The Masked Carnie

I just spent $300 today... for two fight sticks... that I will never use.  I decided to be somewhat charitable to my friends who have trouble using the Xbox 360 controller and just get these fight sticks for them.  I hope you guys appreciate what I've done here.  I really go all-out in providing the best possible gaming experience for my friends.  All I can think of now that I own them: damn that Mega Man is sexy!  I am all kinds of crazy. Note: The above images were taken from the internet, not my personal pictures.  They are the correct product designs, however.

Well lucky me, Capcom splurged on quick shipping and it was actually overnight!  I received my package on Friday and proceeded right away to my game store to try it with my friends.  Of course someone wanted to play me purely because I didn't know any more about the moves than he did... but he didn't know I was already familiar with T. Hawk from Super Turbo.  We played it throughout the store's weekend (they close Sunday), and I'm happy to report that everybody found something else they're proud to work with.  I'm pleasantly amazed someone could put up a good fight against my Zangief with Adon.  Read past the break for details.

Today, two very interesting things happened.  1) Possibly due to pirate distribution, Super Street Fighter 4 was officially released, although not every place was complying with that.  2) I got an invitation to be a "pro gamer" from a good friend, and possibly get some Youtube fame/infamy as a result.  What's amazing is that none of this was really motivating.  Check it out.

Well, I beat the game in all its modes now and have played as all 3 characters.  For me personally, this is probably going to be the Mega Man game I turn to for any quick fix I need, at least for a while.  I suppose 9 would offer just about the same thing that 10 does, but 10's just got more for me.  Mostly, it's the challenges that will bring me back.  9's challenges were essentially pseudo-achievements you did through regular gameplay.  For 10, it actually has custom-designed levels to play through.  You can beat them normally, but you only get full completion when you do so without taking damage.  For Hard Mode challenges, you even have to use just the Mega Buster.  Getting the full completion is what's going to make this intriguing for me, and I don't anticipate myself getting all of them.  I'll be proud if I can just get in 90%. Read more past the break to get a summary of the alternate characters available for the game.

This article is about a random discovery I made and some commentary about the game Mega Man Legends.  I wanted to save my discovery for after some buildup, so to preserve space, I've put it all past the break.  I doubt you'll be as surprised as I was, but this was still a cool find.

So, I got Mega Man 10 on Friday.  I had a little issue with getting points registered, so I had to go out and buy points from Target.  Small hassle, unrelated, but at least it made me feel like I was going out to physically pick up a game.  When I started playing it, I must say I didn't feel the same kind of rush I felt when I played 9, but that's honestly to be expected.  Nobody expected Capcom to ever go into the NES theme again, so when 9 hit, it hit HARD!  It was new and bold.  It was a fresh infusion of the new retro that got everybody excited.  Now with 10, it was recently done so it doesn't have that same fresh feel.  This means it cannot possibly give the same feeling that 9 had and it has to work harder to be good.  Looking objectively, it seems this game has the same kind of replayability that 9 had, if not moreso.  However much you would have liked 9 as a game, you'd like 10 just as much if it had come first.  It's got al...

When searching for an image to use at the head, I was looking for a clock my local store has themed on Magic's "Time Spiral" set.  I had no idea I'd find a literal "time spiral clock."  Awesome! Ok, so I haven't really done anything with this blog lately.  I want anyone reading this to keep reading, so here's a little summary of what's been going on with my week in gaming.

I'm bored, so you're getting a triple dose of posts today.  This time, I'm tackling how I handle each of the items in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.  You can see the full review of items after the break.  For an overall statement, I read something from David Sirlin's commentary on the last Game Developer's Conference that really resonates with me.  Bad players are going to want more luck because it gives them a higher chance of winning.  Skilled players will want less chance because they want a 100% chance of winning.  A good game designer has to find the middle ground that keeps both sides entertained and balanced, a difficult feat to achieve.  My primary philosophy was to be very liberal on items, because the more items exist, the less chance any particular one is going to come up at any given time.

Well, sad news today.  I lost terribly at my Street Fighter 4 tournament yesterday.  I didn't get one win during that.  In casuals though, I cleaned up, so I feel I learned some things from it.   This video released just days before our tournament, so it should be no surprise that Zangief was the favorite character to use.  It gave me a lot of insight on the mirror match I definitely had to endure.  Read more to find out what lessons were learned from this.

I made a very surprising discovery yesterday.  After some guys in my game group would not let us use their Chess board, I went ahead and bought the only Chess set the store had.  When I first saw it, I thought it would just be a Chess board with some cards you keep by your side to illustrate how it plays.  While you could use it that way, it goes far out of its way to ease people into Chess in a way I would never have conceived.  I played it with someone close to my skill level (I'd say I'm a good casual player), and while we were skeptical about it, it turned out to be very interesting and fed into a different kind of mind-reading that we're actually used to.  I definitely recommend picking it up regardless of your skill level.  Read more to find out what makes this so special.

Sometimes, anyway.  I have a tendency to stay away from single-player adventure games because I like things that I can play with other people.  That said though, I still am a fan of plenty single-player games.  Here's some off the top of my head that I not only enjoy, but find myself coming back to them repeatedly.

(Image generated at http://www.milinkito.com/swf/bart.php?texto=&Submit=Crear+nueva+frase) Whether you know it or not, most games go out of their way to teach you how they are played.  It is in their best interest to do so to guarantee the best possible experience.  For non-electronic games, it's rather necessary, because everything is merely symbolic.  Video games will actually teach you because they want to, and they'll usually do a good job of doing so.

Just letting you guys know, I don't feel I can afford to get Mega Man 10 yet.  I know it's fairly cheap, but I'm trying to be disciplined about my finances so I don't go into another full season of overdrafts at the bank.  I'm pretty sure I'll be getting it as of my next paycheck (or if someone buys some stuff off me).  At that time, you can fully expect an in-depth review.  I'll buy it, play all the way through, and then let you all know how awesome it surely is... even if it has a Sheep Man.  I'm definitely looking forward to the music which rarely fails to inspire me.

For those who believe it's a good idea to take your kids out somewhere when they're out of school simply because it's the middle of the day, think again.  The reason midday is a normally a slow time for children's entertainment businesses is because school is in session, not because adults are working or some cosmic force.  If you wouldn't go somewhere during the weekend because you believe it would be too crowded, chances are high it's going to be that way when school's out, too.  I say this with a bit of irony because it was hardly crowded at all in my arcade yesterday.  Now that it just rained on us last night, that might change today, but it looks like a lean spring break this year.

I've just spent the last few days introducing people to Flash Duel.  It was definitely an interesting experience.  I think I've got a bit too much esteem for Mr. Sirlin than is healthy, so I was a bit overenthusiastic when trying to teach people the game.  Once I calmed down and taught the game as it is, accepting success or failure, I got a fairly reasonable balance of reaction.  Some people love it, some hate it.  Fortunately, the store owner loves it, and I actually could not beat him.  It shows I certainly have things to learn, and I'm glad I have the determination to keep at it.