Comments 20

Re: Project M Development Ends as Its Team Looks Ahead to 'New Projects'

Blakenator

This situation is extremely convoluted, as denial from the Project M dev team of their being a possible C&D from Nintendo has further complicated the matter. If it was truly time for the dev team to "move on" as the article said, then posting galleries of new costumes for characters in the next patch they were planning to release is quite contradictory. Why post them in the first place if it was time to move on? Also, evidence suggests that this quitting was decided suddenly within the last 3 days.

Here is a link to a reddit post that compiles all of the strange happenings that relate to the team's quitting of development. It is a good read and is very informative to what is happening at the moment. @RogueBologna @PlywoodStick might find this helpful.

https://www.reddit.com/r/SSBPM/comments/3v4jca/investigation_and_ruminating_amalgamating_current/

Re: Talking Point: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD Would be No Surprise, as Nostalgia Rules for Nintendo

Blakenator

I hope that the HD remaster for Twilight Princess really happens. In its native 480p, the game has not aged well graphically, especially with those muddy textures. However, I have come to appreciate the game more and more as time has gone by because it is very unlikely we would get a "dark-looking styled" Zelda for a long time. Nintendo's design philosophy has changed too much over the past decade or so, edging more towards colorful games than ones with darker palates. I'm not saying color is a bad thing, I'm just saying that I appreciate Nintendo's direction with the style of TP considering that colorful philosophy.

Re: Talking Point: Splatoon Is a Typically Colourful Nintendo Dabble in the Mainstream Market

Blakenator

@Quorthon There's no need for such hostility. The point of me bringing up the "kids" was because of who Splatoon appeals to. And those "kids" are mostly playing Call of Duty if they are playing a shooter. I wasn't making an assumption on the whole demographic of the shooter genre. I was just trying to demonstrate how the "kid" part of the demographic would not intersect as cleanly into Splatoon as many might think. It could also be that your personal experience with CoD has been more with the older demographic than the younger. With my experience with CoD, I have been around its younger demographic enough to formulate that opinion. Maybe it's a difference in age between the two of us or our different experiences with the demographic, but that doesn't totally invalidate my point.

You could have just asked me to clarify instead of jumping to conclusions. I'm not saying you have to agree with me, but I would appreciate a little more civility.

Re: Talking Point: Splatoon Is a Typically Colourful Nintendo Dabble in the Mainstream Market

Blakenator

@Stubborn_Monkey That's true. I don't want Nintendo to milk Splatoon if they turn it into a franchise either. But part of the reason why I said that is because I want to see Nintendo make another franchise other than Mario or Zelda that can sell consoles. Maybe not at the same level as those two franchises, but to the point that Nintendo captures a portion of the market with Splatoon that it would not have previously been able to capture

Re: Talking Point: Splatoon Is a Typically Colourful Nintendo Dabble in the Mainstream Market

Blakenator

@Stubborn_Monkey I agree on your last point. The more safe the experience appears, the more mainstream its appeal will be. That's why turning Splatoon into a franchise might prove effective for Nintendo in the long run. Franchises are successful because their games sell. The more they sell, the greater its appeal will be. I know it's kind of a tautology, but that's how the mainstream audience thinks for the most part. A new IP might find more difficulty selling consoles than a franchise (like you said with Mario, Zelda, etc.). That's why I believe that it will either be the new Zelda or a Metroid game in the future which will have a hope of pushing a large amount of consoles.

Re: Talking Point: Splatoon Is a Typically Colourful Nintendo Dabble in the Mainstream Market

Blakenator

In a market already saturated with shooters, introducing a new IP with that genre will lower sales, especially on a console that does not attract the same demographic as the other consoles with shooters on them. The genre is dominated by big name franchises like Call of Duty and Battlefield, which many children not within the age rating are already playing. Which also brings me to my next point.

Yes, this game is quirky. It's imaginative, it's daring, and I like it for that. Not many games or even companies take a colorful direction these days, and I appreciate what this game is doing with the genre. But that might not appeal to the masses. The fact that this game belongs to the same genre as gritty, bloody games with an established history of making bank upon release is a telling sign of what appeals to the masses. Kids already have their fix with CoD and Battlefield (which both are on different consoles than the Wii U). They've come to understand the genre as gritty. It's what's mainstream. A game like Splatoon, despite its noble efforts, might be lost on a demographic (sorry to stereotype, but for the minors playing those games, it's mostly true) whose main concern is remaining within the social norm.

If the game sees success on its first release, then great. Nintendo should pursue turning it into a franchise. Franchises in the game market are mostly trusted by the mainstream audience, hence why game series like Assassin's Creed and Call of Duty sell so well. But for the most part, I believe that the game won't capture that mainstream audience on its first outing. It might sell well within the existing userbase, but I think it won't push consoles.

But there are so many varying opinions about this game. Some people think it will sell very well, some think not so much. I just hope that Nintendo succeeds.

Re: Feature: Ten Upcoming Nindie eShop Games to Watch on Wii U and 3DS

Blakenator

I have yet to buy a Shantae game for the 3DS yet. I started the first one for the Gameboy Color a long time ago and have not finished it. I'm still kinda holding out for that "trilogy" discount if it ever happens.

Other than that, I have been looking forward to Affordable Space Adventures for quite some time. Boxboy looks cute and fun, though, like an addictive puzzle/platforming game (which I think is one of the best genres to play in short bursts, especially on mobile). Definitely have my eyes set on those.

Re: Harmonix Explains Why Rock Band 4 Isn’t Coming to Wii U, But Doesn't Rule it Out

Blakenator

I have loved rhythm games for a long time. I remember playing Guitar Hero with corded, plastic instruments on the PS2, then I got Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock when it came out on the Wii. I sucked at playing the game, but I loved watching it with my older brother and cousins. That's how I know so much about rock in general. Those games introduced me to the whole genre and had me memorizing lyrics so that whenever I heard the songs on the radio, I could sing along with my dad like I knew what I was doing.

Then Rock Band emerged from the shadow of Guitar Hero. I didn't know what to think of it at first, but I knew it was an offshoot of the "original" rhythm game. I was swayed immediately when my family bought the whole set for The Beatles: Rock Band. Drums, microphone, Paul McCartney's bass, and the leftover guitars from Guitar Hero then crowded the TV upstairs. The whole family played. We all knew the songs since we were all huge Beatles fans, and I finally found my calling in the bass guitar (plastic instrument only). I soon mastered how to play the bass and carried over my skills into Rock Band 2 when we bought it.

I played the game on Expert. Any score below a 90% was unacceptable to me, since I was relied on to carry the weight of the band during the more difficult segments on guitar and drums (my brother was on Expert guitar and my dad was on Medium drums). We beat the whole career together, unlocked every song, and enjoyed every moment of it together when we turned on the Wii every weeknight and start off with Fleetwood Mac. It was a magical time, something I don't think I would ever be able to experience again with a rhythm game.
Then we bought Rock Band 3. We played a little bit of the career together, but my brother was going off to college, I was going into high school, and my dad was not as passionate about it. I also really wanted to try out the piano, since that is an instrument I actually play in real life. Everything seemed to be drifting apart, including the rhythm genre as a whole. Activision had already driven it into the ground, and all Harmonix could do was sit and watch as the other company churned out an explosive amount of titles that inflated the market. The genre lost speed due to this inflation as well as evolving and changing interests in the audience it was trying to attract (mostly casual than hardcore consumer base).

Flash forward about 4 years to today. I am now about to head off to college. I am about to leave behind the plastic instruments that defined a large portion of my life, one that I enjoyed on my Wii for several years. Harmonix has fostered lifelong memories in me with the wonderful games they have made. I would like to have the opportunity to create new ones, with new people in a new place. I can't thank the company enough for what it has done over the years. So I would greatly appreciate it if I could continue to appreciate the music, the games, and the people if I could play the next game on the Wii U.

Re: Feature: Five Nintendo 64 Games We'd Love to Play on 3DS

Blakenator

This decision is pretty difficult! I'm stuck between f-zero and sm64; after sm3dw, I'd want a 3d mario platformer that's not as linear, but at the same time I'm digging the track creation idea for f-zero x. I played both games already, and I even played the ds version of sm64, so I know the benefits the new 3ds could bring to sm64. If I could vote for both, I would. But since I have to vote for one, then I'll choose f-zero just so that I can see the franchise keep going.

Re: Review: Meme Run (Wii U eShop)

Blakenator

@KHaceattorney I feel like there are just a lot of people hating it just for the sake of hating it and also because the majority seemed to be doing it. This review may have been playing off of that mindset. Plus the reviewer may have been salty for dropping $5 on it.

Re: Review: Meme Run (Wii U eShop)

Blakenator

@Sforzando A star is a pentangle. Pent=5. Nintendolife gave this game 1 star. 5 - 1 = 4. A triangle has three sides. 4-3=1. Illuminati triangle has one eye. Nintendolife is illuminati confirmed. We did guys. This is what ninja pig studios has been trying to tell us all along

Re: Review: Meme Run (Wii U eShop)

Blakenator

@Kaze_Memaryu I think the best way to deal with this game is just to ignore it. If people really want this game, they'll get it. But if you don't, the best course of action should be to let it pass by. That's how you deal with trolls. Just don't treat it like an issue and give it more publicity. It will collect dust in some corner of the eShop eventually anyway. But yeah, if the creator is insulting people, that may be a little too far. What kind of stuff was said exactly?

Re: Review: Meme Run (Wii U eShop)

Blakenator

I love how everyone is freaking out about how bad of a game this is. The creators of the game really don't care what anyone thinks of this game. it's a piece of crap, and they are self aware. That's the whole appeal of memes. To me, I see no reason for complaining about this game because the people who are buying it know what they are getting into (except the reviewer who had to play it just to review it). I think everyone is overreacting a bit to it

Re: Nintendo Wins Four At The Game Awards 2014, While Shovel Knight Scoops Best Indie Prize

Blakenator

@Melkac I feel the same way with Sm4sh and Hearthstone to an extent. As far as scale of the game, Sm4sh has a lot going on. So much stuff packed into the game, great local and mostly okay online (at least for me), and a variety of characters.

Yet what I've seen from Hearthstone idicates that it is a worthy opponent. Most of my friends play it on their iPads ever since our school issued them (I don't play it because I don't like most iPad/"mobile type" games). It's ease of access makes it a great game for mobile, plus the online multiplayer is really easy to get into. It's premise is simple enough, and the depth of play is just right for an addicting mobile game. Probably where Sm4sh lost out to it is in the controls/online department, since many have complained about imprecise controls on the 3ds (mostly concerning the wonky circlepad inputs and lack of c-stick) and spotty online, as well as the shallow Smash Run and all the steps you have to go through just to play with a friend online. That's just my two cents, but maybe I'd be able to pass better judgment when I play Hearthstone myself

Re: Nintendo Wins Four At The Game Awards 2014, While Shovel Knight Scoops Best Indie Prize

Blakenator

I'm glad that Shovel Knight won Best Independent Game. It really deserved it! I really look forward to where Yacht Club Games goes with all this praise and success with its first major title. I don't know much about the Game of the Year nominees, since I have yet to have the chance to play any of them. I'm sure that I'll be playing Bayonetta 2 some time in the future though.

@MrWalkieTalkie Shadow of Mordor won Best Action/Adventure