2600Lives

I'd have to disagree, actually. Guys like this usually pick one character, find the absolute cheapest/easiest way to win, then use that tactic over and over to rack up win points. A GREAT player can take any character against any other and win consistently. Just learning how to do a fireball/uppercut trap or learning how to spam a difficult to counter move doesn't make you great, it makes you unable to actually LEARN the nuances of the game. Take Tekken for example. At one time, I was so confident in my Tekken 3 skills that I bet a guy a stint in the military if I lost to him (and I signed a paper stating so). My main character is King, but I can play Paul, Law, Eddy, Yoshimitsu, Lei, Jack, and Bryan. I can muddle through most of the other characters (the female characters in Tekken are just too bland for me to even want to play), but I was VERY good at those guys. That's learning the game, not just finding a cheap move and using it over and over.

Cheap as in do a short roll, throw. Short roll, throw, Shock, shock, short roll, throw. He literally did NOTHING else. Met him again tonight, though, and totally surprised him with Balrog played constant pressure style. Kept him in the corner, whenever he'd shock, I'd do a full focus, then a quick rush. Caught him with the Ultra, and chipped him for the finish. I don't mind losing to a skilled player playing someone other than a fireball/uppercut or sonic boom/flash kick combo. That takes very little skill, just the ability to do joystick commands. It just gets old fighting those guys over and over and over. I'm also seriously considering auto-avoiding all Sagat players, as I was doing some reasearch, and apparently he's considered the top character in the game. I say Akuma is MUCH worse, though. And I still LOATHE Blanka's super and Ultra combos. It's the most worthless move in the entire game, with maybe the exception of El Fuerte's Ultra (the one where you have to be perfectly spaced and he jumps on your shoulders).

Come on, something like that would be fanboy heaven.

Capcom would be a good choice for MK. They could do a LONG awaited SF/MK crossover game.

More thoughts after a marathon session tonight. I AUTO avoid any Akuma players, period. Don't care if I win or lose. Conversely, if you take a character like, say, Honda, Balrog, Zangief, Blanka, and the like, I will ususally give you a preferred status. These people play the game for FUN, not to be an ass. Though I did fight a VERY cheap Blanka user tonight. I ended up having to take Chun-Li and use her speed to take him down. Still, was a super close match. Sagat is just too damn powerful comparatively. Seems ALL of his moves have priority. I've tried fighting him with every one of my best characters (yes, even Ken), to no avail. If I do win, it's usually because I can get inside with Zangief and do a series of cross-ups that hit behind the damn uppercut. I'm getting quite good at taking on Ken and Ryu, though. Take big Z and the guy on the other end gets cocky, and I usually come out on top. Still having trouble with Bison, though. Damn, he just pisses me off. You SHOULD be able to retaliate after you block a slide kick, but noooo, half the time you can't. Vega's slide can be retaliated against, why can't Bison's? His damn heavy kick in the air also has WAY too much priority. Cammy's moves leave her WAY too safe after execution. Even her super bounces her so far away after a block so as to make her practically unhittable. A special or a super should have some sort of penalty if missed. The Cannon Spike is even more annoying than those damn uppercuts if you ask me, as if you block it, you can't retaliate, unless you're using a charge character and can manage to get off a move before she lands again. Maybe Capcom will listen to what the players are saying about balance and issue a patch to address the issue. Probably not, though. They're as arrogant as any of the game companies out there (except for maybe Valve. They rule). All they seem to care about is raw difficulty at the expense of even gameplay (like those douchebags that made those horrid Ninja Gaiden games for the modern systems).

Do these exist? I mean a cart with a USB input, like the Crocodile cart, so you can add your own roms to it. Just curious. Would be cool if a GBA version existed, too.

Allright, a little more ranting. The more I play this game, the more I find inherent flaws. I still LOVE it to death, and am totally addicted, but there are things I see that just really get under my skin. With my YEARS of playing not only Street Fighter games, but 2D fighters in general (hey, I gave the world champion Garou player a SERIOUS run for his money a few years back!), even the smallest things tend to bug me. Ken and Ryu's Heavy kick seems to have 100% priority over all other air moves, and is almost impossible to knock out of the air with just a normal move, and FORGET about countering with your own jump attack (unless you get Vega or Chun-Li to bounce off the wall and hit them high). Back in the day, I used Zangief's spinning lariat move to counter a lot of air strikes, but now, it seems to not do diddly shit. I also used to use Guile's heavy uppercut to knock the u-c brothers out of the air a lot, but it seems to never work now. Ken's super also seems to hit ANYWHERE, air or ground, and does ALL the hits regardless. Oh, and Akuma's rush forward and grab super is probably the cheapest thing I've EVER seen in a game. Kudos to those players out there who use him all the time just so you can have access to the cheapest super in the game. Blanka's and Zangief's supers seem to not work much of the time. With Blanka, it's ALL the time. It seems to do a single hit, then rocket through them and do nothing but set you up for a hit. What a JOKE. Z's supers are also very unpredictable. I've hit both his Ultra and Super standing RIGHT NEXT to an opponent, and nothing. Just the grab animation. It seems that if I lead in with a hit, then attempt to combo into a super (a time honored SF tradition), it NEVER works with Zangief, no matter how close I am. Tonight, fighting Ken (who the hell ELSE?), I pulled off the super standing next to him WHILE HE WAS BLOCKING, and nothing, just a whiff. Still, though, when I take Z in online games, I think it makes my opponents a little too confident, as they think they're just gonna walk over him. When that big super hits, though, and you say goodbye to 1/3 of your life bar, they usually start being more cautious the next time I face them. Sagat's Tiger Knee seems to have almost absoulte priority versus ground moves (except for those damn uppercuts). Ugh, in SF2 Turbo, the spinning lariat would knock him out of that move almost every time, now, it NEVER does, ever. It's just another weapon in the unbeatable arsenal of the fireball/uppercut characters. I guess Capcom never intended for anybody to play any of the other characters, so they just piled all of the great stuff on 3 or 4 and said fuck the rest. I love Capcom to death, but sometimes, they really piss me off. Focus attacks are bullshit, plain and simple. You can down an opponent, and just sit there and charge the damn things over and over, and since you have armor, the only way to get out of this is an "armor break" move. Yeah, I can counter with a piledriver, or a banishing flat occasionally, but DAMN, it gets annoying just watching someone stand there and do those damn things over and over. Capcom, FIX YOUR ONLINE MATCHING SERVICE. NOW! It gets tiring not being able to actually join any games, or worse, just sitting there with an open lobby for minutes on end and nobody comes in. Oh, and it seems that the ranked matches are the ONLY ones you can play online, as I've tried again and again to get just a normal match going, and nope. Not happening. What was originally a 10/10 game has slipped to a 9/10 for me. The balance is a serious issue here. I guess this is why Mortal Kombat pulled ahead of SF back in the day, as each character had the same moves with only their specials being different, and the balance was MUCH better.

Damn, this is a great idea! Of course, with the 2600s limtied capability, it might sound a little funny... "Dimmee zum suber bady..." Might work better on the Intellivoice.

Has anybody actually tried the joypads out? (not the arcade sticks, just the Madcatz pad). I'd like to hear some feedback. I've been playing with the stock 360 pad, and yeah, it sucks donkey balls. If nothing else, it'll be nice to have the 3X3 button layout on the face of the pad, and I'll just adjust to the shitty d-pad.

Allright, honestly, who else is tired as HELL of the fact that those stupid ass dragon punches have priority over EVERY other single move in the game? How the fuck is that fair, to give a few characters a move that will override every other single move in the entire game world? That's just plain stupid if you ask me. I was online today, and this guy with like a jillion points just took Akuma over and over and over. Hey dude, FUCK YOU, okay? If you just accumulate battle points by playing a way overpowered boss character, then you are a punk, plain and simple. I did have some DAMN fun bouts, though. A really rollicking Zangief vs Zangief match (which I juuuust squeaked by with a win due to a well timed Ultra Combo finish), and some good matches vs a guy who was really good with Honda. A guy using Cammy was REALLY annoying with her, too, (in a good, skilled way) managing to always stay just out of my reach. That changed when I switched to Vega, though, as his raw speed made it hard for her to land hits. Went up against a good Bison player, too, but a poorly timed super on his part led to me hitting my own super and finishing the match. It's getting to the point now where I just roll my eyes and let out a loud UGH every time I see Ken, Ryu, Akuma, ad infinitum, though. Lord. And I've never ONCE heard anybody talking over the headset. Not one time, and I have it set to come out of the speakers. Maybe it's just hard to concentrate with that thing on your head, and most people just don't bother, but I've done prolly a hundred matches online now and haven't heard a single thing being said on the other end. Huh.

The SCD was a notoriously unreliable system to begin with. I'd try to get a Version 2, with the clamshell door. They are MUCH better overall, and doesn't turn the system into a huge tower monstrosity. Hell, my V2 still gives me issues from time to time.

Sounds like bullshit to me.

The trick to beating Bison is to use a VERY fast character, like Chun-Li or Vega. I've never lost a single round to Bison using Vega. Just do the wall-hop, slash/grab manuver when they try the head stomp and 99 percent of the time Vega will catch Bison juuuust before he touches the ground, allowing for an easy mid-air throw. Zangief's ace in the hole, though, is the Banishing Fist move. It moves you forward VERY quickly, and if you're in mid air, trying to jump back, it's easy to just take a single hit, then nail an easy piledriver. The spinning lariat is also great for jumpers, as it at least makes both of you get hit, and allow Z to advance on a downed opponent.

Ok, so, getting some more time in online play tonight, here's my thoughts. I'm VERY glad they disabled headphone usage in online matches. When you try to join a game, it rarely works for some reason, so I just end up creating my own lobby. Hell, even got an achievement that way. Games are as follows. You pick your character, opponent picks Ken. You pick your character, opponent picks Ken. Repeat ad-nauseum. UGH. I hate fighting the damn Uppercut Bros. It's not that I'm bad against them, I just HATE fighting against them, as the so-called players out there seem to think that the fireball/uppercut keep-away combo is the ultimate technique in the game. How do I counter this? Zangief. It's SO great watching someone toss fireballs only to go through my spinning lariat! Zangief has REALLY improved in this game, too. Very usable, and his super is quite easy to do (though for some reason it seems to simply miss, even when very close and they are standing). In fact, the only time I have trouble when I'm playing big Z is when someone takes a character that's not a fireball/uppercut combo, like Honda, Blanka, or Balrog. Some UC Bros. players are SO predictable, too. You knock them down and approach, and they throw an uppercut, so you block, then smack them. Rinse and repeat till you win. Moves seem disabled in online play. I SWEAR it's true! I tried like 100 times to get a damn fireball off, but nooooo, not at all, let's not even do the motion or anything. Bah. The lag is tiresome, too. Was winning a VERY close match against some guy using Bison tonight (I hate guys who use boss characters), only to lag out on his end. Dammit. I still hate the supers that make you charge, then back and forth. Ewwww. Take a cue from ALL the other games your SF characters have been in, guys! Two quarter circles and a punch or something is MUCH better, trust me. There is nothing harder than trying to do Vega's damn super.

It's episodic content. Season 1 contains 6 "episodes", each a self-contained game, that's part of a bigger story arc for the season. Each season has different story arcs, but may contain references to past seasons. These are DAMN good games, guys. Very much worth getting if you haven't. I have all of 'em for the PC, (and the SBCG4AP games, which are just as good, if not better). So good to see these two get a revival, as Hit the Road remains one of my all time favorite games.

Ok, I do gotta brag juuuust a little, as it's my only true honest gaming accomplishment like, ever. Right outta high school, I spent HOURS honing my skills on SF2 Turbo for the SNES. As in honing them enough to become a nationally ranked player. I was actually in the top ten, and competed in one of the yearly world tournaments. Even got invited to Japan for the finals, but couldn't go (another player took my place). Still, at one time, I could pretty much kick anybody's ass at SF2 at any time, period. Now, not so much. Wrestling, age, those things have mucked up my hands pretty good. Still, I picked this up on Sunday. Spent a little time unlocking things, going through arcade and whatnot. Got online tonight. Not bad. Little laggy, but I won all my outset matches, then lost a couple due to lag and a cheap Bison player (come ON, Bison is still for those with little skill!). For some reason, it also seems like moves don't want to work in online games. I can get them off any time with ease during arcade, but I desperately try to do them during an online match. Oh, well. Overall, the game is DAMN good. The moves work SO good, even with the shitty 360 pad (and I can do Zangeif's Spinning Piledriver and Super now with very little effort, and that move was hard as HELL during the SF2 days). My boy Blanka is back in top form, too (he's what I won most my tournament matches with, with Ken and Balrog coming in a close second). Now, the new fighters...eh. They kinda suck, actually. Abel is a JOKE, with very few decent moves. Rufus is a very powerful character, but every time he's on screen, me and my buds just quote Quagmire (Jigglyjigglyjigglyjiggly!). Man, he's like a mobile bowl of Jell-O. C. Viper is just sorta...plain, really, and for some reason, I hate her character portrait. And the cooking luchadore? Come on! If he was just a straight up lucha, it would have been very cool, but instead, I have to say stuff like "I'm trying to perform the Gordita Bomb". Bullshit! He's still a riot to play, though. MUCH better than Abel. A Plus all the way. Seth IS a pain in the ass, though. Man, it's like Capcom tries to one-up themselves with boss difficulty and cheapness with every game they make! Along with MK vs. DC (which I feel was a DAMN good game), the fighting franchises of old have resurrected themselves into new, sleek packages worthy of next-gen systems.

It could be that the motor that runs the laser back and forth has given out. If I remember right, those are prone to peter out pretty easily. Unfortunately, the SCD2 wasn't very well built, and they go tits up fairly easily. They are fairly cheap, however, and still very easy to get your hands on.

I totally agree, this is a crappy game all around. Just another Tetris/Columns/whathaveyou clone. (And yeah, I know it was called Puyo Puyo before this, but still). This and Flicky could have taken a hike, and they could have included Sword of Vermillion instead.

Worth about 10 bucks, tops.

Yeah, ok, so I got it and all the other games unlocked. Could care less about the interviews. Don't feel like running through the rings the game wants me to to unlock them. Still, the game overall is excellent. Worth it just to collect all the Phantasy Stars and the early Shining games in one place.

Ok, so is there some sort of trick to getting 80,000 points on Flicky? This has to be one of the worst games in existence! The controls are mind-boggling horrendous. You slide all over the place! Try to jump, you slide. Try to jump over a cat, you slide into it. Try to just fucking JUMP, and if you're lucky enough that the game recognizes that you pushed the button, you MAY jump, and then you'll bounce off a fucking wall. Ugh! I HATE it when they make compilations and make you unlock the actual games within! Dammit! Just give me the damn games I paid for! I guess I'll have to pick this up on the PS2 as well, since I can flip the gigantic middle finger to the stupid ass developers and just use my Pro Action Replay to unlock everything (plus the PS2 apparently has Sword of Vermillion, which I LOVE).

GH is much better as far as note placement goes. Even during what should be a wicked hard solo, they use those "connected" notes, and you don't have to strum. Makes it FAR easier. I've finished every single song on GH on Hard with not a single problem, and done 95% of them on Expert (just a few still elude me, Satch Boogie, Hot For Teacher, mostly the final songs of the game). Really the only reason I can't finish Satch Boogie is that section of REALLY fast connected notes. I just can't hit them fast enough. Everything leading up to that is doable. It's weird, though. Take Sex Type Thing, for instance. In Rock Band, the song is AMAZINGLY fun to play, and one of my favorite in the entire series. In GH Aerosmith, it's just utter shit, and annoying as HELL to even play once. The consistency between games is very erratic. Ramblin' Man for GH is great, and it's one of the worst on RB2. I just don't get it.

Ok, I actually haven't spent much time with RB2 since I got it, as I focused on GH:WT. I got a chance to tonight, and my overall observation? Disappointing. VERY disappointing. There are notes all OVER the place that do NOT belong there. Ramblin' Man has you playing so many notes that don't belong there it's not even funny, as does Carry On Wayward Son. Unbelievable. The difficulty is just a joke. Hard is too damn easy (almost like Medium difficulty), and the final Expert songs are just too hard. Chop Suey is the most miserable excuse for a song I've EVER seen (well, almost as miserable as that BYOB song in GH, but that could be because that band that made those songs is one of the worst ever formed...). Seriously, what's with the single-chord-single-chord? It's STUPID, no fun to play, and makes my fingers tired almost instanty. Visions, while not the hardest song I've done, is ungodly boring. I just simply quit halfway through because it was just so repetetive and not-fun. The ENTIRE song should have been one long hammer on. Peace Sells is another joke, much like Hangar 18 was in GH2. I don't know why the songs I want to play MOST are the hardest. Ugh. The solos are also nowhere near as fun as in GH:WT. They toss in WAAAAY too many chords. Solos should be single notes! The track list was just terrible. I hadn't heard of over half the bands on here, and the ones I had heard of, I hadn't heard the songs from them, and I'm a serious music afficionado. Seriously, Elvis Costello? Alanis Morissette? Laughable. Dylan was cool, but come on, get a song we friggin' KNOW in there! RB 1 was a PHENOMINAL game, far, FAR superior to GH3. I loved almost all the stuff that was in that game, so what happened here? How did they screw this up so badly? If I'm not mistaken, I saw one of the loading screens say something about the "hardest songs in music games are done by Harmonix." ?? That's something to brag about? That should be something to apologize for, not have as a selling point! Fuck you, Harmonix! Overall, it's a better game than GH3. The drumming is still pretty spot on, no weird out of place notes scattered everywhere just to amp the difficulty, but the guitar parts, which should have been the main meat of the game, really needed work. Even the recent batch of downloadable stuff has been shitty. I was SO looking forward to Dr. Feelgood, but hey, guess what? It's almost unplayable, the notes are so horridly designed. Thanks, Harmonix. Keep on proving WHY you got booted off your own game. Your arrogance is just absolutely astonishing at times.

Ok, I meant "easy to learn, hard to master". Guess my brain was on dumb at the moment.

Ok, I got it, and so far, I totally LOVE it (it's nothing I can't play via emulation, but I can now play it on my nice tv and through my stereo system!), but what is UP with that "favorite ranking" thing? That's almost completely unnecessary. I know which games I like and which I don't! I don't get it. Is this also the first time that ALL of the pre-online Phantasy Star (US release anyway) games have been available on one compilation, or did the PS2 version have all of them too? Just curious, as it's really convenient to have them all in one place (even if I do own all of the original cartridges).