meleehunter

@BLD Division logic doesn't apply to vindictiveness. Boycotting is also a dumb practice that doesn't really address the actual reasons a company may be hated, but who cares as long as we can pretend to hurt our target in a manner most convenient for our wallets, huh?

Also, isn't Blizzard about to be going through a pretty massive change with that Microsoft buyout? The way people act makes it sound like bad companies stay bad forever, but I can remember a time in the 2010s when Capcom was the go-to company to hate and nowadays are doing pretty well in the fan's eyes.

@Vexx234 It's not common knowledge these days, but back in the arcade age Mario, or Jumpman as he was known then wasn't exactly the paragon of virtue he is today. He kind of helped cause the problem in the original Donkey Kong, and then just doubles down on on his bad behavior in the sequel to the point of becoming an actual villain. Only from Mario Bros. onwards did he start cleaning up his act. Those games in sequence can easily give an arc for Mario to go through, and I consider it fairly likely because I don't see any other reason why Cranky Kong, a character that otherwise has little presence in the Super Mario series, to be in this movie.

@Dev9417 That's pretty much how I see the movie going as well, the old Donkey Kong and Jr. games can give Mario an arc where he goes from an animal abusing jerk to a hero, along with the drama of losing his first love Pauline and his first job because of the ape-related construction fiasco he accidentally contributed to.

He is technically a Mushroom Kingdom citizen by birth according to Yoshi's Island, but probably moved to the Metro Kingdom early in his life with his stork-chosen parents, so this shot of Mario in town may be more of a return to where he belongs so to speak.

@steventonysmith Asking people what content they would have wanted for Battle League this far in is frankly pointless, not only because their wishes are usually vague, but because by the standards of previous Strikers games any theoretical content would have been blown through in a summer week or two, let alone the couple of months we've had.

@Snatcher There's a rhythm-based Punch-Out!! in there too if you look closely.

@chardir The same logic applies to the silent majority's attitude to the free update model. It doesn't matter whether you think a game like Strikers Battle League is satisfactory on release or not, it's 60$ now and it will still be 60$ in the foreseeable future after all free updates are done.

@Browny And the first game in particular is one of only two times Nintendo actually issued an ultimatum to players that support would cease if not enough players were active (the other being Fire Emblem Awakening, though that's a bit different). I guess part of the disdain for the drip-feed approach is a subconscious fear of this happening with any given entry or series, but Nintendo has a history of being explicit when that is actually the case. Otherwise the beauty of these games releasing full-price is that they cost the same to customers whether they wait for more before buying or enjoy what's there right away. Games that are "free" or cost less from the outset require something from the player to add to them, time at bare minimum or more money that probably ends up making the game costing the same, if not more than, those fixed, full-price "rip-offs".

@Browny I'd argue Splatoon's "same-y" sequels are are how it avoids being accused of not having enough content at launch. Easy to have more from the start if you recycle a lot from what came before.

@Bizzyb So did Splatoon 2, a game that iterates almost to a fault from the first. They criticize that for feeling too same-y and they're gonna do it again for 3. But I'm sure a lot of people prefer not having a game to play and continue fantasizing about their perfect sequel instead of getting an ice bucket of reality to the face. Mark my words, people would have been happier without an 8-player option existing at all.

All these new character models and animations can't have been easy to make, they may as well be brand new characters for the devs. Compare that with all the recycled stuff going from Super to Charged.

@Aurumonado Seriously, the most unique mode ever added to a Strikers game was the challenges in Charged, which were just more CPU games with a handicap. And that would only take you an hour, max to finish if you were good at (exploiting) the game. Everything else, mainly the tournaments, could be replicated with random CPU opponents in versus.

Sadly, long absences breed impossible expectations and nostalgia inertia.

@Jireland92 Here's a fun little fact: Mario Super Sluggers is practically the opposite of this game (and by extension all Strikers games) in every way; no online mode, but a lengthy single-player campaign, gigantic roster, varied maps and minigames ie. everything that apparently actually matters in a Mario sports game according to outspoken Internet folks. So surely that translates to it's sales blowing the other sad excuses of relatively "content-less" Strikers games out of the water, right?

Well, actually, there isn't really much of a difference. In fact Sluggers actually sold less than Charged, if only slightly. 2.6 million for Charged isn't bad by any means and more than double of Super, but it's still kind of disappointing when you consider it launching on a much more successful console much earlier in it's life, especially for a game no one really dares speak ill of these days. I don't think Nintendo really expects huge numbers for this game, or really any Mario sports game that isn't Kart. They have always been AA titles at heart.

@Aurumonado I really don't get how others think the ones who gave bad reviews for not liking the game on a fundamental level will suddenly like it a lot more if it has a story or more characters.

I would like to know what brilliant single player content others were hoping for that wouldn't just amount to playing a bunch of matches against the CPU.

@MsJubilee If you don't like the core gameplay that was designed primarily for multiplayer, would any amount of characters or modes make you enjoy it more?

Story modes or no, I find it hard to believe one can get great value out of playing a multiplayer game without playing multiplayer. At best it's long but utterly repetitive.

@nimnio There's precedent too, the original Strikers was similarly light on single-player content compared to other Mario sports games on the GameCube, yet it still sold better than all of them.

@Itachi2099 What I said applies to a lot of games, fighting games in particular.

@fenlix That point is referring to lack of single player content, just in a roundabout way. There's no story fluff or minigames to distract you from the core gameplay that may or may not engage you, but it does grab you and you have the drive to improve, you can potentially put more hours into it than most RPGs.

@Bret Some people can't fathom that not every game tries to cater to them, and the ones bashing these kinds of games are the type that don't derive any kind of satisfaction from improving at playing a game. They just want to do the bare minimum to win whatever kind of external validation the game can offer before moving on to another game as quickly as possible.

@YoshiF2 Well, it may surprise you to hear that some players prefer that game instead of the supposedly better in every way Charged. If you actually played that game online, you would realize all those special moves and traits you're so fond of actually make the game hideously unbalanced, and games nearly always come down to fast characters abusing exploits in the goalie AI to get free goals, ignoring the whole ball-charging mechanic. The comparatively "bland" Super does not have this problem, and it makes sense that an online-driven game like Battle League would draw more from that to make a fair experience instead.

More is not always better.

The Sonic Adventure games had more realistic, "un-Sonic" graphics and people seem to like those games just fine. Though I won't presume the tastes of people on this site.

I don't really have an opinion on this as there's too little to go on, but I will say games like Pokemon Legends Arceus and Kirby & the Forgotten Land both have rather noticeable graphical shortcomings but are still great games in spite of them.

@YoshiF2 Is Super Mario Strikers for the Gamecube a bad game to you?

@Gingerman86 Nope. Neither do the previous Strikers games for that matter. Instead you have cups like in Mario Kart.

@iLikeUrAttitude This is why we can't have a new Smash Bros. game anymore.

@MatoFilipovic They long for the blissful ignorance of the early 2000s where nobody told them that their "complete" game likely had some stuff missing left out because of time constraints.

@somebread No, it's now well-known to be rushed, which is why we got stuck with Falcondorf and fighters like King Dedede and Pit had to wait until the next game. Again, just because the end result was well-received and had a good amount of content otherwise doesn't mean it's not technically unfinished (nor bad, mind you). We all know things get left on the cutting floor all the time in development, the only difference these days is that we have the capacity to amend missing things in the same game.

Also I would normally agree with you regarding balancing not really being a big point of consideration of how unfinished or not a game is... but when it gets to the point of things like people falling out of Kirby's throws, half of Mewtwo's moves not working properly or Game & Watch not having a functional shield, those are pretty glaring issues.

@Yosher 1) DLC and update data are saved on your microSD card, you can even make copies if you're scared of something happening to one. Yes, if you delete/lose/break those and it's no longer possible to redownload you have a problem, but isn't that also true of breaking and losing your game cartridges/discs when they are no longer in production?

2) We have only seen this strategy used mainly in multiplayer online games, and one already built on daily engagement for a very simple reason: if you are not sold on the gameplay's core loop and/or cannot find satisfation in improving your skills for their own sake, no amount of content available from the start is going to keep you engaged for long. Maybe there is a slight exception for games that have a long running plotline that some fans follow, but Mario sports games definitely do not have that, even in what the fans consider the golden age.

3) Unlocking things became less satisfying the moment Google searches became a thing. And for competitive scenes, all they do is get in the way, which is why a lot of games have some kind of mode or cheat to bypass unlocks.

@CharlieGirl Super Smash Bros. Melee is not a complete game, and it never will be on a physical disc. Whether the result is good or not is irrelevant. Back in the 2000s you either put up with whatever initial state your game was in or you had to buy a separate, Super-Ultra-Ultimate Third Strike version to get additional content in your favorite game.

@Abeedo If you ask most people about games like Mario Tennis Aces and Super Rush, they'd probably tell you that Nintendo took the lesson of online being the future only too well.

Nobody's going to mention the absence of the bloodbath causing Chain Chomp?