Topics

496

Video Game Chat / Nintendo Power Vol. 172 Player's Poll

« on: September 27, 2003, 02:33:37 PM »

Below is the Nintendo Power Volume 172 Player's Poll.  My answers are marked with an *.

A. How old are you?
   1. Under 6
   2. 6-9
   3. 10-12
   4. 13-16
   5. 17-24
  *6. 25 or older

B. Sex
  *1. Male
   2. Female

C. Which of the following Nintendo characters is your favorite?
   1. Link
  *2. Mario
   3. Yoshi
   4. Donkey Kong
   5. Fox McCloud
   6. Kirby
   7. Samus Aran
   8. Luigi
   9. Wario

D. Which of the following classic Nintendo games is your favorite?
   1. The Legend of Zelda (NES)
   2. Metroid (NES)
   3. EarthBound (Super NES)
   4. The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (GB)
   5. Super Mario 64 (N64)
   6. Kid Icarus (NES)
   7. Punch-Out!! (NES)
  *8. Super Mario RPG (Super NES)

E. How interested are you in playing classic Nintendo games on GBA GCN?
  *1. Very interested
   2. Somewhat interested
   3. Not interested

F. What console would you prefer to play classic Nintendo games on?
  *1. Nintendo GameCube
   2. Game Boy Advance

G. Would you rather play versions of classic Nintendo games with udated graphics or the original graphics?
  *1. Updated graphics
   2. Original graphics

H. Do you own a Nintendo GameCube?
  *1. Yes
   2. No

I. Do you own a Game Boy Advance SP?
  *1. Yes
   2. No

J. Do you own a Game Boy Player?
   1. Yes
  *2. No

[TOKYO (AP) --]

497

Video Game Chat / Nintendo handheld game works as videophone

« on: September 14, 2003, 10:43:29 PM »

Nintendo handheld game works as videophone

TOKYO (AP) --Nintendo Co.'s Game Boy Advance handheld machine now works as a videophone with an attachment that comes with a digital camera, earphone and microphone.

The 13,000 yen (US$110) Campho Advance from Kyoto-based Digital Act Co., which makes mobile and Internet equipment, slips into the top of the Game Boy Advance just like any video-game cassette.

When connected to an analog telephone outlet, the display shows live video of the person on the other end of the line, who must also own both the Game Boy Advance and the Campho Advance. Your own image will show up in the corner of the display.

Campho Advance, which goes on sale only in Japan in December, requires no Internet service provider. Developers are working on a broadband device but have no plans to sell the product overseas so far, company spokesman Kazuhisa Saito said Friday.

Nintendo has sold more than 10 million Game Boy Advance machines in Japan, and about 34 million worldwide.

498

Video Game Chat / Nintendo to buy Capcom?

« on: August 24, 2003, 11:40:07 AM »

In the "Character Ideas For Next SSB Game" thread Chupperson Weird said that there are rumors that Nintendo may buy Capcom.

Does anyone have evidence to support such rumors?  What do you think would happen if the rumors are true?

I think it would be a great move for Nintendo.  I really enjoy the NES MegaMan games, but not the new ones as much.  Nintendo could bring back the NES games in Animal Crossing or in an advance series like Super Mario Advance.  They could add MegaMan to games like SSB.  They may also make new games that would be easier (not sure if that would be better).  Besides, Nintendo and Capcom have worked well together in the past.  The GameBoy Zelda series is a good example.

Edited by - Luigison on 8/24/2003 11:05:52 AM

499

General Chat / Star Wars Kid

« on: August 21, 2003, 03:06:51 PM »

The Star Wars Kid is basically a 15 year old nerd from Canada who became famous last April, 2003 when he got caught pretending to be a Jedi on video at his school. His classmates, to be cruel, put his video on the Internet and humiliated him. Soon, Star Wars fans began editing the video to make the Star Wars Kid look cool (some of it is indeed mean).

Now, there's even a big rumor Lucasfilms wants this kid to make a cameo in Episode 3 !!!

Apparantly, over a million people have downloaded this video. I think everyone should see this.

Not only is it funny, but I think it's great when a fan who got humiliated coulc end up being in his favorite movie.

Read more about it here: http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/internet/08/21/starwars.kid.ap/index.html

Here's the Ultra Cool Star Wars kid in Action:
http://www.strangefinger.com/StarWarsKid2.wmv (1.5 MB)

Here's the Original Video:
http://www.strangefinger.com/Star_Wars_Kid.wmv (3 MB)

Here's the link about the rumor of him appearing in Star Wars Ep. III:
http://www.theforce.net/episode3/

Original post at http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=8&t=2239

500

Mario Chat / SMB3D

« on: August 20, 2003, 12:54:22 PM »

A request was made on this board for a 3D version of SMB.  I started world one in DarkBASIC and have a pic at

http://www.geocities.com/dr_shows/smb3d.jpg

501

Video Game Chat / GBC, GBA, or SNES Developers Kit and DarkBASIC

« on: August 14, 2003, 11:01:22 PM »

Does anyone have or know where I can get software developers' kits for gbc, gba, or snes?

I currently use DarkBASIC to make games for PCs and hopefully the Phantom.

If anyone here knows about the above kits or uses DarkBASIC (I know Cash Crazed does) please email me at dr_shows@yahoo.com or post here.

502

Video Game Chat / SMAS SMB stuff needed to make a game: images, sounds, etc.

« on: June 14, 2003, 01:57:45 PM »

I am making a pong / breakout game based on SMB with DarkBASIC.  I have most everything from SMB, but want the images, sprites, backgrounds, sounds, music, etc. based on the SMAS version.  Do you have anything or know were I can find it?  Let me know what you have, post it here, or email it to dr_shows@yahoo.com

Also, if you know how to program in DarkBASIC (CashCrazed does) let me know.  If you want I can also post everything along with images of the game as it is made on my site at http://www.geocities.com/dr_shows/pong/

503

Forum Games / The Pointless Trivia Game

« on: June 14, 2003, 01:25:32 PM »

In this game there will be 3 stages consisting of 10 misc. trivia questions from video games, websites, cartoons, comics, tv shows, etc.  The first person to answer one of my trivia question gets the points for that question.

(I will be out of town for the last week of June so the game may have to be put on hold if I can't get to a computer.)

Stage 1 - Easy - 10 points per question. (100 pts)
Stage 2 - Med. - 20 points per question. (200 pts)
Stage 3 - Hard - 30 points per question. (300 pts)

Bonus points may also be given for extra information regarding a question or topic.  The bonus points will be made up as we go along like in "Whose Line is it Anyway".

The winner gets.. well.. uh... the knowledge of know he/she completed the game with the most points.  So, even though I keep points, the points are essentially pointless.

Stage 1, Question 1:

"Hey, Do you have a canoe I can borrow. Please."  From what website did that quote originally come from?

504

Site Discussion / Mailbag 10 Jun 2003

« on: June 11, 2003, 09:36:18 PM »

If you guys missed it, J.J. is back with a new mailbag.  He has brought back the public mocking of Mario fans as well.

http://www.classicgaming.com/tmk/mailbag_030610.shtml

505

Mario Chat / Mario Physics

« on: June 06, 2003, 11:32:40 PM »

How can Mario jump so high?  Is he super human with muscles that can exert more force faster than ours?  Is the Mushroom Kingdom on a planet with less gravity?  Does he have a steel plate in his head and a reinforce spine that allows him to hit his head on so many bricks?  Could he be in a different universe where the physics are different?  Maybe he's just a giant compared to the rest of his world?  What about the Super Mushroom, Fire Flower, and Starman?  Or, the other creature and things in the Mushroom Kingdom?

How would you use physics to explain Mario's abilities?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Random Signature:
"I bet Einstein turned himself all sorts of colors before he invented the light bulb."

506

Mario Chat / More Cameos

« on: May 31, 2003, 12:45:36 PM »

This is actually cameos for the Master Sword, but Mario is in a lot of them.

http://www.tmsword.com/other/cameolist.shtml

507

Video Game Chat / Sony's new Game Boy Advance.

« on: May 28, 2003, 10:46:01 PM »

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/030522/241/45cjr.html

Umm...somebody made a mistake.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Random Signature:

"March 10 - Mar10 - Mario."

Edited by - Luigison on 5/31/2003 11:11:51 AM

508

Video Game Chat / Playing video games may sharpen your mind.

« on: May 28, 2003, 09:13:01 PM »

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/fun.games/05/28/action.video.ap/index.html

Study: Playing video games not so mindless

NEW YORK (AP) --All those hours spent playing video games may not be wasted time after all: A new study suggests action-packed video games like "Grand Theft Auto III" and "Counter-Strike" may sharpen your mind.

Researchers at the University of Rochester found that young adults who regularly played video games full of high-speed car chases and blazing gun battles showed better visual skills than those who did not. For example, they kept better track of objects appearing simultaneously and processed fast-changing visual information more efficiently.

To rule out the possibility that visually adept people are simply drawn to video games, the researchers conducted a second experiment. They found that people who do not normally play video games but were trained to play them developed enhanced visual perception.

Useful to train soldiers?
Exactly why video games have this effect is not clear. The researchers said more study is needed.

They said the findings suggest that video games could be used to help visually impaired patients see better or to train soldiers for combat.

The study was published in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature and was led by Daphne Bavelier, an associate professor of brain and cognitive sciences.

Parent groups and anti-violence advocates contend that the bloodshed in some video games triggers aggressive behavior in young people, as some hotly disputed studies have suggested. They blame violent video games for such crimes as the 1999 Columbine High School massacre.

The new study did not directly address how video violence affects behavior. Instead, the experiments focused on a person's ability to recognize and interpret symbols and letters after playing video games.

Violence not addressed
"Some people think that video games are turning kids into supergeniuses or psychokillers," said Kurt Squire, an educational game designer at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Games-To-Teach Project, who was not part of the study. "The reality is probably close to this, where people can process visual information much quicker and be able to discern between different types of information."

Soldiers who grow up playing video games do better in processing information on a screen or operating long-range unmanned aerial vehicles that can film or photograph enemy activity on the ground, according to military experts.

"There are some very avid video gamers in the military. The people who have been playing video games all their lives seem a lot more comfortable in some of these kinds of environments," said Lt. Cmdr. Russell Shilling of the MOVES Institute at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.

Details about the study
In the Rochester study, 16 men ages 18 to 23 took a series of tests that measured their ability to locate the position of a blinking object, count the number of simultaneous objects on a screen and pick out the color of an alphabet letter. Those who played video games for the previous six months performed better in all those tests than those who did not.

In a separate test, a group of 17 who never played video games were trained to play the military game "Medal of Honor" and the puzzle game "Tetris." After playing for 10 days, those who learned "Medal of Honor" scored better on the performance tests than those who didn't.

Pamela Eakes, president of the Seattle-based Mothers Against Violence in America, said scientists need to look more closely at the effects of video violence on habitual video-game players.

509

Mario Chat / They hate Mario in Zelda

« on: May 18, 2003, 01:13:05 PM »

http://www.tbi.net/~max/zmario.htm

510

Video Game Chat / Sony takes on GameBoy with PSP (PlayStation Portable)

« on: May 13, 2003, 08:24:10 PM »

I copied this article directly from

http://money.cnn.com/2003/05/13/technology/e3_psp/index.htm

Sony takes on GameBoy
Electronics maker hopes to challenge dominance of Nintendo.
May 13, 2003: 3:04 PM EDT

LOS ANGELES (CNN/Money) - Sony threw the gaming industry a curve Wednesday, announcing plans to launch a portable gaming system, which will compete directly with Nintendo's GameBoy Advance.

Dubbed the PSP (PlayStation Portable), the system is scheduled to be released for the 2004 holiday season. The company did not announce any pricing details.

The PSP will utilize a new proprietary storage disk, offer a backlit screen and have a rechargeable battery. It will also offer 3D graphics and sound and will measure approximately 4.5 inches and offer a wide-screen viewing format. Sony Computer Entertainment president and CEO Ken Kutaragi called the device "the Walkman of the 21st century".

Additionally, the machine will come equipped with a USB 2.0 port, allowing high speed data transfers and will have a slot for Sony's memory stick data storage technology.

Nintendo has long been the king of the hill of handheld gaming, but analysts and industry insiders have wondered when Sony would try to move in. Ten years ago, Sony launched the PlayStation, which eventually gave it a dominant position in the video game industry.

At its press conference before the Electronic Entertainment Expo, Sony moved to maintain that dominance. And while it didn't cut the price of its PS2 console, it did make some changes.

Starting in June, Sony will sell a revamped system that will be bundled with its popular online adaptor starting in June. The upgraded PS2 will continue to sell for $199.

The upgraded machine will also offer the ability to play re-writable DVDs and will offer progressive scan technology, which will improve the visual quality of movies watched on the console. The machine will also be quieter than current models.

Sony also moved to blend the PS2's multimedia functions with its gameplay ability, introducing the EyeToy, a device that will let players digitally insert images of themselves into games.

"We need to depart from the status quo," said Kaz Hirai, president and COO of Sony Computer Entertainment America. "Leadership requires new thinking. ... Look for us for finding the right path to entertainment convergence."

Essentially, the EyeToy is the first cousin of a Webcam, which plugs into one of the PS2's USB ports. Your physical actions are then reflected in the game world. For instance, when playing a fighting game, you might punch or kick in the air in your living room and see your opponent take it on the chin in the game.

The EyeToy will likely appeal more to children than hardcore gamers, but that's part of Sony's plan.

"This is a piece of Sony's larger strategy to move down the age curve and make the PS2 a key part of kids' lives, not just older players' lives," said John Taylor, managing director and analyst for Arcadia Investment Corp. "I think you're going to see music and other activities show up as a key part of PS2 catalog."

Games were another key part of Sony's presentation. Perhaps most importantly, the company announced the next installment of Take Two Interactive's "Grand Theft Auto" franchise will debut exclusively on the PS2. Also announced was the next in the "Gran Turismo" racing series, which has been Sony's most successful game line, with 32 million copies of the games sold. "Gran Turismo 4" will be the first game in the series to be playable online.

Sony is far and away the industry's console sales leader, with more than 16.8 million in U.S. homes compared to 5 million Xboxes and 3.8 million GameCubes. That dominance is likely to continue growing – as some analysts feel 2004 could be the best year yet for video game machines.

"This year ought to be the peak year for hardware sales," said John Taylor, managing director and analyst for Arcadia Investment Corp.

2004 may not be quite as shiny, though, as Taylor predicts hardware sales will slip 20 percent industry-wide.

Sony's lead is so strong in the video game field that many analysts say the company didn't really need to cut prices at this time. They still expect the company to lower the console's retail price later this summer or prior to the holiday shopping season so Sony can meet its stated goal of selling 10.5 million PS2 units in North America this year.