::Grill 13 Restaurant:: NEW Pictures on the Menu!

[Biohazard EXTREME]

AngelaAshford

lol I know rite? razz Eh, 360 is still a good system. You just get a higher chance of getting a disc from people who don't know how to take care of them compared to the PS3.

Strictly from a hardware point of view, 360 is a horrible system. Good support. But bad format and bad... Well bad Microsoft.  

[Biohazard EXTREME]

Thee Stranger

It's not about hardware; it's about software. If you don't have the software, the hardware will fail.

I'm assuming you mean commercially.

Thee Stranger

And speaking strictly from a software point-of-view, the 360 might just one up the PS3 in terms of exclusives in my book.

Maybe at the beginning, but the PS3 really hit its stride.

Thee Stranger

The Left 4 Dead games, Dead Rising, Gears of War, Mass Effect, and oldschool survival horror s**t like Deadly Premontion (which released at just $20). Haven't played Alan Wake yet, but that definitely looks to be an interesting survival horror game.

Well, technically, many of those ARE available on PC. But either way, the only two games out of the ones mentioned that I know I'd want are Gears of War and Alan Wake. But even still, I'd take Uncharted over Gears of War, and I'd take Heavy Rain over Alan Wake any day. Not to mention Metal Gear Solid 4, dude, that game trumps like, any Xbox 360 Exclusive ever.

Thee Stranger

And Bio, it's not just Mario; it's Mario Galaxy. And I could take the piss out of any franchise sequel the same way. "In the end, Peace Walker is just Metal Gear Solid". Yeah. So what? Metal Gear Solid is ******** awesome. That's just the way it is. Same goes for Mario.

Well, my point is, I'm like, miles past caring about Mario. And yeah, to anyone who stopped caring about MGS, it's just Metal Gear.

Thee Stranger

I know you're not of the same opinion, but there's plenty of people that never dug the MGS or RE games either. I know there's no epic, adult-oriented story to follow, but that's not Mario. Mario has just one thing going for him: his games are ******** fun. Plain and simple.

Yeah, but... I dunno man, honestly, I will never deny the fact that Mario franchise USUALLY delivers incredibly polished and fun games. But still, is it a big deal? Especially when it's more of the same, as is the case in Mario Galaxy 2? I mean, look at Tetris. I love the hell out of Tetris, and think there can't be a better puzzle game. But once I have Tetris, it's all I need. They can come out with Tetris 2 with new designs, and add more complex shapes to it, and pimp it out, but at the end of the day, it's still just tetris. It's still gonna be awesome, but it's not something I'm gonna sit and wait for with suspense like, "Oh man, I can't wait until it comes out!"

That's Mario, too. Yes, it's Mario Galaxy, and yes, the first one was a big deal because it did something new, and yes, more of the same could still be a lot of fun, with different levels, puzzles and whatnot, but it's not something I'd get giddy over. And yeah, half the time they release a new game, even among my favorites, like Resident Evil, let's say... Back when it didn't suck... It'd be like, "New Resident Evil game is coming out," and I'd say, "Oh man, I can't wait to see what happens in the storyline" not "I can't wait to see how they innovate and improve on the gameplay." Point is, yes, most of the time I'm looking forward to a sequel, like really excited over it, it's mostly because I wanna know where the story is heading. I couldn't care less if MGS4 was a gameplay clone of MGS3, it was the story that I was REALLY getting hyped up about.

But that's the thing, too. Those games DO innovate a LOT. So even without the storyline, there would be something new to get excited about. Like with Uncharted 2, its action sequences were unprecedented. The train was simply stunning.

But if Mario Galaxy 2 is as reported, more of the same, and it's not like it's got a deep engaging storyline... Then what's the hype?  

[MadamTarantula]

FINALLY got my hands on RE3 for Dreamcast for $18! biggrin  

[Biohazard EXTREME]

AngelaAshford

FINALLY got my hands on RE3 for Dreamcast for $18! biggrin

Nice!
Hmm... I wonder when they'll patch up that glitch on the PSN version where it freezes when exiting the Clock Tower after getting vaccinated.  

[Biohazard EXTREME]

Thee Stranger

Plus, movies are going the way of the music industry.

I disagree. Sure, we're never gonna have classics like Goodfellas, or Terminator 2, or Jurassic Park... But at the same time, if you were to live in the 1980s, I bet you'd say, "Movies suck now, what happened to making classics like Bonnie and Clyde, Casablanca, The Godfather and Citizen Kane?"

You're just not looking at the big picture. For as long as the film industry has been mainstream, the ratio of timeless classics to cult classics to crap piles has been, I'd say, consistent.

Thee Stranger

Yeah. But are we PC gamers? No. And since they're on the 360 and not on the PS3, for all intents and purposes, they're 360 exclusives. Unless you're actually a PC gamer. And it doesn't make them any less good. Fallout 3 is a PC game.

Well, no, but I can't say I'm a "Console Gamer" in the broad sense of it. As far as the current generation goes, I have a PS3, that's one platform. 360 is another platform. The Wii is another platform. And the PC is just another platform. Sure it's slightly different class of a platform, but so are handhelds. So let's take a game like Silent Hill Origins, or Secret Agent Clank, and say, "It's a PSP exclusive" even though it's been ported to the PS2. Just because they're two different classes of platforms, doesn't make it exclusive. Like, I don't have an Xbox 360, and even though I'm not a PC gamer per se, my friend has been very close to convincing me to get Mass Effect for my PC, which I could do and play, if I didn't have other priorities.

Thee Stranger

Dude, I don't think you ever cared about Mario to begin with.

Not since you've known me, I guess. But there WAS a time.

Thee Stranger

So I don't really think you're "past" anything. And there's the thing: some people stopped caring about MGS, you didn't. So do you want them to stop making Metal Gear games? And should you care if someone else stopped giving a s**t about it?

Well, quite frankly, I'd be satisfied if Kojima said, "That's it. Metal Gear as a franchise is done. We've concluded everything, so let's move on to something else."

Thee Stranger

Well, an incredibly polished and fun game is what defines a great videogame if you ask me. So what's not to get excited about? And look, I only played Mario Galaxy 2 for, like, a half an hour. From the reviews I've read, it does evolve the original's gameplay in many ways. So it's not just purely more of the same. I don't think Tetris a very fair comparison either. Tetris' genius lies in its sweet simplicity. There's no real way to change or evolve Tetris without making it suck. They've tried. It's perfect as is. And at the end of the day, that's all it's ever going to be: the same game. That's not the case with the Mario games. Yes, you're still going to be the fat little plumer, and you're still going to be jumping on mushrooms and s**t. But Mario Galaxy is not the same game as Mario 3. Not by a long shot. It's not even the same game as Mario Sunshine.

Here's the thing, dude... You keep saying, "What's the big deal about Mario? It's polished. It's fun." Yeah, I'm sure it is, but that's like saying that other games aren't. Metal Gear, or Uncharted, or Resident Evil, or Ratchet and Clank, or whatever else game that I may like that has an awesome storyline... They're not a grind for me... I still enjoy playing them a lot. So it's not like MGS or Uncharted sacrifice gameplay for story. Hell, I think Uncharted is one of the best games, gameplay wise, I've ever played, honestly. So it's not like Mario is the last best hope of video games that are actually fun.

Thee Stranger

And I already knew the entire storyline of the original Resident Evil by heart, but I was still really ******** pumped for the REmake. Why? Because of the graphics, and the new gameplay features. Like the defensive weapons, crimson heads, etc. But at the end of the day, it was still pretty much the same exact same game (with the exact same storyline) from 1996 in 2002. So what was there to get excited about? What was the hype?

Well, the graphics. You know what, as important as gameplay might be in a game, graphics are no less. If you have great gameplay with shitty graphics, or even shitty art direction, it's not gonna be an enjoyable experience. At least a lot less so. When I first saw Remake, I wanted it because of how amazing it looked, the atmosphere, and the new areas they added into it. That, and the updated storyline. Yeah, it's the same STORY, but the voice overs were a LOT better. So that was also a huge factor. And hey, YOU might never have been scared by a video game, but the tension and the horror aspects of it were also a big factor. And it's a terrifying experience when you don't know what to expect.

Thee Stranger

Wait a minute. So you've spent all this time trying to explain videogame sequels without storylines are nothing to get excited about, but now you're praising those video game sequels innovations? Do you have some idea how contradictory you sound...? Now you're saying, and I quote, "So even without the storyline, there would be something new to get excited about". Well, there ya go. Thanks for seeing my point, Bio. Even without a storyline, there's still something new to get excited about.

And what exactly is so new about Mario Galaxy 2 that you didn't experience in MGalaxy 1?
Look, it's a pointless conversation, really. I'm not trying to change your mind, I just honestly didn't know that people other than kids still got EXCITED about Mario. I mean, I know you like the franchise and enjoy the games, I just didn't think it was something to get hyped up about. My mistake.  

[Biohazard EXTREME]

Thee Stranger

I wasn't speaking on the quality of movies. When I say movies are going the way of the music industry, I mean it's all going the way of digital. Downloadable movies. It's cheaper, quicker, and more convenient. And that will always win the majority of consumers.

Oh, I see. But still, I don't really give a s**t about the consumers. I take pride in my CD collection, and just the same, I got a decent library of Blu-Ray and DVD movies. Screw digital distribution.

Thee Stranger

Fine, dude. Console exclusive then. Whatever. But I'm not a PC gamer, so the only way I'm playing Mass Effect is on a 360.

Well, either way, I think by now, the PS3 has caught up with the 360 in terms of how many kick a** exclusives it gets. Like, if I was to get rid of my non-exclusive PS3 games, I'd still be happy with what I have. Not that I'm gonna.

Thee Stranger

That would've been interesting to see. xd

Back in the 7th grade, me and my friend pulled an allnighter unlocking every single board in the original Mario Party, and basically beating the game.

Thee Stranger

Well, I think he should have. Since he says he's going to after every MGS game he makes. Doesn't even mean it'd be the end of MGS if he moved on to something else. And you've told me before you didn't want him to end the franchise, because all you'd have in the way of the Stealth Game is Splinter Cell, and you wouldn't be able to get your fix. You've said this to me.

Well, for that reason, yes. But in terms of the storyline, it could very well be done. You know what though? My biggest problem with MGS3 (and MGS4 as a matter of fact) was that it has SO much to the gameplay, and not enough game to actually make good use of it all. Like, the amount of different mechanics and intricacies that have been in those two games... You'd need a game the size of Fallout 3 to make full use of them. So my point is, Kojima could very well take that Engine and make something completely different out of it. Still a stealth franchise, with very similar mechanics, but different story, different characters, etc. I know it's not gonna happen, and if he did to that, critics and self-important game journalists would s**t on him for recycling old gameplay and crap like that, but I would really like to see something like that.

Thee Stranger

No. That's not like saying other games aren't. That's nothing like what I said at all. Because I didn't say that. And I didn't say Mario was the last best hope for videogames that are actually fun either. And if I was trying to say that, I would've said it. You do this all the time, dude. You're putting words in my mouth. Just like you put made-up facts in your head. I don't NEED a ******** storyline in order to enjoy a fun videogame. And that's all I SAID.

Yeah, but every time I'm saying, what's the big deal about Mario, you say, "Because it's fun", like other games aren't. There's plenty of fun games out there, and yes, I'm sure that Mario's one of them, but the point is, other than the fact that it's Mario, I don't see what makes it so special.

Thee Stranger

I disagree. Though, yes, graphics do add to the experience. I enjoy graphics too, and Mario Galaxy 2 doesn't have shitty graphics.

I never said it did, we were talking about REmake, and all I said was that the graphics in it were a huge deal. They still look great today.

Thee Stranger

Yoshi. And new environments. It also began with side-scrolling, which wasn't in the first Galaxy. Aside from that, couldn't tell ya, because I only played it for a little while. But unless all these reviwes are lying, there's a lot more new and improved things. And since I'm still a Toy 'R Us kid, I'm EXCITED about it.

Well, certain reviews also gave Bayonetta a perfect score. You and I both know better than to listen to reviews.
And like I said, I'm not claiming that it's a bad game, by any means, I just don't see why it's so exciting. But either way, I highly doubt that it deserves a 10/10.  

[MadamTarantula]

Bio: How long has that problem been happening? They should, since if word spreads, that may slow it's sales.

Stranger: I loved picking my outfit from the start. You know what was really strange? When I started the game, they would only let me play on Easy or Hard. Since I haven't played a classic RE in quite a while, I selected easy. I have so many weapons and ammo though. D:

I still want to get RE2 for Dreamcast. I almost bought it late last year at a game store at one of my malls, but it was overpriced ($40).

Nemesis is one scary ********. He scared the s**t out of me in one of the police station's rooms after the scene where he jumped in through a window. There wasn't any music to warn me, he just suddenly appears charging at me like a quarterback.  

[Biohazard EXTREME]

AngelaAshford

Bio: How long has that problem been happening? They should, since if word spreads, that may slow it's sales.

As far as I've read up on it, since the beginning. It's fine on the PS3 itself, but on the PSP it screws up. So technically, you CAN transfer the save file, get through that part on the PS3, save, put the save file back to the PSP and keep playing. It's weird, it's just that one door, I believe. Actually... When was the last PSP update? I can't remember if it was AFTER the last time I played RE3, who knows, maybe it's already fixed...  

[King of Paradise]

Thee Stranger

And since I'm still a Toys 'R Us kid, I'm EXCITED about it. Now excuse me, I s**t my diaper. And the purple dragon Barney is on.

This made me LOL hard.

~

The reason to get excited about another Mario game such as SMG2 is because even if it's just more of the same, that just means it's more of the very best in the unmixed, strictly platforming genre. At least, in my opinion Mario is the very best. If you disagree, so be it.

~

To anyone who might be interested...

Just finished FFX. Finally. I must admit, it's been one of the longest undertakings I've experienced with a videogame. He are my final thoughts on it.

The story, like FFVII's, was amazing albeit very confusing. There are certain aspects I still don't understand about it, such as the whole Zanarkand/Tidus/Fayth/dream concept. And there were other apsects I completely forgot about, such as why Yu Yevon was inside Sin (But that was because I took a long break from a game. So it's understandable if I forgot a few things about it). That being said, the nutshell plot about the pilgrimage to defeat Sin was still a truly fascinating story, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed enough to consider FFX tied for my favorite FF game. I do think the game had one flaw with one of it's leading villians, though (that villian being Seymour). He was very downplayed in the end, and I was surprised at that, seeing as how they made him up to be the main baddy of the game. Also, what was up with the lame looking final boss? Heh, I guess that's a second flaw, but they're both excusable anyways, so whatev.

I loved the cast of playable characters. Yes, even Tidus. Dorkmeat as he was, it would kind of be hypocritical of me to hate him. It would be like hating my own self; and I'm not Squall. I didn't care for Kimahri that much, but that's because there wasn't much behind his character, let alone something for me to like about him (other than his cool appearance).

The battle system was awesome. While it took out the strategy behind the ATB system, the fact that you could see the order of turns to come was what gave it it's own, unique flair. I also loved the fact that you could play as the summons this time around; and since I love summoning in FF games, it made the battle system that much awesome...r. Lastly, I thought the fact that each of the characters had a specific enemy type they were good against was something that made FFX's battle system stand out against previous ones, seeing as how it added another level of strategy not seen before in a FF game (That I have played).

The leveling system was incredible; especially since I was able to power up my characters to a strength level I have never reached in any RPG I have played before, and within three hours at that. Usually, it takes dozens of hours to do that in other RPGs (Which I'm not down with), so more power to FFX. Though, the downfall of that is that it made the last part of the game extremely easy hehe.

The soundtrack was phenomanal. But then again, that goes for every FF game I have played, so that shouldn't be surprising to hear. My favorite track is Wandering, recommended hearing to those who need a saxaphonic soul soothing.

The look of the game (especially the cut scenes) still hold up today, even after the release of FFXIII. And that's saying something.

It had too many sidequests for me to handle, which is a great thing haha.

Lastly, I'll conclude on the ending. Like I said before, although I don't fully understand why Tidus disappeared, it was still an effective ending, and one that produced mental tears from me haha. The last time I got mental tears from a video game ending was with Twilight Princess 3+ years ago, so kudos to FFX.

In saying that, I'm still deciding whether I should give the sequel a go, now that I have finally finished FFX...  

[MadamTarantula]

Biohazard EXTREME

AngelaAshford

Bio: How long has that problem been happening? They should, since if word spreads, that may slow it's sales.

As far as I've read up on it, since the beginning. It's fine on the PS3 itself, but on the PSP it screws up. So technically, you CAN transfer the save file, get through that part on the PS3, save, put the save file back to the PSP and keep playing. It's weird, it's just that one door, I believe. Actually... When was the last PSP update? I can't remember if it was AFTER the last time I played RE3, who knows, maybe it's already fixed...

I really have no idea. I don't think I've updated my psp since my husband modded it.  

[Biohazard EXTREME]

Chase Me To The End

The reason to get excited about another Mario game such as SMG2 is because even if it's just more of the same, that just means it's more of the very best in the unmixed, strictly platforming genre. At least, in my opinion Mario is the very best. If you disagree, so be it.

Well, maybe now, since there haven't been any really good purely platformers since Naughty Dog stopped making Jax & Daxter. But back when there WERE, like... Banjo Kazooie is a better platformer than Mario 64.

Chase Me To The End

Just finished FFX. Finally. I must admit, it's been one of the longest undertakings I've experienced with a videogame. He are my final thoughts on it.

The story, like FFVII's, was amazing albeit very confusing. There are certain aspects I still don't understand about it, such as the whole Zanarkand/Tidus/Fayth/dream concept. And there were other apsects I completely forgot about, such as why Yu Yevon was inside Sin (But that was because I took a long break from a game. So it's understandable if I forgot a few things about it). That being said, the nutshell plot about the pilgrimage to defeat Sin was still a truly fascinating story, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed enough to consider FFX tied for my favorite FF game. I do think the game had one flaw with one of it's leading villians, though (that villian being Seymour). He was very downplayed in the end, and I was surprised at that, seeing as how they made him up to be the main baddy of the game. Also, what was up with the lame looking final boss? Heh, I guess that's a second flaw, but they're both excusable anyways, so whatev.

I loved the cast of playable characters. Yes, even Tidus. Dorkmeat as he was, it would kind of be hypocritical of me to hate him. It would be like hating my own self; and I'm not Squall. I didn't care for Kimahri that much, but that's because there wasn't much behind his character, let alone something for me to like about him (other than his cool appearance).

The battle system was awesome. While it took out the strategy behind the ATB system, the fact that you could see the order of turns to come was what gave it it's own, unique flair. I also loved the fact that you could play as the summons this time around; and since I love summoning in FF games, it made the battle system that much awesome...r. Lastly, I thought the fact that each of the characters had a specific enemy type they were good against was something that made FFX's battle system stand out against previous ones, seeing as how it added another level of strategy not seen before in a FF game (That I have played).

The leveling system was incredible; especially since I was able to power up my characters to a strength level I have never reached in any RPG I have played before, and within three hours at that. Usually, it takes dozens of hours to do that in other RPGs (Which I'm not down with), so more power to FFX. Though, the downfall of that is that it made the last part of the game extremely easy hehe.

The soundtrack was phenomanal. But then again, that goes for every FF game I have played, so that shouldn't be surprising to hear. My favorite track is Wandering, recommended hearing to those who need a saxaphonic soul soothing.

The look of the game (especially the cut scenes) still hold up today, even after the release of FFXIII. And that's saying something.

It had too many sidequests for me to handle, which is a great thing haha.

Lastly, I'll conclude on the ending. Like I said before, although I don't fully understand why Tidus disappeared, it was still an effective ending, and one that produced mental tears from me haha. The last time I got mental tears from a video game ending was with Twilight Princess 3+ years ago, so kudos to FFX.

In saying that, I'm still deciding whether I should give the sequel a go, now that I have finally finished FFX...

Well, I still think FFX is a mediocre RPG at best, but kudos for finishing it. I haven't had the attention span to finish a JRPG since Persona 4. Of course, it's possible that there haven't been any RPGs that are WORTH my attention span. Lunar is coming along slowly but surely, and I really wanna check out Hexyz Force. It's getting some good reviews.  

[The King of Misery]

Not to long ago I was playing REmake and I dodged four Crimson Heads,I broke into song and started yelling,"I'm the best...Arou-nn-d,no one's ever gonna bring me down!"