#minuy600

[minuy600]

Y'all ready for some Space Invaders (again) in a few days? Maybe even some Superman?? Well, aren't you lucky. Soon!

[nobodyn0t1m3]

Ceramic Sona

(SFW) Just a lil clay boi I made. Sona belongs to Minuy600!

[panchambro]

10 years ago, an unknown but dedicated person established his presence on the internet.

Right from the very beginning, people sensed that he had something special to offer.

As the years passed...

...more and more people came to know of him.

Until today...

There's little doubt as to why PanchamBro is the person that he is today...without the help of his friends.

It's a good feeling to know.

Based off a 1980s WJZ-TV promo for the late Jerry Turner.

Read more about my thoughts here:

10 years of internet presence…what a ridiculous milestone. A lot has happened over these last 10 years, highs and lows, that makes this story truly special.

It all begins with a backstory. For most of my life I have been looking through the internet on the outside, ever since I first got in touch with the internet in 2008. While I did a couple of edits on Diary of a Wimpy Kid Wiki on Fandom, they were mostly anonymous and while I had a couple of account in my early years, I've mostly forgotten them and many either limped or faded from history.

One day however, my brother had created me an email to use for something, and it motivated me to explore my favorite sites. At exactly 2:56 PM, my internet presence began on the Super Mario Wiki, under the alias MarioProject23.

MarioProject23 was certainly a weird name to chose to begin this journey, but over the years I would inherit certain names of notority: The Zombie Bros., Pinkie Pie, Creeperfan, The Koopa Bros. (or TKB/Koops), Sans, SansUT__, Scorbunny, and finally PanchamBro (or Pancham). These names are a part of the history that I grew over the last 10 years, and while some of these names were embarrassing to use (like Pinkie Pie), I don't regret identifying under these alias.

Throughout my time on the internet, I had experienced the ups and downs of internet life. I celebrated my one year anniversary on Super Mario Wiki…only 2 days later I was permanently banned from the site. I constantly found myself in trouble with users online that left me blocked or banned, even sometimes ridiculed. A serious political event in 2016 caused me to be disillusioned within one particular fan community. I witnessed or participated in drama from a multitude of communities, each with their own problems. I even encountered people from the dark side of the internet. And yet despite all of these problems, I persisted.

From the communities that I joined and have embraced with open arms, to the friends I made along the way. LeftyGreenMario, thehomsguy, Kadziet, juggalombre, TheROFL98, Textop, Panwaffle36, PizzaWolf20, UltraMario, gwmthing, Rocket-Bot, SuperHamster, TreeckoBro, Minuy600, @blizzblu, @bro3256, and more. They have guided me through the worst parts of the internet, and though I have left some communities and some friends have come and go, I have stayed with the communities I want to be a part of, and my friends have stuck around me. And I couldn't be more grateful than that.

It's also reflective in the kinda of art I produce. From a rusty artist with little to no art knowledge, to a fairly decent artist. I'm still far away from reaching professional grade, but I think with how much I've come by, It's nice to know that my art has finally shed its wings and taken to the skies.

And though there were setbacks, I couldn't stop my love for wiki editing. From Logopedia to the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Wiki, to SmashWiki to XTale Wiki, and finally to Nookipedia, my most edited wiki of them all. Though I have been promoted as staff, my interest is to curate the best wiki for Animal Crossing. And I'm grateful for the work I put into Nookipedia as the other contributors of the site, Soleil (HylianAngel), Chubby Bub, AlexBot2004, SuperHamster, and more. If art is my passion, wiki editing is my spirit.

I could go on, but I think it's fair to stop, knowing how much history I have made on the internet.

To these ten years that I've overcome, I thank you for all the experiences of a lifetime. And I cannot wait for the next ten.

Credit to the following OCs featured in this post (in order):

LeftyGreenMario (as themselves)

Textop (as themselves)

Blackberry (from MPC07)

Sona (from Minuy600 on Mastodon)

Roo (from @bro3256)

Skweeb (from @summmeister)

Aeron (from @blizzblu)

@tikara (as themselves)

SuperHamster (from Kevin Payravi)

TreeckoBro (as themselves)

@juggalombre-art (as themselves)

@akfamilyhome (as themselves)

[harmonia-university]

Interview with Dr. Jelle Wauters, from the Department of Biology!

Do you have a specialization of some kind (types, wildlife, etc.) or do you just general biology? - @nobetternamethanthat2 , anonymous

My research is mainly related to type genetics! Although every Weavile is an ice type, the potency and the ability to control those ice powers may vary between individuals. I also study type-related diseases as they seem to be genetically passed down as well. During the Domestication era, this kind of variance was extremely rare among Pokemon. Nowadays, Pokemon have at least a bit of human DNA in them, and this seems to have affected some family lineages. So this is a bit of a new phenomenon that a lot of research is being put into.

What got you into biology? Why do you like it, do you have a favourite thing about it? - @megamannickblog , @ecoxlar-maybe, @theonlycampix , @tailsluigi

Well for my specific interest, I've been around Pokemon who suffer from type-related deficiencies all my life. I am actually one of them! My ice powers are very weak, almost nonexistent. I always wanted to know the science behind that so I decided to get more into it.

Biology is so fascinating as a whole though! There are so many different species of Pokemon with their own quirks and abilities, it's fun to learn about how every single one works. Even Pokemon that seem man-made and robotic, they have their own central nervous systems, digestive systems, etc. I think the diversity pulled me in too.

Is there any part of the curriculum you look forward to teaching most? -anonymous

When teaching my Type biology classes I am always excited to talk about the genetics behind it of course! It is only a small portion of the course, a lot of it is on the more “physical” side of things, how the powers are generated, how it affects our bodies and stuff like that. But it is nice to talk about my specific interest, even for a bit…

Do you have a least and favourite part about teaching biology? - @neonellie

I think my favourite part is being able to educate passionate students about something I am passionate about as well. It's hard to think of a least favourite aspect. Probably the grading, but I don't know anyone who enjoys that.

If you had to pick another subject to teach what would you pick? - @ecoxlar-maybe

Biology related? Probably the anatomy of different kinds of Pokemon. Non biology related, maybe chemistry? Biochemistry. Oh, I made that related to biology. Haha!

What's your biggest achievement during your time as a student? - @smartguy18

Oh, I've done many many research projects as a student! I guess the one I'm most proud of is the work I did with one of my professors on grass type decay. Some grass types inherit a trait that makes their body decay quite fast…like a flower that is constantly deprived of water. I worked on trying to identify what gene causes this. It is a topic very significant to me!

How did you end up teaching at Harmonia? Did you grow up around Arboria, what brought you here? -Bijoux from @redolentgrove , Minuy600

Oh, I didn't grow up here! I grew up in a region overseas called Rhinia. Honestly I was desperate to look for anywhere that would take me in. Harmonia University was the first one that got back to me, I had heard good things about it so I decided to come here! And I don't regret it!

How do you deal with rowdy students? -anonymous

Oh, I barely get any. I usually teach upper year students and grad students. They are usually pretty well-behaved. There's the occasional dispute with grades and stuff like that but I think the best thing to do is to listen, stay as calm as possible and try to reach common ground.

What do you do in your free time? - @dawnnotsomom, @askgodmotherdaringdo

I love sports! Especially winter sports, such as figure skating and snowboarding. During other seasons I like to hit the badminton court. Other than that, I building and painting figurines.

Do you like video games? If so, what genres? -anonymous

I do play occasionally. Mostly farming and city-building sims.

Your hair always looks really pretty. Do you have a specific morning routine to keep yourself looking so nice? If not, have you tried experimenting recently with your fashion at all? - @missclovercat

Haha, thank you! My hair is naturally puffy like this due to my mother being a Flareon. A little wash and blow dry gets it like this! I'm not really one to experiment with fashion at all, anything comfortable and keeps me cool works.

Do you have anyone special in your life? - @wevelocityteampresents-blog

Oh hoho….yes….I have two! My lovely wife and daughter. I wouldn't know how to live without them.

This isn't a question but @winguontheweb has said that they love that you look like pink lemonade!

Oh! Well…thank you! That is quite the compliment. I love pink lemonade, haha!

Any tips for someone who wants to learn biology? -Wil from @ask-the-shiny-pokemons

Well, you're interested - that's a great start! If there's an aspect of biology you're interested in, such as microbiology, genetics, anatomy, etc… the easiest thing to do is just look up resources to learn about that topic! You may want to borrow books about it in the library, listen to lectures, watch educational videos, etc. Then you can expand to other topics! Soon enough you'll be an expert!

That concludes the interview! Do you have any closing remarks?

[sp-art-gallery]

An Emoji Set Commission for Minuy600 on Discord!

[summmeister]

Whoops! Forgot to post this until now. A Mastodon banner commission for Minuy600.

[minuy600]

A Near-Full Tier List Of 70s Atari 2600 Games

With only a couple games left to go and me needing to 'git gud' in one of them, it's only logical that it's time to wrap things up with a good old fashioned tier list!

Note: Some of my opinions have changed over time, so if some of the ordering doesn't make sense to you if you've read earlier reviews, that's why.

Football, Slot Racers and Superman will be added to the list if I can either find a second player (first 2) or a cartridge of the game (last one).

We got 28 games to go over here. F tier to A tier in that order. No S cuz there's zero games that really fit that bill. Let's rock.

F Tier

#28 Space War (11/40)

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Who thought porting a game from 1962 was a good idea on a console that already had surperior alternatives of the genre? The singleplayer was the worst gaming experience i've ever had. It's not even in space, dangit! Disastrous release.

#27 Slot Machine (11/40)

The title doesn't lie, this sure is a slot machine. And that is all it is. How does one manage to have less value than Basic Math, I wonder? Should've given more memory to Casino, Atari...

#26 Hunt & Score (10/40)

Awful controls, lacking visuals, horrendous noises and it's much, much, much cheaper to buy a copy of a real memory match game anyway. The (second) worst of the worst, even amongst several weak 1978 releases that held no value as soon as better games came out.

#25 Miniature Golf (11/40)

What am I even looking at? You move a square and that determines the angle of another square bouncing around, which is as tedious as it sounds. Squares squares square. Ourgh, I hate it. If only it had more holes so I could hate it even more.

D Tier

#24 Basic Math (12/40)

Woof, okay. As a random math problem generator with funny sound effects, it... functions. That's all I can say about it. It's a blank screen if you remove the numbers. This is my lowest of the low bars for what is somewhat passable in some regards and what isn't.

#23 Hangman (14/40)

Impressive selection of words due to being the first game with expanded memory. Now why you would spend your bucks on this when a piece of paper is something almost everyone has, I wouldn't know. Nobody wants to play Hangman alone.

#22 Street Racer (18/40)

Even more boring than Indy 500. Every mode plays the same as each other with very mild changes. Number Munchers is as good as it gets, and that's only because it's over sooner.

#21 Code Breaker (14/40)

Graphically almost as bad as flippin' Basic Math, made worse by how confusingly it plays it's cards and the fact that half the screen estate ain't being used while playing Nim. Below all the rubbish, Nim managed to curve out a tiny place in my heart due to it's alright AI.

#20 Flag Capture (16/40)

Better than Code Breaker due to being a more justified release. Otherwise, forgettable. So much so, that i'm out of things to say.

#19 Home Run (16/40)

A kinda ass way to play baseball, however props must be given for hardly having a point of reference at this point. It completely trumps the RCA Studio II version and it seems to be fairly close to the version by Epoch in Japan. Major positive is that it's a lot faster than it's contemperaries.

C Tier

#18 Outlaw (20/40)

Based on a revolutionary arcade title with a proper microprocessor. I find this one very dull. At least it has some minor things going for it like being able to deconstruct the obstacles in your way. Well done Outlaw, you did the bare minimum.

#17 Indy 500 (21/40)

Extremely mid racing. Single players are gonna be done with it in 3 seconds flat as the time trialing is not fun at all. Multiplayer is oooooookay. Decent engine noises for the time.

#16 Brain Games (18/20)

Errrrhhh, I may have been slightly too harsh earlier. Visually it's kinda gross, however you could argue that the collection of brain teasers here ain't too awful. I had a modicrum of fun with some of 'em.

#15 Star Ship (22/40)

The most striking game of the launch lineup for attempting first person well before a game could do it for realsies. I can appreciate it as an art form, as a game though? I'm good.

#14 Sky Diver (21/40)

At least it doesn't fuckin' squeal at ya at all times like in the arcade. However, unlike that version, it's pretty much multiplayer-only and the thrill of seeking a high score got almost completely butchered as a result. Satisfactory port, nothing more.

#13 Human Cannonball (20/40)

Has some personality in the form of the guy you shoot out of the cannon, and I found myself somewhat immersed by the smart way the game's visuals came to be. Otherwise, dull as dishwater.

#12 Basketball (21/40)

The first proper attempt at a realistic ball sports title. It tries a 3D perspective and for competitive play, I can see a decent time being had here. The repetition and lack of modes very much hurt it unfortunately.

#11 Blackjack (23/40)

An entirely functional and sorta addicting take on the card game of old. Gets completely trounced by Casino which is essentially an enhanced version of this.

#10 Bowling (24/40)

Falls under the same kinda umbrella as Basketball. Don't mind this one. It has good visuals (a multicolor sprite!) and a goofy dance when you clear all the pins. Kinda wears thin once you know where to stand however.

#9 Video Chess (23/40)

The best AI of the console put into a cart that could barely handle it. Sluggish movement, long loading times and hard-to-discern visuals make it a hard sell now. However, back THEN, this fuckin' kicked ass for the common man. It gets a formal handshake from me.

B Tier

#8 Air Sea Battle (28/40)

A fine introduction to the Atari 2600's library. I think it's sorta boring and the AI is hardly a contest, but the multiplayer is still enjoyable enough and it's audiovisually one of the better launch games.

#7 Casino (22/40)

How I gave this a lower score than Blackjack, I have no idea. You can play the same exact game again here with improved visuals, or dive into a couple variaties of poker, of which I actually really like Poker Solitaire. Good package!

#6 Backgammon (27/40)

Graphically one of the most impressive games on 2600 so far. Gameplay-wise, yeah it's Backgammon and Acey Deucy alright. This game thought me the ropes and i'm thankful for it. I would almost call this a worthy substitute for buying the real thing. Almost.

#5 Canyon Bomber (26/40)

Very solid ports of two middling arcade games, Canyon Bomber and Destroyer. It only made sense as they were essentially two peas in a pod from the getgo. Tired of Air-Sea Battle and in the need of something you can also play competently alone? This one's for you.

#4 Breakout (25/40)

I WILL get back to this one. I promise. The Atari 2600+ is coming in in 2 weeks and will allow me to play it with an actual paddle controller for the first time. Playing with a controller does not do it justice. It's Pong for the score hunters. 8 modes with 4 variations each is only rivalled by those coming up ahead on the list.

A Tier

#3 Surround (27/40)

Doesn't have the quirky ASMRy noises from arcade Dominos, otherwise this is an extremely solid competitive pre-Snake Snakelike. Very replayable because it allows you to doodle around freely, too.

#2 Combat (31/40)

The quintessential pack-in for the 2600 in it's early years. I don't like that it lacks a singleplayer mode completely- the multiplayer is still a hoot on occasion though. Even contains some funny glitches if you're into that sorta thing.

#1 Video Olympics (33/40)

Pong remains a classic that's still good for the occasional bout. This is that, but with a TON of other modes to invite a pal over for. The single player is destined to play one mode, however the AI is competent enough to keep that fresh for a little bit too. Easily the definitive way to play gaming's granddaddy.

Soon, Video Olympics shall be rivalled or even dethroned. The 2600's hayday is about to kick into high gear. And with that, I mean a couple weeks as I wait for my new old console to arrive in the mail. See ya then, you goofy video game crash instigator.

[minuy600]

Squeak! Made by SuperWiiBros, Sona's been turned into a rodent... finally.

[minuy600]

LEGO On A Budget 2024 #2: 21251 Steve's Desert Expedition & 76275 Motorcycle Chase: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock

Now that's a mouthful.

So LEGO Minecraft and LEGO Marvel are two catagories i've never actually purchased sets of before. I do have a polybag of Minecraft given to me some time back, so I have a tiny amount of experience in that regard- though does that really count? Those things take like 10 minutes to make. Let's see if my relatively neutral attitude towards them is deserved or not.

LEGO Minecraft - 21251 Steve's Desert Expedition

First of all, this is kinda funny. Despite having 75 pieces are therefore absolutely having more meat on it's bones, the booklet is a lot smaller and thinner than that of the Fire Rescue Motorcycle from last time. There's an obvious reason for it, that being that this is the first set that i'm covering that uses the normal instructions rather than the simplified 4+ one. Still, it certainly made it feel as if I was gonna be done much quicker.

First, let's cover what I DO find pretty nice. I like the mobs! They look very close to their actual in-game versions and I can appreciate that, it's a cheap way to show these mobs off in real loife. The Phantom in particular I really did enjoy putting together, and let it's wings flap. They also do not topple over as easily compared to human minifigs, which is a small bonus even if you can't do much with the baby camel per say.

Unfortunately, this set otherwise does not give off the best impression. Although I appreciate the tent being very sturdy once it's actually put together, getting there is surprisingly a bit more annoying than I would've imagined. The beams kept snapping off of the structure and it got me a bit miffed. Putting something in there after all is said and done is also a no-go, honestly, Doesn't even really make for nice shots unless you get really up close and personal with Steve.

And then there's Steve himself. What??? What the hell did they do to his face? I don't know if you can tell straight away from the photo, but he's got this blue mask thing going on behind his eyes, and those have been widened to make him look jovial. All well and good, but then you have the mouth area. He looks WRONG, it's like they gave him buck teeth and a wide open mouth rather than a beard! I feel incredibly unsettled looking at it. They released a polybag this year with a normal looking Steve too, it's so weird.

Here's some additional nitpicks.I literally didn't know the green object was meant to represent a cactus untill I played some Minecraft for myself and saw them in a desert. Could be dumb on my part but it could also be that the design of it isn't very good. Then there's the axe that Steve holds and is purple, which I find a kinda cheap way to indicate it's enchanted. Then again, that's what all tools in LEGO Minecraft look like, so that is moreso a general complaint.

Unfortunately, despite this set inspiring me to get back at my Minecraft antics, I wouldn't recommend this one. Nor would I really reccommend the catagory itself - the game is already about building and doesn't cost you an arm and a leg. I will put it above the Race Car though, Steve's Desert Expedition is much more unique. There's a lot of vehicles left to go.

LEGO Marvel - 76275 Motorcycle Chase: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock

Be forewarned, my Marvel experience is limited to some of the Avenger universe films and Spider-Man 1 & 2. I know the characters involved in here and nothing else. But damn, if those characters aren't badass.

I was a bit concerned going in that it would be boring to build several small things rather than one big thing. With 77 pieces included, you could definitely argue that you don't get left much space to actually create a structure of sorts with all these loose pieces.

Don't be fooled! It works out in the end. Constructing Doc Ock was the first part where I felt a bit wowed by the quality. See, this isn't just the regular old cephalopod with a PHD, nono, he's posessed by Venom! You can turn his head around and make him look either partially taken over or completely, which genuinely looks a bit more fierce than you'd expect out of LEGO.

After that, you're inclined to work on the lamp post + trash can combination according to the (very slightly thicker) booklet. This is the part I enjoyed the least though didn't hate, I think it's cool that some pieces are completely anti-LEGO and not blocky at all, but it's far too easy to fling 'em around and lose them around the house. Interesting for roleplays and posing, if nothing more. I

The best part, hands down, is the motorcycle. It's essentially a slightly smaller rehash of the Fire Rescue Motorcycle, but with the coolness tuned up to 11. Since now, it includes just a small touch of Technic tech and allows you to shoot projectiles from the little cannons on the sides of the bike! That's genuinely awesome and works really well from what I have tried. Again though, a little hard to find the pieces afterwards.

You can really make some dynamic stuff happen with Doc Ock's arms. He can even grab onto the street lantern! It does make him hard to keep upright once he's holding materials. Won't take this set away from top spot though, this was a really nice introduction to the world of bricked up superheroes.

Current rankings:

1. Marvel - 76275 Motorcycle Chase: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock 2. City 4+ - 60410 Fire Rescue Motorcycle 3. Minecraft - 21251 Steve's Desert Expedition 4. City 4+ - 60399 Race Car

Next up, we got our first big boi City set and another catagory i've never looked into despite it being huge for a pretty long time now. See you next week!

[minuy600]

LEGO On A Budget 2024 Intermission: A Couple Of The New Polybags

Remember when I bought this silly little thing?

Yeah, the amazing Kruidvat-branded bootleg handheld that looks like it was directly ordered from a provider to Temu or AliExpress. Well, that didn't paint the discounter store in the best light, did it? Let's change that with a more positive twist- their LEGO deals are pretty peak.

This is the only place in the Netherlands where i've seen polybags from the year 2024 so far. And as the title of 'discounter store' would imply, they were priced more gently than they would have been elsewhere. 3 bucks a pop! Now, these aren't alllll the polybags, there's a few more that I would appreciate to get so I can truly become the Budget Master (trademark), but this is a solid enough start.

As amazing as it is, My First Duck is out of the equation as a Duplo set. Here's the rest of them!

LEGO City - 30664 Police Off-Road Buggy Car

City, as consistent as clockwork. This is the only time you'll actually see the Police subtheme in my series, and it makes it count. Sorta.

It's 35 pieces, meaning it's easily the least substantial of the bunch, though it's really not all that bad. Hell, it compares favorably to some of the sets that it reminds me of. For one, the police motorcycle from 2005 came with only 28 pieces and was twice as expensive (it surprisingly being in a box probably had to do with it). And hey, it does drive rather nicely and comes with a somewhat uncommon minifigure torso as well as a completely unique 'wanted' poster.

For €3, you could do much worse. I would've liked it as a kid especially, I was never great with the big builds. Curiously, this was the one polybag to come with a vertical instruction manual as well. I'm autistic enough to notice that, hehe.

LEGO Friends - 30659 Flower Garden

Consider this a little preview of what will soon become a common theme on my blog. LEGO Friends is not something I really considered worth my time back in the day. I know, shock horror. But they always stood out negatively since they had the most brutal advertising, with a kid saying 'LEGO Friends' with the weirdest intonation possible. It's like when you would splice in a couple words from another sentence. Brutal.

So color me surprised when I say that I really enjoyed building this one. Clocking in at 64 pieces and therefore beating out the 4+ sets already, though about a quarter of them are already used on the petals of the sunflower. Doesn't matter too much.

The tulip is probably my favorite part, it required few pieces but the end result is very accurate looking. The sunflower is a lil hard to fidget into it's right spot, but is very flexible and that is always a lil fun. Overall, a nice addition to a bigger Friends playfield.

LEGO Creator - 30666 Gift Animals

Okay, so we can all generally agree that Lego Creator 3in1 is the best unthemed catagory for kids, right? They're affordable, rebuildable for a fair amount of time and generally look pretty nice as well. Plenty of sets that are pretty much just off-brand City or Friends escapades. Like this one, Gift Animals. With a whopping 75 pieces, it pretty much rivals what you could do with most sets I have covered as of late, for €7 less. LEGO On A Budget was MADE for sets like these.

The dog is the largest draw, of course. It uses up 71 pieces and is surprisingly very flexible. You can turn it's head so it can look like it's pleading at you with it's googly eyes. Same with the paws, tail and ears, they're all movable parts. I really dig that! It's a good build.

...Yet I should've built it last.

Can someone PLEASE explain to me what this is supposed to represent? I can only think of something among the lines of a bear cub or a weird different dog breed. I need answers! For that reason alone, it goes at the bottom of the Gift Animals tier list.

This is where the slightly disappointing reality set in, the other two builds only use like, two thirds of the available pieces. I mean it sorta makes sense, after all you can't really make 3 things with the same exact, rather obscure pieces. Still a small blemish, imagine if this little polybag would have more pieces used than the most elaborate €10 set. That'd be hilarious and sad.

The squirrel (right???) fares a little better. It's still not using a lot of the pieces, and it's the least flexible animal. On the flipside though, it's way more unique than whatever that previous alien was compared to the dog, and has a decent heft to it thanks to this mammal being a bit of a chonker. I like it a fair amount, gonna make it sniff at the Friends flowers in my little cabinet for this stuff.

And that concludes my escapades with the polybags for now. I'm surprised, really! These are well adapted for the price they are sold at, I would even argue that despite it's shortcomings, the Gift Animals set is a no brainer for the young'ins that don't have a lot of pocket money. Just don't forget that My First Duck will always be the peak of LEGO.

[minuy600]

Who's ready for a new series of mine? I know I am.

[minuy600]

Welcome to 1988, y'all.

[minuy600]

The Arcade Games of 1980 #4: Pac-Man

Oh sh*t we're already here. The yellow circle with a mouth has arrived. Toru Iwatani & crew have been cookin' even before Cutie Q arrived, and what came out of it is merely a game that's still loved and recognised 43 years later. Can't say I disagree, i've been playing this one non stop for a couple weeks just so I would be good enough to write this review.

That doesn't mean I don't have my few little issues with it, but we'll get to that when we get to that. First up, let me begin by saying the characters in this game are genious. Blinky, Pinky, Inky, Clyde and of course Pac-Man himself are entirely original and have been created specifically for this title. Unless i'm mistaken, this is the first time video game actors were given distinct names. Pretty cool!

The ghosts all behave differently too. We got the fast Blinky, both Inky and Pinky try to place themselves in front of the gobbling pizza, and then there's Clyde who just kinda fucks around. I hate him, somehow he manages to kill me the most. All given hues of red, blue, pink and orange, and those look particularly nice. Namco sure knew how color worked.

Now, your aim is to empty out a maze of all it's dots, eating fruit and power pellets and yadda yadda you know this already. One of the game's biggest strengths and detractors is the slow but steady buildup in difficulty. No longer is there about 4 stages of increased speed before it peaks (Moon Cresta notwithstanding). This is a GRIND. 21 unique stages, some of them being breathers, most of them requiring increased skill to get to.

As for me? I got to stage 12 once, and saw the third and final cutscene that happens after stage 9 like what, 3 times? Oh yes. The cutscenes. Another thing majorly improved over Taito's games. Those were charming, these were little STORIES. The Pacster being chased by Blinky, before becoming comically huge and reversing the process. Then Blinky breaks himself open after moving past... a needle, maybe? Lastly, he patches himself up partially but then gets demoted to what looks like a predecessor to the worm design from Worms.

Back on track, yeah if you were planning on getting through this one, better get used to the patterns you can find online. The AI code can be deciphered and exploited so you'll always win. Unless you're me, cuz it didn't work on my end. Annoying when you're a completionist and wanna see everything. Which leads me to the biggest grievances of the game.

I love the gameplay loop and all, but the first few stages are slooooow. Having to tackle the first two stages repeatedly when you are a dedicated player is a no go nowadays. It thankfully speeds up after the first cutscene, the intensity by then feels good. The ghosts stop relenting and crawling back to their corners after a certain point, too. Would've preferred to get right into that phase, honestly.

What irks me even more is that you can still get totally messed up in those super early stages. If you don't know your patterns, hoh, you better say your prayers before starting another high score chase. And then there's the controls on top of that. Seems like it isn't well optimised for home play, there's too many goddamn times I lost lives thanks to a misread input or the game deciding I would be better off not taking a corner. It's a disappointment for sure, and now you understand why I can't give it a perfect score despite nailing everything else.

Still though, are you kidding me with this game? You're taking a genre that only had minor success via the 'greats' of Heiankyo Alien and Head On, and not only add to it, make it so replayable and expertly crafted that everyone with a flick of interest in video games knows exactly who this Puckman dude is and is always up for a round or 2 of it? Games will run it close in the distant future, but the high bar has been set. For this game is with only a single subjective flaw.

Peak.

The Verdict

Graphics (10): Perfect simplicity. The ghosts are distinct via their sharp coloring, Pac-Man is very recognisable himself obviously despite his simple design. Then there's more subtle things I enjoy. The thing I wanted to mention most are the details on the fruits. We've absolutely not seen real-life objects look this good before, and yes, I will forgive the melon not looking too much like it's real counterpart. Heck, even the flagship from Galaxian makes a cameo! Love the cutscenes, enjoy the attract screen, it's two big thumbs up all the way.

Sound (9): If you're reading this, chances are you're hearing the noises in your head as we speak. They never get old. ...Okay maybe the ghost chasing noise does when you're almost done with a stage and you've been playing for hours straight. Nothing about this game sounds like it came from a 43 year old board, rather, there's this overarching jolly vibe that Iwatani-san wanted on purpose to appeal to a wider demographic (women) who weren't in the mood for the giant list of shooting and sports. Wacka wacka wacka! Yadda yadda yadda! Humor! Humor! Humor! Etc.

Fun Factor (8): Apologies everyone, i've failed you. If the game didn't sometimes seemingly decide that this bunny being dead was hilarious, it would have been an easy 9. This game knows how to excite, entice and keep you coming back for more. Eating ghosts and, in later stages, fruit, is a dopamine hit like nothing else. Managing to outsmart a ghost is beyond satisfying. The relief of beating a stage beats that of anything that came before it since there's more obvious rewards from it, in a subtle fashion perhaps. Gah. It stinks I can't enjoy it to the fullest like so, so many people have done before. I can appreciate the hell out of it at least!

Longevity (10): This was a long debate in my head, but considering the level of repetition that almost all games (depending on opinion) had in this period, it's gonna get full marks from me still. 21 levels cannot be beat. 256 especially so, as some want to go the extra mile and see the one and only Pac-Man kill screen. I can only envy them and their arduous study of the patterns required to get there and remembering them for *hours* straight. Me? I'm happy with my couple weeks of hard labor, with the addiction factor so high that I refused to quit untill I broke another record on occasion. You CAN decide when to quit the hustle as there's obvious hard limits, too. Ideal for the healthy under us!

In Conclusion

[minuy600]

LEGO On A Budget 2024 #6: 60400 Go-Karts and Race Drivers & 71428 Yoshi's Egg-cellent Forest

You'd be surprised to know- It seems as if we will end this series on exactly 10 blog posts. We've got 6 normal sets left to cover after this, then 4 more that I can only nab online. I didn't think it would go by this fast! Of course, i'll make new posts covering whatever comes out after March as well, though those will most likely be sporadic for a while, with LEGO's tactic of releasing most of their stuff in January and July and whatnot.

LEGO City - 60400 Go-Karts and Race Drivers

God, this one. You wouldn't think 2 dinky karts would have 99 pieces total, but I suppose it does. It didn't particularly feel that way though. As you possibly could've guessed, both of these builds are close to identical. Why they felt the need to make two seperate manuals for both karts, I have no clue. They are VERY thin.

Thankfully though, I actually do like the designs. I think the colors are more unique than a lot of what City has put out, especially the neon colored one. My personal bias also takes some joy in the small racing car builds in general, I think i've mentioned here before that I was a big Lego Racers kid in the 2000s. Been a bit since i've seen these small wheels that throw me back big time. Still, i'm not sure if this should've been a full set, this could've rather easily been two seperate polybags in my opinion.

LEGO Super Mario - 71428 Yoshi's Egg-cellent Forest

And here we go. Wahoo. Yippee, mamma mia, let's a go. It's LEGO Sup Mama. The franchise I have the most embarrassing feelings for, after all, it's Super Mario Advance 2 that introduced me to non-PC gaming after all. I was never TOO interested in grabbing these sets untill now, but this set may have convinced me to change my mind.

Now there's some odd choices made with the way this one's been packaged. This is the *smallest* box i've yet seen so far, or at least it's among the smallest. And that whiie it's the first box with over 100 pieces contained inside AND has a pretty thick instruction book with 3 sacks included. Weird, makes it seem less significant while it's decently substantial. At least when compared to the frickin' Goomba's Shoe set.

For what it IS though, hoo, this is a nice set. Building these Yoshis was verrry satisfying, they look great and have a good amount of heft. I am not sure if I like the fact I had to effectively do the same thing twice though (sound familiar?). The tree canopy and the egg top it all off to make it remarkably faithful to the funny hoohoo man's franchise, and pleasant to the eye and hands.

...If it wouldn't fall apart so damn easily. I had so much trouble lifting this one into my cabinet cuz the green piece that attaches the platforms together would keep getting loose, and more frustatingly, the Yoshi duo also wouldn't be too stable on their little stand pieces. That does put a bit of a damper on things, though I wouldn't call it a dealbreaker, moreso something you need to be mindful off when holding it in it's entirety.

Current rankings:

Go-Karts and Race Drivers is ultimately decent. It's not something I am dying to do again, I better hope there ain't another car set coming up, though it's got some merit in subtle ways, particularly those aforementioned unique colors. For that, it tops the 'lower tier', aka anything below the Fire Rescue Motorcycle.

Yoshi's Egg-cellent Forest (haaaaaaaaa) is certainly the most visually pleasing set, and hey, it's from a franchise I really hold close. I don't think it deserves top marks because of it's fragility and has you build the same thing twice. Gets pretty close though. This is gonna be the new number 4, beating out Mateo's Off-Road Car.

City - 60411 Fire Rescue Helicopter

Marvel - 76275 Motorcycle Chase: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock

Ninjago - 71805 Jay's Mech Battle Pack

Super Mario - 71428 Yoshi's Egg-cellent Forest

DREAMZzz - 71471 Mateo's Off-Road Car

Friends - 42607 Autumn's Baby Cow Shed

City - 60401 Construction Steamroller

City 4+ - 60410 Fire Rescue Motorcycle

City - 60400 Go-Karts and Race Drivers

Friends - 42612 Cat Playground Adventure

Minecraft - 21251 Steve's Desert Expedition

City 4+ - 60399 Race Car

Time to climb back into Kruidvat's walls and get grabby with this new sale they're having. See ya next time!

[minuy600]

Atari 2600 Chronicles 1980 #13 - Skiing

Ahhh, it's the ideal season for some good fashioned winter sports. I literally just got done watching some Four Hills Tournament ski jumping action, so it's got me right in the mood to review this early Activision classic.

Skiing is probably the most robust game the ex-Atari ensemble has put together. I could call it a Night Driver clone of sorts, but that'd be disingenious. This game eats that one for breakfast. For one, it plays to the hardware muuuuuch better. The white background was smart as it meant there's a semblance of vertical scrolling without it looking f*cked. The flags, trees and what I think are rocks zoom by naturally- crashing into them is additionally not nearly as bad cuz they aren't a victim of darkened roads.

It's also different in the way that instead of following the stinky format where you try to reach a high score within a limited time (boo), you attempt to shave off time spent in your attempts instead (like Dragster, yay!). 4 courses to get through *and* a randomly generated one in addition, there's plenty to slalom around. There's also the downhill mode which has their own selection of courses. Not a bad tally for the 2600 at all. And that's without mentioning that this was the second game to hand out a patch if you mastered the controls.

The Verdict

Graphics (7): They played smart with this one, as I mentioned before. If there's one thing I could complain about it, other than it being simple (say it ain't so!), it's that I think the winter sports man himself looks a little crumpled up. There's a skiing game for the Odyssey2 and that little guy fares a bit better in that specific regard, being a bit more lanky so you can see him do his task at hand more clearly. US Ski Team Skiing for the Intellivision rivals the entirety of Skiing, though I think I prefer this one since it's not got ugly big borders surrounding the gameplay.

Sound (6): The few sounds in the game, especially the semi-realistic skiing sound when you change direction, fare acceptably well. That's all she wrote really. Skiing isn't a loud sport.

Fun Factor (6): I had an okay time if nothing more. It's all about learning how to go fast and switching direction while losing as little time as possible. The skiing mode requires going through a certain amount of increasingly spread out and obstacled gates, the downhill mode is distance-based and allows you to hop over rocks. Interestingly, flipping a difficulty switch removes the barriers at the side of the screen and allows you to freely explore. A tiny novelty yet a cool (haaaaaaaaaaaaaa) one. The one thing I wouldn't recommend is trying to stay on the lower difficulties too long, the game is tediously slow then and even speeding it up doesn't fully take away the bored sensations I got. Still, it's a strong effort and beats every other time trial game outside of Dragster in my opinion. Yes, even Super Bug. Sorry, pal.

Longevity (8): Night Driver if it didn't suck. 4 ski tracks, 4 downhill tracks, free exploring if you're so inclined, and the obvious star of the show that now ACTUALLY does it's name justice, the random moooode. The random mode is also of one of the higher difficulties, so you won't need to fall asleep in the snow, thank f*ck. Quite remarkable how much they got out of effectively 2 types of gameplay! Shows the foundation was strong.

In Conclusion

[minuy600]

LEGO On A Budget 2024 #4: 42607 Autumn's Baby Cow Shed & 60411 Fire Rescue Helicopter

Kruidvat returns with a pretty crazy deal. Buy 2, get 1 half off. And this is with them already pricing €10 sets at 1 buck less. €13,50 for this batch and the next that I got today, the store is oddly popping off. Thaaaaat's the LEGO On A Budget way.

LEGO Friends - 42607 Autumn's Baby Cow Shed

This certainly was a bullet I had to bite. I mean, there was the solid polybag from last time out, so that certainly made it feel less goofy to waltz to the cash register for myself, but I wouldn't be judgemental if the cashier would've given me funny faces behind my back.

It's not bad. Wouldn't call it crazy by any means but at 79 pieces, you could certainly do a lot worse. The shed has these gates you could fiddle around with and gives a decent sense of roleplay, you could put a minifigure or the calf behind it for example. I kinda enjoy messing with the blue cow brush as well, as an autistic person, wacky textures can have a satisfying effect.

Also not unimportant are the minifigures- their names are Autumn and Leo. Those... also needed some adjustment. They're WAY more defined to appeal to girls, looking much more like a small doll over a yellow cartoony man. I wouldn't call that a BAD thing, in fact, their build quality and flexibility surprised me positively once more. Pretty based that Autumn herself is an amputee, too. Nah, all I am really pear-shaped about is that they don't really fit my personal type of LEGO vibes. And that's entirely subjective.

LEGO City - 60411 Fire Rescue Helicopter

We're now reaching the territory of 80+ pieces and it SHOWS. The instruction manual got quite a bump in thickness when compared to even the previous set, I believe this is the thickest one we've got as of yet. Now, it is just a single build, so if there's something I have to complain about, it's that you probably not gonna have your minifigs go to town on it.

Still! What's included is pretty epic. Just to name a few things that I found notable: -This has got some unique coloring, I haven't really seen this fluorescent yellow color before. -This is ANOTHER set where you can shoot projectiles. May be getting a little stale now, but the power on it is still fun for kids I bet. -I remember this from the early City era, you have these little cupboards you could put spare parts in. Ideal for the leftover projectiles and the hair style you did not choose for the minifig. -The modern fire rescue design style really shines through here. You already saw it with the Motorcycle, but this one takes the cake by having a rear wing with a neat streamlined design, as well as a completely exclusive seperate piece that has '04' written on it. I've seen some people criticise the modern fire rescue designs, but I dunno, I find it quite pretty on my end. -I kept the best for last. The rotors work! I mean, duh, of course they would, but this is easily the most robust thing I could fidget with so far. For something I could hold in my hands and have some simple engagement with, it's PERFECT.

Sometimes, a set does not have to be something super unique to be fun to build and gawk at. This is proof of that ideology. It's why City is always going to be one of my favorite themes, it's peak LEGO.

Current rankings:

Autumn's Baby Cow Shed is a positively-intonationed alright! Not bad for the imagination and certainly appealing for the females around the block. Doubt it will really compare favorably to the other 3 Friends sets for this price, and it's 7 bucks more expensive than the Flower Garden polybag which has a similar amount of pieces (including some of the same that are included here), so it won't be quite at the top. It's tough to choose where to put it though! I don't know if I like it better than Jay's Mech Battle Pack, that one had a nice beefy mech and 4 minifigs going for it, yet here we have more detailed minifigs and a few additional tiny builds. I think Ninjago JUST ABOUT wins due to the posing potential. Still, it's a wortwhile pickup if you're into this sorta stuff.

The Fire Rescue Helicopter goes straight to the top. I mean, duh. The Marvel set certainly has the biggest amount of posing you could do with it, but this one was a joy to make and looks real pretty, being significantly bigger and all that. Plus I have a dumb City bias. Easy pick for me.

City - 60411 Fire Rescue Helicopter

Marvel - 76275 Motorcycle Chase: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock

Ninjago - 71805 Jay's Mech Battle Pack

Friends - 42607 Autumn's Baby Cow Shed

City - 60401 Construction Steamroller

City 4+ - 60410 Fire Rescue Motorcycle

Minecraft - 21251 Steve's Desert Expedition

City 4+ - 60399 Race Car

Next week, another Friends set, another vehicle AND a helicopter that you probably didn't see coming. See ya then!