A face only a mother could love -
July 7, 2001 - Nich Maragos
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed
within this column are those of the participants and the
moderator, and do not necessarily reflect those of the
GIA. There is coarse language and potentially offensive
material afoot. This disclaimer goes double for yesterday's opinion that Stone Temple Pilots are a quality band.
Don't say we didn't warn you.
This is the worst column I will ever write. Frankly, you're better off skipping past the four printable letters and their two-sentence replies so you can get to writing on tomorrow's topic in the closing comments.
| Variation = Good |
| Nich,
Two summers ago I went to visit my friend in Colorado (I'm from Brooklyn). We
spent a lot of time playing Playstation, and one of the games she had for
some reason was that horrid, horrid Spawn game. Spawn: The Eternal or
something like that. The graphics were horrible, the controls were awkward,
and the story was not true to the comics...but I played it anyway. Then
again, you could rip off your opponents' arm and beat them with it, when it
came time to fight. That was the only saving grace, and even then it was
amusing for about three times. After that, the game was just crap.
-Jon
|
If the ability to rip off an arm and use it as a club was actually a saving grace, I shudder indeed to think of what the rest of the game must have been like. Personally, I don't need that kind of thing in my games--if you guessed I'm less than thrilled about the upcoming State of Emergency, you'd be right on that score.
| An ever-branching tree. |
| Wow, so I'm not the only Granstream Saga fan in the world. Now, if only there
were people that liked my other favorite "bad games" as well... 7th Saga,
Karnov, Jaws for NES, you'll always hold a special place in my heart.
-BlueGuinea
|
I know at least two other people in the world who like 7th Saga, although I don't know what either of them are thinking. As for those other two, I'm afraid you're on your own.
| An ever-branching tree. |
| Most of the games I enjoy but can't defend hail from the 8- & 16-bit eras,
but the two most recent examples are Legend of Legaia and Legend of Mana.
I loved Legaia in spite of its ho-hum story and asinine magic system because
the battle system is, to this day, probably the most fun battle system ever
made. Moreover, I all but live for boss battles, so Legaia's super-tough ones
filled me with joy. Suffice it to say that I'm looking forward to Legaia 2
more than Xenosaga.
Mana won me over because it came at exactly the right time - after I had
finally beaten Vagrant Story and was about to snap the rotter in half.
Everyone seems to lambaste the game (Mana) for not being the same, somewhat
vapid game its predecessors were, but I saw it as a fantasy Streets of Rage,
and it was the best antacid I ever played.
On the flip side, has anyone else stuck with a popular game they despised
simply because the tide of public opinion convinced them they just 'didn't
get it'? I've lost hours of my life trying to convince myself I didn't waste
my money on Vagrant Story, Skies of Arcadia, and Majora's Mask, but to no
avail. And there's no point in telling me my tastes suck either, because it
won't change a thing.
-SonicPanda
|
I hear you when it comes to Vagrant Story. I'll be making my third try through the game when Final Fantasy Tactics comes out, and I'll play them both until I like them. (In my defense, I only had a few weeks with Tactics before it was stolen from me, and I never quite came to grips with its systems since I'm not a big strat-RPG fan.) All my friends tell me it's worth playing, and I trust their opinions in everything else, so I don't think they're putting me on here. Still, it can be difficult.
| Dreamcast in a coma |
| Nich.
I know it's not free topic day, but I really really need some help here.
My Dreamcast keeps reseting on me all by itself, with increasing frequency.
I think it's dying.
Don't let my Dreamcast die. Please.
-Daniel
|
I hate to break it to you, but it's probably already too late. I know a few other people who have had at least one Dreamcast die on them, and I've lost two myself. About all you can do is hope the warranty's still good, or get a new system.
Closing Comments:
Last week we talked about character names, and this week I want to know your thoughts on game names. What makes a good title? Do you prefer wacky stuff like Asuka 120% Burning Fest Final, mysterious names like Vagrant Story, or just a good, descriptive title such as The Bouncer? Ever wanted to know more (or less) about a game based just on its title?
-Nich Maragos, the healing friend
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