RubixsQube

Guys, what if a child saw a boob? How could that child ever do anything else, ever again? Even worse, what if they saw a curse word, like the F word? I mostly used swapnote to send wack-ass curse words that I found or figured out on my own. I guess I'll have to use some other method to get those curse words out to the world

I was so glad that Chris talked about The Smash Brothers. Last week I had a bunch of stupid coding to churn through, so I went and watched the documentary in the background while I worked, and I really want to hear human beings discuss this. I WANT TO DISCUSS IT. Like, as with many podcasts, there are just moments where I YEARN to just speak up and take a conversation in an interesting way. I could never wrap my head around super high level Smash Bros. play, but damn if I didn't play a lot of it. I can't believe how much was going on just over the last ten years. You'd of course hear about "wavedashing," and when you're at college, there'd always be one person who is light years ahead, but I really love that there just these humans for whom the only competition they could ever have is with each other. There's a , and it's absurd! And to think there are people where that's just how they play the game that, as Chris and the documentary mentioned, was NEVER INTENDED to be played in this way! The other two things that really drew me into the series were: 1) There are a lot of weirdos in the world. The documentary does a good job kind of taking a step back from their weirdo lives, but every once in a while you suddenly take a look at the strange settings where the interviews are being done, and you're like: "wait, what?" There's one person being interviewed, and throughout the interview, there's this anonymous person in short shorts just lounging reading a book on a mattress on the floor. It's as if we're interviewing someone who is in a safe house. 2) The typical joke (that Jake makes, actually, in the episode) about high-level Smash play being "Fox only, no items, final destination" arises, but is never really directly addressed in the series, but what is interesting is watching how certain characters become the only ones people play. It seems that the game revolves around a triangle of Marth / Fox / Falco, but the series also highlights individual players who are great at Peach, Captain Falcon, and Jigglypuff. I remember from this year's Evo competition that one character got pretty far with the Ice Climbers, so there's at least seven characters who are played at the tournament level. Also, it's really fascinating that it's not always Final Destination, but that there is actually TOURNAMENT PLAY on the F-Zero level with the cars flying everywhere. They even show some early tournament play on real crazy levels, like Rainbow Cruise. SO. OVERALL. If you have some time and want to watch a weird series where a bunch of (mostly male) people make super broad, super hyperbolic statements about other (male) nerds, this is definitely for you. (Oh, and my only disappointment is that they address the incredibly offensive fighting game usage of "rape" with like, a five minute segment later in the series that mostly sweeps it under the rug. Come on, everyone, let's not use that word)

After reading the Kim Stanley Robinson Mars trilogy, I'm way interested in hanging out on Mars. Sign me up. I'll definitely man a Martian telescope. Less atmosphere to blur the observations. Thanks for pointing out this video!

I donno if I agree with (1), but (2) is true for a lot of games that they play, and it still makes a game worth discussing. I think that the show does a great job being broad with the scope of the games that are discussed, and I 100% definitely think that they could have a fascinating discussion of something like Super Mario 3D Land. However, as I've pointed out in other threads, they seem always skittish to do it because of the same reaction you seem to be having, which is that it's not "thought-provoking." It's easy to be reductionist with any game, but it can be dangerous, since sometimes it closes you off to really interesting gaming experiences.

You guys spend a lot of time in your episodes saying: "man, people are going to hate this." I understand that partially it's tongue in cheek, but you should realize that for every second that you talk about, say, Spelunky, or Super Mario 3D Land, yeah, there's probably someone rolling their eyes, but ALSO, there are people like me who fucking love hearing what you think about these games. I tune in each week to this show because instead of talking about video games in a very surface way, you spend a lot of time discussing games in a discerning, deep manner (interspersed with jokes about wizards). So yes, in some ways, you're doing this for the listeners, but also I like to think you do this because you just enjoy playing and talking about video games! In the latter case, just talk about what you want to talk about! (When it comes to the internet, the squeaky wheel doesn't necessarily need the grease) Also, when Chris stopped talking, I immediately thought "oh jeez, I know exactly what's happening, and it's disappointing since I have a feeling Chris has some really interesting opinions about this." Then disappointment turned to aggravation since I assumed he'd do it for the whole damn episode, but thank GOD Jake pointed it out TWICE and eventually they got things rolling again. You're right though, if you're going to run an experiment, don't immediately introduce a bias right off the bat by talking about the experiment you're going to be running.

I decided to cave in and buy Y the other day, and I just completed the second gym. It's pretty good! I decided to try out the wonder trade system, and eventually was traded a Fennekin (thanks, random Australian trainer!), which is nice, considering I started with a Froakie. The EXP Share is a bit overpowered, but it does mean that I'm more willing to try out interesting Pokemon that I normally wouldn't use (for instance, I've been heavily relying on Scraggy, which is a Pokemon I ignored in White or White 2). There is indeed, a huge variety of Pokemon early on, but I'm not someone who has to Catch Them All (I find the randomness of that aspect of the game to be pretty tough to stomach except in small doses), so it hasn't been too overwhelming. To admit to something weird, I first picked up a Pokemon game with HeartGold, at the insistence of my (now ex) girlfriend, who had played the games a bunch when she was younger and recognized how much better they are when played with other people you know. We went on to play HeartGold/SoulSilver to completion, as well as Black/White and Black 2/White 2. This is my first attempt at a Pokemon game after we broke up, and it's a little sad, maybe? It's been months, and everything was pretty amiable, but yeesh, I didn't expect that it would be Pokemon that would trigger relationship nostalgia!

I just can't get over how clever the damn (unnecessary) skew icon is on the spacebase website: vs. Ya' done good, webpage icon designer.

I don't think that I interpreted the statement as Jake walking Sean's comment back because Jake was like: "oh, this game is juvenile," but rather, I was wondering why he had to clarify the comment at all. I listened to that part (of what is a fantastic episode, by the way) and thought "wait, why can't Luigi's Mansion make a person feel this way? Why does Jake feel it has to make them feel...like they were when they were a kid?" Sean just made it clear for me: Jake was just trying to get at what Sean was actually saying, which is that the idea of Luigi's Mansion reminding him "what a video game is" is more about historicity, since it taps into feelings he had due to the original games that shaped his thoughts about video games. I agree with that!

Oh, that clarifies things quite a bit! Thank you. I think that I'm prone to getting overly defensive with regards to Nintendo considering their position in the current video game landscape and how much I just enjoy playing their games, even though I am an adult human being. You guys are right, though, Luigi's Mansion is just a fantastic little adventure puzzle game that doesn't try to do too much and does what it does so damn well. What you should really do is play the multiplayer component (the "Scarescraper"), as there is single-cart multiplayer. My buddy described it as Nintendo's take on Diablo, which is a pretty good way of putting it.

Why is Sean embarrassed by saying that Luigi's Mansion reminded him what a video game is? Is it because it's "cliche"? Also, why did Jake force him to walk back that statement immediately by saying: "oh, it just reminds you of video games when you were younger?" (or something to that effect). Why does this podcast seem to be so weirded out that people are enjoying video games on a Nintendo 3DS?

I agree! I really enjoyed Super Mario 3D Land for this same reason. In my discussion I'm contrasting Rayman Legends and the New Super Mario Bros. series. Super Mario 3D Land and the New Super Mario Bros series are two different developers within Nintendo. The NSMB people make these games and the Pikmin games, awhile the SM3DL people made Mario Galaxy 2, and Donkey Kong Jungle Beat. (My kind of people!)

I think that's potentially what I mean. That's very succinct! I was thinking about this before bed last night. My favorite platformer, and indeed, video game, of all time is Yoshi's Island, which is the prototype on which a game like Donkey Kong Country Returns or Rayman Origins/Legends is based. It came out late in the life cycle of the SNES, and just threw so much at the player, with new game types, and weird boss battles, and one-off levels like Touch Fuzzy, Get Dizzy (I'm with you, Tegan) which created a compelling reason to keep playing the game. Instead of pulling you along through the game based on momentum, they pull you along with novelty and creativity. This is a much harder way to build a game! But ultimately, I find it more rewarding. This is why I want to play Super Mario 3D World, because it seems like the developers have a similar mindset.

The Mario games essentially paved the way for what a modern platforming game is, and for the most part have stayed the course, without taking any huge risks. They experiment very little, and this is why they're so enjoyable. New Super Mario Bros requires you to run from one end of a course to the other, and there are a variety of the same enemies you've seen before, along with some environmental hazards. The visuals are clean and bop along, and even the dark, grim cave or Bowser's Castles levels seem pretty cheerful. The best levels, the ones you remember the most, are ones where they mess around with the formula. Again, I really enjoyed NSMBU, and played it to completion, smiling and loving it, but it won't stick in my mind like I think Rayman Legends will. Rayman Legends changes things every level, throwing novel input methods at the player, as well as interesting game types at each turn. It's almost...messy? There is a throughline (collect the things) to each level, but it's surprising how much they attempt. I think that the game also offers classic ("clean") platforming in the style of a Mario game, but it immediately takes a left turn and now your character is running along to a mariachi Eye of the Tiger, or sneaking in a Jules Verne inspired underwater pipe maze, or fending off lightning bolts from Zeus. I suppose maybe I'm not super clear, in which case, I apologize. I've thoroughly enjoyed both games, but I think that my taste in games tends to veer towards what pushes boundaries and takes chances.

SORRY, I WANT TO WRITE MORE GIBBERISH ABOUT MARIO/NINTENDO/THE MARIO 3D WORLD TRAILER I have been playing Rayman Legends on a WiiU (since I am a baby child, and own a WiiU) and thinking a lot about platformers. I'm a big fan of the genre, because it is so broad. For instance Rayman Legends is a very good game, and does a lot of things I think that Sonic developers should have done, in terms of making a fluid, flowing, excellently precise game. I think that New Super Mario Bros. fills a very different niche than Rayman, in that it presents a very clean Mario experience, and while it was fun, it was like eating a big bowl of vanilla ice cream. Yeah, it's ice cream, but come on, where are the toppings? (As an aside, have you watched any of the NSMBU videos that Nintendo themselves put out? They're almost playing a different game) So, getting back to the episode, there's a certain amount of hesitation by Jake to discuss Super Mario 3D Land, but it's obvious he's been really enjoying it. It's a very well made game, in a large part because the Mario Galaxy folks really understand why someone might be playing this game. I like how we're really in a great time for thoughtful video game experiences, where it seems that people who make games are paying attention to their audiences in the right way. Not so much thinking: "what do they want, let's give it to them", although there is a great deal of that, but rather, "what decisions can we make that lead to enjoyable play in our audience?" (I assume that this is probably key on game developer's minds, but it seems as if there is more success in the last few years at this aim) The key to the Super Mario 3D World Trailer, for me, is that it is very cogent of what it is about the Mario series that initially hooked people. There's a lot of weird, and a lot of strange excitement, but damn if it doesn't look like someone has spent a lot of time thinking about where the game sits in the landscape of platformers. There's been one million Mario games in the main series, but it's good that they're attempting to capture some of the weird essence of the series, and I really hope it lives up to the trailer. OK, SORRY, TOO MUCH THINKING ABOUT SOMETHING DUMB

There are a lot of neat things about the poster for the Super Mario 3D Land. Here are two: 1) It really looks a lot like the Yoichi Kotabe promotional art for the original NES Mario trilogy. 2) If you look up in the top right corner, above the Bowser Pleasure Island-ey area, you can see the faint image of the Comet Observatory from Mario Galaxy, which is a weird thing to put in the image.

The moment that both Sean and Chris were like "I don't like the boot" I had to stand up and walk around due to the enormity of my confusion. Kuribo's Shoe is the best, guys. And I'm not just saying this out of nostalgia (also, warning, this is going to sound like I am a crazy person). Kuribo's Shoe, to me, has always represented this purity of weird vision that Nintendo does better than any other video game company. You can go too far in this direction (and many game companies do), but Nintendo, at its best, walks this line perfectly. Kuribo's Shoe is only in one nondescript level in one middle-of-the-game world, and it's never commented on, and it doesn't come up again in the entire game. The only way you can use the boot is if you happen to kill a goomba wearing it from below, and then, you get to ride in it and you can walk on spikes and stomp on spiky enemies. That's it! It's not overpowered. It's not overused. It's just a kind of weird mode of transportation for this one level. It's not in the game manual, its not even in the operations guides for the re-releases of the games over the years. It's done so perfectly. I just don't know how, in that brief little encounter, anyone could say: "naw, no thanks." Edit: Oh wait, Princess Toadstool definitely brings it up in a letter she sends. Ok, so the game does reference it offhandedly.

So, the Hot Pocket website uses that trendy parallaxing BS, and while normally it's harmless, as you scroll to look at their meat selection this incredibly disgusting meat skewer just shoves up at you. At least the little pepperoni falls down into a Hot Pocket, which is kind of fun. Oh, and their favicon is a little Hot Pocket in sunglasses, because, you know, it's a cool brand and they have to let you know. Instagram their twitter, guys.

Jeez, I can't believe that Super Mario 3D World and Zelda: Link Between Worlds are coming out on the same day. 3D World looks so much fun. While I think that Nintendo is overly conservative, I think they're really starting to understand that they can be a lot more playful with their IP. That video cram packed so many unique things, and I was already sold on the game based on my love for 3D Land. My frothing demand for this game increases (ign.com)!

When I first listened to this, I thought: "I really hope that someone makes this" and then someone did, and it's great! Thanks! For realizing dreams.

I guess I don't understand why you felt the need to point out that something was a "feature for pussies." You know that you are not competing with anyone when you play this game, right? You also know that some people enjoy the game in different ways? Maybe you are being ironic? I saw someone on another forum complaining about how there are "cheats" in the game. I am really confused by how outraged people can get based on how other people choose to play video games. Nobody is a "pussy" for using a GPS trail, dude! Nobody is a "pussy" for playing a game on easy! Nobody is a "pussy" for using "cheat codes."

Hearing Jake et al. discuss Super Mario 3D Land is like hearing a foreigner (who went to Disneyland as a child) discuss his recent trip to Disneyland with his foreign buddies back home. ALSO they announced that Steam Controller today, and Chris also posted this on twitter, but in the podcast he does a FANTASTIC JOB PLAYING DUMB. "Oh golly jee it'd be neat if it were a controller" WINK WINK (Oh wait the G in G man stands for Gullible and it describes us, for believing your subterfuge)

I really enjoyed the Tom Bissell article, actually. It reflects a lot of what I'm thinking when I play the game. "This is not a great game. It's a fantastic world, and an excellent playbox for silly activities, but there is so much missing." I guess I'm disappointed at how the missions are so poorly strung together narrative-wise and how the writing/humor is juvenile-but-not (it seems like perhaps you should either go ultra-realistic and serious, which is what GTAIV was criticized about, or you just go whole hog bonkers like the Saints Row series). I understand that other people do not believe this to be true, but I feel that the games high points are kind of strung between points where I say: "seriously? we're going to have a big ol' poop joke here?" or "wait, why does this character just have so much irrational anger? Why are they always yelling? Why are they just cursing and cursing and cursing?"

I think I made an account one million years ago, but then didn't actively start reading/posting until maybe a few months ago, so potentially no. Or maybe yes. Either way, I apologize.

Oh shoot I'm supposed to introduce myself. Hello! It is nice to come to a message board (on the internet) where people are intelligently discussing video games and making humorous jokes. I play video games off and on. I have been following/listening/reading/verbing the Idle Thumbs folks for a while! They're fun guys and seem like cool people. When I am not playing video games, I do a lot of running and volunteering and also I am an astrophysicist, with a PhD and everything, so if you have questions about space, I know a guy (myself).

Last night I completed the first "heist". I won't go into details for fear of offending Der Spoiler Polizei, but it was such a well crafted mission. I am not super great at video games, and tend to fumble around when put under strict time constraints. Nevertheless, the lead up to the heist was exciting, offered variety, and then the actual event had me completely enthralled, without being frustrated. Yes, there were portions where it held your hand, but overall, I took cues from the environment and the other characters and it went swimmingly. While I think that potentially you can switch from character to character on your own, in the first heist it does swapping on the fly, and it was FANTASTIC. Video games, you can learn a lot from GTAV about swapping perspectives in a fluid manner while keeping the pace. I do wish that the writing was less reliant on expletives, and it's still really disappointing how this game treats women. I don't understand how we are in The Year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Thirteen and the Biggest Video Game on the Planet still has zero strong female characters. Literally every woman I've met in the game has been the biggest, most obvious caricature. At least the true star of the game, San Andreas, is superbly designed. It makes Liberty City look real dull by comparison. If you haven't gone up to Galileo Observatory at night to look out over the view of LA, you're missing out. It's almost as breathtaking as the real view.