JimmydelaKopin

It's been over a year since I've been at this site...so where better to start than at a thread dear to an old gamer's heart? Rare arcade games I've seen? Well, Boomerang'r at Fun Arcade (now a used-car dealership), Lost Tomb, Time Traveler, and Cliff Hanger at Putt-Putt (now an Ochsner's Medical Center), and various games at various stores: Pirahna at Winn-Dixie (now a craft store) Leprecaun at Schweggmann's (now a different grocery store) Ms. Pac-Man Plus at Sunbasket Supermarket (now a pizza place) Tank-Tank at the Lakeside Mall (the mall's still there, but no more arcade or freestanding machines there) a cabaret Pac-Man at K&B in the Clearview Mall (again, the malls still there, but the place has been renovated heavily--and K&B was bought out by another drugstore chain long ago) ...and my orthodontist had a quadrapong game set on free play in his waiting room. (Only problem is that one of the paddles didin't work.) Don't know if he still has it....

Needles Kane and Sweet Tooth. They made gaming cool again.

Just to clarify since others haven't yet really...AVGN is Rolfe's character's name now. He used to be ANN...but AVGN can be trademarked and thus merchandised. Of course, he's just one of them out there. There's the various AVGN clones, there's That Guy with the Glasses, and, of course, there's SpoonyOne. "Disclaimer, noble leader?" All right, Diskette. This poster is an admin at the official SpoonyOne website, and has contributed material to some of SpoonyOne's reviews. --Back to what I was saying: there are a number of reviewers out there, some good, some bad. Of course, SpoonyOne is one of the best around. "Go buy a 'Fusebox #42' T-shirt from his website! You'll feel better and look kewler!" Ahem! ...Still, AVGN does have some entertaining videos, though his most recent one, in which all his profanities were fan contributions, only shows how forced such language is some of the time. "Yeah, his heart wasn't really in his rants against the Intellivision and the Colecovision. But that's because those were great systems with 'like, rilly kewel games', as the Valley Girls would say.--Hey, leader-dude, where does AVGN discuss religion in his videos?" I believe the person's referring either to his rant on those unauthorized games that were clones of legit games and, oddly enough, based on Biblical events... "Makes sense." ...or the person's talking about that video AVGN did that was a rant on the neo-Luddite stance that was popular among some Fundamentalists back in the early-to-mid 80's. "That could be it too." But seriously, people: Microcosm, SpoonyOne. Check it out! "And stop by Spoony's cafepress T-shirt & mousepad store! Tell Spoony that Diskette sent ya!"

Swordquest, easily. They could say it'll be a four-movie series...but at the end of the third, show that the sword-maguffin has been transported to modern Earth...and is in the hands of Jack Tramiel.

See, Diskette? Artlover was not only playing 'devil's advocate' but he also agrees with the CoL's position! "Fine, leader-dude.-- "Sorry, Artlover!" "I'll tell you what Sony needs to do. They need to translate a lot more Japan-exclusive games; that's what they need to do." Like...oh, I don't know, Serial Experiments: Lain? "That's the one, praise Lain!"

If we can go beyond the restroom swordplay going on and return to the topic at hand... ...I remember this story from a comic series, Alien Encounters (great series by the way), talking about this. Some of the dialogue in it talked about how dead actors didn't have protected likenesses and porn producers were using their likenesses... ...but the gist of the plot is about a starlet who wanted to become a successful virtual actress. They had to work with her for months, recorded her moving in all sorts of ways, recorded various facial gestures and little movements of hers... ...but afterward, she found out about a little clause in the contract: the studio now owned her likeness, so they couldn't let her go traipsing around in it--but that's why they have a cosmetic surgeon on the payroll, to make all those pretty people looking plain! Might that be the future with this technology?

Quite possibly. Maybe if you would try writing like a normal person and just make your point, this could be avoided. (Psst: It was cute the first couple of messages, it's long past that stage now.) As it stands, all I see is you being contradictory with whatever your point is. Hardly, but abandonding last gen as soon as next gen comes out is stupid and only forces people to buy shit they don't want or switch loyality. If you have to force people to buy your product in that mannor, then something is wrong with your product since your product should be something people want. There IS a reason Sony has a history of having the largest fanbase, most games, and ultimately best selling hardware, and it's NOT because they make the best games or hardware either. "Should I be offended by this person?" Quiet now, Diskette. Finally, another person who can appreciate paragraphs of straightforward direct assertions. I knew I couldn't be the only one around who loves Atlas Shrugged!!! Anyway, I haven't been contradicting myself. My point all along is that Sony has never really settled into its new system, that it's still backsliding licenses to the PS2 for popular games, while everyone else has moved on to their newer systems. From the looks of things, the only PS3 games around are sequels to PS2 games and clones of said games, so the only appeal the PS3 has is for fans of the series whose next sequels are on the PS3. However, say I'm not a fan of those games...which I'm not, to be honest. What appeal does the PS3 have for me? I've owned a PlayStation, a PS1, and a PS2, the latter I currently own. And I've bought a number of newer games for the PS2. If they had instead been released for the PS3...I might have been tempted to save up for a PS3 just to play these fun little games...but, as it stands, I don't need to do that. So that's $600 that Sony won't get from me. Doesn't hurt me; who does it hurt? See, the other systems' manufacturers have their niche audiences, true...but they're expanding beyond those niches to appeal to more gamers...and thus get more money. Sony, on the other hand, seems content to rely solely on its niche audience for support of their newer system. If anything, the only other market they're reaching out to are the technophile market, what with all the non-game--related gadgetry they have stuffed into the PS3. I mean, that's all well and good, but when I never cared for the first GTA or MGS, and DVD players are selling cheap, what does ther PS3 have that I want? Nothing. Nothing at all. Sony's trying to survive by relying only on teh hrdkor gamerz for support--but there's more casual gamers out there than hardcore gamers. All I'm saying is that, if Sony won't get off their collective asses and put more than teh hrdkor gamez on their precious PS3, then the next best thing is to bring out a new system that does what both the PS2 and PS3 do: appeal to casual and hardcore gamers. Sheesh... As for your third suggestion, that a systems manufacturer can somehow make their way to the top of the videogame market by not producing a system and games that people want more than any other...how else was Sony getting the money? Hiring thieves to go to malls during the holiday season and pickpocket the patrons? Please. Sony came put on top because they had a load of games created on their system to appeal to all sorts of gamers, from sports fans to hardcore gamers to puzzle fans to even retrogamers. Sony cast the widest net and thus gained the largest market share. For some reason beyond reason itself Sony isn't doing this for their PS3, and people wonder why the system lags behind the other two in sales... And for that second suggestion...abandoning last gen when next gen comes out is the only way to ensure the viability of next gen, pal. And one does this by creating the sort of games that last gen had, only in a way to take advantage of next gen. If graphics are already as tweaked as they can be, then something else has to be added, like maybe make it a compilation disc perhaps. Seriously, if the system manufacturere won't come up with new games for the new system that aren't rehashes of old games on older systems but does so for the older system, what signal are they sending out? They're certainly not showing a lot of support for the newer system. SHEESH... "I still say that Artlover's just being a jerk." Either that or a 'devil's advocate'. I'm getting a vibe for the latter from him, so let's not condemn him until we know for sure, okay, Diskette?" "You're the cult leader!"

"Why are we back here, noble leader?" Because Artlover is missing the point. "And we should care why, exactly?" Because weaker minds might actually listen to him. "Not a convincing argument to me, but we're already here. What doesn't Artlover get?" That it's not a good thing for a company to compete with itself. "You mean like how Starbucks keeps opening new places in locations where they already have 5 or more locations?" You and your latte addiction...and that's not an exact comparison. See the problem is that Sony's PS3 is not just competing with the Wii and the XBox 360; it's also competing with the PS2. The other two in the console race have already settled in to their new consoles and pushed their developers and licensees to the new systems. "Well, it's not like there's a market for SNES games right now, really." Ah! And why is that? "Because Nintendo has moved on from that, duh! Why make games for the older system when you have this brand-spanking-new system that needs all the games the market can hold for it?" See, Diskette? You get the point I'm making! "That's it?!" That's what I've been saying, Diskette. Sony's really hurting itself by supporting the old console. It's not the same as when they made the sequel after TM: Black a PS1 game, because you could still play that on the PS2. But PS2 games are not made for the PS3; they're different systems and incompatible as well. "I thought that was only for certain runs of the PS3--and besides, the PS3 has Blu-Ray--" Which is still a small library, as the market isn't embracing the new technology all that quickly... "--but, but the PS3 also has compatibility with the PSP--" An abandoned Sony system--so they know how to abandon a system, by the way... "--But, but the PS3 also has internet hookup!" As does a cheap secondhand computer, a DSL or even dial-up hookup, and an ISP account. "But it has Blu-Ray, neat videogames, and internet hookup all in one package!" And for the price of one and its fancy hookups and discs, I can get a DVD player and a selection of good movies, a PS2 and a selection of good games, and a second-hand computer and an ISP hookup--and still have money left over--and all three are separate so that your friends can watch DVDs while you plays videogames and your family's on the internet. "Maybe that's where the error is." Like a car being pushed, I'm not following. "Well, after spending that kind of money on a PS3, who can afford a family or friends?" Oh, Diskeeette... Anyway, that's why Sony needs to get its new system out first. Unless they're completely abandoning the videogame hardware market, they need a system that will refocus on the original winning strategy that made Sony get the early lead: games that are as much fun to watch as they are fun to play-- "While being super-fun to play!" If they can do this with the next system, making it so full of games of all sorts that every gamer of all genres simply needs to have the system to get all the good games, then Sony will retake the top spot. Until then...well, they'll be forced to keep the PS3 and the PS2 around and compete with themselves. "Personally, I think Artlover wants RCA to finally come out with their Studio III." Oh, Diskeeeeette...

Don't aggree. For the longest time it was the PS1 and PS2. PS2 didn't suffer any. Quite the contrary. There is no competition in as much as they are two different markets with different user bases. There are a lot of PS2 users out there who have no interest in PS3. You can either cater to them, or do what Sega/Microsoft/Nintendo does: Alieniate them then hope they aren't so pissed off that they will buy your new console. In the case of the PS3 with it's cost and library, that's not likely. That BS was a very signifigant factor in the death of Sega. People got tired of spending money for their console, and being spit on and kicked to the curb when the next hardware came out, kicked & spit on, new hardware, repeat. What's my incentive to buy your product when I know you aren't going to support it? No, Sony's policy of supporting older hardware is spot on the right thing to do. That is what guanentees them their large user base and large game libraries. Okay, Diskette, this post by Artlover is an example of what? "Someone not paying attention?" More specific?" "Someone not paying attention to what you're saying, noble leader?" Half right; he's also not paying attention to history. "I was gonna mention that...but I found it silly that someone at the atariage forum is forgetting about the Atari 2600, 5200, and 7800." Artlover, of course the PS2 didn't hurt in its sales when it came out. That's because it had...what, Diskette? "I know, I know...backwards compatibility?" Correct, Diskette! The PS2 could play PS1 and Playstation games, as well as properly-coded DVDs and CDs, so of course its sales weren't hurting. It was designed as the perfect replacement for the other two systems. "Just like the way the 7800 replaced the 2600!" And where does the 5200 fit in with that? "Uh...erm...as a way of pushing technology and trying to recoup costs on such R&D?" Making it a parallel to... "The PS3!!!" Good job, minion! You got all the answers right! "YAY! I win a free latte!" As for you, Artlover...nice try, but you don't have what it takes to be a Lainite yet. I recommend a remedial course filled with 2600 games and 7800 games on a 7800, then a refresher course on Playstation and PS1 games as well as some PS2 games on a PS2. If you don't learn anything, at least you'll be having fun. Bye for now!

I think it'll be Sony...and here's why: The Nintendo Wii has the feel of a true successor to its prior consoles, and they've made new games for all their old trademarks on it, so they'll probably keep it around a bit longer. Microsoft seems to be utilizing that old American concept of "planned obsolescence"...and as long as they can still find suckers to buy what everyone knows is a system designed to break down after little use, they're not going to change a thing. Sony is the one with the problem: it's competing with itself, and losing. What I mean is that the competition between the PS2 and the PS3 is like the competition between the Atari 2600 and the Atari 5200. Son'y using the PS3 as an R&D tool to also make some recoupment money on the side, but they're still relying heavily on the PS2 as well foreasier money. In the long run, the PS3 is a money pit, and Sony knows it. They'll announce the new system first, which will incorporate backwards compatibility while also pushing the technological envelope, probably by making its specs more powerful than its first few releases will need...thus giving them a jump on the market while also buying time to make games that will push the technology. Sony needs it the most right now, if only to make something to replace both consoles they need to support right now.

Maybe the problem here is that you're focusing too much on AVGN and his retarded clone IrateGamer. What's your opinion of That Guy with the Glasses? His humor is a lot less visceral than AVGN's, and he really knows how to dish out sarcasm and self-effacing humor. (His meltdown during his review of the Batman and Robin is a side-splitter, it is.) And then there's SpoonyOne. "So much for objectivity." Diskette... "At least a disclaimer, be fair..." Fine, a disclaimer: This poster is an admin at the SpoonyOne's website, as well as having significantly contributed to some of his later video reviews. "And his name is 'darkdriver'!" Wired darkdriver, now that I'm an admin. Anyway, SpoonyOne is known for his snarkiness, but he also keeps his swearing down to a minimum. His reviews are always on point, and they have occasionally a "MSTie" feel to them. It seems to me that you're limiting yourself to just AVGN...perhaps because he has a DVD out and a T-shirt as well? "Oh, is that all? Spoony's got over a dozen tees and even a few mousepads as well! Go buy a 'fusebox #42' T-shirt, Jeff! You'll feel better and look kewler!" Who mentioned objectivity here, by the way? "Just want him to feel better. He's even ragging on webcomics." You had to mention that...why is 'Penny Arcade' considered better than 'Ctl+Alt+Del' by so many people on the 'net? I bought three 'Penny Arcade' Collections! Three! And I laughed once while reading them! They're full of injokes only teh hrdkor gamerz would even get, let alone would think are funny! 'Penny Arcade' is not an entertaining strip, let alone a funny strip! While CAD has enough of a blend of comedy and drama to make it a delight to read! Who on the 'net would like 'Penny Arcade'...over CAD.... "Answer your own question there, did you, noble leader? I bet many of them would be surprised to find out there are comic books that don't have superheroes in them! Smell that?" *Diskette takes big whiff* "Ewww, gamer geek funk!" Cut it out, Diskette. ...of course, I can't disagree about Yahtzee, though. His is a biting wit. "And Spoony's one of his favorites!" Diskeeeeete...... "I'll be quiet now." Seriously now, Jeff...do you want AVGN's fans? You see what he does. Do you want people who like that? "Like 'Jimmy' here?" Diskette! "didn't say anything..." LIKE I WAS SAYING...Jeff, what do you want? People who appreciate what you have to offer, or leetspeekng youtubers bumping your hit count to unbelievable levels? "If the latter, take some FF-trolls off of Spoony's hands, please!" Heh heh heh...well, he would appreciate that, Diskette.

Well, whaddaya know? I guess dumping their few-years-old Combat, Marble Madness Under A New Name, and Matrix games at dollar stores was just the thing needed to make those games make any money.

Methink ye have that backwards, n8. If it doesn't go on the PS2, then it will be for technical reasons. Heck, the PS3 is being kept around primarily for pushing the technology. When Sony wants real money, they still rely on all those PS2 licenses floating around. For crying out loud, they let Popcap get one of those things! Let's face it: PS2--easy $$$ PS3--cutting-edge tech Remember: the PS2 side is the "Popcap"siode of Sony, while the PS3 is the Ïnfogrames"side of Sony.

PC gaming hitting the bricks? Not as long as there are fans of solitaire , "Shanghai", and Diner Dash. Okay, maybe some of teh hrdkor gamerz will hit the bricks and go to consoles...but you know what I say? Good. Don't le the door hit them on their asses. We're talking about games. You know, fun-time down-time activities. Oh, they can't do their massive army strategies on their computers any more? Two words for them: Games Workshop. Go play Warhammer or 2ndEd Minis or Heroclix and leave me and my Zuma the fuck alone, you l33tsp33kng fucktards! Gaming on the computer has always been about one simple thing: fun. Whether it's arcade ports or simple text-based games, home gaming on the computer has done its best to emphasize fun first...not always with good results, granted, but they tried! Now we have teh hrdkor gamerz who want their "morpugs" (thank you, Yahtzee! ) and their "fips"--and no glitches and superb graphics and why they hell don't they just buy a console and do an net linkup and leave me the hell alone with my Popcap games? Popcap games--for real computer gamers, not "gamerz'! "The preceding was an unpaid endorsement of Popcap games. The opinions therein are solely the opinions of darkdri--I mean, JimmydelaKopin, and do not refledct the opinions of the Cult of Lain in any way." Oh, do be quiet, Dsikette.

Hasbro dumped a lot of properties that weren't going to make them a lot of money. "Wait for it, peeps..." Y'know, like Atari. "And we have predictable lame joke. Back to your regularly scheduled thread."

A few comments from this Gamer from the Grave... First: this is a pronouncement coming from a company whose product can be found at the dollar stores. --Not making that up. Combat for the PC for only a buck. Yeah, they're reliable for sound advice. Second: single-player games are on their way out? Yeah, out the doors of the stores and into the homes of many many customers. Infogrames only wishes it had Popcap's sales figures. Third: Alone in the Dark a "beautifully-crafted" game? Pal, your kid's ears and mouth are misplaced and she has three eyes, each of which is looking in a different direction. Stop being in denial and take the ugly kid home; she ain't winning the beauty contest! Lastly...the People's Republic of New Orleans has free internet access from the home?! Damn, people can't even afford to rebuild there, let alone get computers! Still, I always wondered where all those taxes and fees and fines were going. They sure aren't being used to improve the city!

Sounds like that's the highest-selling Target in the area. Whenever other stores 'research'* their backrooms and the like, sometimes the 'researched' merchandise will be sent to a store with a higher volume of sales. I'd have added that Target usually doesn't 'research' open merch, but games get delivered to the stores in repack boxes*, not boxes from the manufacturers. *For those a bit confused by the lingo...every week an area of a Target backroom will get 'researched', or checked by computer inventory for full boxes of merchandise that aren't currently needed. When such are found, they're scanned for shipping and sent out. Like I said, this usually doesn't happen with open merch--that is, merch not in the original boxes, as shipping from 'research' is primarily reserved for full boxes. But certain merchandise, like clothes, electronic software and books, and other small items (like dog toys and kitchen gear) are shipped in reusable repack boxes (which must be shipped back to the warehouse in bulk once a store accumulates enough of them). In all, it's entirely plausible that the district managet for Target determined that the run for Pokemon has ended and put in an order to have all Pokemon games researched for shipping to the volume store in the area.

"Hey, Diskette, whatcha lstening to?" "Some band named Colossal Hubris." "Sounds like 'Chase'." "Well, that's not right, because that's prohibited at the spoony ex--" "Psst, we're at atariage." "In that case...yes, I'm listening to 'Chase'.-- "--Wait. Why are we at atariage?" "I sometimes come by here, and someone's started up a new thread about The Landfill." "And what's buried in it, Happy, my sweet fiance?" "You got it, Diskette. What do you think is in it?" "Personally?...I'd guess Swordquest Four cartridges. 'If we don't release the game, then no one can win MY fancy jewel-encrusted, golden sword!'" "I could imagine Tramiel saying that. But I guess the timing is all wrong for it. How about you?" "I think they buried Atari's future as a videogame company." "Brutal, Happy, brutal. Hey, wanna share an earphone jack? I loooooove 'Chase'!"

Hey, "Coleco", don't do my employer any favors, y'know? Seriously, this ain't the old Coleco. Some people bought the old company, probably not realizing that, aside from generic sports titles and some generic sports handhelds, Coleco owned only a few games that they made for the arcade or home systems. Back in the day, licensing was where it was at...until Nintendo smartened up and decided to take personal control of both the home gaming and arcade gaming markets. Once that happened, Coleco lost its mealticket...and the rest is history.

As the ad shows, those were Atari products...or were supposed to be, if I gather what Wickey is saying. Thing is, I remember the Entex LED Space Invaders game...and also the Tiger LCD Space Invaders game that came out around that time. Seems everyone was in on the Space Invaders groove back then.

Sneak 'n' Peek. No, seriously. Remember where some of the places you could hide were on those game? It could make for one really freaky horror flick. As for Yar's Revenge...as much as I love the game and the comic book...there already is a movie for it: A New Hope. Adventure could be good...but only if they include the secret area. Freeway or Frogger, perhaps...but they'd probably be Pixar creations, then. Though Centipede...as something along the lines of Willow (though good)...that could work. Haunted House too...but either done as serious horror...or done as quasi-horror comedy (that is, done by the Boll weevil).

Back in the day, I used to go with my initials: WEG. Then, when machines started using 5 symbols instead of three, I went with a mirrored version of my initials: WEGEW. My sign became so frequent on one machine at one arcade that, when I signed my sign on the same machine at a different arcade, two young ladies watching me play asked in surprise, "Do you go to Fun Arcade?" I admitted that I was indeed the same player at the other arcade. Then touchscreens came along with a 10 or so symbols for your sign...so now I sign: STACY JK. Back when Game Klub was around (before Katrina...*sigh*) I was one of a bunch of regulars who went to the arcade to play the touchscreens. The others used to say "Hi, Stacy" or something like that when I arrived. ...Mind you, I'm a guy. The only reason for the name is that Stacy Jean Kopin is a character in some of my stories (same as Jimmy "de la" Kopin), but I took it in good fun.

So it is a defect in the cartridge, practically making it unique! That's all I need. Sheesh! I know it wasn't the console. The cartridge's glitch showed up whether we played it on the 2600 or the 7800 we got later. Soooo.....any ideas on how much this thing is worth, just for the glitched chip alone?

All right, my peeps, I need a little help. There's a friendly lurker (handle's "nimbus") 'round these parts who wants to know about the 2600 Crystal Castles glitch. Says that he's never seen it but always wanted to see what the heck I'm talking about (as I mentioned it in a thread on glitches). I haven't gotten the chance to play the game again in years. Mom stored the games somewhere only she knows in the house, and, besides, she owns the 2600 and has it hooked up to her TV (which, when she's home is either watching court shows or L&O reruns--not that I fault her her taste in TV shows). Anyway, I'm hoping that the 2600 Crystal Castles cartridge isn't a unique item. See... ...on certain waves, some gems touch the walls in the pseudo-3D perspective. Those gems are usually "double gems": touch the one touching the wall, and the score counter tallies points like a leaderboard at a telethon. But, touch the gem above the one touching the wall, and both gems disappear. Also, the waves tally a set number of gems that need to be retrieved--and, on some waves, the "double gems" are the only way to reach that tally. If they're removed (usually one per level, sometimes two on certain waves), then you can't progress in the game. You literally have to start over. I know that this glitch isn't in the Atari Anniversary Collection emulator for the PS2. But I'm wondering if anyone else who played the 2600 version of Crystal Castles has experienced this glitch. Please tell me I'm not the only one with such a game! Thanks in advance!

Ah, a Qwak! addict. Just say no to Qwak!