InFormers: Robots in the News

1. If you dig transforming helicopters, and the destructive Decepticon Blackout isn’t your thing, then perhaps the heroic Autobot EVAC from the current Movie line would be more your speed.

Assorted Mushrooms

1. Remember Aquaman? “The superhero who talks to the fish?”

   Sad to say, his creator is no longer with us.

Video Power

1. Smash Bros. DOJO!! updates again with another double-whammy.

   Sakurai starts off by refreshing us on the art of grabbing and throwing (which sounds like it may be a little easier this time), and then gets on to the REAL meat of the update:

   The assist trophy of Gray Fox, aka “the Ninja” from Metal Gear Solid.

   Which of course means that maybe, just maybe, there’s some truth to the talk of Tails as an assist trophy… and yet, side-by-side, that hardly seems fair, does it?

2. Sounds like SEGA wants to bring more imports to the Virtual Console. Or even just games that were available on the SEGA Channel.

   Now, I wonder if they include something like Mega Man: The Wily Wars in that, or if that would be purely a Capcom thing.

3. Sounds like Nintendo isn’t the only one looking at a longer console life cycle.

   Ironic to hear it from Microsoft, though, whose consoles are lucky to last a month in most cases. Here’s hoping for improved hardware all around that can stand up to the test of time as well as TVs and DVD players.

4. Atari is screwed. Again.
5. Looks like the Japanese will be seeing red when they go shopping for a PSP.

   Europe has something similar, too, that might make their skin crawl.

6. In an interesting turn of events, Dell has a pretty good deal on the PS3.

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

InFormers: Robots in the News

1. The TransFormers discuss Barack Obama. And Ironhide is racist. Apparently. Thanks to Frash for the submission.
2. IGN pays tribute to everyone’s favorite new TransFormer from the motion picture, the dynamic Dewbot!

Assorted Mushrooms

1. “Uncle Phil is the Shredder?!”
2. If your only exposure to the Fantastic Four has been their recent movies, then check out this clip of the opening to their 70′s cartoon show. Notice anything different.

   The network was afraid that kids would light themselves on fire in order to imitate The Human Torch, and so he was replaced by a robot named H.E.R.B.I.E. Or so the popular urban legend goes, as Wikipedia purports that it was a simple rights issue, with Torch set aside seperately for a solo movie that never happened (often the case with old Marvel movies).

   The guy was never really taken to, though, for pretty much the same reasons as Jar-Jar Binks. Interesting to note, however, is that it’s a pre-Megatron robot role for Frank Welker, and that the character has picked up a certain notoriety as a gay (or at least libido-driven), sinister sort of robot in Twisted Toyfare Theater.

   Thanks again to Frash for the link.

3. Frash never rests, it seems, as we have another video from the 80′s, featuring Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n Wrestling. This ep features Captain Lou Albano (the wrestler who would later portray Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show, though ironically he (nor anyone else, for that matter) voiced themselves in the cartoon show.

   Remember above, where Uncle Phil was the Shredder? Turns out he’s the Junkyard Dog, too!

4. If you’re not bored to tears with it, then have we got a treat for you! More Ninja Turtles non-retro retro art, in-progress!
5. Mark Evanier answers some peoples’ questions about the WGA writer’s strike in his blog, including topics like how news programming is affected, how public opinion might affect negotiations, and where the hell are Dave and Jay?
6. Via WebbAlert: Captain America may not know what MySpace is, but that doesn’t mean the cops don’t.
7. IGN drops in on the Power Rangers 15th Anniversary tour, and use the term “Mighty Morphin’” to describe them far too much in this day and age.

   But you’ve gotta dig the Hummer limo.

Video Power

1. Earlier tonight, Yahoo’s front page featured a look at ten video game VIPs, the big movers and shakers in the industry… at least, on the character side. Most of them feature nifty little video montages, too.
2. Itagaki’s Agenda continues, this week looking at his career, his love of gambling, and his plans for the future.
3. Yeesh. I normally don’t give much credence to reviews, but from other things I’ve heard as well, Power Rangers Super Legends for the DS sounds beyond bad.
4. Next Generation has a running theory that some games that were ok on the GameCube would have been better on the Wii.

   Metroid Prime, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, Super Mario Sunshine, MAYBE Luigi’s Mansion… those came to mind immediately upon reading that notion. Though really, Luigi’s Mansion is just fine as it is.

   Nintendo was once quoted as possibly looking into the idea of remaking some GameCube titles for the Wii, and we’ve already seen a positive move of the sort with Resident Evil 4. I almost hate to say it, but maybe Nintendo should look into making more such ports to fill the gaps between bigger releases. Given that a lot of good ideas could use a second look and perhaps benefit from the Wii’s unique interface, maybe such “cash-ins” would for once be justified.

   The piece takes some issue with the GameCube’s controller as a shortcoming, some of which I agree with.

   Worst of all, in attempting to encourage better habits, the control scheme failed to lend itself particularly well to existing game templates. If a game was not intrinsically designed for the GameCube, the controller would be more an obstruction than a guide.

   This much I’ve always asserted, and is why I would be reluctant to get the Cube version of Mega Man X Collection over the PS2 version, which follows the past decade’s worth of Mega Man X control schemes perfectly (due in part to the fact that many were made for the PlayStation consoles to start with).

   Gamers complained that 2D fighting games would be impossible on the standard pad (as if they weren’t just going to buy a joystick anyway). Developers and pundits complained the pad made cross-platform development less feasible. Not that that stopped anyone.

   See, I wondered why Capcom never released Street Fighter Anniversary Collection on the GameCube. Sure, the native GameCube controllers would likely make playing it some sort of complex practice, but at the same time, they were commemorating the game with special Genesis-styled control pads for the PS2 (and maybe the Xbox), featuring original art from UDON based on several characters, designed to best accomodate the classic playstyle.

   Why not release that for the GameCube as well? The lack of a good “traditional” controller with a good D-pad would have made this a strong selling point, especially to those who had Game Boy Players and disliked the Cube’s control pad.

5. My recently new-favorite character from Punch-Out!! has a little proposition for you… “Zee uppercut!” t-shirts! Solves all your problems!
6. Sigh, I hate MTV. I see no excuse for this.

   BUT, if you’re in the US, you can see Mario and Buzz Aldrin hanging out on video here. And if you’re able to put it on YouTube and swing a link my way, I’d be very grateful. And I’ll credit you, of course.

7. Nintendic has an interview with THQ about the WWE Smackdown vs. Raw games.
8. Now that the game is out, looks like the Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn website is ready, too.
9. A retractable Wii sensor bar. Novel idea.

   Or not.

   I don’t know, I’d need a better look at how it works. I imagine it’s less prone to breaking when being packed for travel, though.

10. Lots of reviews popping out this week… see what Game Rankings has for Super Mario Galaxy, Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, and Battalion Wars 2. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games ought to show up soon, as 1up and IGN, among others, already have theirs.
11. A GameStop supervisor has an anonymous list of confessions posted at the Consumerist, hoping to get people to lay off the GameStop bashing. Good luck with that.
12. The Pac-Gentleman– now playable in modern times.

    Not your thing? Then how about a text-based version?

13. Are you saying “Ninja Gaiden” correctly?

    I. DON’T. KNOW.

    But I suspect I am.

14. So apparently, the console a man owns says something about him. Possibly behind his back, depending how much he throws the controller.

    I wonder, though; what about the people who own more than one?

15. Gamasutra looks at the history of Atari, starting with the years 1971-1977.

    Joystiq offers a pretty good summary of what happened next.

16. Kotaku has a live blog of Reggie on stage in New York at the Bank of America.

    Via Go Nintendo, a bit more can be found here.

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

InFormers: Robots in the News

1. Yay, more drones. Looks like Movie Dreadwing is getting a new coat of paint and a new moniker as Overcast.
2. Speaking of the movie, star Shia LaBeouf was arrested at a Chicago Walgreens, though the circumstances seem like they could be dubious.
3. God, I hate “animanga” and such books that are nothing but screencaps from a cartoon or TV show with word balloons, posing as comic books. Despite all that, however, this preorder for one of the Animated TPB’s of that nature gives is a damn fine look at a somewhat-G1-esque Animated Megatron. Not too shabby.

   Now to just make sure that my comic shop doesn’t pull these aside for me.

4. So now IDW’s trying to turn Ramjet into some sort of, I dunno, character. Which is why he gets his own one-shot in Spotlight, which is why this five-page preview is floating around.

   I might be more into it if I could actually make out the text. What is this, Dead Rising?

5. Shockwave: one eye, one hand, and now, zero legs.

Assorted Mushrooms

1. In 2008, Toys for Tots celebrates 60 years of service. Rock on.
2. GameSpite.net has what’s new in anime, DVD, and… um… oh, yeah, games this week. Melancholy of Haruhi and Ratatouille rock the hiz-ouse.
3. Them an-ee-may boys over at IGN have some new trailers goin’ on, if that be your thing.
4. Looks like the squeaky wheel gets the grease, as Hasbro has made some concessions to all the fanbitching (I don’t mean it in a negative way, I’ve been doing it, too) about the upcoming GI Joe movie.

   Now, let’s just hope that they have some actual creativity on board who can work within a concept, rather than feel strangled by it.

   Also, fun fact: The mentioned “Pit” is a name used in both of Hasbro’s top properties, GI Joe and TransFormers. In GI Joe, it’s the name of the Joes’ headquarters, while in TransFormers, it has several meanings– all bad– that are usually associated with evil, or their version of Hell.

Video Power

1. Smash Bros. DOJO!! kicks us off today with a small flurry of updates.

   Starting off, there’s the new Fire Emblem theme, lyrics and all. Not quite as fast-paced as what we had in Melee, but it’s not bad.

   Next up is a new Adventure Mode movie, Fox’s Misfortune, which is really more of a misfortune for someone else as Fox totally takes it to him.

   Finally, tonight’s update is surprisingly diverse, as they cover items from previous installments. The way Sakurai does this stuff, it’s almost like 6 updates at once!

   Say, is that some sort of clock in there? That ought to prove interesting, as I’ve only ever known clocks to do one thing consistently in games. Hint: it’s not keeping time.

2. As noted above, GameSpite has us covered in what’s new this week. Personal picks for the best shizzle to rock yo’ hizzle, fo’ rizzle, are Fire Emblem, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, LEGO Star Wars. Aqua Teen may be a rental, at least.

   As for my pick for “Game of the Year,” I think I can safely recommend Cabela’s Big Game Hunter. Ok, maybe not, but I like it better than most FPS I set my hands on. Just watch your legs, those wolverines will tear your ass apart and leave you pulling yourself back to camp by your tongue.

3. NiGHTS is nearly upon us, and what’s more, it’s raining! It’s snowing! Bolts of lightning are ripping down from the sky! It’s all of these things, and maybe a little more, depending on where you live.

   The downside is, they only brought it to their B-game, the “A-Life” thing. Oh well, just think of the possibilities for Animal Crossing.

4. For more NiGHTS news throughout the week, keep your eyes peeled to 1up.com as they go through one week of NiGHTS.
5. Nintendo of Canada has started a new website dedicated to getting families up and playing with their Wiis together. Just remember that if you’re going to play vigorously with your Wii, that you should use protection.

   On a related note, woo! Go Nintendo linked me again! I feel so loved.

6. On a side note, those jackets aren’t quite as much like Sock’em Boppers as I’d hoped. I had to spend all afternoon apologizing and explaining to the wife why I hit her in the head with a Wii remote. So keep that in mind before things get out of control. In the meantime, if you need any further advice, I’ll be sleeping over on the couch.
7. South Park is becoming a real cartoon of the gaming people, it seems. Pity that any attempts at actually making it into a game have gone south.

   Nonetheless, that hasn’t stopped them from their continued numerous fanwanks into the realm of gaming, and their newest episode, “Guitar Queer-o,” should be no different when it airs tomorrow night.

8. Virtual Console receives three new titles today: the formerly Japan/Europe-only Genesis title Alien Soldier, Power Golf for the TurboGrafx-16, and some game no one’s ever heard of before, might’ve sold one or two copies in its day.

   It’s so unheard of that they actually had to post a second trailer just so people might have some idea of what it is.

   Want to know what’s totally hawt, and what’s totally for naught? Don’t let your Points perish, just turn to 1up’s Parish to know where to spend.

9. Purely to torment me, GameTrailers has more new videos from Super Mario Galaxy. Many more, in fact.

   A US commercial, even!

10. On top of that, looks like Nintendo World is holding a midnight launch, too. Which is sort of funny, because for the Wii itself, you had to wait until they opened the launch day.

    Wish I could go, I loved that store. If I ever had to work retail again, that’d be the place I’d want to be.

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

InFormers: Robots in the News

1. Writer Simon Furman’s blog talks a little about the upcoming Arcee Spotlight, providing a little idea of context behind it and a little about this whole “female TransFormer” thing.
2. Looks like another G2 sample has turned up, this time of Sideswipe in colors more suited to his brother.
3. TFW2005 has an interview with Hasbro Senior Transformers Designer Eric Siebenaler, who got off to a rough start with Armada Laserbeak, and is now working on the Animated line.

Assorted Mushrooms

1. The link requires you to scroll up, but an invisible tank is sort of worth the effort, I think.
2. After listening to this, you’ll never listen to another Batman theme the same way ever again.

   …his parents are dead, you see.

3. And if anyone smacked the hell out of her, they’d be the ones to go to jail.

Video Power

1. Capcom brings us a little “behind the scenes” action as they talk about rebalancing *deep breath* Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix.

   Geeze, the worst part is I don’t even have to look at the name anymore to be able to type that.

   They also take a close-up look at some of the early production art and animations. Neat stuff.

   Wow, Rey Jimenez as a producer… I remember when he was working customer service. Gotta love the way movement in the industry can work.

2. Racketboy checks in with the cheapest Xbox games worth your time.

   Incidently, I find that I usually like the Xbox version better if a game is on both it and the PS2. Burnout 3 is a good example, if for no other reason than the DREADFUL load time on PS2.

3. Mario meets Buzz Aldrin. I reported this last time. What’s different now? NOW it’s just shamelessly shilling for Diggs.
4. Nintendo has come forth and said that they aren’t really looking to launch any more new systems until the market is ready. So in 2010, when the Xbox 1.21 Gigawatt and the PlayStation 4RealThisTime are fighting for dominance, Nintendo could potentially still be making use of Wii and DS. Guess we’ll see.

   Miyamoto believes the Wii will be a sight to behold five years from now. Me? I’m a believer.

5. ScrewAttack.com looks back at another familiar title from my childhood… literally. I’m familiar with the name, but I don’t think I ever got to play it for some reason. Well, maybe in the arcades… Anyway, it’s Operation Wolf from the Vault.

   Also, check out the player character in the death scene at the minute mark. Totally looks like Flint from GI Joe. I suppose they’re probably part of the same branch of military or something, but still. Even the faces are pretty similar.

6. Funny how I click to watch this new movie for Rayman Raving Rabbids 2, likely to be an E-rated title, and the ad that precedes it is for an M-rated game, showing me the blood and all. I could see how some people might just get offended by this sort of idiocy.
7. Some hottie over at Next Generation has written an article about the PSP, and its steep climb up the comeback trail with the new Slim design.
8. Games Radar takes a look at famous franchises with forgotten follow-ups.

   Never thought of Metroid II as a forgotten sequel, though, so I guess the validity is in question here. In fact, I remember the first four vividly; I’m working on Castlevania: Curse of Darkness right now.

9. It also features a link to an old part of game history I never thought much about, wherein Game|Life discusses crashes/shake-outs in the industry.
10. Hmm, looks like China’s getting an alright limited edition DS Lite with a slight Mario motif.
11. Something tells me that maybe I should give Assassin’s Creed DS another look…
12. Is Wii the way of the future? Epcot seems to think so…
13. Gamasutra has a new interview with Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney producer Minae Matsukawa.
14. So Super Mario Bros. 3 is now available on Virtual Console. Me? I’m not looking to get it, I have the original, Super NES, and GBA versions.

    But maybe if Mario himself called and asked me to get it, I’d reconsider.

15. …yeah, right. “Maybe.”
16. Wired makes some sort of sense out of suicide bombing through Halo 3.
17. Joystiq has a neat montage of Zelda ads, from the original “Zelda Rap” to the Four Swords puppet show to a Twilight Princess montage.

    Sadly, no insane Japanese musical number from A Link To The Past, though.

18. If you thought the mascot costume for Sonic in the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games videos was bad, then check this out.

    “and before you go bashing this relic of Halloween, we’d like to see you post your childhood costume images. No, really, we’d love to see it.”

    If I ever find the pics of my contest-winning Mario, Navy SEAL, and Saddam Hussein costumes, then you’re on.

    Sadly, my fifth grade Mario wound up better than my recent Otakon attempt, thanks to a mail mishap.

19. So, did you hear who won the GameFAQs Character Battle?
20. Things sure have changed over the past 20 years. Today, Nintendo’s Wii has Manhunt 2. Back then, you weren’t to use the word “kill.” Even in a non-literal context.

    This and more bizarreness is explained as a former Lucasarts employee details the changes made to Maniac Mansion so that it could be published on Nintendo’s first home console.

    Speaking of which, anyone remember the TV series? I only remember the ads that came on during Family Channel’s reruns of Captain N and the Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3.

21. Wow, ancient Nintendo Power commercial. Prepare to be freaked by MUSCLE MARIO!

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

InFormers: Robots in the News

1. The strike is on (see below), and it looks like TransFormers 2 isn’t ready for it.
2. So in the meantime, you can take out your frustrations with these new role-play blasters.
3. Or, enact your own with the battle-damaged 3-pack, available now at Sam’s Club, where Starscream proves dominant over Optimus and Arcee.
4. All this, plus more Fast-Action Battlers (with new characters, even) and Legends 2-packs.

Assorted Mushrooms

1. Looks like the strike is on!
2. From “Sso02V” (I have no idea how to pronounce that), word has just come to me that the dream is dead.

   I’m not about to get into politics here, but I will say that I’m disappointed more by the reasons behind Colbert not being able to run than his actually not being able to run.

   “What happened to the American ideal that anyone can grow up and be president?” indeed.

3. On a more solemn note, Rest in Peace, Moolah. You were awesome ’til the end.

   On the upside, at least this is one wrestling death that probably can’t be attributed to the lifestyle.

4. Cool, the Build-a-Bear Workshop has turned 10. Glad to hear they’re moving along so well, given the charitable aspects of the company.
5. Guess I shouldn’t reapply at Blockbuster, maybe.

   Never seen the celphone problem, personally.

6. For fans of Yu-Gi-Oh, it looks like the manga is wrapping up in the new issue of Shonen Jump.
7. A Seinfeld reunion? Could it be true?

Video Power

1. Nothing new to report on the Castlevania: Dracula’s Curse front, except that there’s nothing new to report as the script is making its way through the “notes” phase, though there are some interesting glimpses at the process, particularly the stabbing with glass bottles and difficulty of doing so with the exchange rate.
2. So the ESRB says that Take Two is not guilty on the whole Manhunt 2 hack issue, and justify it with what I think sounds like a bunch of BS that states that the only difference between this and Hot Coffee is that they didn’t know about Hot Coffee, which seems as though it should be largely irrelevant in the scope of things.

   “Ladies and gentlemen of the supposed jury… this… is Chewbacca.”

   Feel free to Digg it, you won’t hurt my feelings any by it. Looks like Maggie at Kotaku and I share similar sentiments on the subject.

3. Target, in the meantime, has effectively said “screw it.” Though Go Nintendo says it’s still a rumor.
4. More, more, more trailers of gameplay for Super Mario Galaxy.
5. Good news for those without EB and GameStop… Wal-Mart has the Super Mario Galaxy demo! No word if they’re offering the coin or not, however.
6. The first video of Cruis’n (yeah… just “Cruis’n,” no “USA” or whatever) by Midway is now online, and onNintendo has it!

   …looks alright, I guess. I dunno, just seems like it’s missing… something.

7. Free 2-day shipping on Super Mario Galaxy from GameStop.com? I wonder if Canada counts.

   On a related note, buy it at Toys R Us, and get a free $25 gift card! Also, I again wonder if Canada counts.

   I’m going to be SO pissed off if I can’t get any sort of good deal here.

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

InFormers: Robots in the News

1. One planet full of Decepticons.

   300 Autobots.

   Or something like that.

Assorted Mushrooms

1. Wow, now here’s an opportunity that doesn’t come along often.

   If you’re a fan of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, then it may interest you to know that you can now commission TMNT art from Mirage Studios artists Steve Lavigne and Ryan Brown!

2. Thylacine2000 turned my attention to a couple of cool Flash movies, Animator vs. Animation parts one and two.

   Think of this as the modern-day non-DS equivalent of the classic Looney Tune “Duck Amuck.”

3. WebbAlert has a collection of various viral videos up, this week regarding the many versions and spoofs of the whole “I’m a Mac, I’m a PC” schtick.
4. Are you skilled enough to land a plane on a moving motorhome? These guys are.
5. Who can you trust when you can’t trust your own colleagues? That’s what CSI: CSI is for.

   On a related note, I don’t have a sandwich at home in my fridge. But I hope that I will… someday.

6. The Rock speaks out about wanting the role of Black Adam in the upcoming movie version of Shazam.

Video Power

1. SOTA has unveiled a new resin statue, this time based on Ibuki from Street Fighter III.
2. Racketboy’s Retrogaming checks out the best modern 2D games for the GameCube, many choices with which I agree, such as The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures and Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, among others.
3. Toastyfrog has scored himself a Pimp Daddy Destro (I never knew he was into that), as well as giving Super Mario Galaxy an early review score.

   Not to spoil anything, but from The 1up Show, it seems the game is good enough to drive him to song.

4. Yours truly has gone to the effort of finding out more about Corgi International’s upcoming line of Mario collectibles, and there’s more to come. In the meantime, find out what’s in store (more than the last link I gave about it, promise) over at AMN. And if you can, please Digg. Every little Digg helps.

   Oh, and big thanks to RMC at Go Nintendo for linking to it. You rock, man.

5. Sounds like Nintendo isn’t looking to introduce a new portable any time soon. And who can blame them? DS, prints money, lol, you know the deal.
6. Iwata also goes on to discuss how Nintendo is stronger as a hardware and software provider, and his thoughts on combining gaming and other devices for the sake of “trimming the fat.” Which doesn’t seem to usually go over that well. PSP hasn’t really replaced the iPod, and N-Gage hasn’t replaced anything.
7. So, of course you probably know about this new game coming out, Super Mario Galaxy, which is about Mario in space.

   “What good is a fat Italian plumber in space?” is probably the question asked by a lot of cynics. I haven’t heard anyone ask, but I’m sure it’s out there, and if not, it’ll come up eventually.

   Regardless, I feel that it is important to note that for this outting, Mario has retrieved training from some of the best:

   

   Mario, Nintendo’s iconic video game character, floats with famous astronaut Dr. Buzz Aldrin (and ZERO-G coaches) in zero-gravity atmosphere to train for his upcoming game set in space, Super Mario Galaxy for Wii on November 03, 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The game is available in stores Monday, Nov. 12.

   And apparently, the ZERO-G guys and Buzz were all lucky enough to become a part of the Super Mario Galaxy Flight Crew.

8. GameTrailers, after a long and arduous journey, reaches the zenith of their journey with the final part of their Final Fantasy Retrospective.
9. The Mario & Sonic “Airhorn” video is available again, this time at GameTrailers.
10. Part 2 of the Aqua Teen Hunger Force Ninja Pro-Am opening is now available, with Shake demonstrate’s the finer points of playing the game.
11. Next Generation takes an exhaustive look at Super Mario Galaxy‘s launch in Japan, plus the fear Japanese gamers have of possibly getting motion-sick from the game.
12. Oh boy. So now Game Daily has a new feature, in which they find stuff people in gaming are saying, and kindly tell them to shut their trap.

    Is it me, or does it seem like every gaming site is on about other gaming sites this week?

13. I guess a question that’s going to be around for awhile is whether or not we’ve hit the uncanny valley yet (granted, it refers to robots, but I imagine it’s about the same in principle for games). No doubt, they’ve been working on it since the gaming industry began, and we’re clearly closer than ever. And yet… well, just how close are we? Games Radar draws up some comparisons for us, featuring photographic stills alongside screenshots.
14. Hate thieves, especially those who steal from people (it’s all bad, though). But I do like happy endings. So I have sort of mixed feelings about this story.
15. Go Nintendo spots a difference between the North American and Japanese versions of Resident Evil 4. You might say it’s very moving.

    But don’t say it’s touching, though. That’d just be wrong.

16. Go Nintendo has a review up of Mega Man ZX Advent. I mention this because, in reading, I find it funny the way “Mega Man” is constantly referred to as a singular entity, no matter how much evidence there is to the contrary.

    Not counting evil doubles, we can name two in the Battle Network/Star Force continuity right off the bat. I think I even heard that the former shows up and meets you in the latter if you put a GBA Battle Network game into the DS’s GBA slot.

    Then we have the “main” timeline. There’s the original, and his successor Mega Man X. After that it gets a little questionable; the next series is titles Mega Man Zero, though he’s never, ever called as such within, nor are the Four Guardians (who were based on Mega Man X), though users of the BioMetals in the next series, Mega Man ZX, are referred to as Mega Men (the plural is even used in the original). So there are Vent and Aile, plus Giro and Serpent, and purportedly Pandora and Prometheus, all holding the title of “Mega Man” in that game alone. Then we get to Advent, where Models L, P, F, and H are held by four more individuals, plus the two Model A holders.

    And finally, we have MegaMan Legends, the first game to show more than one Mega Man existing at the same time with MegaMan Volnutt/Trigger and MegaMan Juno.

    So, in total, that’s 23 potential Mega Men, 16 definite, all distinct, save for the recurring use of arm cannons and wearing blue. Really, after the original series, Mega Man has become less of a name and more of a title, sort of like “Green Lantern” or “Power Ranger.” They are legion, and God help if they ever all get into a room together.

    Incidently, one of my favorite art pieces from the 20th Anniversary is this wallpaper, featuring many of the protagonist Mega Men standing together.

    Sorry, RMC (like he’ll ever read this, I’m sure), not trying to rag on you or anything, it’s just a recurring thing I’ve noticed and finally wanted to address.

17. Speaking of Mega Man‘s 20th anniversary, there’s some new Rockman swag to commemorate the occassion.

    I dunno, felt like they went more “all out” on the 15th, especially in America. Still, these look neat, though I much prefer character art than pixel art. Put the above wallpaper on a shirt, and then we’ll be talking!

18. Sounds like Nintendo is trying to make nice and help out third parties more. I wonder how many would accept? It sounds beneficial for all parties involved.
19. Konami has blessed us with a kick-ass website for Contra 4.

    I’m going to be spending a bit of time checking this out later, as it looks to have plenty of good content for the Contra fan.

20. Incidently, Konami used to have a really cool site for Neo Contra, with some fun anecdotes from the developers and such, but it’s no longer there. Since this is specifically a “Contra 4” website, I imagine its days are numbered as well. Is there any way to “save” a website like this, like to disc or something? I’d love to know.
21. 1up’s Matt Leone, Go Nintendo, and now PMO are telling you to give Donkey Kong Jungle Beat a try before Super Mario Galaxy sees release; they were made by the same new team (mostly) of Nintendo’s out of Tokyo, and seem to both be products of quality.
22. Game|Life seems to like Penny Arcade’s take on why GameStop doesn’t care for Eye of Judgement, at least as a product.

    Sadly, it all makes sense, serving to further perpetuate the idea that GameStop is less a specialty store and closer to a specialty pawn shop.

23. Joystiq has coverage of the debate in Philly between Jack Thompson, Oddworld’s Lorne Lanning, and moderated by Newsweek‘s N’Gai Croal.

    And I hate to say this… maybe I was not of sound mind and body when reading this, but Thompson didn’t seem nearly as bad as usual here. And from the lovely Jenn Frank’s account of the matter, it seems that I am not alone in that thinking.

24. I wish my mom still cross-stitched.

    Then again, I wonder if she’d ever do something as cool as that. Of course, once upon a time…

25. Great, now I’m hungry.

    Thanks a LOT, guys!

    Seriously, though, where in the hell is that from?

26. Kotaku has a new feature wherein they ask who the big loseWeight Exerciser of the format war will be: BluRay, HD-DVD, or you.

    Me? I’m just sitting this one out until a victor is declared. Low risk, high reward seems to be the call this day.

27. Hey, remember that part in Back to the Future part III where Marty schools those old west kids in a rousing game of Pac-Gentleman?

    Yeah, me neither. But you know it would’ve been cool.

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

InFormers: Robots in the News

1. Impossible Toys has a bunch of new TransFormers items, including a light-up Kremzeek and a quartet of Quintessons. Perfect fodder for TransFormers/Ace Attorney crossovers!
2. New prototype images from the Robot Heroes line can be seen here.
3. And perhaps most interesting of all, a new clip has surfaced for TransFormers: Animated.

   Clearly, they’re running with the movie’s notoriety by using “the Allspark” instead of “the Matrix.”

Assorted Mushrooms

1. Mini-Mutants, Maxi-fun!

   That would be an awful tagline for the Mini-Mutant Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures that are coming soon, given that it sounds more like a reference to feminine care products. But at least the figure is neat.

2. Does this count as game news? Or other? I’ll go with other, since that’s how Japan seems to be treating it.

   The Blue Dragon anime is coming to Xbox Live Marketplace with two free eps for download.

Video Power

1. “Japan Time” at the Smash Bros. DOJO!! is upon us once again, and today’s update, the last of the week, is… well, it’s ok, I guess.

   Titled On-Screen Appearances, it references the unique entrances the characters make at the start of the match. If you’re like me and missed out on the original Super Smash Bros. and cut your teeth on Melee, then this may be new to you, so it’s not the worst way to end the week.

   We got to see some of these in E for All’s videos, but it gives a little more clarity to others, particularly the newcomers.

2. So, the PTC has urged the ESRB to bring back MH2′s AO rating FTW, ok?

   Translation: Hot Coffee ALL over again, only with Manhunt 2 instead, and perhaps no coffee involved. And this time, the game was only out a week, so it’s unlikely that as many people got it as did GTA: San Andreas.

3. And while Rockstar seems to have real issues with removing questionable content from their games, it seems they’ve no qualms about removing entire studios worth of people from the credits of said game.
4. Hey, maybe if Rockstar has to pull Manhunt 2 from the shelves, maybe they can fit in those extra credits while they’re rewriting the discs! That’d solve both problems. This is sort of like karma…
5. Great, now a Senator is getting involved as well.

   Though if it’s like last time, I don’t think we can blame the ESRB for Rockstar being idiots. But I think if Rockstar keeps doing this sort of thing and the ESRB is innocent, then they should initiate an indefinite ratings blackout on Rockstar. See how many games they sell when they can’t even get them rated. Maybe that’ll teach them to wise up.

6. That whole Rock Band thing coming out in a few weeks? Good luck getting one. It’s like this year’s Wii, except that the Wii is also this year’s Wii.
7. A new Sonic Rivals 2 trailer appears, attempting to lead us to believe the game may just be fun.
8. And, a couple of new ads for Super Mario Galaxy, as well as two new gameplay trailers.

   The first of the two gameplay trailers would certainly have fit Halloween with its exploration of the haunted manor, as well as a special appearance by– well, you guess.

   Oh, and IGN has a glut of new videos as well.

9. Nintendo’s newest lead in marketing hasn’t officially begun work yet, but that hasn’t stopped her from preaching the word of Miyamoto.
10. Sometimes I think the ol’ PR machine could use a little tweaking. Maybe I should take it to Dr. Light… or Doc Brown.

    In any case, being in Canada, and despite having my attempts at getting into Nintendo’s press room jettisoned to a firm in Canada despite most of my audience being in the US anyway, I’m surprised it took Go Nintendo for me to hear about Big N giving Nintendo DSes to the Children’s Miracle Network, one for every twenty sold at Wal-Mart.

11. DS game called Ninja Reflex.

    For some reason, the first thought that comes to my mind is a stylus stabbed through the touch screen. Here’s hoping this doesn’t lead to stylus jackets.

12. Hey, speaking of which, I haven’t gotten my Wii remote jackets yet. Has anyone else who’s reading this?
13. The Wii Shop Gift Channel in action. Pretty sure it’s sped up, considering, but I’m still impressed by how quickly they enter the Japanese text.
14. So Hori is bringing their Arcade Stick for Wii to America. Some interesting details…

    This product does not have the Classic Controller?s L or R Stick fitted.

    Also the L button and R button do not function with analog output.

    This product connects to the Wii controller as a ?Wii Remote Expansion? and does not
    function when directly connected to the Wii.

    …wait, then why would it connect directly to the Wii at all, if there’s no purpose?

    Also, it’d be nice if there was just a hollow part you could slide the Wii remote into.

    The rest:

    This product is compatible with Classic Controller compatible games.

    Games that are Classic Controller compatible have the compatible mark on the back
    of the packaging.

    Release Date: November 2007
    MSRP: $49.99

    Great, now will there be one for Xbox 360 that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg?

15. EA still supports all consoles. I assume this includes EA Sports.

    …and if so, I guess that makes them athletic supporters! *rimshot*

16. Hooray for advergaming! The finalists in Doritos’ Xbox 360 arcade game contest are now available to play, and then be voted upon for which one gets the full treatment.
17. And finally, 1up checks out the Mii feature in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, to see how they work.

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

InFormers: Robots in the News

1. A couple of interviews with the visual-effect supervisor for TransFormers: The Movie, Scott Farrar, can be found here.

Video Power

1. Poor Toastyfrog. Evidently, he had to change his feature because some people whined about the whole “perfect 10″ part of the Super Mario Galaxy article he wrote. He also has a new Retronauts podcast available, and it’s (mostly) about Mario!
2. So damn jealous…
3. Want to make your voice heard, and air your views on video games? Well, has AMN got an offer for you…
4. Hey, guess what?! Sony has finally gotten a clue about how to make ads for the PlayStation 3, as you can see here and here.

   I’m still not ready to dive into that one, but at least I don’t have to cringe when the commercials appear on TV now. I rather like the longer one, in fact.

5. Thanks go to Wolf for finding this one. It’s really kind of a no-brainer, but evidence shows that it bears repeating: If there’s a thunderstorm going on, ditch the electronics. This isn’t even a Sony thing; it’s a fluke incident, generally speaking, but it can happen to damn near anything. Don’t risk it.

   Also, surge protectors are a good idea. Unless you own an Xbox 360. Then you’re pretty well screwed no matter what.

6. Game Daily fires back at Mark Wilson’s Kotaku article from yesterday regarding the system of rating and reviewing games.

   Mr. Wilson himself looks at several more here.

7. Nintendo Prez Satoru Iwata has some things to say about first party vs. third party game quality.
8. Games Radar delves deep into ten fashion faux pas of the video game world.

   Just one word to kick off: belts. Because let’s face it, even Batman doesn’t need as many belts as one Square-Enix character.

9. A Halloween idea that only a gaming father could come up with.
10. …what the hell is an “air card?”

    Well, whatever it is, it’s clearly essential to the Spartan mission, and evidently worth punching your mother (plus a cop) over, at least for some people.

    And there we have it. Clear proof that playing videos games doesn’t make people violent. It’s obviously when they STOP playing that the violence kicks in.

11. …whackjob…
12. Ah, Nintendo Power, then and now. And I enjoy it just about (I’m guessing, I never really kept track) as much now as I did then.

    It’s just somewhere in between that things went to hell for a few years. But I’d say they’ve adapted well to the growing age of the interweb.

13. Hmm, Super Mario Galaxy in Newsday? I don’t even know what a Newsday is or where you get one, but I assume it’s fairly mainstream, which makes me happy to see Mario’s presence there again.
14. Team Awesome is aptly named, and that’s why I’ve added them to my YouTube subscriptions. You might remember them as the entrants in the Nintendo Short Cuts contest who made Von Kaiser my favorite Punch-Out!! character.

    Now, they’re back, and instead of making something my favorite, they’ve tackled one of my favorites with their excellent awesome Contra trailer.

15. Luigi and Daisy do a little fencing.

    Admit it, you want him to be all like Antonio Banderas and go “Zorro” on her.

16. Ok, so this swag, I’m not quite as upset over, on account of the fact that you’d probably have to be in Germany to get it, and the likelyhood of me making it is pretty small.

    Still, I like the shirt. The other thing on the lanyard, I don’t even know what that is, so.

    Careful if you click the first link, though, as beyond the first couple of pics lie spoilers.

17. Seems there’s a new Wii Sports commercial down under. I probably wouldn’t even link something like this normally, except I think it does a nice job of capturing the spirit of playing the game.
18. Speaking of things I normally wouldn’t care to report…

    “Next week?s sales figures (for Super Mario Galaxy) better be pretty good, or else you?ll have to deal with me!”

    Raw Meat Cowboy running rampant over rowdy rascals in Japan? Hell, I might even pay to see that.

19. The first look at Corgi International’s Mario collectibles can now be seen over at Destructoid.

    They look pretty spiff, and ought to be available in December, at least in the UK. Wonder how much?

20. D-toid also notes that the aforementioned Super Mario Galaxy Christmas decorations are due to hit GameStop next week, and the stockings will retail at $14.99 each, with the ornament going for $9.99.

    Hope they come here. Hope they’re at that price. Hell, I hope I’ll have money to get them.

    (Hey, a red stocking and a black stocking. That’s perfect for the wife and I!)

21. …yeah, and as I’m checking Destructoid for news, I wind up hitting the spoiler for who the other playable character in Super Mario Galaxy is. It’s not a huge spoiler, I kind of suspected it anyway, but I really would’ve liked to have found out on my own.

    I think I’m going to blacklist the site now, just to be safe. Most other sites had the courtesy to put it behind a jump; I’d rather not take the chance that their different standards might spoil something a little more major next time. Pity, I only just started going there, and was enjoying it, too.

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

Hope everyone had a Happy Halloween! Next up: Thanksgiving. Well, in the US, anyway. Up here in Canada, it’s pretty much a straight shot to Christmas, as they gave their thanks a few weeks ago. Ah, to be home again. Pity my broke ass can’t afford it. Hopefully I’ll find something that pays and can go visit… well, probably next year sometime.

Oh well, on with the news!

InFormers: Robots in the News

InFormers: Robots in the News