Topics

286

Video Game Chat / The real reason the DreamCast died...

« on: February 20, 2002, 12:27:28 PM »

A lot of you seem confused as to why the DreamCast failed. I can clear all of that up for you...

Sega DreamCact was released in 1998. It immediately sold out in many stores accross the United States. The DreamCast had a 128-bit processor (not 2 64-bit ones), and could play music CD's in it.

The DreamCast also had a built-in modem that was made by Microsoft. The DreamCast could support Window's software (it says so right on the system) and could also access the Internet. Sega had created it's own Internet service to utilize this feature. Called SegaNet, the service allowed gamers to play special DreamCast games online! But it would only work for games that supported the service.

You could also use the SegaNet service just like the normal Internet; you could go to any webpage you wanted. Unfortunately, the service didn't last long. Not many companies were supporting Sega's Internet service, so it died out quickly...

Aside from the failure of the Internet service, the DreamCast made up for that, by having a huge library of great 1st-party games lined up for it. The DreamCast had a very good future indeed...

In October of 2000, Sony released their PlayStation 2. It was immediately sold out within 24 hours. Since Sony shipped twice as many systems than Sega had, the PS2 sold more systems than any other system in the world! What made the PS2 so great was that it could play old PS1 games...It was also the first system that came with a built-in DVD player.

Sony knew the DreamCast wouldn't last long, so they built their PS2 to include a faster processor than DreamCast. Sony also hired more 3rd-party companies to develop for it.

Many gamers were turned towards the success of the PlayStation2, and many of them sold their DreamCasts in order to buy a PS2!

THAT is why the DreamCast died, because Sony won more success with their god-awful PlayStation2 system!

This is also why Nintendo gave up on their Nintendo64! But they still had millions of dollars in profits from their GameBoy system, so that's why they didn't fail!

After the failure of the DreamCast, Sega was in deep trouble. They had lost millions of dollars because the DreamCast wasn't selling well... and PS2 was selling better.

Making consoles costs a lot of money, and since Sega had lost so much money, they didn't have enough to make a new console... So they instead quit the console business and intead focused on making games!

Hopefully, Sega will earn back enough money to make a new system. But that probably will never happen...

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"Bwa ha ha! Guess who it is, loyal Mario fans...

It is I, King Bowser... ruler of all Koopas, big and small. I have come to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (no, not the place...I mean the WEB SITE!)! Deezer, you will surrender your troops to me, or else you will never see your precious Mario again! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

287

Mario Chat / Stupid PlayStation...

« on: February 18, 2002, 09:08:48 PM »

There are many reasons why I hate the PlayStation, one of them is because they have NO CREATIVE TALENT! Sony just likes to copy Nintendo's games and pass them off as their own ideas!

Another reason why I hate the PlayStation systems is because PS2 killed the Sega DreamaCast! If Sony had never released PS2, I'm sure Sega would still be in the competition!

Sony sucks... They will never be as successful as Nintendo or Sega! Nintendo and Sega make the best games, and I hope that never changes...

LONG LIVE NINTENDO AND SEGA!

------------------------------
"Bwa ha ha! Guess who it is, loyal Mario fans...

It is I, King Bowser... ruler of all Koopas, big and small. I have come to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (no, not the place...I mean the WEB SITE!)! Deezer, you will surrender your troops to me, or else you will never see your precious Mario again! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

288

Mario Chat / Mario quiz... Are you up to the challenge?

« on: February 18, 2002, 11:43:21 AM »

I have created a series of quuestions about Mario games...

Question 1.:
What is the name of the tiny stone block that tries to squish you in Super Mario World?

A. Thwomp
B. Thwimp
c. Squish

Question 2.:
Who stole Bowser's Castle in Super Mario RPG?

A. Smithy
B. Wario
C. Merlon

Question 3.:
What is the name of the princess of Sarasaland in Super Mario Land 1?

A. Princess Daisy
B. Princess Peach
C. Princess Toadstool

Question 4.:
What is Anti-Guy's favorite food?

A. Lemon Candy
B. Coco Pop
C. Yoshi Cookie

Question 5.:
In Super Mario Bros. 2 (USA version), what item appears after you collect over 5 Cherries?

A. Star
B. Mushroom
C. Heart

Question 6.:
In which of the following games do you get to play as Princess Peach?

A. Super Mario RPG
B. Super Mario Land 2
C. Super Mario World

Question 7.:
Who is Shigeru Miyamoto?

A. Nintendo's leading game developer
B. Nintendo's president
C. Nintnedo's chief programmer

Question 8.:
Where does Bowser steal the Star Rod?

A. Star Haven
B. Mushroom Kingdom
C. Yoshi's Island

Question 9.:
Which of the following games features Yoshi as the only playable character?

A. Yoshi's Story
B. Super Mario World
C. Yoshi's Cookie

Question 10.:
In what city is Nintendo of Japan located?

A. Kyoto
B. Tokyo
C. Hong Kong

FINAL QUESTION!:
Where were Mario and Luigi born?

A. Brooklyn, New York
B. Mushroom Kingdom
C. Yoshi's Island

------------------------------
"Bwa ha ha! Guess who it is, loyal Mario fans...

It is I, King Bowser... ruler of all Koopas, big and small. I have come to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (no, not the place...I mean the WEB SITE!)! Deezer, you will surrender your troops to me, or else you will never see your precious Mario again! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

289

Mario Chat / Shigeru Miyamoto's newest enemy...

« on: February 18, 2002, 11:27:12 AM »

...is Bill Gates. The supreme genius of videogame creativity faces of against the computer world's most dangerous billionaire! Bill Gates has created the world's most horrific videogame machine, the Xbox. We need to help Nintendo fight this oncoming meanace by buying lots of GAMECUBES and Game Boy Advances...thereby giving Nintendo millions and millions of dollars in sales profits!

------------------------------
"Bwa ha ha! Guess who it is, loyal Mario fans...

It is I, King Bowser... ruler of all Koopas, big and small. I have come to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (no, not the place...I mean the WEB SITE!)! Deezer, you will surrender your troops to me, or else you will never see your precious Mario again! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

290

Game Help / I'm feeling very jealous, I don't have a GameCube yet!

« on: February 07, 2002, 08:00:05 AM »

I want to get a GameCube right now! The only reason i want it is to play Luigi's Mansion and Smash Bros. Melee!

Gargh, I only have my old N64 right now and a crappy PS one! I hate PS one, they have crappy Nintendo-copied games! They know nothing about making good games; they don't have any geniuses like Shigeru Miyamoto working for them! Ha! The only thing that is good about PS one is that it can play music CD's! PlayStation2 is the same way: No good games, and lots of crappy Nintendo rip-offs!

Sorry about that, I was just venting off some anger towards the Sony company! I HATE SONY! Nintendo will curse Sony once they die from the videogame market!

Anyway, do you think Nintendo will make another Mario All-Stars game for the GameCube? I would love to see a collection of all the Super Mario Bros. games, Super Mario World 1 and SMW2, Paper Mario, and Super Mario 64 all on one disk!

What would be cool is if they remade the Mario Bros. and Mario World games in side-scrolling 3D! Kind of like Yoshi's Story or Donkey Kong Country!

------------------------------
"Bwa ha ha! Guess who it is, loyal Mario fans...

It is I, King Bowser... ruler of all Koopas, big and small. I have come to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (no, not the place...I mean the WEB SITE!)! Deezer, you will surrender your troops to me, or else you will never see your precious Mario again! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

291

Video Game Chat / Kirby and DK copyright confusion...

« on: February 07, 2002, 07:43:19 AM »

Okay. Doney Kong was originally created by Nintendo. So why does Rare own the rights to him? Just becasue they helped make the Donkewy Kong Country games doesn't mean they own all the rights to the characters!

Its the same problem with Kirby. If Kirby is a Nintendo character, then why is he owned by HAL Labs? I know HAL Labs created the Kirby games, but why do they still own the rights to him? Is HAL Labs a company owned by Nintendo, or are they just liscensing their characters to Nintendo?

If any of you know the answers to these, please post your replies! And I would really like it if Deezer could help me out on this one!

------------------------------
"Bwa ha ha! Guess who it is, loyal Mario fans...

It is I, King Bowser... ruler of all Koopas, big and small. I have come to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (no, not the place...I mean the WEB SITE!)! Deezer, you will surrender your troops to me, or else you will never see your precious Mario again! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

292

Mario Chat / Paper Mario 2...?

« on: February 05, 2002, 11:11:05 AM »

Do any of you think there will be a Paper Mario 2? If so, give me some examples of what you think it will be about. Also, do you want it to be for GameCube or Game Boy Advance?

------------------------------
"Bwa ha ha! Guess who it is, loyal Mario fans...

It is I, King Bowser... ruler of all Koopas, big and small. I have come to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (no, not the place...I mean the WEB SITE!)! Deezer, you will surrender your troops to me, or else you will never see your precious Mario again! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

293

Mario Chat / I have a new signature...

« on: February 05, 2002, 08:11:36 AM »

Here it is!


------------------------------
"Bwa ha ha! Guess who it is, loyal Mario fans...

It is I, King Bowser... ruler of all Koopas, big and small. I have come to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (no, not the place...I mean the WEB SITE!)! Deezer, you will surrender your troops to me, or else you will never see your precious Mario again! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

294

Mario Chat / Pros and Cons...

« on: January 25, 2002, 06:32:31 AM »

Pros and Cons of Videogame Systems:

Nintendo GameCube unit:
Pros:
1. Small size.
2. Large selection of high-quality games, both 1st-party and 3rd-party.
3. Cheap: $199.
4. Graphics capabilities.
5. High-speed 400+ megahertz processor.
6. 4-player connectivity.
7. Hardly any load times.

Cons:
1. Not compatible with any previous Nintendo games/software.
2. Not able to play DVD's/music CD's.

Nintendo GameCube controller:
Pros:
1. Good shape, fits nicely into hands.
2. Button layout is far better than Nintendo64 controller.
3. Left and Right Shoulder Triggers are easier to use than the DreamCast ones.
4. Built-in rumble.

Cons:
1. Oddly-shaped X- and Y-Buttons.

Microsoft Xbox unit:
Pros:
1. Graphics capabilities.
2. High-speed 700+ megahertz processor.
3. Ability to download and record music CD's and use them in games.
4. 4-player connectivity.
5. Can play DVD's/music CD's.
6. Built-in hard drive used for massive data storage.

Cons:
1. Large size.
2. Expensive: $299+.
3. Small selection of games, both 1st-party and 3rd-party.

Microsoft Xbox controller:
Pros:
1. Good shape, fits into hands very well.
2. 2 analog Control Sticks.
3. Built-in rumble
4. Left/Right Shoulder Triggers are easy to use.

Cons:
1. Odd placement of A-, B-, X-, Y-Buttons.
2. Oddly shaped Directional Pad (D-Pad).

Sony PlayStation 2 unit:
Pros:
1. Can play DVD's/music CD's.
2. Large selection of good 3rd-party games.
3. Compatible with previous PlayStation 1 games/software.

Cons:
1. Slower processor than Xbox and GameCube, 200+ megahertz.
2. Only 2-player connectivity; must buy seperate adapter for 4-player connectivity.
3. Power/Reset switches are too tiny.
4. Expensive: $300+.

PlayStation 2 controller:
Pros:
1. Button layout is perfect.
2. 2 analog Control Sticks.
3. Built-in rumble.

Cons:
1. Too tiny, doesn't fit very well into hands.
2. Control Sticks are too loose.
3. Left/Right Shoulder Buttons are not triggers.
4. Buttons are too small.
5. Directional Pad (D-Pad) is not very sturdy.

So now that you have read the Pros and Cons of the GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox, which one would you consider buying?

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MICROSFT: Nintendo is so old, you should retire! You will fall to the wrath of Microsoft!

NINTENDO: Well, at least WE know how to make good games! Long live Nintendo!

SONY: I like cheese...

295

Video Game Chat / History of Nintendo vs. PlayStation...

« on: January 25, 2002, 06:25:12 AM »

VideoGame Wars 2002
Nintendo versus Sony
Part 1

Nintendo and Sony may be the top companies in the videogame industry right now, but did you know that Sony had once decided to make their world-famous PlayStation for Nintendo?

That's right! The Sony PlayStation originally began as a joint-concept between Nintendo and Sony. In the early 1990's, Nintendo had decided to use Sony's help in developing a CD-ROM add-on for their mega-popular Super Nintendo, in order to join the growing popularity of CD-ROM technology. Sony agreed and the two companies immediately began work on the project,  code-named "PlayStation". Their work seemed to be paying off, until a few months later, when Nintendo realized that if any games were made for the PlayStation, the profits would go directly to the Sony company, leaving Nintendo behind with nothing to profit on except for the Super Nintendo and the Game Boy.

Of course, Nintendo was outraged when they heard of these plans, so they immediately quit the joint-partnership with Sony; and instead, teamed up with Sony's arch-rival Phillips. After hearing of these sudden change of plans, Sony decided to go solo on the "PlayStation" project and simply developed it for their own use...

The partnership between Nintendo and Phillips soon ended after that, due to the horrible success of the Phillips CD-I system. Meanwhile, Sony was still working on their project when Nintendo announced a successor to the Super Nintendo, code-named "Project Reality". The new system would be a complete departure from the 2-dimensional 16-bit days of flat graphics, and would usher in a new era of incredible 3-dimensional gameplay! Around 1995, Nintendo finally unvieled it's successor to the public, named the Nintendo "Ultra" 64. This new system was an extremely powerful 64-bit machine that could produce 3-dimensional polygonal graphics that had never been seen before on any other videogame system. The system also used cartridges instead of CD's, because Nintendo didn't have enough money to incorporate the CD-ROM technology into it.

Sony felt a potential threat from Nintendo, and hurriedly rushed their PlayStation (which was what it was finally called) out to the unweary public in 1995...with enoumous success! The PlayStation was a powerhouse of 32-bit technology that had never been seen before on any other system of it's time! The PlayStation featured a CD-ROM drive that could play music CD's as well as game CD's. The PlayStation was immediately sold out in many stores across the country, which was a very good success for Sony.

Around mid-1995, Nintendo knew their "Ultra" 64 wasn't getting anywhere, so they too hurried up production in order to keep in line with Sony's growing popularity of the PlayStation. So in late 1996, Nintendo finally released their system to the public; with one major difference. As a last-minute change, Nintendo dropped the "Ultra" from the system's title, and simply called it "Nintendo 64". So from then on, the newest war in the videogame competition had begun, with Nintendo and PlayStation beating out the competitors... Who would eventually win this brutal battle? Wait and see in my next edition of VideoGame Wars 2002!

VideoGame Wars 2002
Nintendo versus Sony
Part 2

The Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation both led very successful lives throughout the late 1990's. Every year there seemed to be great games that both companies were willing to show off to the public. Nintendo had Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Super Mario 64, while Sony had Crash Bandicoot and Final Fantasy (which was actually made by Square, under a contract agreement between the two companies...). The battle for supremecy reigned on until 1999, when Sony announced a successor to their PlayStation, code-named "the emotion machine". Nintendo knew this was a threat and soon after announced a successor to their Nintendo 64, code-named "Dolphin". Now it was still too early for either of the companies to unviel their new systems just yet--since fans were still buying Nintendo 64s and PlayStations off the store shelves like they were brand new!

In early 2000, Sony revieled the true identity of their successor to the public: PlayStation 2. The public was stunned; never before had anyone seen a system as powerful and as sleek as the one Sony was presenting to them.

PlayStation 2 featured a whopping 128-bit graphics processor; the most powerful processor of any system. Sony even announced that it had backwards-compatability to play PlayStation 1 games! And the next thing Sony announced left the public and the media reporters stunned: a built-in DVD player! This was a milestone for Sony. The public was anxiously eager to get their hands on the newest "next-generation" system.

Meanwhile, Nintendo had finally unvieled their newest system at a Japanese expo in early 2000. Given an official name "GameCube", Nintendo's newest system proved to be a popular showcase among loyal Nintendo fans. The system featured a new kind of disk technology that was being developed by Panasonic; called mini-DVD's, these new game disks could hold over twice the amount of normal CD's and were about half the size.

In October of 2000, the public was relieved when the PlayStation 2 was finally released on the stroke of midnight. Huge lines of PlayStation fans were waiting outside the stores in the bitter cold all night for the arrival of PlayStation 2. When it finally arrived, it turned out to be the biggest system launch in the history of videogames; over 200 million systems were sold within 24 hours! There was one major drawback, though. Due to a parts shortage, Sony only shipped about half of the expected amount; which meant getting a PlayStation 2 by Christmas would be extremely rare. Still, the launch was a major success for Sony, and many people were wondering if Nintendo would ever get their new system out to the public...

The Nintendo 64 was starting to die out soon after the launch of PlayStation 2. Even with successful games like Mario Party 3 and Conker's Bad Fur Day, the system was beginning to feel the pressure of Sony's newest success. Another year had passed, and still no sign of the GameCube. Finally, in November of 2001, the GameCube was released to the public. Although the launch was nowhere near as exciting as the previous year's PlayStation 2 launch, the system still sold out in many stores across the United States. And there was another big plus for Nintendo, the GameCube had no parts shortages and therefore, no shipments were delayed! This marked the official beginning of the "next-generation" consoles war!

So now you have read the history of Nintendo versus Sony. The two companies are still battling for supremecy; and even newcomer Microsoft, with their powerful Xbox, hasn't made much of an impact. Hopefully, Nintendo and Sony will keep the competition going for years to come!

This document was written by Anthony Tarantino on January 7, 2002. Much of the information in this document was concieved by reading various magazines and studying reports off the Internet... :)

This report was updated on January 21, 2002.

296

Video Game Chat / Can the GameCube win?

« on: January 22, 2002, 11:23:00 AM »

With all this new DVD technology that is being incorporated into the Xbox and PlayStation 2, you would think that Nintendo would do the same with their GameCube...

But no! They had to be independent and make their own machine their own way, instead of copying everyone else! And I think that's what has made Nintendo so successful; innovation and their own unique style!

Nintendo has always been unique when it comes to making games and game systems... When the Nintendo 64 was announced, everyone thought it would have a CD-ROM like the PlayStation. But Nintendo decided to not include one because they thought CD's were crappy; that they took to long to load.

But the one thing they missed out on was the enormous amount of data storage a CD can hold. Cartridges can only hold a limited amount of data, whereas CD's can hold endless amounts of data and are easier to develop...

So now that Nintendo has opted the GameCube with a new Mini-DVD technology, do you think they are on the right track? The GameCube may have extremely good graphics and games, but there is another thing that has made Nintendo seperate from the competition: DVD players and music CD players.

Nintendo believes that a videogame system is not about DVD's or CD players; they believe that a gaming system is about just videogames. I agree, but do you think many other people will think so?

Please post your comments to this topic.

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MICROSFT: Nintendo is so old, you should retire! You will fall to the wrath of Microsoft!

NINTENDO: Well, at least WE know how to make good games! Long live Nintendo!

SONY: I like cheese...

297

Video Game Chat / Who will be Nintendo's lead competitor?

« on: January 14, 2002, 09:38:01 AM »

Who will be Nintendo's lead competition in the years to come?

Will it be Microsoft?

Will it be Sony?

I have a pretty good theory for the upcoming videogame wars:

Nintendo will be the sellout system of the year. This is mainly because of the enourmous 3rd party support that it has recieved in the last few months. Also, Nintendo has had a very good history of making good, fun games; and why would they ever quit doing that?

Microsoft hardly has any experience in the videogame market. Sure they've made a few controllers and games for the computer, but a computer is far more complex than a simple videogame machine. Also, the Xbox is designed like a computer, and who would want to buy a new computer when you can play the same types of games on a Dell or Compaq?

Sony has been in the videogame business for about 7 years. Their PlayStation 1 was an enormous sucess in 1995 when it was released. Sony has made plenty of good games and their library includes some of the best 3rd party games out there! PlayStation 2 revolutionized the market with the introduction of a built-in DVD player, and Microsoft is simply copying what Sony did...

Also, Microsoft and Sony have not made a handheld game system to rival the Game Boy yet (the Gamke Boy has been Nintendo's biggest success). Although I read at an Xbox web site that Microsoft was considering creating a "X-Boy" or some other type of handheld system to rival the Game Boy some time in the future...

So who do you think will be Nintendo's next big competition?


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MICROSFT: Nintendo is so old, you should retire! You will fall to the wrath of Microsoft!

NINTENDO: Well, at least WE know how to make good games! Long live Nintendo!

SONY: I like cheese...

298

Video Game Chat / I now have proof that the Xbox sucks!

« on: January 14, 2002, 09:27:55 AM »

For one thing, Nintendo has had a very good history of making great games that are actually fun!

Bill Gates (and Microsoft) are only in the videogame business for the money!

Nintendo is in it for the fans...

Sony is in it for the millions of 3rd party companies that are supporting them!

Xbox hardly has any 3rd party support. The logical explanation is this: Nintendo GameCube is more popular and has better games! Also, PlayStation is still Nintendo's lead competitor, and why would Microsoft want to steal away the competion just so they can make a few more million dollars selling a system that doesn't even have 2 good games?

Enough said.

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MICROSFT: Nintendo is so old, you should retire! You will fall to the wrath of Microsoft!

NINTENDO: Well, at least WE know how to make good games! Long live Nintendo!

SONY: I like cheese...

299

Video Game Chat / Final opinion of Microsoft and SONY...

« on: December 21, 2001, 06:34:01 AM »

Microsoft sucks, they don't know anything about making good games!

SONY sucks, they just copy Nintendo games and sell them as their own creations (Crash Bandicoot, for one example)!

Nintendo makes the best games. Period!

NINTENDO WILL WIN! HA HA HA HA!

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MICROSFT: Nintendo is so old, you should retire! You will fall to the wrath of Microsoft!

NINTENDO: Well, at least WE know how to make good games! Long live Nintendo!

SONY: I like cheese...

300

Mario Chat / The origin of Mario enemies...

« on: December 21, 2001, 06:31:54 AM »

Where do you think Goombas and Koopa Troopas and all the rest of Mario's enemies came from?

What was the crazy idea Bowser had when he created Hammer Bros.?

Please post your replies to this; and try to make this creative!

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MICROSFT: Nintendo is so old, you should retire! You will fall to the wrath of Microsoft!

NINTENDO: Well, at least WE know how to make good games! Long live Nintendo!

SONY: I like cheese...