Comments 216

Re: Nintendo's Lawsuit Against Palworld Is "A Clear Case Of Bullying", Says Analyst

thedicemaster

@RubyCarbuncle that is unlikely.
if nintendo wanted to weaponize patents, they could've wrecked the mobile game market with their virtual joystick patent.
but they didn't, instead they only used that patent to strike down a company that itself wanted to attack the entire mobile game market with an identical virtual joystick patent.

nintendo is making a big exception by going after palworld with patents.

Re: Nintendo Patents Filed After Palworld's Release Suggest Lawsuit Prep Started Months Ago

thedicemaster

@RygelXVIII i don't appreciate you manipulating my words.
what i said is not opinion on what is and isn't right, but on the way patent law works.
and you're half-quoting me, ripping it out of context.
you can add however many challenge factors and bits of realism to the process of throwing a capture ball you want, but that doesn't take away the mechanic of aiming and throwing a ball at a creature to catch it.
as long as you're just sticking features onto someone else's invention, you're still using someone else's invention and their protection applies.

and you're forgetting patents have a limited lifespan.
20 years after the original filing(and since the child patents are back dated to their parent's filing date, that should be 2021 for them too) they expire.

@Wexter patent is IP.
patents, copyright, and trademarks are all forms of protected intellectual property.

Re: Nintendo Patents Filed After Palworld's Release Suggest Lawsuit Prep Started Months Ago

thedicemaster

@RygelXVIII by trying to describe how different palworld's capture mechanic is from pokemon's, you've described exactly the patented capture method.
all the difference is in additions palworld's devs made to pokemon's mechanics.
adding something to someone else's existing invention doesn't make it your invention, if the original is patented you need permission to use/sell your enhanced version.

adding better physics to the ball doesn't change that you aim, throw, and need to hit the target.
that the capture rate is shown and calculated with more criteria, doesn't change that a capture rate calculation happens.

Re: Nintendo And Pokémon File Lawsuit Against Palworld Developer Pocketpair

thedicemaster

@RygelXVIII in both scarlet/violet and legends arceus the battles aren't exclusively turn based either.
in both you can send out your pokemon to fight against wild pokemon autonomously.
pokemon legends arceus also specifically has player vs creature combat mechanics, where the player character needs to avoid attacks and attack directly(using thrown projectiles)

Re: Pokémon TCG Art Contest Disqualifies Select Entrants Following Accusations Of AI-Generated Submissions

thedicemaster

AI creations can be split into 2 categories.

AI generated images, these are made with a few key words entered into an AI to automatically generate an image.
this is not art, AI did all the actual work.

AI-enhanced art, this is made by mixing traditional or digital art with AI.
the AI fills in some details, but a lot of the work still involves actual artistic skill provided by a human.
for example:
an artist makes a sketch, uses commands to have the AI color it in and add details, and then the artist uses elements from different results from the AI to make a composite closest to their view.

AI generated images aren't art, and don't belong in any contest other than one held between different AI programmers.

AI-enhanced art can have a place in contests, but only if the contest rules allow this.
it still requires an actual artist, and is comparable to smart image editor features like smart select/magic wand, or built-in effects.

Re: Nintendo Hacker Gary Bowser Says He's "Not Involved" With New Switch Flash Cart

thedicemaster

@Dm9982 with how inconveniently it works, it's unlikely to run unsigned homebrew.
most likely the flashcard does nothing to bypass security, instead it loads a rom from the sdcard that has all security data intact and presents that as the entire cartridge's content.
any change would invalidate the game's signature, triggering switch security checks.
signed homebrew could work, but i doubt anyone has cracked or leaked the keys used for signing switch games yet.

flashcards for older systems would hijack the firmware, disable security, and load a custom menu.

Re: Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection Receives New Quality Of Life Update

thedicemaster

@tadams587 it wouldn't be, black is what "burns in" the worst.

as you play the pixels being used will slowly burn up, while disabled(black) pixels will remain pristine as they are not being used.
if you then start another game after playing a game with a black border a lot you will have a border that is brighter than the rest of the screen.

best is probably the grey background with all the bosses, as it uses colors more evenly than the other backgrounds.

Re: Random: The Funniest Pokémon Scarlet And Violet Glitches We've Seen So Far

thedicemaster

some of the "glitches" seem by design.
like people and pokemon walking through the battle, that's just what happens when you battle in the overworld.
you either have battles in a dedicated "arena", or you have overworld things in the battlefield.

i find the one where pokemon slip into the water strange, whenever i was close enough for my pokemon to slip into the water it got placed on an inflatable platform.

Re: Nintendo Confirms That Splatoon 3's Shiver Identifies As Female

thedicemaster

@RasandeRose someone on gamefaqs suggested the wording is very deliberate.
they noticed shiver has the eyes of a male octoling.
female octolings have always been shown with a little extra black line sticking out under their eye, while male octolings have always been shown without that black line.

it could be someone forgot this detail with shiver, or it could be deliberate.

Re: Mini Metro Developer Responds To Knock-Off Release On Switch eShop

thedicemaster

while it does indeed look very similar, almost the entire interface could be considered unprotectable under copyright law as "scene a faire".

if you Google "subway map" almost every result is going to look like the screenshots from both games, as that's just how subway maps are designed.

"scene a faire" refers to parts in a fictional setting that are so iconic to that setting that it cannot be protected under copyright.
if you're making a subway planning game it's almost unavoidable to make it look like a subway map.

Re: UK Charts: Kirby Crashes Out Of The Top Ten As LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga Retains Top Spot

thedicemaster

@AndyC_MK111 it's definitely broken and unfinished for me.
it outright ends halfway through episode 7.
it tells me to speak to maz in her castle, but the story trigger is gone.

the reason it's gone?
i saved and exited the game on the maz's castle map.
the map got reloaded when i started the game again, but the story trigger got skipped because i came in from the load game screen instead of the previous story segment.
there is now no way to "go back" or skip ahead, until they fix this i cannot continue beyond this point without deleting my savedata.

Re: Zavvi Teams Up With Sonic The Hedgehog For New Clothing And Homeware Collection

thedicemaster

@KirbysAdventure they made a bit of a comeback with transformers recently.
however unless you're in the UK i recommend against shopping there.
their various European online storefronts are all a facade, despite what they may say they ship from the UK and do not make any arrangements for local taxes.
that means any order, even from a local zavvi webshop, is going to end up with additional taxes, processing fees, and possibly import fees that have to be paid separately.

Re: Random: Build Your Own Nintendo DS With Joy-Cons And A Samsung Galaxy Z Flip

thedicemaster

i prefer my galaxy z fold 3 and dedicated phone gamepad(pro controller style, but slides open to wrap around my phone) for emulation.
bigger screens, and pretty much perfect aspect ratio for nintendo DS, 3DS, and any pre-widescreen console.
costs a bit more though.

and pokemon and touch-only games don't need the controller, for touch-only i even have a good stylus(s-pen)

Re: Random: Link's Breath Of The Wild Bow Technique "Really Sucks", According To A Professional Archer

thedicemaster

i'm not going to doubt her expertise in whatever bow technique she uses, but she's doing it wrong.
she's holding her bow vertical(as most archers would), but link holds his bow diagonal.
i don't know how much that would impact the path of the arrow because i'm not an archery expert, but she didn't take it into consideration at all.

and it has happened in the past(even recently) that a "forgotten" archery technique was re-discovered, experts all called it a flawed technique, but it was proven to be not just practical but even relatively common in medieval times as long as that's how you were trained(switching techniques initially ruins your aim, but after a few weeks of training you adapt and regain accuracy)

Re: Doug Bowser Comments On The Battle Against Joy-Con Drift, Says Nintendo Are Making "Continuous Improvements"

thedicemaster

@Zag_Man joy-cons are easy to fix.
replacement sticks can be obtained for $5-$10.
many replacement sticks come with a tri-wing screwdriver(which while not universally standard, is the standard for nearly all nintendo products and is a cheap one time purchase)
beyond that it's just carefully removing screws, unplugging the joystick module, plugging a new one, and screwing everything back together.

and in many cases actually replacing the stick isn't even necessary, just sticking some tape or a piece of paper under the joystick module is enough to fix the issue.

Re: Review: Colors Live - A Basic Art Application Elevated By Clever Hardware

thedicemaster

@Chronodude333 touch sensitivity is really good.
if you use the switch input option to increase touch sensitivity it actually becomes too sensitive.
we also recommend using a screen protector, as the soft switch screen was not designed for using a stylus.

@Freddyfred that's outdated information from the 3DS version, the switch version supports 10 layers(more layers and layer options coming in a future update) and has a selection brush that lets you lasso-select, move, and resize.

@JasmineDragon @reporterdavid there will be updates to add more tools and options, you can also suggest new ones in the colors!live discord if you think something is missing.
a fill tool is planned, but it takes some work and needed a bit of feedback on how it should behave.

Re: Nintendo Switch System Update 13.0.0 Is Live, Adds Bluetooth Audio

thedicemaster

@HedgehogEngine they did include Apt-X LL support.
but unless you're using Apt-X LL headphones you won't notice a difference.

i tested it with my Avantree HS136 and i get so little latency i'm physically unable to even estimate the latency.
and for gaming that's exactly what you need, media can account for the delay but games cannot.

Re: Random: Here's The Coolest Switch Headphone Jack Cover We've Ever Seen

thedicemaster

@TimeGuy as a moderator on the colors!live discord i can say that it is indeed very much needed.
colors!live is an art app/game for the switch that can use a stylus connected using a headphone jack to get pressure sensitivity when drawing.
many older switches are having trouble detecting the stylus because there's too much dirt or corrosion on the contacts in the headphone port.
a simple plug likely would've protected the contacts.

on a normal headset dirty or corroded contacts would present as intermittent audio or lowered volume, sometimes only when the plug is rotated to specific positions.

Re: Nintendo Removing Credit Card Support From 3DS And Wii U eShop In Japan

thedicemaster

@McGruber use the Nintendo website, it still accepts credit card payments.
and Nintendo isn't exactly doing this voluntarily.
they had 2 alternatives.
1: do nothing, and watch as customers complain about payments failing because the credit card security checks fail at some random point in the near future.
2: pull devs out of their switch OS dev team, dig up old source code, and overhaul the checkout process in the eShop on 2 systems that have been EoL for years now.

Re: Digital Art Software Colors Live Is Getting A Physical Release On Switch

thedicemaster

@CodyMKW the stylus will work with any game that uses the touch screen, and works on any device with a capacitive touch screen.
pressure sensitivity is only supported in colors!live on the switch, and a small number of android and iphone apps.
if you're using it without pressure sensitivity you do not need to plug in the cable.

@Not_Soos if you buy through store.colorslive.com you get digital with stylus, if you buy it through the eshop you get digital without stylus.

@gcunit the version sold through various retailers will be a switch game box with cartridge and with the stylus attached in a bubble.
a "digital" bundle on store.colorslive.com gets you a digital code through e-mail, and the stylus in a fancy cardboard box.

@alwaysasn the "gimmicks" of this version are the included stylus(which also works in some android and iphone apps with pressure sensitivity, as it doubles as a regular sonarpen!) and the quest mode that lets you take on a drawing challenge every day and get a private score based on feedback from other users.

Re: Two Members Of "Notorious" Video Game Piracy Group Team Xecuter Arrested

thedicemaster

just putting a reminder here that this isn't a lawsuit, or even anything (directly) to do with Nintendo.
it's a criminal case(the government says you broke the law, and now wants you punished) and not a civil case(there's a dispute between you and another person/company)

while Nintendo may have nudged the FBI(no way this is a regular police case) in one direction or the other, but in the grand scheme of things they have no say in wether this gets pursued or not.
it's up to the discretion of the FBI, a federal prosecutor, and a federal judge.