In my day we didn't have all these fancy pants graphics, we had two frames and were glad of it

I'm trying to think up something good here...hold on...give me a min...does anyone want some toast while we wait?

Ah yes here we go, the most ideal control pad you've ever used.

Ok, here we go, I personally think the most well designed pad that I've ever used is definetly the SNES, it's comfy you can reach all the buttons (of which there are plenty of) and I've never gotten sore from using one (thumb blisters)

At the momment I am steering clear of picking up an N64 pad again I find them pretty badly designed too, the analogue stick gets gritty so quickly. I'm also semi-worried about the GBA, my brother has one and I think the L&R buttons are a little bit out of reach to be comfortable, here's hoping I just need practice.

The GC one looks quite comfy, I mean I have nothing against the DC one but I have found that it can give blisters if you're playing for ages trying to do the same thing over again.

8 bit
My god what was up with them? You could stab someone with those corners. I didn't really like either the Mastersystem's OR the NES's, the shape was just to much for me although the NES had nice comfy buttons.

16 bit
The original Megadrive one wasn't great but at least we had some good third party ones.
The SNES? Masterful as Ive already said, the original was supreme, comfy, tidy and colourful too, what more could you ask for?

17 bit
Dont mind me I'm just being silly here

32 bit
Playstation was ok although I never played it that much (only through Res Evil) and I have nothing against that and I suppose thats what Sony's motto was for the PS2 "If it's not broke, don't fix it"
Didn't the Saturn use a very similar pad design to the MD? Even so I thought th eSaturn one was easily more comfy and durable.

64 bit
N64, original was probably the best. The N64 should get a reward for some of the WORST 3rd party pads in existence, I mean what were some of the designers drunk or something? I thought a third party pad was supposed to be of similar design to the original, I don't anymore. But there is a reason for that, after the first few months of sale Nintendo trademarked the 'three pronged' pad and therefore forcing 3rd party developers to make shoddy replicars

128 bit
Dreamcast is ok, but could have been a little bit better. Gamecube looks nice. PS2 same as original. X-Box, I dunno? I'm not a wizard never held one in my life.

Now to keep this rolling I have a question, how many times did I say the word 'comfy' in this post? (not inc that time)

Welcome to the club. Check my very long list (which is basically games I own/want) on SWW.

On Saturday, my brother got a SEGA Saturn!! And Panzer Dragoon! Now we can make up for time lost....

Do you guys have any suggestions on games and assessories?

Wasn't this conversation about DarkBasic ages ago. I think everyone knows what I think of it.

'It takes no super processor to type command lines' true, BUT it would be a pain in the ass trying to develop a DC game via code only, what with having to go through the difficult process of compilation to the Dreamcast each time you actually wanted to check the fruits of your labour. Most games today are created on high-level PCs and then tweaked to work on the specific console. Potentially you could have created 'Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within' on your home PC but it would have just been silly.

Hehe

No I dont suppose it would , you might get a nice version of Tetris or something but Shenmue ? Gimme £50,0000 and Ill see what I can do :)

Ah but no...

Define 'exceptional'. Obviously you won't be creating the next Shenmue on your old 486 but a system comprising of processor speeds of over 300mhz combined with any 3D half-decent processor produced in the last 3 years possess adequet power to develop for the Dreamcast with. This is, of course, all theory. Development ain't easy and you haven't exactly got Sega's libraries and technical support to back you up so anything independantly creating isn't likely to be pushing the system.

Ah but...
Wouldn't you need an exceptional PC to be able to run such things?

Not an impossible dream

For those still holding any interest whatsoever regarding Dreamcast development, I've found 3 more sites that you may deem fit to peruse here, here and here. And while we're on the subject of the Dreamcast, anyone wishing to locate patches or likes the idea of emulation using the system can find such information at the sites I've just linked.

Wow! hey! Thanks for the encouragement and support. I will keep this blog going for as long as I can. However, I really ain't kidding when I'm telling you that my time is limited now. Cam knows what I'm talking about here when he says "It's just time for life to get a little more full, and we are adults. This means that gaming gets pushed to the back for awhile." Or in my case gaming as well as the Internet.
But....
Last week my totally nice Mom financed the renting of a PS2 for a week along with 2 games and 2 DVD's. However, the two games couldn't be new releases and of course the "better" PS2 games are new releases. And of course, out of the 7 day releases, all the ones I wanted were already rented. In the end, I ended up renting "Shadows of Destiny" and "Star Wars StarFighter". "StarFighter" totally sucked and I actually didn't play it much. My brother played it and beated it in no time flat. He also hated it and told me he never wanted to see it again....O.K. whatever...no problem. Boy do PS2 graphics suck...sorry no offense....but DC is better. I did find though smooth movement when playing characters and that's good....but there's just not enough selling points here to get me to buy a PS2 for gaming. DVD function is cool though. He had no problems playing the DVD's.
We did like "Shadows of Destiny". I like time travel stuff...so the game works with me....but I can see that would it be boring for others though. You know...all they needed was to throw in a bit of action or fighting or something and it could have been an excellent game. The story is excellent. I like how they present the time loop subtly and with accurate detailing. But again, it isn't quite strong enough to get me to buy a PS2.

Yep...DC really did have the the original games and I definately to agree that "originality" is really rare these days.

Cam is also right....when GC and X-box getting rolling in Nov. things might perk up here as well as SWW. So maybe you all are right...I shouldn't give up so easily.
Onward March!

To Boldly Go
As I go to Uni this week my posts may not be as regular as I'll have to rely on getting a computer when I can. Hopefully though I won't be affected too much (except for alcohol on the brain).

However, don't give up Angel. You don't realise what you got till its gone.

For some there never was

Originality lives on. Truely original games are no less common than they were before it's just that expectations in an increasingly competative and demanding market have warped most peoples perceptions. The Dreamcast plays host to a whole variety of original games, Jet Set Radio and Chu Chu Rocket being just two examples, but those who aren't already Dreamcast owners wouldn't really know.

The PS2 does have originality, albeit in small doses. FantaVision, Shadow of Destiny, ICO, and erm Aqua Aqua. The Playstation is prone to sequelitus, however, and loads of pap, but it would be the same for any other console that had dominated the market for so long. If people don't buy the games, they won't be compelled to make them. Sadly, there are millions of fools who seem to like the Army Men series...

It's not easy trying to create something new. Firstly, you obviously have to come up with this revolutionary idea, then you have to make it good enough to convince people to play. The truth is, most people won't go near a game that's too original. They want established genres. It's sad, but it's reality. I can see what you're getting at. It's true that most games are very generic thesedays but it's supply and demand. If the developers aren't convinced that an original idea will sell well they will be tempted to 'sell out', as it were, and go down an old route. Then there's the cost and time. If you want to make something different it takes time, and time in the gaming world is an expensive commodity. Take Nintendo for example - they've been working on games like Pikmin for the past 2 years and time spans like this are fast becoming the norm. But they know that their efforts will be rewarded and they've got the resources to back it up. Anyone but the larger companies can't take these kind of risks. Trouble is, making an original game isn't just about the gameplay because just about every genre and style has been explored. It's about the visuals and the way we interact with the gaming world and this takes real coding time to produce, thus titles like 'Black & White', as well as the yet to be released 'Halo' and 'Revolution' have all been in the works since 1998. Simple original ideas may reap great rewards for the GBA, but for the X-Box, Gamecube and PS2, it's the eye-candy that will be the primary selling point.

Rouge Leader? Indeed

'Rogue Leader' is the Gamecube sequel to Rogue Squadron for the N64 and PC. It has yet to be released.

Close the blog ?

I agree with Solid. Dont give up on it Angel , or anyone for that matter.
Were just going through a rough patch where not much is happening in the gaming world.

Gaming losing its attraction

I think the problem is that no one is really willing to try something new these days , no thanks to the Sony " Whats originality " Playstation.
Back in the days when consoles were for the few and "geeky" , originality shone like a very bright shining thing , becuase the hardware allowed people to do things no one could have done before but now in this age of 2 ghz pc's and graphic cards with more memory than about 5000 pcs from the 1990's people are afraid to try anything new.

But there do apper to be some intresting ideas on the way , maybe the last few years have just been a break or something.

I cant remember any names but a lot of cool original stuff is coming out on GC and Xbox.

The problem is the DC is dead , PS2 aint doing anything much. Trust me , when the GC and Xbox hit our shores , we will be back to normal.

Rouge Leader ?

Hasnt that been out for years already ?

That's not the S Club spirit...

'Don't stop, never give up...etc' I may not personally abide by this cheery outlook always but I don't think anyone should give up on this group blog, especially it's owner. The topical direction is sound, it just needs a little push to get started again...

Perhaps gaming has finally lost it's attraction? If the SWW forum is anything to go by, that would appear the case. I can talk about games until I'm blue in the face but there's a clear freshold where people stop listening to what I say.

Rogue Leader? The more I see and read, the more I'm convinced it's going to be the most immersive Star Wars game to date. After a mixed bag of Star Wars games, ranging from the classic to complete tripe, could this signal a new era of games that do the franchise complete justice?

Close?
[Dark Grabs Onto His Chair And Refuses to Move]
If it's any consolation (yeah right)
I'm stayin :) (but only if you still feed my addiction to W.C.M, figure that one out)

Actually I'm not away at the flower shop...I'm away at my new job....doing quality inspection at factories....
....see ya at Syphid Corp or SWW Liquid! I think I may have to close my blog too....but I'll see... maybe I will be able to improve things during October.

Game Over.

I'm handing in my resignation for this blog, as I just don't see it going anywhere unfortunately. With Mistress Angelina away at a flower shop and me training harder to become a wrestler, my brain is drying up.

See y'all.