By Guest Writer Zach Miller
Back to the story at hand, though. Oddly, Andrew was the first among us to secure a Super Nintendo Entertainment System. We all stared in utter disbelief at Super Mario World. When that gigantic Bullet Bill flew past our heads in the very first stage, our vision of gaming was changed forever. The graphics, sound, and gameplay were simply incredible. Over the next year, we would beat that game. Soon, like Super Mario Bros. before it, SMW became more of an art, and we quickly figured out shortcuts and faster ways of beating the game. The Gingras boys had Super Mario Kart, which ate up all our time when at their house.
11.29.2005
Status report... ALSO PRIZES!
Well, with Hubbs working late and my other writing obligations, new content from either of us will be pretty scarce this week. However, with Zach sending in new chapters to his feature, you'll hardly notice. Within the next couple weeks we should be coming up with some great stuff, too, possibly even a new interview for you guys to gobble up. Besides that, I should have a new article up as well.
While I'm here, I should let you guys in on the contest that my guys at GameXC are running. Check it out here.
That'll be all for now. Later, guys.
While I'm here, I should let you guys in on the contest that my guys at GameXC are running. Check it out here.
That'll be all for now. Later, guys.
11.26.2005
Hubbs is out of the bulding.
My boss at work dislocated his shoulder and will be out for a week. So I am picking up the slack and will be working the whole week for a grand total of 43 hours. Because of this I won't be able to have any time to come up with any good articles for you. However because of our guest poster Zach, whose article is over 14 pages long, we will be posting that throughtout next week. I'll see you guys later.
Sincerely,
Robert Hubbs
PS. This may be a few days late but you might enjoy this.
Jack Thompson has his license revoked
Sincerely,
Robert Hubbs
PS. This may be a few days late but you might enjoy this.
Jack Thompson has his license revoked
11.25.2005
Life As A Gamer: Part 3
By Guest Writer Zach Miller
The games, on both the NES and Game Boy fronts, began steadily flowing. I remember buying Battletoads based mainly on the argument that “all the other kids have it.” That argument has never worked since, nor would I even let myself use it today. The Rare game turned out to be one of my favorites on the NES though, even if I was only able to beat it by using the Game Genie to get past the frustrating “orb race” level. I also collected all the TMNT games released on the NES, my favorite being The Manhattan Project. I also got the NES version of Tournament Fighters (one of the great underrated 2D fighters) and whenever my little brother picked the same turtle as me, we’d pretend that his turtle was Slash, one of the characters who originated in the cartoon and later the Archie Adventure series. I got Kirby’s Adventure for Christmas one year and it consumed my life for several months. The first NES game I got for a present, actually, was Batman, which again proved too difficult for my ten-year-old reflexes.
The games, on both the NES and Game Boy fronts, began steadily flowing. I remember buying Battletoads based mainly on the argument that “all the other kids have it.” That argument has never worked since, nor would I even let myself use it today. The Rare game turned out to be one of my favorites on the NES though, even if I was only able to beat it by using the Game Genie to get past the frustrating “orb race” level. I also collected all the TMNT games released on the NES, my favorite being The Manhattan Project. I also got the NES version of Tournament Fighters (one of the great underrated 2D fighters) and whenever my little brother picked the same turtle as me, we’d pretend that his turtle was Slash, one of the characters who originated in the cartoon and later the Archie Adventure series. I got Kirby’s Adventure for Christmas one year and it consumed my life for several months. The first NES game I got for a present, actually, was Batman, which again proved too difficult for my ten-year-old reflexes.
11.24.2005
Life As A Gamer: Part 2
By Guest Writer Zach Miller
It was late 1989 that heralded my first gaming system, although it wasn’t an NES. My 8th birthday resulted in a Game Boy and three games. The handheld came with Tetris, but my parents got me Super Mario Land and my grandma got me The Castlevania Adventure. Of course the Gingras boys also had their own Game Boys, but I don’t remember if Andrew ever had one. My mother became hooked on Tetris, which is ironic considering that today she doesn’t give games a second look. Back when I was eight years young, my coordination skills were such that playing any game that required quick thinking and quicker reflexes was near impossible. I trained on that Game Boy. Although it weighed as much as a small toaster oven, I loved playing it. Super Mario Land provided significant training opportunities: I became quite good at it, and even found a ton of secrets that I was convinced nobody else had ever found before (invisible floors, floating platforms, etc.). World three, though, stumped me. I was simply unable to get past Dragon Zumasu, an enormous seahorse who spit fireballs and was guarded by a big bouncing eyeball (or something).
It was late 1989 that heralded my first gaming system, although it wasn’t an NES. My 8th birthday resulted in a Game Boy and three games. The handheld came with Tetris, but my parents got me Super Mario Land and my grandma got me The Castlevania Adventure. Of course the Gingras boys also had their own Game Boys, but I don’t remember if Andrew ever had one. My mother became hooked on Tetris, which is ironic considering that today she doesn’t give games a second look. Back when I was eight years young, my coordination skills were such that playing any game that required quick thinking and quicker reflexes was near impossible. I trained on that Game Boy. Although it weighed as much as a small toaster oven, I loved playing it. Super Mario Land provided significant training opportunities: I became quite good at it, and even found a ton of secrets that I was convinced nobody else had ever found before (invisible floors, floating platforms, etc.). World three, though, stumped me. I was simply unable to get past Dragon Zumasu, an enormous seahorse who spit fireballs and was guarded by a big bouncing eyeball (or something).
11.22.2005
The XBOX 360 launch
As of midnight Microsoft quitely released their super console, the XBOX 360, to the masses. But this launch doesn't was not as spectacular as Microsoft has herald it to be. Oh sure, the Xbox 360 has the most solid launch lineup of which is back by Rare, Activision and EA, but the event wasn't the grand party it was meant to be. There was no pre launch party unless you were in New York City or Seattle, but since when did a console ever deserved to be celebrated like it was birth of Christ?
I arrived at my local EB games at 11:30pm only to find that I was the first person to be there. No line has formed nor was there any kind of activity happening. Just some executives from EBgames headquaters and Philadelphia Eagles player Matt Ware( who also autographed your copy of Madden 2006 for the 360) were there to grab their 360's before a crowd of 9 people were allowed to come in and get theirs. By the way I do apologize for no footage or interviews since I wasn't allowed by order of the EB games DM.
Exciting.
Lack luster launch experience aside, its whats in the box that counted actually. Running home I immediately dove right in and plug my $400 system pachage into my dad's 42inch plasma and set up my account. The user interface is so dynamic and refreshing. I couldn't help but continue to explore it. I downloaded several demo games from the Xbox Live! Arcade and some trailers including a perticularly hilarious exclusive Red vs Blue episode.
After toying around with that I decided it was time I recovered my Xbox Live account. Now the process was extremely simplistic even a caveman could do it( okay so I've seen those commercials way too much). Managing your account is much easier than it was on the original black box and several new features just add icing on the cake. My favorite freature is when the Xbox LIve alerts you that someone on your buddy list has just longed on. Of course this can be kind of irrating when you are watching a movie and suddenly several alerts pop up that several of your buddies are logged on.
Now the games. I bought myself Call Of Duty 2 and Madden 2006. Both of which are solid games. COD2 is probably the most action packed game I have ever played and probably the BEST World War 2 game I have ever played. The missions are tough even on normal difficulty and the multiplayer mayhem is extremely fun. Madden 2006 is the first Madden football game I have owned since Madden 96 on the Sega Genesis. Since then I have had the first two NFL Quaterback Club games (yes the first two games of the dead series were quite good) on the N64 and the reowned 2K Games NFL 2k series. I have of course played madden several times since '96 but I haven't owned it. Madden 2006 is fun, fast paced, challenging and difficult to master. The fact that I can't use Challenges like in the NFL 2k series is a big oversite though.
Anyway its late I've played quite of bit of my 360 today and I am still bitter that Dead or ALive 4 was pushed back to December 1st, but my two games will hold me over till then. Now it's late my throat is soar again and I need sleep. Good Night and enjoy Karl's recent post and the guest post from Zach Miller.
I arrived at my local EB games at 11:30pm only to find that I was the first person to be there. No line has formed nor was there any kind of activity happening. Just some executives from EBgames headquaters and Philadelphia Eagles player Matt Ware( who also autographed your copy of Madden 2006 for the 360) were there to grab their 360's before a crowd of 9 people were allowed to come in and get theirs. By the way I do apologize for no footage or interviews since I wasn't allowed by order of the EB games DM.
Exciting.
Lack luster launch experience aside, its whats in the box that counted actually. Running home I immediately dove right in and plug my $400 system pachage into my dad's 42inch plasma and set up my account. The user interface is so dynamic and refreshing. I couldn't help but continue to explore it. I downloaded several demo games from the Xbox Live! Arcade and some trailers including a perticularly hilarious exclusive Red vs Blue episode.
After toying around with that I decided it was time I recovered my Xbox Live account. Now the process was extremely simplistic even a caveman could do it( okay so I've seen those commercials way too much). Managing your account is much easier than it was on the original black box and several new features just add icing on the cake. My favorite freature is when the Xbox LIve alerts you that someone on your buddy list has just longed on. Of course this can be kind of irrating when you are watching a movie and suddenly several alerts pop up that several of your buddies are logged on.
Now the games. I bought myself Call Of Duty 2 and Madden 2006. Both of which are solid games. COD2 is probably the most action packed game I have ever played and probably the BEST World War 2 game I have ever played. The missions are tough even on normal difficulty and the multiplayer mayhem is extremely fun. Madden 2006 is the first Madden football game I have owned since Madden 96 on the Sega Genesis. Since then I have had the first two NFL Quaterback Club games (yes the first two games of the dead series were quite good) on the N64 and the reowned 2K Games NFL 2k series. I have of course played madden several times since '96 but I haven't owned it. Madden 2006 is fun, fast paced, challenging and difficult to master. The fact that I can't use Challenges like in the NFL 2k series is a big oversite though.
Anyway its late I've played quite of bit of my 360 today and I am still bitter that Dead or ALive 4 was pushed back to December 1st, but my two games will hold me over till then. Now it's late my throat is soar again and I need sleep. Good Night and enjoy Karl's recent post and the guest post from Zach Miller.
And Now For Something Completely Different
Zachary Miller, who you might know as one of the excellent staffers at GameXC.com, is a good buddy of mine and a majorly talented individual. With a bit of pleading, I managed to get him to contribute a string of articles to this little shindig of Robert's and mine. This is the first chapter is Zach's saga of growing up as a gamer, entitled GamerLife. Before we get started, though, I'd like to remind you to check back throughout the day, as Robert will no doubt be gracing us with some cool Xbox 360 stories. Now, let's get this show on the road!
My Life as a Gamer
From Frogger to Fatal Frame 3 and beyond
11.21.2005
Polygonal Pioneers
Polygonal Pioneers: Viewt’s Five Favorite Game Industry Figures
5. Yasunori Mitsuda:
As a child, Yasunori Mitsuda was an avid athlete and an admirer of his older sister’s piano. As he got older, though, his mere fascination with music turned obsessive, and he soon decided that he wanted to create music that would accompany movies and video games. After doing some work with Enix, he got a job with Square Soft, working with prolific composer Nobuo Uematsu on the Final Fantasy franchise. It was during this time that he created the infamous “Dragon’s Cry” sound effect.
One day, so fed up that he had yet to be given anything challenging, he went to Hironobu Sakaguchi and said that if he wasn’t going to be given any important roles, he was going to leave the company. Almost instantly, Sakaguchi said, “Okay, you’re going to do Chrono Trigger.” And so, one of the greatest game soundtracks was created; Mitsuda borrowed from Irish folk music and created fantastic themes brilliant in their melodic simplicity. He would later perfect the style when Chrono Cross was released, most notably with what I believe to be one of the best theme songs a video game has ever had.
5. Yasunori Mitsuda:
As a child, Yasunori Mitsuda was an avid athlete and an admirer of his older sister’s piano. As he got older, though, his mere fascination with music turned obsessive, and he soon decided that he wanted to create music that would accompany movies and video games. After doing some work with Enix, he got a job with Square Soft, working with prolific composer Nobuo Uematsu on the Final Fantasy franchise. It was during this time that he created the infamous “Dragon’s Cry” sound effect.
One day, so fed up that he had yet to be given anything challenging, he went to Hironobu Sakaguchi and said that if he wasn’t going to be given any important roles, he was going to leave the company. Almost instantly, Sakaguchi said, “Okay, you’re going to do Chrono Trigger.” And so, one of the greatest game soundtracks was created; Mitsuda borrowed from Irish folk music and created fantastic themes brilliant in their melodic simplicity. He would later perfect the style when Chrono Cross was released, most notably with what I believe to be one of the best theme songs a video game has ever had.
Xbox 360 launch T-minus 12 hours + and counting...
Thats right peope, its almost here. I will be at the XBOX 360 midnight launch at my local EB Games. And While I am there I will get some footage of the event with my trusty digicam and ask a few questions from several of the people who are picking their up. You will get to see this footage and more on the 360 tomarrow after I played around with it. Until then, PEACE.
11.10.2005
The Incredibles: Rise Of The Underminer Interview
Yep it took me a the entire month of October but its finally happened. Here is the interview about The Incredibles: ROTU that was produced by Heavy Iron Studios. The Increldibles: ROTU is out now for all 3 major consoles, GBA, Nintendo DS, PC and Mac.
1.) Is the game a direct sequel to the movie or does it take a different approach to where we were left off at the end of the movie?
The Incredbiles: Rise of the Underminer is the video game follow up to the Academy Award-winning film from last year, and it enables players to find out what happens to The Incredbiles after the Underminer shows up.
2.) What direction did you want to take this game after the release of the first Incredibles game?
1.) Is the game a direct sequel to the movie or does it take a different approach to where we were left off at the end of the movie?
The Incredbiles: Rise of the Underminer is the video game follow up to the Academy Award-winning film from last year, and it enables players to find out what happens to The Incredbiles after the Underminer shows up.
2.) What direction did you want to take this game after the release of the first Incredibles game?
11.06.2005
Lost Gems part 1: Turok 1 and 2.
The "Lost Gems" articles are a new feature at Gaming Vision to inform you about the great games, hardware, and/or software of the past that you might've missed out on. Today's "Lost Gems" is about Turok 1 and 2 for the pc.
Turok: Dinosaur Hunter/ Turok 2: Seeds of Evil for the PC.
Among the actual good games that Acclaim put out was the first two games in the now defunct Turok series. Both games debuted on the Nintendo 64 which not only showed off the systems amazing graphical powers, but was backed with a unique control setup, a bunch of insane weaponary, intense fast paced action, and offered a great experience not to be missed. Critics raved about the game and honored with it all kinds of awards from publications and websites.
The game that started it all for the Nintendo 64.
A couple of years later, the highly proclaimed sequel, Turok 2: seeds of evil, was released and expanded upon the original. Turok 2 was more action packed than the original and included more weapons, better and sharper graphics( which looked even better when you installed teh Nintedo 64 ram pack), and had a more focused plot. New to the game was the all new split screen multiplayer that included a ton of varied modes including the never-been-copied "monkey tag." Like it's predecessor, Turok 2 was glorified by many people in the industry and also won game of the year from several publications.
Turok: Dinosaur Hunter/ Turok 2: Seeds of Evil for the PC.
Among the actual good games that Acclaim put out was the first two games in the now defunct Turok series. Both games debuted on the Nintendo 64 which not only showed off the systems amazing graphical powers, but was backed with a unique control setup, a bunch of insane weaponary, intense fast paced action, and offered a great experience not to be missed. Critics raved about the game and honored with it all kinds of awards from publications and websites.
The game that started it all for the Nintendo 64.
A couple of years later, the highly proclaimed sequel, Turok 2: seeds of evil, was released and expanded upon the original. Turok 2 was more action packed than the original and included more weapons, better and sharper graphics( which looked even better when you installed teh Nintedo 64 ram pack), and had a more focused plot. New to the game was the all new split screen multiplayer that included a ton of varied modes including the never-been-copied "monkey tag." Like it's predecessor, Turok 2 was glorified by many people in the industry and also won game of the year from several publications.
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