Semjaza

This game is surprisingly cool. I'm mainly impressed with the interface it uses. It makes everything go so easily. Character creation was also cool, but I really would have liked some more control over appearance. Graphics could be better, but I forgive them because they are basically tile based and are textured well. If anyone plays this online, maybe they can say where and there name in here and we'd see eachother around lol. I'm S. Azazel in the game, and I use a female half-elf rogue (I'm a guy, but I always use female characters in games).

I'm not going to list sources for anything I say, as I go to so many places that I won't be able to. Anyway... So far MS has posted like $700 million in losses, and this is because of the Xbox. MS IS losing money on this system. They know it, analysts know it and I figure most people who keep up with it know it too. MS isn't really "wasting" this money, but they are using it to set themselves up as a big name in gaming. They need to pump all this money into it, and the way I see it...it should all cost them less as time goes on. MS isn't even forcasted to break even on Xbox until 2004, and that's assuming it meets ALL of it's sales projections. Something it simply hasn't done yet. I'm sure the price cut won't help matters either. As for the whole plug and play issue that was brought up... All three companies are making you buy something to go online. PS2 is forcing you to buy a modem (you can use a plain old PC USB one from what I understand though... otherwise $34 for a combo broadband/dial-up modem --- you don't necessarily NEED the HD), so is GC ($34 each for dial-up or broadband). To even access Xbox Live you need to buy the headset, which is 50 dollars. But it does include a year of access, and I assume more normal fees after that year is up. Then we have the recent news of Sega charging OVER Xbox Live for PSO. Something, that according to most people, wasn't going to happen. I pretty much thought it was expected, as online RPGs cost a LOT to maintain. Not only must the sever be kept up, but there are usually people and mods watching out for cheaters. PSO isn't even a huge online RPG, there are only 4 people in each actual game at a time. MMORPGs are gonna need even more upkeep, and considering their size compared to PSO are also going to cost you to play over Xbox Live. From what I am understanding Xbox Live won't let you play these games at all online unless you subscribe. Currently, playing over XB Connect or Gamespy is the only other option, but it isn't true online play. It's linking systems over a distance. And even that requires more work than the average person is willing to do. So basically what this means is that NO Xbox games are going to feature free online play, unless you consider a game being included in Xbox Live "free". To me this is what makes GC and PS2's plans just as good. Sure, Xbox theoretically gets an all-in-one service. But Sega's move makes me worry how true that claim actually was in the first place. With Sony and Nintendo's plans (yes I know there are no free online games for GC coming yet, but Nintendo has said they won't charge for first party games last I heard), it's basically up to whatever 3rd party wants to do it. But at least the option for some sort of Gamespy, or free ad sponsored servers is available. I'm sure most bigger RPGs are going to charge you to play (which apparently will be JUST like on Xbox, so no loss either way), but the average game, such as an FPS, Fighter or Puzzle game most likely won't. Really how is Sony or Nintendo's plan is [I]bad[/I]? They are doing exactly what PC companies have been doing for years, and I've yet to see many complaints about that format. I'm not saying Xbox Live is bad, as I think it is a step in the right direction. I just wonder how much better it actually is than the other companies' plans. Despite Nintendo's lack of online games so far. Anyway, I went on a tangent... but my main point is that I wonder what this is all going to turn into. If MS somehow thinks 50 bucks from each person is going to cover bandwidth (especially on broadband), they are insane. Bandwidth and servers are NOT cheap, despite what was said here. Anyone who says that knows little about the internet economy. Very few sites pull a profit, many lose money. Most of the sites that do make anything offer some sort of pay for service, or advertise porn. Porn is sadly the easiest and least risky way to make money online anymore if you are a webmaster. If bandwidth was cheap, why would every fansite ask for donations? Why would bigger game sites want money to get most of their stuff? Why would Gamespy Arcade and Mplayer be overran with ads? That simply isn't true. You also have to remember that nearly every server on Gamespy is a volunteer effort. Some people are willing to go this far when companies are not. My last thing is broadband. I remember reading that a very large percentage of online gamers use broadband. However, how many broadband users are gamers? I'm willing to bet that number isn't so large. Broadband is the future, but it isn't likely to take over homes like MS is hoping for Xbox Live, at least this generation. Even Gates himself has admitted that. However, you need to take into account that PC's internet connections are used for a lot of other things besides games. Xbox doesn't have any of these features. It's only games. To think that broadband usage is going to increase dramatically because of consoles seems crazy to me. Would the average person be willing to pay 50+ a month to play console games online? I think not. Xbox Live is mainly appealing to the people who have broadband in the first place, not the general masses.

Yeah, I agree Lisa Trevor is the creepiest part of that game... Especially the things you learn about her as time goes on. And unfortunately GC isn't getting MGS2:Substance. PC, PS2 and Xbox are.

Earthbound is probably my favorite RPG ever. It's supposed to be corny, and to me that's what makes it so unique and interesting. I loved the characters and locations, and at the time it had what was probably the best console RPG translation ever. Dan Owsen totally outdid himself on that game. The whole Earthbound Zero thing drives me nuts. Nintendo had it translated, but never released it due to the fact that Nintendo and HAL were working on the SNES sequel. So only one copy was made, and now some guy owns it. Thank god it was ripped to a ROM along the way. I'd kill to own that cartridge... last time it was sold though it was for $1,000. Nintendo didn't ditch the first person fights for the cancelled N64 version, I doubt they ever will. Personally, I feel some games are better with first person fights. Earthbound and DW would never feel the same if they changed it.

I've been unable to find this game at any stores as it is. So I'm glad I didn't bother to hunt it out. For some reason this, and Tactics Ogre on GBA are impossible to find anywhere in Chicago.

I don't remember exactly what you have to do... But go to the park, this guy in a Hawaiian shirt should be sitting on top of a house and he jumps down. If you beat him you get the money you need. Go to the place where the Runaway 5 are playing, and give the money to the person running the place (USE the money on her). After that the Runaway 5 should give you a ride to Threed and you'll have no problems. That should be it, but it's been a few years... so I might be off on some of it.

Heh... I wasn't meaning to sound like a smartass in my post, so my apologies :). For whatever reason the battery light is always bright orange. They should have made the light fade from green to red like on the GBA. When it gets low, the range decreases (like ProudClod said), and the lag increases. I have yet to have to replace the batteries though, so that's just what I've heard from other people.

Xbox Live sounded promising back when it seemed like every game was going to be included in MS's fee. However, in Japan Sega is going to be charging on top of Xbox Live for people to play PSO online. So, that's the 50 bucks MS makes you pay for the first year (there is still no news on what the payment plan is after that), plus whatever Sega feels like charging. If everyone starts doing this, the prices are going to get ridiculous. If this happens for every RPG, or any other game MS doesn't make, I'm going to be extremely pissed. If that's the case, I might as well stick with PS2 and GC's plan which don't have any main fee. I'm expecting a lot of games (such as FPS's) to be free on that. If not, it seems Gamespy is at least stepping up to create some sort of system for GC, which should lead to some sort of uniform fee for most games (assuming it would work like Gamespy Arcade on the PC). Too bad GC only has one online game anyone knows about :laugh: .

I'd like to know where they got Sonic the Hedgehog from, because judging from the sales of Sonic 2 on GC (which I think are better than on DC) and what Yuji Naka has said that seems VERY unlikely. I guess we will find out in July when then unveil Sonic Adventure 3. Personally I am not excited about most of these games. Movie games are almost always crap. There has yet to be a good Mummy game, so I don't expect anything from Scorpion King. I have always hated Tomb Raider, and it's horrible control scheme. If they fix that in Angel of Darkness, I might try it. As od right now I couldn't care less. Red Faction 2 could be good if they make destroying things actually useful. There wasn't much use to blowing things up in the original. I think I needed it a total of maybe 5 times. It was a gimmick more than anything. I'm going to keep a look out on Evil Dead, even though the first game was crap. I love that movie. I'll most likely get DMC2, Auto Modellista, Rygar, FFXI, Kingdom Hearts and Tenchu 3 (assuming it isn't as crappy as Tenchu 2). Bounty Hunter sounds promising, especially the way Jango uses both hands for his weapons. People that actually spent time with it seem to think it was very impressive considering how very early it was. Bloodrayne is still failing to impress me as it seems to have bad control issues and the graphics are bland. Also, as of right now Deus Ex 2 is cancelled for PS2... I guess they don't feel like recoding the lighting and such to make a PS2 and GC version right now. It sounded like they might port it to those two systems after the PC and Xbox versions are done at the least. Personally, I'd get it on PC anyway. And how can there be an Oni 2? Didn't Bungie make the first one? MS owns them now.

I bought this game the day it came out, and had been waiting for a REAL DW release in America for like 8 years. DW was always my favorite RPG series, ever since Nintendo Power sent me the first one on my NES free for subscribing. I'd argue that FF7 was the first RPG with great production values... as Seiken Denetsu 3 (Secret of Mana 2, if they brought it here), Chrono Trigger, FF3 (FF6 to PSX players) and Star Ocean (NO idea why this wasn't brought to the US) were amazing games in every way. Star Ocean even has songs with vocal tracks, and was one of the best looking 16-bit games I ever played. However, DW7 can be downright ugly. The character sprites may be detailed, but it's so hard to tell considering how TINY they are. They also sport a whole 3 frames of animation, which is rather pathetic. The towns and dungeons are all pretty blocky, but the game does have some great texture work at times. The horrible graphics in the outerworld are mostly made up for in the battles though. The monsters you fight are all beautiful 2D sprites, and each have a few different battle animations. The animations are incredibly smooth and detailed. The story basically revloves around an island called Estard. Estard is the only island in the world at this time. You (a fisherman's son) and your friends (a rich girlfrom your town, and a prince) stumble upon some ruins. Within the ruins are pedestals where you can put map shards in. When a map is completed you are sent to that island in the past. You then do something to save that island and they appear in the present. Making the world larger and larger. There is a lot of going back and forth between time and islands. Each of the islands stories are pretty good I thought. For some reason I have more of an attachment to the characters in this game than I did in the past few FFs. I wound up feeling for some of the characters in the stories, despite them being rather simplistic. I also love the music, although I always loved the DW music. Koichi Sugiyama is my favorite Japanese composer by far... way more than Nobuo (FF games). It seems to be midi, but at times it sounds orchestrated...it's very hard to tell. I'm about 25 hours into the game... And I just now got to the temple that allows you to change your class (there are tons of classes, and mastering each one gives you new abilities). That was about 1/3 through the game in DW3, and it sounds as though I have a LONG way to go. So the 100 hour mark seems reasonable. This game is NOT for everyone. A lot of people will find it tedious. A lot of people will not get past the ancient graphics and horrible FMV. But there is a lot to do, and I'm liking every minute I've spent with the game. It's certainly worth the 30 dollars. If you liked any of the Gameboy DW games (not really the Monsters series though) or any Atlus RPGs you'd probably like this.

Hmmm... It doesn't sound like you know much about the Wavebird hehe. The Wavebird is NOT infrared, it uses RF technology. It can work up to 20 feet away according to Nintendo, but people have gotten it to work over 100 feet away. It also works through walls, around corners, etc... so of course it doesn't matter if someone walks in front of it. I got it to work using it downstairs in the back of our house, and my GC is upstairs in the front of my house. All this and there is NO lag. It works just as well as a normal controller, even in games lik Monkey Ball that need exact control. Nintendo also says the thing will work for 100 hours on 2 AA batteries. Nintendo was extremely conservative about the distance, so I figure 100 hours is correct. I've been using mine since the day it came out on the same 2 batteries... this is including playing through hours and hours of ED. This is the best wireless controller I have used. If you really want rumble, 3rd parties are making RF controllers with it included. I guarantee you they won't be as high quality though, and the rumble will eat the batteries.

I beat the game last night, it took me just over 13 hours... I'd say a total of 18 hours playing it, considering all the times I died and forgot to save.. I had to do several chapters all over because of that. The video isn't DVD quality... but it's about equal with the average video in FF7. SK created it's own video codec for this game, and wanted to use it to keep the game down to one disc. There isn' that much video that the compression becomes annoying though. I thought all the voices were pretty good. The voice of Pious after the transformation is one of the best I've heard in a game. He is very convincing. The game has three paths... the first time I chose the blue rune, this time I chose the red. I was surprised by how much was different. You get the alignment runes in a different order, most of the monsters you face are of different alignment and Pious is trying to ressurect a completely different god...resulting in some totally different FMVs. That to me has made the game worth playing through again. I totally missed a rune in a level too, so I'm going to try to get that hehe. Oh and I bought Stuntman on Monday. It's fun, but at the same time you are just trying to recreate what the director wants you to do...which at times gets very annoying. It's like a simon says game or something

The sanity meter becomes VERY hard to keep up in later chapters in the game. I'm playing as Dr. Lindsey right now (it's chapter 6 or 7, I think). He is that archeologist looking guy some people might have seen in pictures. His level has been the toughest so far. I find myself dying in this game way more than I did in RE. Graphically... this game is SO much better on a TV in motion than shots and videoclips can show. Some of the areas are beautiful, and the texture work is amazing. The game runs at 60 FPS constantly (although, one time it slowed a bit...but not much) even when there are tons of monsters on screen. Sound wise, this game is very impressive. The music is good, the voice work is nearly on par with MGS2 and the sound effects are excellent. When your sanity gets low you can sometimes hear people screaming or crying in the background...to me that's the best sound effect in the game. The control is weird at first... But you get used to it. It's incredibly fun lopping off a zombie's head and watching it try to grab where it's head used to be. The finishing moves are also pretty cool, and each character has a different animation for each weapon. Every so often the camera zooms in and does a close-up of the finisher, which is excellent. The control is full analog, unlike RE... so moving around is simple. Speaking of the camera... it's probably the best I've ever seen in a game. It has excellent angles, and pans and zooms just like a movie. If anyone has some questions, I'll answer what I can. I should be beating it in the next couple days. It is definately worth getting though, and I think it's the best game on GC and the best game I've played in quite a while. Oh, and I went back and played RE... For some reason it's not as impressive now as it was before. I began to notice it ran slower than ED, the animation was nowhere as smooth and I finally realized that the control downright sucks... something I'd never admit before lol.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by ProudClod [/i] [B]I find it hard to believe that it cost the most money, more than any other anime, to make....the effects werent that good, they were almost normal, but we are talking 1995. [/B][/QUOTE] Actually we are talking 1987 haha :). I don't think anyone realizes how old this movie is by animation standards. It's hardly overrated if you look at what it came out next to at the time. It still stands it's own against newer anime in terms of story and animation. You'd appreciate the anime a lot more if you read the manga though... it's far better. After reading it, I'm surprised they were even able to make a good movie out of it in the first place.

The thing I always found strange is that Japan is the SOURCE of anime and most games. A good deal of which are violent, and at times wind up on lists of games Senators complain about. They also show far more sex than we do; I know that there are some normal channels that show porn at night (although with mosaics). All this and Japan has very few violent crimes. I think our American culture as whole is just messed up badly, and there is no going back. Just gotta deal with that government BS and put it behind you I guess; especially since despite all the complaining activists do, games, movies and music aren't going anywhere.

One week of class left, 2 weeks off and then Summer quarter. Fun. At least most of you actually get a break :D .

Haha, I thought you meant Hentai @_@. Personally, I find a lot of that simply stupid. I was generally under the impression that a good half of Anime is "adult" orientated. If by "adult" you mean more mature themes (and generally lots of violence it seems). Stuff like Vampire Hunter D, Perfect Blue, Akira, Appleseed, Jin-Roh etc... They are generally easy to find. I'd also recommend Boogiepop Phantom which is simply excellent. Golgo 13 (Not the Queen Bee sequel) is also very cool if you can deal with the insane amount of sex scenes. Serial Experiments Lain is also very good... I don't know if most would consider it adult, but it was a very comlpex series. Junkboy was HILARIOUS if you can find it. As far as I know it's not even on DVD. Then there is anime like Hell Boy, Plastic Little (very dumb) and others that are adult for various reasons. Animation quality always depends on the studios and the money involved honestly. I don't think anyone would argue the quality of Bloodlust; but it seems anime that is friendly to younger people gets a bigger push and thus more money, which of course equals better production values. (P.S. - The plural of anime is anime. The Japanese don't pluralize nouns like we do ;). Eh, doesn't matter I guess haha.)

There was also a movie based on Crazy Taxi being planned. Not sure what happened to that... or what in the world it could be about that would justify a movie lol.

I don't know if anyone remembers this guy... Dolph Lundgren. But he used to be in karate movies, one of which was "Showdown in Little Tokyo" with Brandon Lee. He was also in the Punisher movie. Maybe he could work. Or maybe I'm not remembering what the character looks like haha. [img]http://celebritiespictures.supereva.it/lundgren/dolph17.jpg[/img] That's him.

All the pics say IGN mock-ups beneath them. It's rather obvious since they used 2 different models, and the second one is straight out of SSBM.

If Matt Damon or Ben Affleck are even remotely involved with this movie I will kill someone.

Hmm... I read it somewhere, but apparently they were way off. According to IGNPS2, it ends in 2004. Sorry about that :wigout:

Generally, when I think about a label... I think about a shirt with the brand name plastered all over it, which is how most of those stores are. I don't want my shirts to say "Old Navy," "Abercrombie" or whatever else. Hell they should pay me to wear them, it's freaking advertising for a company no one should give a crap about. I simply do not like the whole style of Gap, Abercrombie or anything like that. It just isn't how I dress, and I refuse to wear it. I would return it if it was given to me too. Also, based on people I know...wearing stuff like that is like some way to show off to these people. Kinda like, "look I shop here too! I'm cool." I know this isn't the case for most people, but I do know a lot of people like that. As for the whole rebeling thing... I'm not trying to prove anything by it. The big reason, like I said before, is that I hate wearing shirts that say the brand all over them. I kinda just wear what I want, and generally when buying clothes I just buy things that I think would look good. Never once has anything I thought looked good been a big label. So basically I "refuse" to buy that stuff I guess :). I've got nothing to rebel against honestly. I just like doing what I do. I used to go to Southern (SIUC - Southern Illinois University in Carbondale), and it was mostly filled with the "preppy" and "hip- hop" type crowds. I saw big name labels all over the place, and it's just not something that has ever interested me. I don't care about the name of what I get. I didn't expect this from a supposed "party" school though. Not many people liked anything I did; I was suprised to see I was one of maybe 3 out of 1000s that actually dressed how I do and dyed their hair. I thought it would be pretty common lol. Hmm... I really went on and on... :drunk: OH... and the commercials! They just annoy the hell out of me. The Gap ones drive me insane. It's like everyone WANTS to look the same... I walk downtown (there is an Old Navy right next to my school), and I see everyone wearing what is basically the same clothes in different colors. It drives me nuts. The Old Navy commercials used to be okay...lately they are getting bad though lol.

Well I was forced to go to Catholic schools. So it wasn't generally an issue. I am in college now, and have attended two schools... And it's funny how it totally is a non-issue. I personally run around in big metal soled boots with bright neon green laces, jeans , bizarre shirts, lots of chains (my favorite being one made of metallic blue barbwire, although it is dull lol), and hair that is ALWAYS dyed... No one even gives it a second look. There are people totally opposite of me, and no one thinks anything of that either. That is probably the best part about college I think. Of course it's another matter when I am walking around downtown Chicago to school. Apparently business people don't like people running around with satanic shirts and violet and red hair (that's what it is currently) lol. Damn businessmen. The only good think I ever got at Hot Topic was an old German army coat, which I wear as much as I used to wear my old mechanic's coat. I refuse to buy labels.... I have never been in a Gap or an Old Navy. Weird.

Well... MS does have Chief from Halo. But I cannot even compare him to Link as a big character to have in a game. I can't imagine him moving too as easily as the other fighters in that suit either haha.