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A hero will always have something to say, but not every hero has a voice. Once utilized simply due to technical limitations in video game development the silent protagonist has come a long way. The strong, silent type used to prevail in early video games and has set the standard of how relationships between the player character and supporting cast members are presented. How the speechless explorer is handled has a significant effect on the game as a whole.
[img width=620 height=403]http://bulk.destructoid.com/ul/user/4/46407-233454-Jayandsilentbobjpg-620x.jpg[/img]
There are two principle versions of the silent protagonist: the mute and the secretive. The first case presents a player character whose dialogue is neither displayed nor implied. The descendent of Erdrick in Dragon Warrior is an exemplary mute hero. These protagonists react to the world and those who inhabit it, and ultimately enable the player to become immersed in the character and story. The benefit of this is that the player can form his or her own thoughts and emotions concerning in-game events which makes the experience feel less scripted. However, if handled too lightly the mute adventurer can be perceived as nothing more than an errand boy. This usually comes about when the player must complete tasks assigned by supporting characters that repeated fail to achieve any seemingly significant plot development.
A secretive protagonist is in many ways a solution to the problems that arise from a completely mute hero. Here, the player character's lines are implied or referenced by the supporting roles. Link is one of these protagonists in that even though he does not technically have any lines of dialogue the character with which he is conversing will react as though he had just said something. Similarly when the secretive character is supposed to speak the game will prompt the player with a Yes or No question. Using this type of protagonist allows for strong bonds to form between the player and the hero which in turn allows him or her to become more real and relatable. This scene from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time displays the traits of a successfully executed secretive protagonist.
I know Zelda isn't an RPG, but this scene gets the point across.
Successfully utilizing a silent hero allows the character to be infused with courage, honour, steadfastness by the player. The character that keeps calm when thrown into the fray of battle, clear and conscious while traversing a dungeon is more often than not an adventure with no real lines of dialogue.
The silent protagonist works to varying degrees, but what this sort of character proves is that a person's actions speak volumes. Of course these voyagers are burdened with immense responsibility. This is why the silent protagonist fits so nicely in the Adventure genre, especially in the RPG. The player learns that when faced with opposition what he or she does is equally important as what can be said. We can also gather that the nature of responsibility itself is often something which we would rather avoid, but by approaching the situation head on with determination and a clear mind success is never out of reach. Despite not being able to talk the quiet hero has a lot to say.
This last week was quite slow for me because unfortunately I lost access to the setup that I do 90% of my playing on. This means that I have to revert back to my original setup of playing straight into my Laptop. Now by doing my recordings this way I have a little amount of lag to deal with, which means that any game that requires quick reactions is gonna be MUCH harder. Its unlikely to change anytime in the immediate future so I'll just have to make due with what I've got to work with. This means the selection of games I had prepared might not be ideal at the moment. I'm going to be focussing on games that don't require much in terms of reflexes. Things like RPGs, Strategy Games or some types of Puzzle games. Unfortunately those genres tend to be pretty time consuming in comparison to what I had in mind so its gonna be a struggle to get to my goal of 100 games in my time frame. Luckily I was able to get a little ahead before this happened and still have several pretty easy games left to cross of the list. So while last week I was basically positive I was gonna reach my goal, now I'm not so sure. But I'll try to get as close as I can given my current limitations.
If anyone can recommend any slow moving games that are relatively quick victories I'd really appreciate it though!
Now onto what I have been able to do in the last little while.
Some of you may remember that I really liked World Games. So I was hopeful that Winter Games would be enjoyable too. Unfortunately it wasn't nearly as good. It had fewer events and none of them stood out to me as very good. Pretty big let down after World Games.
[img width=643 height=479]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/WinterGames-Ending_zps924ac634.png[/img]
Decided it was time to sink a little effort into the only Soccer game I ever played as a child, NES World Cup Soccer. Like most Technos games its pretty fun, but can get a little repetitive since you have to play through 12 games to win. The first 6-8 games are pretty much a joke too. It really doesn't pose much of a challenge until you get to the games in the finals. Even then I only lost one game the entire time. Definitely more fun with some friends.
[img width=642 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/NESWorldCupSoccer-Ending_zps6bcdd2f0.png[/img]
Here is another early arcade port, Defender II. Unfortunately there is no high score to beat, ending or areas to loop. So it was basically just beat a level I guess :/. Nothing to write home about.
[img width=642 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/Defender-Ending_zpsf294d3c5.png[/img]
Next up is everybody's favorite wrestling game M.U.S.C.L.E.!! The game starts looping after the 4th stage and the preset high score was beaten after the 5th stage so since there is no ending I'm calling that good enough. Kind of a lame game though. Gets old and repetitive VERY fast and the random power up things that get launched across the ring each round kind of break the game.
[img width=642 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/MUSCLE-Ending_zpsdf93dfa0.png[/img]
You thought I was done with all the game shows by now? Fear not I found another one! MTV's Remote Control. TV trivia wasn't to hard, but to make things even easier they don't punish you for getting wrong answers! So I could just buzz in first every single time wether I knew the answer or not and take a 1 out of 3 chance of getting it correct. Its like they wanted me to win!
[img width=642 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/MTVRemoteControl-Ending_zpse971a181.png[/img]
Lastly this time around was Spot The Video Game. Hopeful that it might be the long awaited game to surpass the almighty Othello I was sadly disappointed  The game moves far to quickly and has some flashy animations and annoying sounds, so it'll never be in the same league as Othello. The default computer was a bit smarter than me, but after 5-6 attempts I was able to finish it up.
[img width=642 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/Spot-Ending_zpsd283b743.png[/img]
2013 NES List
67 Games Beaten In 56 Days
Sesame Street Countdown
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters
Shooting Range
Space Shuttle Project
Double Dare
Win, Lose or Draw
Othello
Whomp Em
Dragon Fighter
Bugs Bunny's Crazy Castle
Family Feud
Tale Spin
Platoon
Gotcha!
Gun Smoke
Kiwi Kraze
10 Yard Fight
Tom & Jerry
Wrecking Crew
Hatris
Time Lord
Orb 3D
Wheel of Fortune Jr
Wheel of Fortune Family Edition
Captain America and the Avengers
Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune Featuring Vanna White
The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle
Bo Jackson Baseball
Jeopardy! Jr
Jeopardy!
Jeopardy! 25th Anniversary
Cowboy Kid
Crash n The Boys: Street Challenge
Galaga
Color A Dinosaur
Millipede
Popeye
Sesame Street 123
Sesame Street ABC
Sesame Street Hide & Speak
Soccer
Classic Concentration
Fisher Price I Can Remember
Fisher Price Perfect Fit
Mickey's Safari in Letterland
Mickey's Adventure in Numberland
NES Open Golf
Pictionary
Chessmaster
Anticipation
DK Jr Math
Donkey Kong 3
Urban Champion
Balloon Fight
Pinball
Qix
Hollywood Squares
Twin Cobra
Flintstones Rescue of Dino & Hoppy
Tiger-Heli
Winter Games
NES World Cup Soccer
Defender II
M.U.S.C.L.E.
MTV's Remote Control
Spot The Video Game
Future Plans - Already put a decent amount of time into Gemfire so I plan to continue that one. Also plan to keep trying on Track & Field II after heal from an injury on a previous attempt  Gonna be looking into more strategy and RPG type games. Perhaps Nobunaga's Ambition or Legend of the Ghost Lion.
Hey guys,
I have been wanting to start a blog for a very long time but never knew of a good blogging website to use. I found rfgeneration and knew that I had finally found my blogs home. Anyways, I am a diehard Sega fan and own just about ever console that they released. I have a very vast collection of games and will probably showcase some here. I do have a YouTube channel where I am very active and do many reviews, unboxings, game hauls, and just different retro gaming topics. The link to my channel is: http://www.youtube.com/us...deos?flow=grid&view=0. So I hope you guys are up to going on along for the ride and look forward to things to come!
[img width=450 height=611]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/U-107/bf/U-107-S-00010-A.jpg[/img]
Back in 1982, DragonStomper was released for the Atari 2600 Supercharger. Today, I have remade this game for the PC!
Designed to be a Fan-Remake of the original (as I do not own the rights to the name), DragonStomper Redux follows the titular Dragon Hunter, Lioma, in his quest to slay Kilkorin, a Dragon that has stolen the Kingdom of Klau's Magical Amulet. Although the Plot is essentially the same as that of the original game, there are some twists to this Remake's Story.
FAQ
Q: How much does this cost?
A: It's free. I do not own the rights to the name, and this is a FANMADE game.
Q: Who made this?
A: I did, with input from friends.
Q: The Platform?
A: PC only.
Q: The engine?
A: RPG Maker VX Ace.
Q: Why DragonStomper?
A: Why NOT DragonStomper? It's probably the first RPG ever! 
Q: Any tips?
A: This game is NOT about going in to face problems head on. You need to think some things through, or you won't get very far. Also, search EVERYWHERE.
Q: Release date?
A: Unknown. It is currently in what I like to call a Pre-Beta test.
Q: Any Screenshots?
A: No, but I plan to unleash a trailer to the public at some point before release.
That's pretty much it. Look forward to this game, but don't hold your breath. I can't release in it's current state, so please be patient.
[img width=500 height=375]http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2651/3870143685_9cd1eecf2f.jpg[/img]
Coming it at #4 on my countdown is yet another Pat Lawlor designed pin (Banzai Run #9 and Funhouse #5), the very popular, The Addams Family. This pin is so popular in fact, that it is the best-selling pinball machine of all time at 20,270 machines produced + 1000 additional units sold and labeled The Addams Family Special Collectors Edition, or what is known by pinball enthusiasts as simply the "gold edition." The gold edition has some additional features including gold armor, a gold lockdown bar, gold cabinet lightning instead of the usual blue, and some additional ROM features, one of which is the Cousin It animations and modes.
Continue reading Banana's Pinball Top 10 - #4 The Addams Family
N64.
For a few years now I have been wanting to start a complete N64 collection. I already have ruffly about 90 games out of the 296 American released titles. However as of recently I aquired a box of 53 Super nintendo games all in there original boxes with manual. It was at that moment I realized, not only do I want a complete N64 collection but I want a complete collection boxed. This is the hard part thoe, I have about 90 games but only 12 boxed as of right now. I have about 25 on order and I am going to keep at it for about the next year or 2.
Most titles are pretty reasonable but there are a few that are going to cost me a pretty penny with the worse one being clayfighters 63 1/2 sculptor's cut currently going for $1600 as of today with the box and manual. This is not going to be easy but it should be fun. I have tried to talk to co workers and other friends about this epic task. But not to many people understand the mindset and dedication of a collector. Nor do they care.
Hopefully the few that read this shall understand  If anyone on the site has some extra boxed games or N64 boxes and manuals up for sale or trade please message me and keep me in the loop. Thanks everyone.
If everything has gone to plan. Below is the sad 12 lonely Games boxed I currently own at my house.
Episode 12 discussion thread: http://www.rfgeneration.c...rum/index.php?topic=11496
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With RFGeneration's 2013 successful donation drive being done and over, this episode is dedicated to the generous donors that helped keep the site afloat. The small scores section will be dominated by the finds from our benevolent donors that gave through the end of the drive (Feb. 1). Feeling left out this time around? Too bad you should have given us money!!!
In addition to the sites donation drive us podcasters held a little auction to raise some extra RFGen fundage for a guest spot on the show. Our lucky (that's debatable) winner was Nupoile!! His fearless and charitable spirit saw him talking with the 3 of us about what drives him to collect, how he goes about it, and why the Odyssey 2 is so amazing.
Thanks so much to everyone who chipped in in any way (not just financially) to keep improving the best gaming database on the net. This year's donation drive was successful because of the amazing community that supports RFGeneration and keeps it growing and thriving. I know were not alone in looking forward to many more years to come of sharing our fascinating hobby through the medium of RFGeneration!!
Sites mentioned in the show:
Arcade Gear: http://www.arcade-gear.com/
Music: The Guardian Legend (NES)
2:04 Intro
8:18 Small Scores
4:02:03 Interview with Nupoile
5:27:09 Outro
When it comes to retro arcade sticks there are a few which everybody knows about, the NES Advantage, Super Advantage, Sega's Genesis Stick & Saturn Stick, and then the Capcom Fighter Power Stick. But, it has been 20 years since this bulky controller has released so does it hold up?
You'll just have to stay tuned and find out!
Check me out on Twitter, Wordpress, and Facebook!
https://twitter.com/SirPsychoPlays
http://whydidiplaythis.wordpress.com/
http://www.facebook.com/p...Play-This/277098909016440
The RPG (Role Playing Game) is one of the many genres of games out there, and it is, without a doubt, my favorite genre. From the Epic Gameplay to the Intriguing Stories, these are my favorite ones. Here we go!
King's Field
[img width=550 height=797]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/U-061/bf/U-061-S-05780-C.jpg[/img]
King's Field is a First Person RPG for the PS1. Perhaps it is best known as the First (Second in Japan) Predecessor to the immensely popular PC/PS3/360 RPG Dark Souls. However, this game plays much differently from Dark Souls. As I mentioned before, it's a First Person RPG, and while it isn't the prettiest thing in existence, it's Gameplay is solid.
Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time
[img width=516 height=466]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/U-087/bf/U-087-S-08900-A.jpg[/img]
Ah, Final Fantasy. Once the most popular RPG Series EVER, it fell off it's throne a while back, and has been going downhill ever since. That doesn't mean they're all bad though. Echoes of Time is one such example. While not the most well known in the once beloved series, it's still quite the fun Action-RPG. You create an Avatar to use, and you can customize they're skills in pretty much any way that you want. Although it's unusual for Final Fantasy to do something like that, it was a welcome change.
Fire Emblem Awakening
[img width=604 height=550]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/U-182/bf/U-182-S-01710-A.jpg[/img]
Fire Emblem Awakening is the latest title in--What? You say you've read this already? Oh. Alrighty, I'll keep it short then. Fire Emblem + Avatar Creation + Epic Story + Amazing Gameplay = WIN! Even though it can't top a certain game on this list (You'll see it soon), it's still amazing.
Makai Toushi Saga
[img width=550 height=826]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/J-092/bf/J-092-S-00220-A.jpg[/img]
Now we're talking! Makai Toushi Saga is a remake of Final Fantasy Legend for the Game Boy, one of my favorite Game Boy Games ever, and an epic RPG in it's own right. Recently Fan-Translated, Makai Toushi Saga is about an Adventurer who decides to climb a Tower to Heaven, to find out exactly what's up there, as all before the Adventurer have failed. Epic Story, refreshing Gameplay, and more, this game is one you MUST try.
Chrono Cross
[img width=550 height=487]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/U-061/bf/U-061-S-02230-A.jpg[/img]
Chrono Cross is the most EPIC. RPG. EVER. Period. With an emotional story, unique (but brilliant RPG Gameplay), amazing Characters, and more, no RPG can top this one, not even the mighty Final Fantasy VII. In fact, dare to compare:
GameSpot's Score of FF7: 9.5
GameSpot's Score of CC: 10
But don't they're word for it, take mine. As a person who has experienced this game many times over, I never get tired of it. It is, and always will be, my favorite RPG ever. Not only that, it's my favorite game in general. Sure, you can argue that it was confusing, but it's not if you play Chrono Trigger and Radical Dreamers (Japan Only, Fan Translation available). So what are you waiting for? Go play it!
Before I begin, I'll have to ask you all to forgive my weird Blog Title, and blame Crabmaster2000. He comes up with the best ideas, using the games you've played to make a Blog Title. No copyright infringement intended. I just enjoy his awesome idea. Anyway...
[img width=604 height=550]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/U-182/bf/U-182-S-01710-A.jpg[/img]
Fire Emblem Awakening is the latest title in the Fire Emblem Series of Strategy-RPGs. Sporting an Avatar (Custom Character) Creation feature (This is actually the 2nd time the series has done this), 3D Visuals, and fun gameplay, all of these features combine perfectly to make one hell of a fun game. I haven't had this much fun with an SRPG in years, and I highly recommend it. It also manages to suck you in. Before I knew it, 2 Hours had passed from when I started playing it.
[img width=602 height=550]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/U-160/bf/U-160-S-00030-A.jpg[/img]
Foto Showdown DSi puts a new twist on the Pokemon Formula by using Photos. How? Well, you snap a picture with your DSi Camera, and a Monster will be made from it. You then use that Monster to battle with other Monsters in a tournament. It's pretty much a direct copy of Pokemon, but with Photos. It's actually pretty fun though.
[img width=550 height=756]http://www.rfgeneration.com/images/games/U-016/bf/U-016-S-33052-A.jpg[/img]
Here's one I'm sure you all know very well by now. Fallout New Vegas is like a cross between an FPS and an RPG. It revolves around a Courier and a special Casino Chip that is stolen from them. Said Chip is the key to determining who will rule New Vegas in a Post-Apocalyptic Nevada. Crazy as it all may seem, it really is a fun game, and I'm really enjoying it.
Well, that's all for now. Check back later for more entries.
With NES Open Tournament Golf finished so that its not eating up a ton of my playing time I'm moving along at a much more comfortable pace now. 9 Games downed since last update!!
Went on a Black Box binge which started with some Donkey Kong 3. I had never played this before and expected it to be much like the original...... WOW was that not the right assumption. I really liked it, but the game was extremely odd. Puffing air at DK's ass until he knocks a beehive onto his own head....... how did that ever get made? Anyway like many early games and arcade ports there were only a few levels to loop so it was a quick victory.
[img width=640 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/DonkeyKong3-Ending_zpsbebe8bad.png[/img]
After DK I decided to take it to the streets with some Urban Champion. Since the game goes on forever and winning one match and calling it a day felt pretty lame I decided to keep playing until I was awarded a trophy for my victory icon. Still not overly hard, but at least I had to play it for more than 1-2 minutes.
[img width=640 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/UrbanChampion-Ending_zpsa6760358.png[/img]
One of my favorite Black Box titles that I have not played in far too long was Balloon Fight. I like it mainly for the Balloon Trip mode. The regular mode is fine too, feels like a better version of joust. But I really enjoy the Balloon Trip a lot. You get ranked in Balloon Trip mode so my goal was to get the 1st place ranking.
[img width=640 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/BalloonFight-Ending_zps5868eea7.png[/img]
Last for my Black Box triumphs this update was Pinball. This was the game I spent the most time on also. Pinball doesn't have an ending, highscore or levels. So I decided my goal should be to get the flippers to disappear (100,000 points), then reappear (150,000 points) and save the lady in the bonus scene at least once. Felt like an appropriate goal to call it done. Took me a while to figure out how to build a decent score, but much like when I played High Speed it got quite enjoyable once I figured out how the table played. Not as bad as I first assumed.
[img width=640 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/Pinball-Ending_zpsea0b91f0.png[/img]
Next game is one I was lucky enough to pick up while down south visiting the flea market with Shadow, Qix. It took me far to long to finally plug it into my NES. It is a really addicting little puzzler. I dunno if its just me, but I found it pretty challenging and also a ton of fun. You run a line across a big rectangular area trying to create shapes in it without hitting enemies. The goal is to fill a certain percentage of the level with your shapes. Sounds lame, but so do most puzzle games when you say it out loud. This is one I'll definitely revisit later on.
[img width=640 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/Qix-Ending_zps7058bba7.png[/img]
Still looking slate my insatiable hunger for game shows I dusted off my copy of Hollywood Squares and won myself a car! The questions are fairly easy and after only a couple playthroughs you'll probably notice a lot of them being recycled, but the humor is actually pretty funny most of the time. Definitely more fun with a friend than against the computer though.
[img width=640 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/HollywoodSquares-Ending_zps2b8ee084.png[/img]
Looking for something a little more action packed I decided to revisit a game I havn't played in a few years, Twin Cobra. It doesn't get talked about much when people discuss scrolling shooters on the NES, but I think its great. The powerup system is very basic (I actually like that) and the controls are very tight. They recycle a few bosses, but for the most part they are varied and interesting. I think its a great shooter definitely worth checking out.
[img width=639 height=479]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/TwinCobra-Ending_zps3d2fe2b1.png[/img]
Oddly enough I actually owned, played, and beat Flintstones Surprise at Dinosaur Peak long before I did any of those with Flintstones Rescue of Dino & Hoppy. It was about time I fixed that. This game reminded me a lot of the Jetsons. It seemingly does a lot of things I like, but for some reason it just doesn't feel that much fun. I think with a new fighting mechanic it might flow a lot better. Kind of a "meh" game for me.
[img width=639 height=479]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/FlintstonesRescue-Ending_zpsfdb9041d.png[/img]
And to finish the night off this evening I popped in yet another scrolling shooter with Tiger-Heli. Unlike Twin Cobra its pretty obvious why this one doesn't get mentioned much. Its not terrible, its just incredibly bland. It doesn't have much personality to it at all. And it feels very slow. Luckily there are only 4 short levels and then it starts looping stages.
[img width=639 height=479]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/Tiger-Heli-Ending_zpseb4b9381.png[/img]
2013 NES List
61 Games Beaten Over 44 Days
Sesame Street Countdown
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters
Shooting Range
Space Shuttle Project
Double Dare
Win, Lose or Draw
Othello
Whomp Em
Dragon Fighter
Bugs Bunny's Crazy Castle
Family Feud
Tale Spin
Platoon
Gotcha!
Gun Smoke
Kiwi Kraze
10 Yard Fight
Tom & Jerry
Wrecking Crew
Hatris
Time Lord
Orb 3D
Wheel of Fortune Jr
Wheel of Fortune Family Edition
Captain America and the Avengers
Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune Featuring Vanna White
The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle
Bo Jackson Baseball
Jeopardy! Jr
Jeopardy!
Jeopardy! 25th Anniversary
Cowboy Kid
Crash n The Boys: Street Challenge
Galaga
Color A Dinosaur
Millipede
Popeye
Sesame Street 123
Sesame Street ABC
Sesame Street Hide & Speak
Soccer
Classic Concentration
Fisher Price I Can Remember
Fisher Price Perfect Fit
Mickey's Safari in Letterland
Mickey's Adventure in Numberland
NES Open Golf
Pictionary
Chessmaster
Anticipation
DK Jr Math
Donkey Kong 3
Urban Champion
Balloon Fight
Pinball
Qix
Hollywood Squares
Twin Cobra
Flintstones Rescue of Dino & Hoppy
Tiger-Heli
Future Plans - Might try another sports compilation like Winter Games or Track & Field II.
Last week David Cage, CEO of Quantic Dream, delivered his keynote speech at D.I.C.E. Summit held by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Science and what he had to say did not please many gamers. This conference is intended for the video games industry but consumers have a big role in what the developers create.
The entire speech can be found here:
Cage strongly asserts that the video games industry is suffering from what he calls the "Peter Pan Syndrome." He claims that video games have not change much, if at all, in their 40 year history. Yes, there have been technological advances and graphical improvements, but the core of today's games haven't changed. I couldn't agree more and I feel the genre suffering from this problem the most is the RPG.
[img width=700 height=393]http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2010/02/final_fantasy_xiii_xbox.jpg[/img]
This is a concern of mine because RPGs have strayed very little from the "save the world" paradigm. On the other hand the games can very little substance, like the Fable series. This genre is a very adaptable one that can easily handle mature themes.
Themes that are more mature are found in Role Playing games, but they are always hidden in the subtext of the narrative. I could extrapolate that Final Fantasy XIII dealt with prejudice and societal perception of the "other," but I had to look beyond the facade of the game to glean these issues. I wished that this was the focal point of the story, seeing how the cast would cope with and overcome being labelled as corrupted outsiders.
It seems that RPGs are used as a means of doing and seeing things can exist beyond our reality. Slaying dragons is fun, but it needs to have meaning. There is nothing wrong with a fantastical game with magic and monsters. They can be very enjoyable providing an escape from our real life problems and worries. However, as a gamer I want to see what happens if RPGs used these authentic issues as primary themes.
I am currently playing through the Level-5 and Studio Ghibli collaboration Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch. The bright and beautiful colours of this lighthearted game disguise the more serious issue which lies at the core. Ni no Kuni is about loss - how the loss of a young boy's mother can completely disrupt his world. The fantasy setting of the surreal parallel world is used as a narrative device to portray the difficulties Oliver experiences while dealing with the death of his mother. It does not take a stretch of the imagine to consider that losing a dearly loved family member would turn one's world completely upside down. This is also what makes the game great. The theme has meaning and is relatable; it is accessible to anyone even those who have little to no interest in video games.
Accessibility is another area RPGs falter. More often than not these games will not interest someone who does not play games. The stories could be deemed too strange, the characters might be to silly looking. How about a Role Playing game with realistic humans set in a world within the confines of our reality trying to overcome something that is relevant to our modern world. An example could be a man or woman living in persecution for his or her beliefs and how this person copes in a society in which they are not welcome.
I hope to see more mature, more relevant RPGs in the upcoming generation of consoles. This genre is certainly able to tackle more than it is given credit for.
Besides video games, my biggest passion in life has always been drawing. Ever since I was old enough to hold a pencil, I was drawing Metroids, Sonic, and Battletoads. In elementary school my homework was riddled with sketches of Sub-Zero ripping Scorpion's head off.
When I wasn't drawing my favorite video game characters I was drawing pictures of my friends as super heroes. In middle school I began playing around with my own comic book with said super heroes (which is terrible) but I was in love with it, and at that point I knew what I wanted to do with my life. My old man, being the supportive father he is, came up to me one day and said to me "You should probably give that up. There's a lot of talented artists out there and I don't think you can make it. You should focus on getting a career installing home water heaters or something." Thanks, pop. So I gave up. If my own dad said I wasn't good enough to make something of myself, then I probably should quit and find something else to do. The problem is, I never did find something else. So now, almost 15 years later, I'm pulling my hair out at this 9 to 5.
Until now. At least a little bit.
I went to the Seattle Retro Gaming Expo last June. One of the vendors there was selling pixel art made from perler beads. He had these beautifully framed pieces of art, character sprites and scenes from classic video games.
If you don't know what perler beads are, they're little plastic rings that you align on a peg board and melt with an iron, and the product looks like sprite characters from the classic/8/16-bit era.
[img width=700 height=933]http://th09.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/i/2012/125/f/e/super_mario_bros_2___tweeter__perler_beads_by_dylrocks95-d4ynbtj.jpg[/img]
I know it's not exactly a new concept to most people in the retro community who has ever been to an expo, but I only started seriously collecting a month prior to this and it was the first expo i've ever been to so it was brand new to me. And I loved it. Now I had a mission. So that night when I got home I began working on my own stuff. Of course, I started with a simple Mega Man which takes about 45 minutes total, but I felt ambitious right away and made this triumphant beast
[img width=700 height=933]http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w365/adsanislo/20121120_213310.jpg[/img]
In all, about 15,000 beads. I spent more than a month and easily over 40 hours working on it. I was going to send it to someone who owns a store in Jacksonville, FL with a business card attached to it. What better way to get your name out there than to have a huge piece of video game art hanging up in a retro game store? However, I was afraid the glass in the frame would break during the trip across country, so I never ended up sending it out. I was pretty bummed, I wanted people to enjoy looking at it as much as I enjoyed making it.
However that didn't stop me. Shortly after, I opened my own Etsy store. Baby steps.
And as luck would have it, I had a 1-Up. KWVintage games, a retro game store in Canada and a member here at RFgen, got ahold of me to buy a game lot. I asked him simply if he was interested in a smaller, shippable picture, and he responded with "Actually, I love pixel art. Are you interested in a consignment deal?"
And just like that, I was on the verge of something. For the past two months I've been supplying KWVintage with smaller pieces of pixel art. Refrigerator magnets mainly, I'm still getting my feet wet. Sales are slow because the shipping time/distance, but it's still very encouraging to see them sell when they get to the store.
Here are a few of the sprites I send to him.
[img width=700 height=933]http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w365/adsanislo/20130204_234137_zpsa8a118e1.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=933]http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w365/adsanislo/20130124_213539.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=525]http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w365/adsanislo/20130109_204304-1.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=933]http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w365/adsanislo/20130109_204059.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=933]http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w365/adsanislo/20130109_204513.jpg[/img]
Then this happens. John Hancock, the man running the Cowlitz Gamers for Kids Expo in April, tells me that vendor tables were free. FREE!!!! All they expected was a percentage donation from the sales at the expo to their charity. Unfortunately, I'm not quite prepared yet. Crummy. Next year......
But now I have the itch. I've tried to reach out to a few other store owners, and surprisingly, I got yet another consignment deal! This store is called Pink Gorilla, and they have a few stores in the Seattle area. So within a matter of a few months, I'm an art vendor for multiple stores. How did that happen?
I'm not sure where it will go from here, but I'm having fun doing it. I may not be counting fat stacks as an artist for DC Comics, but I'm happy doing what I love.
The title of this blog is particularly fitting as I recently registered myself for Kindergarten. Apparently the spot for my child's name wasn't clearly labelled enough for me and I mistakenly entered my own. Oh well, at least I'll be prepared after these last few batches of games!!
What better to follow up Sesame Street games than with some Fisher Price!! I don't like to brag or anything, but my matching and remembering skills were a bit too much for poor Electro to handle. I played Perfect Fit a few years ago with my son and I think it helped him get comfortable with the D-Pad.
[img width=640 height=477]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/FisherPriceICanRemember-Ending_zpsf3e3c631.jpg[/img]
[img width=640 height=477]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/FisherPricePerfectFit-Ending_zpsf2178873.jpg[/img]
Padding my list further I popped in both of the Mickey Mouse educational games, Numberland and Letterland. The both actually surprised me a bit in that they were actually games Letterland in particular had some platforming and exploring elements to it. They were probably the least effective in terms of actually teaching anything to the player, but they were the most fun to play of the educational games I've come across so far.
[img width=640 height=477]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/MickeysAdventureinNumberland-Ending_zpsd78c0fb3.jpg[/img]
[img width=640 height=477]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/MickeysSafariinNumberland-Ending_zps25506ea4.jpg[/img]
While I've been knocking off a few easy titles a night for a quite a while I've also been sinking a LOT of time into NES Open Tournament Golf over the last week or two. The goal is to get your prize winnings to at least $1,000,000. The unfortunate part is that that amounts of money you win for most things are pretty low so it takes quite a while. You can increase your rank, but while doing that you gain $0. Regardless I spent the first couple nights increasing my rank to pro so that it would increase my tournament prize money. Then it was just a matter of getting decent enough to place high in the tournaments. I started to be able to win a tournament every time or two until I reached $500,000. At that point the competition started going from -3 to -6 under par for a round to -9 to -11. I started placing around 15th and worse from my consistant top 3 victories. The easiest source of income at this point seemed to be by playing 1 hole at a time bets. First hole was worth $2500 then $3500 then $5000. I basically just started practicing those first three holes and got decent enough at them to walk away with some prize money in most situations. Eventually my persistence paid off and I got my $1,000,000.
[img width=642 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/NESOpenGolf-Ending_zpsf2ea6420.jpg[/img]
After a few nights of golf and a couple more of Super Mario Bros 3 for a high score competition at nintendoage I just wanted some more quick easy games. So I dug into my game show vault and pulled out Pictionary and Anticipation. Both follow the same premise of guessing pictures. In Pictionary you have to play a little mini-game which depending on how you do will unlock a certain percentage of the picture you need to guess. Some of the mini-games are decent while others are pretty boring. Its a pretty short game with just 1 player as it was obviously meant for more. Ancitipation requires you to guess the picture as its being drawn before your opponents do. If you guess a correct picture in each of the 4 categories you are raised to the next level. After solving 12 different categories and moving past the 3rd level of the game you are declared the winner.
[img width=643 height=481]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/Anticipation-Ending_zps9cd56018.jpg[/img]
I was hoping that Chessmaster might be a great follow up to my ever popular Othello video, but unfortunately you get the option to rush the computer opponent if you choose so it doesn't quite have the same appeal . By forcing the computer to make moves in a timely fashion its not nearly as challenging either.
[img width=641 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/Chessmaster-Ending_zpsd0ffe798.jpg[/img]
Lastly I busted out some more learning and tried my hand at DK Jr Math. Much like Pictionary this game is meant to be played with a friend. So it was pretty easy to stomp my inactive opponent and prove my superior mathematic skills!!
[img width=643 height=480]http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk189/Crabmaster2000/DKJrMath-Ending_zpsc495e611.jpg[/img]
2013 NES List
Sesame Street Countdown
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters
Shooting Range
Space Shuttle Project
Double Dare
Win, Lose or Draw
Othello
Whomp Em
Dragon Fighter
Bugs Bunny's Crazy Castle
Family Feud
Tale Spin
Platoon
Gotcha!
Gun Smoke
Kiwi Kraze
10 Yard Fight
Tom & Jerry
Wrecking Crew
Hatris
Time Lord
Orb 3D
Wheel of Fortune Jr
Wheel of Fortune Family Edition
Captain America and the Avengers
Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune Featuring Vanna White
The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle
Bo Jackson Baseball
Jeopardy! Jr
Jeopardy!
Jeopardy! 25th Anniversary
Cowboy Kid
Crash n The Boys: Street Challenge
Galaga
Color A Dinosaur
Millipede
Popeye
Sesame Street 123
Sesame Street ABC
Sesame Street Hide & Speak
Soccer
Classic Concentration
Fisher Price I Can Remember
Fisher Price Perfect Fit
Mickey's Safari in Letterland
Mickey's Adventure in Numberland
NES Open Golf
Pictionary
Chessmaster
Anticipation
DK Jr Math
52 Games Beaten Over 40 Days
Got myself a nice little cushion to fall back on now which is pretty nice especially considering how much time I sunk into NES Open Tournament Golf. Now I'll be a bit more comfortable playing a few of the more interesting titles on my list. Plus I'm running out of Edutainment options 
Future Plans - It would be nice to give myself an even further boost ahead of my goal if possible so I think I might do a little Black Box spree tomorrow and check out stuff like Balloon Fight, Donkey Kong 3, Urban Champion and Pinball.
The series returns with a nice look at one of the many ignored movie licensed games of the 16 bit era. Stargate was made by Acclaim and released for the SNES and Sega Genesis/Mega Drive in 1995, but not all was well in this land of milk and honey.
What happens when your low class nametag goes away and you can't use it anymore? Well it looks like you just have to use your own name and hope nobody notices and ignores such MEDIOCRITIES!
Check me out on Twitter, Wordpress, and Facebook!
https://twitter.com/SirPsychoPlays
http://whydidiplaythis.wordpress.com/
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