Random Gaming Thoughts II ~News Items Beware~

Alright, bored of this.  I'll get back to Treesmurf's question once all this is ironed out.

My end of year plan was, and is, to do three votes: Wii U, 3DS, and other formats.  Each person picks three games for each, in order (favourite gets 3 points, second favourite 2, third favourite 1), with a separate segment for general dishonourable mentions, and all honourable mentions... er, mentioned.  

That solves the problem of Bayo 1 going in, I believe.  Was generally going to allow anything released digitally or retail, but no VC.  That applies to the other consoles too, so I see no reason why TLoUR shouldn't be voted for, like WWHD was in the Wii U vote.  If it wins - well, that's sad for the BBoPs, I guess.

Happy to take feedback, but I am loath to change the number of votes.  Obviously this forum has a Nintendo focus, so I think that separating other formats out will let them get their chance in the sun.  More than three games votes, however, seems to me to be cluttering things.

That seems clear Balla, so I can vote if I wish for Bayo 1 in Wii U vote as released in 2014 for that system.

Is there any game that could be voted for in all three awards. Also with other I guess we have put what system we played it on and that's a huge cat as it's got PS3/4, VITA, 360, ONE, PC, and there Downloads along with iOS, Droid, Ouya in it also the Dreamcast if Pier Solar does come out before end of the year.

Also I gather it has to be a game we played on the system were voting for as with Andy's Wii U vote it didn't matter if we played on Wii U or not just if the game was good or not.

Ohh and on VC the PS4 for instance doesn't have a VC but old games such as Dust and The Unfinished Swan got re-released just in 1080p now, so nothing really NEW so are we looking at them like VC games.

Happy to let people who are better informed than me decide on the Sony "VC".  If it's purely a pixellation improvement, I'd have thought that comes under the VC category.

Any non-Nintendo formats count under OF, although some might say that if you place a vote for an Ouya or Dreamcast game you may as well be tossing your vote into the year 3000's lava.  

As for systems and whether you've played the game on them, I'm not that fussed.  I would presume that you have some experience with the game you're voting for, butas to whether it's on that system or not, and indeed whether you're lying about having played it, until I get the GNamer cameras set up in all of your houses I can't tell either way.  (Although if you mention in your comments that you've never played the game, I might throw your vote/mention out on stupidity grounds.)

But Pier Solar might be that good.

Yeah I think we all know what would be considered a VC game else where I hope.

Reason I ask about if you need to play it as Last of Us & Tomb Raider both excellent games that came out this year on the PS4 (and One for TR) but I haven't played either on PS4 as no need to as I played on PS3 but arguably some of the best games on that platform. Even though both purely a pixellation improvement's how you put it about VC.

Hmm. I guess I'd prefer that you'd played the version that came out this year? I mean, if (for whatever reason) it's not worth your hard earned dosh, it's probably not worth your hard-earned votes, at least in the context of "games of the year".

But honestly, that depends on how you want to define that context, and I'm not going to set that in stone. I'd rather not complicate things. If for whatever reason you want to vote for any game that is not VC (and in general I wouldn't consider retail releases VC, unless it's exactly the same game in a different box, like the Player's Choice range), vote for it!

Oh yes: if a game has come out on multiple formats this year (some of the indies may have come out on Wii U and Steam), and you want to vote for it in each category, I'm okay with that too. This isn't like the genre votes.

I will likely vote by my rules that it has to be a NEW game but might have to bend them for 3DS as I can only think of 1 title to vote for at the moment with 2 kinda coming but enhanced ports and there the same game really.

...Ah. The Pokémons. I'm going to take precedent from previous votes for this one: OR and AS count as one game. If you don't like that, you can blame Jay, and indeed Andyman, for grouping the versions together in their votes.

What about an anticipated award of what were looking forward to in 2015, I don't think has to be three awards just one with a top three is enough for that as looking at the 3DS again you could do 3 but 3rd could be rather muh.

Dam guessing what I was thinking but yeah I did think they'd be one game.

As said above, I'd like to start off with just the three categories.  Remember, this is the first year we're including any games votes in the awards. The idea can develop in future years, depending on who does it and what they want to do, natch.  

Anyway, with that hopefully done:

Treesmurf wrote:

Animal Crossing X Pokémon anyone?

To be honest if such a thing were to happen it'd most likely be a party game I think, Sweet Day in Nintendo Land has already given me a hankering for it.

You wouldn't want dark types moving into the house next door and using Thief all the time, though.

RPG crossovers seem to be in vogue at the moment.  SMTxFE (what's happened to that anyway?), that Persona x Persona game, and of course Project X Zone.  I'd be up for a Final Fantasy/Bravely Default-alike, where you catch Pokémon as familiars but also fight yourself.  

Even better, an Animal Crossing-based RPG, where you can finally inflict 9999 damage on Tom Nook for slowly throttling your bank account.  With a fishing rod.

Yeah makes sense Balla I do feel for the eShop games and downloads as you know I'm a big fan of indies & downloads but I can't see anything really worrying likes of MK8, SMASH, Bayo 2, Fantasy Life, Dark Souls 2 etc in any of the awards .

SMTxFE hmm it was on list as TBC not even 2015 like Zelda U that Nintendo put out.

I don't know if you seen but Bravely Default is having music DLC in Theatrerhythm which might be neat.

All I really wanted was clarification of Guacamelee STCE being allowed so as it is........

Thanks for that, Balla. It's good that Guacamelee can be voted for; up until the MK8 DLC that was my game of the year. Second for you, Juan! Pun not intended.

Second at the moment as your yet to play Bayo right and SMASH still to come.

A bit of a random thought on the NEW 3DS, we know of two games coming to the EU early next year that use the NEW 3DS features Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate and Majoras Mask 3D. Anyone else thinking it could make sense to do a little mini launch and have those two games and the NEW 3DS come out at the same time or at least very close together.

That would make a lot of sense. Do we know anything about when xenoblade is dropping yet?

I think it was listed in the financials as 2015 at only on the Japanese section.

Hopefully it went take long to come west, considering most of the translation work is done.

You would hope so but this is Nintendo

Whilst sometimes Nintendo don't make sense - particularly in regards with launch days/windows - they can't be messing up the New 3DS's release, can they? My prediction is only one game that uses the features/power of the New 3DS will be released at launch, purely because the system will be expensive and asking early adopters to buy/choose between two or more games would split sales.

Hence the close together like Monster Hunter march along with New 3DS then April MM3D.

That feeling you have when you spend just over thirty minutes facing a final boss in one of the most grueling things you've ever done in a video game, only to then when looking up tips on how to beat it easier see someone beat it in two minutes with ease.  It's almost painful.

Still, beating freedom wars was all the sweeter because of the struggle, so at least that's a consolation prize of sorts.

Those moments of real triumph against adversity in games are great, aren't they? I remember beating Skyward Sword's final boss with about two heart containers left and slumping to the floor, fit for the knacker's yard. Ruddy awesome, it was.

It's a fine line, though, between that and, "Stuff this, I'm getting less enjoyment out of it than I'll get pleasure when I beat it." That said, I will bring up my favourite example: Bopopolis from DKCTF. An annoying level par excellence, but because I loved the game, I was willing to let it cane me over the backside until I came out of it on top.

That last sentence sounded unintentionally kinky.

That boss I mentioned a few days back?  I just beat a lower form of it offline without dying once for a trophy!  






Never again.  NEVER.  AGAIN.  Its attacks may have hurt less and I may have upped my gears power and got some good augmentations since I fought the stronger version, but that was still one the single most annoying battles I've ever had in gaming.  Now don't get me wrong, killing its weaker form isn't what's the problem, it's the not dying once part that makes the fight so much more frustrating.  The chains it sends out turn the fight in to simple and utter frustration.  Even using tricks like hiding in the small alcove that they can't enter to ram you doesn't help when every single one of six chains pops up and then starts spamming their fire and ice breath attacks, which do hit you. And because your allies are all busy miles away getting killed by the main boss nobody can come and revive you when you sucumb to all those attacks.

Oh, you and your three other ai team members have taken out the six chains that were constantly flying around ramming you and killing you?  Well better saw off the boxes they came out of on the abductor quickly, because if you don't it will revive every single one whose box remains intact.  And if it hasn't release the other three then they will likely join the fray as well.  


After replaying the mission six times refining my methods I finally barely got it on the seventh time. Still, while I'm saying never again it gets back to the fact achieving highly difficult and frustrating things is one hell of a rush.

Just watched GT's Top 10 PS1 games and it feels like a anti-Andy, list with all that's near the top.

On the subject of the great PS1, I will be doing my own video which will a abit different to normal Top 10, when I have chance.

Would still like to hear your thoughts on the console before then when you all tell me I'm wrong with certain games.