Messages

976

General / Re: Post Counts and Member Groups

« on: July 19, 2009, 04:04:52 PM »

I think the required post counts should change seeing how getting 5000 posts isn't as hard as it used to be.

Yeah, for people that post like maniacs. This board's been open for a while and Vixy herself has only 4749!

I'd leave it as-is.

977

Gaming / Re: Wow... Starfox. It won't make it.

« on: July 19, 2009, 04:03:01 PM »

Don't give Cuthbert too much credit there, it was probably his idea to have Command turn out the way it did.

Granted, but after Assault and Command's critical reviews, I think he knows the fans are looking for on-rails, now.

978

Gaming / Re: Recommendations for the Wii

« on: July 19, 2009, 06:31:59 AM »

I;m back home and have gotten the following items:

Wii:
Zelda:TP
Smash Bros Brawl
Pokemon Battle Revolution
Super Mario Galaxy
Mario Kart Wii
Tenchu: Shadow Assassins
Nintendo Points Card

DS:
Megaman Starforce 3: Black Ace.

Thank you all for your suggestions.

'Sa good list! Very nice!

979

Forum Games / Re: "What Are You Thinking Now?"

« on: July 19, 2009, 01:07:00 AM »

"...why is there a $600-900 price gap in between 52" and 55" LCD TVs?"

"Well...shoot, with a 52" TV, I don't have to strain my peripheral vision to see everything, it'd save me money, and it doesn't cut in to splitscreen multiplayer too badly..."

"...okay, I've made my mind up. Now to wait for the right pricemoment..."

980

Gaming / Re: Wow... Starfox. It won't make it.

« on: July 18, 2009, 11:38:20 PM »

Now that I agree with. It was annoying to play through a Starfox Assault mission, and then get interrupted for mindless chatter before hitting the good stuff (I'm specifically thinking Sargasso Space Station). Command was just a pain-in-the-tail all around.

There were times that Starfox 64 would stop you, but the majority of that was something incoming in All-Range mode, whether that was Star Wolf or missiles, etc., and those sequences didn't last all that long.

981

Gaming / Re: Wow... Starfox. It won't make it.

« on: July 18, 2009, 11:00:45 PM »

less cinematics.

Define "cinematics". Recall that SFSnes and SF64 had quite a few cutscenes (usually baddies exploding ) that added to the immediacy of your progress and actions.

Everything else, yeah. I think the last time we had a Starfox thread, though, Cuthbert was well, well aware of fans wanting a linear Starfox. I can only assume that the Starfox dev teams thought that there was a balance between on-rails and off-rails when there clearly was not a balance to be had.

And even though they didn't, let's say that if they tried to base the amounts of each kind of gameplay on Starfox 64's formula,
they now have to heavily adjust for more on-rails gameplay to make up for all the lack of it we've had recently.

982

Gaming / Re: Recommendations for the Wii

« on: July 18, 2009, 03:36:40 PM »

Well now, that would depend upon your definition of 'obvious choices', so I'll just list 'em all for the sake of posterity.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Mario Kart Wii
Super Mario Galaxy
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (good for one play)
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (good for one play)
Super Paper Mario (good for one play)

Tiger Woods PGA Tour '10
Wii Play
Zack and Wiki
Metal Slug Anthology

Wii Points Card(s) (for various downloadable games)

983

Gaming / Re: So...Doc Louis, or Mario?

« on: July 17, 2009, 11:33:10 PM »

Hat! The hat! Get the hat!

984

News and Announcements / Re: Rockman.EXE Operate Shooting Star official site open!!

« on: July 16, 2009, 10:59:15 PM »

For a sidequest/post-game scenario maybe, but it should still have EXE1's story. It wouldn't be a remake if it didn't.

This may or may not happen, but I'm envisioning a plot akin to Back to the Future-esque plot that involves saving the rookie Lan and Hub from other disasters (i.e. they defeat TimeMan.EXE [aka Clock Genius] instead of Lan and MegaMan) while the main plot is occurring.

It'd be a deal where Geo and Omega-Xis are there firsthand to see the events of MMBN1; after all, GutsMan and Bass are on the Aura and DreamAura BattleCards in MMSF1. Now G&O could get in on the same action as L&M, but then you're really messing with canon and continuity at that point.

985

Gaming / Re: Big Apple. 3 A.M. 2009, WHAT?

« on: July 16, 2009, 01:49:40 AM »

There are few powers that can compete with a gamer girl's ass, but cheese is definitely up there.

Depends on the ass. Depends on the cheese. They both can be really good, or really bad! And neither ages well after a point. And neither look good if they're lumpy, but if they're well-defined, then it's a sight to see.

You know, that's quite a few similarities. If you see me in the r/e/vival thread (or any other thread) refer to a lady's "cheese", you know what I'm talking about.

986

X / Re: 3d game?

« on: July 16, 2009, 01:44:17 AM »

Honestly, if you wanted to make a 3D Mega Man X game, do the company and your fans a favor and make an Action RPG out of Command Mission.

It'll alleviate the platforming frustrations since your team is mainly focused on developing a closed-bottom RPG world and introduce movement strategies including location and terrain to boss battles, and the fans will appreciate the lack of random battles and the re-addition of the combat mobility that makes X and co. so powerful (i.e. avoiding attacks and accessing the Charge Shot a heck of a lot sooner). There would also be the ever-important replay value if there were 2 difficulty modes OR a New Game + where you can play through the whole game as a different character (wouldn't even have to change the story, provided they're present at the beginning). One playthrough of the RPG, you might be X. Next time, Zero. The next, Axl. Fits right in with MMX:CM1's ending.

Now you might be thinking, "Wait, wait, wait, Super Paper Mario and Sonic Chronicles underperformed, and you're suggesting this?" Yes, because for every bad Action RPG there is out there, there are as many good ones (Tales of ____, Kingdom Hearts, etc). The idea is to keep the game simple (and I would DEFINITELY recommend a KH1-esque Lock-On), but give it the addictive brevity of a platformer.

987

Gaming / Re: Legend of Zelda - The official Zelda thread

« on: July 16, 2009, 01:29:36 AM »

MM and OoT were pretty equal, really. OoT forgot proper mechanics, and MM forgot proper pacing. Both, however, had scenery and characters that you couldn't help but remember!

As for TP, well, that's what happens when you make a game for both the current and predecessor hardware, not to mention it was EXTREMELY early in the Wii's lifecycle. Now that SMG and SSBB are under Nintendo's belt, and they felt comfortable enough to do the styling in Punch-Out!! Wii, let's see what they do with the TP style, now.

988

News and Announcements / Re: Rockman.EXE Operate Shooting Star official site open!!

« on: July 16, 2009, 01:23:15 AM »

As far as the story goes, I'd assume it's a crossover (we got that hint about the Starforce denizens trying out time-travel and what not).

But as far as gameplay? Anyone's guess.

989

Gaming / Re: Big Apple. 3 A.M. 2009, WHAT?

« on: July 16, 2009, 01:21:27 AM »

Some might take her pizza though.

Oh I'd take her pizza!
If you know what I mean.

But yeah, this is kinda weird. And no Wii version? I mean yeah, I've got PSN $$$ that I need to figure out what to do with, but is this worth it?

I will say that they added some dialogue, which is actually a very nice touch the original could have used. Other than that...hey, here's hoping TMNT IV gets on the Virtual Console!

990

Forum Games / Re: "What Are You Thinking Now?"

« on: July 15, 2009, 01:27:01 AM »

"I'm gettin' a Mario hat...I'M GETTIN' A MARIO HAT~!"

"After 22 years of eatin' shrooms and hoardin' coins, I'm getting my hat!"

991

Off The Wall / Re: Latest Buys

« on: July 14, 2009, 05:29:01 AM »

Pulseman
2 bottles of Buffalo Wild Wings' Spicy Garlic wing sauce
1 bottle of Buffalo Wild Wings' Blazin' wing sauce

That will light you UP.

992

Gaming / Re: VC / WiiWare / DSiWare / XBLA / PSN (Collection & Updates!)

« on: July 14, 2009, 05:27:24 AM »

I've finally gotten a chance to sit down and beat Pulseman, and I can tell that proper design was floating around in the back of someone's head when this was being planned and programmed (but with only a few heads working on it, not all of that essential knowledge came in to play). Imagine, if you will, a Mega Man X game wherein you have access to a powerful buster shot and an out-of-control Falcon Armor hover, but only after running for a while or dashing by forward tap twice.

That is the essence of this game. When you build speed, you will build up an electric charge and have access to more than just a forward slash, a crouchkick, and an upward acrobatic-kick (which has a great number of invincibility frames, making the final boss a snap). If you attack, you get a distance-shot. If you press A, you get the all-powerful Volteccer, making you pinball around the level (but if you go too far without hitting a wall or obstacle, you'll lose steam and fall vulnerably).

Which is good, because you don't have a downward midair attack, an attack you'll wish you had the most. However, if it turns out there was no ground below you anyway, then your bacon is saved, because Volteccer automatically goes upward, and if you grab a Volt Power-Up, you have an unlimited charge until you exit that screen, so you can just keep using Volteccer and power up and out of everything. You have 2 real hits you can take, as indicated by your communicator in the top-left corner of the screen: Blue->HIT->Yellow->HIT->Red->LAST HIT->Lose a Life. You can recover energy by either collecting a Life Power-Up (recovers 1 hit) or 10 Sludge Balls (full health and a 1-Up). You get 5 Credits/continues.

Once you get the mechanics down, this game is quite fun. But there are 3 annoyances to the game:
1. Discerning. Early boss hitboxes are nigh indeterminable and there is no lifebar; it's trial-and-error until you can figure out how to hit them, and where you can hit them, and then vice versa (how and where they'll hit you or if you'll take collision damage). Thankfully the bosses are straight-forward, no specific weakpoints that you have to hit at a certain time or else they use a devastating counter-attack. Determining what is a platform and what is not can also be a bit tricky given the way-out colors and shapes.
2. Pacing. There are only 7 stages, so they are a bit long since the developers wanted to make sure the customer got their money's worth; it actually decreased the playability of the game. On top of that, there are instances in each level where zipping through is simply not possible, and you must crawl at a snail's pace to avoid open-bottom doom. And there are points-focused Bonus Stages at the end of each level to make your wait drag on even further.
3. Proportions. The best platformers have small(er) characters with a wider amount of stage space than what Pulseman offers. SMB, Gunstar Heroes, Mega Man: all of these have characters that measure up to maybe 1/6 or 1/8 of the screen's height. Pulseman takes up anywhere from 1/5 to 1/4 of an already-limited viewing range (typical Genesis platformer). For example, Stage 6 has a Mega Man-fan nightmare section where you must fall down through water (Pulseman can't do his special moves in the water, nor can he fall straight down from a jump) that is littered with spike balls and enemies below you that you cannot see in time to avoid; you must use a general sense of predicting stage design or memorize in order to survive.

There is no save feature; fortunately, the Wii creates save states when you quit the game through the Wii Menu rigmarole. Although the voices are in English, sadly, the game's text is not translated, but I hear there is an English patch for, eh, backup copies, so someone must have a script. Which leads me to a rave; the game doesn't even need instruction. It's so intuitive, I've picked up on a number of maneuvers already. And the difficulty? So far, it hasn't been too lenient or too demanding. In fact, if you land on spikes after exiting the Volteccer attack, you still have a second or so before getting hit. Pat that programmer on the back. Being a Sega Genesis game, though, it ramps up later. The first half of Stage 7 is a retro-arcade side-scroller, but once again, you're not given much time to react considering that you must have a slight running start to get a decent jump (by the way, the jump mechanics are very wonky).

Story, music, graphics: all above par compared to other Sega Genesis games. The story's shallow, but the irony keeps it intriguing. The music, as you might expect, has a techno feel to it, with a touch of ambiance. Actually, the graphics were extremely well-done; it's that sort of "Square(soft)[-Enix] pushing the hardware to its limits" quality. There is some slowdown, but only on the rare occasion that you break a lot of boxes. And as far as replay value, there might be some. The first few levels are down-and-dirty enough that you might get hooked back into the game.

For all that the game does wrong, it can be worked around with some patience, and it's nothing to platforming veterans. I attribute that to the number of people who made this game; you actually could count the different names, heck, the Special Thanks had about as many names as the rest of the development team. The Pulseman world is so specific and cheesy that it isn't that marketable as-is. But if they updated the concept and added 2P play, it could very well be the TMNT of the Anime world; the game has the same penchant for city backgrounds and "other worlds", not to mention the villains seem like they could crossover a bit. With so much room for improvement, a well-made sequel with at the very least some 2P co-op with the Bethany character would make this series a viable and fresh IP. So, to the game that made Game Freak recognizable long before Pokemon stormed the world:

Pulseman Final Review Score:
8.5/10

993

Gaming / Re: Super Smash Bros. Bitchslap: What Do You Want To See In It?

« on: July 12, 2009, 11:45:12 PM »

Yeah, that's the thing about Lip; you'd have to make up stuff for her, probably including a new outfit. Same for Geno.

Both probably need to appear in some more games, first.

994

Gaming / Re: Super Smash Bros. Bitchslap: What Do You Want To See In It?

« on: July 12, 2009, 11:43:06 PM »

Dark World Link = Rabbit
Twilight World Link = Wolf

...is there some kind of connection? Or am I overthinking?

Anyway, LIP! Make Lip playable!

995

EXE / Re: Forte in Rockman EXE WS (Wonderswan)

« on: July 11, 2009, 11:59:16 PM »

It's not the case in others?

A. You don't have to focus quite as hard to dodge 4-8's attacks, and
B. You could usually charge and slide through most problems. Granted, the charge shot disrupts Bass, and Vixy slid past quite a few shots, but there was still enough firepower lingering around to cause problems.

996

EXE / Re: Forte in Rockman EXE WS (Wonderswan)

« on: July 11, 2009, 04:43:38 AM »

Always love me some Bass fights!

And yeah, this seems easy, but it's very Classic RMish in that you have to still manage to hit him while not getting damaged. This is the case with Mega Man 1, 2, 3, and 9.

997

Rockman Series / Re: How has Rockman performed in Japan?

« on: July 11, 2009, 04:39:41 AM »

Mega Man X: Command Mission
ロックマンX コマンドミッション
18,599 Units

That's messed up. That's really messed up. CM is an extremely fun RPG and better than any main FF that's been put out for a while.

Mega Man ZX
ロックマン ゼクス
94,341 Units

Really? Ugh.

998

Gaming / Re: Tatsunoko vs. Capcom (the sequel topic)

« on: July 11, 2009, 01:20:12 AM »

I'd save Mega Man X for a potential Marvel Vs. Capcom 3.

999

News and Announcements / Re: New EXE Game To Be A Remake Confirmed?

« on: July 11, 2009, 01:19:10 AM »

Hey, I can distinguish them.

I, err, well, generally speaking!

Internet Area 14 as opposed to Electopia Area 2. Or something.

1000

EXE / Digital Analogies

« on: July 11, 2009, 01:17:49 AM »

Ahhh! All this talk about an MMBN1 remake has gotten me interested in the series again! In fact, I'm sitting here thinking about all the technologies and internet-related tools that were transformed into some sort of contributing plot device in these games, and even conjuring up some new ones! But, as usual, I can't remember all of it by myself, so let's try and list most, if not all, of them. And let's skip the basic stuff like Home Pages, Passwords, remote operation of processes (i.e. the oven fire or wild tree growth), Viruses, and Programs.

MMBN1:
~.BAT or Batch files
~Gendered programs
~Battery power
~Independent program (A.I.)

MMBN2:
~Data Encryption
~BBS (Bulletin Board Systems)
~Style Change (yes, that is actually an official term, very strange)
~Mother computers
~Electronic Funds Transfer
~Server clusters
~Radiation
~Bugs (or glitches)
~Multiple-Bug program (Gospel)

MMBN3:
~Neural electron manipulation
~Program and/or OS customization (NaviCust)
~Hardware modification
~Compression
~Prototype Internet
~Direct biological internet access
~Private or Darknet servers (Secret Area, not the always-accessible Undernet)
~Program fusion (BassGS)

MMBN4:
~Malicious software
~Synchronized operation
~Wireless transmission
~Alien technology

MMBN5:
~Gateways (or whatever the Elemental Gates were supposed to be...)
~Neural electron networking
~Topographical snapshots (Tadashi's VisionBursts)

MMBN6:
~Search Engine
~Androids (Copybots)
~Cached data (i.e. Bass being able to pull Gregar/Falzar's data post-game)

MMisc.:
~Deleted data
~Backup
~Firewall
~Trojan Horse

New or Barely Used:
~Registry Keys
~Archived websites (could be 'time traveling' with a broader scope)
~Offsite data backup
~Streaming and buffering data (???)
~Multiple instances of an open program (i.e. 2 Megaman.EXE running around, etc.)
~Spyware and Cookies (and by Cookies, I mean , great humor potential)
~Blogs
~Privacy, Piracy, and other Ethics issues
~Domain Name Servers (Megaman thinks he's going into one area, winds up in another)

So what else am I missing besides remote-control bears and Princess Pride in a swimsuit?