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And this is my favourite Mass Effect 2 ending on the Citadel. This is about the ending I got, so assume direct spoilers and don't read if you haven't played. Normandy fully upgraded, entire team alive, minor crew included, Collectors dead, Reapers invading, romance successfully romanced, went renegade at the end and gave Martin Sheen the biggest screw-you possible, today was a good day. Now I can finally enjoy the prerelease material for ME3, and tinker with the emulator without concern to try and import Vintage Shep.
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So, the emulator I tried that I contacted the guy who made it? It seems to be working! Going to try GenericShep up through the walkthrough to be sure, but it seems to be functioning. I can't take screenshots in the emulator, but hey, it works, no complaints, right? Unfortunately, it would seem that it doesn't like the format Wine used for the ME1 playthrough, so I may have to replay Mass Effect. Not a big issue though, as it has more than a few dialogue trees I can take that won't change the endgame save.
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Through random chance, it turns out an employee of the small company that makes one of the emulators I use is a member of another forum I'm on. I'm not sure if he's part of their dev team, but given I'm not the only one who's had these same problems with ME2 in their current software as well as in Wine, and Mass Effect's a big series right now, this could be my ticket to getting it working.
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I'm Commander Shepard, And This Is My Favorite Game Informer Cover On The Citadel
Necro posted a blog entry in blogs_blog_698
Game Informer, why must you taunt me not only with Shepard front-and-center, but by giving me a cover story I can't even read for fear of ME2 spoilers? -
It's only four years away now, so lets turn on Huey Lewis & The News and run down the list of stuff from the 2015 scenes in the second movie and see if we're coming close. So out of 37 things, with three-five more years for development, we have 13 we've done, 16 we haven't, 3 that exist, but nothing like they did in the movies, and 5 that're being developed. Overall, given it was optimistic enough to have flying cars, hoverboards, robots, bionic implants and all that commonplace, I think we're doing decent. I want to see that 13 beat that 16 with the time we've got left though.
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A friend on another forum gave me his Gift Pass for TF2, so I have it for the weekend. I think I may have to buy a full copy of this - I have somewhere to be tomorrow, so I didn't want to get hooked on the online tonight, but I'm enjoying playing against bots offline(That alone could probably justify it since it's only $10), if the multiplayer is better, which people seem to tell me it is, I'm sold.
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Does anyone know how to buy stuff on Steam without a Paypal or a credit card? Because I have neither, but I'd really like to buy Team Fortress 2.
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Why don't you work like your older brother, ME2? If I can avoid it, I don't want to have to buy a 360 just to enjoy you.
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So, back to Mass Effect 2, I finally got it kind-of running! It crashed where it used to though, and it flipped out and deleted the vast majority of that fake Windows simulation when it did, and being the moron I am, I didn't back up before trying it again, so based on the new one I just tried it with, whatever I did to make it start working is lost. I know it can run though, so at least that's good.
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I'll say it right now - This game came close to being the perfect 3DS racing game. Why you may ask? Simple. There's a car that looks like the Mach 5. That you can paint white. If you could set your emblem as the Speed Racer M and set the soundtrack to the Speed Racer theme, that alone would justify your money even if it had the engine of Big Rigs. Anyway, gameplay doesn't need explaining, it's a real-world racing game. You love it or you hate it. If you're looking for a racing game for the 3DS, go with Ridge Racer. The reviews of Asphalt have been very negative(Outside of Nintendo Power, but they're almost always nice), and Ridge Racer is a fun, quality game, and it uses the 3D very well(Like I said in first impressions, if all the launch titles use it this well, it may have more starting muscle than I assumed with the lack of first-party support). But there are three big areas that have been a huge letdown for me - Emblem, wireless, and soundtrack. We'll go in that order, so first off is the emblem. I'd love to set this as my emblem in the game that you see as you drive by: But, sadly, Ridge Racer won't let you - You either take a photo with the internal camera, or you pick a premade emblem. On the one hand, I may be able to understand this; Despite the whole "online interactions aren't rated by the ESRB" disclaimer, it's not good for a company to get a call about someone setting something racy as their image in a game rated E. As I said though, "may", as this would imply online exists, which it doesn't. I'll be very simple Namco; There's a reason that this racing game for the DS is going on six years and is still available new at a non-bargain price. Online. The single-player was fun, but got dull quick, and became something you just do to unlock cars and drivers. It was the online that made it so awesome: It was the first WFC game, and racing games work great with it - It's not something where you have to know someone well, and it's something anyone can pick up quick and play with the best while having a grand time, online play and racing games go together beautifully, it's propped Mario Kart DS up despite being very primitive on there. There should've been online for Ridge Racer. Will this be fixed with an update? Since the OS for the 3DS already has had an update(Which came with an Ok Go video! IN 3D!!!), there's a chance, and I hope so, but for now, this was a huge disappointment, because it eliminates any excuse for the lack of ability to set your own image for the emblem, since any young kid with a parent who'll get outraged is going to be playing multiplayer with his friends across the table, not a random guy in Europe. Anyway, with that, we'll go to the last thing, the soundtrack. This isn't so much "this needs to be there" as it is "Why not?", but why can't I put music on the SD card and listen to that ingame? There's an extensive and quality soundtrack ingame already, but the aforementioned Speed Racer theme combo just would've been priceless. But overall, it's a great game for a release title, it's fun, and it's used the 3D pretty well, all things considered. If you want a 3DS and like racing games, this'll be a good fit for a title to buy with it. On a related note, the Speed Racer theme instantly makes any racing game ten times better.
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~Aesthetics~ I like it, but I'm not fully satisfied on the 3DS aesthetically. I love the top, and the grey-to-black gradient looks great. That said, FINGERPRINTS! FINGERPRINTS EVERYWHERE! I much preferred the matte bottom from my old DS Lite though, as well as the matte inside. It works for the top, and I haven't had any grip issues with the bottom, but it just seems tacky on the inside. That's not a big deal though, when it's opened, your thoughts aren't going to be on aesthetics. Overall, 7/10. It's quality, and the top looks great, but I'd really like to see the next iteration have the inside matte. Also, as a fan of red, black, and their awesome-looking mix, I was really sad when this turned out to have been an E3 one-off. I know I should judge for gameplay, not colour, but come on Nintendo, that looks awesome, yet you greenlighted teal/black, but not crimson/black? ~Controls~ We'll start with former/current sliders, as those are essential to get it running. The power button makes its return triumphantly, as it's a lot more convenient than the slider, though a way to turn it off without opening was nice. The 3D slider is inexplicably available from the outside, which is odd to me since that seems like something you'd adjust while playing, not while it's closed. Otherwise though, the 3D slider's well-placed - Moving your right index finger from the R trigger to the slider to quickly pop between 2D and 3D midgame works very smoothly. The volume slider is moved to the upper half of the left side, which was awkward at first, but not jarringly so. It also seems a lot smoother than the DS Lite's volume slider, which you had to fight to get notched into a position where it wasn't blaring, but was still making noise. In addition, there's one more slider worth note on this thing - a wireless slider. This is a great feature, since, as anyone with a smartphone knows, a wifi antenna eats a lot of juice. I'm not sure whether or not the DS Lite and DSi just left their antennae on or off outside of specific online play, but with background wireless like Street Pass, and the C-Gear in Pokemon Black & White starting to be used, this is going to save a lot of people a lot of power. Now, with sliders done, lets move onto the ingame controls. Outside of the position of the D-pad, the XYAB and directional buttons didn't change much. The big addition with the controls though is the analog stick - This is something people have been expecting and wanting since the DS' announcement(I recall it being a prominent feature in the art for a lot of conceptual guesswork articles Game Informer for the original did leading up to its release), and is almost enough alone to justify a new model in my mind. A $250 model? No, but that's where everything else comes in. It can't be stated enough though how much more comfortable the stick is than the D-pad, kudos to Nintendo for finally putting this in. I do have a big complaint with the 3DS' control layout though; The start and select buttons. my first gaming device after Snake on my dad's phone was a GBA(Still running at nearly a decade old too, that's ancient for technology. Living proof of Nintendium!), and on every system I've ever owned - Especially the DS Lite, where I actually unconsciously developed a reflexive ability to twitch my right thumb up and hit the start button to pause it with the thumb joint - has had these two within less than a half second's reach, and all the handhelds have placed them just below either the directional buttons or the AB/XYAB buttons with the exception of the original DS, which even then just put them on top instead, so it's jarring now to put them under the touch screen. It seems like a small thing, but it's weird when I want t pause it, that aforementioned twitch reflex to pause it kicks in, and it's still running, with my right hand no longer playing. I'm sure I'll get used to it, but this is the first time in years that Nintendo's moved them this far away, so I don't get why. Overall though, the DS already had very good controls, and the 3DS has improved these immensely by finally putting in a directional stick. The start/select buttons are jarring, but the analog stick more than makes up for it. 8/10 ~Hardware~ Based on the graphics I've seen so far in Ridge Racer compared to the DS racing games I had, there's been a big improvement over the DS in either the GPU, CPU, or both. It's not up to par with modern home consoles of course, but it's a step in the right direction. Whether the NGP will live up to its claim to further eliminate this barrier, we'll see, but so far, this looks pretty good for a handheld. As long as we're on the visuals, lets go straight to the screens. The 3DS' touch screen seems more or less the same, but the top screen is a vast improvement - It's not as big overall as the DSi XL was, but the purpose of that was to be big. The screen on it is about a half inch larger from bottom-left to top-right than my DS Lite. This doesn't sound like much, but it's huge, especially with the moreso widescreen shape. That's not where the biggest jump is though, the resolution's leaped far ahead; Every other DS has had a resolution of 256x192 for the top screen and bottom screen. The bottom screen moved up a respectable 64x48 pixels, but the top screen jumps over three times higher in the width: The height resolution is 240 now like the bottom screen, but the width threw the 256 pixels from the previous models far behind, going all the way up to 800. That's a huge jump, and while it's still not at computer-resolution yet, it's a tremendous, over-500-pixel step forward. I'd talk about the 3D now, but I want to save that for its own section, since it's the biggest draw, so lets continue onto the cameras, mic, and SD card, then head to the user interface section. The cameras didn't really impress me - Maybe it's because I'm a pain when it comes to image quality, and these aren't even a megapixel each, but that's far from the focus of the system, so I can let it slide. What I can't though is the lack of video capability - Why can't it record? The mic I haven't really been able to test out much, but I feel like it'll at least be decent for recording and preventing ideas from escaping me, though I'd use my phone more for that since I can email myself the idea, but that may change depending on the music program. As for the SD Card, there's not much to say - I'd like more space than 4GB max, but not much else. However I do have to ask, why did it have to be Toshiba? Overall though, the hardware seems solid. It's not a monster like the NGP is promising to be, but that's never seemed like Nintendo's product strategy, so I wasn't expecting something that'd try to fight the home consoles too. 7/10 ~User interface~ I'm very happy with the 3DS' user interface. It seems like a handheld version of the Wii's interface, but more refined, and better. There are more than few features in the 3DS' UI I'd like to see carry over to an update of the Wii, in particular the bar for applications on the top, and the ability to access all the commands from midgame(Especially the notepad application - No more scrambling for paper and pencil to write down an ingame password!). The settings page no longer requires a reset, either, which is a small thing but it's a big nuisance gone. The boot-up time is a bit annoying though, whether this is because of a demanding UI, I don't know. The user interface is very snazzy though, and while I can't contrast it to the DSi, it's a huge step up from the DS Lite. 8/10 ~Backwards compatibility ~ This is where it's going to lose some points. Hopefully this'll get patched up soon, but at the moment, the backwards compatibility works with all the hardware, but the audio and video feel...degraded. The audio not as badly, it just seems a hair more compressed. That may just be me nitpicking though since this stuff is my job. The video though is noticably grainier. It's not stretched or anything to fit the new screen, but it just seems a little lower-resolution than on the DS. It's not a dealbreaker, and it's not a game-killer, but it's definitely disappointing, and yet another reason I'm holding onto my DS Lite. Functionally, it works very nicely and smoothly, but the graphics and audio hits were a huge disappointment. 6/10 ~AR Games~ Not technically part of the 3DS, but they're included, so I'll try to be brief. They're fun little things, and a nifty way of playing with/showing off the 3D, but I would've loved a more full game experience included with it, a la Wii Sports, or even First Hunt. Fun, but more could've been done. 6/10. ~Battery life~ A lot of people complained about the 3DS' battery life. Understandably, as it cut a few hours of time. However I've spent at least two-and-a-half straight hours playing, and I'm still blue on the power indicator. 3D up full 90% of the time, backlight on, open and playing. I'm not positive when I played, and after this rundown, I'll get a full, timed rundown tomorrow, but it's doing better than I was expecting. No rating until I get a time though. And now, what you've all been waiting for, the 3D! ~3D~ The optimistic part of my "cautious optimism" stance on the 3D seems to be winning out. It's not a revolution in the gameplay, but it's a very nice improvement, especially if all the titles right now are similar to Ridge Racer in that they didn't use it for gimmicky 3D effects, but instead used it to set certain things farther back and create a sense of depth. I can't make much of a judgement from one racing game - For that very reason I'm considering LSWIII, the other release game that looked good to me - but based on what I've seen, the 3D is functional, and can be a very strong asset when used well. I do fear it'll become a gimmick a lot of companies throw in though, which would be tragic, as the sense of depth can really make a game pop. It's not the game-changer they seemed to profess(Or at least not yet, the best uses of new technology seem to be a year or two after release, so we'll wait and see), but it's a very nice feature that can make a game feel that much nicer, and that when implemented right, can probably make something feel immensely immersive. Driving games aren't very immersive though, so right now we'll wait and see. At the moment though, 7/10, it could be better, but for the first no-glasses 3D mass-market system in the US(And the first 3D handheld), it's very commendable, and I think along with the hardware improvements and the analog stick, justify the price. And finally, I'm sure it's going to be something varying from person to person, but I haven't had any problems with a headache after at least two hours of straight 3D play, and my depth perception and reflexes are still enough to toss a coin with my eyes closed, move my hand back, open my eyes, and catch it midair without any issues, so be sure to try it out in-person to see just how strongly the 3D's side effects are on you. ~Overall~ If it's going to be the revolutionary system they're marketing it as, it's not going to be on the shoulders of the release titles. It's a good handheld, for the first 3D handheld without glasses, it's very hiccup-free. The 3D is going to be very case-by-case though, both in what your opinion of it is and how strongly the downsides hit you, so definitely find a store with one for demo and try before buying, but even without the 3D, the better hardware, and the new games coming in June and August are almost if not enough to justify it. Either way, I'm happy with it, and I consider it well-spent, though one racing game isn't enough to really put a handheld through its paces.
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Except it's in (Warning: This is a "Woo I got one I got one look at it isn't it awesome" type of entry, so naturally photos are essential. I hate repeated embedded giant photos, but they're kind of the whole point for this sort of entry. Those with slow internet, read on at your own risk.) Yes, earlier tonight I got a call saying that there was going to be a midnight release party for the 3DS, and who was I to say no? Sadly, you can't see Awesome Kevin the Awesome Manager in this shot, but he's there. Anyway, shortly after midnight, I arrived back home, with this: (I know it's backwards - I couldn't be bothered to mirror it this late at night) It looks blue here, but it's actually the black model - I didn't like the clash of teal and black on the blue model. You can just look at the gallery here, so I'll try to keep images in the entry from getting too numerous, but just a few more for the night. The unit itself, all shiny and black. Not sure if the camera picked it up, but the very edges are translucent, and it fades from grey at the top to black at the bottom. Next to its predecessor, my faithful old DS Lite. I've not bought either DSi in annoyance with the lack of truly notable hardware upgrades other than screen size and such and sacrificing the GBA slot, so I get a feeling it'll be a bigger jump from DS to 3DS for me than others, but I'm looking forward to it. Already I'm impressed though - The screen's at least 1.5 times larger. Like a lot of rechargeable devices nowadays, if you don't charge it fully before using it, it messes with the battery, so no first impressions tonight. Before I go though, I just want to post the manual, which is thicker than my computer manual and all four manuals I have from my old DS' combined: First impressions, thoughts on the 3D, and images of it running tomorrow, but for now, I have it!
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Let me start by saying that first, if anything comes off in this as angry, I'm not angry, I'm just annoyed, and yes there's a distinction, which is in the acronym. Second, I in no ways blame Bioware for this - To use an analogy most people who read my blog will probably get, Bioware, the developer, is the artist, and EA, the distributor, is the label; Bioware makes everything, they write it, create it, order it, and in all other respects design it, while EA gets it to stores, makes the discs, sets up and works out the final product, and I assume controls the DRM. If someone who knows more about the game industry knows this is wrong, please correct me, but as far as I know, the blame for the issue at-hand is squarely on EA's shoulders. Now then, I enjoy the games in the Mass Effect series. I've played the second at a friend's house, I finished the copy of the first one I own, I love the writing, I enjoy the characters, I like the gameplay. Despite only knowing it for a year or so, it's one of my favourite franchises at the moment. As such, while ME1 is out-of-print, so my used copy was the only way to go(And fortunately worked), ME2 is still being made, so I decided I wanted to do the right thing and buy a genuine copy instead of finding a bootleg someone broke the DRM off of for cheap or pirating it. I like doing the right thing, I like supporting people who make my entertainment, and I like being legally clean. So, I bought a used copy of Mass Effect 2, figuring since ME1 worked, this would as well. No such luck. After a week or so of hair-pulling confusion and failed fixes, I found that it appeared the DRM locked a copy so used copies can't be, well, used. This disheartened me, but it's only $20 now for ME2, so I figured I'd just buy a copy, it wasn't too much money, it wasn't $50 anymore or anything. Thus began a hunt spanning months and at least a half dozen stores to find a game store that had an apparently-elusive physical copy of Mass Effect 2 since everyone's going digital, but I needed a disc for the emulator. Eventually though, I found one, bought it, and went home excited that I'd finally be able to play Mass Effect 2. However that didn't work out as planned either - The disc was scratched in the factory, a disheartening sign as far as quality control goes, and I spent two days in a fruitless quest to fix it. I found the issue though, and ended up exchanging it for my current copy, which isn't scratched. A good sign. So I once more came home, once more opened up the case of a new of Mass Effect 2, and once more installed it. Brand-new, completely legit, bought from a licensed retail chain, no damage to the disc, it should work, no problems. But if that were the case, I'd be happily posting a screenshot of a test run with GenericShep to make sure it was up and running, not writing about my woes on the internet. Instead after a seemingly successful appearance of the launcher, I was greeted with another error, which is from my old friend from the used copy, the DRM, and which turns out to be a common issue that's plagued players of the PC version in Steam and disc format alike, the former of which is even more egregious since they have no disc to authenticate: "Failed to authenticate the disc. Please insert the correct disc and try again." I've tried this with disc one, I've tried it with disc two, I've tried it with no discs, and I don't own any computer with two drives, so I can't try both. I've closed every application that isn't required for it to run in case that's causing the problem. Still nothing. I've tried at least, no exaggeration, two dozen installs on four different methods for using a Windows program in OS X. People have played ME2 in OS X, so I have no idea what I'm doing wrong, I have a good grasp of the hardware end, but I suppose those who've made it work just understand the software side of modern computers better than I. But I've tried to get this working at least twenty times, I've dedicated days to it, I've spent months hunting for the copy I'm currently on, I've gone through three copies, I hate entitlement, but frankly, I deserved, as the customer, to be able to enjoy Mass Effect 2 when I put down my money for the used copy, and when I did for the first new copy. But after all this, I feel no arrogance in saying I don't just deserve to, I've earned the right to play the game, I've been relentlessly persistent just for one game, and I shouldn't have to keep fighting to play it. I'm not the type to give up because I hit a wall - If I hit a wall, especially like now when I'm utterly justified, I'll turn around, get some C4, blow the wall up, and continue on my way. Saying "no" when "yes" is better is nothing but a motivator for me, and as such I'm still working on it(As I type this, a program I found that's supposed to turn it into a Mac-friendly dmg file is installing DirectX), but I shouldn't have to have to go through all this just to play a game. It's absurd - I don't want to pirate the game both for legal and moral reasons, but I can kind of understand the argument for it given how much I feel like I'm being punished for trying to be legitimate. I understand that, since I'm not using Windows, I'm not the target consumer, but I'm still a consumer, and I still have legitimate complaints. I know for a fact EA has people who can code for Macs, and Bioware just released Dragon Age II on a few systems, including OS X, so I'm not sure if there's something specifically meant to prevent Macs from running it in the DRM, or what the reason for not releasing a Mac version is, since DAII shows Bioware's interested in the market at the present time with an RPG, ME's a huge name right now, and there isn't a huge market of games for the operating system, so a great game like ME2 would be a must-have hit, but I do know that even Windows users have had these issues I'm experiencing with the DRM, so I'm far from an isolated case just because I'm using emulators. But please guys. I'm just a gamer who wants to play the game he's excited to play that he's been looking forward to, like all of your customers - Please give me some sort of fix or something to get ME2 on this thing? I know this is probably never going to be seen by an employee of Bioware or Electronic Arts, but I really need to vent with this, as it's aggravating to go through all this and still get a two-sentence error as my reward. Like I said though, I'm not giving up until I get it or a Mac port is announced.
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So, I'm getting sick of trying to get Mass Effect to work, to the point I'm considering setting up a dual-boot. However a friend brought up to me the fact that a new, non-upgrade copy of Windows runs pretty much the price of a 360, it may be worth just taking that route. I'm not completely sold on justifying $100-$200(Nor do I have the money free at the moment) on an operating system yet, but only a handful of 360 games have ever really enticed me, so I'm not sure I can justify $200-$250 on a 360 and copies of ME1 and ME2, even though the addition of hardware makes it much more justifiable. That said though, I've never really looked into the 360's library outside of the prominent titles for that same reason. Could someone run down quality 360 RPGs, TBSGs and platformers for me? Bonus points if you know my tastes and can make recommendations as such.
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The wine update has just made things worse - Now it doesn't even install. I hate using these emulators, does anyone know how much a copy of 7 is? I may buy one just so I don't have to go through this with future games too...
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So, it would appear that Wine was out-of-date. I'm not sure when the version I've been using is from, but considering how far behind mine was, and the fact ME2's only a year old, this could well have been the issue. I need to update more often...
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Does anyone know/have any ideas to get around this? I bought it legitimately, there should be no legal issues with getting around this DRM, but I'm hitting brick walls, and I don't have any C4.
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New copy of ME2? Check. Both discs scratch-free? Check. Registration code? Check. Cerberus card? Check. Computer? Check. Emulators? Check. Reading material and a copy of Pokemon Red for the hour-long install? Check. Third time's a charm, as they say.
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So, it would seem the heavy risks aren't the only thing separating me from the prize. On the bright side, both Wine and Crossover(Another emulator I bought. It works more, but Wine's a lot more user-friendly, so it's the backup) worked for installing ME2! However I'm getting an error with both of them. The same error, I have a screenshot of both, but here's Wine's screenshot since it was taken first, and as such, since it's the same error, was the one uploaded. Since both emulators gave me identical errors, I assume the problem is less with the install, and more with the physical disc itself, though anyone else who got this error please correct me if you found a solution and it's a software problem. Fortunately though, unlike before with the used copy where I was shooting in the dark between trying to find out its age, damage, and DRM and such, I know any DRM on this would seal it to my computer, and I know that it's a very new copy, so I have a good idea of what's causing it - Not sure how visible it is in the photo, but disc 1(Which, in addition to about a quarter of the install data, also appears to be the game disc) is scratched: Unfortunately, I think I may end up having to exchange this for another one, which means heading down highway number to streetname avenue again. But hey, it's all for the cause, eh?
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A word to the wise - Even if it doesn't seem like it could mess anything up that seriously, make sure you know what you're doing when you dig through and mess with the files in your game. I think I may have screwed up my ME1 install while trying to manually transfer the save, so I'm reinstalling it and hoping that won't remove the complete save. Installing ME2 and testing it out with GenericShep beforehand though to make sure it is indeed finally working. On the bright side though, if I do end up losing my save, replaying it could probably rebuild my excitement for ME2, and I can look into other dialogue options in the non-essential conversations. That, and I can try my hand once more to make a ManShep that isn't squarely in Uncanny Valley.
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And as such, I assume the release roster is finalized, and so I'm forced to ask. NINTENDO Y U NO GIVE 3DS RELEASE FIRST-PARTY SUPPORT Seriously, hopefully the reviews will correct me, but of the three release-day Nintendo games, two seem like arcade games, and the other is Nintendogs, which is adorable, but reminds me of the Tamagotchi toys - They seem cool, and they're cute, but they're not a lot of fun. Why withhold the Ocarina or Star Fox remakes? I don't know this since I don't know much about game code, someone who does correct me if wrong, but those are in-large already made, since they're remakes. They just need kinks to be worked out with the new controls and such, which, based on all the first-hand previews I've read, were few in number. Granted, with the LoZ remake, I can kind of understand since it turns out Master Quest has been added - To my delight - and as such, needs to be worked out, but I can't think of an excuse for the Star Fox 64 remake. Relatedly, the impressions of Kid Icarus: Uprising have also already been overwhelmingly positive, albeit there were some annoyed with the switch from platformer to TPS, why's it being delayed? It bugs me that the only 3DS release titles that interest me is Resident Evil: Mercenaries, and even then it's in the bottom of the five games I'm looking forward to. are Ridge Racer and Asphalt, and even then, unless there's a large enough sale of them to assure online gaming, it doesn't garner much. I'm not taking down my pre-reserve though - Based on my experiences with the DS and Wii, when Nintendo turns on the hype machine and releases a new system, you either pre-reserve it and get it that way, wait in line to get it, or you don't get it for a few months, if you're lucky only that long. I already put the pre-reserve down, so the second is out of mind, and the third is easily the least-desirable option; If the 3D tanks and no games come out for a while, just because it's a new Nintendo system that's hard to find, I can toss it on eBay and make a profit. It'd just be silly to withdraw the reserve, but I wish I didn't have to approach it from this standpoint. But come on Nintendo, please announce a surprise release title for the 3DS everyone wants to see? I don't want to buy it and have it sit collecting dust for two months.
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In a lot of ways, I feel like this is what Diamond/Pearl/Platinum and Heart Gold/Soul Silver were test runs for. The first set tested the waters on the DS, and a lot of the ideas from the Gold/Silver remakes are still here, but moreso polished and refined. The protagonists are older now, not ten-year olds as they've traditionally been. There are also three this time, so you'll be facing both of the other starters, regardless of who you choose. The 3D environments are back, and, as said, more polished. I've only been to smaller cities so far, I haven't seen what they do with the traditional big-city-city, but I'm looking forward to it. Traveling from the full world is a lot smoother, with no black two-second loading screen; Instead, now it zooms in on the environment around the door, which fades away to the inside environment. I don't remember the inside-to-out transition offhand, but I think it was something very similar. The sound direction is also improved - Battles change the music to fit what's going on, instead of sticking with one theme over and over again. Plus, it's nice to hear some higher-quality music; D/P/P had a nice soundtrack, but like I said, I really feel Game Freak was testing the waters on the DS, it was essentially GBA music. Silver/Gold was higher-quality, and good music, but it was a remake, with redone versions of the old songs, so it wasn't really a fair judge. I've enjoyed wearing the headphones for White so far though - It may seem like a minor point, but as a musician, I both enjoy the soundtrack, and think it really helps set the atmosphere and mood of a game/movie/what-have-you, so this made me happy. The battle system, as said, is very similar to the Gold/Silver remakes, but, to meet the rule of three, more polished, more refined. The battle animations are also a little more dynamic, but given it's shown potential just below what the N64 could do, and the N64 had the Pokemon Stadium games, it would've been nice to see a bit more movement in the actual pokemon, maybe even 3D. Overall, I've only managed to get the first gym badge, so I'm not very far along, but I've been decently pleased with the game. I'm looking forward to seeing what they do on the 3DS though, hopefully we can get 3D pokemon sprites there, as that's probably the biggest let-down so far. On that note though, I know the release dates were months apart in Japan, but with the 3DS not even a month away, buying a game for a system that's this close to being outdated(A feeling that will no-doubt repeat when purchasing Okamiden, but Capcom's not the first-party, so they get a little more slack) feels a little silly. I know that a port of it to the 3DS would've just had gimmicky 3D effects on the attacks, especially if it's for the US version only, but you can turn off the 3D, so it wouldn't have all been bad. Still though, all-in-all, it feels like a very natural progression for the series, and makes apparent the lessons learned both by players and publishers since the series' first foray onto the DS. The level of polish would've been nice earlier on, but the first transition with D/P/P was going to be awkward no matter what, and there's a certain charm in a remake that shares some of the original's quirky flaws, so they were passable in HG/SS. If you're a fan, you already have it. If you like the series but it's not big on your list, and you passed up either of the other DS games either because of the first's quirks or the second's remake status, this one should make you happy. If you hate the series, you're not going to like it anyway, no worries. If you want a first game, this is a pretty good one methinks, though as it's a remake of what was my first Pokemon game, I'd always vouch for HG/SS as starters first. And on a final note, you finally get your set of five pokeballs before traveling route 1. I know I'm not the only person who hated backtracking to catch the ones I wanted that I missed on my way to town #3, only to find my now-level-12 starter is too powerful to fight without knocking them out, so this is very welcome in my book. Also, to make others from my age group feel old, the next Pokemon remakes are going to be of Ruby and Saphire. How's that for freaky?
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Wow these controls are clunky as they are now. Unfortunately the options menu doesn't work so I can't adjust them. Whether this is a fault in the MGS PC port or it's because I'm using an emulator, I'm not sure, but it's still fun, and the more I play it, the more I can hear the likelihood of finishing the album by the 28th slipping. Revolver Ocelot shooting me while I'm trying to heal got me annoyed enough to leave for a bit though, hopefully I can get some work done now.
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Bioware, now that I know I'm not going to get any success from a $5 used copy thanks to your DRM, can you please release a port of Mass Effect 2 for OS X? It hasn't been a Microsoft exclusive since last month, and according to iGame Radio and Mac Life(Not my choice of news by any means, but "Mass Effect 2 Mac" in Google turned it up, and they seem legit enough) it's all but confirmed coming to at least the OnLive service, Which I can guarantee will see at least one sale if they get it, though I have fingers crossed for a physical release. The re-coding for a Blu-Ray format and a Playstation 3 instead of an xBox 360 and DVD has was finished in just under a year, and the report that it was in-development for OS X came about around June of last year, shouldn't some sort of hype-builder announcement come by now? Are you waiting for the 2011 E3? I have my fingers crossed for that, but if nothing else, if you are, there should be at least some leaking by now. Anyway, enough rambling. Bioware, I assure you I'm not the only one who wants this and can guarantee purchase, pre-reserve, the whole deal. Nobody from Bioware will see this most likely, but it can't hurt to put it out there I suppose.
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So, I think I know why my copy of Mass Effect 2 refuses to work. If I'm correct, it came out right around when that DRM that seals a game to a computer began getting used, and my copy is used. If I'm correct, I'd like to throw it at the jaw of the person who sold me it, but not much you can do. Either way, it's off to find a new copy I suppose.