Excess, SMB

Life has been busy the last two weeks, but I spent some of my blogging time posting over Shmups Forum m2k, Insert Credit, and a new forum called The Next Level. That forum gets crazy traffic. Not much to post about it here right now, though, let's get to the games shall we?

Maybe I should begin with the "Now stacking" first. A word about what I mean about "Now stacking." I must be crazy.à In my effort not to be bored, I seem to buy and quickly go through games. But "Now stacking" is different. I buy them and leave them unopened, or I just play them for about 1 hour. Thus the games are "stacked", saved over until the time I touch them again. Wierd. Wasteful. I think this the reality of those with too much and not understanding the opportunity. The story of Lazarus indeed. Well, this is the confessional, my game stack is waiting for me outside.

I am a R-Type newbie, and I say so. R-Type Final is by now a game I've stacked. Graphics at the expense of slowdown. Ships are handed down left and right and I don't know why. And dying and respawning at the beginning of the level. Puzzles? None. I just couldn't get into this game, though I think I spent 4 or more hours on it. Collect ships? Naw I'll let it collect dust.

Not much to say about Virtua Fighter 4. Hey it was only 980 yen, couldn't let that pass. Besides, before that I bought a Virtua Fighter 4 joystick. Granted I was using the stick for Psyvariar arcade practice. Hey what happened to the practice? I guess I got tired again.

Oh, I had to see what all the fuss was about. I've been looking for Doubutsu no Mori + (or Animal Forest) used and I could never seem to find it for less than 5000 yen. So I broke down and bought the revamped release calledà Doubutsu no Mori e+, which comes with a E+ card reader and is also SanDisk reader compatible. I have yet to put the actual game in my GameCube, since I didn't wanted to get addicted to it like crack. I am busy in Real Life dang it. I read some reviews over at GameFaqs where most gamers gave it 10 out of 10. Naturally I read the 6 or lower reviews first, and the interesting thing most of them are saying is that you run out fun after a month or two of playing. Gee, say 60 days of playing maybe an average of 30 minutes a day is 30 hours. If we use the cost performance metric, I'd say that's 200 yen an hour, not bad for entertainment. That's not the part I have trouble with. The troubling thing is the real-time link to Real World. Who has time to play this game 15 minutes during the midday when item X or animal X is only available during that time? This real-time link reminds me of Roommate Ryoko for the Sega Saturn and the stories of that game's fans resetting their console's clock just see Ryoko in the game. Heh.

Then this E+ card reader is Nintendo's newest crack toy. It's basically a bar code reader even your Pokemon playing kids can use. You can use the E+ card reader to extend your GameCube and GameBoy Advance games. For example you could have a "save roll" card that gives your Mario in Super Mario Advance 4 an extra item to try. Personally it scares me that I might get into Doubutsu no Mori+ so much that I start buying the multiple card sets, which at last count was going for 300 yen a hit, or 6000 yen a box with a total of 4 box sets already. There's your money making scheme there, skip the question marks and go straight to profit. Put it in your Cube and play it, I tell you.

Oh did you hear about SD compatibility? SD is some kind of really small memory card technology just like SmartMedia. (Well I got to the party late, sorry for the tech intro.) It's so small it smaller than a GameCube memory card. Doubutsu no Mori e+ says it can use it. Hm. What can you do with it, I don't know, but I already ordered an adapter from Nintendo's shop page. Just in case.

Why do I have Ikaruga in my Now stacking list? Well I had to "rescue" the used copy. Um? Well it was going for 3900 yen used and because it was 5% off used game day at the store. Um? Oh, in this case this makes my second copy for the Gamecube and third copy overall. "Break glass in case of emergency." I'm about to break the 100 hour mark on it, and I still can't seem to get the rhythm of Chapter 4-2 at all. Ugh, gotta get busy and practice every day for 15 minutes. That is, if I really want to be able to practice Chapter 5 Normal on my own.

So far the above has been catch up to last weekend, I mean before vacation. So let's talk about vacation, shall we?

When B. Sheffield linked the CrazyGodTechnique.avi on his Insert Credit page, it was gasoline that exploded my Super Mario Brothers nostalgia. (It wasn't the spark, I was already fanning the flames at that point, see Super Mario Advance 4) Here was a video which made Super Mario Brothers new again. Impossible! Awesome! Totally and complete stupifying! I simply had to reject it. But I did finally duplicate a triangle jump. Once. I got in my hand an original Japanese Super Mario Brothers cartridge, complete with box. I am going to try it on the regular hardware. I swear it.

Which is not to say I am ignoring Super Mario Brothers 2. I once commented that I haven't played this much at all, but then I dug out my Super Mario Bros. DX GameBoy Color game and discovered I played up to level 6-2. Hm. I went that famous Motomachi video nostagia shop yesterday and I talked to the guy behind the counter about it. I bought Yoshi's Island there and he gave me some Super Famicom cartridge cases for free. Sweet. I asked him about the Disk System and he told me they replace the belts for a fee. Great! We went on and on, but unfortunately I couldn't fake my ignorance of the Famicom in Japan; I knew more than he did. "Axe: Store of Collection Goods" 078-351-0777. I am this much closer to buying a Disk System for the Famicom. Now I should have asked that guy if I could use it on my AV model Famicom. Darn.

I found a Super Mario Brothers 2 guide book, originally 380 yen, now selling for 1000 yen! at Mandrake Osaka. Hm. Rare stuff is rare. But somehow you can find more rare stuff at Mandrake. That's where I bought Super Mario Collection for 4500 yen! My first experience with Mandrake Osaka, I dropped 10000 yen there. Well, what a pleasant shafting experience. But I swear, I couldn't find a copy of either of these things anywhere else in Osaka Den Den town.

Galaxy Angels: Moonlight Lovers? Another 3d strategy game/love-sim? Well, I have the first game: I love the 3d part, pretty lasers and great control. So now I got the demo for the sequel, which come out next month. Hm. Let's see, not going to buy the special version, not going to buy even the regular version. I don't want it that bad.

Mention the word Ikaruga and I go crazy. So when someone linked it with another game, I went looking. The result? Finger Flashing for the PlayStation. I laugh at the name! Then I see the real game system: You match 3 enemies in a jan-ken-pon (rock-paper-sissors) in never ending puzzle fashion. Well, okay, let me break the seal on this game (no obi!) and actually play it before I review it.

And just to make sure that I didn't miss anything, I bought Doki Doki Idol Star Seeker, a Dreamcast puzzle game. I've been keeping my eye on this game, and it was about 3000 yen, within my budget. Cute characters with a questionable game design. A puzzle hexagonal board game? Again, let me break the seal on this game (yes obi!) and actually play it before I review it.

Because I bought that Super Mario Collection, there was no way I was going to go without a Super Famicom for much longer. Thus I had to buy some games for the new system I was about to purchase. Anybody remember Populous? This brought back memories of my old Super Nintendo copy and the "simulations" I would run overnight, computer vs computer. Unfortunately it looks like I bought a dud. Then there's Super Mario Kart, which I can't get enough of on the GBA remake, Mario Kart Advance. Finally I picked up Yoshi's Island (as explained above) because I am on this old-school platform game kick and I've never played it before.

Okay, so that brings me up to day on games for the last 15 days. Just me and buying games. Not much real gaming going on I know, sorry.

Reloaded

First off, I've been reading more novels. I like it. Should I mix my reading with my gaming, like start a RPG or something? Naw, reading a novel on paper is so convenient. It puts me in the mood, whereas I only get a slice of story between scripted RPG battles. Right now that' s my mood.

So, in my other copious free time, I am trying out the recent games I bought. Most of the games are remixes for the latest platform. Isn't that odd?

Super Mario Advance 4 "Just what I needed!" Well the audio wasn't the cosmic mess I thought it would be. It's just as good as the SNES Super Mario All-Stars remix. Of course I use the ol' two finger approach to control, but it puts my wrist and forearm at an uncomfortable angle. Ack, annoying vertical scroll. (I really should just find the old cartridges. Yoshi's Island  on an original Super Famicom. Why not?) I am dreading playing the on-rail levels, like World 1-4. Please, that was not fun. I jump when I want to jump, okay? I though this version would include red coins? Also, there was a e-reader card and an e-reader interface. Sheesh. I need to get Animal Crossing e+ to enjoy this part of the game.

My search for Super Mario Bros 2 proves fruitless. Well, I wasn't really searching hard. Next time I'm in Nipponbashi Den Den Town it will be on.

Can I talk about Star Soldier now? This remix game for the GC is just addictive! I already put up a post on Shumps Forums, unfortunately no one is sharing my enthusiasm. It's the 2 minute mode and 5 minute mode. Gaming in quick small bites. Control is tight, although graphics should be cleared up a bit more.

Kirby's Air Ride. How come in katakana I read it as Kirby's Air Raid? Bad little Kirby. Anyway, the animations are too cute, but the graphics move too fast. Jeez, you need to drink a cup of sugar to play this game. Why is that? And this game is deep, despite the analog joystick and one button only approach. And there's many different games in there as well. Party mode! But how come the AI is so ruthless? When I was in first, I couldn't stop vibrating from the hits the player in second was making.

And then I downloaded Raiden II for the PC. D00d, my P3-500 == an arcade machine from 1996. Whoa. I downloaded it from the Underdogs, but do they have the right to post it for free? Anyway, I played it with the Sony Dual Shock Controller, no music but plenty of sound effects. Wow, really tough. Nice sprite effect. I reflected on my old college and the nice arcade they used to have there. How about my old friend who used to play this game a lot? Can he get this game now?

Anyways. Need to keep reading this novel, very very interesting.

Close out bargain hunting 2, more Psyvariar 2

I finished that novel, and I'm going to start reading another one. What does this mean about my gaming? ^_^

I think I visit Sofmap Kobe too often. I know the people by face now. And they know me. "Irrashaimase!!!!!" Ah ha. When I was over there, I played more of that Samurai Showdown. "Tachibana Ukyo!!!!!!" Over-the-top sound effects, I wanna get a Neo Geo now. But you didn't hear that from me. I'm not into fighting games no more. ^_^;


At the retro demo station, Super Mario Bros 3 on the FC saying play me. It was interesting seeing other people play. How do they hold the controller? The old one thumb for jumping. Well, no one was watching when I was playing... Index and middle as the main action fingers. And Level 1-3 came back to me, warp whistle. I forgot how to get the second warp whistle though. Rather than pulling out my revision FC, I scanned for the newest versions of the SNES and NES emulators. I have had the SNES version ROM of Super Mario All-Stars for a long time. Booted up the latest ZSNES, connected my Sony Playstation Dual Shock controller, proceeded to be ahhed by the visuals, but I turned it off because of the revision audio. Ugh!!!!! I love the NES version bleeps and bloops. I remember recording the music to a cassette tape back in the day. Jeez I probably still have that tape. So when this game comes out for the GBA, will I get it? Grudgingly, yes. I swear its the revision music that pisses me off. Damnit Nintendo it's not a feature its a bug!

So I wasn't at Sofmap for gaming per se, but it was used game/electronics day. I scored Tokimeki Memorial Culture. I played Tokimeki Memorial Science around early 2000. That was when I didn't have anything other than a GBC-us on me. I also picked up Kurukuru kururin. I'm not sure why, but I really wanted to recapture some on-the-go puzzle gaming.

And then I spied some one holding not one but two Rez Trance Vibrators. What the hell? I was about to ask him about it then I saw on the clearing table two more Rez Trance Vibrators. Going for Sofmap clearout price of 580 yen! New! What is the world coming to? Also on the table was Pinball of the Dead (GBA-jp) which I passed over, and Columns Cross, which is Columns for the GBA. Please, puzzle on-the-go.

Happy happy joy. To get ready for Psyvariar 2 in the arcade, I bought another joystick for my ailing PS2. Yes, the Virtua Fighter 4 Joystick, but it was only 980 yen?! What is the world coming to? ^_- I got home and took a really good look at all available information about Psyvariar 2 and proceeded to wax mightily about it in the Shmups forum. Whoa, I am a fanboy when I get down to it.

So I'm sitting here trying to get through most of my media collection, I haven't yet opened most of my DVDs and games, and I still gotta get out. I can't go home and sit still. I can't stay at home and feel at ease. Too many things to get through. I've really work on my discipline.

Closeout bargain hunting, Psyvariar 2

To tell you the truth, I haven't been playing much games, because I'm reading a novel right now.

But last weekend was interesting. I picked up Moeyo ken, the adventure game with Rumiko Takahashi as character artist. She is a major manga artist. I love Takahashi-sensei back in the days of Ranma 1/2, Maison Ikkoku, Laughing Target. I never did get into Urusei Yatsura or her latest Inuyasha. It was kind of sad to see Moeyo ken going for 1000 yen, but I guess if it's not a game, it doesn't sell.

In the same shop, I found the last copy of Korokoro Kirby going for 2000 yen. That's as cheep as it'll get. To play it, I'll have to bust out my older GBA. Ugh. I hate the normal GBA screen now.

Are there any good puzzle games for the GameBoy or GameBoy Color? I remember spending much time playing Tetris Plus for PS1, back in 1998, which brought me back to Tetris games. Other than that, I mentioned before Puzzle de Pon, but I still haven't felt the insatiable appetite for that game. Enter Wetrix GB. Wasn't this game some Nintend 64 game? In any case, puzzle gaming is one of my favorites. We'll see how this plays.

Oh and I bought Phalanx for about 1000 yen, on sale. For some reason, it turns from an on-the-rails side scrolling shooter into a travel around this gigantic space ship side scrolling shooter. I remember the U.S. cover, some old fogey in get-'em-cowboy get-up strummin' a gi-tar while some wierd super deformed space ship flies right in front of him. "All your base..." indeed.

I beat Hoshi no Kirby. Wow it's short but you can make it as challenging as you like. I for one can't beat the all-boss battle. I finally got to the "shump" part of the game but there wasn't enough to tide me over. I have only 90% completed, however. This game is so cute. I like it. I wish there was more.

Just had to mention the next shooting game I really really want to play: Psyvariar 2. I bought the Arcadia arcade gaming magazine just to have the two page spread (also in the same issue, the high score for Ikaruga normal mode surpasses 36 million points. The WIZ fiend is at it again!!!) Maybe I'll start playing in the arcade, but crap, I really can't go for 100 yen a game.