Shinmaru

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Charles [/i] [B]Rob Van Dam said it best himself when he said (and I'm paraphrasing) "Austin was the WWE's number one wrestler. Now that he's injured and can't wrestle anymore, he's still their number one wrestler."[/B][/QUOTE] It's really a sad situation when a retired wrestler with a trashed neck is considered the WWEs best wrestler by [i]anyone.[/i] And it's even sadder that even with being involved with the "best wrestler in the WWE" that my favorite wrestler, Y2J, will get absolutely nothing out of it. Jericho's been in high midcard/low main event limbo for the longest time and I'm really getting sick of it. He has the talent the be the main eventer that carries RAW - I don't think that anyone can doubt that. However, the WWE seems intent on throwing Jericho in these mini-feuds to try to get others some recognition. Austin doesn't need any more heat - he gets enough from the crowd from being Stone Cold Steve Austin. And it's blantantly apparent that Jericho will come out on the short end of the stick with this one (unless the WWE decides to throw a rare curveball, which I sincerely doubt). At least Christian is getting a good push (yay!).

Well, my lag issue is finally done and over with, so any mods can close this topic if they wish. ^_^ I can post from my home again!

Hopefully, the reach won't be too short. Most likely, Nintendo will take their time and perfect the technology and not just rush it out. Given their track record, it should be a very, very good peripheral once it's released. Even though I don't have multiple GBAs, I have played multiplayer games with them and it's not fun setting it up. Hopefully, this will simplify the process tremendously.

Okay, after a PM or two with my boss, Semjaza, we decided to create a thread dedicated to gaming news and rumors. A couple things before we go into this, though: 1) Anyone can post in this. Feel free to post any bits of gaming news you want, or to comment on any bit of gaming news that is posted in this thread. 2) However, even though you can post any piece of gaming news you want, I'd rather this thread have only smaller pieces of gaming news. If a piece of gaming news is big enough to have it's own thread, than it should probably have it's own thread. But it's your call. 3) Also, please source your information, in case people want to search it out and confirm it for themselves. It's much easier that way. 4) Even though this is in the Nintendo forum, you can include gaming news about any company, even Microsoft and Sony. It's just easier that way. Okay, I'll start us off: Source: Electronic Gaming Monthly, Issue #172, Nov. 2003 - Those looking forward to Perfect Dark may have to wait a bit longer than first intended because it seems that Microsoft wants to wait until Halo 2 comes out before they start to hype Perfect Dark Zero. As many know, Rare is under full ownership of Microsoft, so most decisions about the release of PDZ are totally Microsoft's call. - The sequel to Knights of the Old Republic 2, while still be way, way off the gaming radar, will reportedly include co-op play. - Even though EA has remained totally exclusive to Sony when it comes to online games, EA has reportedly agreed to have it's 2005 sports games as a part of XBox Live along with their PS2 counterparts. No word on online GameCube EA games, however. That's about it for me. I'd post more but I'm running low on time right now and the EGM is the only thing I have with me right now. However, I know of, literally, tons of gaming websites I can go to for information. More News: Source: [url]http://www.gamespot.com/all/news/news_6076016.html[/url] According to Gamespot, Ubi Soft is filing charges against five former designers (who have worked, among other things, on Splinter Cell) with breach of contract, when they left the company to join EA Canada. A clause in the contracts limits employees who sign it to work in the North American gaming industry for a period of one year after they leave the company. Though Ubi Soft does have a Montreal studio, they have never enforced this clause before. Ubi Soft is indeed enforcing this clause, but they have yet to elaborate further on the subject. EA believes that this case will restrict employees from being able to work wherever they choose to.

The game is looking utterly fantastic so far. It looks even more amazing than MGS2 (which was a great looking game in its own right). The voice acting, as always from the MGS crew, is great and the cutscenes flowed very well together. I'll reserve further judgement until I actually know how the gameplay turns out, but I must say that it's looking mighty fine right now. This is yet another game that I am looking forward to playing. Now if only I had the money to buy all these great games. Capatalism can be a real downer sometimes lol.

Kefka, no contest. Sephiroth is undeniably cool but...he's just so flat. He basically says the same stuff throughout the entire game. He only really benefits from looking like a total badass. Kefka is a much more rounded villain, in my opinion. He's seems so goofy in the beginning, but then evolves into a power hungry madman [spoiler]once he gets a taste of the powers of the Espers. And, as said before, he actually succeeded in taking over the world; how many villains can you say really did that, huh?[/spoiler] And James is right: Kuja is a dork. A prissy, little dork.

Well, I never was a big PC Gamer (though, I'm a known Grim Fandango fanatic - that game rules), so I wasn't really including the PC Market in all this. But, in all fairness, I guess you can put them in this, too. It's all games in the end. Oh yeah, thanks for mentioning Silicon Knights, James - that made my day. Eternal Darkness was an awesome, awesome game and one of the few that I've actually looked forward to playing over and over and over again and enjoyed it even more than the first time (most games I play, I don't enjoy nearly as much when I play them a second time - a lot I don't even play a third time through). That was an interesting tidbit about Smash TV, too. I always enjoyed that game. I never really did think that Midway was responsible for it lol. [quote][i]Originally posted by Semjaza Azazel[/i]Consoles generally come from Japan, which I'm sure perpetuates this train of thought. The US-minded Xbox seems to be helping shift this idea a lot more.[/quote] Yeah, that probably helped create the bias somewhat. People always think the source is the only one responsible for great work, huh? And, as you pointed out, companies like Acclaim, Midway, etc. certainly aren't helping the reputations of countries outside of Japan (because a lot of people, unfairly, base their foreign gaming opinions only on U.S. developers). Looking back, I probably shouldn't have only mentioned the U.S. in this discussion. Silly me.

This is by no means a fairly recent trend, but I see it just about everywhere and have decided to comment on it now. Many companies that make great games are of Japanese descent. However, listening to many gaming fans on the internet, you'd think that any game that comes out of Japan is pure gold. There are two companies in particular, in which I have noticed this trend with - one company that i feel has earned this distinction and one that I feel that definitely has not: Nintendo and Squaresoft/Square-EA/Square-Enix. There are literally millions of people who see Square as a sort of gaming god, as it were. They snatch up each and every Square game in sight and treat each new Final Fantasy as if it were the second coming of Jesus Christ himself. However, in my opinion, this is simply not the case. Really, if you go and play a lot of Square's games, you'll find just as many, if not more, mediocre games (as is the case with plenty of other companies out there). However, many Square fans with their blind and undying love for their favorite company, simply can not see this. Now, let's go to the other side of the spectrum with Nintendo. Die-hard Nintendo fans are sometimes cut from the same fanatical mold as hardcore Square fans, unfortunately, and act like each new Nintendo game is the greatest thing ever (and I will fully admit to being like this a few years ago). Now, don't take this as me saying I hate Nintendo - Nintendo, is in fact, my favorite gaming company. However, I hope that you can see the pattern developing here - many gaming fans think only the Japanese can make great games. There are several American developers, but only a few have gained recognition (the most prominent including EA, Activision, and (bleh) Acclaim). Why is this? Is there a bias apparent towards Japanese companies? I think so. Is there a bias against American companies? I think so, as well. It's not that strong, but it's definitely there - and in more people than you would think. What does everyone else think about this?

Booker T.'s return is great news to me. Booker was really on a roll before he got injured (though, I still think that Christian should've kept the Intercontinental Title the whole time, with Booker staying in the main event scene). And I hope that the WWE will use Chris Jericho better than they did on RAW this past Monday. Chris is really the front runner to be the top heel on RAW while Triple H is out. Having Goldberg totally destroy Y2J was not the smartest of booking in the WWEs part. I really hope that they can rectify the situation fairly quickly.

Sorry, we don't allow this sort of thread here at OtakuBoards because we don't support illegal activites, obviously (of which the sharing of ROMs is definitely illegal). However, I hope that you enjoy your stay at OB. Just remember to read through the rules.

See, so many RPGs I've never been able to play. 'Tis why I was a bit reluctant to post in this topic. I never played Persona because that was when I couldn't really afford games and my dad bought them all for me. I don't think my dad would've been too into Persona lol. Earthbound...gah, SNES games were really, really expensive. Though Earthbound was actually a bargain because I think it came with the official Nintendo strategy guide. I'm sure Semjaza can confirm whether or not that's true, but I'm fairly sure it did. Dragon Warrior was always cool. I've had the opportunity to play the first one, but I haven't been able to pick up any of the others in the series (not even DWVII). That princess from the first one was really, really weird. When I talk over AIM with a friend of mine from another message board, she always seems to be brought up in some way or another lol. I've also never been able to play FFIV, Chrono Trigger (sacrilege!) and both of the Lunar games. And if it's us against the world, Semjaza, then so be it :p

Heh, not bad at all, I'd say. I always end up buying systems in the earlygoings and not being able to take advantage of the better deals later on in the systems life. Now that I have more information on the subject, I can see how this would benefit Nintendo (especially since I conviently forgot about their money and GameCube stockpiles >_

My favorite RPG that I've played (because there are a ton of really great ones that I haven't played) is Final Fantasy VI. Definitely the best of the FFs I've played - the story is phenonmenal, the characters are well rounded, and the fighting system is top-notch and doesn't get boring. More often than not, I find myself getting bored with all the fighting in Final Fantasy, because I don't like the battle system. Not so, with FFVI - the different abilities of each character make for a nifty battle system. Plus, Kefka is cool. Come on, you know he's crazier than Sephiroth. Admit it.

Usually, I try to avoid the faster characters. More often than not, their speed is pretty hard for me to control. The only really fast characters I feel comfortable using are Fox, Captain Falcon and Marth. Characters that have a balance between speed and strength are more my style, because I can still get nice combos that can deal more damage.

I'd switch places with James so that I could have that kickass job as Governor of California.

School Spirit weeks...I never really gave a crap about them at all. At our school it was just another opportunity for the popular kids to show off. Bastards. The pep-rallies at our school are god-awful...there are so many kids at our school, we have to have all rallies outside in the heat. As if there wasn't already enough reason for me to loathe them...

I agree with what the analyst said. I'm not too sure about how much it costs to mass produce and ship GameCubes (if someone could fill me in with the details, that'd be nice), but I'm not too sure about how Nintendo can turn a profit selling GameCubes at $99 a pop. I could be wrong, though, but right now, I'm not too sure about the strategy. Just seems like a last-ditch effort to reclaim the second place position before they start gearing up for their next console.

I remember Mega Man Soccer... It was way too easy to score in the game, the control was a bit off, the teams were too similar, and it was kinda boring... ...yet, I enjoyed it. A sign of the Apocolypse? Perhaps it is so...

I'm not sure how much of a problem this is for anyone else, but it's been keeping me off of OB for the past few days (I'm lucky to even be able to post this and the last few posts I've made). Lately, I've been suffering severe lag on OtakuBoards and their affiliates (i.e. myOtaku.com and The Otaku.com). These are the only websites I experience any hint of lag on, so I'm pretty sure it's not a problem with my computer. Also, the lag happens on other computers I go on as well (it's happened on my mother's computer and at my school computers). Also, OtakuSennen has told me that he was having lag as well, so I know it's not just in my general area. Any and all advice or help on this matter would be immensely appreciated.

Well, maybe I overstated it a bit, but I did the usual newbie thing by skipping over the rules, advertising a website and misinterpreting other people's posts. Not that much of a problem, but I must dramatize as much as is humanly possible!

I'm pretty sure I did this list thingy before, but I can't remember. So, I'll do it again (or perhaps for the first time). Syk3 - Without a doubt, my best friend on OB. He always seems to be in just the right mood that I need to feel better when I talk to him. If I'm in a crappy mood, he's really silly, and if I'm in a overly silly mood, he's in a serious mood. Great guy to talk to; plus, he's a hell of a lot funnier on AIM than he is on OB (though, he has his moments here, too). James - I've talked to him a few times in the last couple months and he's a real cool guy. He gave me some good advice on breaking into the journalism industry and was even nice enough to read a couple video game reviews I had done. Plus, he actually rivals my goofiness in chat rooms, which is a strange sight to see. Semjaza Azazel - Gah, I can never find the time to IM him, which really sucks. I have a lot of respect for Semjaza's opinion on gaming, even if I disagree with him on occasion. Plus, he was really cool with me even after I made myself look like an *** those first few days after I came onto the boards. And I also find solace in the fact that he hates me just as much as he hates everyone else :p Booyah! Charles - One of only two people I've had a good, serious wrestling conversation with. If that's not cool, I don't know what is. And he goes above and beyond my oddities in the chat room. I don't think I'll ever catch up to him, the bastard :p Japan_86 - Always kind enough to invite me into her chats even after Kazuko and I always turn them into weird, perverted shells of their former selves (the chats, I mean). Nice girl to talk to. Ruby - How can I forget my Ruby? Always super kind to me and pretty intelligent for someone so young. Plus, she's a hell of a lot more patient than I am - she helps me through some things from time to time. OtakuSennen - Happy Organization of Really Nerdy Youths. Enough said. Dragon Warrior - Makes some damned good comics and is always cool enough to drop on by and give me the heads up on updates. Plus, Gavynn's a really funny guy. And that dancing black mage is awesome, too. LostProphet - LP is good people. Haven't talked to him in a while but he's a cool guy. The Air Force rules. SaiyanPrincessX - Without my employer, I'd still be living in a cardboard box. But now that I have become her butler, opportunities have opened up for me everywhere. For example: I shined Eddie Vedder's shoes recently. [i]Eddie freaking Vedder![/i] I'm movin' on up... Kazuko - Ah, what would the chats be without Kazuko and I dragging them down into the gutters? They wouldn't be as cool as they are now, I can tell you that much. If I have been stupid enough to leave you off this list, do not hesitate to chastise me with extreme prejudice. LAPD level prejudice, if you must.

Bleh, I've never liked the Crash Bandicoot series. First off, I've always felt that the character of Crash was a second rate ripoff of Sonic the Hedgehog. He has the kind of look that makes you think that some suits dreamed him up to capitalize and profit off his image and "attitude." Second, I never really liked the Crash Bandicoot gameplay. It's like a 2D/3D Super Mario Bros. save for one thing: Super Mario Bros. did it a million times better. The gameplay, to me, always seemed to come off as flat and boring. Speaking of the gameplay, it's barely changed at all over the years; each Crash game (save for Crash Team Racing and Crash Bash, which are essentially ripoffs of Mario Kart and Mario Party except that Crash Team Racing was actually pretty good) has had pretty much the same exact gameplay as their predecessors. Maybe a couple little things were added, but the gameplay hasn't really changed, even today. But that's just my opinion. You can take it for what you think it's worth.

Right now, I'm supposed to be in college overdrive according to the school, but eh. I think they're just trying to scare everyone. I'm going to be applying to three schools (Cal-Poly Pomona, Cal State Fullerton, and USC) and I already know that I have good enough grades/SAT scores/etc. to get into the first two. I'd rather go to USC but it's really, really expensive. If I can barely scrounge up the money for Soul Calibur II, how am I gonna go to USC, huh? Anyway, I'd like to major in Journalism. Writing has always interested me more than anything and I believe that getting a journalism related job would be very satisfying for me, especially in the realm of video game journalism. I talked about this over AIM with James a long time ago (before school started, I think) and he was pretty adamant in telling me that there was a lot of competition involved in become a journalist, but that it's also a good way to break into the industry (as he has accomplished). So, basically, the risk is worth the reward in my case.

There's lots of things you could do. One of the best things I've seen done is people watching an anime series and doing an analysis of the characters. Cowboy Bebop would be especially good for this since the characters are deep and well defined but also leave something to the imagination. The benefits of being able to analyze people based on their personalities would be pretty evident, I think.

I think you're taking wrestling a bit too seriously, heh. That's just Brock Lesnar's character - that's not how he acts in real life lol. He's not gonna grab some old lady and F5 her in the middle of the street or something. To be honest, I think that the heel turn was needed. Brock Lesnar, in my opinion, didn't really make a convincing face - he's much better as a heel (though, I'd rather he didn't align himself with Vince freaking McMahon - the man needs to get the hell off of TV). There was a serious lack of top heels on Smackdown since Kurt Angle turned face and Brock fills the void quite well (now if only Matt Hardy would get a massive push, we'd be in business).