#nintendo code generator

[saimblog2369]

[booloocrew-blog]

(SOLD) hey if anyone has a nintendo switch and is planning to play sonic x shadow generations ive got a code i dont want and haven't used at all

reblog, dm, or reply if you took this code and lmk if it works!

[james-p-sullivan]

sorry ive been so MIA, my family got me a switch and pokemon violet for my birthday and i have been having a Good Time™️

[smac30]

08 私たちは、ハイパーマーケットをさまよう(walking through the hypermarket) by 2814 TD_893 get the track: https://ailanthusrecordings.bandcamp.com/track/--36

[textheslightlymorelimited]

Not an ask, but please do infodump more in tags. I am Delighted to learn new stuff <3

Will do.

[holeysockss]

haven't played in abt a week.. the burnout strikes again ;_;

[brinaarcadia]

Gee Mr. Dodge, that's quite a generous offer. I hid the code in the community bathroom, in the tank of the last toilet on the left. I also stashed some other loot there for a rainy day. It's all yours. Good luck usin' the code.

[youhavethewrong]

Yuiviews: The Too Kyo Games Library

After ending the Danganronpa series in what is basically rebellion against over-sequelization, writer Kazutaka Kodaka, artist Rui Komatsuzaki, and composer Masafumi Takada left the apparently horrible to work at company Spike Chunksoft to join the writer of the Zero Escape series Kotaro Uchikoshi and form their own small studio: Too Kyo Games. Throughout the years, they've kept a consistent output of creative and unique mystery and action games and stories. But in spite of how good they are, a lot of them have flown under the radar, as people in general aren't really aware of Too Kyo Games existing. So, to hopefully rectify that a little bit, I come to you with a list of the things they've made so you can see if any of them strike your fancy!

1. Master Detective Archives: Rain Code

Okay this one was still published under Spike Chunksoft, but the developers are still Too Kyo games so hear me out.

Amnesiac detective Yuma Kokohead is called to Kanai Ward, a city of neverending rain shrouded in mystery. In a place where the truth is hidden by a mega corporation, it is his duty to join a group of world-class detectives with special talents in solving the many murder cases that seem to be around every corner. He is accompanied in his journey by Shinigami, the god of death, who has the power to take him to the Mystery Labyrinths - bizarre construction where finding the exit equals reaching the truth.

The gameplay consists of 3d exploration in the city of Kanai Ward, along with action minigames and puzzles whose solutions lead to figuring out the whodunnit and howdunnit of each case!

A highlight of the game for me is the character of Shinigami, who adds a very macabre vibe to the murder mysteries by making inappropriate jokes and enjoying the whole thing a bit way too much. This game is like Detective Conan for insane people, and I loved it dearly, so I don't know if that's a good thing about myself.

(Probably not)

The game's available on Xbox, PS5, Nintendo Switch, and Steam. As of the time of this writing, the Steam version is on discount.

2. Akudama Drive

Not in the mood for games? No worries, here's an anime!

Taking place in a dystopian futuristic version of Kansai, Akudama Drive sees a society that labels particularly dangerous criminals as "Akudama", and heavily persecutes and punishes them for their transgressions. In this society, a regular girl is accidentally roped into a 6 Akudama master plan to perform an Ocean's 11-type heist by a mysterious mastermind.

(One of the characters in this image is the mastermind, and it's not the girl)

One big highlight of the show for me is the animation. Komatsuzaki's art and designs feel particularly difficult to bring to motion in 2d, but this show pulls it off really well with some clever lightning and other stylization techniques. Also, the show has a theme of how society deals with what it deems "undesirable", which resonates a lot with me.

(...for no reason in particular)

The show's available in Crunchyroll and perhaps some other sites too idk.

3. World's End Club

Not in the mood for a game or an anime? Well, how about something in between!

This game tells the story of the Go-Getters club, a club of kids who, during a field trip, experience the end of the world. There's very little I can say about this title's premise without giving most of it away, so instead I'll focus on the atmosphere it creates.

Since this game deals with young children rather than adults or even teenagers, the story is a loooot lighter than other Too Kyo Games projects. It is really lighthearted and even adorable at times. I'm particularly fond of this one scene where the main cast rides this ridiculous 12 person tandem bike while singing a little song.

However, don't let the lighter atmosphere and Take's cute designs fool you. There's still intrigue, heartache, and plot twists that will leave your mouth agape. After playing so many games by the same writers, I thought I was ready for anything that they could throw at me. This game proved me wrong.

(This and more philosophical debates await you in this title!)

Still, World's End Club is a much more relaxing time than the other games on this list. What I think most people would consider its biggest downside is how light it is in terms of gameplay. It's about 80% cutscenes, 20% gameplay. And the gameplay that is there is just extremely basic 2d puzzle sections. However, I don't think this is an objective negative. Me personally, I just see it as an extremely fun interactive story, rather than a game. When I sit down to play it, I think to myself "okay, time to see what happens next", rather than "time to push myself to overcome some difficult platforming challenges", this isn't Pizza Tower. So if you go into it knowing how light the gameplay is, I think it's an extremely delightful experience.

(I haven't beaten it yet, but it has already pulled like 5 plot twists on me, so I'm expecting about... 15 more)

World's End Club is available on Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Steam.

4. Tribe Nine (The Anime)

What's that? Youre in the mood for both a game and an anime? Weirdly specific request. And Tribe Nine is more than prepared to grant it to you!

Tribe Nine (the anime) takes place in an alternate world where (recently christened) Neo Tokyo has been broken into turfs, controlled by groups of people called "Tribes". Each tribe decides which turf is whose by way of Extreme Baseball, or XB - a version of baseball where the field is entire towns, and beating the crap out of each other is both allowed and encouraged.

(Only if you're holding the ball though, they're not monsters)

Although I know this is a recommendation, I gotta be honest and admit that the animation's not the best most of the time, and some character designs leave a lot to be desired. That being said, it is undoubtedly a unique, entertaining experience. The characters are fun, the story gets really intense when it means to, and it never gets to the point of being too self-aware. Yes, I'm counting that as a positive. I want to see some stories that take themselves seriously once in a while, dang it. Yes, that guy hit a baseball so hard it broke the Tokyo Tower's tip off. Yes, it's extremely stupid. But consider: who gives a shit, it's rad.

(There's also 4 identical-looking guys all voiced by the same VA. Call that a cost-cutting measure if you will, I'll call it hilarious)

The whole anime's for free on Youtube, with English Subtitles. So you don't even need a Crunchyroll account, you can watch it right now if you want! The playlist's not in order and it's got some weird edits to add ads for the music, but eh. Other options are available if need be.

5. Tribe Nine (The Game)

"Okay, so remember that anime that we made a couple years ago that very few people watched and had practically 0 cultural impact? I've got an idea: let's dial the extreme factor to 1,000, redesign all the characters, make new ones, and release its sequel as one of the best god damned free games people can play".

If that's not how Tribe Nine (The Game) came to be, I've no clue what the circumstances might've been.

Tribe Nine (The Game) may be a sequel to the anime, but it takes place in a world that's very different from what we see in Episode 12. A new threat, Zero, has emerged and taken control of the country. His extreme technological prowess and orbital lasers are as ridiculous as they are deadly, and he's in the perfect position to force the group of rebels that's risen to defeat him into a series of extreme games of strategy and deception.

XB still has its place of course: in the form of action debates that shift the balance of power in each territory.

(Okay I know what you're thinking: "Action Debates? Isn't that the Danganronpa thing?" Well, no. You see, this one's baseball.)

Tribe Nine's biggest downside is that it's a gacha game. And if that's something that deters you from it, I completely understand. However, if you're still willing to give it a chance, I cannot recommend it enough. The game is filled to the brim with content, the action RPG gameplay is extremely fun to master, and as of now can be played start to finish while completely ignoring the gacha aspect, as it just offers additional content, not necessary content. It might as well be a full AAA game that you get for free, because that's exactly what it feels like.

("Look I know every other apple in this basket is poison, but trust me, this one's juicy af and it tast- why are you looking at me like that")

Tribe Nine is available on Android, iOS, and Steam.

6. The Hundred Line - Last Defense Academy

Okay, I'm not gonna sugarcoat it: This game is just straight up better Danganronpa

(Put the gun down put thE GUN DOWN I CAN EXPLAIN!!)

THL-LDA takes place in a world where humanity lives in underground domes, and regular attacks from unknown entities are a daily thing. One day our protagonist, Takumi Sumino, is kidnapped by a weird little... egg guy called Sirei, and made to stay 100 days inside a fortified academy. He and other people around his age are then forced to defend "something important" inside the school from invaders, by becoming pseudo-soldiers that use Hemoanima, special weapons that give them Kill la Kill-style uniforms that transform with their blood to enhance their powers and allow them to fight back.

(If this game isn't at least partly inspired by Kill la Kill, I'll assume that using your blood to get a super-powered school uniform is a daily occurrence in Japan)

The gameplay itself is divided in the expected vn sections (complete with minigames and side activities!), and the "defense" sections, where it plays like a really good Tactics game.

I'm usually not one to get too deep into Tactics games (I've tried FF Tactics, Disgaea, and Fire Emblem and sucked at all of them), but this one really pulled me in with how much freedom of choice you get, and how seamlessly it blends story and gameplay. For example, instead of getting a couple moves per unit, you get a certain number of Action Points per turn that you can distribute however you want. You can either move all units once or one unit 6 times. Certain actions will give you more Action Points, so good strategy and thinking ahead can lead to long combos that really punish the enemy.

(Pictured above: Gameplay instructions)

With 100 different endings and 500+ CGs (holy fuck), this is the most ambitious game Too Kyo games have released yet by far. And as soon as you start, you can really tell how much care went into it. In a way, it really feels like the culmination of everything these developers have worked on up to this point.

The demo is extremely generous too. I personally got 7+ hours of gameplay from it, so you've got a lot of time to see if you like the game or not without committing to spending money on it. By the time I was done with it, I was already so hooked with the story and fond of the characters there was no doubt in my mind I'll buy the full version as soon as the May paycheck hits.

(No points for guessing who my favorite character is)

The full game is currently available on Nintendo Switch and Steam.

Extra - Death Come True

Okay I'll be honest, the only reason this one's an extra and not a proper entry is because I haven't played it yet, so I can't say anything about it other than how interesting it is that it's the only FMV entry in Too Kyo's repertoire. However, it's made by the same people who've already made 11 things I've really liked, soooo... like at some point you gotta start giving artists the benefit of the doubt. I think it's fair to assume this one probably rules too. I'm also buying it with the May paycheck I haven't gotten yet and already spent half of.

(I'm also gonna play it on a discord call with my friends, so we can pick the story together. That's not relevant, but isn't the ability to do that an undervalued feature of FMV games?)

Death Come True is available on Steam, Android, iOS, Xbox One, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, and probably a Smart Fridge if we try hard enough.

Conclusion:

Too Kyo Games is one of my favorite development teams. They have not disappointed me yet, and have given me unique experience after unique experience. Their style of storytelling is unlike anything else I've seen, and every time I check out something made by them, I end up being moved in new ways.

However, they're also currently facing financial difficulty due to none of their projects being breakout hits, or even hits as big as Danganronpa was. I think creativity and effort like this deserves attention, so if any of the entries above peak your interest, make sure to check them out! Especially if you ever fell in love with Danganronpa, as I think that's proof that this team is capable of making things that resonate with you. And after all, the people behind it have kept improving their craft more and more over time, so wouldn't it be fun to give them a chance to give you even more stories that give you new feelings and experiences~? 💖

[hehe-hoho-ohno]

Submas canon vs fanon

The entire time I have been in the Submas fandom I have seen a lot of confusion about what is canonical and what is a wide-spread fanon. Both in the sense of people thinking things were canon when they were not, and (more rarely) people thinking things were fanon when they were not. So I thought it might be useful to put together a little guide.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with using fanon. I use most of these headcannons in my own fics because I like them and canon is dumb anyway. (Note: pokemon is a huge sprawling mass and tends to contradict itself, and there have been changes across the various games/manga/anime)

All quotations are taken from bulbapidia.

Nimbasa Trio - FANON

Elesa has no connection to Ingo and Emmet besides living in the same place. There is one interaction between them in Pokemon Masters, and while they are on friendly terms they don't appear to be particularly close. Similarly, the idea that Ingo likes bad puns/Emmet does not stemmed from their fanon friendship with her.

Uncle Drayden - FANON

The only confirmed family Ingo and Emmet have are each other.

Cilan is a huge fan - CANON

Cilan is a fanboy of both of them in the anime.

Ingo is the older twin - CANON

In the original Japanese Emmet calls Ingo "nii-san" which means older brother.

"Do you have any siblings? I have an older brother, Ingo."

- Emmet, pokemon masters

Emmet's joltik hoard - FANON

Emmet's galvantula knows the move cross poison. This is an "egg move" which can only be learnt through pokemon breeding. Since it would take several tries to get this move it probably would have left Emmet with a lot of Joltik. In theory. We don't see Emmet with joltiks in canon.

Ingo's kitty smile - CANON

He smiles like that in the manga. (Admittedly, it's not as exaggerated as the full on :3 people sometimes draw him with.) He also briefly smiles in PLA, but less cat-like.

Ingo's perpetual frown is unintentional - CANON

"<player>! Someone just told me something that troubled me deeply! They said that compared to Emmet, I'm too stiff! But that's just a misunderstanding! I know I smile when I'm having fun! I'd even say that I'm quite proud of how expressive I am when I speak! What? You say you've never seen me smile? I-is that so..."

- Ingo, Pokemon Masters

They are both autistic - FANON

They are related to the twin heros - FANON

They share similar themes and motifs to the twin heros/Zekrom/Reshiram but that's it. They have no canon relationship.

Both of them are heavily coded as autistic. However, it's never been directly stated in the games that they are autistic and (to my knowledge) nobody at Game Freak/Nintendo has confirmed anything.

Ingo has a receding hairline - (debatably) CANON

He is drawn with one in the art book. Does the art book count as canon? Until something in the main games says otherwise, probably. (Though there is some argument to be had that it might be an unflattering haircut instead.)

Ingo arrived in Hisui via wormhole - FANON

"For my part, I simply found myself one day here in Hisui, a region whose name I'd never heard... All I could remember was my own name. I was still standing there in bafflement when the Pearl Clan came to my aid."

- Ingo, PLA. (However, the art book depicts the pearl clan finding him facedown on the ground, so take his standing claim with a grain of salt)

We still don't know how he got there. Similarly, it is quite common to show Ingo arriving during a blizzard/freezing to death and generally in poor health/injured/unconsciousness. But the way he recounts it sounds much more peaceful.

It'a also common to have Sneasler be the one to find him. The art book (of dubious canon) shows a human pearl clan member finding him, and Ingo's quote seems to confirm that. It's possible Sneasler was involved but she isn't mentioned.

Ingo got amnesia from hitting his head - FANON

We don't know how he got amnesia.

Ingo remembers Emmet as "the man in white" - FANON

"I'm starting to recall a man who looked... like me. We'd battle and discuss Pokémon, I think... The words "I like winning more than anything else" flashed through my mind just now..."

- Ingo, PLA, about Emmet

He makes no mention of remembering Emmet wearing white or smiling.

Ingo calls her "Lady Sneasler" - FANON

Ingo only calls her Sneasler, no Lady. In fact, nobody calls her or any of the ride pokemon Lord or Lady because...

The ride pokemon are noble pokemon - FANON

There are 10 blessed pokemon descended from the heros of old, and these pokemon are revered by the clans and have wardens. The blessed pokemon are divided into two groups, the rides and the nobles.

The ride pokemon are not called noble pokemon, and they do not get titles. Mai talks about "the great Wyrdeer" but does not call him lord or noble.

"This suggests that even Pokémon that are not nobles can become frenzied..."

- Kamado, PLA, about the ride pokemon Ursaluna seemingly becoming frenzied

Ingo lives in Sneasler's cave - FANON

We don't know where he lives.

Ingo became a Warden because Sneasler liked him - FANON

"I showed a natural affinity for taming Pokémon, which is why I eventually became a warden. But still I wonder what my true purpose is here..."

- Ingo, PLA

There is no further information about his wardenship. There is no information on what his relationship with Sneasler was prior to him becoming her warden.

Ingo likes having photos because of the amnesia - CANON

"Ah, photographs. I appreciate having physical keepsakes—less ephemeral than memories. Would you do me the honor of posing for a photo with me, <player>?"

- Ingo, PLA, at the Photography Studio

Ingo has been in Hisui for XX years - CANON

The art book uses the placeholder XX for the amount of time Ingo has been in Hisui. Some have taken the double digits to mean 10+, however the first digit could easily be a 0. So, we still don't know. Net 0 information.

Emmet must be taking Ingo vanishing badly - FANON

We have not heard from Emmet.

***

That's all for now! I'm sure I've missed or forgotten something, feel free to add stuff in the reblogs! I might edit the list later to add more if needed.

[directdogman]

what was your first game made with rpgmaker? (or just first finished video game in general) I’m thinking of getting rpgmaker for my first game and I know you have used rpgmaker before

Most of my first 'completed' games were a string of in-jokes, basically. I started using RPG Maker when I was maybe 9 years old and mostly I just made stupid little games to show my friends from school. The games weren't pretty, basically used stock images + pngs i found online, and weren't much to look at under the hood, but it gave kid me something to do in my off time. I didn't start actually uploading games online til I became a teenager, though.

Beyond that, I had a string of smaller projects, most of which I never finished because I'd learn so much while developing and realize I'd prefer to just scrap my work and start over. First fangame I ever made was a prototype Pokémon fangame using the essentials kit for RPG Maker that basically aimed to add more RPG elements to Pokémon. I got some neat features working, like sidequests that had choices in them + physically affected the world, each NPC having a relationship value that was determined by something in the world (like sidequest choices), even a neat thing where two factions would fight for control over cities both on-screen and off-screen using map events, with npcs/gyms switching hands. Part of it was based on cut content from Skyrim's civil war (namely the under the hood stuff that didn't make it into the game.)

It was more of a proof of concept than a whole game (just a few cities and a few routes connecting them, but I was fairly happy with how well the systems worked. None of them were any more complicated than the code I use now, really. Actually, on several occasions, I almost made a full fangame (and had pretty detailed drafts for what these could be, with a few of my collaborators from the DSaF days encouraging me to develop some of them) but after Pokemon Uranium was sent a cease and desist by Nintendo, I fully abandoned the idea and stuck with FNaF fangames.

[saimblog2369]

[liquidcrystalsky]

Oh another switch 2 "hack" happened.

In some certain games, you can modify the save file on a switch 1 and sync the save file to the switch 2, to uncap framerates and such, as well as also doing some in general save editing.

Uncapping the framerates can only be done in certain 3rd party games, first party games it's part of the game itself, not save data (some graphics settings are save data)

Not really good because it has to connect to nintendo servers in order to transfer that save.

If this save data glitch can result in some arbitrary code execution[edit: more accurate to say here would be Return Oriented Programming (ROP)], it would be limited to that game and nothing else. The games on the switch are sandboxed pretty well, and to get code in a game to affect the system à la Cubic Ninja is extremely hard to not possible.

[yuwuta]

my mind has been going brrrrrrr nonstop thinking about rich kids boarding school au yuji…him being perfectly Boy…i love him

he’s such a Boy…. man 🚬🚬🚬🚬 he’s so easy to fall for and he doesn’t even know it. frivolous with his money but not in an overtly obnoxious kind of way, just in the way that lets you know he doesn’t have to think about it too much. he’s also generous, so he gets away with a lot—it’s hard to be mad when he’s spending money on you. buys whole sets of manga at once, has new games weeks before the official release date, begs you and all his friends to go with him to a new restaurant and doesn’t blink when half the menu is market price. he’s funny, he’s sort of flirty but if you asked him about it he’d be clueless, he’s charming, he plays every single sport there is and then some so his name gets around a lot and his looks definitely help. he’s always wearing a jersey with his regular uniform and he should get dress-coded for it more often, but the teachers know it’s a losing battle at this point, plus he’s not hurting anybody so they let it slide.

he’s very energetic and even more affectionate. with all his friends, but with you specifically. he’s bad with boundaries and subtlety. he might not even know that he Likes you, but he knows he likes being around you and making you laugh so the natural thing is to be with you as often as he can. he runs across the campus to be there when your classes get let out, always sneaking up on you and practically jumping on you with no regard for his bag, lacrosse stick, or body weight, he’s like a dog. always messing with your hair or uniform and throws his arm over your shoulder and talks your head off about his morning or classes or practice or how megumi is being sooooooo lame and doesn’t wanna fly with him to new york for the weekend to visit the nintendo store, but—“hey! great idea, you should come with me instead, it’ll be awesome. they have this 6 foot snorlax plush and i’m thinking it’s the perfect birthday gift for yuuta-senpai, because he looks so tired all the time. we can make a weekend out of it—oh let’s ask gojo about that hotel he stayed in last time, or, well i guess maybe nobara’s family would let us use their apartment? probably, but she is mad at me because i ditched going shopping with her to grab you from class. she’ll get over it i think, maybe i’ll buy her lunch. anyway, what do you say? and oh, you should say yes because that’s way more fun than no! ☺️”

[acquired-stardust]

Gaming Spotlight #19: Megaman X (1993)

Acquired Stardust's Spotlight series returns for the month of May! Larsa takes the reigns this month with an article on standout Super Nintendo title Mega Man X, which has a special place in their heart as a devout Capcom fan. Come read along below the cut!

It may be hard to believe with how infrequently the series gets new games in the present day but indeed there was a point where Mega Man (also known as Rock Man in Japan) was the mascot of Capcom's golden age in the 1980s/1990s. It was thanks to Capcom-created series like Mega Man, Street Fighter, Breath of Fire, and eventually in the latter parts of the 90s with Resident Evil that the company began to be considered by many as one of the best game developers of their time, perhaps a distinction they have earned again in the present day thanks to the continued success of their releases after a period of more middling reception starting in the 2000s. During the best times for the company it feels Capcom had an unmatched level of coolness and artistry to their many works that made their games feel that much more significant than they would have otherwise.

And much like the Capcom of the present day their output of quality games stands out as a particularly noteworthy aspect. It feels there are times where Capcom has discovered the secret cheat code of game development where they somehow find a way to not sacrifice quality while maintaining a high output of quantity; or maybe they can at times be so good at being in tune with their fanbase that they trick us into thinking they have that code. And then well naturally the tide pulls back to reveal in their darker times that Capcom's quantity can often be their undoing by 'flooding the market' so to speak, causing a negative effect which we have seen with Mega Man as well as their fighting game franchises.

No matter the era of Capcom the one thing that seems consistent with them is that they weren't afraid shake up an established franchise to make them feel fresh, sometimes to mixed results.

One of Capcom's most successful examples of a shake up of an established series could be seen with Mega Man X. This game was designed to be the series' first foray into Nintendo's newest hardware at the time, the Super Nintendo. The choice to make MMX was a necessary iterative move on Capcom's part that signaled to consumers distinct difference from the classic series, as they previously released Mega Man titles 1-6 on the Nintendo Entertainment System alone, with Mega Man 6 having released only a mere month before the release of Mega Man X. One could be right to assume a MM7 as their first Mega Man title on the SNES would be a difficult title to sell to the public at the time. MMX originally known as "Super Mega Man", an earlier scrapped working title, would be a big departure for the series as a game.

By 1993 it was time for Capcom's beloved mascot to enter the glorious 16-bit age. MMX was designed with the intention to be an evolution of everything that the original games were before it while feeling all the more new thanks to Capcom's impressive usage of the more advanced SNES hardware. Due to this new leap in technology the game would be designed to be more colorful, faster paced, and overall more complex than the previous series.

Responsible for ushering in Mega Man's official arrival on 16-bit hardware, the development team for MMX featured an all-star of game development. This team would be in part led by a young member of team who had in his hands in many aspects of the game, Keiji Inafune. These days Inafune is perhaps more infamously known than celebrated nowadays due to the various ways he would torch his reputation in the future but he does deserve a lot of credit for the first four games in the MMX series, making important contributions like the designs of characters such as the iconic Zero and his general influence over seemingly all aspects of the game. The development of MMX is often told as story about Inafune's legacy due to the nature of common storytelling on the subject so it would be easy to solely focus on his notable contributions. However there were other talented developers who also worked on the game that in my opinion also deserve some shout outs too.

Developers such as Tokuro Fujiwara (credited as Professor F) helped oversee the project as a producer and would go on to make Tomba. Kazunori Tazaki (credited as Ikki) wore many hats when it came to the art of MMX, whose impact on gaming is still felt today due most notably in recent times for his contribution as the lead character modeler of Bayonetta, Metal Gear Rising and Nier Automata. Hayato Kaji, one of the art designers of the game, would also be responsible for designing the titular main character, X. One would be remiss to not mention the sounds of MMX, created by a team of composers who were tasked to make a game that sounded little like what came before it.

Mega Man X was as much as sequel as it was a departure for the larger Mega Man franchise that existed at the time. Mega Man was already an established icon in gaming just a step below Mario or Sonic at the time that this new Mega Man series was conceived. Being treated as a new series that built on what had came previously before it, the story was darker and more serious in tone in contrast to the original series. Being in a new setting the story would no longer revolve around the rivalry between Dr. Light and Dr. Wily over their differing point of view on robotics. Instead this story would be focused on a new threat.

By the time of the events of MMX take place many years have passed since the days of the original Mega Man series. The original Mega Man series took place in the vague undefined years of "20XX" and now we are set in the years of "21XX" which means MMX would be set around hundred years later. Much of the story within Mega Man X is set up through the game's opening intro scene - perhaps the last log about his research written by Dr. Light, imparting his last will to whomever would one day discover his laboratory. The details of the log, which entirely revolved around his magnum opus: an android who represented a new advanced form of robotic life.

The game's instruction manual acted as supplemental material and would further explain everything the player is meant to know heading into this new adventure often from a in-universe perspective. Much of the plot for this game is written to the player through the journal notes of a new character, Dr. Cain who we will get to later. This method to convey information to a player through a manual is a lost art these days as physical media in the gaming world has became increasingly phased out with each subsequent hardware generation. These days games no longer come with instruction booklets, at most they come with downloadable content vouchers or small pamphlets to advertise other products. Yes, long gone are the days of completely colored and highly detailed instruction manuals that were supplementary material to a player's experience with a video game.

As anyone who played the original series would know, Dr. Light was a reputable genius who believed that robots could do much to benefit mankind if they are to strictly obey the famed "Three Rules of Robotics" as laid out by Isaac Asimov. However unlike his previous creation "Mega Man", who was programmed to strictly follow the laws of robotics, this new creation simply named "X" was beyond these limitations. X was designed to be a successor to Dr. Light's previous greatest creation, Mega Man, whom Light treated as a son. This relationship is even reflected in X's appearance as he resembles a slightly older teenage form of Mega Man.

In order to truly be a successor, X was created to be far more advanced. So much so that he could develop his own emotions and free will, meaning his personality was not bound to any hard pre-programmed limitations like his predecessor. He believes this new creation X would be a being of infinite potential and possibilities - this meant ultimately that X would think and feel like a human being, free to choose his own path in life.

Light was not just simply cautious he was outright afraid of X's potential destructive capabilities falling into the wrong hands, or perhaps worse, his beloved creation willingly choosing to turn against the human race. Further stoking his concerns was that Dr. Light feared that his own life would not last much longer due to his old age and he would not personally be able to guide X in the future to come. Furthermore in Dr Light's last testament he lamented he had nobody else living whom he could trust to carry on his work. So it was for these reasons which Dr. Light took it upon himself to seal X away in a capsule hidden under his laboratory where X would undergo a rigorous diagnostics program to iron out any foreseeable issues.

This testing program which would take 30 years to complete with the goal being that by the end of it all that X would be immune to any viruses or malfunction by his time of waking. X was created in hopes he would decide to live alongside humanity in peace for himself and hopefully as a last resort be able to fight in defense of humanity against catastrophe with his incredible combat capabilities. Ideally he could live out in peace in the future if that same future allowed him to do so.

As feared, it was true that X would be Dr. Light's final gift to the world as he sadly passed away shortly after the automated testing began on his final creation. X would stay in isolation for over a hundred years until he was discovered by another revolutionary mind, the aforementioned Dr. Cain. The man was a scientist much like Dr. Light was in his own time but Cain was more focused on environmental endeavors. Never one to let his time go to waste, Cain was an on an excursion to find fossils of ancient Japanese plants for his research and he instead stumbled upon something else entirely - a laboratory lost to time. The same lab which which once belonged to Dr. Light and where X remained dormant. Dr. Cain would awaken X and immediately be astounded by his advanced technological workings.

Cain eagerly used the schematics he found in the lab in the hopes of using this technology to benefit the state of the world and the human race at large. Dr. Cain would replicate the incredible technology that created X and quickly the world entered a new, more advanced age. This new copied technology gave a birth to a new race of robots known as "Reploids", a name short for "Replicated Androids", a term roughly meaning 'beings copied from X's specifications'. Each of these new Reploids were all customized personally by Dr. Cain on an individual level to handle different tasks alongside humanity and were crafted with the best of intentions to aid the world, much like the classic series' Robot Masters. However in Cain's rush to do great things he would cut corners in the creation of his Reploids. Within short order things took a turn for the worse as many of these Reploids malfunctioned and in turn lost their free will. Before long as the number of malfunctioning Reploids grew they would come to be labeled as "Mavericks" - carriers of the "Maverick Virus", a strain of computer virus which causes Reploids to lose their own thoughts to madness.

Unlike X, who went through decades of testing imposed by his creator Dr. Light, these new copied creations were not subjected to the same testing process, with Dr. Cain rushing them to task and ultimately leaving them vulnerable. As a response to the increasing threat posed by these Maverick Reploids it was then that Dr. Cain would decide to create a Reploid-led police force known as "The Maverick Hunters", led by his own personal greatest creation, a further advanced Repiold with the greatest capacity for combat of his creations named Sigma. Created to bring order to the world before things got out of control, it was by Cain's hand that Sigma was molded to be the commander of the Maverick Hunters, a squad of combat-capable Repiolds with the mission of routing the dangerous Maverick types.

Unfortunately, despite being more advanced than his fellow Reploids, Sigma too would be vulnerable to the virus and turn Maverick himself, declaring war on all of humanity as well as those who supported them. Whether through malfunction or plain fear, other Repiolds on the police force felt compelled to follow under Sigma's command in his new ambitions against the human race. This would be what ultimately kicks off the events of the game itself. Much like his predecessor, X was an optimistic being who detested violence, but would understand the necessity of fighting for the betterment of the world. X reluctantly accepts that his responsibility as "Maverick Hunter" would mean he must put Sigma and the rebel army down to achieve peace, and joining in the defense of humanity would be the few Maverick Hunters left, now led by a red warrior with flowing blonde hair armed with the Z-Buster known as Zero, the now most senior member left in the squad after Sigma's revolt shrank their ranks. Zero serves as a partner of X in the war against the Mavericks, somebody that X looks up to as a mentor figure.

As for the gameplay, this game feels like a treat to play with highly responsive controls on its native hardware. The game wastes no time in giving you chance to learn it as right away you are thrown into the front line, being dropped into the iconic highway stage to defend a city under assault and while tackling this first mission Zero may assist X when necessary. Perhaps your first impression as you control X for the first time is that things may feel familiar yet distinctly different from the original series. MMX is more demanding on the player expecting you to think fast and be ready with more complex inputs. X feels more responsive to player's input, more than Mega Man ever did previously, and his buster cannon, the X-Buster, feels much more powerful as a default weapon by comparison to the classic Mega Buster. This new higher level of action created more of a need for tight controls and as a result X was given the helpful ability to kick off walls. This ability alone changes how you may think of maneuvering around stages natively to allow for more mobility options whether you are in the heat of battle against a boss or attempting to avoid a stage hazard, also providing plenty of opportunities to save yourself during precarious jumps. Often in Mega Man X well timed positioning and movement is even more important than your offensive capabilities. Additionally much like the previous series with the successful defeat of a stage boss you will obtain a new special weapon you can freely toggle through to use at any time. These Maverick weapons are worthwhile to experiment with when given the chance and mastering how to use them will make your time with this game that much more fun. Maybe the most noteworthy innovative feature of Mega Man X is the ability to evolve X's native capabilities and theoretical limitless potential by equipping armor found in mostly optional to discover capsules scattered throughout levels. These capsules too were created by Dr. Light before his passing and allows the genius to support X from beyond the grave. As you collect every individual piece of armor the appearance of X's sprite will change along the way. X will go from heavily resembling an older teenage version of his predecessor to looking more distinct clad in bright colors. These newer vibrant colors of X's first armored form feel like a direct homage to some of Japan's beloved mecha franchises.

The hunting for armor upgrades aspect of the game goes a long way in establishing the story told here. From the point of view of the player these armor upgrades might reflects X's character growth throughout the journey gaining the confidence to truly own his new identity and responsibilities as defender of peace against the Maverick revolt. All in all the armor system is delight, it feels good to be made stronger and the capabilities bestowed by the armor pieces can change how you can interact with the game's world. Thankfully this idea of building power through exploration established in this first title turned out to be so popular that every subsequent MMX released is sure to include the hunt for new armor parts to equip onto our hero for the purpose of overcoming whatever obstacles lay in his way.

As for the armor parts in this game there are the boot armor upgrade that gives X the ability to dash, make longer jumps, and break certain objects with the wall kick, further advancing the platforming aspects of the game. The helmet upgrade gives X the ability to break certain objects with a headbutt and nullifies the damage of most falling debris. The body armor upgrade cuts down the incoming damage X takes from attacks. Last but certainly not least, the buster cannon upgrade powers up X's weaponry which allows him to charge his arm cannon attack even further and this upgrade also allows X to charge Maverick weapons (obtained through defeating the game's various boss characters much like the classic Mega Man series) resulting in even more devastating special attacks. As a fun aside, the idea of MMX's armor parts system apparently came from the surging popularity of role playing games in Japan.

Speaking of special attacks, there is even a hidden Dr. Light capsule containing a special final upgrade. This last capsule is where X can learn how to do the Hadoken, one of the signature moves from Capcom's megahit Street Fighter series, which Dr. Light claims to have learned by personally training under a waterfall in the background of the stage where you can find the capsule. To perform this attack you must do the actual input for the special move as featured in the fighting game series it hails from. I have to say that I thought this easter egg was awesome and when I was a young kid, it made me feel like that perhaps the Mega Man games may theoretically take place in the same world as Street Fighter.

The Hadoken is hugely satisfying to pull off and the massive power of the attack is unmatched. There are few things that feel as delightful as getting X to throw a well-timed Hadoken at an enemy at the last possible moment before you take a hit. Like so many other elements that comprise this game it reinforces that Mega Man X is a game that feels fantastic to play and the basis of this gameplay will be drawn on for many future titles in the series.

On my most recent revisit I found that the gameplay of MMX still holds up well to this day and it is still one of the best action platformer games there has been to date in my opinion. I think to add to it all is the feeling of your skills as a player growing alongside X as he gets more confidence and becomes stronger too. To further illustrate the leap between Mega Man games up until this point, you could say the real-world technological leap between the hardware of the original series and the X series mirrors the fictional technological hardware leap between Mega Man and X.

After successfully clearing the opening stage you will be brought to the iconic Mega Man stage select screen. The eight Maverick commanders represent one of the game's eight opening stages, representing a key locale in their world they seized and hold under occupation. These Mavericks leaders being Chill Penguin, Flame Mammoth, Boomer Kuwanger, Sting Chameleon, Spark Mandrill, Storm Eagle, Armored Armadillo, and Launch Octopus. Each of them make for memorable challenges to overcome as their designs are fascinating and their animations in combat full of personality. Something that makes these Mavericks stand apart from the Robot Master bosses from the original series is that the Mavericks tend to have been built in the image of animals, allowing a lot of variances in their designs.

Each of the stages these Mavericks occupy must be liberated from them before you are able to invade Sigma's Fortress at the end, in a formula familiar for players of the classic series. One of the key things that make this first game in the Mega Man X stand out from the crowd are the stages themselves. Every stage in MMX feels like a character all its own with distinct visual flair and adrenaline pumping music. The stages are a blast to play and serve as a great canvas to employ the more complex gameplay elements of the series, and still hold up will against any example found in the series or even genre up to the present day. Of course one shouldn't forget these areas are also ripe with secrets such as the previously mentioned armor capsules as well as heart containers to increase your max health bar.

The stage select formula featured here is very much like the classic Robot Master stages of the older series but like with many aspects of MMX there is an evolution on the previously established formula of the series at play here. Traditionally in Mega Man you find whichever stage you think you can best tackle with the buster cannon and clear that one first, then using the weapon you earn from defeating that stage's boss to make an informed choice of which boss to challenge next, by estimating who is weak to the weapon you earned previously in a manner reflecting rock-paper-scissors. You repeat this until you get through all eight stages and then go to the final boss's lair, typically Dr. Wily's castle in the classic series, where you will fiercely battle through a gauntlet of new extra stages and after a climatic final boss fight ultimately save the day.

However in MMX, while the core formula remains intact, there are now even more choices because you have new engaging ways to interact with the game itself. Some boss weapons can open up new means of traversal, and as mentioned earlier the same goes to some of the armor upgrades. The thing that makes MMX1 stand out in this regard from other Mega Man games is that occasionally you may find that a Maverick weapon like Boomer Kuwanger's "Boomerang Cutter" can actually cut off the parts of a few enemies, altering their combat behavior even though the weapon in these instances itself isn't doing bonus damage, and this aspect may change your routing through the nonlinear stage select.

Another innovative measure is that even the stages themselves can change depending on the order you are able to take down the Maverick bosses. By defeating Chill Penguin at his snow research facility for example you will receive the dash boots armor upgrade, and the resulting climate change will cause Flame Mammoth's burning factory to cool down. This choice makes an otherwise difficult stage like the factory much easier to traverse due to the lava hazards being removed and now opening up new routes to otherwise unobtainable items.

For instance if you decide to deal with Flame Mammoth first that will give you access to the Maverick weapon "Fire Wave" which is the strongest weapon to utilize against Chill Penguin, as fire is his weakness. Despite not being the weakness of Storm Eagle, you can make the battle against him more manageable with proper use of the boots' dash ability. Furthermore if you decide to take down Storm Eagle then afterward the airship that you fight Storm Eagle on will crash to the ground, causing a power outage in Spark Mandrill's power plant stage, resulting in blackouts throughout the stage altering the hazards found in it. There are even more effects than this one can make on the world depending on how you play, not all of which will necessarily make the game easier, but I will leave that for you to discover for yourself one day.

The art team did a fantastic job of creating a dark futuristic world that still feels very much alive but not unfriendly or overly grim, and certainly not too far removed from the classic series that came before it. There are a great amount of graphical effects done through smart use of sprite techniques that are utter eye-candy, such as the shattering glass in Storm Eagle's stage. To speak on another aspect of the art of course the character designs are incredible, characters such as X and Zero are still being widely recognized to this day as gaming icons even for those who have never played these games before. Just as well, each of the Maverick bosses are also very visually memorable.

But as much as I praise the visual design this is a game that is as delightful to listen to as it is to look at. The weapons have such cool sound effects and even the movement sounds cool which creates a positive feedback loop of trying to get the most out of your gameplay. The soundtrack is strong, bringing high energy and urgency as the mood requires. Songs such as Spark Mandrill, Chill Penguin, Storm Eagle, and more populate my playlists to this day. MMX radically shaped my taste in art as a whole as I am sure that it has for some people reading this spotlight.

All these aspects that made up this title really resonate with people and Mega Man X has become a cult classic, fondly looked at long after the days of its initial success as a best-selling Super Nintendo title. Even for its time Mega Man X as a video game was a massive success for Capcom selling over a million SNES carts, which for the time was a smash hit. Following this first game would result in several direct sequels to follow it up over the years, turning it into a full blown series proving the team behind it was able to get Mega Man X to step out of the original Mega Man's shadow.

Eventually over a decade after the original release Capcom would remake the initial Mega Man X as Maverick Hunter X, a game with perhaps a more fitting title for the series, on Sony's Playstation Portable. The remake would serve as a reboot for Mega Man X as a whole, intended to be a new starting point for the series. As a game it featured more bells and whistles, including a fearsome fan favorite character, the Maverick known as Vile, becoming playable for the first time. Sadly this reboot sold poorly and Capcom has since seemingly abandoned the series outside of bundling the games up into collections. Unfortunately these collections, while nice, do have significant extra input lag not present in their original releases which could hamper the experience.

Despite the setbacks the series have faced over the years it still feels like the legacy of Mega Man X is still strong to this day. It is a title still held in high regard and the proof of that is everywhere as other games still draw to it for inspiration such as the Azure Striker Gunvolt, The Messenger, Shovel Knight and a slew of other indie game titles created decades after the first MMX game. Kohei Horikoshi, the creator of the ultra popular My Hero Academia manga and anime series, has also cited the MMX series as a point of inspiration from his childhood which you can really feel in his art.

Even the sounds of the game have stood the test of time, and its soundtrack has been the subject of countless remix and arrangement albums in the years since. MMX would in more recent times go on to be a staple of the speed-running community and for me it was the first game that I got wrapped up in myself, attempting to speedrun MMX because the game is so appealing to play. The first MMX is a standout hit, even among a series known for outstanding titles, and it should be on every gamer's bucket list to try out for themselves.

In closing Mega Man X is an incredible game in my opinion well worth the time for anybody of any age to play. The challenge of the game can feel harsh yet fair, without much in the way of "cheap deaths" or timer wasters. For those looking for a higher level of difficulty I recommend you try a "X-Buster"-only playthrough, this challenge run can greatly change how you approach each boss battle. And while the story of the game itself is simple enough, the world which Capcom created still holds up as one of their best efforts.

A gem hidden among the stones, Mega Man X is undoubtedly stardust.

-- Larsa

[nothingtoblue]

me explaining to my dad that Nintendo promised us gay mariiage in like 2015 and him shaking his head saying that it’s just a business, in Japan. Me also trying to explain that Nintendo has shown more support to same sex partnerships than the in general Japan and lesbian coding in splatoon

I want chaos bisexual miis

[dr-spectre]

Mannnnn..... I knew this would happen.... I just knew it...

The image is not the best quality but under each of these games boxes tells that the game is a game key card.

Now look, there's a lot of misinformation going around about how these work and Nintendo is being dead silent despite there being so much chaos and confusion.

So basically, these game key cards only contain a license for the game and have to perform an internet hand shake with the servers in order to download the game. Once it is downloaded, you don't need an internet connection to play, you just have to connect to the internet to do the download and then you can play the game offline until the end of time. You only have to connect to the internet ONCE! NOT EVERY SWITCH 2 GAME WILL BE A GAME KEY CARD! Mario Kart World will have the full version 1.0 game on the cartridge, Cyberpunk, DK Bananza and other games like the Switch 2 edition games will have the full game on the cartridge and you can play the game offline. You can tell if a physical game will be a game key card because there's a giant white strip at the bottom that will tell you, "Hey dummy, you need an internet connection."

BUT! Despite these cards being an improvement over the simple code in a box like we had during the Switch 1 generation because you can give these to friends and sell them later on, these are still really bad and it's fucking frustrating to see so many game publishers cheap out and be lazy and not put their full game on the cartridge.

Now this could be down to multiple things, maybe Nintendo only has very strict options for file sizes and game publishers are left with having to use game key cards because there's not enough options, or it's just money and time reasons. We don't exactly know for sure. But I'm guessing it's the first one.

But even with that excuse, I just knew that the game key cards would be used by bad publishers just to save a quick buck and completely DAMAGE any form of physical perseveration, as now our options are limited on preserving future Switch 2 titles. These game key cards are bad simply because in 10 years' time, they are going to be dead paperweights, and you won't be able to download the game anymore unless you already had it on your console. That cool feature of sharing a game with your friend in person will not work in the future. Nintendo is the worst at keeping their old servers up as they are ALWAYS the first out of the big three to discontinue their old consoles and internet services. Do you think the Switch is gonna be any different? Nope. The Switch and its online services are gonna shut down way before the PS4 or Xbox One do. I'm calling it right now.

For some games, i can get it... kinda... Street Fighter 6? Yeah, sure, i can get it. It's mainly an online game that gets lots of updates and content i can get behind it... Somewhat...

But why..... WHY THE FUCK IS PUYO PUYO TETRIS 2S A GOD DAMN KEY CARD WHEN CYBERPUNK AND ALL OF ITS DLC CAN FIT ONTO THE FUCKING CARD!??!

WHY IS SONIC X SHADOW GENERATIONS A GAME KEY CARD WHEN THE SWITCH 1 VERSION FIT ON A SWITCH 1 CART?!?! ALSO NO UPGRADE PATH?! REALLY SEGA?!?! ARE YOU INSANE?!

I think the worst part about is this that there's so many games that are game key cards. ALL OF THE THIRD PARTY GAMES ASIDE FROM ONE ARE JUST ONLINE DOWNLOADS THAT COME WITH A KEY!!! UGH!