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Messages - n64forever

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31
Video Game Chat / Re: Super Smash Bros. 4 Wii U and 3DS
« on: November 15, 2014, 09:26:36 PM »
TheMightyThor, you hit it on the head, I'm sort of old-school (hence the username) and definitely don't play as much as I used to (that's what happens when a little thing called work gets in the way...to those of you still in school with time to kill, make the most of every minute, whether it's games or something else).

Back in the day I'd play a few hours of games almost every day, but nowadays it's mostly if I have a free weekend and none of my pals have plans--or if I've had a really tough day and need to blow off steam--there is nothing better than a video game to do that!!

As much as I like the SSB series, I will retain my opinion that there's still a ton of characters. I have played my share of fighting games and, plainly put, like to keep things simple. This is something I feel the original SSB did a very good job with, even if it was a limitation of the system and/or game pak capacity.

Here's my two cents on this, and you can take this or leave it, comment or rip it apart, etc: All SSB games to this point have been 4 player games. Let's say you go with a theoretical 16 character roster without redundancies (i.e. no Mario and Dr. Mario). You only have, at most, a quarter of the roster on the screen at the same time. Character rotation is still very much possible. Additionally, you can master a character's moves a little easier if you only focus on one or two, plus you can get to know what the others do a bit better, even if you seldom play as them.

This may sound like it's going to make the game too easy for a more serious gamer, but I've played SSB with guys more serious than me and it's been pretty intense--even if we have been playing the game since 1999. Knowing the enemy and having the enemy know you makes for better strategy. How will you outfox Fox he knows what you can do as Mario? When I play Brawl, it's the opposite--I barely know any of the characters, and they barely know what you can do. I played Brawl a few months ago with someone who had no idea Peach could put people to sleep, and he got really confused by it. In a way, there's some good to that, but it's harder to come up with specific strategies to target individual characters.

I feel it's all a matter of preference, and I'd love to see a new SSB with a toggle switch on the character screen much like for items. This way "house rules" could apply--i.e. you can only select from a few characters. If you've been to casinos where they have seemingly random house rules, you know exactly what I'm talking about here.

Finally, and perhaps this proves that I'm not as serious as some of y'all, I like to actually know who the characters are. With the original SSB, I wasn't sure of Ness at first since I didn't have Earthbound (although I have played it since SSB came out) and didn't know Jiggly Puff (mostly because I never got into Pokemon; I did know Pikachu since he was everywhere in 1999...take one trip down an aisle at Target and he's on half the products). That's 2 out of 12. Not bad. In Brawl, I think I knew about half the characters. However, this is also sort of a great marketing device from Nintendo--going back to the Marth and Roy example, people knew who they were because of an already popular game, so perhaps they would be more willing to try out their games. Likewise, if someone hasn't played Earthbound, perhaps they will get it on the Virtual Console (I think it's out on Wii U) to see who this Ness guy is.

Just a few thoughts from a guy who's not getting any younger or getting any more free time...and who started out with an Atari 2600 where character selection was pretty much not a thing!!

32
Video Game Chat / Re: N64 Controller Order
« on: November 15, 2014, 08:50:58 PM »
Widescreen CRT? I approve and hope you or someone in your family still has that set!!

All of my TVs are CRTs. I just don't like the eye strain from newer sets that I seem to get, so I'm holding onto my old ones as long as I can.

Great story about your Grandpa!! My Grandpa actually has a joystick on his computer so he can play air combat games. Not sure offhand what he plays, but I know he is into them (or at least was, now he seems to do more genealogy than anything). Still, he's young enough he could enjoy games (he's only 85, and nobody's too old for a good game). I got him hooked up with Star Fox 64 once and he really liked it.

I'd better hurry up and find someone to marry so they can have gamer grandparents (that would be both of my parents--as ridiculous as it sounds, my 61 year old father wants to buy a Wii U this Christmas--for himself).

33
Video Game Chat / Re: Scary Video game music
« on: November 13, 2014, 01:32:53 AM »
While it's not exactly scary, I do like the foreboding sound of the organ theme on the final Bowser battle of Super Mario 64.

I've always thought it would make a killer postlude in church some Sunday.

34
Video Game Chat / Re: Super Smash Bros. 4 Wii U and 3DS
« on: November 13, 2014, 01:31:46 AM »
OK--so I've got a pal with a Wii U who's literally counting down the days to this game, and he's told me bits and pieces of what's going to be in it, who's going to be a character, and how many players can play.

I just have one sort of statement to make--is there such a thing as too many characters?

I have the original N64 game, which has 12 different guys in it (well, 11 guys and a girl). That seemed like a decent amount (although I would have rather had Peach than Jiggly Puff and maybe Zelda or Bowser in place of Ness). There seemed to be too many in the Game Cube Melee version, but I did appreciate the wider variety (even though I was like "who are these Marth and Roy guys?" until looking them up on some game site 13 years back...it may have even been this one). With Brawl on the Wii, it's like you took every Disney character from every movie they made in their first 30 years and stuck them all together--there's too many for their own good.

I'm not against variety, but isn't it getting to be a bit too much? Especially when we have a lot of redundancy--Mario and Dr. Mario, three different Links, etc.

What will we have next--red-haired Peach from the original SMB 1, with the red hair somehow giving her a different set of abilities?

I personally think we should cap the character count at 16 (and 12 for Mario Kart, which I'd prefer less in only because you can't race 16 at once--or maybe you can in the new one; I've only played the Wii U version once).

35
Video Game Chat / Re: N64 Controller Order
« on: November 13, 2014, 01:24:49 AM »
Ah, yes, the funky smell of off-brand controllers.

I have a buddy who bought two knockoff Game Cube controllers for his Wii. He got these about a year ago and I was there when he opened the box. Suddenly, the entire room smelled like a huge swimming pool. These things reeked of chlorine. A few months later, they still smelled that way. I haven't played a game with him in a while so I can't tell you how they are one year later, but my pals and I still talk about those controllers now and then.

I'm not sure they even had a brand on them. They weren't terrible; I've seen worse third party controllers, but it was obvious they weren't genuine Nintendo.

In regard to the better quality joystick: I believe I heard somewhere you can find one that fits perfectly on an N64 controller if you can somehow track down one of those Lodge Net controllers that used to be in all the hotel rooms. Remember those services where you'd pay a pretty high fee for an hour or so of games? I'm pretty sure they used a much more durable stick on those, and I'm also positive most of those didn't get played with much. Those controllers don't fit a regular N64, so you'll have to do some surgery.

True story--when a bunch of my friends and I went to Chicago in high school, we brought along an N64. We had an all night gaming tournament in the guys hotel room, but first had to buy an RF mod at some random Game Stop type place which I believe was on North Michigan Avenue. I actually was the one who bought this and still have it to this day. I think it cost about ten bucks. The TVs in the hotel rooms back then only had the cable jacks on the back, and the one in this particular hotel room was really tight. We wound up borrowing a set of tweezers from one of the girls' makeup sets and eventually got it hooked up. I don't remember if they had the Lodge Net controller or not.

TheMightyThor: Easy, tiger!! That's definitely a great walkthrough, but I'm an older guy and will have to parse that into chunks!! :) I just may have to try it sometime when I get a spare evening--who knows, maybe I can finally make Link grow up after 16 years of having the game? Just for kicks, I should invite the guy who beat the first boss with me back in middle school over for old times sake. (He's actually still a pretty avid gamer whereas I'm more of a nostalgic/casual guy these days since I own a business now...but that doesn't stop me from getting into the action now and then!) I think I remember talking to that Malon girl at some point in the game--ironically, she looks a TON like the girl my aforementioned buddy had a crush on in sixth grade!!!

36
Video Game Chat / Re: N64 Controller Order
« on: November 03, 2014, 12:00:04 AM »
Wow, you folks have some interesting controllers.

I have four of the first-party Nintendo-branded controllers--the grey one that came with the system, a blue, a red, and a green. The green box may be floating around somewhere, but I know for certain I have the red and blue boxes (plus the N64's original box and every game box except Starfox since my mom stepped on it when I was a kid and it got pretty badly mutilated).

I'm curious as to whether the earlier Nintendo-branded controllers were better-made. As stated above, these controllers are practically ancient (got them in 1997). They still play like they did when I bought them.

Admittedly, I never had Mario Party 1, but I am a notorious power slide freak on MarioKart 64 and do have Smash Brothers.

Since we're talking libraries, mine is decent, although Ocaraina of Time is a sore point for me since I have yet to actually make Link grow up--and I got the game back in December 1998 when it came out!! I beat the first boss but have been stuck in that big field for way too long. It's the one where it goes from day to night and all the bad guys show up at night. I can never figure out what to do there, and yes, I did buy a strategy guide and have read a few walkthroughs on GameFAQs. I think I gave up on the game for good in 2007-2008ish after trying again from the start while in college and bored out of my mind during the summer months.

It's not like I'm an awful gamer--I've held my ground on most everything else and have beaten some games completely, but Ocarina of Time has always beaten me. Mario 64 and Starfox have to be my favorites for non-multiplayer, followed by DK 64. I was also a huge Triple Play guy in the day.

37
Video Game Chat / N64 Controller Order
« on: November 02, 2014, 12:26:29 PM »
Last night, I had a dinner party with the guys group from my church (all in their 20s and 30s). I have my N64 connected to the TV in my living room, and the guys noticed it and started talking about it. (This later led to some late night retrogaming).

A discussion came up since I have four controllers. One of the guys asked me if they were in order from "best" to "worst"--meaning how well the control sticks worked. Mine have always been in the same order--the order I bought them in. I didn't get them all at the same time and spread them out a few weeks after getting the N64. (I got my N64 new in April 1997).

Now I'm curious--if you bought your N64 new, what order do you have your controllers in? I'm also curious to see what the folks who got used N64s do with them.

38
Although my friend's idea was a Mario course, there's no reason not to put other franchises in there as well.

What about the Kokiri Forest from Ocarina of Time? Deku tree items could be level-exclusive weapons.

39
Yesterday, after reading the Ars Technica article where they had a picture of the Duck Hunt dog in the new Smash Bros, I sent the text to a friend who owns a Wii U, who told me it was a fake.

His response? "Might as well put the Bob-Omb King in the game!"

I actually thought that was a great idea! After all, he deserves a second chance after being the first enemy defeated in Super Mario 64!! (Unless you're that insane guy who gets rid of Chain Chomp first; I ran that past my buddy and he suggested the Bob-Omb King could use said Chain Chomp as a weapon!)

Then, he had an even better idea--why not make the Bob-Omb Battlefield a stage in some form?

I immediately seconded him on this one. It's got cannons, goombas, Bob-Omb buddies, Koopa the Quick, tons of Bob-Ombs, and those boulders that go down the hill.
 
I think he's got a winner here...thoughts?

40
Mario Chat / Re: Favorite Mario Party
« on: August 26, 2014, 11:15:27 PM »
I just eBayed a boxed copy of Mario Party 2. Looks like it's up there in terms of popularity with the others.

A few posts ago, I stated how I blew off the series at first. Looking back, I figured I'd finally try one of these games out. Why? I've got some time off next week, am newly single, and had one of those "oh man you're old" experiences a few weekends ago.

I was in Ohio visiting my cousin, who has two kids now. Her older one is seven, and she has a DS of some variety (don't remember if it's a 3DS or 2DS, but I think it's a 3). Anyhow, she brought it along with her and asked me to play Mario Party with her. Now I've always enjoyed a good Nintendo game, but playing alongside my favorite second cousin and having her explain it to me? Yeah, I felt old and not as up on games as I did years ago, but there's no better feeling than doing it with the kids you love, especially when I realize I did the exact same to my mom when she played Super Mario 64 back in the day.

I may not have won every mini-game, but it was a night I wouldn't trade for anything. When my cousin comes to visit me, I'm going to introduce her daughter to the N64, and I felt having a familiar game would be the best way to do it. (MarioKart would work too since I know she has it--when I heard she was getting a DS, I bought it for her but never saw her play it). Who knows--maybe her brother, who is almost three, will also join in!!

And with that experience, I'm finally a true fan of Mario Party. I'm also OLD....

41
Site Discussion / Re: Is anyone signed up for Deezer?
« on: July 27, 2014, 06:46:13 PM »
A few things...

1. I do like Nirvana, and I am old enough to remember when Nevermind came out. Turns out, 1991 is the year I discovered the wonder of something called a record store. My five year old self was overwhelmed by everything in there, and I do mean overwhelmed in a good kind of way!! We played the radio (and tapes and records) a lot around my house so I got exposed to a variety of music as a kid, everything from the "oldies" (which really weren't that old then) to the current music on the Top 40 stations.

2. Whenever I see "Deezer", I always think it's some lazy attempt at spelling "dieser", a form of this/that used in German (for masculine nouns in the nominative case). I actually discovered this site in middle school (which was longer ago than I care to admit) and took German back then. Today, I actually tutor children in German and have seen similar spelling attempts to "deezer" when they are just learning the spelling patterns.

42
Mario Chat / Re: A Theory About Mario
« on: July 27, 2014, 06:35:57 PM »
I've always pretty much thought of Mario to be similar to Mickey Mouse. Mickey's been around for 80+ years and has always been about the same age, or at least the same maturity level. For Pete's sake, he could at least marry Minnie after 80+ years of dating! (No pun intended with the Pete reference; those of you who know the old cartoons will get it).

We get the nephews of Mickey and Donald in the Disney universe, but in the Mario universe we get the dreaded baby characters. It was never really a problem for me until they started putting Baby Mario in the same games as adult Mario. Baby Mario in Yoshi's Island made perfect sense. Therefore, I think only a few possibilities exist:

1. There's some sort of anomaly in the time continuum of Mario games, where two Marios can exist at once, yet one's smaller. Imagine yourself and your five year old self alongside you as a kid, and I don't mean as an actual son or daughter of yours--it's you, but when you were five.

2. These are nephews of Mario and Luigi, sort of like how Mickey's nephews look exactly like him (same with Donald Duck's). Somehow, they've got the same names (I think one of Mickey's was Morty...and I know Walt Disney wanted to call hm Mortimer...so it's not too far out of the question).

3. These are actual children of Mario and Luigi. I see this as the least likely since, if I remember from the more recent games, there's no definite answer as to whether Mario and Peach are actually dating. (Of course, I haven't bought a new title in a while, so things may have changed).

I think it's basically just an excuse to get more characters out for the sake of merchandising, overloading the rosters in multiplayer games, and bringing back a character from games in which Mario is a baby. Trouble is, most people actually didn't like Baby Mario back in 1995 because of the crying!!

The presence of the babies has always annoyed me a bit since there was never an explanation. Plus, we now have baby versions of Peach, Daisy, and even Rosalina all at the same time. One question--WHY?

In regard to Rosalina, I doubt she's got any relation to any of the other characters. Nobody knew who she was until Galaxy, and I think they're putting her in more and more games because of the lack of female characters compared to males.

43
Mario Chat / Re: Mario Kart 8 toys at McDonald's
« on: July 14, 2014, 06:50:11 PM »
I saw these at Wal Mart yesterday. I don't eat at McDonald's anymore but saw the toys at the entrance where the McDonald's is, so I checked them out. They looked pretty nice for McDonald's toys and reminded me of those little cars they used to give away--the kind you'd slide back and forth to make go. The ones from my day (late 80s) had Ronald McDonald and his pals in one set, Mickey Mouse and his pals in the other.

Yes, I do remember the Super Mario Bros 3 Happy Meal. (I'm old). I still have my spring-loaded Mario. I don't remember the TV ad for it, but I did watch the one above and I feel the issue isn't with the kids racing, but with the Happy Meal Box character. I know he's new (there was an article in the news about him) and I feel he's a poor choice of mascot. Bringing back Ronald would have been easier, but I know there'd be an uproar over a clown trying to sell kids bad food.

The character himself makes little sense, especially the fact there are two of him in the same ad. I can see some semblance of playing MarioKart there, but only because I knew this was for MarioKart before watching the ad. Also, if there is a focus on GoGurt being part of the Happy Meal, it's not a good way to emphasize it. (Still, I'm glad they're offering it over those awful looking apple slices, which I'd wager get thrown away over half the time).

Not a good ad by any means. The Happy Meal guy needs canned, just like that annoying fraggle-like "I Am Hungry" dude they had for a short time in the 90s (I remember him being in the McDonald's calendars, not sure if he was on TV or not since I stopped watching kids shows once I hit double digits in age). They'd be better having Ronald and someone else (Hamburglar?) race against each other and throw bananas or something.

44
I know it may never happen because of the political problems with Square, but the forest from Mario RPG would be nice, especially since they'd get a chance to remix the music from it.

45
Mario Chat / Re: Favorite Quote in Mario
« on: June 15, 2014, 09:34:53 AM »
My favorite comes from Super Mario RPG for SNES.

"Who do you think you are, Bruce Lee?"

This is when Mario is trying to punch everything in sight (I think in the forest) and Mallow scolds him.

To make things better, I played this game shortly after I had a student teacher whose name was Mr. Lee. He looked almost exactly like Bruce Lee, only younger (his name actually did begin with a B, but it was Brian or something like that). Having this guy fresh in my mind, the quote made me almost pass out laughing. Got a few funny looks from my dog over that!! Not sure what happened to Mr. Lee after that though--never had him as a sub or anything the next year.

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