miffy495

Actually, I have no beef with the Sens. The only team I have a problem with is Calgary as I have to deal with many drunken fans. I don't really hate the team, I just like when they lose so the fans shut the hell up. I was half-cheering for the Senators this year, but I'm not really fussed that they lost tonight. Pittsburgh is having a great year, and Crosby needs to prove himself this year. I'm pretty happy for them, but I hope they eventually get shut down by Montreal.

Yes and no. For both questions, actually. When you buy a game on XBLA, it is downloaded to your HDD or (and MS loved to tout this) your removable memory pack. Unfortunately, the memory pack sort of worsens the whole deal. For one thing, MS has rules that they won't release a game on XBLA unless it will fit on a memory pack. This means you won't get things like Tekken 5 on PS3, as the game is simply too big to release. For another, many games will barely fit on a memory pack, meaning if you're actually planning to try using this method, I hope you don't have any great attachment to your saved games. It all kind of makes you wish MS had gone for a standard HDD rather than either having a 20GB or not. Especially given that many of the best experiences on 360 are in the XBLA library. Playing offline is a go, given that you meet a couple of conditions. First, the HDD that you're playing off of is the original HDD you downloaded the game to. Second, the 360 you're using to play it is the original 360 you downloaded the game to. If you're trying to play on a different HDD (unless you use that cable that comes with the 120GB HDDs, that transfers over your certificates too) or on a buddy's 360, you're going to need to be signed in to XBL. This doesn't have to be a Gold Account though. The free Silver account will let you buy games and log in to your profile, it just won't let you play multiplayer games. So if you're not playing on your original system and HDD, you need to be online but not necessarily paying. The restrictions to offline play really aren't all that bad, unless your 360 was replaced by MS after bricking. Then everything you bought before it bricked will require you to be signed in to play. Erkki, it's all down to how much you plan to play XBLA games and access other DLC. I'd go for the Elite, and I keep on wanting to buy the larger HDD for my Premium, but it's over 200 fucking dollars in Canada. Won't be paying that anytime soon. If you can get it bundled, and you intend to be playing lots of XBLA titles and games like Crackdown and Rock Band which have amazing DLC, (and lots of it) then go for it.

It's mid-April. I'm Canadian. Hockeyhockeyhockeyhockeyhockey. It's a little awkward because I hate my city's team and my team didn't make the playoffs this year (I'm a die hard Toronto Maple Leafs fan who moved across the country when I was a teen) but I'm still enjoying watching whatever games I can. I'm pretty much going to be parked in front of CBC watching game after game after game until the playoffs are over in May. Life goes on hold until the games are over. Or at least until between periods. For example, right now I'm writing this between the second and third periods of game 4 or the Flames/Sharks series. (Go Sharks! Put this stupid city in it's place! ...god I need to move somewhere I like.) I very rarely get into total guy "beer and sports" mode, but dammit, it's that time of the year.

I was excited this morning. Fantasy Zone hit Virtual Console for North America and I was pumped to play it. Up until I got my Dreamcast used a while ago, the only Sega system I'd ever owned was a Game Gear, and I've been relishing in every Sega classic that's been released that I'd always kind of wanted to play but had never had the means to. While this has lead to the occasional disappointment (Kid Chameleon seemed so much cooler when I was 7 and playing it at my friend's house...) I was fairly confident that Fantasy Zone would be worth it. Now, it probably made more sense when there was an instruction booklet with it, but I was jumping in cold here, so it took me forever to figure out exactly what the hell I was supposed to do. I will say that it was really cool to be able to go in more than one direction, as lately I've been playing things like R Type which don't give you that freedom. The customizing of the ship was also pretty sweet, despite the fact that the weapon power-ups you buy disappear way too quickly. Another major plus is the atmosphere of the game in general. Again, compared to the R Type and Gradius style shooters I'm used to, whimsical is always a plus. The only other shmup that's had this vibe that I've gotten on the VC has been Air Zonk, which I really loved. The problem is, I played for a good 10 minutes scrolling around wondering when I was going to find a boss before I realized that I could kill those pink winged things that kept on dispensing little blue balls of hatred. When my shots made a *plink* noise against them, I figured they were ineffective and just started looking around for some way to advance to a boss or a different world. Little did I know that after 15 or 20 *plink*s the pink thing would explode. When I discovered this, I started killing them all, figuring that maybe I'd kill enough to anger a larger one and goad it into starting a boss fight with me. After about 10 kills, my prayers were answered, and a giant laser-spitting version of Whispy Woods appeared and promptly raped poor little right into explodey oblivion. I've fought him and died about 10 times now, each time dodging for longer and longer while pelting him with my seemingly useless twin cannon (and bombs when I'm feeling brave) but I always find myself drifting into a stray shot in his constant barrage. I'll admit that I'm not all that great a twitch gamer, particularly for games of the shmup genre. I still enjoy them, I just usually have to make liberal use of whatever continue system may be in place. There is a definite appeal to Fantasy Zone, but I can't help feeling like I'm missing a bit of the greatness. I really want to love this game, and I figured on a forum that has an opa opa smiley, I'd be able to get some encouragement and some words that may let me see it in a happier light. As it is, it's frustrating me, but I'm not ready to give up yet. Anyone want to step up and give me a reason to keep at it?

I have it. Two copies, actually, as I owned it on Gamecube long before buying it on XBLA yesterday. I'm just as rubbish at that, but whatever. Both are fun.

Hey! I beat that Laser Whispy Woods guy! Hooray! ...only to get promptly smashed in the next level. Still, I'm making progress! I feel much better knowing this.

I thought Sweeny Todd was pretty good. Nothing spectacular, but enjoyable and I left the theater feeling impressed. Burton peaked with Ed Wood, as I see it, but this managed to bring a bit of whatever made his older movies good back.

Stuck in the same place as Thunderpeel, but it took me about 15 lives to get there instead of 10. How the hell do you get past that thing?

...And I suddenly don't care that Ottawa is pretty much guaranteed to lose the series now. Thanks man, I needed that.

Still not out it North America (man it's weird writing that...) but I've actually been more excited for this game than I ever was for Super Smash Bros Brawl. Mario Kart was the first non-bundled game I got for my SNES, and as such the first game I ever bought. My god did I love it, and the series has always been one of the deciding factors in my total fanboy love for Nintendo. As such, it's a bit saddening for me to see it may not live up to what I was hoping. That won't stop me from picking it up a day or two after launch though, so I'll be resurrecting this thread in a couple of weeks.

EDF has something of an interesting difficulty spike, in that it all makes perfect sense provided you start on Easy and work your way up. Every time you pick up a shard of armour, your total hit points raise by one. I believe last time I picked up that controller, I had just over 900 hit points, and I started with 100. These added points carry over from level to level and difficulty level to difficulty level, so if you start on Easy, buff your hit points, and progress through Normal, Hard, and whatever the fourth difficulty was called, you keep on getting stronger and stronger as you go. You can even keep replaying the same level for more points, if you're so possessed. If you've played through Easy, Normal should just scale up perfectly. As such, I wouldn't worry so much about the game requiring a friend as long as you're willing to upgrade your health enough. On a different tangent, I've never really gotten into this genre, but Ninety Nine Nights came very close to drawing me in with its Mizuguchi factor. The reviews came out pretty poorly though, so I never did pick it up. Anyone actually play it and have a verdict?

Cheers. I will probably add you sometime next week when I have time to game again. Let's hear it for school!

I'd forgotten that a long time ago I subscribed to a Strong Bad Email video podcast. During Thursday's blizzard, I was stuck at a bus stop for an hour and a half and had about the perfect amount of Strong Bad on my ipod for that amount of time. I lol'd. A bunch.

I quite liked it. Not in a art/wank way, more in a "hey, this was kind of clever" sort of way. I chuckled, and the sight of a speed run video on YouTube made me giggle even more. That said, I don't think deleting your post really accomplishes much. It was well written and made a couple of good points. Even if your view has since softened, that doesn't mean you should remove that you said it. Just put up a new post saying your revised feelings. I sort of like Doom 3 now, and am willing to say it was a good, but not excellent game. Even so, I'm not going to deny having been completely full of vitriol at its mention when it first came out. I've never understood the desire to delete something we once said that we don't completely agree with even a week later. Revising your opinion just makes you human, and admitting it makes me respect the writer more.

I never noticed an online option, no. That doesn't take away from how amazing the game is though.

Good to know. I'll hold off til my connection is more stable. Thanks.

You have my attention...

GOT IT!!! WHOOO! WHOOO! *ahem* That is all.

Y'know what, I signed the "Uwe should keep making movies" petition. I think he's been unfairly targeted simply because his bad movies are based off of video games while other people's bad movies are just bad. If he were just a regular shitty director, no one would ever bother him, but he riles up the fanboys. Sometimes fanboys need riling. There, I said it. Helps them to not take themselves so seriously. If you hate Uwe Boll and want him to stop making movies, you are in dire need of a life. If you don't like his movies, don't watch them. Liking a game doesn't mean you have to see everything to do with it. I like Street Fighter II. I don't want to watch the Jean Claude Van Damme movie based off of it. I caught about 20 minutes of it at 3:00 am one night on TBS. That was enough. I liked Far Cry. I won't be watching the movie based off of it. This doesn't mean it should never be made. Perhaps it shouldn't be watched, but that's up to each viewer. The more hate gets piled on Boll, the more I feel sorry for the guy, reviewer beatings aside. ...whoo, sorry about that. Had to get that off my chest. All this "Ban Boll" stuff going around the blagocube has been irritating me lately. I wholeheartedly approve of the new Avatar Challenge. Bonus points if you can get him mock-punching you.

Season 5 is said to be the best, as it's also where the Spike thing starts to get really fleshed out. Actually, the best thing that could be said for season 4 is that it brought Spike back (from his previous Season 2 Big Bad status) and introduced that aspect of the story in the first place. Again, you can see how it all links back to itself. OMWF is the standout from an otherwise mediocre 6th season, but if you don't mind having to catch up on everything as you go, there are far worse places to start than season 5. Don't worry if it's not your thing though. I know that when I was going through the DVDs last year, everyone told me to let them know when I got to OMWF. When I did, there were about 10 people around the TV. Every other episode it was just me. That seems to be the one that everyone likes, even if they can't stand the series itself.

Sweet! More Edgeworth makes me giddy.

Do you have GHIII for 360? Will the guitar still work with Rock Band in Europe like it does in North America? You may be able to get away with only buying the game, and maybe picking up a standalone drum kit later whenever they get around to releasing them... On another note: GODDAMN IT! Missed one fucking note on Gimme Shelter (Expert Drums) and didn't get the perfect achievement. Grah!

I really enjoyed Buffy, but it depends a lot on where you happen to come into the series. It's one of those things that's kind of hard to just jump into. When I was 15 I happened to be channel surfing one night and came across and episode. Watched it for the hell of it, and started really liking it. Later it turned out that that episode I happened to see was a rerun of the third episode of the first season, so a good part of why I liked it so much was that I hadn't missed anything. In addition, Seasons 4 and 6 are incredibly weak compared to the others. If you caught one of the poorer episodes from those two and had no context, I can easily see why you wouldn't like it. If you started from the beginning, it's just weird campy fun for a good while, and doesn't really start to get serious at all until season 2, but I still find those episodes good in their own right. Firefly is the superior show, and though it's kind of cool to see Nathan Fillion playing a villain in the last bit of season 7, if you weren't that drawn in, don't worry about it too much. Just make sure that if you're interested you give it a proper shot and rent/download the first season to try and see some in context.

Just import. I did, although mine was an import from the US to Canada. This game has the weirdest release scheme ever.

As long as they're excellent to each other...