First off, I just want to give a quick thanks to Valve. Thank you for making Steam subscriptions free. As well as, not thinking that convenience equals higher price tag. Keep up the good work. However, Microsoft doesn't think the same way Valve does. Microsoft's Games on Demand actually requires you to pay more for the games, simply because it's so "convenient". Here's what one of their PR drones had to say. "No one retailer has the lowest pricing for every product, and our program is about giving people 24 x 7 convenience and selection when shopping for Xbox 360 games. We're incredibly excited about what Games on Demand means for digital distribution, and will continue to evaluate and evolve the service to meet market and consumer demands." So basically, convenience equals higher price tag. Steam, on the other hand, is the exact same service, but the games there cost the same they would at retail. I'm not the only one who finds this a bit greedy, right? Let me translate the above PR quote for you. "We're doing this is for the people who continue to shell out cash for DLC (which should theoretically be covered by the Xbox Live subscription fee), so you better love it!". Ah, Microsoft. Will I ever be able to stop criticizing you? What I mean by that is that Microsoft has been known to "borrow" certain ideas. For reference see Xbox avatars, motion control, tabs in Internet Explorer (Firefox FTW), accelerometer in Zune, etc. The list goes on. But, the lesson to be learned from this is just because something is convenient, doesn't give you the right to charge more for it. And one last thing... On the topic of jaw-dropping corporate arrogance, not too long ago Activision evil mastermind, er, I mean CEO Bobby Kotick stated in an interview "...if it was left to me, I would raise the [game] prices even further." Who wants to guess how many death threats he'll get? Anyway, thanks Valve, for not being greedy, arrogant pricks. Keep up the good work! BONUS Forum Civility Tip! Did you know that using the defense of "I own all three consoles" is actually completely pointless?

Time for another top 5. Surprisingly, this wasn't conceived and written during a manic episode. Guess I don't need bipolar disorder for writing. Anyway, this top 5, like most of mine, is in no specific order. Just as I (sort of) proved that Halo 3 doesn't hold a candle to Super Mario Galaxy, I will now prove how Mega Man 2 clearly surpasses Mega Man 3. Anyone who's played both those games (up on the virtual console now) knows that they're both some of the greatest platformers to ever appear on any console, but some might argue that 3 is better than 2. Like the whole "Halo 3 vs Super Mario Galaxy", this post is just a joke. I will list five reasons how Mega Man 2 is clearly the best. I have come to this conclusion using reason and distortion of logic. I will admit 3 had some pros that 2 didn't, namely Rush the dog and the Slide move. First off, better power-ups. Let's compare and contrast, shall we? The Metal Blade was pretty much the ONLY weapon you needed to make it through a level. It could be fired in eight directions and barely used any ammo. It was even effective against FOUR robot masters! The Shadow Blade is just a "nerfed" counterpart. Five directions, less ammo-efficient, and strong against only one robot master. How about the Atomic Fire? Fully charged, it could take out Wood Man in one shot. No joke. The Spark Shock, on the other hand, just fires a small ball of electricity. Just a slightly stronger version of the Megabuster. Snake Man's weapon is just a minor variation of the Bubble Lead. And don't even get me started on the Top Spin. Better known as one of the most useless weapons in video game history. Puts Mega Man very much in harm's way and uses a seemingly random amount of ammo. I don't understand why Mega Man would need ammunition just to do a quick spin in mid-air. However, the Magnet Missile and Needle Cannon were legitimately good. Point is, almost every weapon in Mega Man 2 was useful outside of boss battles. Only a few could be considered useful in 3. Next, the robot masters in 2 aren't as gaudy as those of 3. What purpose could Top Man really serve? The same goes for Snake Man and Gemini Man. According to the Mega Man Knowledge Base Snake Man "...was created to investigate narrow areas". Right. Can Top Man's "amazing" ability to spin around relatively fast aid Dr. Wily in world domination? Don't think so. Admittedly, there were a couple I liked, namely Magnet Man and Shadow Man. Take the robot masters of 2. Did any of them make you wonder "Is Capcom starting to run out of ideas?". Maybe Wood Man, sort of. Bubble Man, diving suit robot. Quick Man, upgraded version of Elec Man. So obvious, this point doesn't need to be argued further. Mega Man 2 clearly has the better soundtrack. Now hold on fanboys, I'm not saying 3's soundtrack was bad. It just didn't completely match it's predecessor's. Some of the best (and most remixed) songs from 3 include Top Man's Stage, Snake Man's Stage, Spark Man's Stage, etc. Mega Man 2, on the other hand. Pretty much EVERY song on it's soundtrack is all too frequently remixed and hailed as some of the best music on the NES, and pretty much in all of video game history. I loved it, hence why I listed it as my second favorite soundtrack ever. But it's best song? Anyone who has listened to the soundtrack will probably say Stage 1 of Dr Wily's Castle. They're right. Just check Overclocked Remix. Ask virtually any video game music fan, such as myself, which Mega Man soundtrack is the best. Chances are, they'll tell you it's 2's. Next up, less lag in 2. Now, you might be thinking "Is this self-indulgent prick really criticizing an 8-bit game for lag? How unprofessional is this guy!?". Two things: first off, I'm not a professional video game anything, so thus I can be as biased and nonsensical as I want when it comes to games. Secondly, yes it would be unfair to criticize an NES game for lag, if I were to compare it to a game of a later generation. Remember the fast-paced, devious stages of Quick Man and Air Man? With the exception of a couple of bosses in Dr Wily's castle, you didn't run into any slowdown, but rather just some flickering sprites. Oh no, minor flickering, whatever. Compare that to the only semi-well designed levels of 3, What stage DIDN'T have slowdown at some point? I can understand that Capcom was simply trying to push the NES to it's limits, but at what cost? Painfully apparent lag? Point is, Capcom sacrificed fast-paced gameplay for some giant (and frustrating) enemies. Thanks Capcom, but please focus on gameplay. It'd be great. Finally, more innovation for the franchise. Mega Man 3 introduced the Slide move and Rush. Two new gameplay elements. What did Mega Man 2 introduce. Eight bosses instead of six, different looking pellets, "it's Dr. Light not Dr. Right", and most important of all, E-tanks. What would prove to be almost a requirement to beat certain bosses. Four innovations in 2 compared to the two in 3. So there you have it, I have once and for all proved Mega Man 2 is clearly superior to 3. In fact, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that it's the best of the franchise. I'm not the only one who thinks this. And one more thing. If you didn't read the intro (shame on you) then I should probably let you know that this post is, for the most part, a joke. So try not to take it too seriously. And real quick thanks to Capcom for keeping Tatsunoko vs Capcom and Monster Hunter Tri Wii exclusives instead of porting them to the prone-to-overheat Xbox 360 and/or "How many hundreds of dollars?" PS3. But even with the evidence that these games will always be Wii exclusives, fanboys will continue to distort and reject logic out of frustration that said exclusives aren't coming to their consoles. BONUS Forum Civility Tip! Did you know that not only can the space bar be used to separate words, but also sentences?

Another Top 5 list? Why's that? Two reasons: too much free time. Secondly, it's somehow easier to come up with these things when I have a manic episode. Ain't bipolar disorder fun? This time, I've decided to ruthlessly criticize...myself!? Yes, here is a quick list of my worst traits as a gamer. I'm sure people have made some posts like this before me, but here I will list why I fail in some areas. Xbots, get your flame comments ready. Enjoy! First of all, I don't care about first person shooters, at all. Like whatsoever. I don't hate them, I just don't care about them. The most insanely popular genre of this generation (tied with third person shooters) and I don't play any? OK, GoldenEye, that's one. And as I've stated before, the Metroid Prime games are NOT first person shooters. They're first person adventures. Nintendo said so and everything. And I might even argue WHY they're first person adventures in another post. Back to my original point, I don't care about shooters. Why, you may ask? First and foremost, I fail at dual analog sticks. Next, to me, they all typically have little to no innovation and fall into one of the following categories. World War II setting with lots and lots and lots of gray...and beige...and brown. The second category is Sci-fi FPS where ticked off aliens are ticking off humans, which leads to big, explosion-filled, cliche battles. More often than not, the latter stars some masked, quiet protagonist. And yes, there are obviously some that break the stereotypes. Bioshock, for example, had an interesting, fresh, and original plot set in an underwater city where you can splice your own genes and rescue or kill, I mean harvest, helpless little children! Side note on Bioshock, that's one of the few games where when I did something "bad", I actually felt guilty. Back to my comment about the FPS protagonist, I think that the masked man archetype I mentioned earlier is just a pathetically lazy attempt to have an everyman hero. No, developers, I really can't put myself in that scenario, so don't even bother. Give us an original protagonist with a unique, likable personality and I'd be happy. And I know the mythos, canon, lore, and plot of an FPS are, more often than not, completely irrelevant to the core experience of the game. Also, and PC elitists will agree with me, if you're gonna play an FPS, you play it with a mouse and keyboard. That's how they got their start. So to sum it up, all shooters are the same to me. And I mean that in the nicest way possible. Next reason, I'm a hopeless Nintendo fanboy, or "Nintendrone". Some people might not realize that Nintendo was once the ONLY game company. But N64 and onwards Nintendo consoles were in desperate need of RPGs and high profile 3rd Party exclusives. To point this out, what are some of the Gamecube's best 3rd party exclusives? Resident Evil 4 got ported to the PS2, PC, and now on the iPhone? Wait, Tales of Symphonia. Did you know that it actually was ported to the PS2 in Japan? So like many others, I eventually broke down and got a PS2, even with my love of the Gamecube. I won't make this segment sound like one stretched-out way of saying "Nintendo abandoned us, the people who made them who they are today, how dare they!". Even with my little use for the Wii, I will remain stupidly loyal. To other Nintendrones, you know Nintendo loves you, they just don't show it as much as they should. Lately, they've realized they shouldn't focus on just casual gamers. Why do I say that? Their E3 reveals of Metroid: Other M, Super Mario Galaxy 2, New Super Mario Bros Wii, etc. Third party developers are FINALLY putting some effort into their Wii games. Good titles coming up? Dead Space Extraction, Resident Evil Darkside Chronicles, Muramasa, Red Steel 2, and of course Tatsunoko vs Capcom. Which, by the way, will always be a Wii exclusive. Just accept it Xbots. But, even with the Wii's reputation as being the "kiddy" console, my undying fandom continues. Rather short paragraph, huh? Next up, I consider several popular games overrated. A few popular games I don't like? ICO is one I truly hate. Just look at what it is: one giant escort mission. Picture the original NES Legend of Zelda, add "challenging" puzzles, iffy controls, and have Link drag around a burlap sack filled with bricks. At least that's how I saw it. And don't even get me started on Shadow of the Colossus. Final Fantasy XII is one I don't hate, I just don't think it deserves universal acclaim. I don't mind depth in games, but FF XII was just a bit too complex. Did anybody actually like the license point system? It was just hard thing to get my head around. "Wait, I gotta kill 30 more enemies just to be able to wield a generic sword?" was the first thing to come to my mind when I first played it. And the plot was way too convoluted. Anyway, I'm rambling. Back to my original point, I "don't get" several popular games. On the topic of differing tastes, I actually like a fair amount of mediocre/terrible games. First off, I actually like Castlevania Judgment. I'm not joking. Waggle controls, shallow gameplay, and terrible camera weren't enough to keep me from playing it. Speaking of shallow fighting games... Custom Robo. Yes it's fairly shallow and has little replay value if you're gonna play it by yourself, but I love character customization in games. That's why I thought I'd like Final Fantasy XII. Another mediocre game I like? Kirby Air Ride. It truly does boil down to knowing when to press "A". The main reason I like it is most likely my love of the Kirby franchise. Also one of the main reasons I actually really enjoyed Kirby 64. On the topic of cakewalks, I will admit that Yoshi's Story is truly devoid of challenge. Even with that in mind, I still played it constantly when it first came out. I love Yoshi's Island and the N64, so it's natural that I'd like Yoshi's Story. Go ahead and poke fun. Sonic Unleashed is another average game that I liked. I know the biggest complaint was the werewolf, uh, I mean wereHOG stages. No matter how shallow and poorly controlled they were, I still played them over and over again. I know I'm not the only one. Point is, there are several hated games I like. But the worst thing about me as a gamer? Rarely ever do I finish a game. I don't mean "100%" completed. I mean "beat the final boss" completed. There are several explanations. First off, laziness. Next, probably the main reason, I give up too easily. Why haven't I beaten Link to the Past? The final dungeon is too damn hard. Here's a quick list (a list within a list?) of games I wish I had beaten: Link to the Past, Tales of Symphonia, Metroid Prime 2, Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy IV, Fire Emblem Sacred Stones, Okami, Phantom Hourglass, Secret of Mana, among MANY others. Point is, most of the time, every time I pick up a game, chances are I won't finish it. This is what I consider my worst trait. Short blog post, right?

Seeing as I'm incredibly bored, I thought I might as well whip up a quick Top 5 list. Being a complete sucker for video game music, I've decided to list what video game soundtracks I consider to be the best. Chances are, you don't agree with me. Well just remember it's my opinion. Two quick guidelines: first off, I'm not counting licensed soundtracks (Guitar Hero, GTA San Andreas) or compilations (Super Smash Bros). And secondly, one soundtrack per franchise. Honorable mentions at the end of the list. 5.Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Ah, Ocarina of Time. The best game ever. Not just renowned for it's innovative gameplay (lock-on targeting, automatic jumping, etc), but also it's soundtrack. Among many other things. So diverse and well-composed, ranging from the bright and cheery music of the Kokiri Forest to the unnerving theme of the Shadow Temple. Fun fact: did you know that early versions of Ocarina of Time had Muslim chants in the background music of the Fire Temple? But, I have to agree with the critics when they say the confusing absence of the traditional overworld theme is disappointing. 4.Super Mario Galaxy Speaking of amazing games with equally amazing music, can anybody ever get tired of Galaxy's soundtrack? This is actually one of my points in a previous (joke) post, in which I explain how Super Mario Galaxy is clearly superior to Halo 3. What put it on the list (like the other entries) was the diversity of the songs. Each tune fitting the stage and mood perfectly. "But NovaScizor, why isn't this higher on the list!?". The power-up music... 3.Dragon Quest VIII As mentioned before, I have a deep love of Dragon Quest. But my favorite is 8, hands down. I know the battle system is slightly dated and the difficulty is somewhat uneven, but the good outweighs the bad. Fully orchestrated greatness. So good, I have several of the songs on my iPod. The moods include: menacing ("Stalked by Fear"), serene ("Mysterious Tower"), somber ("In the Dungeon Depths"), upbeat ("Peaceful Town"), and more... 2.Mega Man 2 There had to be a Mega Man game on this list somewhere, and what better one than Mega Man 2? These are still some of the NES' best. Metal Man, Heat Man, Flash Man, and of course Dr. Wily's Castle. Which, by the way is still one of the most remixed songs on OverClocked Remix. Why? 'Cause it's awesome! 1.Chrono Trigger Was there any doubt about this? Like Mega Man 2, Chrono Trigger still has one of the most remixed soundtracks on OC Remix. What are the best songs? Battle with Magus, Main Theme, Frog's Theme, etc. The list goes on and on. Are there any BAD songs in the game? Another fun fact: did you know Robo's theme sounds very similar to a popular '80s pop song? The variety, composition, and overall amount of effort put into the soundtrack qualify it as the best video game soundtrack ever. In my opinion... Honorable mentions (and why they didn't make it) Castlevania SotN: Why? www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvp3bZWeMIY. Yeah, that one song is enough to hold it back. Super Metroid: Why? Too little variety, and only a couple songs stuck with me. Yoshi's Island: Why? It's technically a Mario game. Remember, 1 per franchise. Chrono Cross: Why? One per franchise. Bunch of Zelda games: Why? one per franchise. Earthbound: Why? Dunno...

As mentioned, I don't care about first person shooters. I do, however, care about RPGs. A lot. With my experiences with the genre made me feel obligated to list some things I think could make the next big RPG the best. First of all, no random encounters. As much as I love Dragon Quest, random encounters do grow tiresome. Pokemon has that to some extent (limited to patches of grass, etc), but I'm just saying being able to see the enemies on the field would definitely help it. Take Earthbound, Chrono Trigger, Tales of Symphonia and the Mario RPGs, they displayed the enemies on the overworld to avoid or attack. Convenient! True it might make the game a little easier, but just because a game is easy doesn't mean it sucks. Back to my original point, any game of this generation that sticks to random encounters will be criticized as being dated. So, remove random encounters. It'd be great. Next, break the stereotypes. An RPG is usually a typical RPG. Remove the stereotype that the entire genre is just "With swords and magic, let's save the castle and defeat the dragon!". I don't HATE it, but it's starting to get old. Earthbound parodies suburban America with a unique and obscure plot and original characters. The World Ends With You (buy the game) is set in modern Shibuya while the main characters are *SPOILERS* actually all dead and fighting for a second chance *END SPOILERS*. Another stereotype, don't make the healer and/or mage completely helpless. Ness, for example, is an amazing healer AND can definitely hold his own in battle. As a matter of fact, he learns the best offensive "spell" in the game. Paula can do great PSI damage and has helpful buffs. On the topic of useful characters... Balance the characters in the party. Earthbound, for example, has a balanced cast of characters. Paula had sub-par physical attack and defense, but could do huge damage with PSI. Or in Dragon Quest VIII. Yangus had good defense and offense, but pathetic MP and magic. Angelo had great healing powers and average offense and defense. Final Fantasy IV? Edward the Bard anyone? Useless! At least pre DS remake. More often than not, an RPG usually has a character that is clearly the one you really need and one character that has little to no use. Point is, make them ALL useful. Just sayin'. Fast paced and innovative battle system is a must. Chrono Trigger's battle system is truly classic. Paper Mario's is stellar (to say the least). The World Ends With You has undoubtedly one of (if not the) the best battle systems ever. Tales of Symphonia's played somewhat similar to the Smash Bros series. All of these made grinding fun and not a chore. Dragon Quest has yet to truly evolve. Fun games yes, but still turn-based? Square-Enix, take a page from Super Mario RPG and bring back timed-hits. But looks like they're making Final Fantasy XIII more fast paced than it's predecessors. Make overworld travel faster and easier. As much as I love Dragon Quest VIII, traveling on the overworld was a pain until much later in the game when you finally got the ability to transform into a ghost bird. Super Mario RPG however had an open world, yes, but you could travel from place to place by selecting where you want to go. Simple AND convenient! Twilight Princess at least gave you Epona right at the start. I know it's not an RPG, but I'm just saying having something like that might make overworld travel more enjoyable. Give us enjoyable minigames and sidequests. I know I'm not the only one who hated Blitzball. It's just weird that they forced you to play a turn based, underwater version of soccer after you watched an entire town get decimated by a demon whale. Tin Pin Slammer in World Ends With You was no better. Luckily you didn't HAVE to win in either of those games. I can't think of any RPG with fun minigames right off the top of my head. On sidequests, stop giving us fetch quests. Played the extra sidequests in the Chrono Trigger DS remake? Awful fetch quests. Consisting of "travel up the mountain, get the banana, come back here then take these tools to the carpenter at the top of the same giant mountain". Ugh... Balance the level of customization. Too Human had too much, Earthbound had too little. Dragon Quest VIII's skill point system was genius. Choosing which attribute to increase further when you level up in Super Mario RPG was brilliant. The World Ends With You also had just a shade too much. Try something like Final Fantasy VII's materia system. Golden Sun did that with Djinns, which gave you different Psynergy abilities, classes, and stats. Pokemon was all about customization (EVs, IVs, contests, TMs, and HMs) Being able to make a character "your" character would be great. So there are some things I think would make a truly amazing RPG. I probably missed some things, but there is always the option of continuity. Part 2? Hope you enjoyed my rambling.

In this generation of gaming, the most common game genre now seems to be first person shooters. For reference: Haze, Killzone 2, Perfect Dark Zero, Halo 3, Call of Duty 4, Far Cry 2, Left 4 Dead, etc. Platformers worth mentioning? Ratchet & Clank Future, Super Mario Galaxy (duh), LittleBigPlanet, and...not much else. So through logic, research, and the ability to distort truth via fanboyism, I have proven that Super Mario Galaxy is better than Halo 3. This whole post is intended to be a joke. So, try not to take it so seriously Xbots. As I've stated before, I don't hate Halo. I can appreciate what that franchise does, but Analog stick FPS games (except GoldenEye) have never appealed to me. I'm not biased, I just have different tastes. Onto my points. 1. Sales Numbers are irrelevant, FACT!: Okami sold thousands, Game Party sold millions. Metroid Prime 3 was outsold by Carnival Games. GTA Chinatown Wars sold not even 1 million. These examples prove my point. Tragically, just because a game is good, doesn't mean it's going to sell. Super Mario Galaxy sold 8 million, while Halo 3 sold 9.9 million. A game's sales can be boosted by hype, presumably. Remember how much hype surrounded Halo 3? Another factor for Halo 3's sales numbers might be Halo 2's ending, or the complete and total lack thereof. And besides, we all know to determine a game's quality is to go to Metacritic. FACT! Sort of. Side note: why haven't you bought The World Ends With You? Needs to sell more for a sequel. 2. Because Metacritic says so: Check Metacritic. Halo 3: 94. Galaxy: 97. 'Nuff said. I know some of you will resort to the defense of "they r teh BIAS!!!". 3. Expensive (kinda): Let's look at the requirements for full enjoyment for both games. Halo 3 requires Xbox Live subscription, fast internet connection, and you have to put up with the countless foul-mouthed racists on Xbox Live. Yeah, you can mute them, but it's the principle. Super Mario Galaxy? The game, console, controller, and no foul-mouthed racists. But, I'll admit that Halo 3 does have a higher level of replayability. 4. Charming = Bad?: I'm not complaining of "How come all the next-gen games are all brown, beige, and gray?". I'm simply saying that having a ridiculously family friendly platformer in a sea of bland colored, gritty games is a breath of fresh air. So therefore a completely E-Rated platformer with a "kiddie" setting is better than a flood of first (or third) person shooter games that put you in the shoes of YET ANOTHER gruff, scarred, and overly serious anti-hero (Marcus Fenix) or masked space super-soldier (Master Chief). 5. The one I have on my iPod: Super Mario Galaxy has a truly stellar (no pun intended) soundtrack. That can't be argued. Halo 3 has a customizable soundtrack. Being a hopeless video game music fanatic, I have listened to the Halo 3 soundtrack for the purpose of this post. Galaxy wins. Various critics agree with me. So there you have it. I have PROVEN in FACTS (kinda) why Super Mario Galaxy is clearly superior to Halo 3. Perhaps even the Halo franchise? Feel free to hit me with comments like "Halo is FREAKIN awesome it defintly doesnt suck teh wii sux". Never said I hated Halo, just prefer Mario Galaxy. Through facts, logic, fanboyism, and FACTS, I've proven I'm right. On a closing comment, this post is a joke. Xbots, just accept that Tatsunoko vs. Capcom is going to be a Wii exclusive. Yes, I brought up that game again.

One of the better stories to show up on N4G in recent memory was Zelda Informer's list "Top Ten Things Zelda Wii Should Have". I completely agree with (most of) the list. You should definitely check it out at http://www.zeldainformer.com/2009/07/top-ten-things-zelda-wii-should-have.php So with that being said, I've picked five things Zelda Wii should have, that Twilight Princess didn't. I'm not going to use any entries from Zelda Informer's list, of course. 1. Higher Difficulty Saying Twilight Princess was incredibly fun is an understatement. I was just a little disappointed that I could beat the entire game with only one game over screen on my first play-through. Said game over screen wasn't caused by a boss or group of enemies. It was caused by that stupid jousting minigame with King Bulblin. Second play-through, didn't die ONCE. As weird as this may seem, I feel like I need one game every year that poses little challenge by comparison. In '06: Twilight Princess, '07: Super Mario Galaxy, etc. Back to my original point, Zelda Wii should be as, if not more, difficult as Link to the Past. 2. System pushing graphics Twilight Princess had amazing art design, duh. From a technical perspective, it looked dated. Blurry textures, lo-res character models, etc. Ocarina of Time was a real technical showcase for the N64 back in the day. With one critic saying "The N64 is a 3D workhorse, and [Ocarina of Time] proves it". Twilight Princess on the other hand...Gamecube level graphics. I know "gameplay over graphics", but there's a limit. 3. 1:1 Motion Control You know...that thing Nintendo promised would be built into the Wiimote at E3 '06, or was it '05? WiiMotion Plus please. 'nuff said. 4. Boss Rush The boss fights in Twilight Princess were very fun, if not a bit too easy for my tastes. Think of the replayability of going through the bosses as fast as possible, perhaps with adjustable difficulty? Smash Bros. Brawl had one, why not Zelda Wii? Admittedly, a couple of bosses in Twilight Princess were more irksome than entertaining. 5. Berserk Chickens Bizarre choice? Yes. Logical? Of course. If you hit a chicken in Twilight Princess enough times, you could take control over it. That was fun, sort of, maybe... But, what about having a huge group of chickens chase after you, trying to peck you to death like in Ocarina of Time (among other Zelda games)?. Wind Waker made up for that by replacing the chickens with pigs. Running from them was better than controlling them. Well, that was my list. And chances are, you don't agree with it, that much. And on a closing note, I'm talking about Tatsunoko vs. Capcom...again. In a recent interview regarding whether or not the game would see a multiplatform release, producer Ryota Niitsuma said "Currently, no, but we would like to see the reaction of the western market when we release the game on Wii. The other problem is the game is optimized for the Wii system, especially the graphics features, so if we were to port it to PS3 or Xbox 360 we would have to make the game from scratch, and in that case we might as well just make a sequel of the series on those consoles rather than porting it." There you have it Xbots, TvsC will be a Wii exclusive always, forever.

The Conduit...is scoring all right. Not universal acclaim, nor undoubtedly bad, the Conduit is averaging 76 out of 100. This is further proof that if a game sets itself up to be THE game of the season, it ends up with a lower score than most would've hoped. The scores range from an 8.6 from IGN to a C+ (58 out of 100) from 1up. Ever since the game's reveal at E3 '08, it had been hyped up as "the hardcore you've been waiting for". Winning several E3 awards, such as "Best Wii Game", Wii owners had been looking forward to it for almost a year. High Voltage Software (the game's developer), also hyped it up to where it was almost marketed as the best 3rd party Wii-exclusive...ever. However, we all know Tatsunoko vs. Capcom will be the best. Having recently rented The Conduit, I agree with most of the reviews. Generic, disappointing, bad story, bad art design, great controls, and looks fantastic (for a Wii game). I realize that a story isn't relevant to the core experience of an FPS. For example, the "Finish the Fight!" commercials for Halo 3 were well done, but it made me realize that I couldn't care less about Halo's story, it's lore, etc. To be honest, analog stick FPS games have never appealed to me (except for Goldeneye), and no, the Metroid Prime games are first person adventure games, Nintendo said so. As far as I'm concerned, if you're gonna play an FPS, you have to play it with a mouse and keyboard. Don't get me wrong, I can appreciate and applaud what Halo does. Insanely popular multiplayer, sharp controls, open environments, but I'm not going make this post sound like an extended version of "ya halo sux big time all it is are fake people with guns with airplanes" *. Remember, Call of Duty 4 is REAL people with guns with airplanes. Back to The Conduit, I do see the game as setting a standard for future first person shooters on the Wii and, hopefully, inspiring third party developers to put some effort into their Wii titles. Several Wii games were hyped up like the Conduit, but ended up as mediocre on Metacritic. For example: Overlord Dark Legend, Dead Rising Wii, Tenchu Shadow Assassins, Deadly Creatures, Mushroom Men, etc. Competent (though not universally acclaimed) third party games have started appearing. For example: House of the Dead, Madworld, Boom Blox Bash Party, etc. Speaking of struggling 3rd party games on Nintendo consoles...why haven't you bought The World Ends With You? Only 430,000 copies worldwide. It's gotta sell more if we're ever gonna see a sequel. Maybe, we could see more 3D platformers and RPGs on the Wii... *Forum quote can be found at http://lounge.moviecodec.com/topics/9216p1.html

What!? I still don't own an Xbox 360? You can thank Persona 4 for that. Here's my next of many Tatsunoko vs. Capcom blog entries. I did a little research and, as it turns out, the reason the Japanese version didn't do so well, was because that version was kind of...mediocre (by comparison). Before you start sending me hate mail, what I meant was the JP version of the game had no online, a fair amount of glitches/exploits, and an absurdly simple gameplay engine (even for a Vs. game). Luckily, those kind souls at Capcom are fixing those problems to make the US Port the "definitive" version. So, like many, I thought it would sell equally bad here, thus leading to a PS3 and/or 360 port. I know I'm beating a dead horse, but it's true. Several people still fervently argue "This is gonna bomb 'cause the Wii is only for casual gamers!". I have a REALLY strong feeling it's gonna do great. Two reasons: First, it's greatly anticipated. Secondly, virtually every flashy/cool move is very easy to pull off (Super moves being fireball motion and any two buttons). And since it only uses four buttons (light, medium, fierce, and assist) it makes it more accessible for newcomers to the genre. For those of you wondering whether this qualifies a Wii purchase: you can have Viewtiful Joe and Ryu fight a giant, gold-colored, transforming robot...'nuff said.

I know I'm definitely not the only one excited for Tatsunoko vs. Capcom. But, in the comments of virtually every preview of the game (not just on this site), you'll find quotes like "ZOMG! why no release 4 the ps3!!! teh wii suxorz BIG time!". Not in those exact words mind you, but still the same mentality. Tatsunoko vs Capcom seems to be the first 3rd Party Wii exclusive that has PS3 owners whining that it's not coming out on their console. It's definitely not (sarcasm) greedy to demand EVERY good game to come out on the PS3 and 360. You already have Marvel vs. Capcom 2 and Street Fighter IV, let Wii owners have this one thing. I know Capcom said its only coming out on the Wii, but does that really mean anything? Remember when they said Resident Evil 4 was going to be a Gamecube exclusive? Not even 1 year after it's Gamecube release, it was ported to the PS2. This may just be history repeating itself. After all this is Capcom, known to port virtually EVERYTHING (Dead Rising cell phone port?), so I'm sure they'll listen to PS3 owners and port it to their console with more features. Capcom seems to be one of the few publishers that listens to what their community has to say, so I'm sure they'll eventually figure they should port it to the 360 and/or PS3. For a quick lesson in humility, need I remind you that the Wii (underpowered and gimmicky) is beating out the PS3 AND 360, respectively, (with their hi-def graphics and superior online)? Quick history lesson! Did you know that Nintendo actually helped create the arcade machines for the game? But don't worry PS3 fanboys, I'm sure you'll get a version sooner or later. I've also noticed some people complaining about the new characters... Is new really that bad? Street Fighter III introduced a bunch of brand-new characters and look what happened. It's been called the best fighting game ever. If, for some reason, someone at Capcom is reading this, please...pretty please? Keep it a Wii exclusive (though its, unfortunately, unlikely).