Nulion

Well, yes, that "What's Your Name" song is pretty catchy It doesn't exactly remove the ear-splitting noise producted by the song I pointed out though!

I can't believe nobody's mentioned this so far! San Francisco Rush for N64 ...Seriously. Try listening to this for more than 30 seconds without clawing your ears off and burning them so that the awful sounds can never trouble you again. Sad thing is, I loved that game...but the music! GAH! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0_Jn1vqnDk

Exactly! The two games get a lot of bad press, but in reality they aren't all that bad. It's a shame the media, along with the fanboys and the word of mouth guys, blow it all out of proportion. No doubt this kind of stuff hurts sales too, which is even more a shame. So yes, Bayonetta PS3 is by no means broken or unplayable or a piece of trash with poor graphics and horrible load times. It's just a great game with a few flaws (eg: Loading) that shouldn't be there, and should be fixed soon enough. This is also reminding me of the game Condemned 2: Bloodshot, for PS3...it was also a SEGA game, so it sits in a similar boat. The game had this very strange sound problem when I picked it up, that voices and other sounds would come up only as buggy noise and static, rendering the game actually unplayable. I literally couldn't sit through the noise, because it hurt my ears; I had to shut the game off. Shortly after I bought the game, a patch was released by SEGA that perfectly fixed the issue, and let me enjoy the experience. Granted, though that sound glitch should never have existed to begin with, SEGA at least showed the good graces in patching it. Bayonetta should be no different. Of course, we should be at least a little concerned that we shouldn't be buying defective products, which is true...but still, it also means those of us with PS3's don't have to worry about a product with problems having those kinds of problems for very long.

Yep, Sega did kinda shit on it...but like I said, it's still a damn fine game, and still a whole load of fun to play. High recommendations, even if you have to get the PS3 version It's funny though, how this game reminds me of the PS3 version of The Orange Box. All you ever hear about the PS3 version is that it's "far inferior" to the 360 version...and yet I just don't see it. I see a few problems with a tiny bit of slowdown (As opposed to the "massive slowdown" I'm always hearing about), and there is a sound clipping glitch that's really annoying. The load times also take a little longer than the 360 version...which isn't really all that bad. Bayonetta is much the same; you keep hearing about all these awful problems, when it's just overblown. About the only thing I could really call a problem with PS3 Bayonetta is the loading. That's IT.

Thought I might chip in on my opinion of the PS3 version... The graphics, I see no problem with whatsoever; they're beautiful, they're VERY well-done, everything runs at a great speed, and I didn't catch too much slowdown... The problem I have with the game is the LOADING. Ohhh sweet god, the constant LOADING! This game has to load to do ANYTHING. I actually counted a five-second load just to bring up the pause menu. There was one point where I was fighting a tough boss...and I died several times, but the thing is, there's a cutscene right before the boss. What I ended up having to do was open the church doors (The battle took place inside a church), wait for the game to load for a few seconds, then a cutscene would start, then I have to pause, wait for the game to load the pause screen, then hit Skip Cutscene, then wait for the cutscene to load what happens next, then wait for the environment to change because the cutscene had to be loaded out, then FINALLY get to actually play....only to die a few seconds later, and have to do the entire thing over again. By the time the actual boss *APPEARED* in a giant gaping hole in the wall that also just popped out of nowhere while the cutscene was trying to load out, I ended up too surprised by the boss just popping up that I ended up dying about 5 times there. It sucked. Another frequent load problem is whenever you pick up a book or an item; the game will sit on the red swirly thing that is in the background of the item after picking it up, and say "LOADING" for a few seconds, until the item appears and you can either read it or press Continue. The longest load times, however, occur between levels and where you see Bayonetta walking around the endless field of red symbols and such, where all you can do is practice fighting skills. I've counted load times of around 30+ seconds in there...which is just unacceptable. Despite all this loading....I hear that Sega and Sony are planning to patch the game to fix the loading and some of the graphical problems that I just can't pick out. (Chalk that up as not having the 360 version to compare it to, I suppose) And even further...if you have a PS3, get this game. The loading problems can be a pain, yes, but in the end I find myself just not caring. The game is so over the top and oozing with style, and it's just so much fun to play, that I still really recommend it to anyone with a PS3. Yeah, if you've got a PS3 and a 360, I'd go with the 360 version (As much as I hate to admit that), but the PS3 version is still fine and playable...it just has its own set of annoyances that really shouldn't be there. So yeah...in short...PS3 version has problems, but it's still VERY worth getting, even if all you own is a PS3 Hope that clears things up for anyone on the fence!

Didn't think about that. They *do* get shafted a lot, don't they? I know I feel sorry for 'em when I jump onto my European PSN account every week only to see the things that were released the week prior popping up on there. I can't actually think of any other European exclusives, now that I think about it.

Schwaltzvald, just wanted to chip in my two cents; the Issac Clarke costume is probably in there because Dante's Inferno is being developed by the same studio within EA that did Dead Space. It doesn't seem like EA is shoehorning the guy in there for no reason, but rather Visceral Games (Formerly EA Redwood Shores) wanted to plug their other franchise Either way, it stinks that only Europe gets it. Ah well...least I'm a PS3 owner, so I actually *GET* a special edition at all, eh?

Strange, I usually read your posts especially, top to bottom....but that one must've squeaked by! Thanks for the info Over 300 adaptations though...yeowch.

And...an Elvis Presley version. He do this song originally? And good god, a Pet Shop Boys version? This song's really gotten around, eh?

Origins was pretty good, yes It was by no means a "bad" game; it just wasn't long enough, or maybe fresh enough for a lot of fans...and I can see why they might take issue with that. Seems like the game was a kind of "greatest hits" of the series, all mixed up and taking cues from various games in the series. The Sanitarium had a SH2 vibe to it, while the Motel felt very SH1-SH3ish, for instance. I still really enjoyed myself with it, and I've gotta say it was the very first portable game that has *EVER* managed to freak me out. It's still the only one that's ever been able to do so. You'd think that's merit enough! I mean, can you guys think of any other portable games that have actually been scary? Off the top of my head, I can only think of SH Origins, and maybe Sanitarium and Moon for DS, although I have yet to play either. They did look a bit freaky though. ...and yeah, still such a shame about Yamaoka-san leaving Konami They actually confirmed it too. Wish I could find the link, but apparently they had some sort of interview with him (That I hadn't seen the full version of) and the gist of it was that he was leaving to bigger and better things, perhaps in the light that Silent Hill is becoming a more western-developed franchise these days. Sad And as for Shattered Memories? I'm gonna be picking that up today! I've got high hopes, as it really looks like they've tried something different. Gonna enjoy seeing how they added in those spiffy permutations to the classic SH1 formula

Ohhh man, bad news... http://www.aeropause.com/2009/11/akira-yamaoka-leaves-konami-after-16-years/ Apparently, Akira Yamaoka left Konami. Not sure where he's going, or if this is even fully real (Kotaku branded it a rumor), but I really hope this isn't true. I'm not sure where the Silent Hill series could go without his trademark sound. This...sucks.

This is wonderful music right here; I'd had no idea a french horn could be so versatile, and portray this wide an array of moods And one thing that really impressed me is how well all the tracks are blended into one another, not to mention that this is all performed by one guy You've got an awful lot of talent! Great job!

As far as game-to-film adaptations go, Silent Hill was definitely one of the better ones. I hope they don't continue the story from the first film though; that would be...meh. Good to see this thread back up though

Try Toy Commander, Power Stone, or Hydro Thunder too Most of the other gems have been covered. Probably the biggest use I have of my Dreamcast currently, is that of emulation...Now, I don't think it's allowed to actually post sites for the emulators and especially for the roms, but I recommend you Google "NesterDC SE" NesterDC SE is just...wow, it's incredible. The emulator comes with a program that lets you take bundles of ROM files, and then it will automatically encode them onto a standalone CD, for use in your Dreamcast. The program will automatically grab .NSF soundtrack files (For use in the emualator's built-in .NSF music player), box art and cartridge art shots, and instruction manuals for every game you put into it, making it a ridiculously complete-feeling emulator once played on the system. It also has built-in support for Game Genie (It automatically downloads all Game Genie codes for all games you put into that program), as well as save states, which are stored on the VMU. The catch for all this is that you need a mod-chipped system, and frankly I have no idea how to do that. I DO know, however, that all first-generation Dreamcast systems have no protection on their disc drives, and don't need a mod-chip. My own Dreamcast is one of these; I'd bought it on launch day, back on 9/9/99, hehe. I'm not sure how to tell apart a first generation Dreamcast from the others, apart from the fact that the first-gen ones need no mod-chips. It's something you might want to try experimenting with! Ten years already though, huh? It might be time to do some kind of Dreamcast 10th Anniversary...thing. Maybe celebrate by playing some Shenmue or some Sonic Adventure again Good times, good times...

I use this weird program called Game Collector Pro to keep track of my collection. Sure, it normally costs $30, but I used this weird TrialPay thing to get it for free. It's fun to enter in stuff, and then get a picture of the box art and a description of each game too; I enter in a new one every time I get a new game. The thing can use a barcode scanner too, but...I don't have one of those. Oh well. http://www.collectorz.com/game/?from=google&keyword=game%20collector%20pro&gclid=CPGToc6B5ZoCFRYpFQodl3OdBQ It says I have a total of 384 games, and that's not including things I've bought on WiiWare or the PlayStation Store, since it doesn't accommodate those things yet. If you added those things in, I'd say the total would go up to 390 - 400, or thereabouts. Nice topic It's always fun to talk about a collection. There's still so much more I'd love to add to it though...*sigh* ...wish I was rich, haha.

I posted this in the other thread, although honestly this thread right here is the "true" Silent Hill thread, I'd say. ...Anyway, IGN let loose an eyes-on preview, a developer interview, and some new screenshots of Silent Hill: Shattered Memories. I'm really, really getting excited for this after reading these enthusiastic, extremely positive-looking articles. Have a look! Here's the eyes-on preview: http://wii.ign.com/articles/971/971316p1.html Here's the interview: http://wii.ign.com/articles/971/971319p1.html Here's the screens: http://media.wii.ign.com/media/143/14325477/imgs_1.html

Hmm...there was just a series of new articles posted on IGN about Shattered Memories...I'll post this on the other Silent Hill thread too (The really long, really wonderful one) This game...sounds amazing. I know the fans have been burned before by high promises, but the enthusiasm in these articles has gotten me *pumped* for this game Here's the eyes-on preview: http://wii.ign.com/articles/971/971316p1.html Here's the interview: http://wii.ign.com/articles/971/971319p1.html Here's the screens: http://media.wii.ign.com/media/143/14325477/imgs_1.html

You're quite welcome The guy has a great eye for beautiful scenery...Not to mention, I actually heard somewhere (Forget where!) that his Gunstar Heroes background that is up there was actually converted into a PS3 Theme. I'm not sure where the theme is though..

I found some more really, really nice-looking ones from this guy's Deviantart website http://orioto.deviantart.com/gallery/#Videogame-Remakes

Hehe, much love for Godhand So sad that it's so overlooked...Even IGN gave it a 3.0 out of 10, which it simply didn't deserve. But Chaos Legion? ...I remember hearing about that years back, it was hyped up and then basically disappeared from view. I never did get to play it, but it looks really good from the video you posted there I may have to pick it up! ...As for Godhand? I actually found it at a used game store around here for $8.00 - you just can't get much better than that, honestly. Another weird, confusing thing about Godhand, I've gotta warn you...You watched the video, right? Notice when it says "LEVEL UP!" after so many enemy beatdowns? I was confused because when that happens, you never get more powerful; the ENEMIES are the ones who level up. Basically, the better you do, the harder the game gets. If you get stomped on enough, you will actually get a "LEVEL DOWN!", and the enemies will become easier again. Took me a good while to figure out that's what was going on

Silent Hill 3 for only $20? Not bad at all! I recall seeing it at Gamestop for $30, and of course the case was banged up, and no doubt the soundtrack wasn't included...so a very nice find indeed Gotta say, SH3 was completely awesome...I don't really get why people knock on it so much. Was it because it was linear? Because the first half doesn't actually take place in Silent Hill itself? The return to the whole cult story? ...Who knows? Hehe, all I know is that I thoroughly enjoyed that one. I know over at my house, I actually have this tendency to attract a small audience who will actually sit and watch me play through the entire game. Done it with every one of the SH games so far, including Origins. The one I ended up playing the most though was SH3. I even remember once I had a crowd of people (Like 5 or 6) watching me play through the PC version of SH3 during a LAN party we held years back. ...ahh, memories

Personally, I would recommend Godhand, for PS2...It's a Clover game, by those guys who did Okami The game is...such a mess, technically. I mean, the camera system is awful (Bolted behind you, and the only way to look around is to move your character around), the graphics clip out whenever you're near a wall, the environments are sparse, the game can be REALLY difficult at times (You better be playing on Easy mode!), but for some reason it's so amazingly fun. You just kick the crap out of everything in the most amusingly funny ways imaginable. I remember having to beat the hell out of a group of muscly bear gays wearing leather bondage strap uniforms as a boss, and another boss were midget versions of the Power Rangers. Yet another boss I remember was a confused gorilla. One move in the game lets you bend a woman over and smack her ass so hard she flies a hundred feet through the air in front of you. You can also change around all of the movesets by assigning a different move to a different button combination and find or buy new moves, new special moves, like the ball buster or a super drop kick or whatever, and for some odd reason there's even a casino in the game. It just baffles me how a game with that many flaws could be so damned fun though! Heavily recommend, it's the most fun I've had with a beat-em-up in a LONG time Here's a video of the game in motion....fun as all hell, and criminally overlooked and underrated:

Yeah, I still enjoy Pyramid Head as much as anybody else, hehe...but I can really see what you mean there, ifirit. And I would agree, too! It does seem like there is some sort of meta-meaning to the story that simply isn't there in Homecoming...although I honestly enjoy the game, and think it is a solid entry in the Silent Hill series, it does lack that odd ambiguity the other titles were smothered with, and is easier to figure out. The way you presented your ideas though, isn't something I'd ever considered on my own, but I actually recall reading that somewhere...it may have even been from one of your posts earlier in the thread. (Much earlier!) The stories have so many purposeful holes inserted into them, that can be filled with just about anything our minds can come up with. It's even conceivable that your theory is completely different from the intent of the designers, but that right there is a solid hallmark of serious artwork; each of us can come up to our own conclusions about what the work means, what it represents, and what value it has for our lives here in the real world. In THAT regard, Homecoming fails...and it's a shame. But in every other regard, at least where it counts as making a game enjoyable and engaging, Homecoming still succeeds, I think. To Double Helix's credit, I can hardly imagine how difficult it would be to insert such vague yet STRONG symbolism and interpretability (Is that even a word? o.O) into a game with the technical demands of today's consoles. Not only does one need to worry about basic playability, deadlines, bug testing and design, but one also needs to worry about the metaphorical aspects of what's being created; the aforementioned "holes" in the storyline that can be filled with anything our minds can grasp at. That has to be an incredibly tough, conscious effort on the part of the developers. Really makes you have even more respect for Team Silent... If only they were still developing the games though... Honestly ifirit, with the kinds of opinions and insights you've got going on around here, I wouldn't think it would be a bad idea to send a letter (An actual letter, hehe) to Double Helix with regards to the next Silent Hill game, and that "special something" that it needs. I can't imagine they would ignore a genuinely insightful and constructive letter, although there's always the chance they'd just toss it. But when you're dealing with something you enjoy, and you don't want to see fall into mediocrity, it can't hurt to try, can it?

Thanks for the update again I'm curious though...what did you mean by "story loop"? I hadn't watched the Yahtzee review yet, since even though those are usually funny, they're kinda depressing, so I don't know if the "story loop" thing was brought about from that review or not. But anyway, what exactly is it? EDIT: Watched the video, and...oddly enough, it wasn't depressing! Wheee! Funny stuff, especially the weird calls at the end, hehe. I still love Homecoming though, despite its very real flaws...and yeah, a lot of what he says is true...but ah well. Here's hoping they get the idea sometime soon. In the end, we can all be glad Silent Hill hasn't exactly ever had a miserable, lame, horrible, terrible game, like...oh...the Resident Evil series. Although I love Resident Evil, it hasn't exactly been a consistent series, unlike Silent Hill, which has consistently always been at the very worst a good, scary time. And unlike Resident Evil 4, Homecoming is actually still a damn scary game in places...(Although I've gotta hand it to the RE4 designers for the Regenerators; they actually were pretty freaky.) Buuut...yeah. Back to the topic at hand.

Honestly, I don't think the game deserves the low scores it's been receiving...C'mon, give it a chance! There's a lot of genuinely good stuff in Homecoming, and game review magazines, eager for perfection, can't look past a few flaws to see something that's actually really good and enjoyable. The thing with Silent Hill 4 is that, despite how much I really do try and love that game, there's simply too many things that annoy and/or frustrate the heck out of me whenever I try to play it. It's like the game is artificially inflated, bloated, and longer because of all the annoyances contained within...But with Homecoming, there's 100% certified none of that. (Well okay, maybe a few annoyances, but it's not nearly enough to make the game a chore to play) I can pretty safely say that Homecoming is a much more enjoyable and well-done game than Silent Hill 4 was. Go and get Homecoming; it's a lot better than the critics would have you believe. Maybe it isn't perfect, and 1/2/3 are definitely better games, but...I really like Homecoming, and don't want to see a Silent Hill guru such as yourself relegated to only watching the cutscenes, hehe. Look at it this way; every one of the Silent Hill games has had flaws that would be considered glaring and major by today's standards, or even the standards of yesteryear, such as subpar animations and general lack of player direction in Silent Hill 2, to major graphics clipping and bad voice acting in Silent Hill 1. This game, too, has its flaws...but there's good stuff hidden behind all the things critics don't like. Sorry, preachy mode off! Just go buy the danged thing and enjoy ...Thank you for the music and lyrics, by the way!