Semjaza

The fact of the matter is that most of the time this stuff winds up on your computer without your direct knowledge or is included in software installs of other programs. There's not a single 100% way to avoid getting them on a Windows-based PC other than never using the internet. I certainly get far less if I stick around reputable sites, but you honestly never know. Updating Windows helps, but people figure out ways to get through any of their fixes so quickly that it barely even matters sometimes.

[quote name='Lunox][color=darkslateblue']Wouldn't it mean that Apple and the iPod will sink? All file-sharing services will mostly die, not to mentions other things such as CD burners and all that good stuff. I haven't researched it thouroughly, so if anyone knows a lot about, I would love clarification. *o* [/color][/quote] Apple makes a hell of a lot of sales through iTunes, regardless of the more iffy P2P systems. There's also a lot of people who mostly rip their own CDs for their MP3 players (such as myself). I severely doubt it would have much of an affect on that at all, especially since there are always alternatives to the more well-known P2P software. I use my CD burner for burning things from MP3s probably 5% of the time I burn a CD. I doubt that would be affected much either. Who knows if sales would decrease, but the idea of either of these "dying" is a bit overdramatic, I think.

[quote name='Sir Auron']Is there any program to block spyware, instead of everytime scan my pc for spyware to be deleted ?[/quote] I believe a program called Spyware Doctor does this. I had it installed and it would load up every time I opened my browser. Even with that, I'd still scan using AdAware and Spybot: Search and Destroy every so often. Some anti-virus programs also catch these things before you download them.

Editing someone's own writing to that extent is a bit ridiculous, I think. Even something as simple as undoing contractions can alter the flow of one's writing. This is especially true of dialogue. If I read something where every last person would say "can not" or "have not", I think I would be a bit turned off. People all speak differently and I think that making note of that in writing is important. Even in just general stories, excluding dialogue, I do not think it is that big of a deal. I think exactly how formal the bit of writing is should determine whether or not contractions are appropriate. Some people don't seem to that this into consideration whatsoever.

Sennen, I was reading up on it... There's only one ending. Decisions apparently only affect some of the dialogue that results, like pretty much every other console RPG I can think of. Like I said earlier, I assume this is because this goes directly into the sequel. From things I've read, this kind of disappoints a few people... I guess a lot of twists and such are saved for the second game. They're very much two parts of one whole it seems. I've heard it's kind of cryptic and not entirely satisifying, but I don't see it bothering me that much with the second chapter following so closely behind here. Supposely the sequel is a better game in nearly every respect, which is nice. [quote name='Sir Auron']Is this game difficulty as hard as like shin megami tensei, where the encouter rate is very high and does the enemies still have those 1-hit kill move or spells.[/quote] Encounter rate is apparently relatively high, but perhaps not as high as Nocturne. I don't know about the instant kills, but since even Persona had them, I'd have to assume they're in here in some form. Game Informer apparently gave this game a 7/10. However, considering they gave Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door a 7/10 because "it's great, but its style may not appeal to everyone" (sic), that can mean just about anything.

[quote name='Bombu][color=darkred']Well, what do you expect from those old games that you're on about? They?re not supposed to be great in terms of graphics and storylines. You just play them for fun, which is pretty much the intention the developers had for them in the first place. I hate to sound so serious, but that's just how I see it.[/color][/quote] I don't think it's too much to ask for a little scene or even some sort of graphic. Even Pac-Man had little scenes between each group of levels and that was one of the earlier arcade games. Some games honestly just said "Game Over" when you finished them. Regardless, it doesn't matter to the extent of this discussion "what" they were trying to do, in my opinion.. I'd be hardpressed to say that I was satisified with a "Thanks for Playing!!" message after playing a game even in the early NES days, no matter how much fun I had with the game itself.

I think they're both very stylish, although I think DDS just seems more developed and detailed. Some of the shots of the areas are really incredible and seem to push details that Nocturne just did not. We'll see soon enough. As for Serph, he's silent in the same sense the hero is in Nocturne. He is voiced in the Japanese version, but only in the battles (I don't know what he says, might even just be grunts). He can be as good or as bad as you want, but I don't know how it might affect the ending. I've been purposely avoiding that information... However, given that DDS2 follows it directly, I don't know that I'm expecting something open-ended like Nocturne. Then again, as I said, I've been avoiding the information.

[quote name='Aiyisha][COLOR=Indigo][SIZE=1][FONT=Arial]Worse ending I ever found was in Altered Beast for the MegaDrive. OMG, battle through x amount of levels with the ****** controller, and, basically, 'congratulations! =D' It was so frustrating, especially because the gameplay didn't amount to much.[/FONT][/SIZE'][/COLOR][/quote] That game should have spit money back out at you when you finished it just because it was such a chore to play in the first place. Of all the things for people to be nostalgic over... Altered Beast is so awful.

This is a difficult thread, I'd ask "why" when people post about a bad ending, but I'm so scared that no one is going to use spoiler tags lol. There are far more bad endings than good ones, really. I remember back in the NES days when you'd finish a game and usually you'd be treated to "Congratulations!" (or even "Congraturations!" -- seriously). I guess it was a step up from the Atari 2600 days when games never even ended. I can't think of a recent ending I've been all that disappointed in. I'm sure someone will cite RE4, but I really do not think it was all that bad. Certainly more could have been done, but it was enough... maybe all the unlocked stuff just eased the pain.

It's getting to the point where I don't know why I should even support third parties on the GameCube in the first place. Why should people pay full price for something like SCII when it was new, pushing the GCN verison to the highest sales numbers and then just be told it's not getting the next installment? It just seems so futile. I have both systems, but it's certainly a blow to people who don't. Also, I don't think Ivy's weapon can easily be categorized as a simple "sword".

[quote name='James][color=#B0251E']Tony, how is your post going? If you have no ideas, I would be happy to finish up this chapter. I want to try and avoid leaving long gaps between things where possible.[/color][/quote] I just haven't had the time for it. When I have an opening in my schedule between working on finals, the last thing that seems to pop into my head is what to write for Kill Adam. So yeah, I'll try and get something in there by the next few days, but if you don't see anything by then feel free to just close it however.

[QUOTE=satan665]Does anyone know anything more about the story than the basic rival factions spielyousee on the website? I guess the game is pretty close to actually coming out, so I can wait, but I'm awful curious. Also, whats the deal with the bonus "controller armor" thing? What is controller armor, some sort of stylish cover?[/QUOTE] What do you want to know about the story exactly? Just the general plotline? As for the armor, it's just a sticker that gets placed on top of your PS2 controller. You don't get it automatically with the LE version anymore, you only get it as a bonus for pre-ordering. Personally, I couldn't care less about it lol.

[quote name='Arcadia][size=1']Has anybody seen Say Anything in concert? I'm going Sunday and super excited about it.[/size][/quote] Just Satan665 to my knowledge.

Gametrailers.com actually has video with English cutscenes. I must say, the voice acting is actually pretty good. Atlus has pretty much set a new standard for itself since Disgaea in terms of voices and general localization. I'm glad they've kept it up. It's a shame you can't choose between English and Japanese voices (I guess there wasn't enough room), but as long as the English ones are decent, I can't complain.

Well, this game finally has an official release date, so I feel a bit more comfortable making a thread. It comes out April 5th and goes for $55. It comes with some bonus material, so I guess that's why it costs a small bit more. I don't mind. Anyway, DDS really has little to do with the Shin Megami Tensei games such as Nocturne. It's part of the same general franchise, but it's a spin-off. I imagine Atlus USA just added the title so they could form a bit of a franchise here in the US. Word of mouth going into this one seems very positive and I actually expect it to sell well for an Atlus game. Here's a bit about the game: [QUOTE]Enter the world of the Junkyard, where rival tribes fight an endless war-vying for supremacy and the right to ascend to Nirvana. Changed forever by a mysterious light, Serph and his comrades now have the power to change into powerful demons... but with that power comes a price - an insatiable hunger to devour their enemies! Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga Key Features: * Experience a fully-voiced, epic sci-fi fantasy story with over 50 hours of gameplay! * Enter a dark, futuristic world with characters designed by renowned Japanese artist Kazuma Kaneko! * In battle, strategically switch between human and demon forms to exploit enemies? weaknesses. * ?Devour? your enemies to increase your power! * Customize and develop your characters using the unique ?Mantra? system. * Discover devastating combo attacks! [/QUOTE] I think the main thing this game has going for it is how stylish it is. Nocturne already looked pretty great, I thought, but this one is even more impressive. People into big storylines, character development, cutscenes and voice acting will likely be very happy with this one. It attempts to appeal to a far wider audience than the more traditonal gameplay within Nocturne. I think the main thing that will appeal to people is that this game focuses specifically on characters. There's no more of this recruiting demons business, you basically ARE the demons. There's actually a direct sequel for it hitting the US in the Fall of this year. Supposedly they're very well connected, two parts of one whole. Both should be played to really fully experience the story. From what I've seen of it, DDS2 actually looks even more impressive. Anyway, here's some shots of DDS: [IMG]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2004/screen0/920605_20041220_screen002.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2004/screen0/920605_20041220_screen006.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2004/screen0/920605_20041220_screen012.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2004/screen0/920605_20040607_screen008.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2004/screen0/920605_20040607_screen011.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2004/screen0/920605_20040607_screen020.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2004/screen_e3/920605_20040505_screen004.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2004/screen_e3/920605_20040505_screen005.jpg[/IMG]

I thought it was good considering a lot of factors against it. The low budget is one of those. It reminded me a lot of Seven in concept, although not as "deep" perhaps. Some of the acting was pretty mediocre and the bad guy kind of just seemed like he did things just so we had something to be scared/grossed out by... I don't think that aspect of the plot was fleshed out enough. Still, it was a fun movie and certainly better than most of what passes for horror films these days. The ending was pretty damn surprising.

During my life I've always vowed that I would somehow see certain bands. Of course, I figured this would be impossible since a few of them were broken up. The Pixies and Apocalypse Hoboken come to mind. As many know, the Pixies are back together and touring. I went to that show and it was great. However, the best show I've ever been to was a reunion show about two years ago for a few Chicago punk bands. Three of them reformed and played a radio station benefit show of sorts: The Bollweevils, Apocalypse Hoboken and The Traitors. I was only really interested in Apocalypse Hoboken, although The Bollweevils are very good. The Traitors were better with their original singer, I think, but whatever. Anyway, the show was absolutely amazing. They'd not played in years, but you'd never know it. The crowd for them was pretty sizable for such a small place (I read that about 1,200 people were there total for the show, but I'm sure a lot were on the balcony). They played a dozen or so songs since they weren't the headliners, but they still were on for almost an hour I'd say. I was pretty close to the stage and everyone was moving together like one collective being. It was great being with people who loved these songs as much as I do and possibly even more so. Everyone was singing along and going nuts. The thing that was nice was that even though everyone was bouncing all over the place, no one was trying to actually hurt anyone or be a complete idiot. Any time someone fell over, someone else picked them up. I had a great time there and picked up an amazing gig poster at the end of it all (And a neat Traitors shirt -- Trivia Fact: Matt Skiba of The Alkaline Trio was originally in The Traitors, the shirt says "Bring me the head of Matt Skiba). I wrote other posts on it here before like this one: [url]http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=34372[/url]

[quote name='AzureWolf][COLOR=blue]Good examples of [i]what[/i'] exist in this forum? Idiot gamers? I'm not going to disagree with you there...

In my opinion, the best 3D fighter out there is easily Virtua Fighter 4. I can see if people dislike it, but I find that people who are the most against it generally understand it the least. Good examples of that exist in this very forum.

This thread, overall, is beyond ridiculous. While I think Chabi is being far too stringent in this, the fact of the matter is that [B]not one[/B] person has used any factually backed up proof to say anything against it aside from Heaven's Cloud. Hilariously, it's been largely ignored by both sides. A person can sit here and say "it's impossible for this to have never changed" for a million and one reasons related to writing and language, but who cares? Seriously, does anyone beyond the ones writing it? Unless you have some actual experience with the physical texts, how in the world would you ever even know beyond popping out statistics? And is it really possible for someone my age to know all about the subject in the first place? I think the main argument here is that the book has survived in its original language and is still read in that original language. Few read the Christian segments of the Bible itself in its original written form and it's been translated by many different people over the years, entire books removed, names changed because of misunderstandings... It's why people think "Lucifer" is Satan. I feel like Chabi is being gone after more for [I]how [/I]the posts are being written than what they actually are attempting to say. These threads always seem to turn into semantics debates more than anything else, where entire pages are devoted arguing about what someone meant by a single sentence out of a 1,000 word post.. Nothing is ever any closer to completion than it was the second the debate on the matter even started. In the end, you're not going to convince anyone to believe something you do simply because [i]you believe it[/i]. No matter how strongly you do, it's not adequate debating fodder, whether it's religion or linguistics or cow herding or why cats can't digest their own hair. It'd be nice if people actually were able to cite something to back up claims beyond "I know". In any case, I'm washing my hands of this topic and don't plan on reading any more of it. I have no clue how anyone can have the patience to read most of this.

I really don't know. The first game I really remember loving was Atlantis for the Atari 2600. It's on that Activision Anthology on the PS2. Basically, it's like Missle Command, except you're Atlantis and you're shooting at all sorts of spaceships flying by. I remember watching someone play Super Mario Bros. many times at a neighbor's house before I had a Nintendo. I only got to play like once, since they hogged it all the time. I don't remember Super Mario Bros. having a large effect on me or Zelda, which I got next. I played both of them quite a bit, but I don't know if they really got me into gaming. I played lots of Legacy of the Wizard too, since that was my third game. I'd say the first game I really, really loved was Dragon Warrior. My mom got it for free when she resubscribed me to Nintendo Power. Nothing else like it really existed on the NES at the time. It was my first real exposure to console RPGs and I played it religiously. Considering how young I was at the time, I still think it's relatively surprisingly that I managed to get to the end of it. So, I'd probably go with Dragon Warrior. I still have an incredibly large softspot for the series and Enix in general, although I do feel it's based in something more than simply nostalgia. I still regularly play the old titles and many of them as good as I remember them being... 3 and 4 of the US releases in particular.

I'm also relatively sure that spiders follow those attachment links as well. That would bump up the count, even if real people didn't look at it at all.

This was extremely interesting. I have to say my knowledge on the octopus is extremely limited, but creatures of the sea are always so bizarre that I love reading about them. I don't know how into the topic you were exactly, but it's written in such a manner that the reader is interested because the writer seems interested. Hopefully that makes sense.

It seems strange that the magazine is citing the game being on each system with a different character as the sole reason as to why it didn't advance the gameplay significantly. In fact, it just seems entirely ridiculous.

Really, since it comes out as a percentage, one vote will not be able to make or break your rating to begin with. I can vote "yes" for mine and another person will vote "no" and we'll already be at a 50% ratio. I don't see a problem with being positive about you own work. The idea of voting has always allowed you to vote for yourself to begin with. When someone runs for mayor, they are allowed to vote for themselves.