Goodbye, Face

I always write: Your Hero, Kevin McCarty Last year's yearbook had a few good ones, two from a guy we called Duckman because he made quacking noises a lot... odd kid... If you open my yearbook to the autographs, you see an arrow pointing to where the pages are connected to the spine, you have to really spread out the book to read it. It says: When you feel your life is out of whack, just remember I signed your crack! Quack! -Duckman! Now turn to the back! You flip the page over and he signed on the piece of the spine glued to the last page. It says: I'm sorry Kevin! Please don't whine, Duckman also signed your spine! Quack!

I'm in the same situation as J2Assassin, my SNES stopped ticking so I turned it into a tissue dispenser (and my PS into an ashtray). I shouldn't have to mention the games I like because they're the same games everyone else likes on that system. Some games that no one talks about (or probably remembers) are Journey to Sillius, a side-scrolling shooter/platformer for the NES. I also like MagMax a lot, it was the first shooter I ever played, for NES; it's cool because there's a psuedo-3-D world above ground and you can dive underground for a true side-scrolling shooter. As for newer games, Soul Calibur II is amazing, as well as Tekken 5, which I've still only played in arcades. I play Dance Dance Revolution to stay in shape (and then have a nice steaming bowl of Ramen noodles...). I've also become addicted in some Atlus games, like Disgaea, Phantom Brave, Shin Megami Tensei, and even older ones like Tail Concerto and Rhapsody. The Rathcet and Clank games are cool, I'm waiting for Up Your Arsenal to become a Greatest Hit before I buy it, because just spent a lot of money on some new guitar equipment. Hope I helped!

[size=1]The theme, as stated, is "Nowhere to hide," so I'm reading articles... and reading more articles... and I came up with something. If you look at the main characters' sneaking suits, they've all been upgraded, looking similar to the ninja's. This could mean that you have stealth throughout the entire game... possibly hooked up to a battery or something so you'd only use it only when you need to... but that's sooo MGS3 (yeah, I was going for that effect). It sounds interesting. I also though of James's idea of perhaps disguising yourself as a guard for most of the game, and using the camo menu for switching uniforms between different areas. As for Big Boss's remains, it would make sense for them to be alive. Otherwise, why would the government be so reluctant to relinquish his remains to the terrorists? It also reminds me of how they experimented on Gray Fox. We already know that the genome soldiers of the first MGS were created using Big Boss's remains, and if he's actually being brought out as a character, would that make him the main villan or something? Also, is anyone noticing how much older Snake looks in the picture compared to how much the other characters aged (not much at all)? I'm wondering if FoxDie is going to come back in this game or something. And if I'm right about some of the story details, what Kojima said will be true, that Metal Gear for the PS3 is going to be another trilogy similar to the first one. I think that they're going to bring back some elements from MGS1 for the story, and my point is made even stronger by the assumed return of Naomi Hunter.[/size]

In my opinion, "out-of-date" refers to a band who has broken up or died or something like that. Yes, I'm saying that the Ramones are out of date, but it's obviously not out of date to be listening to them, as fans of them will be around forever. It only bothers me when I see kids who aren't even old enough to where they could've seen the band live wearing the shirts and just being obssessed with them. Over here, there's a decent-sized population that thinks that Black Flag and Minor Threat are the best thing to ever happen to music (although half of them would retract that statement if I brought up Green Day...) I've seen much better come out of new artists like The Bronx, who remain very old-school, whilist being a new band.

I'm currently finding solace in: Norma Jean - Liarsenic: Creating a Universe of Discourse Swift - Charger KILLWHITNEYDEAD - Liars Like You Live the Shortest Lives My Chemical Romance - Helena The Sound of Animals Fighting - All is Ash or the Light Shining Through it Gorillaz - Feel Good Inc. Between the Buried and Me - Arsonist I think that's it this week, lol. I'm always listening to different stuff, it's more or less my job.

Wow, a week later, people finally post, and there's even an arguement. It just follows me... As for "Dear Michaela," I wrote it as a letter to my very dear friend... Michaela. She is a victim of child abuse and there's very little that can be done about it. Michaela falls down a lot and her mom has said and will say that her injuries came from that. We've been trying for a while to get something done, but it's rather hard until she turns eighteen. "I want to die" is an answer to a letter that was written to her by her best friend, basically telling her to ask for help, or "we'd" let her die... as long as "we" means her. Moonlight, I'm fine with what Retro said, it wasn't anything I consider negative, at least in his first post. I guess I should be glad that I didn't put "Jesus Christ Action Figure" on here, then this thread would be closed by the time I saw it, ha. As for the other poems, I've gotten the first two in three different newpapers, 14 poems and one story in our school's anthology, and I'm currently trying to find a publisher willing to... publish them. Yeah, I don't really like being rated like that (out of ten), but it's better than a "good job," that doesn't mean much either. Criticism is criticism and I thank you for giving me high marks. I'll update my portfolio by the end of this month, I've written a lot of new stuff that I haven't had the chance to put up yet.

I live in the Furniture Capital of the world, High Point, NC. I can count on two hands how many people in the state like anime as much as me (which is really just a casual "watch it, like it, buy it" basis). Rednecks and Jocks make up about 50% of our youth, 30% Goth, and 20% of kids don't belong anywhere. People are generally losers here, as they are everywhere else. My area is really growing, nothing was here when we first moved here, but now there's many developments full of houses, lots of stores, and the usual McDonalds for every two miles of street. Basically everywhere else here is hicksville and farmland. About half of NC's stores are flea markets... They don't sell fleas, but you'll have some by the time you leave.

This is the last post I'll be able to make for a while, see my signiature. [size=1][i]Kaige dreaded going back home, he was hated there. There was still no proof attaching him to this rather large crime, but everyone knew. Well, that was the last time he was there...[/i] Guard (apparently a friend of Kaige's): You're slipping, Kaige... Kaige: What? Guard: We all knew you did it, but now we have absolute proof... Kaige: Huh? Guard: You see, his wife came to see him for a second time, after you left... She was running her fingers through his hair one last time and she felt something a little hard stuck in his scalp... a thin, hollow needle. Kagie: And this is me because...? Guard: His blood was [b]black[/b], Kaige!!! Kaige: ... Guard: I'm sorry, my former friend... But I put you under arrest under the law of our nation and our king! Kaige: Yeah, I need to tell the king something... Guard: Well... that depends on him... [i]Two guards pull Kaiges arms behind his back and chain them together, while the two guards he was talking to (he was just talking to one, but there were two side by side) drew their spears at him, taking him to the dungeon. Fang was there at this point, seeing most of what happened. His small size allowed him to creep through the dungeon bars and keep Kaige company for a while... and if Fang can't talk, this is what he'd communicate in some other way...[/i] Fang: So you go yourself caught... Kaige: Shut up. Fang: Do you really want to say tha-- Kaige: Shut up! (under breath) I feel so pathetic right now... Fang: Well, I could tell the others to come spring you loose... Kaige: I don't want to be free, I'd just be a danger to them. Fang: I snuck into the council's room, you're to be executed tomorrow! Kaige: I deserve it. Fang: No you don't, sure, I don't know exactly what you did, and I haven't known you that long... But you're a good person. Kaige: If you say so. Fang: Well I say that I'm getting you out of here, be back! Hopefully with the others! Kaige: ...[/size]

[size=1]Jason: So someone should go to their city and tell the king what happened here. Kaige: Shouldn't we all do that? Jason: Well, many of us are injured and it would be a waste for all of us to go to our homes by ourselves. Kaige: Well, you brought it up, you should go. Jason: My dragon is rather tired... You and your dragon are probably the most healthy out of us right now. Kaige: Ok, I'll go to my king, tell him what happened, and tell him to send messengers to the other cities... Right? Jason: Sounds good. [i]Kaige went off to (his city) while the others stayed behind in a large building as it began to rain.[/i][/size] I'm allowing for some *meanwhile* time between my next idea, as I don't have the time to post it just yet.

James, I've played Minnish Cap (for about five minutes), I don't remember GBA starting out looking like that. And me talking about Metroid like that, I wasn't quite saying that game isn't a Metroid game, I was talking in general. I see this more in games like Luigi's Mansion (I haven't played it). To Siren, I had some difficulties with the original Metroid as well, I used Game Genie to beat it in one sitting. I didn't die enough in Super Metroid (my favorite Metroid game) for saving to be an issue. I basically went back to a save room only because I was leaving for a while. Metroid Fusion was the one where you fight an alien version of yourself, right? I think I played it for like two hours on a car trip with a friend. I think I died once and felt lucky because I only fought two easy bosses and died by the hand of monsters a few screens away from a save room. In any case, I did not call Metroid Prime an "uninspired franchise whoring," that's a little much. I'm saying that Nintendo doesn't create new characters because they won't sell like a Metroid or a Zelda would sell. Think about FF, why keep the name in every unrealted game? It won't sell, it'll be like Shadow Hearts, which sold... what? Two copies? Why didn't Prince of Persia: Sands of Time not sell, even with Splinter Cell bundled with it? Mario wouldn't sell half as well without Mario being in it, what if it was Croc in the game? We all forgot him right? Croc Sunshine, people would see that and puke on the spot. Just a thought.

[size=1][QUOTE=James][color=#737373]But you just finished telling me that you didn't like Metroid Prime and that you haven't liked Nintendo's games since SNES. So what do you mean by "back to their own standards"? Metroid Prime is a brilliant game and an example of one of Nintendo's better products in recent years. There are a ton of amazing Nintendo titles on GameCube and N64; these games exemplify the highest levels of quality in the industry. It's not that the games themselves are bad, or lacking. It's just that you don't like them. As I said earlier, that's fine. I know a few people who don't like Mario even though the Mario games are often the big trailblazers. But these are still great games and the sales reflect that. When you say you aren't talking about sales...yeah, we are talking about two different things here. These games are up to Nintendo's high standards, which the sales reflect. The sales wouldn't be high if the games were no good. That's what I'm trying to get across. The games might be good, but that doesn't mean you like them. It's important to make the distinction.[/color][/quote] At least since the N64, Nintendo has basically slammed Sony for demonstrating that quantity is apparently better than quality, while they're more on the quality side of the fence. The reason I didn't include the N64 in my saying that is because I have just one game, Star Wars Podracer (not bad, getting the system, four controllers, expansion pack, and a game for $20), and I've only played maybe ten others. As for Metroid Prime, I agree with you that it's a good game, the only problem I've had with it is repeating half an area from a save room 15 minutes away from a considerably hard boss. I know this is cliche of me to say, but issues like this would have upset you more if it wasn't a Metroid game, if Nostalgia didn't occur. Basically, Nintendo seems to make a game concept, then go into the vault to see what character they haven't used in a while, and try to fit them in. Would the game have selled less if it didn't have Metroid stamped all over it (Ha! There's the cliche!) Even I am willing enough to play through a game for a week going "play level, pwned by boss, play level again, pwned by boss, play level, beat boss, on to next level" until I beat it. Why? Because Samus Aran is cool, and I want to see Samus roll into a ball again, and collect power up from statues, I'm just hoping it'll be fun all over again. Did they include more frequent saves in Echoes? If they did, I'll definitely play it. [quote][color=#737373]I don't understand though. You respect them for not pushing graphics without focusing on gameplay, but that also disappoints you? I think basically, you simply haven't enjoyed some of Nintendo's games in recent times. That's cool. But they are [i]great[/i] games, objectively speaking. I only mention sales to demonstrate the success that many of these games have had and that Nintendo isn't going the way of Sega or something. Personally, I think Nintendo has made some of its most brilliant games in the last ten years. Sometimes they do well, sometimes they don't. But even games that I personally don't always like...I'd be hard-pressed to say that they're "bad" games. I just acknowledge that my taste isn't always the same as everyone else's. Mostly, I've just been trying to clarify that distinction. Your (or my) personal taste isn't necessarily reflecting an objective truth when it comes to the success of a business. Some of the stuff I've read about Revolution here just totally misunderstands the strategy behind it. So, mostly just for the purpose of putting the information out there, I've tried to clarify a little. It's all good. ~_^[/color][/QUOTE] I mentioned graphics in refrence to change from the GBC to GBA, there was barely a difference, however, I should expect that after saying that they're just portable games. There should still be some sort of difference. I'm going to buy a DS after their first price drop, whenever it is, I see enough cool games on the horizon to want to get it. I've never called of the games bad, that would mean that they're games like "The Bombing Islands," where you stop islands from blowing up by... blowing them up. I have been saying that I personally don't like some of these games. I do perfer my PS2 over my GC, but I've been buying more GC games than PS2 games recently (the only game I've purchased for PS2 this year is Ateller Deus, or however it's spelled. Meanwhile, I just started building my 15 game library of GC games). Oh, and here's my analogy on why I don't like sales figures, they can be as inaccurate as an oopinion. Britney Spears is a popular artist, but she's not necessarily a good artist. Have fun with it.[/size]

[QUOTE=AJeh][size=1]Hands down the best advert ever is the (I think) Volkswagen Golf one where they show that clip from "Singing In The Rain" (whatever it's actually called) and they make the guy breakdance. It is too awesome.. [URL=http://www.nathanpitman.com/images/vw_golfGTI_medium.mov]Quicktime link to ad (click here)[/URL] [b]My best advert's better than yours; I win[/b][/size][/QUOTE] Check my post, it's the first one I mentioned. Thanks for providing a link, lol.

[size=1][i]Kaige distanced himself from Jason and cast a barrier spell, pushing the soldiers into a nice circle around him. He got off Rath and told the dragon to kill as many people as it could. Kaige cast a spell on his sword to thicken it with magic power, it was no longer a sabre, but a long sword that could slice through armor. And that is what it began to do after Kaige let the barrier down. Rath created a dark haze through his nostrils, blinding many soldiers, Kaige used this opprotunity to dash through the crowd and slice everyone in his way. He got back on Rath to see how everyone else was doing. As the army was diminishing, the others were coming closer and closer, this would be an easy win... But more would come...[/i][/size]

[size=1][QUOTE=James][color=#737373]Nobody is calling the DS "better" than the PSP though. Try not to think of it as "better" or "worse". Try to think of it as "different". PSP and DS are two very different machines. Yes, they both play video games. But PSP is offering you a traditional gaming experience - it's offering you the same kind of interaction that you get with PS2 and other platforms. DS is offering you a type of interaction and a style of play that hasn't previously existed. This doesn't mean it's automatically "better" - maybe not for you and maybe not for many people. But it's a successful strategy, nonetheless. If you hated the Advance then you simply aren't the customer that Nintendo is going after. GBA was a pretty big leap over its predecessor (Game Boy Color). For the price, it offered what it could. What would you have been satisfied with? 3D graphics? That would have pushed the price up exponentially and wouldn't be logical for GBA at the time, for a myriad of reasons. I'm not saying that wanting any of these things is wrong. If you love your PSP and you want traditional games with better graphics, that's a valid choice. I'm just saying that it's incorrect to say that Nintendo is doing the "wrong thing" - their strategy is successful, based on GBA and DS sales. Maybe you aren't the kind of person who they are appealing to, but at the same time, it's clear that they are appealing to a large number of people. So, there's room for both strategies. I like Nintendo DS, but I wouldn't say that PSP is "wrong" or "worse". It's a different kind of experience. If I want to play PS2-like games on the road, I'll get a PSP. And there are definitely a few games I want to get PSP for, so I'm sure I'll be buying the thing at some stage.[/color][/quote] 3-D grpahics would probably have changed my mind about the GBA, it wasn't really that, though. The system seemed to be a sequel machine, it had few original games (and the original games it did have were very good, I'm thinking Boktai, FFT, and Sword of Mana; but the last two were still sequels, just not Nintendo's). Most of these said sequels were generally poor ideas, and when they made sequels of another game already released on GBA, I'm thinking Metroid Fusion and Metroid: Zero Mission, the games were almost identical, just with a different story and a few different guns or something. I believe the DS has a lot of potential, and it defintely could turn out to be a stunning piece of machinery if more games used it right, as you can tell, I have a big problem with all the games I've seen for it so far, with the exception of some games I've been reading about that probably won't come out til at least the end of the summer, even Christmas. [quote][color=#737373]GameCube didn't sell the most. It sold the least, but it made the most profit. But again, using examples of people you know...that isn't representative of an entire market. A lot of people say "I don't like this" or "my friends hate that" and they think that this somehow automatically means that the entire nation feels the same way. Obviously, it doesn't.[/color][/quote] I understand this point, too. Nintendo hasn't really appealed to me since SNES, I own an N64 (bought just recently), and a GC, but I've found few games I enjoy on either system when compared to Mario Kart, Chrono Trigger, Phalanx, Gradius, etc. It probably is just me, I try to have something from every company, but I can't help but say how poorly suited GC's controller is for MGS (Twin Snakes), or want to just press the grappling hook button in WindWaker and it be more like Rathcet's gadgets that sense where the next branch is. I don't like Metroid Prime (I haven't played the second one yet) because I don't like getting killed by a boss and going back 15 minutes in the level. That is getting off your point here though, these people I'm bringing up are basically me trying to defend my point, lol. [quote][color=#737373]What memory card are you talking about? PS2 cards are as small as any other, pretty much. Unless you're talking about a third party card, I don't know what you are referring to. As for the other stuff...I really think that's all pretty irrational. I don't "hate" Microsoft; I don't really hate any company. Microsoft is a business and they're trying to make money, just like the rest of them. There's nothing wrong with that. Sure, I disagree with their strategy sometimes, but I don't outright hate 'em.[/color] [color=#737373]Oh, good...I thought you were serious in the last bit, haha. ~_^ Your friend isn't representative of the DS's market though, I don't think. Also, I'd be the first to say that Asphalt is a pretty poor game. I'm not arguing otherwise; I think that Nintendo DS has a pretty uninspiring library right now. Of course, that will change during the year, but right now it's a relatively bleak library. My intention isn't to say that DS is the best system ever. My intention is to say that DS has sold twice the amount of PSP, despite having poorer games in general. Think about that for a moment, and then think about the people who say that Nintendo is dying out. That is rubbish. If Nintendo can achieve that kind of success with a platform that hasn't had the best software yet, then I think we can only assume that their market leadership would continue when better software is released later in the year.[/color][/quote] Morpheus is right, I'm talking about the HDD... If Nintendo can pull the DS together (I'm not talking about sales, I'm talking about bringing their game quality back to their own standards), I will believe in Nintendo again. I already see it happening with what I've been reading recently with some upcoming games. [quote][color=#737373]I think you're just comparing things incorrectly. You're drawing a long bow. Everything you said in this paragraph was totally logical and reasonable. You haven't had much reason to buy DS and that's fine. Right now I only own two DS titles and I won't be buying more until the better games arrive during the latter half of this year. What I'm trying to tell you - the key message I'm trying to get across - is that despite our own experience with DS (positive or negative), the system is soundly thrashing the competition in global sales. This means that Nintendo hasn't become irrelevant, just because you or I may not see a lot of games on DS that we like right now. See what I mean? Maybe you don't find DS very attractive, but all the women and non-gamers in Japan who are buying it for Nintendogs and other titles [i]do[/i]. All too often, people declare that they've stopped buying Nintendo products and that Nintendo is going to go bankrupt, as if somehow their individual purchase affects that. What they fail to understand is that they are one individual with one opinion; they haven't looked at the broader market. I mean, I absolutely can't stand romance novels. Yet those things sell like hot cakes. If I said to you "My friends and I NEVER buy romance novels and I don't know anyone who owns them", that would have nothing to do with the success of romance novels. See what I mean? Just because I have no interest in them doesn't mean that they aren't valid and that they aren't selling very well.[/color][/quote] Nintendogs sounds interesting, but too odd for a gaming system; but that's Nintendo's speciality. And hey, we have exercising "games" for PS2 and XBOX right now, I got a kick when I heard about that. I haven't stopped buy Nintendo, I'm not boycotting them or anything (I'm not accusing you of accusing me, though), I still buy their greatests hits (I can get them for like $7), the only games I still play are SSB:M and sometimes MGS:TS, I want 100% completion, lol. And the romance novel thing makes a perfect analogy, it makes a painful reminder of my first SAT grade, haha. It's just that Nintendo sinks lower on the list when they don't show anything at E3 except Miyamoto (hope I got that right) running out and shaking a black box which for all we know... is empty. Then they say that they're thinking of launching after Sony, thus lessening their sales by a considerable amount because odds are, people won't even want to wait for the PS3. [quote][color=#737373]Well, that's just wrong. Again, you can have opinions on what games you prefer. But saying that DS is just a minigame tool? No. You can't say that if you've actually played a good amount of DS's best offerings, even at this early stage. You can't say that if you know what games are in the pipeline right now. Maybe you don't find Zelda to be as good as Final Fantasy (even though they are different types of games) and maybe you don't find Smash Bros. to be as good as Tekken 4 (even though they are also different kinds of games). Maybe you don't - but nobody can deny that these are masterpieces that have performed incredibly well. Just because you have a differing taste doesn't mean that these games are rubbish. Just look at the average review scores for such games and you'll find that within the industry itself, they are highly respected. I think it's all too easy to take one's opinion and use it to declare that something is awful, or to suggest that something isn't successful just because your friends aren't buying it. But that just doesn't work.[/color][/quote] Yes, I know I'm basically comparing Twisted Metal to Gran Tourismo just because they both have cars, but that's what happens when you try to make sense of Nintendo's games. I don't like WindWaker becasue it takes an amazing game formula and slows it down to where it takes a few hours to get out of a relatively small dungeon. I loved the 2-D Zeldas, but WindWaker had moments of fun and moments where the game just seemed like a chore. I miss the old days of gaming where games were made for the audience's fun, not for an experience. Nintendo reminds me of this the most, of course. At the same time, I could easily write another "rant" about Sony saying similar things. I couldn't write about Microsoft, because I don't own an XBOX, and I'm fairly satisfied with my computer. [quote][color=#737373]I think that your disappointment is pretty illogical, though. If you don't like Nintendo's games, as I've said, that's fine. But don't then make another leap and suggest that all of these games are essentially pointless exercises and that they are unsuccessful. It's very important to have an objective view, if you're going to talk about Nintendo's failures or successes. The truth is, Nintendo's profits are comparable to the entire profit of all of Sony's business divisions put together - including SCE, Sony's music and movie studios and all of their consumer electronics divisions. I get annoyed when people dismiss Nintendo inaccurately and I get more annoyed when people somehow think that because they haven't bought the games, that nobody else is either. I can see how that perception exists, but I think it only drags down the discussion. In the same way, I tend to defend Microsoft when people attack it for no reason other than it being a giant company with obscene profits. When people make these comments and when they cast things aside, I expect them to do so with some validity - with some knowledge other than their personal taste. Because if we're only going to talk taste, it's an unwinnable discussion...simply because everyone has completely different preferences as it is. Anyway, I think Desbreko's comments are very true. If Nintendo talked about specs for ages and showed some pre-rendered footage, people would still complain. I'm sure that when Nintendo shows the controller, people will also complain, just as they did when they saw the N64 and GameCube controllers. It's an irrational kneejerk reaction that we see all-too-often in this particular industry.[/color][/QUOTE] I agree with Desbreko as well, I don't know how I'd take that either. I'm really not for any of the new systems. Not if all the companies care about is graphics and whether your [i]gaming[/i] machine can TiVo your favorite show while you're at work. I believe that if this trend continues, the gaming industry could collapse on itself. Think about the next-next generation, where games are $100 and subscriptions fees for online play are $50/month... How many people will be playing games then? I plan on not buying any of these machines, at least until they've been out for a while and I have a clear idea that I won't be dissapointed. I think Nintendo will be the hero of the console war, but at the same time, I fear that it'll be the underdog. Nintendo's philosphy has never been "Let's wow them with amazing graphics and games that take a decade to make." It's this reason why I respect them, it's also the reason I'm a little disappointed in them. Not as much so, after debating this with you. Truce? lol.[/size]

Well if we're going to post pictures... [IMG]http://www.phrozenflame.com/images/gallery/62.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://www.phrozenflame.com/images/gallery/113.jpg[/IMG]

Ok, for your second and third match-ups: I hate both, but I like Dimmu Borgir a little better. As for Simple Plan and NFG, I really can't stand either of them, probably my two least favorite bands of all time.

The Bouncer for PS2. It wasn't that bad, but it was overhyped, and probably the most I've payed ($50 at realease date) for a bad game. I ended up selling it at a garage sale for $7.

The main thing that made .hack such a success was the fact the the story had never really been done before. It had the Pokemon-esque essence that just kept you coming back for more of the story. Hell, I bought everything, I have all four games, the mangas, and a complete set of both animes. I'm only dissapointed in the games, I didn't mind the battle system, but I hated fixing the camera to cast spells. Being a person who hates "Let's stand in a row and attack one at a time" RPG's, this was refreshing... maybe the first two times... I hope there's an online mode though, I think I said that, lol.

[size=1]Sure, Nintendo wins major points for sheer inventiveness every time they do something, I just haven't seen enough from the Nintendo DS to call it better than the PSP. People bought the DS for two reasons, it came out first, and it was a sure bid to succeed, as they've been pretty good since the Gameboy. To tell you the truth, I hated the Advance too, its power was barely a jump. It'd be better to just skip the Advance and compare the jump from black and white to color, to color to backlighing. I didn't see anything new with the Advance, and the SP costs more than my $50 GameCube. Speaking of which, the GameCube sold the most becasue it's less than half the price (to at least buy used). People are either buying them for their little kid, or for nostalgia's sake, if not for the cheapness. I know one person who had a GameCube and no other systems from that generation. It's sitting in his room while he goes to my house and spoons off my PS2. I'm not a big Sony person though, I hate them as much as Microsoft, they disappointed me big time with my $100 memory card that makes my PS2 boot up slower and otherwise makes a decent doorstop. Luckily, I managed to sell that to one of my friends for $75 and then he heard the news and sold it to one of his friends for $60... I hate Microsoft simply because they're a big corporation that buys out everyone who stands up to them, needless to say, I hate Wal-Mart too. Yes, that was a comedy break. Seriously though, everyone I knew who had a DS recently sold it to buy a PSP. Andrew just sold his last week, he bought about 30 games for the DS, as he was going on a big trip, he came back without the DS or any games, saying he sold the system and games to pay for the PSP. Instead of Asphalt, he got Ridge Racer, which he said made Asphalt feel like an Atari game. I liked Asphalt, I haven't played Ridge Racer yet, but I'll take his word for it. He used to be very faithful to it, due to the fact that Shin Megami Tensei is coming out for it. Now he just absolutely bashes the DS, I'm not saying that I do just because of him, but I felt that this was worth saying. Granted, these are portable games, but where are the quality titles? I looked into ElectroPlankton and it looks pretty good, I can't say much else, not having played it. There are games that are very good on the DS, but I just see less when compared to the PSP. It's just that I've seen some horrid examples of games for it. I probably do have the wrong idea. Nintendo has never failed its true fans, so someone will always stick by them. Microsoft hasn't failed anyone either, hell, it's the Halo system. But they're new. I just feel that the DS started off completely wrong and I think that people will keep that mindset, as I have. If Viewtiful Joe, Mario Kart, and SMT turn out any good, I'll go buy the DS, why? Because I bought the GameCube for Viewtiful Joe... one month before I heard that it was coming for PS2... Right now, the DS is just a minigame tool to developers. PSP is a multimedia masterpiece (give or take a few flaws). Nintendo's motto should be something like, 'You get what you pay for," because that's basically their trend. With GameCube and DS, you spend about half the price, thrown in some innovation, and have games comprable to that of Final Fantasy, MGS, and so forth. I just don't find Zelda as good as FF, or Metroid as good as Halo or MGS. I don't see how the most purchased game (from what I've read), Super Smash Bros. Melee, can compare with Tekken 4. People like Nintendo because of the good feeling they get when they see the character they've grown up with get thrown into a new environment, just look at Donkey Konga, didn't expect that when you were climbing ladders to save a princess, did ya? And when the Revolution comes down to the price of a game, I'll buy it, just like with my GameCube. Until then, I'll keep an open mind. An open, but slightly dissapointed mind.[/size]

[size=1][i]The ground began to quake with the soldiers' marching. The glasses on the table were shaking with the ground. Judging from the power of the quake, and the noises they heard, these guys were good soldiers, and they'd be arriving in under a minute. Kaige was the first up so he got to his dragon first. Rath stood up, eyes turning bright red with anger. Kaige took off and the others soon followed.[/i] Kaige: (Shouting) I have a plan, Ivy! Levvy! Kyoske! Robin! Take a partner and go to the two ends of their army! (pointing to Jason) You, follow me... [i] They did as they were told. Kaige soared high into the sky and cast a spell on his sword. He raised the sword high in the air, gathering strength. It seemed to extend for miles as his sword plummeted down to the ground, making a valley and effectively dividing their force in half. [/i] Kaige: Now the fun begins...[/size]

I've already decided that I'm not going to buy any of the next-gen systems. It just looks like a load of ******** right now. You're exactly right. All the companies care about are multiplayer modes and graphics. I don't care if I can play a game with 128 people, I don't have half that many friends, and I'm not spending $10 or more a month on top of broadband charges to play online with hackers and ignorant, unintelligent bastards. I don't want to spend $70 a game, I don't even spend $40 on a game, the last time I did that, I bought Disgaea and MGS3 on the same day, $50 and $50. THose kind of games are the only kind of games where the experience is worth that much to me. If I want realistic graphics, I'll ride my skateboard into the city, Wallah! Tony Hawk! I customize myself with tattoos, hoodies, parper bags, but probably not skeleton arms. I could go on with this analogy, but you already get my point. I just did a long rant about this issue in the other "Next-gen" thread, and it made me very pissed off at the world. You should check it out, as I don't feel like repeating that post that took me an hour and a half to type.

[size=1]Well from what I've heard, PS3 is technically the best system, XBOX 360 is the middle child, and NR is (sadly) the worst. That's just looking at the system specs though, it always depends on who has the best games. Nintendo is worrying me a little. Some of my friends who also keep up on video games (probably better than me) say that this could be Nintendo's last generation, and so far, it doesn't even look like it's been trying. I feel a lot of angry stares coming, so I'll explain. I'm looking at DS vs. PSP right now, most would agree that with the PSP you get the most bang for your buck, right? I truly think that at least right now, the DS is just a gimmick. It's just an extra touch screen that is keeping it alive, as there are very few decent games for it. Most of them are glorified tech demos, it'd be unfair to name them because most of them are things like Pokemon Dash, or the Super Mario game, which is basically Mario 64 with a bunch of mini games thrown in. My friend has a DS and I played the game, I hated the actual Mario game and found myself just playing the mini games, which eventually got boring as well. In fact, if I got a DS right now the only game I'd buy is Metroid Hunters, and probably that Kirby game that's coming out this year. The competition? Metal Gear Acid, MGA Squared (coming soon), Lumines (the best Tetris-esque game since Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo), Grand Theft Auto (which is being promised for this year), and many other at least half decent games. They're not games based off of repetitive rubbing of a pen or compilations of re-tooled games the execs play at the office. This is just in my opinion, of course. So what does Nintendo do to get out of its rut? It shrugs off E3 by showing us a little black box that reminds me of the early PS2 sketches, and no controller, no games, and no information. At least they're humble and don't really lie like Sony and Microsoft did. eZines have interviewed some of the people behind the demos and they were hush-hush, but they eventually started saying things that contradicted the other, the end result? Everyone with half a brain should know that Unreal 3 and Killzone 2 are a lie, those are pre-rendered screens, with little or nothing done in real time, there was an interview done by Eurogamer.com, but I lost the actual link to it. That was getting off subject... The NR is basically GameCube all over again. It's the little system with the little price. I thought it was really sad that they didn't show a controller design or even games at E3. It was a running joke at my school that Nintendo would use its DS slogan, "Touching is good," change it to "Thinking is good," and instead of controllers, use helmets that that have vurtual reality and control by reading your mind. That would be a wonky controller, for some people, quite unresponsive (where you press a button and the character doesn't jump for like two seconds). So how does Nintendo "wow" us? Saying that almost any game from almost any of their systems can be played on it. That's astounding... You have to purchase the games online and download them, which is a cool use of the online capability, but it's still pretty stupid compared to XBOX Live. So now it's rumored that Nintendo will release their system by Christmas 2006 and show all their stuff at E3 after the PS3 has been launched. That's a very bad strategy, but that's just my opinion. So now I'm looking at PS3 vs. XBOX 360. Let me begin by saying that XBOX Next was a better name idea. They had a stupid reason for changing it (it happened so fast that only a few sources even knew about the Next title). The reason they state has something to do with you being a game and looking around at all the different options you have. Sure... The real reason that we're making a circle is because the PS3 has a three in it while the XBOX 360 would have a two. Not the best idea. Also they jumped on the circle bandwagon since Nintendo was also making a Revolution, apparently one of a different kind though. So they came up with XBOX 360. Again I state that PS3 has the better system, but they haven't said much about their online ideas. XBOX 360 has a very nice and new XBOX Live setup. THat is the main thing that they have over PS3. Sure, I can name games like Halo, but PS3 has Metal Gear, GTA, and a lot of other exclusives that XBOX probably won't get to touch, at least for a long time. Only time will tell about this battle? So my predictions in a nutshell? PS3 and XBOX 360 stalemate for their lifetime while Nintendo goes the way of Sega... Maybe not this generation, maybe not even ever, but they are going to fade away... DS got pwned... The Revolution is a black box with nothing in it right now, but it could end up being amazing. I think that this generation is going to be the worst. The companies are all concerned with amazing graphics to the point where it takes five years to make a game. Liscences and lawsuits are forming (EA & NFL), and the gaming community is going to suffer. Meanwhile, I'll be sitting here, chilling, playing my PSP and playing Half Life 2 on my computer... And I'm sorry for the rant and general negativeness.[/size]

One of my friends was wearing a shirt that said PETA: People Eating Tasty Animals and he got punched out by a man wearing a shirt that said PETA: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Nuff said.

I'll have to agree with Source, I've always liked Modest Mouse a little better that Franz Ferdinand. FF just sounds too old-school from what I've heard of them. For some reason they remind me of older bands like Talking Heads, etc.

Well it probably wouldn't be my choice of music anyway. I'd only buy it if I really (and I mean REALLY) liked it. It's true that you can't pick your family, but I just wouldn't feel comfortable supporting Bin Laden's family.