My Idea of the Perfect Downloadable Games Store

I really only got to thinking about this because of a fairly negligible portion of the most recent episode of Podcast Unlocked, the newest podcast from IGN.com all about Xbox 360 news, games, and happenings, that promises to record weekly (instead of triannually). A large portion of the episode was about the members of the podcast discussing what they expect from the next Xbox, as well as what they would prefer out of the next Xbox, and one of the questions was about what they would like to see from the next XBLA type store. I don't remember them really speaking that much about it, but it inspired me, so my thanks to them.

Pricing
I feel a bit crazy every time I say it, but I think App Store game prices are generally too cheap. Actually I should feel crazy, because that's not really what I mean.

Bit.Trip Series Article Update

Slow week for news. Perfect time for some other features.....if I didn't live a little too closely to the idea of a lazy Sunday.


You may remember a little update where I mentioned I wanted to write about the Bit.Trip series, now that the final game in the hexalogy had been released. Well, it's about a week later and there hasn't been a word on the subject. You might ask why. Well, it's mostly just because of the existence of this trilogy of articles from Nintendolife.com. This was pretty much what I was hoping to make (though I haven't fully read them, from skimming it sounds like they went much deeper than I originally speculated, but maybe in the process of working on it I would have been reminded of all the material worth writing about) so maybe you can imagine the distress I felt to see that a bigger site (and one of my favorites) beat me to it. At least I got the word out about my idea before they published the first part of their's, save a little face. I thought I might change gears and do more of a review for each game, specifically comparing and contrasting each game to the other games in the rest of the series. Now it's all opinion, and at the end of the day that's easier to do (for me) than Googling and cross-checking information, so I guess I'm grateful to Nintendolife for that and a very detailed article that I can reference.

One of the first things I'd prefer to do is re-beat each game. Err, well, I couldn't beat RUNNER, but at least re-experience each area and boss of the games (all have three except FATE's six), but that might take awhile, so I'll probably post some first drafts and remind you guys that they've been revised with a post. Six parts are planned, though I'd love to take a look at the future of the series with another part, but it really doesn't seem like there is enough to write about so it might be thrown in with the last part (FLUX, unless I discover a different order that I think is more appropriate).

If you guys have some ideas you're willing to give away that you think will make the series better, feel free to share them. I'm guessing I'll strike an idea that comes up organically from writing about one of the games which I'll want to venture into on one of the ones I've already written up, so hopefully they'll improve over time, if only a little.

Guess What Came in the Mail Today...(UPDATE - Now With 200% More Horror)

This thing, or rather, these things are a day late, but I don't think Nintendo is to blame for that.

Too far away? Let's get closer.

Ah yes. The infamous "thumb-strap" that shipped with the original Nintendo DS. Two, in fact. But "why?" you ask. Well I lost my original......for a time. I'm sure you can guess what item that was lost for a month I found only two days after I ordered these bad boys; yeah, my original, original Nintendo DS pack-in thumb-strap. Nintendo's actually really cool about returning unopened product. I ordered a Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Adapter, then bought Mario Kart DS in anticipation. I played it before I got the adapter, of course, and eventually messed with the Wi-Fi configuration settings; maybe someone else in the neighborhood had Wi-Fi I thought, but only one wireless signal came back. I recognized the SSID. I was stunned to learn that the little box I thought only served to prove to our internet provider that we were supposed to pick up DSL at our residence was infact a Wi-Fi enabled wireless router. So when the Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Adapter arrived I called Nintendo, explained the situation and sheepishly asked if I could return this $30 (IIRC) device for a refund. I really don't believe I had to pay shipping again. Too kind of them.

Anyway, back to the thumb-strap. "But why would you want to replace that, that, abomination!!!!?" you wail. "Well, I'm sure they'll stop production soon, and if I don't act now, I might never be able to replace it," I respond. 3DS doesn't ship with a thumb-strap, but the usefulness remains; a sturdy, stylish, Nintendo branded wrist-strap to help me avoid dropping my gadget. I really, really, really wanna avoid lint filled (somehow also lint-injecting) pockets with a $250 device, and I want to carry the 3DS with me everywhere, but I'm not "hip" enough to sport one of these. It also has another, very important use, and it relates back to some pieces I wrote recently.

Excuse the $0.25 screen protector

Yes. The good ol' first-person shooter. Using the thumb-strap gives you the support of another hand to hold the DS (or 3DS, which some say is important to hold steady to see the 3D), and gives you quick access to the second shoulder button, though developers rarely gave a different function to each shoulder button, under the assumption that you might not play with the thumb-strap (or with later DS models, that you probably wouldn't have one). Sure you need an average to long thumb to use it comfortably, but when I played through Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt that came packed-in with the original DS, it quickly became my favorite method of controlling it (the "tap where to shoot" method could have been awesome if it wasn't -literally- hit or miss). And my next game, Super Mario 64 DS, just felt so right to control with the thumb-strap using the virtual touch-screen analog stick. Sadly, developers just stopped adding control options based on the accessory, and quite quickly. Only about 5 months ago I picked up the only other DS game that featured a virtual touch-screen analog control option: Rayman DS, a bit ironic since the 3DS is getting a version of Rayman 2, with proper analog controls. But I can't complete it thanks to a busted R button that won't let me dive properly, so it is one of several non 3DS games I look forward to playing on my 3DS, and I will happily play it with a virtual analog stick.

So what to do, now that I have three (3) Nintendo DS thumb-straps wrist-straps......well, give two (2) of them away of course. Unfortunately (for you), I feel now is not the appropriate time. What's a contest with a 100% chance of winning? A miserable little pile of secrets, perhaps.

In the mean time, if you can't stand the mean time, then you could grab one for yourself: click here!

No guarantee that it will be in stock later.

UPDATE: OH GOD THE KARMA!!!!!! BEHOLD:

The wrath of a 14 pound mongrel

Words can't describe the self *facepalms* that ensued with this discovery. In the middle of writing this, I came across this horrifying scene involving a dog and a thumb-strap only minutes old. So young, so innocent. The thumb-strap I mean. Fear not, I think they're cheap enough so I'll get another.

Picking a Video Game Review System (You Can Help)

Long before I ever thought about writing on a personal blog, I pondered the best way to express a rating for a video game in a written review. I've seen all kinds. Reviews with a single score at the end, out of 5 points, out of 10 points, out of 20, 30, 100. Reviews with scores from 4 different people. Reviews where they break down and review each component, sometimes they average those numbers for the final score, sometimes they don't count at all.

One line of thought says you should let the words speak for themselves. no number, no letter, no rating at the end at all. It's a nice sentiment, but everyone writes differently; some people focus more on the things they didn't like about the game as they write about it, without giving praise to enjoyable portions. Without a black and white rating, it could come off more negative then the writer intends.

Here's my own little conundrum, though; I don't really use reviews anymore.

Has the NGP Killed All Hope for 3DS First-Person Shooters?

To keep things simpler, I'm just looking to compare first person shooter games; that is, a game viewed from the first person perspective where your most frequent task is shooting, and you play as a human or humanoid figure that you have full control over. There are certainly some games that include first-person gameplay sections, such as TRON 2.0 Killer App for the Game Boy Advance, maybe you could play a third-person shooter in first-person perspective if you wanted, or something like Touch the Dead that is most definitely first-person, but fully on rails. I'm looking at the most frequent, default gameplay style. 

Video games let even her do this.

It may surprise you to know that the DS has more first person shooters than the PSP. Though, maybe not. Maybe you see the "one analog stick and it's on the wrong side" thing as a big enough hurdle for first person shooters, so it just makes sense, even if it seems like the PSP has the processing power to better accomadate the genre. Despite those considerations, it may still surprise you to know that the DS has almost twice as many first-person shooters as the PSP, and the PSP only beats out the GBA in first-person shooter count by one.

Let's Look At Graphics - Wuhu Island (Wii) vs. Wuhu Island (3DS)

Whenever a new system comes out, a popular subject among video game enthusiasts is to figure out how much more powerful it is than anything else out there or (typical to handhelds) to figure out which older console it most closely represents in graphical prowess, using whatever screen/scans/videos they can get their eyes on before the system launches. Ultimately this is useless simply because developers get better at pushing the hardware as they gain more experience with a system and it's very rare that a launch window game is considered among the best looking of a system's library at the end of the system's life.

But speculation is fun. The Nintendo 3DS as the newest kid on the block has been the most recent subject of scrutiny concerning visual capabilities, so why not take an in-depth look at one game for the 3DS that seems to have the same geometry and the same graphical style as a game on another system that has been out for awhile that has a more understood visual capability, which is the most fair comparison you could make.

The Frames Per Second Argument and the 3DS

So it seems like I've been hearing more arguing talk about frames per second recently than usual, and while I'm going to relate this to the 3DS, the talk doesn't appear to be sparked by the 3DS in the first place. What's the argument? Well there are a couple. But first a little lesson if you don't know to what "frames per second" (fps) or "frame rate" is referring. The number of fps in general indicates how many visible frames or still images are contained in each second. When we see a frame replaced with another and another etc. very quickly, it gives the impression of movement. The more frames each second, the smoother the movement appears. In video games, the fps number represents how often the computer (your console) is producing an image of the scene. The most common fps goals that developers go for in games are 30 and 60. By contrast, movies are almost always at 24 (but appear very smooth because they're recording actual motion and repeat each frame twice or thrice, or in the case of CG movies, the motion blur is rendered as well).

I Can't Notice the Difference
This is one of the most common points of arguing discussion concerning fps. Simply, can a human tell the difference between 30 and 60 fps? 60 and 120 fps?