AndrewTS

"Bob Holly hates being called Sparky." They need to give him the Shockmaster gimmick, and that could be his nickname. "DON'T CALL ME SPAAAAAARKY!"

I know you're joking, but Godfather/Shango is released and Mable's in that "missing from public radar...rumored to be dead" area. However, if he can get healthy again, I'd mark for an Earthquake comeback, and not just out of sympathy. He can team with Heenan and feud for the title after squashing some pantyhose filled with tumors. Of course, it's just the b show's title, so WWE doesn't really care WHO has it.

so he's not dead? Not according to WWE Fan Services. Maybe Paul is supposed to be undead anyway, so killing an undead person is technically not murder, I suppose. Yeah, because there's no other difference between wrestling and regular TV shows. Regular TV shows never bother blurring the lines between the characters and the actual persons. They never pretend the actors themselves are actually in any real danger, just the characters. Also, they don't have to come up with stupid, illogical rationizations for why over-the-top, unrealistic characters are all competing against each other. Naturally, there are others...but basically Vince saying "we make movies" is one of the stupidiest things I've ever heard or heard of him ever saying. Don't even get me started about how a company that surely has some lawyers employed has absolutely no grasp on real-life laws.

It wasn't the levels themselves that I had the problems with; it was the irritating boss encounters. X6's levels seemed harder, but I actually got farther in the game because X6's bosses (at least the Mavericks and normal-sized bosses) are absolute idiots. However, the levels are absolutely no fun to play so I abandoned the game and got rid of it quickly. I'll put up with challenge if I'm having a good time, but there's a good reason I got that accursed X6 out of my house as soon as possible even though I enjoy the hell out of Metal Slug 3.

"I want the original Street Fighter to be on the Sf comp...yeah it's wack compared to Street Fighter 2, but for pure nostalgia it would be cool to play it again..." *Shudder* I'd sooner have Street Fighter: The Movie on there, but at least it beats SF 2010.

That wascuwy "Dr. Wiwy!" I'd totally disagree about Mega Man 7 and 8, though. How are they like the X series, except for upgrades? There weren't really any shops in the X games, that I recall, no air-dashing, no wall-clinging, the sprites in 7 are waaay too big? Also, classic Mega Man generally > X games, IMO. Of course, I think almost the entire X series is mediocre at best except for X and X5. X is fantastic and the best game in the series as far as I'm concerned, and X5 brings so many new things to the table and it executes it so well, with a nice balance of difficulty and fun that I have to give it props. X2 was "more of the same" and didn't really add much to the series beyond upgrades, althoug it was executed well. X3 I found irritating and not very fun. X4 is probably the easiest Mega Man game ever. X6 is absolutely horrid. I haven't played X7, though. The Zero games are your bag if you like Mega Man-ish level design and gameplay capped off with the most annoying bosses around, like one that squeezes you to death with a gigantic vice. Yup, when I think "fun boss encounters," I think of one that relies on cheap level traps to kill you.

Oh, a couple more things: The animated sequences in Mega Man 8 are...well, just fantastic. *I* People hate them, but Elmer-Fudd sounding Dr. Light and girly-Mega Man are nearly as hilarious as those classically-bad NES transrations. Plus, in Mega Man 8 you can use the Mega Buster while the boss weapons are equipped, at long last.

7 is flawed but likable. It had the misfortune to come out around the time of Mega Man X, and didn't really carry over any of the new gameplay developments. You do have a shop to purchase upgrades, lives, special items etc. and there are upgrades found throughout the levels (note: find the ones in the stages so you don't have to buy them, since they're the same ones). You can even buy E-Tanks after you use them--you can hold a max of 4 E-Tanks and 4 W-Tanks. The upgrades include the old Rush Jet and Rush Coil, plus Super Adapter (Jet Mega Man and Power Mega Man all in package), Rush Search, and Proto Shield. Oh, there are a few other upgrades that aren't quite as exciting, but worth nabbing. My biggest issue with 7 is that it unnecessarily made Mega's sprite HUGE! He's like thrice the size of the little blue bot from the NES games. So, there's less of the screen that you can see, so either the game is far easier than the NES games, or it's unwieldy to maneuver Mega because of his size. Mega Man 8 has a smaller Mega Man, and brings back the bolt-collecting, upgrade-buying aspects of MM7. However, many of the boss weapons are useful for exploring, like the Thunder Claw (which seems to be a direct rip-off of Samus' grappling beam) and seem to add more of a X-ish feel to the game. However, Mega Man has so many animation frames his responsiveness is sluggish compared to the old days. Everything is extremely well-animated though, so it's a bit of a trade-off. It all LOOKS better but feels different. 8 is also very easy...except the ghey boarding sequences. In 8, you don't have Beat like in 7 (except for a cameo), but Rush has some new powers, like turning into a motorcycle and raining down power ups. However, I seem to recall they came at the expense of all of Rush's old powers--so no Rush Coil, and Rush Jet is only available as a shooting section in Tengu Man's stage that, as previously stated, is about 1000x more fun than jet-boarding. So 7 and 8 are good, 8's better IMO, but they lose a bit of the classic gameplay in the transition to 16 to 32 bits. ...either suck it up and beat it soundly or you'll never see the end of the game. I can beat that stage after a few run-throughs with ease, since it is the only hard part of the stage. However, the first Wily stage...starts with jet-boarding. =/

Why would I? Also, I've made it clear that I'm playing them by hopping from game to game, so I have played 2. That doesn't answer my question. 6 doesn't seem to have terrible level design to me, and like I said there's some good ideas implemented. So what horrid game play am I missing? Is it the difficulty? Because 6 does seem a lot easier than the others.

Yup--alias the Yellow Cyclops, alias "Rock Monster," etc. Turns into a series of blocks that flies across the screen and needs to be memorized perfectly to dodge them. So, what's all the hate for MM6 for? It seems to have a lot of good ideas, like the multiple paths, the introduction of the Rush upgrades, and quite a few secret areas in the levels I've seen. I guess the level design just isn't quite as inspired and it's too much of a rehash of the older games. It's still gold compared to X6, though.

Oh, okay. Thank you. And NO, I'm not switching to Easy! I refuse to! I will beat that filthy yellow sucka fair and square! Generally, 3 lives is all you need on the normal levels. I'll usually play the stage until I have it wired and can get through w/o dying. Then I'll sacrifice a life to fight the boss and learn his pattern. I'll try to win with just the Mega Buster if I have a life to spare, but if he's really a cheap SOB I'll go with the boss weapon if necessary. Stuff like Guts Man's lifts may throw wrenches in my plans, but generally I do fine that way. Does Air Man use the same basic attack patterns as Storm Eagle and Tengu Man? If so, I can't wait to slaughter him. Oh, something I think they shouldn't have changed from Mega Man 1--weak enemies in the pre-boss chamber. So if you were low on energy you could fill up on weapon energy and health before fighting the boss. In nearly every other Mega Man game you couldn't do that.

So once I beat the Yellow Devil, I have to still go ahead and finish the rest of the game without saving? Nuts. If I have to use a continue, will I still have my progress saved as long as I don't exit the game? In my defense, I never played the NES games, so every one of these games save for 7 and 8 are new to me. It boggles me that the same company that made these made that piece of crap X6. In some ways I like Mega Man 1 more than most of the newer platformers...you don't HAVE to have a huge sprite for your protagonists. I haven't actually tried any of the Wily stages yet seriously...it's the apprehension that's getting to me. I remember Yellow's great grandson Black kicking the crap out of me in X5 and I'm afraid of it happening again. Then again, I did beat that guy so maybe I can with Yellow. Damn me for insisting on playing Normal with 3 lives.

Nintendo is pulling Sega-quality screw-ups these days. They've announced the DS, but they've already announced that *another* hand-held will follow it in about 2007, and if the DS flops it will come sooner. Pffft. Also, anyone who releases the NES version of Donkey Kong, by itself, without even all the levels, for TWENTY BUCKS are some shameless money-grubbers. Mario Bros I could see...even though they should have ported All Stars. Zelda I could see...even if they should have ported a collection of the 8/16-bit Zeldas. Xevious even, cuz that rocked. However, DONKEY KONG?! The NES DONKEY KONG with 3 stages?! The one that could be beat in less than 10 minutes?! Nintendo, you should be ashamed of yourself. An upgraded Donkey Kong Classics with the original (with Cement Factory restored), Jr, DK3, DK Jr. Math for the hell of it I would consider worth buying. Not that though. What a ripoff. Did I mention in Japan they released Mario Bros. as a Famicom Mini game? You know, the same game Superstar Saga and the Mario Advance titles all had in it, except with better graphics, up to four players, and without the need to own two carts to play against others? I like Nintendo but if they're going to pull crap like that, even I, Mr. Anti-Emulation, would be all for emulating them...if not for the Zelda Collection, the All Stars cart I already have, and the Game Boy Donkey Kong. "Hey .. what's wrong with the GC controller? I like it, it's incredibly easy to use .. the only real flaw is the Z key. They should have given us an extra set of R&L instead." I don't like it for fighting games, because unlike most controllers that are somewhat fighting game friendly, it has a completely screwed-up layout. I've yet to hear anyone give me a good reason *why* it needs to be the way it is. It's confortable for almost all games...but fighters. Since the PS controllers are almost perfect save for the d-pad, I don't see the net gain. It can't be that Sony has the design trademarked, because the PS controllers are almost direct ripoffs of the SNES controller, and secondly because Sony should be suing the makers of countless ripoffs, including a ton of PS clone controllers you see for the PC. I think the X-Box controller is worse though, because of the bulkiness and the idiotic placement of the black and white buttons. Of course, the Gamecube controller is arguably better than the N64 controller--now that was a cheap-feeling piece of crap. I've had two analog sticks snap like twigs for me on that. I'm somewhat loyal to Nintendo because I loved the SNES and the GBA. However, nearly every criticism I have about the PSP is found in the DS, plus there are more things to gripe about besides.

Pressing select mid-game gives you the password. I haven't tried any of them yet, though. But they all seem to be different for each Wily-boss stage. Okay. I'll keep that in mind. I'm quite surprised since MMVII even saves the E-Tanks you have. If you enter passwords from a new game, will it give you credit for beating bosses or only the ones you beat while playing the game on there? I haven't tried it yet, but in MM1 can you fight the bosses you beat already from a saved game? I heard the original Mega Man on NES wouldn't let you play completed stages, so I'm not sure. Also, for earlier games, if you use up a E-Tank, will it be there again if you re-enter the stage? It's not a problem in MMVII since you can buy more anyway, but I was wondering. I'm a bit annoyed that the earlier MMs don't save the number of E-Tanks you collected...

What does living with your parents how to do with anything? It's acceptable and widespread worldwide, and that negative stigma has basically disappeared. Since the economies worldwide have taken a bit of a hit, hey, it happens. That's also why the 18-25 demo is so desirable, because they generally have more disposable income. Many of them work (that age range, not just the ones you're talking about), go to college, and pay rent/buy groceries, car payments and insurance. In my case, most of my college tuition is paid for by financial aid since my dad was a veteran, and the small difference is student loans. I cosplayed as Cody from Final Fight before--er, not the Alpha 3 version. If you're talking about blond bimbos, meh. Boring as hell. Well, Pantera is smoking, but generally I find them dull. Give me anything else: short, tall, black, Asian, big booty, small booty, small-chested, etc. The real over-saturation is the proliferation of the Pam Anderson type, which is soooo generic because you see them all the time on TV, movies, etc. --okay, Pantera is blond and I find her smokin', but most blondes don't do anything for me.

You can't at all, you have to write down a password, or what? I was about to finish the first in MMVII, but after Bass I was down to a sliver of energy and an enemy snuck in a hit and killed me on my last life. I seem to recall hearing that you could get a new password after each of the Wily stages in most of the games, and I'm almost certain you would be able to save after each of the final stages in the X games.

Keep it in the pants John, keep it in the pants. Hey, you can't blame the guy for wanting some of that asian pie. Rock on Big Johnny *Insert bukkake joke here* Damn, I was so close--I was thinking ex-sitcom writer!! So, no TV drama writer wants to put up with Vince's crap, huh? This comes as a big surprise to...uh...

Quickman's stage apparently was the origin of those ****ing insta-kill lasers. ARRGH!! Beat a few more bosses--got Picture Set 1 and the Jungle theme music. Again, haven't actually beaten a single game yet--been hopping around from game to game, so probably a good bit of goodies are unlocked by beating X number of bosses.

I got the Atomic Planet credits, but didn't beat Mega Man 1.... Hmmm...

Why is that Reagan shirt, of all colors, red?

I usually vote for democrats, but I voted for the republican candidate in our city mayoral election a few years ago. Why? Because the GOP candidate had solutions to the problems my city had. All the demo candidate had was rhetoric. He was also a fucktard, which his term in the mayor's office proved. He damn near got impeached for all his shit. Good for you. Where I am we got quite a lousy new county commissioner. He's a multi-millionaire, owns 84 Lumber, Nemacolin Woodlands, Fayette Resources, and a ton of other stuff--basically the mountains are his personal little Xanadu. He got rich by being an unscrupulous twat. For instance, Fayette Resources has half the salaries of its workers paid by the state...for two years. Conveniently, that's when about every single one of them is fired. An excuse is found all the time. Legal? Yes, but far from ethical. You might think he's a Republican...but he's a Democrat, and his party affiliation is the main reason he was elected. I hate my dumbass county. Oh, and he wants to bring gambling into the county as well. Wonderful, that will fix the crime and drug problems we have already.

Exactly. Since the Playstation era increased the users of consoles vastly, the market may even be large enough to accommodate three different consoles simultaneously and keep them each very strong. It seems to be moving towards that, possibly. Nintendo has the kids and young adults, but most of the good stuff is on GBA. The Gamecube lacks a game library to keep them satifisfied, let alone move beyond that. PS2 seems to be young adults and teens. X-Box seems to be college-age and above... That is, in general. Obviously, there's a lot of overlap as far as hardcores and so on. Also, I think the GBA is played by a hell of a lot of different ages. I don't think the NES Classics series would be a wise move unless there were a sizeable portion of old NES gamers who had picked up GBAs. Then again, programming costs are next to nil. I think one major problem with Nintendo is, sad to say, Miyamoto. He's creative and brilliant but as far as being in touch with the modern gamers he comes up short. The Gamecube controller is his baby, because he longs for the old two-button NES era games, for instance. The DS seems to be tailor-made for the Japanese market, but I don't know if it such a good idea for the U.S.

1. I don't recall anyone on these boards that watches/listens and takes Hannity and Limbaugh seriously. If there was, we'd be making fun of them. 2. You don't think there are Moore loyalists who hold him up as some sort of cultural hero? They do exist. Hell, there's one poster around here who turned his entire banner into an ad for F9/11. 3. No, I don't listen Rush's show and I don't know of too many on here that do. There's also differences between "biased views" and flat-out lies. One stretches the truth, the other snaps it. Probably Rush and Hannity flat out lie all the time, but unless you watch FAUX NEWS LOL! or listen to his radio show, you can avoid them entirely. You don't have to be stupid to be completely wrong or a pompous lying jerk. It helps, though. Gore Vidal is intelligent but I'm not going to buy into his political ideals and theories, either.

"although I thought the history piece was also a Cube exclusive, which it isn't" I think just the interview piece is. What's history? A narrated look at the series overall? Oh, Slash Man and Coil Man down in MM7, and Elec Man down in Mega Man 1! In order--meh. Not my bag. I hate the boarding section at the start of Wily's fortress in Mega Man 8, though.

If the PS2 had performed as well in the marketplace as the Master System, or if the PSP didn't have a lineup of software that looks interesting even before launch, sure. Of course, if you mean it in the sense that it actually does have a snowball's chance of competing with the GBA, sure. However, what's this noise about a follow up to the DS a few years later?! WTF!!? Why? All of the systems are going to have plenty mediocre games littered with CGI cinemas and little actual gameplay. I can't honestly be the only one that hopes Sony gets their ass kicked with the PS3. A company as dominant as they are is not good for the video game industry. It's always best when we have two comparable video game powers battling it out. Nintendo only rivals Sony if you count the portables, and X-Box is doing pretty damn good but in Japan it is still underperforming. Oddly, right now the actual game sales for X-Box are mostly kicking the PS2 game sales' asses.