#because home console vs handheld

[autistickaitovocaloid]

Guy who's only ever played DS original trilogy + DS/PSP clone wars plays LEGO star wars complete saga for the first time.

[arkus-rhapsode]

Why do so many people love the GameCube?

So in my opinion, the best time for gaming was the sixth generation. While it didn't have the console war narratives of the fourth and seventh gens, it was an era that I don't think we'll ever see again. You had four console platforms, one of which would die this gen in the Dreamcast and another being a new hat thrown in the ring with Xbox. You had a roughly equal technological strength across each platform with some exceptions here and there. And finally you had a plethora first party games that many people still talk about to this day.

But despite all that, this gen is mostly marked by being the groundwork of what would come next. With Xbox pioneering online play and expanding it with the 360, the Playstation 2's success leading to botched launch and eventual recovery of the Playstation 3, and Nintendo choosing to no longer compete in terms of power and instead focusing on experiences you could get with their hardware with the Wii. And speaking of Nintendo, that leads me to something I've been thinking about for the past few days. Despite it being the lowest selling Nintendo console pre the Wii U and there being some jawdroppingly amazing games on the switch, there's still a reverence people have for the purple lunchbox. And even a bit of a desire to return to it.

So I ask myself why?

Well the short and most easy answer is quite simple: the kids who grew up playing games on the gamecube and have their tastes shaped by those games are now the ones participating in games media discussion through things like YouTube and IGN. As opposed to the people who grew up with the SNES who were mostly contributing to games discourse at the time. So naturally those influenced by the gamecube then are going to hold a reverence for it now and platform it as that.

But I didn't really think that covered everything. It felt a bit too easy of an answer. And I personally believe that the hand wave nature of "its nostalgia" doesn't really answer anything. Now I want the preface this, I am not a gaming historian. I am not here to impart some grand social analysis on what the gaming landscape of 2004 was like. This is more me as an individual looking into what I think of the generation that I was apart of (yes my first REAL home consoles were the Xbox and GameCube) and how its still so relevant in our current era.

After racking my brain about this for the last few days I think I've come to somewhat of an answer.

The most important thing is the games themselves. Which I think can be broken down into three core aspects.

First, there's something to be said with how these first and second party Nintendo games related to the ones being released on the GBA. Because the GBA is a whole different beast, but to summarize during that type you can see a somewhat clear distinction between the games that were coming out on the GBA by Nintendo vs the games that were coming out on the GameCube by Nintendo. If you were interested in a more traditional Mario (Super Mario Bros Advanced) or Kirby (Nightmare in Dreamland) or Metroid (Metroid Fusion) or Zelda (Oracle of Ages and Seasons) you could find all of those on a GBA. Meanwhile on the GameCube, you got something like Mario Sunshine, the second ever 3D Mario game that took Mario out of the mushroom kingdom and strapped a brand new water contraption to his back. Kirby was doing a driving game mixed with combat In Kirby's Air Ride. Metroid Prime reinvented the way Metroid could be played with an emphasis on exploring and uncovering secrets in a first person POV. And Zelda gave us another 3D Zelda after Ocarina of Time which has an art style that was brand new for the series and involved this massive sea to go out an explore.

You also had spin offs like Pokemon Colosseum, probably the first pokemon game on console with an in-depth story that is basically nothing like what we had on the handheld mainline titles. Pokemon always felt like this "place that could really exist in the real world but with fantastical creatures." Meanwhile Colosseum is JRPG AF. You're first location is a diner made out of an abandoned training the desert then you proceed to a pristine oasis city while you're dressed like a cyberpunk protagonist. Like yeah sure Orre Region is supposed to be based on Arizona, but I sure don't remember it ever looking like this the last time I visited. Then, there was something like Battalion Wars, which took the turn based strategy and sorta anime sorta western cartoony Advanced Wars and instead made an almost G.I. Joe-esque real-time strategy and third person shooter game. Some the GBA could definitely not handle. What about Double Dash? Mario Kart has basically never returned to the "two person, one kart" formula.

I know it probably sounds pretty mundane now that we live in a world with like the switch and sequels to these games, but you have to remember that at the time there really wasn't anything like it. Its probably why things like Wind Waker and Sunshine cause a bit of a love it or hate it divide. They were both a departure and yet so unique. In fact, with the switch now, we don't really get that identity distinction of handheld title vs console title anymore.

As much as the Switch is an absolute juggernaut of a seller with some incredible games. I can't very much say there has been anything really released on it that seems overtly strange or non traditional. Like, we aren't using bongos to play a Donkey Kong game with none of the country games. Switch is practically one of the most orthodox systems there is in terms of the type of franchise entries we got with Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild. And please note, that doesn't mean I'm saying these are bad or boring games, they're amazing. Its just that they certainly are what you'd expect out of these types of titles with some innovations.

The second big thing worth noting is also the amount of games that got people introduced to a particular Nintendo franchise of on this system. GameCube is one of those consoles that practically every franchise of Nintendo's got a new entry on. Fire Emblem Path of Radiance was the first Fire Emblem on home console outside of Japan. Along with Custom Robo. Games from the N64 like Wave Rave and 1080 got sequels. And it was the beginning of franchises that are now Nintendo staples like Pikmin and Animal Crossing (Yes I know Animal crossing is technically originally an N64 game and the gamecube is an enhanced version of that). And of course the big one that was Smash Bros Melee. While Smash 64 was by no means unsuccessful, it really is Melee that people think of when they thing of smash. Some of the most iconic stages come from here, it has one of the best opening sequences, and it expanded the roster of fighters that for some (for better or worse) people perceive as Nintendo royalty. Even going as far to make characters like Marth and Roy recognizable despite their games never being brought over.

That's also not including things like Star Fox and F-Zero which had things like story modes with full cutscenes and, in the case of Star Fox, actually taking them out of their vehicle and introducing people to the world who may just not be into that sort of vehicle only gameplay. And characters like Luigi and Wario who basically icons in their own rights, were pushed into staring roles in their own 3D games. And while I know I've focused on first and second party Nintendo games the most in this post, I do want to acknowledge that the GameCube's history third party saw Sega titles on a Nintendo platform for the first time like Sonic and Crazy Taxi. Or Metal Gear which had made its new home on Playstation had their own original entry on gamecube.

Lots of Nintendo discourse these days can be boiled down to a few key points, but biggest one of them all in my opinion is how Nintendo does make a new entry of *insert game here*. Now there are of course multiple factors for this, and the Switch does indeed have entries of some more obscure Nintendo IP, they are still sorta drowned out by this absence of certain franchises many perceive as inseparable to the brand. With many of those going MIA around the gamecube in terms of home releases.

Finally there's number three, the GameCube just had bizarre and new IP that never got a sequel. Like as much as it sounds like I'm looking at the GameCube with rose tinted glasses, its worth remembering that this was a low point for Nintendo in terms of profitability. This pushed them to do things unconviental in the first place. Like investing in a western studio to make Metroid Prime, but it also got them to work with others to make new IP. Chibi Robo was developed by skip and had practically the same Miyamoto-like charm of Mario and Pikmin. Nintendo also published two M-Rated games that they'd own, Eternal Darkness and Geist. Something that we really don't and probably will ever see.

Sure Nintendo has exclusivity to Bayonetta, but that's still mostly a Platinum thing and isn't their IP. And each console has basically introduced a new staple franchise like Wii giving us Xenoblade and the Wii U giving us Splatoon. Not to sound like I am poopooing the switch or anything, but when I think of big brand new Nintendo IP's that were released on Switch, the ones that the most notable is Arms, Snipper Clips, and Astral Chain. I understand now Nintendo is willing to let its IP to second parties so we could get something like Cadence of Hyrule or Fire Emblem Warriors, but we really haven't seen much new Nintendo IP in the seven years its been alive as opposed to the gamecube's. Not helped by the fact there's a bunch of these single entry gamecube IP still stuck on that system.

Stepping away from the software, I wanted to talk about the hardware next. Like I said at the beginning, this generation every system was roughly equal in graphical power. And while gamecube had its limits especially in terms of being able to play DVDs and its proprietary discs, you were more likely than not going to get an equal performance out of most third party games. As opposed to now where I'm pretty sure your Switch would try and fry itself it tried to play something like Elden Ring. Now Im not saying graphics are everything, Nintendo has basically made their thing good games with limited hardware and often avoid the hyper detailed immersion of Sony and Microsoft, but there was a time where you could confidently expect something third party to come to Nintendo and expect it to run as well as the others. Now if something third party comes to a Nintendo system with a version for Xbox and Playstation, its practically a dice role to see if it turns out like another Mortal Kombat 1. At this point in time I almost exclusively own two consoles of any generation, a playstation or xbox to play third party games as well as their own first party offerings, and a Nintendo for their first parties and maybe the occasionally indie title. For the most part if you only had a GameCube as a kid you were only really missing out on the competitions first parties.

And look, I think people's obsession with graphics is kinda nuts. Afterwhile, it doesn't really matter if your horse has realistic testicle physics. But its no secret that Switch being underpowered has limited the potential is games can run at. And while Im not saying it needs to compete with a PS5 in terms of power, having seven years of a system that's only really as strong as a PS3, I can see why people are very much clamoring for an upgrade.

Also on a more minor side, but this is something hardware related I do think there is a bit of a uniqueness in the controller. While the D-pad was stiff and the c stick not really utilized, outside of the wii, this has one of the most unique layouts for the face buttons. with the l and R triggers having a satisfying squeeze. when you hold them down. While the Wii blended motion controls with the nunchuck, its worth noting that it was made with someone more casual in mind. Made to play games by people usually not into games. I think we struck gold with the joy cons as a concept, which can be individual controllers are just combined for a standard controller layout and having the IR pointer built in, with the switch, but it is hard to forget what a gamecube controller feels like compared to its contemporaries. This is one I definitely chalk up to nostalgia.

But yeah, that's kinda what I thought overall. While the Switch is a great system with some stellar games, its pretty hard to deny why the GameCube is so memorable. Everything on it feels different from any other point in Nintendo history. There wasn't even a really unifying mechanic of the wii and its motion controls. Every entry feels like something familiar but also a different. I don't think we'll ever have a moment where Nintendo reinvents a franchise like with Metroid Prime. I don't think we'll ever see Nintendo release a hard M rated game with Eternal Darkness. And we might not even see new entries for some series like custom robo or chibi robo period. Now handheld franchises are basically blended together with the home console, so you'll almost always see mainline pokemon on the TV screen rather than a pokemon game made expressly for handheld and one made expressly home console. I truly is an era that if you grew up with it and even if you didn't, you'll probably never see one like it again, and man what a time was it to be a gamer.

A/N: Hi guys, Arkus here, just wanted to say thanks for reading. I know I usually don't do broad video game or console talk on this blog, but its been an idea rattling around in my head for a while that I wanted to talk about it. While I don't personally consider myself a die hard gamer, know I have other interests outside of gaming, its certainly been something I've been thinking more about since 2022. And I'd be open to doing more essay-like posts like this, after all, I said GameCube was one half of my first real home console experience. I got plenty to say about the OG Xbox as well. So if you liked it please like and have a good day.

[mrluvian]

Console vs PC vs Handheld / Mobile

Everything has it's own market, preferences and style. Everything is actually depending on your lifestyle and needs. I will focus on what these devices suits for. Does not mean you gotta stick with one device forever. I'm myself a gamer, was a console player (PS1 , Xbox360) I play mainly on PC, sometimes on Laptop, if on away I'm playing on mobile phone for casual games. Considering handheld now.

Console:

Console can be put easily everywhere, close to Tv on your bed or at desk

Good if you're not that tech savvy

Easily replaceable with new gen comes

Requires medium bugdet to run modern games

PC

Very good if you have other activity besides gaming and work related with PC, such as content creator, writer, other work, or programmer

It's "harder" to keep up with new demand of new videogames because replacing one part of your PC needs careful consideration of other parts too. But if you upgrade it well, it can go a longggg way.

Good if you're staying mostly at one place (not as mobile)

PC needs careful consideration on where to place, as it's gonna stay there for a long time.

Requires higher budget to run advanced modern games

Laptop/Handheld/Mobile:

Very good if you're mostly mobile, like on the commute, car, train and on airplanes

Can be played anywhere, restroom break, on bed, on your porch, park, etc

Easily carried everywhere for laptop, very easy for handheld or mobile

Not as strong as console or PC

May not stay as long to be played due to battery limitation

Requires low to medium bugdget to run low-modern games, but for laptop you might want to spend more.

So it all basically depends on your purpose, mobility/flexibility, ease to use and budget. You don't have to always to stick to ONE only. At home, I use PC mainly for gaming and for video editing, sometimes work. Outside, I use my mobile device to play casual games, now considering buying handheld to play heavier games. At work, I use laptop for mobility and gaming too.

[emissary-of-the-moon]

Poll Notes

There might be some confusion as to why Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask were on separate polls based on if it was the og N64/any of its ports or if it was the 3DS remake, and Hyrule Warriors and Link's Awakening weren't even though they were all on handheld and home console.

OoT and MM vs OoT3D and MM3D are functionally different games as they were remakes and not remasters/upgrades, and both play very different compared to their original versions.

Now Hyrule Warriors I did consider splitting because of the og vs Legends vs Definitive, but chose against because Legends and Definitive essentially act as the same game just remastered ports.

Link's Awakening was a similar case because it was in a similar boat to OoT/MM vs OoT3D/MM3D, but Link's Awakening is still not as changed from the original as the two 3DS remakes were.

So yeah from here down please enjoy the notes I took well the poll was active! :D

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

6 days 20 hours remaining:

Four Swords Adventures and Hyrule Warriors both have gotten votes before ALTTP.

No votes for TLoZ, TAoL, ALTTP, HW: AOC, OoA, OoS, or Triforce Heroes as of yet.

Skyward Sword and Minish Cap are in the lead.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

6 days 11 hours remaining:

Spirit Tracks has taken the lead. Skyward Sword holds 1st.

Still no votes for TLoZ, TAoL, HW: AOC, OoA, OoS, or Triforce Heroes as of yet.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

6 days 1 hour remaining:

Wind Waker is in the lead by 0.8%, followed by Twilight Princess.

Spirit Tracks is still in the lead. Noticeable amount of reblogs happy about ST in general.

Still no votes for TLoZ, TAoL, HW: AOC, or Triforce Heroes.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

5 days 8 hours remaining:

Twilight Princess has overtaken Wind Waker and is now in the lead. Spirit Tracks holds strong.

Handheld poll is the more popular out of the two polls at 259 votes vs 176 votes on home console titles.

Still no votes for TLoZ or HW: AOC.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

3 days hour 1 remaining:

Polls have slowed down a lot, no change from previous.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Finally thoughts roughly one hour before the poll is done:

I'm very suprised BoTW or ToTK didn't end up contending for first.

I was actually a little shocked ALBW wasn't more voted for, its ok though Spirit Tracks definitely deserves it.

Maybe I'll try a round 2 in a few months to see if I can get more information, for now I'm content with the data I got and will be working on graphs soon.

[thedeliverygod]

I'm 90% sure it's nostalgia because it was a lot of people's first game

also I vastly disagree with people who say the gameplay is the best like what's so great about pressing triangle and then a cutscene does damage????

at least in KH3 you were in control of the special attacks (I get people got annoyed by the attractions but like it's kingdom hearts even if attractions wasn't there the other options are to spam elevated magic or special attacks--its just in the nature of the KH battle system to spam shit)

also to be controversial I'm gonna say a lot of people like it because there's a lot of Sora & Riku moments and shippers be out here wildin. I could argue that KH3D perhaps has the most moments for that ship but main home console games will always do better than handhelds

but by the same token I've noticed a large large number of people who shit on KH3 are cishet male "fans" so idk what that says about the story telling/characterization in KH3 vs KH2. but also generally over the years most cishet male "fans" of the series I have known prefer Riku over Sora and Riku wasn't given the spotlight as much as he has been in previous games in KH3.

I really don't understand the KHII people--I say as someone who was one of them for a little bit, right after KHII came out (in riding that hype train), but then sort of quickly realized that: no wait. I think I actually do still prefer the first one--and I probably never will.

Like, KHII's a good game (part of me wanted to say "fine, I guess"--as I see more flaws in it [and all of the series/everything] as I get older and time goes on--but I refrained), but why is there such a cult around this game in the series in particular and not the others?

I know a lot of it is because a lot of people say the gameplay in KHIIFM is the best in the series, and that's probably true. But even then.

Some people really love this game's story and whatnot the best (also, some of the characterizations). I really don't (except for the Roxas prologue), and don't see how you can, but to each their own.

I think a large part of it probably has to do with the fact that this was the majority of most of the fans' first game in the series... right?

[seokiloquy]

Game Cartridges - Kenma Kozume

Au: Regular/Gaming

Requested

Tags/Warnings:  GN! Reader, short and fluffy, Time Skip spoilers

Word Count: 2.1k+

"Lev, are you almost done?"

A deep raspy voice echoed into the gym, loud and authoritative, startling the volleyball players. Once all eyes turned your way, you laughed, letting your natural voice still the silent atmosphere. Your hand smacked the metal door as you hunched over, gasping for air between each series of laughs. 

Lev, who had just landed from a spike, opened his mouth in a loud cheer at the sight of your slumped form in the door. “(Y/N)!”

You straightened your spine, sighing as you watched Lev’s nose get caught on the mesh net as he tried to limbo under it. He looked like a pig for a moment, before the bottom of the net snapped and Lev ungracefully fell on his face.

“Ow.”

As he laid flatly on the gym floor, Kuroo —who you managed to identify based on Lev’s description (though you did expect a comical beak to be attached to his muzzle)— walked over, thumbs playing with the waistband of his shorts. Before he started to talk, you leaned over, looking behind him to see a partially blond boy dig the toe of his shoe into your tall friend’s side. Kozume Kenma.

The rooster in front of you started to speak. “You sure gave us all a shock. Thought you were a janitor coming to kick us out,” he chuckled, lifting a hand off his hip to scratch the back of his head.

“Ya sorry, Lev just finds that voice creepy so I use it every now and then to scare him.”

Kuroo sidestepped as his hand moved to gesture you inside. “So, you’re a voice actor?”

“That’s the plan at least.” You bowed and walked to the bench that was pressed against the wall, a small bag swinging over your shoulder. The old man, Nekomata, gave you a wrinkly grin as you sat next to him, watching your hands as you pulled out a DS from your small bag.

Kuroo smiled, snapping his head to the clock before looking over his teammates.“Nekomata, should we start cleaning up?”

The couch hummed thoughtfully, turning his attention away from you and onto the team captain. “We still have a half-hour before our practice is officially over. How about we do 3 vs 3, to, ah, 7 points?” He then turned his attention to Lev, who was rubbing his nose as he got to his feet. “Pair up evenly for the beginning, the odd player out will be keeping track of scores and rotate into the next team. Got it?”

Lev raised his hand. “Can you explain the rotation again?”

You looked up from your handheld console to give your friend a deadpan look. Nekomata laughed before answering, “The odd player will take out a player of the next team and so on to keep teams fresh. Got it?”

The Silver hair boy hummed, standing to his full height. “Got it.”

As players dispersed randomly, not selecting any teammates, in particular, to play with, you were vaguely aware of the new bodies that came to sit alongside you on the bench. Instead of looking up to whichever boy had chosen to take the spot next to you, you kept your head down as you played on your DS.

“Ah.” Quiet

“Um.” Again.

Sighing you turned your head on a swivel to the blond boy who sat next to you. His head was downcast but through the dyed strands, you could see his eyes flicker from his fidgeting fingers to the device in your hands. His eyes shot up to meet yours before quickly turning away.

You wore a kind smirk. “Need something?”

Kozume turned his head slowly, pointing to your small bag that was laid open, exposing the variety of games you owned. In a calm voice, “You have lots of games, why are you playing Nintendogs?”

You laughed looking back down at your small virtual pet. “Well, a lot of those I haven’t started yet, Lev gave them to me yesterday as a gift. And well, I’m only going to be waiting for about 30 minutes for you guys to finish before we leave, so I don’t really want to start something new.”

You heard the clicking of the plastic game cartridges as Kozume riffled through them. He pulled out one, a Pokemon game you had yet to touch. “Play this.”

“But my dogs.” 

“They aren’t real. Play this, it’s fun.”

Nekoma called for the teams to switch. Kozume stood up but waited for you to take the game out of his hand before he left for the court.

You sighed, pulling Nintendogs out of the DS and putting the Pokemon game in, Pearl, apparently. 

“Your name is (Y/N), right?”

“(L/N) (Y/N), ya.”

Kozume hummed, before stepping onto the court, letting a sweaty Lev fall into the spot he had previously occupied.

Another day, another practice and you were back to sitting next to Nekomata, waiting. Occasionally, you looked up from your DS to see the two setters toss a ball up for the players to hit, watching as the players ducked under the net to collect their balls. 

Once their final water break came around, Kozume, who had been eyeing your DS since you sat down, shuffled to sit beside you. “Ah, use the water attack.”

“Are you sure?” you asked, head tilting as you showed him your progress.

“Hmm, gym battles are mostly element-based, you want to use mostly water attacks for this one.”

Nodding, you clicked the option Kozume had so helpfully pointed out. “I know nothing about how to play this.” The battle ended, giving you a pretty badge, to which you realized there were more empty slots to fill. “Damn it.” You turned to see partially bleached blond chugging back his water. “Kozume, could you help me with the other gyms?”

“Kenma is fine. And I could, but you’d probably have to be here for that, you have to find the other gyms after all.”

The wince you wore caught his attention. Hissing you dropped your hands into your lap, still holding the sides of your plastic game. “I’m not sure how possible that would be. My luck is just running out isn’t it.” He kept watching, half-listening to Nekomata as he explained the cooldown drill before practice ended. You pulled out your little red flip phone from the side pocket of your back. “Put in your email. I’ll message you and give you my contact.”

Taking the device from your hand he quickly typed out his address before dropping it unceremoniously into your bag and running onto the court with his teammates. You smiled at the sight of his hair bouncing before your smile dropped and your head lowered to look back down at the game in your lap. The colours on the screen seemed a bit dimmer.

Where did the Pokemon go?

Kenma had quickly become your go-to Pokemon consultant. Always there in your time of need.

Which one?

He responded quickly, which helped.

Uh, one of the three ones? I was trying to catch it but it’s not there anymore. I tried dropping revival items and stuff but it’s not there.

(Y/N) did you kill it?

….Maybe?

Reload the game.

I’ve done that.

Did you save after you defeated it?

Messages with Kenma typically surrounded classes and videogames, more so the latter. With that though, came a sense of consistency with messages outside of active school hours and giving your mind a constant timeline to follow throughout the chaos that surrounded you.

Ya, I had to save my progress.

It took a minute for him to respond, but you could feel the sorrow radiating off him through the screen.

You’re going to need to restart the game if you want to continue.

Shit. Well then, got any other recommended games? Ideally RPGs.

Plenty.

After many practices with your presence sitting silently against the wall, Kenma was surprised when the end of practice came around, and you were nowhere in sight. Kenma pushed the rolling basket of volleyballs up next to Lev as they gathered up all the equipment.

“Where’s (Y/N)?” he asked, crouching down to pick up a stray ball.

Lev lowered his chin to see the setter clearly. He hummed, “Ah, I think it was called, New York?”

Kenma paused, dropping the volleyball into the basket with cold hands. “What?”

“They moved to the USA. I don’t think that they’re going to be there forever though. But Mr. (L/N) got a job there from what I remember. They were staying with my family before they moved.”

Kenma’s nose scrunched. “Why did I have to make friends with someone who was moving away? You’re terrible, Lev.” He gripped the blue fabric of the basket a bit tighter and began pushing it into the storage closet, grumbling.

“What did I do?”

After practice, Kenma quickly got to his phone, typing away as he walked home alongside Kuroo.

Your response, despite being in a different time zone, was quick.

IM SO SORRY I TOTALLY FORGOT!!! I just liked talking to you and it slipped my mind whenever you were around

Kenma sighed, washing away the anxious feeling in his chest. 

Another email came through.

I’m only going to be here for a couple years, then I’m going to come back. Messages may be slow because of time and all, but I’ll always respond.

You didn’t lie that day. You were always quick to send a message back, but over time those messages stopped coming and you didn’t have the heart to send anything in return.

You’d ponder on it occasionally, hoping that all it was, was forgetfulness, or a changed contact. But after a couple years, it was easier not to think about it, and go on with life and pursuing your passion.

“Stop spamming the chat guys, please,” Kenma grumbled, wincing at the repetitive notifications that rang in his ear. Turning to look at the live responses, he paused the stream of messages to read over a few. “You’ll stop once I start playing? Fine, fine. Let me get it booted up.”

As he pulled up the Japan-made open-world RPG that had been released for Beta earlier that week, the chat went into a flurry of excitement, with various images and repetitive cheers rolling by.

Kenma turned to face his main screen as The main intro to the game played with a flurry of colour. The chat increased in speed as the two-player options appeared on screen, ready to be selected. When his mouth moved over one of the characters they moved, reciting a line.

“Oh they’re voices are nice.”

The chat exploded again.

(Y/N)

(Y/N)’s voice is great!

They do both of the MCs voices

All the talent 

Selecting the male character, Kenma listened to the boyish tone, furrowing his boy as he caught sight of the name being repeated over and over again in the chat.

“(Y/N)? That sounds familiar, are they in an anime?”

The chat responded with a list. 

Tilting his head, Kenma pulled out his phone as the game began to load, talking out loud for the viewers of his stream.

“(Y/N). that sounds familiar.” He entered the search for the game’s voice cast. Immediately seeing a familiar portrait at the top of the list.

The chat quickly caught on to Kenma’s look of surprise and started spamming again.

“(Y/N)?! Ah! I know them! It’s been years!”

Ignoring the chat and fully loaded game for a moment, Kenma smiled at the image of an older you on his phone screen. Putting down his phone and sitting straighter, he looked at the camera that was focused on his face.

“Hmm, this makes me want to play Pokemon. Maybe later. Time to start this.”

I was going to write a full-length fic with this au but…. You know how it goes.

Short and fluffy cause I have to get back into the groove of writing after 2 months. Ahaha. I finished all of One Piece this week (when I wrote this), 966(now 971) episodes thus far and all the movies. Makes me want to write for it. Maybe If Kiwi watches it I will. 

….If I do, it’ll probably go on Ao3… but if you’re reading this and want me to…. Let me know… I’m tempted.

Kiwi. Watch One Piece so you can edit One Piece fanfiction that I’ll probably never write…. Unless. - Bacon

Maybeeee I can still edit without watching it thoughhhh. I’d edit whatever you’d me too - Kiwi

Unless!- Bacon

Posted: 25/04/2021

[gleeandshame]

Semi-liveblogging

A New York Christmas Wedding, indie Netflix movie... All I know is it’s on Netflix, there’s not a trailer, and uh, it’s wlw??? SPOILERS below!

WTF did they say “you’re not my girlfriend”

“She can’t know you like me” and then immediate fornication, I Do Not Want

Okay, we’re expecting like Lifetime or Hallmark Channel levels of writing on this I see...

Wait did she say her best friend died? Or I wasn’t paying attention. From watching later uh, maybe she said they lost touch, i mean, a BFF would be like the person Who you would think it would be but...

Asian wlw extras!!! intimacy :’)

(Wonder if she’ll be bi or gay)

Blah blah, mom is insufferable 

Oh but so... is this a called off wedding then, I guess it’s her wedding, like that’s what the signs point to... huuuh.... Like, I hope there’s not cheating involved or I’ll be very :/

Wow, sassy BFF gay angel, lol

“You shouldn’t under estimate love during Christmas” 

Here comes gay supernatural sh*t (at least I hope)

Gay angel, is she just gonna see 1000 gay signs tomorrow? Lol

I sincerely forgot his name, like Abziel or something, I’m sorry gay angel

oh right, i kept thinking they would be cold, but this is 6 mo before Christmas. today is a really chilly night for me

Azrael, I was close. I only remember it because it’s marked by the captions

Her fiance does have a nice back though

hate when there’s unnecessary flashback v.o. in stuff, just have a thoughtful look, feel okay with being quiet!!!

OH MY GOSH TRANSPORTED TO A GAY LIFE, I f*cking love it!!!

the light pouring in from the window and it’s looking all foggy.

They have a dog named Smudge :’)

Oh my gosh they’re having a meeting with a reverand or something for their gay wedding???

her tentativly grabbing the leash, i’m hear for this, thank you gay angel, there are endless amount of signs!!! lol. 

I love smudges eyebrows!!!!

Oh thank you A... Azrael, i forgot Jennifer’s name for the whole movie (okay i took a couple hour break but still)

OKAY, the best friend is dead, or WAS dead. i was like how is this gonna work out, oooh.

This is rated MA and I think maybe just from cussing? We’ll see. So far she has said f*ck, lol

Those Christmas pajamas were corny, but it’s a family so that’s allowed. Bye David.

I hope I have a gay guardian angel

He said others are alive. is she gonna see her dad?

ghost of gays past

gosh dang it a flashback... it’s okay, it’s hopefully you know an inexperienced writer or filmmakers and they can get better.

I hope her dad is there

Oh but I forgot to mention since i wasn’t liveblogging from the start, uuuuuhhhh, why did she throw the cookies away, she was still there and her dad. Teens are so dramatic

where’s the dog? did she return the dog and go to her dads... wait, no he’s driving her home, Did they not want a dog in the car... lol

smudge? Smudge??? Lol. okay, i’ll ignore the filmmaking and continuity aspect.

Slide show interesting

Oh really noticing the handheld shakiness right now though

did that girl really sing it? doesn’t look like that voice comes out of that body

gays in a church, i’m feeling emotional (I know they’re not necessarily gay I’m using it as an umbrella term)

“you are my queen and I am your peasant” - this is like who’s the handmaiden and who’s the feudal lord meme, lol

why would a pastor.... whatever they’re call had a picture of just two church goers... parishioners?  (can you tell I’m not catholic, are they catholic?)

Dang, they gonna fight to have a wedding here? Like personally if he said sh*t I would want to be married by him, but I guess the location does mean a lot to them. 

They really be throwing Jennifer into this talk with no clue. Azrael give a girl some hints!!

Did the priest tell her to get an abortion? That’s the implication right? He wouldn’t say it though. Dang. 

Eeesh, is this the f*ckboy that was with ... Gabby in the beginning? Never heard a boy trying to be a unicorn in a wlw relationship. Yike.... 

lol, yeah she told him to f*ck himself. and punched him in the face, LOOOOL

Awww, she told her dad about her crush on her BFF???

Lol, Jennifer getting excited about talking to her dad, and Gabby is like, babe, u see him everyday

Aw, a song in spanish

i didn’t mention earlier but afro-latinx yaaa. Noice

hmmm, yeah i mean it would be a little awkward bringing up a childhood/teenage fight

being forced to read the note by gabby and saying “out loud” nice device to make it natural to the audience

smudge is my favorite character

lol sorry, but if it’s christmas, is it christmas christmas, i don’t want this to be over. can she at least make out with her wife! is this day one or day two :/ okay i’ll just watch and see

DANG THAT WOULD BE INTIMATE ARM TOUCHES FOR A BFF

i only snuggled like once on a bed with one of mine. 

O Christmas Tree playing during this make out is killing me

that was soft. just making out and some but rubbing but all just in undies, that’s nice

ok i think father is gonna do the old switcheroo on us. but this verse is engaging my fight or flight

Entertaining how neutral all these ppl’s faces are during this sermon, like realistic, lol....

okay there’s like one smile. there’s nodding now

(i know ppl would be upset realistically too)

Oh snap a man is walking out, okay yeah. There’s maybe three

LOL. I really did walk out once during a slippery slope sermon. Hate that white man took over one of my churches and he wasn’t even certified. I just sat on the curb until closing worship.... mmmm

did this man just invite all the lgbtq ppl up??

I wouldn’t want that attention, LOOOL........ i get it’s supposed to be a nice moment but, what?

They all have partners? Dang, where’s my partner at church (lol, church is hardly a thing anymore right now anyway :’) )

I DON”T want no SURPRISE WEDDING THAT IS JUST IN FORNT OF CHURCH PPL

glad they acknowledged that looong pause in a natural way

Imagine trying to attnd christmas service, and then it’s a secret wlw wedding

One of the gay couples, I”M SCREAMING, looks like a married couple at my current church, lol. I mean not like exactly, but same essense and energies

That SLITTTT, what a power move for a wedding dress / reception dress

Very weird lighting but i’ll ignore it

u don’t need to applaud the priest...

“to the day i die” (to the day i die) echo, echo... , that’s some corny audio

OH my goshhh??? is he the aborted BABY, whaiuhufheruahcyuahdsbhabshdfbahsbdfa

or their dead baby, whatever it was unclear on purpose. oh myy gosh????

what the f*ck david coming to get Jennifer like a horror movie

“what’s a smudge”

hmm i wonder how this can conclude

that map i huge on the console??? i don’t know modern cars

Gabrielle and I were mar-- we were baptized. LOLL, why woudl they just give away info about a parishioner

David must just be like, wtf is she on

oh okay, no abortion, just miscarriage

What, huhhh. this lady is same sex married too??? but the priest was kicked out?

is david gonna be biphobic

oh i guess not, that’s good

sliding doors? by Gbby’s son, Jennifer needs to get her girl

Me saying this show needs to let there be silence vs me almost falling asleep while she makes a decision. I MEAN, to be fair it’s almost 6am and i haven’t slept yet, lol

okay, but we didn’t spend enough time with Azrael for me to be sad that he’ll be gone, sorry not sorry

“it can wait” ... i.e. love can wait, be careful, i.e. use a condom

that’s entirely too many candy canes

i wonder if these kids are gonna have to carry the rest of the film?

these kids are the most chill! good they both like women and each other

they 3d printed a man just so he could be a gay angel

OH NO I watchd to the end of the credits and the guy on piano died this year

okay, so overall, p cute. Cute enough. It probably satisfied only about 33% of my cute wlw quota though. Corny and a bit awkward, but, i think gays deserve not high quality cinema as well. Lol. i half recommmend it, but it’s not costing you antyhing but time on Netflix. 

okay, I sleep

[evercadeenthusiast]

Why GoodBoy Galaxy Should Come To Evercade

GoodBoy Galaxy is a brand new GBA game coming in 2021 where you play as an astronaut dog as you explore different worlds and fight enemies. Why did I decide to mention this? Because the game would be a great addition to the Evercade library.

GoodBoy Galaxy looks to be your classic animal platforming game, similar to games that are already available on Evercade like Foxy Land and Earthworm Jim. Goodboy Galaxy's description says,

"With his homeworld on the brink of ecological collapse. Maxwell bravely hopped into his experimental ship in dogged pursuit of a solution. Beyond the point of no return, holding out forlorn hope, he finds himself stranded- thousands of lightyears from home, at the edge of a hostile galaxy. Help Maxwell explore unfamiliar worlds, make strange new friends and contend with mysterious forces."

With GoodBoy Galaxy being developed for the GBA the game would be able to run on both the Evercade Handheld and the VS console. Hopefully, the developers of GoodBoy Galaxy and Blaze Entertainment can reach a deal to add GoodBoy Galaxy to a future Evercade collection, (Possibly and Indie Heroes Collection 2). Personally, I'd love to be able to play GoodBoy Galaxy on my Evercade VS and play it on the go with my Evercade Handheld.

Thank you for reading, tell me in the comments would you like to see GoodBoy Galaxy playable on Evercade systems?

Below I have linked GoodBoy Galaxy's website, the developer's Twitter pages and my own social media (Twitter and Ko-fi).

[interventicn-blog]

ngl, i already had this typed up since yesterday bc i just wanted all my ideas out. at first, i had 3 different charas in mind, but then i thought why not combine all ideas into one? without further ado, here’s eleanor richards’ intro + her pinterest! note: i didn’t proofread, so if there’s info that doesn’t line up w/ dad being old money, mom being new money, etc. then my bad.

inspired by the tv show, dynasty (ngl i’ve been watching dynasty & rewatching degrassi lately so) and my love for anime/manga + video games.

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒FAMILY. ‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

eleanor is from both old and new money. 

from her dad’s side, the family generations became old money as they worked in banks, politics, and real estate with other wealthy families before her great grandpa decided to work on his own. he started off with real estate then ventured into hotels. her father, mark warner, currently runs the businesses as it was eventually inherited to him. her mother, penelope richards, grew in new money. they got into the fashion business and penelope runs her own clothing and bag line.

they soon fell in love and her grandparents, on both sides, basically pushed them to marry as they thought it was a good deal to have different rich families come into one. however, they eventually divorced. 

penelope became more greedy and showed her true colors. she was manipulative, using people, keeping shady secrets, etc. and more focused on power, trying to make the best deals, and money. her dad just wanted a nice, calm life with someone he loved and hardly recognized his wife anymore. now, her mom’s been married more than 3 times by now, which eleanor became used to.

her dad soon moved back to new york to be with his side of the family and still stays in contact with him. even decided to live with him for a few years for her middle school education before going back to mom. there, she learned money isn’t everything and to be grateful. even now, she stays on contact and visits during summers and sometimes christmas. as for the other men in her mom’s life, she hasn’t been close to them as she wanted to. she just saw no point when they would eventually leave anyway.

growing up, she became used to drama almost everyday and still wonders why she hasn’t changed her last name yet. that meant she was tired of the life her family was living. a reason why she chose to hardly be in the richards’ family business and wanted to work on her own life.

she also has a sister she used to be very close to when they were young, but her sister grew and became just like her mom, a selfish bitch. she would create schemes in school, be the most popular student, think about only herself, etc. eleanor couldn’t stand being with more people like mom and became distant.

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒HER LIFE.‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

to deal with anything her mom was doing and to get away from reality, she turned to anime, manga, cartoons and video games. she felt these things kept her sane in her wild family. her room is decorated with anime posters, shelves of manga, and watches anime almost everyday. she’ll also go to multiple cons every year and will cosplay once in a while.

another interest she took up was baking. specifically french pastries and sweets. it made her realize she wants to become a pâtissier and her goals are to be world-known and have her own bakery company someday. she started baking around the age of twelve when she was with her dad. he bought her baking books and supplies. since then, she worked on improving her skills and sharing desserts she made with others around the neighborhood to hear feedback.

although, that’s not the only hobby she decided on. when it came to video games, she would play in arcades and at home with console and handheld ones before going into pc games. one game she fell for was overwatch. she’d end up staying all night playing and getting her rank up. soon enough, she was able to be in a team of professional players.

being into two different hobbies, she became torn because of how much time either one took. she wanted to continue playing overwatch and being able to meet so many new people, but she also enjoyed baking and loved seeing how her sweets made others happy.

she was already in college for baking, but when overwatch appeared in her life, she felt, and still feels, conflicted.

more may be added as i continue to think because the family certainly has a lot of secrets.

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒DISAPPEARANCES.‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

she has mixed feelings about the disappearances of everybody else. she’s sad to not see her mom and the staff around the house anymore, not being able to talk to her dad, and not being in contact with the team. however, she feels oddly calm about the situation too. for some reason, she just isn’t freaking out entirely. sure, she finds it strange that everyone else is gone and wants to find out more about the situation, but she feels there’s really not much she can do, so why stress over it?

the reason she’s in kitchen help is because she’s already used to being in a kitchen for so long and feels that’s what her most useful skill is right now.

one thing she truly dislikes is having people sleeping in her home. she feels uncomfortable sharing the space with those she hardly knows and argued about it for a while before giving up. eleanor continues to feel uncomfortable, so she kept a few important pieces in her own room away from others.

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒MISCELLANEOUS.‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

traits

ardent, enthusiastic or passionate: she loves anime, manga, and video games so much, she has decorations of them covering her room.

candid, truthful and straightforward: she’ll tell it like it is and isn’t interested in sugar coating.

critical, expressing adverse or disapproving comments or judgments: she’ll give her opinion even though no one asked for it sometimes. she also tends to say things she doesn’t mean.

decisive, producing a definite answer: for the most part, eleanor knows what she wants and is able to make decision easily.

effervescent, vivacious and enthusiastic: she can be seen as a happy-go-lucky person.

impetuous, acting or done quickly and without thought or care: eleanor has her moments where she’ll have an idea and go into it right away without saying another word. especially during matches.

loquacious, tending to talk a great deal: when she talks about an interest, it’s as if she can’t shut her mouth.

obstinate, stubbornly refusing to change one's opinion or chosen course of action, despite attempts to persuade one to do so: if she’s being told something she doesn’t want to hear, she’ll argue about it and try to change the situation. (e.g. having people living in her home)

aesthetics

wearing a school uniform and running out the door with toast in her mouth because she’s late, watching anime in bed and in the dark, pastel pleated skirts, pastel zebra midliner pens, headphones around the neck, strawberry milk, shelves of manga, bedhead, figurines of magical girls, cute animal plushies, vanilla scented candles, colorful wigs, patterned washi tape, taro milk tea in one hand and a manga in the other, a bag full of anime merch from a convention, picking up graphic tees at hot topic to have a better look, placing an anime as completed on myanimelist

her style consists of mostly pink and pastel colors, but denim, anime/video game graphic tees, and a few black clothing items are added onto this.

her overwatch mains

dps: ashe, genji, widow maker.

tanks: wrecking ball, d.va

support: ana, brigitte, moira.

all-time mains: d.va, ashe, widowmaker.

her favorite manga includes jojo bizarre, one piece, fruits basket, and more. some of her favorite anime are my hero academia, fairy tail, sailor moon, puella magi madoka, tokyo mew mew.

she loves watching star vs the forces of evil and steven universe.

she loves studio ghibli movies, but would definitely rewatch your name and a silent voice.

the type of music she listens to are pop, k-pop, j-pop, and sometimes rock.

more hobbies

shopping: it makes her feel better and she just loves fashion.

eating: she’s such a foodie. if anyone brings her food, she’ll be the happiest girl in the world.

sleeping: even though she hardly sleeps, she still loves sleeping. she could doze off anywhere.

self-care: she’s very into hair care and skin care. she’ll watch youtube videos for days about it, has her own skincare routine, and everyday is a different hairstyle.

japanese: because of how much she’s into anime and manga and wants to visit japan someday, she planned on taking japanese classes. she also has several japanese language books

has three tattoos

this one on the side of her left wrist (same place as laurdiy’s)

this right thigh tattoo

this on the back of her right arm. 

she planned on getting a fourth for her 21st birthday, but can’t now.

she’s mostly a closeted lesbian. her mom has always been trying to set her up with boys, but she only pretends to be interested. eleanor wonders what her family will say and keeps her sexuality a secret because she’s afraid news will spread around and it’ll be heard from her family. she’s only told a handful about it, including her sister.

[supericonblog]

Super Icon - The Long Slow Death of an Indie Studio

Our History So Far…

I began developing games back in the late nineties; Xtreme Racing on Amiga was my first game, and ever since then I have only ever worked at my own development studios.

Starting with Graphic State; initially a sub-contract artwork studio, later moving into handheld game development on the Gameboy systems. This then evolved into Icon Games; focusing on small-ish console games on PlayStation and Wii.

You can view a full list of all the ‘Icon Games’ releases here:

·        IconGames_Catalogue

And ‘Graphic State’ releases here:

·        GraphicState_Catalogue

I founded Super Icon in 2012; an ‘evolution’ of Icon Games; like the transition from NES to SuperNES! At Super Icon the focus was on creating the games that we wanted to make, rather than trying to ride the coattails of current popular games or casual games. The focus was always trying to make great games, as good as we possibly could – games that people enjoy playing.

Our first proper release was Life of Pixel on PlayStation Mobile. We released a second PSM title around that time too, called MegaBlast.

Back in 2016, after the release of Life of Pixel on Steam and our Battlezone type shooter Vektor Wars, we decided that it would probably be best to partner with a publisher going forward. Our sales numbers were low, and we failed quite badly at building any sort of interest in the games. They didn’t completely tank, but the numbers were poor, and not enough to sustain a business.

At the time we lived in London, and during that period (we were there for about 4-years), we had tough times. I say this as possibly the world’s greatest understatement!

I attempted to document that period a couple of times in the past couple of years, and in the interest of completion I have finally released an account of our time there, which you can read here:

·        RHW_MentalHealth

 In addition to the financial difficulties, it covers mental health issues and was very difficult to write. 

Following the above period, we moved to Cornwall – which is where we are today. Just after the move we ran a Kickstarter for another game; Best Buds vs Bad Guys. It was successful, and we managed to get funds to help complete the development. During the Kickstarter I started chatting to a great bunch of guys at a studio called Whitemoon Dreams.

The upshot was I explained we were not having much success at selling/promoting our games, and they agreed to act as a publisher on Life of Pixel and Best Buds going forward, to take them over onto PlayStation and Switch.

We worked together with them, releasing Super Life of Pixel onto PlayStation 4 and Vita in December 2018. Also, during the development phase, we pitched another title we were making, called Platform Maker. After a fair few rejections, we finally found a publisher in pQube. We renamed the game to PLATAGO, and it was released onto Steam Early Access in 2018, with a full Steam and Switch release in June 2019.  

Current Development Phase – 2017 to 2019

Unfortunately, despite most players seeming to enjoy Super Life of Pixel, the sales have been poor. So bad, in fact, that Whitemoon decided they were unable to continue publishing for the time-being. As such, in the first quarter of 2019, we saw our income pretty much completely grind to a halt.

I haven’t been given any PLATAGO figures, but I suspect they are poor – it probably didn’t help that we released a couple of weeks before Super Mario Maker 2 on Switch!

We also developed Vektor Wars for Switch and PS4. Switch is out, but sales were low – since July just under 300 units. PS4 is complete and in Sony QA.

Again, my family and I faced a spell of homelessness this summer, our landlord decided to sell – and we were given 8-weeks to move out. We came closer than ever to not having a home this time, as it coincided with us also earning no revenue at Super Icon. We got lucky in the end and found a small place that we have for one year (the owners are selling early 2020), but it was scary. Added to that we have no savings or fall-back money; it was a tough time. I’m 46 this year, with three great kids who are now that much older, and it is tough for them. I think being a penniless indie develop is a younger person’s game!  

Speculative development

I did have a plan though, and it seemed a good one…

In addition to the games we released above, I developed a game called They Came from Beyond (TCFB), which off and on took about 18-months (it is pre-Alpha currently). I pitched to a few publishers, and while there was interest, I didn’t manage to secure a deal. I worked on this while Steve handled code on our other projects.

Hand-on-heart, I thought it was a strong concept, and the best game we have created so far. I was certain I would secure a publishing deal to fund the completion and release, and perhaps finally have a popular game out there. The plan seemed solid – ongoing releases generating income, with a new deal secured in the later stages for our biggest project so far.

I still f#&king love TCFB too, I really do. I KNOW there are bits I need to revisit, and it needs plenty more love and content before it is ready to release, but it appears my faith was entirely misplaced.

You can read an overview document of TCFB here:

·        TheyCamefromBeyond_Overview

 I pitched TCFB to a lot of publishers, several of whom replied that they really liked the game and the concept, but it wasn’t a good fit for them. I would say the most common comment was that many of the publishers told me that they are shifting away from smaller indie releases like TCFB to larger scale, bigger budget projects – those with budgets up to about half a million dollars. More ‘AA’ than indie really.

So, the lower than expected sales, in combination with failing to secure a deal on TCFB has really proved to be a terminal blow.

I have also developed another title over the last 6-months, called Gates of Hell; which is a sort of follow-up FPS to Vektor Wars. Arcade action, short bursts of high score chasing.

You can read a brief overview here:

·        GatesofHell_Summary

 Even now, I am still developing; working on a new 2D game. A NES plus visual style shooter; with several game types in there – top down, zoomed out top down, platform run and gun. I had planned to call it ‘The Lost Carts’, but everyone I asked says that name is a bit shit!

The concept is as follows:

Some experimental NES carts have been found, which were created using a custom ‘SuperPowerFX’ chip – which allowed a 1000% increase in enemies, effects, bullets and mayhem. Unfortunately, because of the sheer numbers of enemies and arcade action these games put out, the chips used to overheat, and production had to be cancelled. Only now have the carts been unearthed, and machines are now just powerful enough to handle the gameplay without melting! I had a small series of a few games in mind.  

And… one failed concept

Not long after we moved to Cornwall, I also spent about a year (off and on) on another speculative game, called ‘The Tower’.

I pitched to various publishers, and it was a no. I stopped work on The Tower, as without funding it was just too ambitious. There is a blog for it (updated until I stopped working on the project):

https://thetower-game.tumblr.com/

And you can read the pitch doc here:

·        TheTower_PitchDoc

  Studio Limitations

One of our key strengths as a studio is a proven track record of creating and completing games, often with very minimal budgets. In an ideal world, we would love to expand our resources so we could fully realise the vision we have for our games.

Personally speaking, I love creating games. I love the whole process; from the initial research and prototyping phase, through to making the various ideas a reality, adding little touches and cool ideas, putting it all together and trying to make it all as good as I can.

Continual restriction on resources limits what we can achieve. The result is that we make good games, but not quite great games, and unless you are very lucky, a game needs to be great to really stand out.

It also means that certain elements take longer than I would like, such as graphics and level design. These are typically the bulk of project time, and I create most of them myself, which has several drawbacks:

Quality – I am good at some things, less good at others, and I know I can find others out there who can produce far better-quality graphics than I can alone. When I do commission art, I usually have to request the minimum amount of animation and number of enemy designs. Reviewers and game players notice this instinctively they notice the quality dips, the sometimes overly generic art and lack of animation.

Limiting Factors – often our games are good fun to play, but lack that something to make them stand-out. Throughout development, there are so many ideas for cool visual & gameplay elements – bosses, new enemies, set-piece background art, cut-scenes and story artwork – that we don’t do because we can’t afford to commission artwork.

Level Design – I also handle the level design for every game we do; 2D and 3D. This way of working is probably the single most limiting factor, as you are getting ideas from just one person, and when you play the game, it shows. Most games are the product of a combination of ideas, usually from a range of different people with different tastes and experiences. Without that combination of thoughts and suggestions, a game can lack that special something to make it stand out.

Why did we not try and expand?

Both Steve and I have gone without income at times, to fund development, and when we do take income it is minimal to allow us to fund development as far as we can.

I didn’t believe we had a strong enough track record to secure financing to expand, so I didn’t pursue that option. As a studio we have developed and released more games than most; they haven’t really been successful enough financially. Also, I am on the Autistic spectrum, and this does play quite a pivotal role; I have amazing drive and focus, determination and resilience but saying I lack people skills is an understatement! I mention this because it has been the cause of without doubt the studio’s single biggest downfall; promotion.

I seem to have a complete inability to successfully promote our games, to create compelling game presentations/store pages/social media posts. I have tried many times, and never seem to get anywhere with it. Additionally, when I pitch proposals to third parties, I don’t do justice to the game and vision. As a person, I am very honest, down-to-earth, quiet and reserved – almost the opposite of someone who achieves great things through self-promotion and building a strong network of contacts.

In the past, I have sought advice from several people in the industry, showed them our proposals, asked for feedback – I have tried to improve this aspect. Most recently, when I pitched, They Came from Beyond, I managed to confuse many of the publishers who had no idea what the game was about from the proposal! I revised and adapted based on their feedback, but usually, you only get that initial chance to show the game, publishers don’t tend to revisit once they have said no.

That said, I have pitched quite a few games over the years, and secured several publishing deals – but usually for smaller amounts that are just about enough to get a game completed.  

The End of an Era

From day-one, Super Icon has been a rough ride.

As covered above, our biggest issue was always been getting our games noticed and finding an audience. The actual development process is always smooth, and our game reviews are usually reasonably good. In general, everything works quite well, especially given the lack of resources we’ve always battled with.

However, we are not making money, and it has now got to the point where we need to make an urgent decision about our future.

I considered quietly closing the studio down, but I thought I’d see if there was any possibility I could sell or perhaps find a partner/investor. We don’t have much debt, a few hundred, and everything is in good order. We have accounts for each year since incorporation, prepared by our accountants EXCEED based in Surrey.

I spent the last few days reaching out to some contacts of LinkedIn; some amazing, talented and successful people – kind of a last attempt to salvage the studio as it is.

I put together a couple of docs which covered the various aspects of Super Icon, the way the studio has worked, the whole development process. You can read them here:

a.      Studio profile doc: LINK

b.      Overview of our development process: LINK

 This morning though, I have reached the conclusion that we are done. The feedback has been that our games/studio is essentially pretty much worthless. I expected this, but there is always a small glimmer of hope – perhaps that has always been my biggest failing?

Years of fighting tooth and nail just to survive, just to live. Messing up my family’s stability and security, mentally breaking down, and so often treated like shit by landlords, accountants, etc.

I have tried so very hard to make it work, and I always had that hope I could one day do it. Unfortunately, I am now middle-aged with zero pension, no savings or home and a very uncertain future. Time has a way of creeping up on you, one day you think – I still have a long time to turn things around - then suddenly you think, shit, I’m nearly fifty now; an Autistic games industry fuck up with terrible people skills, crippling self-hate and an on-going mental health battle.

I have made A LOT of games that aren’t worth shit, I have an impressive inability to self-promote and perhaps I am now rather out of touch with the industry as a whole?

The main practicality though is that we just can’t afford to continue. Super Icon can’t afford to get the accounts done or pay the monthly studio bills. I don’t really earn much beyond a few hundred here and there, and every week we are running out of money to even buy groceries and essentials for the home.

We just notified the company accountant that we were unable to do the accounts, and this was their typically hugely helpful response: 

“My colleague will issue the P45 for Richard and will close off the payroll. As the accounts will not be submitted, there will be some penalties and we also believe Companies House will strike off the company at some point (you may apply for strike off but not sure whether they will allow you to do so and also depends on possible buyer you are looking for). In the given situation, unfortunately we have to terminate our services till this has been resolved.

If you manage to find a suitable buyer and manage to pay the debts, we will be more than happy to reinstate our services.”

 So, whatever the future holds, I think Super Icon has run its course. I feel a lot of different emotions, but ultimately, there isn’t much more I can do.

A huge thanks to everyone who bought and/or played our games over the years, and to the other indie developers and indie peeps who have helped us over the years.

Special big thanks to: Jay Koottarappallil, Christian Phillips, Matt Spencer, Rusty Buchert, Jack Littlejohn, Harry Holmwood, Jools Watsham, Garry Williams and probably several others that my currently frazzled brain has forgotten! 

Richard Hill-Whittall

Email: rich@supericon.co.uk

September 14th, 2019.

END

[loadstars148]

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Emulators » Neo Geo » Windows » NeoRAGEx NeoRAGEx NeoGeo Emulator for Windows Overview. NeoRageX was the first application to emulate the Neo Geo. Subsequently several multi-platform emulators have caught up with it. However, it remains one of the most optimized emulators because it only emulates the NeoGeo and runs on weak machines. Apr 19, 2015 Mobile site live! Apr 19th 2015, 18:06. Early March we did a pilot with a separate mobile version of Rom Hustler. We decided it was better to go with a single mobile compatible version of the website so that both desktop users and mobile users are able to access the same website in the most optimal format.

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Neogeo.zip

The neogeo.zip was a success during the 1990s due to the cabinet’s low cost, six ROM slots, and compact size. Several successful video game series were released for the platform,In 2009, the Neo Geo zip was ranked 19th out of the 25 best video game consoles of all time by video game website neo geo roms you can also get here mame roms

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The neogeo.zip bios originally launched as the MVS (Multi Video System) coin-operated arcade machine. The MVS offers owners the ability to put up to six different cartridges into a single cabinet, a unique feature that was also a key economic consideration for operators with limited floorspace, as well as saving money in the long-run.(2) With its games stored on self-contained cartridges, a game cabinet can be exchanged for a different game title by swapping the game’s ROM cartridge and cabinet artwork. A home console version was also made, called AES (Advanced Entertainment System). It was originally launched as a rental console for video game stores in Japan (called Neo Geo Rental System), with its high price causing SNK not to release it for home use – this was later reversed due to high demand and it came into the market as a luxury console. The AES had the same raw specs as the MVS and had full compatibility, thus managed to bring a true arcade experience to home users.(3) The Neo Geo was revived along with the brand overall in December 2012 through the introduction of the Neo Geo X handheld and home system in neogeo.zip.

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[attract-mode-collective]

Nothing Sez “Student Game” More Than The Dinosaur Evening News (that’s a good thing, btw)

The above is Mediazoic, which takes place in an alternate reality in which dinosaurs have come back to rule the earth and they've hired you, puny human, to make sure their televised broadcasts are dino family safe.

You moderate comments left on message boards, censor full frontal dino nudity, and so on. It's a student game alright, and one of my top picks from the NYU Game Center Student Showcase2018!

I was also fond of Dreams For Your Computer because CRTs, magnets, and cats...

... Here's what it looks like in action, btw.

Though the one game that I liked the most, and which would actually fare well on the marketplace, would have to be Static...

And honorable mention goes to an updated take on Flight Simulator, which recreates a 6 hour long commercial flight as a passenger...

... The best part was the look on Stephen Totilo's face, who kinda didn't get it.

When was the NYU thing btw? Over two weeks ago, and it’s been even longer since the last update. Sorry about that. You know the deal: a million, billion things going on. As usual.

Hence why it’ll take not just one, but two bursting at the seams posts, to cover the second half of May! So onto part one…  

Please, please, PLEASE let these Game Center CX Blu-rays have an English language option (via miki800.com)...

Not a day goes by in which I don’t wonder how that guy who appears in the instruction manual for Bomberman B-Daman is doing these days (via videogameartarchive & videogameartarchive)...

I really love the “are you for real?” vibe that Samus gives off in the instructions for the original Famicom Disk System release of Metroid (via nintendometro)...

If you’ve ever wondered what a pair of bosses from Mega Man 9 & 10 would look like with 8’s 32-bit sheen, well here ya go (via mendelpalace)...

A print ad for the Famicom adaptation of Akira that wasn't all that hot (via videogameads)...

Though whenever anyone hears the words “Akira video game”, this is basically what immediately comes to mind. Anything else is a disappointment, no matter what (via aaronkraten)...

Welcome to the rabbit hole that is the Memorex VIS (via @ColinWilliamson)...

Is the soundtrack to some ultra-obscure home banking software for the Mega Drive worth a listen? You goddamn right it is (via mendelpalace)...

… The accompanying article is also totally worth a read.

It’s the Battletoads X Blue Swede mashup that you can’t believe hasn’t been done yet (via SiIvaGunner)...

Replace Link with myself & Navi with my iPhone, which I use as an alarm clock, and you have earlier this morning in a nutshell (via nintendometro)...

“So where you going?”

“Down a road. A low poly road…”

“Where you headed towards?”

“Whatever’s at the end of this street. This low poly street...”

“If you look up, what do you see?”

“Low poly buildings, under a low poly sky. Who knows, maybe there’s some low poly birds up there, behind those low poly clouds…” (via pmpkn)

From looking at low poly skies to soaring high above them, but what a difference an arcade board makes huh (via kazucrash)...

This is what Metal Max 2: ReLoaded on the DS looks like, at its normal resolution...

And this is what it looks with the resolution bumped up (via gaucheartist)...

Is this sprite of a BMX biker animated unusually well or am I just out of touch when it comes to 2600 software? Granted, it does come from a game made in 1989 (via segagenesisevangelion)…

According to the law: “NO JUMPING” (via vgadvisor)

“Hi guys.” (via beowulf-ultra)

Such a heartwarming scene (via @PicturesFoIder)...

This is what VR looked like many years ago, which is basically how it still looks today as well (via peazy86)...

It’s Yuji Horii, from way back in the day, presumably before he had created Dragon Quest (via videogamesdensetsu)...

Why yes, I have heard of the Ocelot Arcade System, by virtue of it being Quality Simon Carless content...

... BTW, “Quality content” is in reference to this. Moving on: yes, I've also heard of VecFever. It plays games that you might be familiar with, since it emulates old vector MAME titles...

Meanwhile, am only just learning that Tiger released their handhelds in Japan under the Game Vision label (via segacity)...

The Sega Dreamcast: it's thinking... about you, cuz it cares about you (via posthumanwanderings)...

"Wait… was he always there?" asks the official Sonic the Hedgehog Tumblr (via sonicthehedgehog)...

And the final nail in the coffin for this gag came courtesy of the official Sonic Tumblr as well (via sonicthehedgehog)...

"Good news everyone skyrim has been ported to the Bethesda offices carpet" 

"Who the fuck designed support pillars to obstruct a quarter of the hallway?" 

"Bethesda" (via mysteriouslypeculiar)

Yet another "it's funny cuz it's true" (via highlandvalley)...

So annoyed that I only find out about this Games Glorious shirt on the very last day of kylefewell‘s Japanese extrusion (via miki800.com)...

Not a fan of the game (don’t hate, I just don’t find it very enthralling), yet for whatever reason, I REALLY want this vintage Mappy sweatshirt (via namcomuseum)...

When video game attire looks plausible IRL (via @cvxfreak)...

Much like with regular attire, with cosplay, sometimes it’s all about the accessories (via frankiebalboa)...

Don’t think I’ve ever seen this piece of Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter art before (via segacity)...

For those who dig POC, as well those who dig VF, and also those who dig FV... that last one's Fighting Vipers, BTW (via fightersmegamix)...

It’s a crying shame that Fighting Vipers is such an unknown commodity these days (via kazucrash)...

Virtua Fighter vs Virtua Fighter… Kid (via segacity)...

It’s a crying shame that Fighters Megamix is such an unknown commodity these days (via segacity)...

So hyped for RPG Time, based solely upon the headline image used for this 10 ten list of BitSummit games (via @indiegameweb)...

Please enjoy yet another thing that I originally posted on a Saturday late at night, whatever time it might on your end right this second (via contac)...

Been a while since I’ve seen the handiwork of Joe Bleeps, largely since it’s been a while since I’ve been collecting Game Culture Snapshots; the man has certainly stepped up his game (boy mods) since way back when (via kotaku.com)...

Am also very much impressed by the Game Boy Macro, though once again, am super irritated that GBA games do not rest flush with the DS Lite’s body...

An example of function over form I guess (@gamesyouloved)...

Familiar with Line Wobbler? Ever wished you could play it on the go? Are you into demakes? For the Game Boy Advance? (via @diskmem)

Today’s corrupted GBA boot up sequence is (via corruptionasart)...

Can anyone tell what Famicom game we’re seeing that’s all glitched out? (via mendelpalace)...

My fave part of this NES 2 print ad is how, in order to truly drive the message of “EVOLVE OR BECOME EXTINCT” home, whomever felt it necessary to include a little picture of a dinosaur (via nintendometro)...

Was this an ad for the SNES? I ask because it’s considerably more sophisticated when compared to what you usually encountered in gaming rags at the time (via nintendometro)...

This ad for the GoldStar version of the 3DO, hailing from Korea, makes me so proud to be (half) Korean, you have no idea (via notablegamebox)...

This Space Invaders tribute piece is like the cover art to some 80s heavy metal record (via shmups)...

Meanwhile, the album art for the Metal Black soundtrack feels more Pink Floyd-ish than anything else (via reportal)...

As amazing as it would have been to attend a ZUNTATA concert 20 years ago, I desperately wanted to see them perform various Darius cuts live just the other week (via miki800.com)...

This cover art for a tribute album celebrating 25 years of Mega Man is still quite good, 31 years after the fact (via rnn-draws)...

My recommended reading this time is a comparison of all the various Mega Man sprites that have been, including a few that you may not be familiar with (via retrovania-vgjunk.blogspot.com)...

Apparently there was a Mega Man boss that was part arcade machine, but he only appeared in some mobile game, for f's sake Capcom (via mendelpalace)...

Guess now’s a good time to share another random game canter pic (via gogopri)...

Pathos at the game center, even among Sailor Scouts (via funnysailorm00n)...

A pride & joy of my personal collection is both the original retail Japanese release of Jet Set Radio & the available via Sega Direct only edition: De La Jet Set Radio (via videogameartarchive & videogameartarchive)...

Here's an alternate take on it’s alternate cover star (via @Drooling_Demon)…

Putting together the necessary gear to properly grind the streets of Tokyo-to (via kiroziki-cosplay)...

JSR tales place in a fictionalized, idealized interpretation of Japan, whereas this gif is a very realistic take, yup (via dehtyar)...

Meanwhile and elsewhere, somewhere in the United States of America it would seem (via behexagusthegreat)...

There's still dinner time in the future (via kirokazepixel)...

My contribution to #WorldGothDay (via it8bit)…

From dark & dreary, to warm & fuzzy, yet still black & white (via this old post from a few years back)...

Old photos of a Japanese school kid obsessing over the Famicom are somewhat dime a dozen, but the PC Engine? A very rare treat (via gamingremembrance)...

From black & white photographs of Japanese 80s kids playing consoles, to a full color animated gif of US 80s kids at the arcade (via tvneon)...

Time to wrap things up by touching upon something that kept me awfully busy over the past few: Death By Audio Arcade X Dreamhouse II. Here's a rather mysterious image that appeared on the FB event page, and which was utilized in my promotional push...

... Did it work? You’ll have to find out in my part 2 of my Attract Mode X Tumblr: May 2018 recap! Due tomorrow. Maybe.

[loadingseeker540]

Neo Geo Roms With Cache

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Emulators » Neo Geo » Windows » NeoRAGEx NeoRAGEx NeoGeo Emulator for Windows Overview. NeoRageX was the first application to emulate the Neo Geo. Subsequently several multi-platform emulators have caught up with it. However, it remains one of the most optimized emulators because it only emulates the NeoGeo and runs on weak machines.

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The neogeo.zip was a success during the 1990s due to the cabinet’s low cost, six ROM slots, and compact size. Several successful video game series were released for the platform,In 2009, the Neo Geo zip was ranked 19th out of the 25 best video game consoles of all time by video game website neo geo roms you can also get here mame roms

The neogeo.zip bios originally launched as the MVS (Multi Video System) coin-operated arcade machine. The MVS offers owners the ability to put up to six different cartridges into a single cabinet, a unique feature that was also a key economic consideration for operators with limited floorspace, as well as saving money in the long-run.(2) With its games stored on self-contained cartridges, a game cabinet can be exchanged for a different game title by swapping the game’s ROM cartridge and cabinet artwork. A home console version was also made, called AES (Advanced Entertainment System). It was originally launched as a rental console for video game stores in Japan (called Neo Geo Rental System), with its high price causing SNK not to release it for home use – this was later reversed due to high demand and it came into the market as a luxury console. The AES had the same raw specs as the MVS and had full compatibility, thus managed to bring a true arcade experience to home users.(3) The Neo Geo was revived along with the brand overall in December 2012 through the introduction of the Neo Geo X handheld and home system in neogeo.zip.

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[captainhotstop]

Rant about  the Nintendo DS vs PSP/Vita

The fact that a cheap gimmick product like the DS the GOAT of a handheld that was the PSP/Vita still pisses me off. The PSP/Vita were superior to the DS is every way except a library which was filled with cheap re-releases and nostalgia bait. Not to say it didn’t have good games, just that they were few and far between (IMO). Some might say what killed the PSP/Vita was the development price but that only works because no one (parents who already got a DS for thier kids) were buying the system. Had the system sold well the price of development would have been seen as worth it. The success of Sonys home consoles is proof of that.

[snufthebest]

Time for some Games! 😄😍 Im about to play one of these three for now! 😁 Kingdom Hearts was a long time ago, need to get on the grind of Accel world vs Sword art Online, and HDN is thr game i want to start over because the new VIIR is releasing soon! 😁💜 Later this evening im going to my parrents home, they are married for 37 years today, so we gona celebrate that! 😁 but for now; Let's enjoy this! 😁 ______________________________ Tags: #ps4 #playstation4 #ps3 #playstation3 #playstation #psvita #playstationvita #psp #playstationportable #vita #handheld #console #swordartonline #hyperdimenionneptunia #hatsunemiku #accelworldvsswordartonline #persona5 #akibasbeat #finalfantasy #moogle #games #gaming #gamer

[blobsreviewsofgame]

Sonic Generations (Nintendo 3DS)

Sonic Generations 3DS is a platformer by Dimps released for the Nintendo 3DS in 2011. I don’t like it.

The story is a bit different compared to the console/PC version. Besides Tails, none of Sonic’s friends are in it.

Classic Sonic is running around in Green Hill Zone for some reason and comes across the purple halloween ghost called “Time Eater”. Skipping ahead in time, we see the preparation of the blue hedgehog’s birthday party. Sonic comes across it too early with Tails being the only one at the place. Then the time eater appears and they both get sucked into the white void (that is now just a level select menu).

Eventually they come across their classic counterparts, team up and find out why this all happens. The writing is a bit better compared to the console counterparts but it still isn’t the greatest Sonic has to offer in terms of story. Like Tails and Classic Tails actually doing something besides talking in the story.

But the cutscenes are like Sonic Rush Adventure and Colors DS’ cutscenes, sadly. There’s a dialog box with text, characters do grunts, poses and mimics and sometimes they slide across the screen. It’s not like fully animated cutscenes with voice acting is an impossible task on 3DS (Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice does this) but it’s probably more so because the game just got rushed.

Gameplay isn’t too hot here either.                                                          

Classic Sonic plays through the levels in 2D. He can run, jump and spindash, like always. The rolling here actually works more like how rolling works in the old games than Generations does on consoles but the levels never really use rolling in some clever way. It also has the Game Gear Sonic 1 rolling glitch. Just jump and roll constantly and you’ll gain speed instantly. The first 3 levels for him are basically just 1:1 the layout of the original game and the levels afterwards are either straight lines, waiting to jump on slowly moving platforms or homing attacking à la Sonic 4.

Yes, Classic Sonic has the homing attack. More specifically after he watches Modern Sonic do it a bunch of times, he learns the ability (aka: after the 1:1 layouts of the original games from the Classic era). He also watches him do the boost later on but Classic Sonic doesn’t actually learn that, making the cutscene pretty useless. Odd.

Now, Modern Sonic plays through the levels in… 2D. Oof, but hey, because this is Dimps here, the levels are going to be like Sonic Rush where you do tricks and stuff, right? No.

Modern Sonic is mostly just about walking on even ground boosting through a lot of enemies, waiting to jump on slowly moving platforms or homing attacking à la Sonic 4. No tricks to fill up the boost meter, no satisfying chiptune crunches for soundeffects, just boring. There is an attempt at making setpieces but those are often not connected to the main gameplay (platforming, memorizing and looking cool) and instead are something like a minigame (press A at a specific time, hold down the boost button, etc.). 

Boosting is even slower than it was in the previous handheld games. It almost feels like a run button with invincibility, it’s that slow feeling.

Speaking of Classic Sonic learning the homing attack only later, Modern Sonic only learns the stomp later too by Tails giving him “30% lighter shoes”. …Even though he was already able to stomp in both versions of Sonic Colors.

There aren’t 3 zones per era anymore too. We have Green Hill, Casino Night and Mushroom Hill for the Classic era; Emerald Coast and Radical Highway for the Dreamcast era and Water Palace and Tropical Resort (from Colors DS because Classic Sonic gets a 1:1 layout again and maybe Modern Sonic tries to be like Colors Wii but it’s not 1:1 there) for the Modern era.

Why not include Heroes or something from the Advance games for the Dreamcast era and something from Sonic Rush Adventure for the Modern era (because Rush’s Water Palace is included for some reason)? 

Bosses are also here, just like in the console games.

The 3 character bosses are always racing levels where the enemy is hindering you with their attacks if you’re close around them. The levels for them also reuse assets from a level you already played through but with a different layout and background music.

The actual bosses are rather okay but a bit soulless feeling.

The final boss from Sonic 3 is a bit too slow and you can’t always counter his attacks which is a missed opportunity and the way he gets defeated is lame. It starts nicely with the Sonic Rush-like build-up (camera zooms in 3-times while being frame freezed) but then he’s doing a falling animation, getting stuck in the air and fading to white.

Biolizard is dragging the attacks a bit out too much and it can feel like forever before showing its weakspot. And it doesn’t do the Sonic Rush build-up at the end… aw.

Egg Emperor (isn’t that from the Dreamcast era again?) is okay but Eggman’s voiceclips get repeated way too often and the spinball looks strange while swapping planes because it’s often tilted for no reason.

But it does have the Sonic Rush build-up! Except it doesn’t do freeze-frames this time and he just freezes there while explosion.gif animation files are pasted on top of the boss model a lot.

But at least the time eater fight is actually better than the one in the console version.

Story mode doesn’t require to play 9 missions in the 3DS version btw but we do have to play 7 special stages. And no, Super Sonic won’t be playable in normal levels.

Special stages in Generations 3DS are basically remakes of the ones from Sonic Heroes. You control a running Modern Sonic in a giant tube where you go left or right to collect colorful spheres. Collecting them gives you boost energy. Sometimes, you also need to jump over spike bombs by jumping through dash rings.

The goal of the special stage is to catch up with the emerald, like Heroes. Unlike Heroes though, it’s super easy and the controls work. Hooray?

If you thought missions are just absent in this version, well, no, not entirely. There’s a separate mission mode here with 100 missions. You unlock them randomly by playing the online mode or you can spend 5 playcoins to unlock 1 mission. If you don’t want to play online, that’s 50.000 steps to be able to play all 100 missions.

Missions are now always under a more stricter time limit and require you to e.g. collect a bunch of rings, defeat a bunch of enemies, earn more time by destroying monitors and getting to the goal or not getting hit once. Sometimes it has new layouts, most of the time, it doesn’t. It takes about 2 hours to play through all 100 of them, a bit more than how long story mode takes. 

Playing through a mission also unlocks something like illustrations and pictures, high-poly 3D models or music from past games (which you can only listen to; also in standby mode with headphones).

There’s also something I wish the actual Generations would’ve had: Online VS mode.

You can play this game with other people online and you can choose to play either the 16 main levels or race to the emerald in the 7 special stages… in about 10 to 15 frames per second. It’s not very pretty. The races also work via local play (wireless 2 players with both having cardridges) but surprisingly, I haven’t found anyone yet who also has Generations 3DS. Oh, and it shares a profile card with each other which shows what ranks you got in each level, a screenshot from a game of your choice, your favorite Sonic the Hedgehog game (even the ones you don’t expect are there), your score (which depends on winning and losing in online battles and the amount of times you played a stage) and how long you’ve been a Sonic fan.

There’s also a time trial mode here which lets you upload your record online, like Colors DS. You can also share time trial ghosts and profile cards through streetpass but good luck finding someone via streetpass that also has streetpass data for Sonic Generations 3DS.

Sometimes it also rewards you if you’re doing something online by giving you a random item for your next playthroughs of a level, like 10 rings or an electric shield.  Fun fact: You can only get an electric shield for Modern Sonic that way.  Anyways…

The music in Generations 3DS is basically the best part of it but unlike Generations on consoles, you can’t swap the music out with something else. I think Dimps could’ve at least added an option to play music from your SD Card while playing levels because I don’t want to hear Radical Highway’s awful remix ever again.

My 3DS Activity Log says I’ve put in 171 hours into Sonic Generations 3DS but would I recommend it? No, absolutely not. While it does have a ton of useless unlockable content, playing it is a chore or just a borefest. It’s clearly a cashgrab and not much else. Don’t bother with it, okay? It’s just draining.

There, @squadalaguy! I finally reviewed it! :P