Strike911

If that means no more three starter dungeons, followed by an additional seven, linearly ordered upper-tier dungeons I'll be very happy.

WYLD STALLYNS! I'm excited about a Cowboy Bebop movie... although I'm very concerned it won't be done right. Uhm... I don't know how I feel about Keanu though. Keanu is notorious for his blank stares and monotone performances. Spike is cool, but his level of emotional action doesn't really jump around all that much in the anime (with only a few exceptions)... he's just too cool to really overreact a lot of times. While it is a shot in the dark, it might end up okay with Keanu in that role. That said, he wouldn't be my first pick for Spike at all. AND, it doesn't account for Hollywood writers having the tendency to completely ruin original story lines. I know I said it before in a different Cowboy Bebop movie thread, but as long as they keep that jazz feel and style in tact, I'll be happy. I'm not expecting much though.

The title of this game will be: .... Zelda: Clocky Feather thing Farm Super happy fun time game wars 2 you heard it here first.

Hmm... this is a toughie. While I would love to hear a new Zelda release that might bring hope of a reinvigorated series, going by that enigmatic webpage doesn't really confirm anything. That said, the triforce is an iconic symbol in gaming... any developer using something like that presented in a similar format is just asking for controversy. Other thing is though, I understand Nintendo going to Capcom to work on Zelda games for the GBC, but this developer doesn't have a real track record with games of the scope of Zelda. I'm not saying a new developer can't show up and make something incredible, but I don't think Nintendo would take a risk like that on Marvelous, unless it's something like a Zelda casual game, much different from what we're used to. Again, keep in mind (and it has already been mentioned in the thread) Nintendo's already told us that future Zelda games would be largely different from what we're used to. But wouldn't the announcement of a new (and fresh) Zelda would be great. I enjoyed Twilight Princess, but it was just a Gamecube game that I played on my Wii... and while fun it felt like it was trying to mimic OOT too much. It didn't really spread it's wings (plus that old Zelda style Overworld HAS to go... with games like Oblivion showing amazingly large landscapes that are believable. As much as I love Hyrule, black voids separating areas aren't really tolerable in this day and age... 10 years ago, maybe, but now now). Some of the things in TP have me hopeful. The way the dungeons designs (especially the Yeti's house) were fantastic, and the battle system expanded on a very simple formula that worked. I'm hopeful, if Nintendo decides to make a new yet traditional Zelda game, I think the next one will be the groundbreaking one we've all been waiting for. They've got a lot of things right in WindWaker and Twilight Princess. The ingredients are there, Nintendo just needs to put them all together in a coherent package. A little nod to the haredcore fans with a nice tidy storyline would be wonderful too. Man, I'm off topic. Time will tell I guess. Not holding my breath though. It certainly would be a step in the right direction for Nintendo to announce SOME kind of popular hardcore franchise as their current lineup is DISMAL. I know a lot of people haven't turned on their Wii in months.

Definitely seeing the horizon of Hyrule Field with the castle in the background for the first time as a kid in 1998 when Ocarina of Time came out. I hadn't seen anything like that before in a video game. That and the entire experience of Metal Gear Solid 1 on the original PlayStation. Again, the game's style, gameplay, story, and presentation just floored me. It too was something I'd never experienced in a game before either. Those two games are what I remember being floored by. I remember really loving games in the past back on the NES, Genesis, SNES, and stuff, and even stuff now in the present and recent past, but those two games in particular are the strongest memories I have of gaming. I hope one day another game will be able to give a strong memory like that. Not since though... been ten years. MGS4's nostalgic presentation of a few moments was fantastic, and an excellent nod to the last 10 years of MGS memories which was VERY nostalgic and a fan's dream come true (some of the levels and scenes were like going back in time ten years ago and revisiting my childhood)... but again, no games have given me an experience that has stayed with me like OOT and MGS1. Even though I absolutely love games like Ico and Shadow of the Colossus to death, there's something about how groundbreaking both MGS1 and OOT were in their time that I long to experience again in a new game. Here's hoping something new will do the trick, and that I don't have to wait another 10 years to see something that completely floors me again.

I'd go with the spanish flavor. It has more charm to it than the alternatives. Plus the music has a precise characterization that people can understand immediately. But that's just my two cents.

Hey! That's really cool! I want one! Haha. Video games with my mind? Hell, sign me up.

Wow, that Luigi combo versus Marth at the end was epic.

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@ Native Jovian Right on, man. I think Valve got it right with the styles they chose for the maps. Each represents something mildly different from the others. Gotta be honest though, I'd play through Dead Air just to get to the plane crash at the end. lol. I don't care if the Finale is a little, meh, that plane crash is totally worth it. I find a lot value in Blood Harvest's Finale though, too, because you can choose a couple (okay, a few) different locations to fortify and defend. I think that's where L4D shines is when you are given a few opportunities, and your team can decide what it thinks is best. For instance, me and buddies tend to like the barn and avoid the house, although, maybe we should give the stairs a chance one of these days. I'm hoping for some really open Finales in newer (or community made) campaigns. Blood Harvest has two buildings and a few smaller structures around it outside... I'd love to see like a suburban, blocked off cul-de-sac with houses you can choose to defend. I love being able to choose a location. That's the stuff that's great.

Game Stop being an interested party means everything. Any in-house publication (be it Nintendo Power, Game Informer, Offical PlayStation Magazine, etc.) will be biased (despite their respective audiences' subjective perceptions on whether or not the magazine is "good" or otherwise). Bias will exist, and must exist from in-house funded magazines, which further nullifies the concept of legitimate reviews in such sources, especially a corporation (and in turn a magazine) whose mere existence relies, ultimately, on the sale of video games.

The only time I've ever really mistook songs from games (and vice versa) was from the first Toejam and Earl game (and maybe the 2nd one), although, they intentionally tried to imitate popular funk songs at the time for the soundtrack, so I'm unsure if that really counts.

Hey, if you want to buy into corporate propaganda under the guise of a magazine, that's your call. If you like the writing style and you enjoy reading it, then who am I to tell you to stop. I'm merely addressing your initial statement of the fact that you weren't aware that Game Informer was owned and published by GameStop. It's a little naive to assume that GameStop would allow one of its products (Game Informer) to dissuade customers from buying other more profitable products in their stores. If a store decides to start a magazine then you can safely assume that the said magazine is their for a reason... to assist in sales of GameStop's number one product: video games. It does not exist as independent, free-thinking journalism because since its inception it has always been funded by the store, which sells the products they review. Despite the efforts of the writers or editors, Game Informer is nothing more than a giant GameStop ad. If you like the pretty pictures then dandy. Hell, if Game Informer had some cool pictures of a game I really liked I might even buy it, but keep in mind where the source of the money is coming from, because in the end that will always influence the magazine's writing, reviews, and previews. My dislike of GameStop doesn't affect the fact that the company has a vested interest in what is printed on the pages of Game Informer. And anyway, my main issue with GameStop is how they do business with their customers, as a former employee 7 or 8 years ago. They screw over people on trade-ins, the used game card is a rip off unless you spend inordinately large amounts of money on used games, and they deliberately cause launch shortages so they can ensure people are forced to get preorders, now that they've bought off most mom and pop shops in urban areas, leaving the consumer with very few video game retailers to shop at. Have you ever checked Fry's or Best Buy when popular games come out? GameStop is out of stock because you didn't preorder (want to preorder a different game while we're at it to avoid this next time?), but they'll usually have stack upon stacks of the games at other stores. Combine that with the whole Game Informer thing, and that's why I don't like them and unless there are no alternatives, I refuse to continually support their practices with my money. Way off topic. Sorry thread.

@ Pezman Be glad you missed Sonic Shuffle. I think I got it for free when I bought my Dreamcast back in the day. It was like Mario Party, except minus the party, minus a lot of minigames, and more board games. The minigames were fun when you got to them, but it was like... half the time was spent wasting time on the game board doing nothing but moving your piece, not to mention the weird rules of the game. I could only stand it for a little while. >_< One day Sega will take the old Sonic formula that worked back in the early 90s, make a 3D engine that mimics the gameplay perfectly, while adding some cool interactivity and physics, then they'll start making new Sonic titles that sell. Those games played really tightly, the controls were spot on. My main issue with the newer 2D GBA sonic games is that the controls don't feel nearly as tight as they did back on the Genesis, just a little unresponsive...

I agree with you about writing styles and the tactile sensation of actually turning a page to see what's beyond (the internet lacks this)... however... Game Informer is largely associated with GameStop. Having the misfortune of working there in my teens, we gave them away + sold subscriptions away with each 10% off used games "screw you over" card we sold. We essentially were selling subscriptions in store. The magazine is published and owned by GameStop if I'm not mistaken. Edit: sources - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_Informer http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/ProductDetails.aspx?product_id=28788 http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050418005419&newsLang=en not trying to be a dick. They never mention GameStop, but being owned by GameStop who's main goal is to sell games, and popular ones especially, there's no incentive to be really critical as it hurts the parent company's main way to get income. It's kind of lame really. For instance, with EGM they would rate a few very hyped games with low scores and publishers wouldn't work them. This type of stuff is lame, but it happens. http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/09/publishers-allegedly-blackball-egm-for-negative-coverage/ And the fact that GameStop has to preserve its primary source of income, its game selling wing, in my opinion negates them as a legitimate form of critical media, much less as a real source for real unbiased reviews or coverage. Again, they never mention GameStop, but the magazine is something GameStop wants you to buy to pimp games coming out so that you'll buy it from their stores. Giving a product they're selling a critical unbiased review would hurt their bottom line... that's why I don't like them. Again, not trying to be a dick.

I don't know. Certainly Maio has maintained better, but Nintendo games in general fare far better than Sega games ever have in the last generation up to this one. And about the shines. I understand. I also have seen myself not being bothered with collecting things in games anymore, and I think I've pinned it to the fact that when 3D worlds and collecting things were new, it was actually compelling because it was, in fact, new. Now that its old potatoes I can't be bothered unless it adds to the gameplay, and isn't the equivalent of me trying to find some kind of missing trinket in my very messy closet. That's honestly what the closet comparison is. AND FURTHERMORE (rant beginning) there is often no equivalent reward for finding all the damned things in most of these games except the satisfaction that our dumbasses collected all of the damned things in the first place. What's my incentive to go and find all this crap the devs leave lying around if I'm not going to get anything back for it besides a 100% next to my save file?! HUH!? HUH!? Where the flying hell did all he secret unlockables go!? Achievements are nice, but they're not a substitute when people break their ass trying to find crap. Okay, I'm stopping. Sonic's later games were especially plagued by this... I just don't care because the reward in return just isn't high enough with all the other fantastic games vying for my attention all at the same time. Pardon the vulgarities.

Can't say I'm surprised. Print media hasn't fully transitioned with the internet age yet. Bound to happen. I read EGM waaaaaaaaaaay back in the day (N64/Playstation generation) but not religiously. They were good back in the day, but their quality was in decline since. AND FOR THE LIFE OF ME I don't understand why anyone would read Game Informer. It's just one giant advertising platform for GameStop. That and Nintendo Power for Nintendo. Especially with all the excellent online resources available for free, I just don't know what magazines can offer that the internet can't. Everything in the magazines are reported the day of the mag's release, and the internet is instantaneous. I have 24/7 coverage of video game news right in my room over the internet, from hundreds of different sources to help me form an opinion on a game, plus video and screencaps. Print media can't do that yet. But really, I hear people love Game Informer, even a few of my friends in real life and I've never understood it. Maybe it's my massive dislike towards GameStop... I understand there's a aspect of turning the page that is interesting (old school interactivity, right?), and the only time I'll ever buy a magazine in this day and age is if it has a lot of imagery or headlines about games I absolutely love AND that will find interesting to go back and read years down the line when we've all forgotten them. Something more like memorabilia, than something to get news out of. I went through some of my old mags just recently (I saved A LOT of old magazines from the early early 90s) and read a piece on the original StarFox in a very old April '94 GamePro issue and it was talking about the game's graphics being awe inspiring, and seeing reviews about classic games and how excited everyone was for them at the time is really interesting to go back and take a look at, now that a lot of them will never be received like that again. Good times. I love reading old articles. Love it. In fact, I think I'm more willing to buy old magazines on eBay than anything produced now, again, unless I want to have one as a keepsake for a game that I'm hyped for. Rest in peace current-gen print media. When you have widespread solar powered video pages I will return.

I loved the original, Sonic2, Sonic 3 and S&K. I loved the fact that you could pop in S2 and S3 into S&K... it was just great at the time. The LAST sonic game I even bothered purchasing (and also enjoying) was Sonic Adventure 1 for the Dreamcast, which at the time was really revolutionary. Too bad EVERY Sonic game since hasn't held a candle to those. I tried a the GBA versions and just wasn't impressed, it just didn't control like the older games. And the inclusion of even more characters in the new 3D games really doesn't interest me.

I also don't know what you're talking about either. The only issue I've ever heard about in the media regarding game save corruption on the PS3 is an obscure LittleBigPlanet glitch that only occurs if you're trying to overfill your save data, which really is virtually impossible unless you're intent on doing it by saving all of the horrible and craptastic items people make in their user-made levels. I don't think the issues you are referring to are nearly as widespread or common as you think. While I've seen this LBP glitch on Kotaku and other places, I don't know anyone that has experienced it. Graphical glitches and online problems? Gotta be honest, I'm not going to even touch that because it'll just start a flame war, but as a current-gen owner I've not seen any real differences in graphical glitches and online problems across all 3 platforms (exception being Super Smash Bros Brawl, whose online mode is beyond horrible).

The things that have been overlooked from the old generations was that while you could bring your old carts to your friends house, it didn't allow for data exchange, except in games like the first couple Pokemon games where you had to physically link the GameBoys together via wire. I'm cool without memory cards for the most part, as long as I don't have to pay an extra 25 bucks on top of a console purchase I'm happy... although I guess the sheer price of consoles, and the higher prices for controllers makes up for that loss huh? ha. I remember back in the day when you could take your N64 memory cards to a couple of different arcade machines to transfer your data. I think FZero GX/AX had that kind of functionality too for the Gamecube, if I'm not mistaken. In fact, I think I remember going to the arcade with memory card in hand. Hard drives are the way to go, but USB and SD Cards sure are convenient. It'd be nice to see that kind functionality again, although I guess in this day and age they'd just upload your data online and let you log in to retrieve it.

Had an instance like this once, except not over the key, but the type of notes being used. I was purposefully omitting a few notes and adding in some different types of notes for a clear stylistic difference from the original to make it sound different, but I was getting crap about how I was incorrectly using the theme and how I was wrong, but it's still decent. What a dick that guy was. "Artistic License" If that was the case, a lot of the rearrangements from Smash Bros Brawl would be incorrect and wrong because a few them really deviate from the original source. People are just stupid. Best to ignore them or completely bring them down with the artistic license thing.

Hey everybody, reviving this one since the Metal Gear DLC is now online. It's pretty cool. Lots of fun little levels, the clothes items, and the introduction of a paintball gun to shoot at stuff. ALSO I have an extra unused copy of the code for the God of War bonus content if anyone wants it. Just PM me if you want it. First come, first served.

I'm a Gundam fan so those are the recommendations you're getting from me. If you haven't seen the original Gundam, reading up on the Wiki would be a good start, though you don't really need that much background story. 1985 - Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam (50 episodes) 1986 - Mobile Suit Gundam Double Zeta (47 episodes) 1987 - Char's Counterattack (Feature film and you need to have seen most of the Gundam UC series [especially Double Zeta], but the way it finishes the UC timeline and story is fantastic. It's easily one of my favorite anime movies. Animation is great, and the soundtrack is good.) 1991 - Mobile Suit Gundam 0083 (only 13 episodes, quick one if you're looking for an easy watch)

I've taken a listen and I absolutely love it. This is a quality and (most importantly!) memorable soundtrack. I can't say that about a lot of soundtracks, but this one is rare. Fantastic work sir! EDIT: There are a couple songs with vocals. Did you do the vocal work on them?

I have both (DSLite and PSP-2000). Here's my 2 cents in an easy to digest format: PSP if you have a PS3. The extra features are cool. There aren't as many titles, but you get a few, cool console-style portable games, not to mention the ability to play PS1 games on-the-go via the PlayStationNetwork's downloadable PS1 games. A little more fragile than the DS, less titles, lots of PS3 functionality. I haven't played my PSP in quite some time, though once the new Phantasy Star releases on it I might use it a little more. I honestly use it the most as a PS3 tool. It really has a lot of cool additional functionality outside of video games. Watch video files, pictures, music. Stream music. Browse the internet with the built in browser. Again, it is does seem a little fragile. Battery is 6-ish hours for me on medium to low screen brightness, about 4 hours on high brightness. Have to buy a Sony memory stick. Upgraded Firmware every few months adds new functionality like internet radio, video codecs, etc. Again, there are few games when compared to the DS. Graphically more capable than the DS, but again, the PSP just doesn't have as many games, though there are a few big name quality titles that really shine on the system. Games I enjoyed the most on PSP: Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops DS has a huge library of games, with the typical Nintendo games we all love. Doesn't have the power or the features of the PSP, but it constantly has decent titles coming out. It is a game machine and it doesn't sport the beefy extras that the PSP has. Battery life is good on it, 8 hours when screen brightness is on high, on low I can easily get 14+ hours on it. I believe if you have a Wii you can download DS demos (similar to the PSP), though without anywhere to store them I believe they're erased after you shut off the system. The system is pretty durable, and unlike the PSP, I don't feel like I'm going to break it by carrying it with me. The screens are protected when its shut, so they're protected when the system is not in use (unlike the PSP, which it seems like I'm constantly checking on to make sure I haven't scratched it). It's a durable little bugger, like most Nintendo items. A lot of cool quirky games that can't be done on other portables. Game I enjoyed the most on DS: Tie between the new Advance Wars, Mario Kart DS, and Zelda: Phantom Hourglass