Jax Mandrake
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Posts posted by Jax Mandrake
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Dear friends, the Clan of the Gray Wolf (home of such things as 16-Bit Gems and Weekly Wringer) is currently playing Super NES games in a 60-hour marathon benefiting the V Foundation for cancer research.
I'm just posting here to help spread the word. I'd donate (admittedly to get some of the swag they're promoting) but I have no money.
Join the fun at clanofthegraywolf.com. While you're there, if you haven't watched 16-Bit Gems at the very least, you should find something there to enjoy. I think of it as proof that not all video game review shows on the youtubes have to be AVGN or Zero Punctuation to be entertaining.
BTW I think this marathon is also streaming on YouTube if you don't want to explore a website with which you are unfamiliar.
UPDATE: The marathon has closed and the Clan of the Gray Wolf has met their $20,000 donation goal. If anybody who took a peek at this message watched, donated, mentioned it on facebook or enjoyed any of it, I'm sure they and the V Foundation are quite thankful to you.
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I'm being completely sincere here. Forgive the lack of pretense, but I was reading through the paper, and an add for Walgreens said 30 bucks after card for a Sega plug and play, but 80 games, not 40. It remained stuck in the back of my head, as my lady and I saw it at Dollar General for 40. Again, this was 80 games and two wireless controllers. Sounds like an absolute steal to me, and looks like it will end up my christmas present as I had to fight off the urge in front of the lady.
Yeah, do the math. Genesis games on virtual console - 8 dollars a pop. Times 80? 640 bucks, not including the price of classic controllers (and taxes,of course) Anyway, are you sure it's just 40? All the ones down here say 80.
I think you are looking at the other 'new' Genesis knock-off, which does not have the Capcom games in it. The one to which I refer is kinda like a six-button Game Gear. 40 games are built into the hardware, and the box states that you can load 40 more games onto an SD card. No external controllers, if I correctly remember.
The one with the controllers and stuff is in a larger box with screenshots of most of the games' titles. Amusing to me is the double screen grab of the title of Gain Ground. The forty games below the genuine Genesis games all look like they're from Generic Arcadey Wannabe Corp. I suspect these would be the games one would get if one bothered to download them to the SD card (sold separately, of course).
As previously stated, I might be tempted to pick it up solely for the Wily Wars, provided there are any left after the holiday shopping season, they're marked down so I could afford one on bottle deposits, and Capcom outright states that it'll never be available on a compilation or digital download service.
Yeah, I'm at least that snobby.
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I don't wanna say The Coop is falling down on the job, so I won't.
Today on Spunkgargleweewee Reviews: Call of Duty: Black Ops II
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Hello, dear friends.
I was in a Dollar General this morning and found something I'd heard about from other net sources: a portable game system loaded with 40 Sega Genesis games.
Yes, I'm aware that these things are very common. Atari's up to the Flashback 4, each one featuring more games than the last and trying to stuff in more bells and whistles. They plug into a set of RCA ports, some of them come with wireless controllers, etc. There have been several similar variations of Genesis console-type things, of which a new one has also been seen on dollar store shelves in recent weeks.
What makes this one I saw today stand out is the content. Of the 40 games, three of them are from Capcom's library. One of them I could not discern and the others are Super Street Fighter II and Mega Man: The Wily Wars. I'd link to the product description on www.atgames.net but I'm too lazy.
I'm halfway tempted to get this one just because of the Wily Wars, but I am likely to delay until it's either cheap as free or sold out forever and hope that in the meantime Capcom will put together yet another compilation in some form with the Wily Wars in it.
I want to see your opinions on this kind of thing. Go!
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Whenever I get around to it (yeah I'm bad but I have reasons) I'll be doing a video review of this.
In the meantime, I just want ya'll who haven't played it to be aware of one small but potentially significant disappointment concerning Kirby's Dream Land 2.
KDL2 had Super Game Boy enhancements, but it seems they failed to implement them in this release. No borders, no rainbow colours...
This would have been ok if, say, those features had been unlockable by beating it, but that doesn't seem to be the case.
Despite that, well worth the money. Five out of a half golden Kirbys out of Satoru Iwata.
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I'm being very patient in waiting for political mudslinging ads to die away...
Oh you meant a costume?
Well, I've had to give up trick-or-treating due to diabetes (no joke), I have no job so I can't dress up to entertain co-workers, I don't party, and I can't afford to even buy candy for the local imps, so there's no point to it for me, so...
I'm being a hermit.
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It's me again, dear friends.
I've seen similar topics on a few websites, and now I want your input. This is a bit like my other topic on awful games in awesome series, but this time I'd like to expand a bit.
Has there been a game in your past that you desperately wanted to play after seeing screenshots in magazines (or on websites, but I say retro for a reason) or otherwise learning about it, and then you finally get a chance to try it out and it just makes you cry due to its awfulness?
For me, the best example is Kid Kool & the Quest for the Seven Wonder Herbs. Long before the Nerd explained its seven deadly sins in his video, in fact long before there was even one internet on which to share opinions, I saw pics of Kid Kool in a number of gaming magazines and thought it looked cool. This will give you an idea how long ago this was: I saved up several allowances to rent it from the local video store, and even put some true effort into getting homework done just to clear my schedule.
At last, I picked it up from said outlet, zipped home as fast as my chunky preteen legs would allow, slid the cartridge into my plastic-encased second heart, picked up controller one, sat down in my worn office-style chair... played for about five minutes, removed the game from the NES, put it back in its store-supplied case, marched back to the outlet and demanded another game (and they actually let me rent something else for free, which I have long since forgotten).
I apologize for textwalling again, but I had to share the details because I am a writer. So I ask again: have you had a similar experience? Please, if possible, keep it oldschool. Don't just recall trying out Assassin's Metal of Duty XIII: Skyward Theft and thinking it didn't live up to your expectations that it would absolutely kill Assassin's Metal of Duty XII: Halo Effect from a mere six weeks before.
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Castlevania: Symphony of the Night will forever be among my favourite games ever.
There is something that you can do in it to make the upside-down castle hella easier. I forget if you get the Shield Rod in the normal castle or the inverted one, but the worst is over once you get the Alucard Shield. Equip the rod in one hand and the shield in the other, press both buttons at once, and you've got the advantage over everything. Hitting any enemy with the shield will cause massive damage and recover both health and hearts, and the effect lasts for a nice long time.
In the revamp included with the Dracula X Chronicles on PSP, the effect exists but has been nerfed.
Still, I'm wondering... have you had an instance where you encountered an in-game event, technique, item, combo, or anything else that just OP's you to the point where the game feels like it isn't even trying anymore?
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I brought up the Krazoa Test of Fear in Star Fox Adventures in another topic, and it fits well here as far as a stressful part goes.
Also in Metroid games, there's a particularly stressful segment of Fusion where the station loses power and you have to venture into a vine-choked reactor full of adult Kihunters, never sure if SA-X is about to track you down and vape you. Never mind the Nightmare boss...
How about getting to Dr. Wily's lair in either of the first two Mega Man games, reaching the boss, and going "WHAT THE FI'm splodin."
Guitar Hero veterans like myself may have some memories about the duels in GH3, especially against the last boss (also applies to the duel against Joe Perry in the Aerosmith game).
Dramatic shifts: in difficulty, Final Fantasy (NES, yo!) - heading toward the volcano or the ice cave. I remember level grinding for days just trying to get to one or the other, and things not getting any easier for the rest of the adventure.
Then there's stage 57 in Bubble Bobble. Anybody who watched Pat the NES Punk's 3rd Annual NES Marathon just to see the AVGN cameo will know what I mean.
I may have more later, but I'll shut up for the moment. You're welcome.
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So, I decided to get Borderland 1 first and see how I like it (and I love it), but I'm seeing some really retarded things happening in this game. When I clear a certain area of enemies, why in the hell do they suddenly respawn? Like, I totally clear out an area, and all of a sudden I'm completely surrounded again by a second wave of enemies and usually there is a "badass" that appears in the second wave. That shit kinda sucks when you're at a low level. I end up running my ass off just to find out that I'm running directly into yet another area full of enemies that I cleared out before.
I've never had it happen where enemies "instantly" regenerate, although it's never made sense to me that in some small areas enemies will replace the ones you recently killed as if a fresh spawn is on a timer. The most infuriating may be the Larva Crab Worms in the Lost Cave, as they seem to return faster than any other enemy. I'm sure glad there are no Badass Crab Worms...
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I knew I could trigger Other M hate... and I'll fan the flames. I liked the game, even if Samus was presented as something less than the ultimate badass of bounty hunting. I skip the story and just enjoy the gameplay, which I thought was tight as a drum.
Glad to know I wasn't alone in not liking Metroid Prime Hunters, though. I love the Metroid series beyond all measure (and I'm working on a youtube vid about it), but I find Hunters simply unplayable.
Oddly, I haven't been able to speak up for some of the other games ya'll are calling out. I have had Chrono Cross since its release, but I've never actually played it. Not being into Sonic at all, I can't really bring myself into any of that discussion. Dragon Age 2? I didn't care for the first one and haven't bothered with the others... Never got into Tomb Raider at all...
CD-i? Exist it does not.
Now to really kick a hornet's nest: No Star Fox Adventures hate? Nothing to say against any Prince of Persia? Only one complaint directed toward Mortal Kombat? Where's all the "that's when the FPS genre died in my heart" chatter?
Free popcorn!
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A lot of people put down games because they are too hard for them to beat or because they are not what they expected.
Excellent point, megadave. I will never claim to be a game master. Every so often I get lucky or good at something in particular (check the occasional bragging rights thread for evidence) but I simply don't have the patience to get through really hard games like, say, Super Meat Boy.
Really? 107%? No fDERPing way.
Also, Final Fantasy is in the same boat as Zelda. Every game in the franchise has players who love every pixel and players who can't find one thing about it to like. I like some versions of FF1, FF6, and Mystic Quest, but even though I have plenty of the others I can't garner enough interest within myself to play through them.
Flame shield ONLINE!
BTW, I'm glad nobody's jumped in to hate on Metroid: Other M. I'll defend that one against all its supposed flaws until the end of time.
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Remember about a month or so ago I started a similar conversation? Here's a refresher in case you need it. Anywhichway, I've decided to expand on that idea a bit.
You've had it happen. We all have had it happen. You've become attached to a game series because it's everything you love short of multiple orgasms. The publisher (sometimes developer) announces that there's a new entry due out, and you can't wait for that day to finally arrive... and then you buy it... (or rent it, demo it, borrow it or get your fingers on it in some fashion depending largely on your available finances) and it
just. plain. SUCKS!!
Sometimes it's just a stumbling block and the series then gets back on its feet, dusts itself off and gets back to rocking your world. Other times, that sucky game is the pivot that turns the series from awesome to oh no, and you know nothing good is ever coming from that name again.
There are plenty of well-known examples already. I will list a few, and some reasons that has been so poorly received.
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (CAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARS?!?!?!?!!)
Bionic Commando [360/PS3] (Terrible controls, "arm wife")
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest (the morning sun hasn't vanquished this horrible game)
Sonic the Hedgehog [360/PS3] (broken game, furry fetish)
Super Mario Bros 2 (this isn't a fDERPing mario game, idiot)
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link...
Actually, most of the Zelda games have their attackers and defenders, so let's just pass over those right now. Also, I liked Castlevania II and Super Mario 2. I can't defend the others I listed, though.
So I turn the topic over to you, dear friends. What game series were ruined by, nearly ruined by, or had to overcome a huge glaring error that was one single game? While I'm at it, let me also ask if there was a game that turned your attention to a series or franchise about which you previously didn't give two scoops.
Go!
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All of the DLC scales to your current level if I'm not mistaken. You could technically play all of the DLC at level 1 and it wouldn't be brutally hard.
The Zombie Island and Robolution DLC does scale somewhat, depending on at which point in the root game you go to each expansion. I started a new game and went straight to each one as soon as I could (right after fixing the first medical vendor). The quests began at Lv 10. I went back to Fyrestone and played through everything in the Arid Badlands. When I headed to the Arid Hills, the expansion quests went up to Lv 15. They jumped to Lv 20 when I went to the Dahl Headlands and 25 upon entering New Haven. I think when you head to the Salt Flats they jump again to 30 and then to 35 upon beating the game. (If I'm wrong, I'm sorry.)
The Secret Armory is a different matter. The quests begin at Lv 35 and hover between there and 40 for the most part (Crawmerax is always around 60 or higher). I don't know about Mad Moxxi's because I don't have friends with which to enjoy multiplayer.
During the second playthrough most of the quests throughout the root game and the expansions stays between 35 and 50. The strategy guide I have says that once your character reaches Lv 50 the quests and weapons all jump to 50, but I didn't have that happen. Once I got my Berserker to Lv 64 (by which time I was replaying the Secret Armory), everything jumped to my level and stayed with me, which made fighting the Drifters way too much of a bitch.
Anyway, all that means if you want to play the Robolution just to see how the story goes, you can start about between Lv 8-15. When you get to the final boss (I'll let someone else spoil it) its level will be 18. Same goes for the Zombie Island. I found the most challenging thing about playing the DLC at a lower level is having very little room in your backpack to carry all the weapons you find back to the vendors and racking up the cash.
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I think I'm going to pick this up for the PS3 next week if I got some extra money. I've heard nothing but good stuff about this game.
Noob question: Do I need to play Borderlands first? Like, is there some sort of storyline that I should catch up with before I play this one?
As DarkeSword said, the storyline of Borderlands is minimally impactful to the story of its sequel. The only real benefit to playing (finishing?) the first game is that you immediately unlock some extra character skins.
Of course, I recommend playing both. I vastly prefer the first, but that's just my opinion.
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I rented B2 and have only put a few scant hours into it, but I somehow don't feel compelled to continue... I think it's because I'm a level 8 commando and I can't beat Captain Flynt, and I'm easily discouraged.
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I think I have enough for several videos, wheneverthebloodyhell I get around to making them. Keep the words and definitions coming, though, because this is the fun kind of education!!
Autoscroll - to have the background move steadily, often in one direction.
Funstration - a level of difficulty that causes the player to become enraged. Ideally, funstration is that specific level of challenge that can make a player throw a controller across a room and pick it up a few seconds later to try again. (I think this is what "NES Hard" strives to be.)
I admit I made up funstration on my own, but it's one of those words I'd like to see become popular.
Also, let us not forget these physical impossibilities common to video games...
Double Jump - the ability to jump a second time without the character touching anything.
Rocket Jump - the use of explosives to boost one's jumping ability.
Wall Jump - the ability to jump from a vertical surface, often with as much force as a jump from a horizontal surface and just as often between walls to reach a much higher point.
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I'm glad I started this topic. The field is a lot larger than I anticipated, and I suspect we're hardly scratching the surface. Tournament fighting enthusiasts should remember this one that just came to mind:
Turtling - A strategy consisting of ducking and blocking to minimize damage, often seen as a cheap or cowardly way to fight as it limits the opponent's options to specialized attacks such as throws.
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I've been thinking about this off and on lately, because I use my time wisely.
Like participants in practically any hobby or field of study, I've noticed that video gamers have words or phrases they use that aren't used anywhere else.
I'm curious as to how many such words or phrases exist, and how often we find ourselves using them.
The first that comes to my mind is 100%, used as a verb, as in a conversation I had soon after Banjo-Kazooie was released on XBox Live Arcade. One of my contacts felt the need to inform me that he had, for the first time, "100%ed Banjo-Kazooie!!"
Another example came from a top 10 list I found on screwattack.com that discussed the hardest 8-bit Nintendo games worth playing. Their quote was "There is a reason the term NES hard exists." I wasn't aware that it did, personally, but I understand it.
So there is 100%ing and NES Hard to start. Can you add to this? (If the list gets large enough, I'll make a video of it.)
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*bump* again, this time with a new video.
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Oh, the disappearing blocks in Heat Man's stage in Mega Man 2. Seriously.
Thanks for the reminder, Garian. For me, it's the Foot Holders in Ice Man's stage and Dr. Wily's first stage in the original Mega Man.
Also, speaking of ice stages... I think Banjo-Kazooie is as close to a perfect 3D platformer as we may ever get, but racing against Boggy in Freezeezy Peak I loathe and dread, especially the second round.
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Wow, this has taken off. I'm surprised and intrigued, please continue.
I'm equally surprised that the infamy of quicktime events has yet to rear its infuriating head to this point, so I'll toss it in now even though I have no personal examples to provide. The closest I've come is in God of War and I think that series got them right. It's the overall difficulty of God of War that *bleep*s me off.
Not that anybody cares, but I finally got past the Test of Fear in SFA - and proceeded to finish the game within a few hours. I can't say for certain when, if ever, I will return to Dinosaur Planet.
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We can't deny this truth. Sometimes you are really enjoying a game of whatever style. Suddenly, a point comes up that screws up all the fun you were having. There are several reasons this may happen. Most often, in my experience, is that the game you were enjoying has insensibly changed to another style. The change can be so frustrating that you give up playing the game entirely, or you somehow power through and hope that the real game goes on, and you pray that you never have to do it again. You may even reach the point that if you do get through it and finish the game, you swear off ever playing that particular game again in your natural life.
I'll give two examples from recent memory. I will not deny that I loved The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. There were two instances in LoZ:SS that *bleep*ed me off to no end. The first was when Link loses all of his items in the volcano, and all of a sudden it's a stealth sequence. I'm no good at this kind of crap, so I dread when it happens. Worse, though, are the Silent Realms, for a similar reason. You've been given the first half of the game to get used to the motion controls and swordfighting and all that, and then you take it away and make me dodge ghosts with no way to defend itself? I call that a douche move, Nintendo.
The other is from a game that, due mainly to
, I've decided to try playing through again:. I hadn't played it in several years because I got to one point, couldn't get past it, and gave up. I do recall having some fun for as long as I had played, so I thought Jon was too harsh on it for the same reason so many others are so harsh on Star Fox Adventures: it was a Zelda clone with Fox's name on it and nobody wanted that.Anyway, I just got back to the point where I last gave up. The LightFoot village has two challenges that I dislike, but that happens just before my worst part: the Krazoa Test of Fear. I simply CANNOT win this *series of bleeps*. I may give it a few more tries, but if I smash my WaveBird, I'm never playing SFA again.
I turn it over to you, dear friends. Have you similar experiences?
Street Fighter X Mega Man
in General Discussion
Posted
I appear to be not the only one who is having trouble even finding the download link...