Warlords and Super Breakout were at least semi the same timeframe as Pac-man. Super Breakout may have gotten around it by being space themed (no shit, check out the cover and manual). But I don't have any excuse for Warlords. So, let's approach this from the other direction. What are some contemporary games of Pac-Man which eschewed black backgrounds?

Missile Command = Space themed. The rulebook states the missiles are coming from an interplanetary source. In any event, not all screens have black backgrounds. Centipede and Berzerk = Came After Pac Man, so are mostly irrelevant to the topic. Yar's Revenge = space themed. The Zorlon cannon is on the Yar's homeworld, so the Yar is traversing interplanetary space. However, you do have a point with Dodge 'Em, Haunted House, Basketball, and Video Pinball. I can see Haunted House getting an exception because of the theme. The other three may be too early in the history of the 2600 for the rule to have been born yet.

I was thinking about how several 2600 homebrews and hacks use two buttons on a Genesis controller, even when played on the 7800. I know as a default the Genesis pad doesn't work as a two button 7800 controller. I saw someone state once in the 2600 hacks forum that the third button on a Genesis controller could be used on the 2600, but no one had coded anything to use it yet. So, I guess I was meaning the Genesis controller would be treated like a 2600 controller to play a 7800 game with multiple buttons. Make any sense? No? Yeah, it does sound terribly convoluted when I actually type it out. Of the other options, as a player I like Random Terrain's option of varied button presses more than the idea of pressing both buttons together. The both buttons together method frequently results in doing an undesired function, so it would probably waste precious smart bombs in this case. Yes, I know it's early. I'm just excited that Rob might do Defender. I'm just chatting and thinking out loud, no worries.

Welcome to the world of toy collecting. This is exactly what you'd expect of any figure short packed in a case. It's a rather predictable overlap of the assholes in videogaming and the assholes in toy collecting. I was more amused at the story of the guy who was spending $35K on Rosalina figures so he could prevent anyone else from purchasing one.

I remember we they did the old apology offer I got Dead Nation and Little Big Planet. I think I got something else, but I don't recall what it was. I didn't like any of them. In fact, I disliked them enough to wipe them from my system. The only one on this list I'm interested in is Super Stardust HD, and I purchased that one forever ago. I'm not interested in PS Plus. It was pretty useless to me even when I did have it for free during the apology period. I saw something that you could get three themes as an option. Sadly, that's the most attractive alternative to me. And it certainly isn't worth the time and effort needed to claim them. Hell, I'd probably still keep my current wallpaper over any potential theme anyway. I already have a purchased one and several free ones I don't use. Oh well.

Would a Genesis controller option be possible? Would three button support be available on that controller? Maybe it's because I'm not good at Defender, but I personally wouldn't care if there is no hyperspace. If one button fires and the other button drops smart bombs, I'm good. I seriously wouldn't even care if the hyperspace button was put on the pause button on the console. It's been a while, isn't the hyperspace button on the arcade machine down in the bottom center of the control panel, 500 miles away from anywhere your hands would be while playing?

With the arrival of Sekiranun Graffiti as well as the Type 2020 and Gothic Purple modules for Project Diva F 2nd, I've started playing that in long one hour stretches again instead of the quick one or two song sets I had been drifting towards. It's only on Easy, but I finally got my second perfect, and managed to clear another song on normal. Yeah, I'm an uncoordinated scrub, but I'll take my victories where I can get them. I think I've burned out on Class of Heroes 2G. I haven't played it for a couple of weeks. I guess I need a break from it. I put 40 hours or so in, so I don't feel too guilty about setting it aside. Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate has fallen by the wayside for the time being as well. Meh, I'll get back to it when I feel like hitting square, square, square, triangle for a few hours. I got Dai 2 Ji Super Robot Taisen as a Christmas present, but I haven't been in the mood for diving into an import title lately. I have been on a shmup kick. I've been playing a fair bit of Ray Storm HD and Raiden IV Overkill. I also played some Strikers 1945 (PS1 disc) the other day. I need to play that one some more. And when I'm in the mood I unlock a costume or two in Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate. I've been more action oriented lately. But I have been thinking about starting up XCom: Enemy Unknown again.

I'm on a bit of a shooter kick and I decided to play some of my PS1 shooters on my PS3. One of these is a game I've liked in the past called Gekioh Shooting King. This time I didn't like it so much, mainly because there didn't seem to be any music in the main game modes. I don't recall the game lacking music, but it's been a while since I've played it. I understand this game is available on PSN under it's original name of Shienryu. Does that version have music? I checked a few websites, but I'm still not clear on this question. I've seen some comments that Gekioh has a very low volume soundtrack compared to Shienryu. That may be, but on my PS3 while playing the disc there was absolutely nothing but explosion and bullet sound FX. I saw something about how Shienryu doesn't have Gekioh's alternate joke play modes, but that's not a big deal.

Three things were complained about: the redone character sprites, the control, and the high score entry. I am a little put off by the graphics too, and for exactly the same reason VGC cites: K.C.'s teeth. To me it damages the character's cuteness and likeability. Still the "mutants" look much nicer, and everything else is the same. I suppose it's not up to 7800 graphic standards, but that isn't really the point of this cart. As for the option to play with the original graphics, it's not listed in the instructions or obvious how to enable the option, so how was he to know? I've been trying to remember how to enable the classic graphics since I got the game. So, I understand VGC's comment on the visuals, but I don't think it's as bad as he seems to imply. The next element is the control. The control is fine. Yes, it's just like the O2 original. When first starting it takes a little adaptation to K.C.'s trait of moving from tile to tile instead of pixel by pixel, and I think the new visual style contributes to the feel that it should be pixel by pixel. Just having the option of a 2600 stick over O2's floppy spring loaded sticks is great. There is absolutely no true issue here outside of just learning how to play the game, and VGC's characterizing the control as "the main problem with the game", and therefore the source of the majority of it's negative review, is completely baseless. Finally, we have the complaint about the score entry: "but even that is awkward and confusing". Seriously, WTF? It's the same as the method used for initial entry on more games than I can easily count: up and down for character selection, and push right to change what position you are entering. The only thing I can think of which could make it better is pressing the button to end entry instead of going all the way to the right. Other than that, I don't see how the name entry could have been made better short of a keyboard. Even still, it's identical to many name entry features in games which do not have and "End" option. This one boggles my mind, because it sounds like something a person who had never played video games might say. What COULD he have legitimately complained about? Well, K.C. Munchkin, being a faithful port of an O2 game with minimal graphic touch ups isn't really up to the standards of a 7800 game. It's very minimalistic. Of course, that's the point of the port, but VGC could definitely say the game just doesn't measure up to 7800 titles in terms of visuals, depth, or game options. Honestly, if you compare it to Pac-Man Collection the comparison doesn't come out in K.C.'s favor. What COULD he have pointed out? Well, I don't think he was aware of the classic graphics option, and it isn't documented with the game, so I can't fault him for that. However, he could have pointed out the maze options as well as the ability to build your own maze. Maybe he relied on readers going to his O2 K.C. review for that point. Now, no one take my criticisms as a damning statement about the game. As soon as I saw this thread I went and rated K.C. as an A+, and not just as a reactionary temper tantrum about a review I disagree with. K.C. deserves an A+. I've played a metric crapton of it ever since I received it. Yes, K.C.'s teeth bother me, and now that I know the graphic change trick, I'll probably use it quite a bit, but it doesn't seriously detract from my enjoyment while I'm playing. It's so much fun to pop K.C. into the 7800 and just play a few quick games. I didn't know I was going to love this port so much, but I've played it even more than my Astro Blaster cart. For reference, I think what is said about Astro Blaster is pretty fair. I rated it an A, though, so I'm still of a bit higher an opinion than VGC. Astro Blaster is a fantastic port, but I just can't rate it an A+. To me an A+ is a game I'd always want to play no matter what. Sometimes I'm just not in the mood for churning through the levels in Astro Blaster (or getting frustrated running out of fuel at the end of Sector 3). I understand why VGC rated it a B, and agree with it, but Astro Blaster just inherently means more to me than it does to him.

Golden Axe on the Genesis had two separate standalone releases: the original and a a classics release. I presume it wasn't just a packaging change because the classics release had completely different game genie codes. Final Fantasy VII has at least two separate black label versions. In the earliest one, you cannot Quadra summon Knights of the Round. In the later one, you can. Allegedly, the Greatest Hits version of Final Fantasy Anthology has a bugfixed version of FF5 which resolves the save game glitch. This makes it more than just a packaging variant.

Yeah, they were more of a 70s thing. Black and white sets were still some people's primary TVs in the 70s, but they hung around through the 80s as small TVs intended to be portable or as a TV for kids' rooms. In the early 80s, I was one of the rare kids who had a 25 inch color TV in his room to play videogames on. Most other kids, if they had their own personal TV, had a 13 or 17 inch b&w set.

I know there are a few on the Dreamcast where there was an original launch version of the game and a later version of the game that actually worked. I think Hydro Thunder was one of those.

Not directed at me, but no, none of my Atari 5200 controllers worked 10 years after I got my system. The longest lasting one endured for 5 to 6 years. However, none of my original 2600 controllers worked after 10 years either.

Don't blame the people at WalMart. To work in the electronics department at WalMart you are required to have as little electronics knowledge as possible. They actually screen employees for that. The rationale is that employees with actual knowledge will be more likely to steal.

I took advantage of the sale last week to pick up season 1 and 2 of Pinball Arcade. So far, I think I like Scared Stiff and Attack From Mars best of the new tables. I like Scared Stiff mainly because the ball doesn't drain so easy and it's Elvira. I like Attack From Mars because it's a lot like Medieval Madness. I've also spent a lot of time with Big Shot, which I previously had access to on the PS2 Gottlieb disc, but plays much better in Pinball Arcade. On the P3 Pinball Hall of Fame disc I can play Taxi and Space Shuttle fairly well, but on Pinball Arcade it seems I can't keep the ball in play to save my life. On the plus side, I think Gorgar is a hair easier.

On the PS3 and PSP I've run into the following scenario a few times: I've ordered a new game. To get ahead of the installation curve, I make sure my system has the latest system update in advance. I download and install it, and I should be ready for my new game, right? Nope. The new game arrives later the same day or the next day and when it spins in the drive I am told that the disc has a newer system update than the one I've just installed on my device. So now I have to go through the whole system update bullshit again.

So why are Space Invaders and Asteroids so well regarded despite having nearly no look or feel of their arcade counterparts? Like Pac-Man, they feature only the most broad and vague gameplay similarity to their parent inspiration.

System Rush is neat. It was the game I played the most on the N-Gage, mainly because it was quick. The game I spent the second most amount of time with was Civilization. It was OK, but became completely obsolete the second I got Civ Rev on the DS. I own and have played Rifts. If you know anything about the company that makes the pen and paper RPG, you can probably understand what I mean when I say it's better than it has any right to be. It was OK, but it was nothing I wanted to play again after the novelty wore off. All the games are hampered (crippled) by the postage stamp sized vertical oriented screen. I have some other games: High Seize, Warhammer 40K, Pathway to Glory: Ikusa Islands, but I've never opened them.

I most frequently played Stargate at 7-11. I was never any good at it, but I liked it a lot. Everyone knew it was the sequel to Defender, despite never being known as "Defender II" back then. I played Defender on my 2600 and 5200 a lot. I liked the 2600 Defender, but I always thought it was a bit shit because of the non-existent difficulty, the disappearing ship, the "city", and the method used for Smart Bombs and Hyperspace. I LOVED 5200 Defender. It may have shared the same issue of being way too easy with the 2600 port, but the visuals, sounds, and gameplay makes that one feel so good. I always wanted a home port of Stargate, though. One day when I was in KayBee toys in the mid to late 80s, I spied a Stargate cart for the 2600. It was really cheap, so I actually had enough money to buy it. I honestly didn't expect much. Stargate on the 2600 blew me away. As BassGuitari says above, it compares well even with a 5200 game. The only flaw is having to use a second stick for smart bombs, inviso, and hyperspace. Even then, it's a superior solution to what Defender on the 2600 used. I guess the only other thing that irritates me is how it handles swarmers, but that's just a mild nit, as they're still deadly (unlike the swarmers in the original 2600 Defender). One final thing. As far as I'm concerned, it's STARGATE. It isn't Defender II. I know it was released with a Defender II label and the game is known today as Defender II. I don't care. It's STARGATE dammit.

I'll have to look that one up.