I don't like how everyone starts celebrating christmas way over a month in advance...some even right after halloween? christmas is only one day a year...I love it and all...but last year I was tired of hearing christmas songs even before it was december! I think people should atleast wait until december to start getting all hyped up for this stuff...what happened to thanksgiving? doesn't anyone have ANYTHING at all to be thankful for besides getting a free feast that most of you probably don't help to cook or clean up?:cry:

Do games really have to have "good graphics" for it to be considered good these days? maybe I don't care about graphics because they were not everything when I first started gaming...but kids these days look back at older games and and really scorn them... "wow, you used to play THAT?" even my friends won't touch final fantasy VI because it looks "too old"...I try to tell them that it's the best final fantasy out there but they won't even give it a chance... yes, it is cool when games look close to reality, but do they have to in order to be good? if you want entertainment that looks real, why not watch a movie?

I understand that games are evolving and i guess developers are going to continue to strive for that game that you wouldn't be able to tell the difference from a movie or real life...but if graphics are all the hype these days, what's going to happen to gameplay? plenty of people I've spoken to agree: games just aren't as good as they used to be...

In final fantasy x, which I still have not completed, I'm at the part of the game where you are free to do all the sidequests...I got to this point before and ended up restarting because I got stuck at that sin battle where you only have a certain number of turns to kill it before you get automatic gameover...not wanting to repeat that awful time, I was determined to get my characters really really strong this time before moving on to that battle...so that I could defeat it with no problem...but in order to level up really fast, I need to first kill this monster that drops these certain weapons, so I try to fight it, and I find out it not only has more than twice the amount of hp the previous boss I defeated has, but this thing kills me in one hit... ;_; I really want to just set the controller down and give up...I feel really hopeless in these situtations...

bosses are my weakness in rpgs, they are always the thing I struggle with the most...and I don't run from battles either...sometimes I even try to gain a few extra levels here and there...but I'm always dreading the next boss fight... maybe leveling up isn't the answer here though...

there's no way I could stand for leveling up for days on end though...how do you people who do that not get bored anyways? I applaud the people who go for a 100% game though...all characters max leveled, all ultimate weapons acquired, optional bosses defeated, etc...it sounds like it'd be a lot of fun to do...something that would really make you feel proud...I just don't seem to have the skills to do that kind of stuff. maybe someday though!

I don't know what it is about the Harvest Moon series that is so addicting...it's funny really...because if someone asks what is so great about it, there's not much you can tell them that would really draw them into it all. "you water plants, brush cows, collect wild plants, and talk to villagers...yep and you do all those things every day."

the first time I played a harvest moon game was years and years ago, it was when you could buy harvest moon gameboy color in stores still. I was addicted immediately, I played for hours, even though I didn't really know what I was doing.

now I am playing harvest moon sunshine islands for the ds and really loving it. I don't think it's quite as good as harvest moon 64 yet, but it's certainly one of the better ones that I've experienced in the series thus far.

I think anyone who gives this game a try would really be suprised at just how good it is. there must be a reason that it's survived all they way up through the snes days, right? it's because people really do have a fun time with it.

I keep thinking of the past lately...

I grew up playing the super nintendo and I realized that i miss games like those...rpgs actually had good stories, games were challenging, and the simplicity of it all just had a certain charm to it! why can't games like donkey kong country or super mario world come back? or what about earthbound or pocky and rocky. just because the systems get more advanced, does it mean that people actually WANT more advanced looking games? do people have to have super good graphics and orchestras conducting the soundtracks? in my opinion, the music was GREAT for those games.

In the case of RPGs, there was actually such a thing as dungeon exploration and weapon shops had the happy sword sign hanging over the door, and magic shops had the staff. Rpgs required you to venture across a world map and look for the next town or dungeon and bosses used to actually kill you no matter how well you prepared. and we loved every minute of it. the stories kept us entraced to the point where it wasn't uncommon to hear people saying that they had a sitting once where they played for 8 hours straight. and for people who feel the soundtracks were never good and think super nintendo games sound old and outdated, I want to point you in the direction of final fantasy III and chrono trigger, and zelda: a link to the past

Then there were fun games like mystical ninja and rocky and pocky. I'm not sure what category they go under, but goodness those kind of games were just plain fun! two player games like that, that is what i want again! walk around killing things, exploring places...I tried playing those games again recently and they are HARD. makes me wonder how I managed it back when I was 7

And we cannot forget mario games! I know they originated on the nintendo, but my first experience with them were the super nintendo and I loved every minute of it! Even my father would play occasionally...

to sum all this rambling up...I just wish that the people at the game companies would get drunk one night, hit their heads, and wake up thinking it's 15 years in the past and continue producing the kind of games that I hope I'm not the only one who still loves. I think even gamers of today, with all of the fancy technologies and systems could sit down with an old game and truly enjoy it just like those games used to be enjoyed...

my favorite super nintendo memories:

-wandering around the millenial fair and wandering around talking to people not having a clue of what I was doing (age:6)

-getting in fights with my brother over who got to be rocky on the pocky and rocky game

-discovering for the first time the power of a kuku (chicken) in zelda:link to the past...do not hit them with yer sword >.>;

-summer days of sitting home and playing donkey kong country, and laughing out loud at the introduction

-playing rocky rodent and actually getting scared during the 3rd level

-laughing at my father when I managed to finish a level he couldn't

I just have to write about this guy! He is one of the best villans I have ever encountered not just in any game, but in any story at all. The award goes to Albert Simon from the Shadow Hearts rpg on playstation 2. He fufills every role a villan is supposed to. He plays his part well. He kidnaps the girl atleast once, he gets involved in dark magic, he kills people, tortures people, and he tries to bring an end to the world as we know it. The game really goes in depth with this guy and I like that a lot. Most games they just throw the villan out there and he just kinda runs around killing people and taking over the world for no apparant reason. But Albert Simon, you learn about how he actually was a normal guy at first, and slowly he changed. It gives you a better understanding of him.

The things that won me over with him though is just his whole mannerism! He's so...high class! The guy wears a suit and top hat, so he gets points for style right there! But there are times in the game where you encounter him, and wow you actually don't fight him! He actually admits that he's not there to fight during that time and he was only there to have a chat. He's not some mindless fiend, but he's not weak either. A villian must have power! they cannot be defeated all the time, they aren't much of a threat if that's the case. But Albert wins in this area as well because he does defeat you all a few times. Not only that, but he summons a God to destroy the earth. In the end, the last fight against him, he and the hero of the game make an agreement that whoever wins the fight is the true victor and there shall be no hard feelings. Of course you must defeat him to move on in the story, but he even helps you using that last ounce of strength he has.

He causes mayhem and destruction, kills people, tortures innocents, summons a god, yet when he's defeated, he values his word and steps down. He doesn't go into an uncontrollable rage, he doesn't end up lying, he stays true to his agreement and for that, I give Albert Simon the award of being the best villan in all video games. A lot of people are thinking...but aren't villans supposed to lie and be deceitful and make you love to hate them? Yes that can be true, but I liked Albert because he was different from most villians, he stood out from the rest in this way. You hated him with such a passion and maybe even feared him throughout some points of the game. But right before the final battle he admits defeat and that's when I'm able to look back and know that he played his part and he's not going to overdo it.