Legend of Zelda 1: Adventures of Link – I've cleaned out and finished the first two palaces, and have the raft from the third. All my levels are at 8, and I've got both the heart and magic containers on the first continent. 6 Links; I love save state. If I die, I just load. So in the game, as far as it can tell, I've never died, nor quit. :)
Sonic the Hedgehog 1 – Completed the first two Green Hill Zones, and got the Chaos Emerald in both of them. Again save states are wonderful. I have 5 sonics so far.
Radiant Silvergun – I've got as far as level 2A. My weapon levels are at 7 for each one.
Battlestar Galactica – Been playing, and I've got much better at the controls. I've beaten the first three submissions, but you can't save until you beat the full mission (which has 6 submissions). I have to start over at the start each time, but I get a little further in each time I play.
We bought a Guitar Hero Guitar (A Gibson a Xplorer). We have another on lend – so I re-rented Guitar Hero III and the wife and I have been doing Co-op on it. It's been a blast to be able to play together.
I've also picked up a number of new games (been finding them cheap) and have some more on order. So Expect a Snap Judgment review shortly.
And now back to games – Entering the Matrix.
Games Played since last post
Guitar Hero 3 (360)
Battlestar Galactica (Xbox)
Sonic the Hedgehog (Genesis)
Link (NES)
Radiant Silvergun (Saturn)
Arcana Hearts (PS2)
Solitaire (PC)
Minesweeper (PC)
Frets on Fire (PC)
Battlestations Midway (360)
Ikaruga (XBLA)
BattleZone (XBLA)
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Sunday, April 13, 2008
The Controller
I have mentioned before that I do a lot of emulated games on my computer - basically any console before the PS2/Xbox generation, and arcade games. Now aside from the arcade games, I own pretty much everything I emulate (Yes I even own a Vectrex).
Each game machine has it's own controller. Some are cool, some are a pain, some are really problematic like the N64 controller. It took a couple of years but a controller that I can use as the native controller in every emulated console I have on my computer.
Two analog sticks, for PS games. The analog is also used in the N64. A D-pad for any game that uses it (all the way back to the Atari 2600). 4 shoulder buttons, again for PS games. 6 front buttons, so it works great with the 6 button Sega controllers from Genesis on; plus it really works for the Capcom arcade fighting games. With the D-pad, buttons and shoulder buttons it can actually pull the N64 stuff, and is more comfortable than the native controller.
It's also programmable so if a game doesn't quite recognize the controller I can map all the buttons to keyboard buttons (or even make little macros, like a series of button presses, but I have never used that aspect of the controller).
Now some of the configurations are a little odd - the should buttons are the start and select for the Saturn, the rightmost two are the same for the PS... and don't get me started on N64 configuration... but while some of this is a little strange, there are enough buttons and sticks that every button for every game will be mapped.
The only thing that would make it perfect for the console emulator is a start and select button type thing in the middle.
And yes it does Rumble/Shock/Force Feedback.
And now back to games - shootin' down Cylons and trying to get comfortable piloting a Viper.
Games Played since last post:
Stuntman Ignition (360)
Frets on Fire (PC)
Radiant Silvergun (Saturn)
Arcana Hearts (PS2)
Each game machine has it's own controller. Some are cool, some are a pain, some are really problematic like the N64 controller. It took a couple of years but a controller that I can use as the native controller in every emulated console I have on my computer.
Two analog sticks, for PS games. The analog is also used in the N64. A D-pad for any game that uses it (all the way back to the Atari 2600). 4 shoulder buttons, again for PS games. 6 front buttons, so it works great with the 6 button Sega controllers from Genesis on; plus it really works for the Capcom arcade fighting games. With the D-pad, buttons and shoulder buttons it can actually pull the N64 stuff, and is more comfortable than the native controller.
It's also programmable so if a game doesn't quite recognize the controller I can map all the buttons to keyboard buttons (or even make little macros, like a series of button presses, but I have never used that aspect of the controller).
Now some of the configurations are a little odd - the should buttons are the start and select for the Saturn, the rightmost two are the same for the PS... and don't get me started on N64 configuration... but while some of this is a little strange, there are enough buttons and sticks that every button for every game will be mapped.
The only thing that would make it perfect for the console emulator is a start and select button type thing in the middle.
And yes it does Rumble/Shock/Force Feedback.
And now back to games - shootin' down Cylons and trying to get comfortable piloting a Viper.
Games Played since last post:
Stuntman Ignition (360)
Frets on Fire (PC)
Radiant Silvergun (Saturn)
Arcana Hearts (PS2)
Friday, April 11, 2008
Delays, new games, and a new plan
You may have noticed that there was a huge gap recently. A couple of reasons; real life intruded with a couple of weeks of overtime, health stuff, and a little too much time spent on my Pen and Paper RPG. A lot of my snap Judgment reviews came from free rentals of video games, which has been one of the nifty perks from working for Blockbuster. Movies before they hit street, and free game rentals.
However some dunderheads screwed it up. They would get games right when they came out, and kept free renting for weeks, so the customers couldn't get access to games. So the new rules – only 1 game rental at a time, and only after the game is out 8 weeks. So my Snap Judgment reviews are going to slow way down... i was doing 3 or 4 game rentals at a time, but I never kept them more than a week.
So leaving that behind, I have a game I must crow about.
Frets on Fire.
Info here.
This is a Guitar Hero clone, that is a free game (Sourceforge) for the PC and Mac. There isn't any stage or characters, just the notes/neck and a few basic graphics on the side.. but the gameplay is there. There are editors out there that allow you to make the note track for the game, so you can take any song you have, and make a gameplayable song out of it. These are up for download in different places (Torrents or FoF fan sites and such). The game can import the songs from any GH song for the PS2. So you have access to all the GH games, plus fan created stuff. Lots and lots of good stuff.
The basic gameplay is that you use your keyboard for your guitar – the F1 thorugh F5 keys are your fret buttons, and the return key is your strum bar. So if you don't want to spend the money on Guitar Hero and guitar, you can play for free.
You can use your Guitar Hero (or as I understand it your Rock Band) controller with it. And yeah, it makes gameplay that much more fun. So I have a guitar borrowed from a co-worker and been playing the game. So now I can say I am a Guitar Hero nut. We are planning on getting our own Guitar Hero guitar (the wife enjoys the game and plays too), and we are going to save up for Rock Band.
One of my projects I decided on. Because I won't be doing as many snap judgement reviews (they will be down to once a month or so), and I want something to post at least weekly, I am going to choose games for each platform I have, and play games through, and post progress on said games. This also will help me focus on playing through and finishing games, rather than my normal butterfly like approach of lighting here and there for a few moments on each game. The tentative list:
NES – Legend of Zelda 2: Link
SNES – Act Raiser
Genesis – Sonic the Hedgehog
Saturn – Radiant Silvergun
PS 1 – Spyro the Dragon
PS2 – Gauntlet Dark Legacy
Xbox – Battlestar Galactica
Xbox 3600 – Bioshock.
I'll try and play at least a level or two on at least half these games each week and report.
I'm going to start each of them over, and play all the way through with the exceptions of Link and Gauntlet – I'm a bit into each of those (Link is about halfway) so I don't want to start over.
And now back to games - strappin' on the Axe and playing for the crowd.
However some dunderheads screwed it up. They would get games right when they came out, and kept free renting for weeks, so the customers couldn't get access to games. So the new rules – only 1 game rental at a time, and only after the game is out 8 weeks. So my Snap Judgment reviews are going to slow way down... i was doing 3 or 4 game rentals at a time, but I never kept them more than a week.
So leaving that behind, I have a game I must crow about.
Frets on Fire.
Info here.
This is a Guitar Hero clone, that is a free game (Sourceforge) for the PC and Mac. There isn't any stage or characters, just the notes/neck and a few basic graphics on the side.. but the gameplay is there. There are editors out there that allow you to make the note track for the game, so you can take any song you have, and make a gameplayable song out of it. These are up for download in different places (Torrents or FoF fan sites and such). The game can import the songs from any GH song for the PS2. So you have access to all the GH games, plus fan created stuff. Lots and lots of good stuff.
The basic gameplay is that you use your keyboard for your guitar – the F1 thorugh F5 keys are your fret buttons, and the return key is your strum bar. So if you don't want to spend the money on Guitar Hero and guitar, you can play for free.
You can use your Guitar Hero (or as I understand it your Rock Band) controller with it. And yeah, it makes gameplay that much more fun. So I have a guitar borrowed from a co-worker and been playing the game. So now I can say I am a Guitar Hero nut. We are planning on getting our own Guitar Hero guitar (the wife enjoys the game and plays too), and we are going to save up for Rock Band.
One of my projects I decided on. Because I won't be doing as many snap judgement reviews (they will be down to once a month or so), and I want something to post at least weekly, I am going to choose games for each platform I have, and play games through, and post progress on said games. This also will help me focus on playing through and finishing games, rather than my normal butterfly like approach of lighting here and there for a few moments on each game. The tentative list:
NES – Legend of Zelda 2: Link
SNES – Act Raiser
Genesis – Sonic the Hedgehog
Saturn – Radiant Silvergun
PS 1 – Spyro the Dragon
PS2 – Gauntlet Dark Legacy
Xbox – Battlestar Galactica
Xbox 3600 – Bioshock.
I'll try and play at least a level or two on at least half these games each week and report.
I'm going to start each of them over, and play all the way through with the exceptions of Link and Gauntlet – I'm a bit into each of those (Link is about halfway) so I don't want to start over.
And now back to games - strappin' on the Axe and playing for the crowd.
Snap Judgement Reviews 4: The Dream Child
Forza Motorsports 2
I hated this game. I played for about 10 minutes and it completely and turned me off. I really hate racings sims, and I really like arcady racing games. Forza is probably my least favorite driving game since I wasted money buying Gran Turismo 1. To me, if you can't jump in the car, race on the easiest level, and on the third try not come in dead last, it is a waste of time.
This is a waste of time.
Ridge Racer
The other side of the coin – this was a fun game to play. Tried the demo, and really enjoyed the race there, so I traded in Forza for this. Much better. The drift turning is how I've turned in racing games since the 80s- I have always just turned hard, stop accellerating, then accelrate in the new direction, so this game was made for me.
Cars
Another racer (can you tell I was stuck on a theme for a while). This one was fun, it captured the feel of the movie, and is a decent racing game as well. It's on my to buy list.
Sega Rally Revo
The last racer on the list. Halfway between Ridge Racer and Forza. There is a little too much sim for a full dive in game, but I actually enjoyed this one. It is on my to buy list, but on a really cheap.
Dark Sector
First Person Shooter. Modern but with twists – special funky weapons (go glaive go) and mutants. So it does go SF, which is always a bonus. The game is a solo game; no squads to control, no partners to look out for, just you against the bad guys. I loved it – flashbacks to Doom and other classic solo (and good) FPSs. Perhaps a little too much cover taking needed, but still fairly fun. On my list, at a discount.
Viking
Another run around and chop things game (think God of War, Conan, Guantlet) a less linear. Nice visuals as a Viking chopping things up. There are a few gameplay problems; no sprinting, so if you are running from bad guys, they catch up. But I really enjoyed myself.
And now back to games - strappin' on the Axe and playing for the crowd.
Games Played Since last Post
All of the above.
Solitaire (PC)
Williams Pinball (PS2)
Arcana Hearts (PS2)
Frets on Fire (PC)
Radiant Silvergun (Saturn)
Kingdom Under Fire: Circle Of Doom (360)
I hated this game. I played for about 10 minutes and it completely and turned me off. I really hate racings sims, and I really like arcady racing games. Forza is probably my least favorite driving game since I wasted money buying Gran Turismo 1. To me, if you can't jump in the car, race on the easiest level, and on the third try not come in dead last, it is a waste of time.
This is a waste of time.
Ridge Racer
The other side of the coin – this was a fun game to play. Tried the demo, and really enjoyed the race there, so I traded in Forza for this. Much better. The drift turning is how I've turned in racing games since the 80s- I have always just turned hard, stop accellerating, then accelrate in the new direction, so this game was made for me.
Cars
Another racer (can you tell I was stuck on a theme for a while). This one was fun, it captured the feel of the movie, and is a decent racing game as well. It's on my to buy list.
Sega Rally Revo
The last racer on the list. Halfway between Ridge Racer and Forza. There is a little too much sim for a full dive in game, but I actually enjoyed this one. It is on my to buy list, but on a really cheap.
Dark Sector
First Person Shooter. Modern but with twists – special funky weapons (go glaive go) and mutants. So it does go SF, which is always a bonus. The game is a solo game; no squads to control, no partners to look out for, just you against the bad guys. I loved it – flashbacks to Doom and other classic solo (and good) FPSs. Perhaps a little too much cover taking needed, but still fairly fun. On my list, at a discount.
Viking
Another run around and chop things game (think God of War, Conan, Guantlet) a less linear. Nice visuals as a Viking chopping things up. There are a few gameplay problems; no sprinting, so if you are running from bad guys, they catch up. But I really enjoyed myself.
And now back to games - strappin' on the Axe and playing for the crowd.
Games Played Since last Post
All of the above.
Solitaire (PC)
Williams Pinball (PS2)
Arcana Hearts (PS2)
Frets on Fire (PC)
Radiant Silvergun (Saturn)
Kingdom Under Fire: Circle Of Doom (360)
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