AndrewTS

Hmm. Yeah, that doesn't look right. Replace 'pro American' with 'anti-everyone' then. Considering he's not really even pro-American anyway. I haven't been watching Smackdown, so I wouldn't know. However, wasn't his character supposed to be a Texan DiBiase? Yet from what I see skimming TV reports, basically that was just to set up the big push, and now he basically is playing a racist heel hoss that occasionally brings up the money and book and yadda yadda for bragging rights. I don't expect him to be giving money away to people who will do disgusting things, since they's totally midcard, but huh? It's as if the new gimmick is an afterthought.

"Bradshaw's character is a heel. His character is basically 'cocky pro-American who thinks he's better than everyone'. So I guess it fits." I must have missed all the Seig Heils from Kurt Angle that finally got him over after the guy couldn't buy a decent heel reaction.

Bruce is screwing up Smackdown, sure, but I've heard for quite a while that Tom has been one of Vince's chief ass-kissers, so unless I'm wrong I don't think he deserves to be off the hook, either. Regardless, it's so funny to hear some of that stuff coming from a WWE employee, and he's not bitching about the WWE itself, per se.

You can also blame the design of the Gamecube controller on him. While being "old school" isn't necessarily bad, Miyamoto wants to return back to the days of two-button controllers, hence the emphasis on A and B. However, as far as game production goes, it's hard to fault him, because his eye for talent has allowed some of the brightest stars in history of this industry to shine. Although he's had some part in some scandals. Who can forget about Mario's rampant drug use in the 80's, Donkey Kong's long history of steroid abuse, and the transvestite Birdo's sex change and subsequent hooking up with Yoshi?

Maybe I'm wrong then. It's been a hell of a long time, but maybe I'm just confused and they didn't have many of them. And HOLY CRAP there are a lot of save points in CotM. I checked some maps: CotM had 5 and they were obviously spaced further apart. AoS had 8 warp rooms. I, embarrassingly, don't think I realized at the time that CotM had warp rooms. Doh. HoD had a ton of warp rooms, but that was because there were two castles in that one.

yeah, but wouldn't you rather it be that way rather than, say Metroid Fusion for example, where it's all practically laid out in front of you telling you what to do next? that's the only thing i hated about that game... Yeah, but the trick is to reach a nice balance between non-linear and linear without making it a pain in the ass to figure out what to do next. Super Metroid was virtually perfect in that regard, and the lack of leveling-up meant you could skip to nearly the end of the game fairly easy if you weren't in great need of too many upgrades. Much of Super Metroid's non-linearity is actually theorized to be accidental, but it's still fantastic regardless of how it came about. I think my main gripe about it is that, unlike in HoD or AoS, those bastards removed the warp rooms. Even the Metroids had the elevators to speed up backtracking. In CotM, you'd have to get a hunch of what to do next, then fight, fight, fight, fight to get where you think you need to be, and then if you were wrong, you have to fight, fight, fight to get to another area you think might be where you need to go. The warp rooms made backtracking a breeze. CotM lacking it made it tedious. I just gave it another shot. It seems that I already beat Hard Mode, because I have the Silver Gun, and other "hard mode" items. I put on the crappiest weapons and armor and started playing. The enemies are the same, they move at the same speed, they appear to be the same numbers--I just think they do a little more damage. Since I can usually mow through them without getting hit much, this basically meant it was only noticably harder when I fought a boss. Although using the Silver Gun to wreak havoc from the start is great, because when you normally get it in Hard Mode the first time, it's basically useless by that point. The only problem is that you'll get in in a paper carton with the store logo on it, because so damn many careless bastards throw away or lose the box and instructions. Also, if you really want SotN, it's available usually from 20 to 25 bucks on Half.com (well, there's shipping...) http://half.ebay.com/cat/buy/prod.cgi?cpid...=1794&meta_id=4 However, I lucked out and got my SotN at my EB for $9.99 Pre-owned. Some moron actually traded in that game. Stupid! Stupid! It's one of the few PS1 games that have survived my constant old game purges. *plugs in headphones* Did I mention the AoS music is great?

Where was Miss Jackie during this?

That Prichard article is gold... "If there was a way to screw things up, I could find it with no problem. But I don't think I ever blamed other people for 'holding me down,' or claimed anybody was being 'extra rough' with me. This is a contact sport/business, and it's not for everybody! I get really pissed when someone comes into our developmental system and claims they were envied and "roughed up" intentionally because people were "threatened" by the possibility of losing their spot.... "I hear from agents who tell me they have the "perfect guy/girl" for WWE. Do they have any wrestling experience? No. They won the "Miss Apalukka Nail Filing Contest,” though, and will really help WWE's ratings! Don't even ask me about the ones who call using their computers.... "Getting back to my story-your story-what really happened. I am always amazed how ignorant and stupid some people can be. With propaganda, if you say something long enough, it will become truth, via perception.... "It's not fair to the ones who bust their ass and wait in line for their break only to be overlooked by a no-talent, egotistical, mindless moron!" Fun-ny. "If there was a way to screw things up, I could find it with no problem." Give yourself more credit Bruce, you're still doing it!

Then why do you care about how they choose to draw heat? Because he made an ass out of himself. There's being un-PC, and then there's being an asshole for the sake of being an asshole. You of course miss the entire point, applying my reasoning for ignoring the drug use and other conduct that basically affects only the wrestler on something he does as part of a performance. Bradshaw made a public spectacle of himself, on the other hand. I'm still trying to see the exact reasoning for him doing it other than the absolute cheapest of cheap heat. It's pathetic if a main event heel has to resort to insulting the city he's in for heat, but doing that is taking it several steps further. It didn't even fit in with his character. You just said he's not a Nazi character. So why do it? I've already been among those who thought the column was stupid and deserved the derision thrown at it. However, there are people coming out of the woodwork acting as if Bradshaw was a model employee and a credit to the business when he is and has been a fucking twat--IN MY OPINION, if you don't mind that. Yeah, a wonderful way to close. You're just the absolute pinnacle of brilliance and you're obviously not wrong. It's everyone else. Yeah. I'm glad to see you can leave the conversation gracefully. Well, Vince could always bribe glowing recommendations from Gene Shalit and Joel Seigel if he needed to, I suppose.

Bradshaw's character is a Nazi?

A number of? "and the first guy pretty much covered all of your complaints with 'average wrestler'." There were other gripes. Although, in summary a lot of people dislike him as a worker, dislike his opinions, and dislike his attitude in general. It's similar how a lot of smarks hate Nash, but his workrate is just one of several reasons. Plus, the other poster was basically saying he believes Bradshaw hasn't touched a drug and been an all around great guy backstage. Some are supported by reports, some are just strongly suggested. However, I see no accounts painting him as any sort of angel himself. If he's going to single out a few "smark darlings" for drugs and infidelity (stuff in the past, by the way), then he's got plenty more to pick on, including Bradshaw for at least alcohol, possibly more. Plus, you use ridiculous, hyperbolic examples to say that "smark darlings" get off regardless of what they do. Dynamite Kid gets props as a performer, but he doesn't get half the love of plenty of other guys who were far less workers (well, that would be pretty much everyone, I guess). Jake and Snuka are examples of two legends who get props for their performance, but get little for being a drug addict whose addictions have caused him to make an ass out of himself constantly and a murderer respectively. Austin has lost a great deal of respect from smarks for many reasons. So basically, I think it's not out of the question to call bullshit on that theory of yours. If Bradshaw was merely a subpar worker getting a push, he'd still be disliked, just like a number of the OVW guys and hosses. However, there's more that people have a beef with about him, so he gets far more hate. In general, I don't think too many marks or smarks give a shit what drugs a wrestler has done as long as it isn't affecting their performance or threatening their lives. Generally we don't care about it in regards to our rock stars, so we don't care too much in regards to the wrestlers we like either. So Bradshaw ranting about how we should drop bombs all over the middle east indiscriminately pisses me off far more than knowing what drugs X wrestler has shot up.

Most of them indeed have. Shall I make a list for you? They would be even names that have basically been confirmed by shoots, reports from travel partners, etc., and not include the instances of drug use and infidelity that goes on constantly even today. This is opposed to all the wasted talents who still get heat and reactions despite next to no push or a lousy gimmick, but Bradshaw is handed a god push, tons of squash matches, tons of air time, and a title shot on a silver platter, and viewers are leaving in droves. Heh... Logical or no, a lot of smarks heavily dislike guys like Bradshaw and Orton because WWE say fit to push them, because they are viewed as undeserving. Of course, Bradshaw is less of a cause than a symptom, but he's basically done nothing to warrant his push except that he managed to draw heat being part of a Pulp Fiction ripoff tag team and squashing lots of cruisers. Towing the company line in his columns, begging for people to buy WWE stock, hanging around with Undertaker and Vince... I must have not heard about how, in addition to his known job as a financial analysist, he also worked as a political commentator, with a particular interest in foreign affairs. I honestly don't ever recall hearing about that. Man, he does it all, doesn't he? About the bigot part--gee, I had no idea that all bigots shared the exact same prejudices. Hmm... Find where I said "this is Bradshaw's fault," exactly. I was merely pointing out the many reasons people jump on him. Trying to develop a new main event character while pushing him to the main event simultaneously is more of a desperation move and show of incompetence by WWE than Bradshaw politicking. There have been reports naming Bradshaw as a guy who likes to bully newcomers, the rest of it is rumored though, and a lot of people like to take as fact because they find it very likely. You, Goodear: We have different opinions on "average." To me, a wrestler is average if he is basically decent and sound in most/all areas, but is extremely unremarkable in any of them. Bradshaw, on the other hand, has glaring flaws in the areas of selling, moveset, and pacing. Your definition may vary. Actually, each one was relevant, becuase they were pointing out why people don't like Bradshaw. However, if you want to twist it around to only include things that don't bother you personally, then we don't have much to go on, but that wasn't the point. Thing is, no one gives a fuck about Grut, so no one would take his opinion to mean the same as the majority of net fans. How's that funny? I was using it to emphasize there's a number of reasons he's disliked. If you're going to get on some one's case for improper sentence structure, as if this was formal writing, then you should take a serious look at some of your own writing. Oh right. That's why he gets mentioned on here everyday and his book was such a huge seller. Although, I must say glad that you're staying above this and not presented biased arguments or personal opinions yourself. Applaud for Goodear, everyone.

AoS is easier than HoD. There's a hard mode, but I can't seem to recall if I played that my secnod time through or not. I'llgive it a shot later and see. All of the new CVs have been pretty easy, though. However, I didn't bother at all leveling up and thus I found HoD rather challenging. Through most of the first part of the game, save points are fairly infrequent, so I'd have to replay a certain section a few times. CotM's most redeeming factor is probably the difficulty, though, since the others aren't quite as hard. However, with CotM I too often was wondering what the fizuck I had to do next, unlike the others where it was rather obvious.

CotM isn't terrible, but it is so outclassed by the other two it isn't funny. I actually think Harmony of Dissonance is the best one. Not only do you actually control a Belmont for the "real" game (although ENOUGH with the white-haired bishie protagonists, Ms. Kojima!), but it has two castles just like SotN and seems to have the longer play life. I also prefer the level design of that over AoS, because you have to think more carefully about where you're going to go next. Out of all the GBA ones, HoD is the most like SotN. Although AoS's godlike Soma is far closer to the way SotN's Alucard plays than HoD's Juste (Soma actually have far more skills due to the number of souls there are to collect), I don't feel that so many of Juste's skills are unnecessary like in AoS. I feel HoD's better for replay, because running in and out of a room trying to get a certain enemy's soul just isn't too fun in AoS. Aria of Sorrow is excellent, though, too. If you really, really liked CotM, both of the followups are each about twice as good. Incidentally, you know that site you were quoting for sales figures? I wonder how Lament of Innocence and the GBA CVs sold. SotN unfortunately didn't sell very well at all. HoD's music isn't very good, but Aria of Sorrow's music is utterly fantastic. Both of them graphically absolutely smoke CotM. The effects "outside" that are similar to Mode 7 on steroids are quite awesome, for instance. I say get HoD, then get AoS. Both are well worth your money, but HoD is harder to find. There is still LoI, but it...isn't nearly as good as the 2D ones. The best 3D Castlevania to date is still Devil May Cry. Anyway, both are really good in different ways, so don't deprive yourself of either.

The endings and text quotes are in Japanese, but apparently yeah. I managed to stomp through arcade mode despite the control issues and it went all the way.

Yeah, forgot those, too. Although I can't put things like drug use, alchohol, steroid abuse, etc. FBP implied that Bradshaw never did any of that, and I'm sure he's probably got accurate sources on that, so who am I to dispute that claim?

Except for the wife stealing, hasn't basically every major name wrestler done those very same things? In general, the steroid stuff is usually used against a wrestler when it affects his performance. And being a guy who was on the roster for a hell of a long time, never drew much heat without a good, heavily pushed gimmick, and is only being pushed now because he's a kiss ass... And being a bigoted, far-far-far-far-right penisbucket who spouts his distasteful political ideals as if anyone gives a damn what a wrestler thinks... And main eventing a PPV about a month after first getting pushed as a main event threat.... And for the rumors about his hazings, which depending on which rumors you believe, border on sexual assault... And for being a shitty Stan Hansen clone... And his crappy selling... And his ignorant, contradictory columns that WWE would put up, where he's bashed everything from net fans in general to foreign wrestling (or was that JR?). I miss anything? Lord knows when you think of the voice of the IWC, you think of Grut. You'd have a better case if you were talking about Keith, who many smarks try to distance themselves from anyway.

I picked up the 2nd X-Box Exhibition disc, and there's this "demo" of Capcom vs. SNK 2. Thing is, I don't see how it is a "demo" at all. It's basically the whole freakin' game! Arcade, Versus (with 2 players and all), Survival, Color Edit, all the modes of play and grooves, all the characters... Basically, it is only lacking the ability to save (unless it saves directly to the hard drive) and X-Box Live play. I don't know if all of them are like this or maybe it was a boo-boo that happened to be in early copies of the disc. The game is still rough to play with any of the X-Box controllers, though.

Thats because the prime market i.e. the Ghetto peeps do not own dvd players. Some of them do. Well, maybe "own" isn't exactly the appropriate legal term, but some of them have "acquired" DVD players.

The current title would still fit, with O.J.'s new career at a waiter.

Miyamoto is a genius: agree or disagree?

.... That might, MIGHT make me want to buy Halo eventually, after all. You could, you know, just turn on your CD player.

Heh, that's a problem with a text-based medium. Although trust me, she's being sarcastic. Although, unlike most of us, if she buys it she might get an odd look or so, but if you're a guy, you must have absolutely no shame if you go into a store and actually purchase that. If I actually wanted it, I'd be more deeply ashamed to get it than buying porn. So Tecmo is lucky that a lot of people have no shame and that online shopping is so common. =P

I've been wondering the same thing. I think games have to have special options for it, like Raw letting you use a certain theme on the hard drive as entrance music. However, the question is best left to vet X-Boxers who actually know what they're talking about. I don't know much more than you about the subject.

Something I noticed on Classicgaming: Also...