Gauchorino

@MegaTen But those norms are not necessarily and are often not dependent on current trends. Another example of this is the immigration standards of Japan, whereby illegal aliens and unrestricted migration to there are almost never allowed, despite guilt-trips and hit pieces by Western media against them.

Yes, misogyny is ironically most often the product of insecure women against other women, which men are ad nauseum falsely blamed and ridiculed for, without any sort of repercussions (thanks to the implicit bias that "men are always the oppressors"). It is indeed a huge problem.

@MegaTen They're not affected to the same degree by the current cultural taboos that the feelings-dominant Western media attempts to shame and manipulate the common folk with.

@Shiryu I dread the thought...

@Shiryu Reporting on a new NES game/anything free and Nintendo-related is always relevant and is always appreciated. Thanks again for the great work! Some people here probably just feel insecure or opinionated about the game's theme, but I hope that they'll never encourage you to self-censor your articles.

@Shiryu NBC must have been keen on hardcore gaming at the time, what with EarthBound appearing in Frasier and all. Or perhaps they just freshly ordered "shipments of upcoming Nintendo games" at times, for props.

Glad he admitted to fundamentally changing main characters' identities to fit his revisionistic narrative.

Also, the canonical Castlevania's Dracula became a vampire after his "first" wife was killed by a vampire. Canonically, his "second" wife used alchemy to create medicine to fight the Plague and was killed by witch trial for doing so. This could have been far more appropriate to demean and critique.

Instead, Netflix Castlevania changes this by clunkily making his wife a scientist intending to propagate "SCIENCE!" to replace "ignorance", tortured by "the fathers of hate and impediment". How original and groundbreaking.

http://castlevania.wikia.com/wiki/Castlevania:_Lament_of_Innocence

The vain "Western civilisation is the root of all evil" theme of this adaptation isn't characteristic of the games' storyline. In fact, Trevor Belmont is very "Western" in this show's source material, Castlevania III. Also, the Dracula of the games isn't a cringy anti-hero, like he is in this show. Unlike modern Western media creators, Japanese creators typically admire and try to honour Western culture and history, so, that might be the cause of this difference.

The choppy animation during action scenes is not a good thing, either. The voice acting and sound and art design are excellent, though. 6.5/10

I missed out on that rather cool GC controller, but as this one looks much intuitive, it might be a worthy buy. Now, where's that Switch Internet browser?

I might tune into Season 2 for completion's sake, but after watching all of Season 1, I'm less impressed than I hoped to be with this. The sound and art design is excellent, but the animation is a little choppy, and the story and characters are far more vain, vulgar, and trite than in any of the games.

After watching all the episodes, I'm less impressed than I hoped to be with this. The sound and art design is excellent, but the animation is a little choppy, and the story is far more vain, vulgar, and trite than the games' canon version is.

Fantastic news!

Now, if only AtGames would put the original version of Shinobi III on their new (and hopefully improved) MD/Genesis Mini... https://www.unseen64.net/2008/04/14/super-shinobi-2-mdg-beta/

@Angelic_Lapras_King YES.

We still got an overall better selection, but Tetris Attack and New Challengers are better than Dream Course and SF2T.

@Bolt_Strike He might be trying to shove the whole thing under the rug with such vagueness. Letting people make their own conclusions and all that. Keeps him and Nintendo safe(r) from unnecessary possible backlash from the press and fans.

@GameOtaku @SeaCliff @Bolt_Strike By the phrase "commerciaI product", I think Reggie was using coded language to say "AM2R, with its professional-esque new graphics and features, would have cut into the momentum and sales of our own Metroid II remake, so we felt we had to take it down." Not to say that I'm happy about the whole thing, myself.

@Gaijillionaire Are you hinting at more material soon to come?

These various Kunio games need to be released in compilations. I want to play them all, but how can I if most of them don't sell well?

Another excellent work by you!

@ALinkttPresent Thanks for the detailed info! How disappointing that the assumption made by this article isn't true, though. It was quite a longshot to expect them to localise a remake of a spin-off that almost no one in the West has ever heard of...

How disappointing. It looked so promising, too.

@kurtasbestos "Zipang" is actually a variant romanisation of an old Chinese reading of the characters "日本" (Japanese: "Nihon"; older Chinese: "Tsipang"). Japanese media seem to enjoy using this particular rendering in a self-parodying way. Here are more details if you're interested (under "Jipangu" section): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_of_Japan

The term's usage here is a bit unoriginal yet (still) rather charming and humourous, considering the theme of the game.

The hype is so real. Perhaps this was particularly inspired by a certain canceled project: https://youtube.com/watch?v=EBbN58Jb-Ig

Compared to the sleek designs of the 3D line, this looks like it is marketed for children (consistent with the principles of the normal 2DS), which is obviously the intention. Smart business move that may be a stop-gap for while they're developing their "budget-model Switch".

Is there a second April Fools Day at the end of the month?

@JaxonH Got it, but you responded to me in detail with your opinion on the matter (despite stating you don't have an opinion on the matter either way in your second reply), hence why it looks like you were arguing against the crux of my comment. I'm not sure why it's unreasonable for me to respond to an opinion of yours of which you felt the need to inform me. Again, it sounds like you're backpedaling from the words of your first reply to me. I don't really care, though. I'm fine with ending this discussion, now, since I have a good amount of respect towards you.

@ACK Thank you for the alternate analysis! Supported by this article, I was about to disdain the lack of anything good and unique on Switch, but you have alleviated my concerns somewhat with the information you provided, here. Now, I'll still be looking forward to buying this, eventually.

@JaxonH Did you not just express an opinion on the matter by listing three reasons why, contrary to my first comment, that you find it acceptable for projects to change terms of sale after already receiving funding based on the original terms of sale? That was the context of my first comment, after all, and it did seem that you understood that.

You having your own opinion on the matter is completely fine, of course, but I'm asking you this based on the content of your first reply to me and your current appearance of backpedaling from your original statements.

@JaxonH I've outlined in detail in other, similar comment sections why canceling a promised (met) stretch goal is duplicitous, even if a refund is offered. An attempt to sum up why in a few words: consider that not everyone has or will have a Switch, and funded a project that promised to release it on the platform of their choice, without caveat.

If I was a dog salesman, and you were to order a dog from me, and I inform you that I'm sending you a cat or a cancellation of your order, that doesn't make the transaction a successful one nor does it restore any sense of my trustworthiness. It only alleviates an illegal act (cf. fake or bootleg listings on eBay).

This game's situation is different because it was not funded by its purchasers nor on bait-and-switch lies.

Great game! I hope V Special (and/or the legendary, never-released V Special: Final Edition) makes it to Hamster's service. That's the only one I don't have.

Nice 2015 throwback. Let's just hope it turns out as well as promised.

No issue with this, at all. Unlike Playtonic, IGA's team, and several other Kickstarter project developers, Over the Moon didn't crowdfund The Fall P2's Wii U announcement, meaning they truly don't have any obligation to anyone to not change the release platform.

Anyway, I still haven't made it very far into Part 1, so, yet to see if this one is worth considering.

They nailed that early '80s anime style with this. I wonder who did this artwork.

I still hope this turns out to be great on Switch despite all the bait-and-switch and other troubling decisions Playtonic has had to make. It's never a good thing to see a promising project fail, regardless of the developer's purposeful actions or mistakes.

@PtM What irony in that statement!

@brandonbwii I'd have to look in at the data to judge the relevance of your example, but it's only good business sense to produce both black and white blond Barbies if there is a profitable market for both of those products. If it isn't profitable to do so, then this an example of poor business sense and possibly of persistence of the manufacturer to spread a specific message through this practice. Regarding your example (possibly, in the financial sense) or any the like, it isn't objectively wrong to intentionally sell a consumer product at a loss, but good business sense it most always isn't.

Again, why do you think superficial (and sometimes arbitrary) qualities like gender and race are matters necessary in order to enjoy a game? Do you think most females are too insecure to enjoy a game unless they are playing as a character with the gender by which they identify? Do you think most black people are too insecure to enjoy a game without playing as the race by which they identify? If not, then we're already in agreement.

@PtM Perceive reality as you wish, but a "no" means that you also do not believe all females cannot enjoy something without being superficially catered to (like as to children).

@PtM I just asked you a question. Answering in the negative means that we're in agreement.

Only thing bad about this plan is that this game is being released so close to Wonder Boy. Likely to cause confusion and loss of sales...

@PtM You believe female players are so insecure that they need an exact female clone of a male main character in order to enjoy a game (like in this game)? If not, then you agree with me.

@Dunan The project creators, themselves, treat it as a "pre-order shop" when they promise to reward their backers with an item they commit (in writing and often also on video) to make of a backer's (limited) choice. If it were simply a matter of investing in an idea, there would be no need to offer rewards.

But say it does only involve investing in an idea. When you make a monetary investment, the terms by which you invested should be clear and binding. If they change, the party of sale is at fault for unscrupulously infringing the terms previously agreed to. A poor investment and unfaithful.

Kickstarter rewards and stretch goals are terms agreed to by the contract...of sale. If the project creator does not fully deliver on his promises to his funders (including giving them the reward promised to them in exchange for their funding, before they funded the project), then he is at fault for invalidating the terms he established with his funders before they funded his project. Offering a refund for his blunder is not an excuse for breaking a contract, as you've seemed to imply, much less immunity to criticism of his blunder.

See Kid_Sickarus' above comment for a concise and cleverly-worded illustration of this.

@brandonbwii Do you not see the difference between 1. creating a brand new character or game with unique features (like Ms. Pac-Man) and 2. adding a clone character whose only defining feature is that she is female (like Wonder Girl)? Do you believe diversity is only worth achieving if it is superficial diversity? Because this is exactly that.

Political correctness is conforming to superficial rules to appeal to superficial audiences in order to "raise awareness" about superficial dogma. This is precisely why Wonder Girl, with her vanilla presence, is here. Her design is good, and it's very impressive that the team programmed her into all versions of the game, but it's an overall shallow addition, and ironically, pedantic towards females.

@CharlieSmile If your perspective on this matter is the "correct" one, then why does someone have to play most or every game they like as his or her respective gender to feel included?

@CharlieSmile I'm unfamiliar with the context, but following your statement, how does disliking a female lead's appearance = disliking female leads in general? I highly doubt many (or any) female players would find the lead from The Ooze attractive, but that doesn't lead me to assume that most female players hate the idea of male leads.

(Note that in this very comment section, several who questioned the inclusion of Wonder Girl still found her design appealing)

@CharlieSmile I don't think there are many male players upset by the idea of a female lead. This isn't grade school.

The contention, rather, is that forcing an exact female clone of an established male character just for the sake of gender equality implies (very falsely, in my opinion and experience) that female players need to play a particular game as a female character to enjoy it. Why dilute a character's uniqueness simply because he may not be the same gender as the player? Why can't female players see bits of themselves through male characters (and vice versa)? Honest questions (and nothing personal, of course).

Character design is great, and this is a pretty cool addition in any respect, but what is the implication? That girls are so insecure that they cannot possibly be comfortable playing as this male character?

Would be neater and far less vain if Wonder Girl had transformations and attributes differing from her counterpart, though.

@Dunan Being refunded for a bait-and-switch means there is no reason to criticise them for deceiving their backers through bait-and-switch tactics? Mental gymnastics like this is what needs to stop.

@Masurao "Reach this stretch goal [by giving us more of your money than we need to make our game], and we will release the game on Wii U"

What idea is being invested by this? Are backers not entitled to what they purchased, what was promised to them through their purchase? If they asked for a Wii U version (and many did), they did not just back the greater project. They also purchased what the Kickstarter team promised them that they could choose as a reward for their backing: the Wii U version.

It is true that developers shouldn't spread themselves too thin, but promising things that they cannot deliver (by being overwhelmed and/or making mistakes) as a reason why people should fund their projects is not an excuse for invalidating contractual agreements with your funders. This is what happened. Why is this beyond criticism?

@OptometristLime A highly underrated perspective.

Loving the assumption that everyone who backed the Wii U version has or plans to have a Switch.

Ryu_Niiyama said it best: it would have been better for them to have finished the Wii U version (which their outsourced team, Armature, presumably has been working on this entire time), then to port and modify the Switch version from another console's version. The Wii U version likely would have had slightly different gameplay and features, with its dual-screens and weaker engine, anyway...so, using existing assets from the Wii U version for the Switch version's development (as they stated they would do) seems strange, pointless, and costly.

Now, instead, Iga's team (like so many Wii U Kickstarter project developers before them) has unnecessarily drawn ire from a significant portion of his backers for, truly, accepting their money on false pretenses. The refund offer is appreciated. The lack of integrity isn't.

I sincerely wish the best for Iga, Inafune, Playtonic, and other developers of ambitious, high-profile indie games that never fulfilled their promises, and I very much hope that they learn from these infidelitous mistakes in their future endeavors.

Kickstarter: never again.

Great week! Awesome to see Neo Geo games, finally. It's about time we see Bomberman 64 on any platform, with its amazing multi-player and (especially) its single-player. It's been disappointing that the N64 games are still the best in the series and the most unique, even though the ones before and after them are still good fun.

Good Switch!