Have a look.
Soooooooooooooo... Free stuff. Free stuff is awesome and unlike my uninspiring experience with Playstation Network (Hey! Give us $50 and we'll let you download some games you don't want and some games you ALREADY OWN!), I am prone to spring into action whenever I hear someting is "free" on Xbox Live as I occasionally get something cool or weird.
This leads us to the recent bs parade Microsoft is drumming up but blanketing in ambiguity. The premise is that you are rewarded for PLAYING stuff after logging in to Xbox Live and doing stuff. Supposedly, your watching Netflix, playing demos, buying stuff and... doing... stuff, counts towards being deserving of points.
If I seem cynnical, that stems from the fact that I have almost 44k in achievement points and I have practically poured money into my Xbox until I recently found the love of Valve's Steam platform on my PC and their jaw-dropping, insanity sales. Even then, I'm looking at my Xbox right now and I've supposedly been a Rewards member since they announced it (I joined and everything) and I've even spent about $40 since signing up on Xbox Live DLC, Indie games and Arcade titles between my beating Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands & Force Unleashed 2.
I finally had a free weekend. I caught up.
MY POINT? Where the fuck are MY points? I've had Netflix stuff running constantly on this machine and I'm not showing a damn thing. Some of my friends are like HEROES to this cause because they do NOTHING but spend money on crap for Xbox live and their accounts are active constantly, they play online all the time and their achievements are legion. Except for that one asshole, he know who he is. Anyway, these guys aren't seeing anything yet either.
Maybe it'll correct itself, maybe we'll be swimming in points like Scrooge McDuck in actual money. But in the meantime I'm staring at a point score that's calling me a liar and makes me wonder why I'm bothering to fiddle with my console when I should be paying attention to the next Steam sale.
Now don't get me wrong, I fucking LOVE Xbox Live and I've grown to depend on it with surprising ease, but I should be seeing SOMETHING by now with all the crap I did. Even the immediate rewards aren't showing that they promised from their rewards site yet.
Get your shit together, Microsoft. Don't box-tease us, Steam will whip your asses in the fight for my time and money if you can't stick with your own agenda.
PS: I've been pumping time and money into my Xbox for years, where's my pre-existing account rewards? All you seem to be pushing are first-timers.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Nintendo Regrets Other M
Thanks to Kotaku, We've learned that Nintendo apparently regrets the lack of success that Other M has yet to enjoy compared to the super successful Metroid Prime series.
For the record, I didn't buy the game in spite of my love for Team Ninja and Metroid.
Reading their reactions there are a number of things they are aware of, primarily that the portrayal of Samus Aran was so bad (apparently this is meant to be an origin story showing a semi-helpless, vulnerable girl who is... supposed to grow into a Bounty Hunter that Space Pirates use in horror stories?).
Now Nintendo Fans aren't like other fans and I'm sure Nintendo fans appreciate the distinction (though I can't fathom why) and their responses to this are... intriguing. Nintendo's mouthpiece Reggie came out and admitted that they don't understand why you suckers aren't buying this by the truckload and the responses to this query are the typically psychotic gurglings that rabid Nintendo nerds are known to expel:
Now, before you cry racism, I mean that they designed the game with Japanese tastes and story in mind. Team Ninja was never really good at telling a story, in fact they are AWFUL at it, but they ARE the experts when it comes to fast, furious and hardcore interactive experiences. And boobs, but to their credit I think the boobs were really the result of their former commander-in-chief, Itagaki.
I liked the boobs though, it wasn't ashamed of throwing the fact that they had bait for their core demographic and they delivered more than was expected every time. I really respect them for that. And the games. The games were awesome and Ninja Gaiden still put Hardcore back on the map, nevermind how DOA and DOA2 revitalized my love of fighting games to an extreme.
Still, the boobs helped.
Metroid is amazing stuff, it's sweet sci-fi goodness without all the typical calories of typical Japanese games and offers an unmatched sense of exploration combined with wild action earmarking your progress. Metroid Prime did the impossible and put that very formula into a First Person shooter with amazing visuals giving the sense of control a huge boost in the sense of immersion with a strong story that you MADE happen before your eyes.
From screens, movies and demos I've seen that the action is there showing the true mark of Team Ninja's greatest strength as well as Nintendo's support in creating the classic aesthetic we all know and love. I've also seen some of the cinemas which bring to light something we have never seen in a Metroid game in years, influence from the Japanese market.
Don't think it's a bad thing? Samus was never more popular than when she was in her suit and the Japanese (Developers) are more interested in getting her out of it to inflict tentacles on her. They did it for Smash Bros and they were clearly overwhelmed with the urge to strip her in this as well.
The Japanese developers are more interested in being creepy and perverted about showing her in a skin tight suit than in making her game amazing, the sexism IS there because they can't/won't overlook the fact that she's a woman and just make a great, satisfying action game. Seeing Samus pouting after being bossed around by some officious prick in the trailers made me a little irked because over here Samus represents more than a woman to exploit and clearly the Japanese overlook that or ignore it outright as they prepare the tentacles.
The revealing of her gender was a shocking surprise in the first Metroid game and was only revealed if you were either an expert or a recipient of infamous Justin Bailey code. It made people reconsider women as game characters and was culturally beyond important to female gamers for demonstrating an important lesson in gender equality. Dismiss it if you will, but the quality in game design coupled with the base concept of a female bounty hunter clearing ENTIRE MOTHERFUCKING PLANETS teeming with monsters that can EAT LIFE right out of you. Her lack of words was punctuated by her knack for surviving all the planets she leaves in her near-death escapes after murdering every living thing there, so we were satisfied with her having little to do/say with people save for the journals and notes in Prime that paint her personality as a smart, grizzled and tactically gifted person in her profession.
None of which is demonstrated by Other M. Per my memories of the Nintendo comic in the 90's and game lore, Samus was orphaned and raised by wise and powerful beings that molded her into a warrior and gave her a one-of-a-kind suit of their manufacture that could access ancient technology as well as manipulate current tech and provide unmatched combat flexibility. The Chozo that raised her were slaughtered and the first and third games dealt with her dealing deadly revenge on everyone involved; Prime dabbled on the original story arc, but made a point to create its own distinct storyline that paid extensive homage to it predecessors and built on its canon.
I don't mind that they made something new, I mind that they let it drift so far from where it should have been and did nothing to step in and save it. Story means a lot to a franchise like Metroid and making an origin story is a moot point when it's totally inaccurate towards a character they've been building up for so many years that already HAS an origin we don't need revealed. We want something new, fresh and innovative and I was sold on at least giving the gameplay a shot until I saw the distinctly japanese scene with a pathetic little blonde girl I was told was Samus being lectured by some guy in what I presume was some sort of Space Police uniform. That did more damage to my potential enjoyment of the game than anything else.
So I did the only prudent thing, I withdrew my preorder and waited for reviews.
The reviews from Magazines came out as a resounding C+/B- grade for the game, which wasn't a point in its favor and they also noted that that tearing the teeth out of a Character that's ALL teeth leaves her no leg to stand on making her something altogether different. The grade applied to the gameplay, which I'm still very curious about, but if I can't immerse myself in a game I can't justify buying it brand new, which means Nintendo won't be getting a dime from me when I go out of my way to buy it used.
I've seen the used price drop like a rock so I'll pick it up in a sale (a USED sale), but Nintendo messed up. Team Ninja did fine from what I can see, but the story and mewling pissant they have portraying the role of Samus is so bad that I can't say I'm surprised that they alienated their Metroid fan market by turning the girl that had everything into a child that has nothing save a cookie-cutter story with substandard storytelling techniques used by hack anime writers with a control scheme that's dangerously experimental at best making the whole thing a risky proposition.
Anyway, I'm gonna froth and pass out. I know it's old news, but it needs to be stressed/bitched about.
For the record, I didn't buy the game in spite of my love for Team Ninja and Metroid.
Reading their reactions there are a number of things they are aware of, primarily that the portrayal of Samus Aran was so bad (apparently this is meant to be an origin story showing a semi-helpless, vulnerable girl who is... supposed to grow into a Bounty Hunter that Space Pirates use in horror stories?).
Now Nintendo Fans aren't like other fans and I'm sure Nintendo fans appreciate the distinction (though I can't fathom why) and their responses to this are... intriguing. Nintendo's mouthpiece Reggie came out and admitted that they don't understand why you suckers aren't buying this by the truckload and the responses to this query are the typically psychotic gurglings that rabid Nintendo nerds are known to expel:
- It's Team Ninja's fault
- It's the Control Scheme
- It's Sexist(?)
- It's Not identical to older Metroid Games
- It's Not identical to recent Metroid Games
- It's too different!
- It's too similar!
Now, before you cry racism, I mean that they designed the game with Japanese tastes and story in mind. Team Ninja was never really good at telling a story, in fact they are AWFUL at it, but they ARE the experts when it comes to fast, furious and hardcore interactive experiences. And boobs, but to their credit I think the boobs were really the result of their former commander-in-chief, Itagaki.
I liked the boobs though, it wasn't ashamed of throwing the fact that they had bait for their core demographic and they delivered more than was expected every time. I really respect them for that. And the games. The games were awesome and Ninja Gaiden still put Hardcore back on the map, nevermind how DOA and DOA2 revitalized my love of fighting games to an extreme.
Still, the boobs helped.
Metroid is amazing stuff, it's sweet sci-fi goodness without all the typical calories of typical Japanese games and offers an unmatched sense of exploration combined with wild action earmarking your progress. Metroid Prime did the impossible and put that very formula into a First Person shooter with amazing visuals giving the sense of control a huge boost in the sense of immersion with a strong story that you MADE happen before your eyes.
From screens, movies and demos I've seen that the action is there showing the true mark of Team Ninja's greatest strength as well as Nintendo's support in creating the classic aesthetic we all know and love. I've also seen some of the cinemas which bring to light something we have never seen in a Metroid game in years, influence from the Japanese market.
Don't think it's a bad thing? Samus was never more popular than when she was in her suit and the Japanese (Developers) are more interested in getting her out of it to inflict tentacles on her. They did it for Smash Bros and they were clearly overwhelmed with the urge to strip her in this as well.
The Japanese developers are more interested in being creepy and perverted about showing her in a skin tight suit than in making her game amazing, the sexism IS there because they can't/won't overlook the fact that she's a woman and just make a great, satisfying action game. Seeing Samus pouting after being bossed around by some officious prick in the trailers made me a little irked because over here Samus represents more than a woman to exploit and clearly the Japanese overlook that or ignore it outright as they prepare the tentacles.
The revealing of her gender was a shocking surprise in the first Metroid game and was only revealed if you were either an expert or a recipient of infamous Justin Bailey code. It made people reconsider women as game characters and was culturally beyond important to female gamers for demonstrating an important lesson in gender equality. Dismiss it if you will, but the quality in game design coupled with the base concept of a female bounty hunter clearing ENTIRE MOTHERFUCKING PLANETS teeming with monsters that can EAT LIFE right out of you. Her lack of words was punctuated by her knack for surviving all the planets she leaves in her near-death escapes after murdering every living thing there, so we were satisfied with her having little to do/say with people save for the journals and notes in Prime that paint her personality as a smart, grizzled and tactically gifted person in her profession.
None of which is demonstrated by Other M. Per my memories of the Nintendo comic in the 90's and game lore, Samus was orphaned and raised by wise and powerful beings that molded her into a warrior and gave her a one-of-a-kind suit of their manufacture that could access ancient technology as well as manipulate current tech and provide unmatched combat flexibility. The Chozo that raised her were slaughtered and the first and third games dealt with her dealing deadly revenge on everyone involved; Prime dabbled on the original story arc, but made a point to create its own distinct storyline that paid extensive homage to it predecessors and built on its canon.
I don't mind that they made something new, I mind that they let it drift so far from where it should have been and did nothing to step in and save it. Story means a lot to a franchise like Metroid and making an origin story is a moot point when it's totally inaccurate towards a character they've been building up for so many years that already HAS an origin we don't need revealed. We want something new, fresh and innovative and I was sold on at least giving the gameplay a shot until I saw the distinctly japanese scene with a pathetic little blonde girl I was told was Samus being lectured by some guy in what I presume was some sort of Space Police uniform. That did more damage to my potential enjoyment of the game than anything else.
So I did the only prudent thing, I withdrew my preorder and waited for reviews.
The reviews from Magazines came out as a resounding C+/B- grade for the game, which wasn't a point in its favor and they also noted that that tearing the teeth out of a Character that's ALL teeth leaves her no leg to stand on making her something altogether different. The grade applied to the gameplay, which I'm still very curious about, but if I can't immerse myself in a game I can't justify buying it brand new, which means Nintendo won't be getting a dime from me when I go out of my way to buy it used.
I've seen the used price drop like a rock so I'll pick it up in a sale (a USED sale), but Nintendo messed up. Team Ninja did fine from what I can see, but the story and mewling pissant they have portraying the role of Samus is so bad that I can't say I'm surprised that they alienated their Metroid fan market by turning the girl that had everything into a child that has nothing save a cookie-cutter story with substandard storytelling techniques used by hack anime writers with a control scheme that's dangerously experimental at best making the whole thing a risky proposition.
Anyway, I'm gonna froth and pass out. I know it's old news, but it needs to be stressed/bitched about.
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