The Gamer's Quarter

Persona-sama · Posted: Wed Jan 17, 2007 2:24 am Post subject:

Poor Lestrade ;_;
I fortunately have friends that are very fun to play fighters with. That's about as multiplayer as they get though.
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Lestrade · Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 8:42 pm Post subject:

Trent Reznor has taught me more about HD than I'd ever thought I'd need. Holy shit, I can't wait for February 27.

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

aerisdead · . Joined: 03 Dec 2006 Posts: 254 Location: Toronto, Canada

I have With Teeth on CD. I haven't bothered listening to it yet.

Perhaps I should! I like the single, sort of!
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Lestrade · Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2007 3:01 am Post subject:

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

Supposedly Blu-Ray has won unconditionally in Japan, but the American porn industry picked HD-DVD which would lead you to believe that it has won in the US.

Hooray format wars!
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Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Lestrade · Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2007 2:06 pm Post subject:

Oh. Well, you learn something new every day! I was obviously generalizing too much. Oh well, it's not like I'm ever getting a PS3 anyway...

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

Some Nana cosplay from Harajuku:

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Dracko · . Joined: 10 Oct 2005 Posts: 2613

That is a dapper hat.

I don't know whether I should laugh or sigh at the comments, however.
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Lestrade · Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 10:52 am Post subject:

Whoa, that's kind of creepy!

--

Visited a friend in a neighbouring town this weekend. We hung out for a couple of hours, and he was nice enough to let The Wife and I watch a movie and show them the Wii on his gorgeous HD set. He has this television, which is just beautiful. I was filled with instant envy and wanted one immediately. It's not even top-of-the-line, really, but it's by far the nicest HD image I've ever seen. It only does 480p and 1080i, but holy sweet crap, did progressive DVDs look good. I want one. Now. I don't care that it weights 100 pounds.

Here are some quicky shots from my phone (the lighting conditions mean some piss-poor image quality):

Wii bowling. His apartment is on the 30th (!) floor of his building, so you can see for miles around out his window.

My friend and his girlfriend bowling. She was getting really into it! I should mention that neither of these folks play games, but they loved the Wii.

480p, widescreen Zelda. So, so nice. I am sad just thinking about my (admittedly very good) 4:3 SDTV at home.

After Japan, I am allowed to buy an HDTV. Question is, how will I kill the craving before then?

GSL · Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 1:37 pm Post subject:

I hear drugs work well.

Although what's this about Japan? As in, going to Japan? If you're anything like me, you'd find plenty of things with which to kill the craving, and if you're lucky you might even forget all about the TV. If my jealous psychokinetic mind-waves don't kill you first.

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

Interestingly enough, someone posted a new photo of the same second cosplayer (the original was posted a while ago) just today.

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Lestrade · Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2007 7:07 am Post subject:

Yes, I am returning to Japan this spring (I hope!), after a 4-year hiatus. I'm also going to Hong Kong, which is exciting. I don't have a camera that can take video, but maybe I can find something dirt-cheap before I go? I really would love to tell everyone here to "F U" in front of the Nintendo building or something.

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

My standard suggestions for people going to Japan are to:

1. Go to Harajuku on a Sunday and take photos of the kids dressed up on the bridge outside the Meiji Jingu shrine.

2. Go to Yoyogi park and see the rockabilly dancers on a Sunday as well.

3. Go to Yokohama and ride the ferris wheel.

Not that I have done any of these things myself, but that is what I would do if I ever went to Japan.
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aerisdead · . Joined: 03 Dec 2006 Posts: 254 Location: Toronto, Canada

Nana, 1 and 2 are like... Exactly the same.

I mean, you have to walk like... 30 seconds to get from one to the other.
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Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

I understand that.
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Lestrade · Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 7:08 am Post subject:

Last time we took a train to a small town south (I think?) of Tokyo and went to a pricey hot spring hotel for a day. The town was beautiful, the hotel was the greatest fucking thing in the world, and it was all marvellous. I can post some photos if you like!

Goals for this trip:

1) Go to a nightclub and fucking rock out
2) Stay up really late (perhaps all night?) at a manga café (the Wife's idea)
3) Take fanboy photos of Nintendo HQ in Kyoto
4) GAMES
5) Meet some of my friends, if they'll still talk to me
6) Show that dude in Ginza how much sushi I can eat now
7) Vandalize some part of Tokyo with TGQ stickers (sneakily)
... and more I can't remember right now.

Plans for Hong Kong:

1) Get a tailored suit
2) Go to this restaurant for a Romantic Dinner™
3) See my wife's high school
4) Visit our friend's design-magazine-featured uber-condo
5) Get lots of photos of some cyberpunkesque factory/warehouse areas

Oh dudes, oh dudes, it's going to be grand.

Persona-sama · Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 2:57 pm Post subject:

Are you going to visit a MAID CAFE in Akiba too, Lestrade?

Also, please take pictures of whatever arcades you come across! Also neat/strange signs and other fun things.

(And Sega HQ > Nintendo HQ ;_;)
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Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

Forget the maid cafe, go to a BUTLER CAFE in Ikebukuro <3
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Lestrade · Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 4:02 pm Post subject:

Maybe we'll do both!

Sorry, Persona, but I disagree, heartily: Nintendo HQ is the motherland. But I've been to Club Sega in Akihabara before, so that's got to count for something. Maybe if we can get a little camera with video, The Panda can film me getting my ass kicked in Virtua Fighter 5 or something.

GSL · Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:28 pm Post subject:

There's seriously such a thing as a butler cafe? I'm actually more intrigued by that than a maid cafe!

Although when you think about it, wouldn't it mostly be like some cheaper version of a five-star restaraunt?

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

Yes it's aimed at the otome otaku who are hardcore into Boys Love manga and ren'ai games. I guess there's a whole portion of Ikebukuro that's like a mini-akiba but with BL shops and butler cafes instead.

Lestrade I would give you my first born child if you could get me a 40 cm Love-chan plush toy while you're in Japan.
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Lestrade · Posted: Thu Jan 25, 2007 9:39 pm Post subject:

If you can Paypal me the money when I go, I'm game!

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

ほんとに？！？
b('_')b ^______^
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Lestrade · Posted: Fri Jan 26, 2007 1:03 pm Post subject:

はい、だいじょうぶ。わかりたら、旅行のよていを教える。

Lestrade · Posted: Fri Jan 26, 2007 6:11 pm Post subject:

Hey, does anyone know if it's possible to force my Xbox 360 to display in widescreen on my 4:3 SDTV? I don't mind letterboxing, I just want to know if there's a way or a hack to get this display ratio.

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

Persona-sama · Posted: Sat Jan 27, 2007 1:16 pm Post subject:

You should try picking up the versions of Brain Age we didn't get over here yet. They're kanji=liicious and full of really neat games, like a piano playing game, kanji fusion, and these other little weird things that totally suck if you're not at least at like a junior high level in Japanese.
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Lestrade · Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 3:10 pm Post subject:

Every time I go the local video store, Queen Video, I walk out feeling more frustrated and helpless than ever before. My problem is that though I enjoy watching movies, there are just too freaking many of them—especially at a place like Queen Video, where the selection is insane. (There was a period a few years ago where I was renting shitty foreign zombie movies like mad, because Queen Video just had so many, I couldn't resist.)

The problem is that such a huge amount of choice is paralysing to me; I can never decide on what I want. This is why I prefer watching films in the theatre; at any given point I only have about five films to choose from (often less, because I'm a picky bastard). I very much like this notion of transient media—of just living in the moment, and reacting to what's there in front of you. As you probably know, my taste in videogames follows suit; I don't like sim or strategy games; I don't like wading through menus or building characters. I just want a moment to exist in, and to react to that moment. It is in this particular form of interaction—in games and in my life in general—that I find the most meaning.

So though I have a new DVD player through which I can relieve my Xbox 360 of movie-watching duties (and play DivX files to boot), I am at a standstill as to what to watch on it. Oh the irony!

Interestingly enough, my own direction in life is about as organized as my ability to choose movies, and as mentioned above, this state of flux is none too pleasant for me. My friend Bin (pictured below) has a clear path in life, and works hard at it. I find I am too distracted and bounce from project to project too often. Am I an absent-minded genius, or just a complete fuck-up? Votes?

My problem is that I am very conflicted; for some reason I don't like being too "into" something—anything, for that matter. I don't like being labelled as a City Boy, nor a Country Bumpkin, for example. But while floating between all these extremes allows me a perspective others lack (not to mentioned a great wealth of experiences), I find I have a very poor sense of identity, and don't really fit in anywhere. Let me put it this way: if you can tell a person by their music collection, than I am a paranoid schizophrenic.

Even my current job title holds no meaning; I just do too many things to be labelled properly. Career-wise, I have a plan. But that scares the shit out of me. Can I do it? I don't know. I could be poor and depressed two years from now. Can I commit to this one goal? Can I follow it through and end up with a title of some sort—a single label?

Can I choose a fucking movie to watch?

Bin, the man with the plan

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

It's not always good to be able to fit into just one lable or catagor. Riding the line between two things can give you a very distinct personality yet never go directly into one catagory or another. As far a movies, go with an old stand by. I have about a dozen films that I can watch no matter how indecisive I am.
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Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

You would probably go nuts with a Netflix account.
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Lestrade · Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 10:03 pm Post subject:

I had an account with the Canadian equivalent; it was fun for a while, but it started to drive me nuts. It was good in a way, because I could actively choose a list of movies, and then passively receive whatever happened to get shipped first. I liked that element of surprise. The only problem is that I have to be "in the right mood" to watch a movie. If I'm feeling like a drama, it's very difficult for me to watch an action movie, for example. So sometimes I wanted to watch Star Wars and then I'd some depressing festival film in the mail.

I am reading French philosophy and my head is full of lots of things.

Lestrade · Posted: Mon Jan 29, 2007 4:51 pm Post subject:

Hey, Persona, I found this ready-made avatar for you in a Taiwanese version of Famitsu: I scanned it at 300dpi so you can do what you want with it:

Enjoy!

Persona-sama · Posted: Tue Jan 30, 2007 2:04 am Post subject:

Excellent.

Jack Frost is so cute :o
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Lestrade · Posted: Tue Jan 30, 2007 6:54 am Post subject:

Oho! It looks good on you! Congrats on your recent show, by the way—I stumbled across Flickr photos of it. It looked like fun.

- -

So Windows Vista is finally out! Imagine the joy on people's faces as they experience bizarre new features like file previews, scalable icons, transparency effects, widgets (sorry, gadgets) and one-button access to all their windows. Wow! Six point five billion dollars and we're getting an operating system that already debuted six years ago.

Still, I'm very curious to try out Vista; I hope there are demo units around town with the system loaded. I am an OS enthusiast and would love to play with the thing. That said, it's about time that Apple stops monkeying around with phones and MP3 players and gets on their newest OSX update, which is due any second now. Priorities, people. All they have to do is release 10.5 and they'll have leapfrogged Windows by a couple of years again, at least.

If any of you get Vista, please post pictures, video or impressions. I want to pretend it's 2001 all over again.

GSL · Posted: Tue Jan 30, 2007 11:04 am Post subject:

I'll probably pick up a copy within the week--apparently the school bookstore is selling the upgrade for $89.95. The purchasing manager wasn't sure what version it was though, so I'll see when they arrive tomorrow. I'm not expecting Vista Ultimate, but I hope to God it's not Vista Home Basic.

I played around with the Release Candidate 2 earlier this summer and was quite impressed by all of it; I'm just hoping all the little bugs are worked out from then and it doesn't give me problems with old games or drivers or anything like that.

Anyways, I'll let you know how it is!

Lestrade · Posted: Tue Jan 30, 2007 8:04 pm Post subject:

Thanks, GSL. I really do want to try it.

Lestrade · Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2007 10:39 pm Post subject:

Semi-drunk post. Just got back from hanging out with the aforementioned Bin and our Korean friend Erin. I went to a "Conversation Club" at our old school—an activity wherein you try to make stilted, awkward conversation about forced topics with Real Life Japanese People™. I always end up disappointed, because it's such a weird situation.

Afterwards, though, I was suppose to meet some friends of mine, who—of course—decided that staying home and getting high was a better idea. Granted, one of them was honestly sick, so I don't blame him. In any case, I went out with Bin and Erin instead, and we had some fairly deep conversations in Japanese for a couple of hours. It was a freaking fantastic time, and so satisfying—we were talking about work, marriage, relationships, and all sorts of topics. Sure would have been nice to have these things to discuss in the conversation club, but then again, there was no beer there, either.

My adage held true: ビールを飲んだのあとで、日本語が上手です！

And now I am eating weird Chinese snacks and drinking tea, trying to sober up a bit.

Lestrade · Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 7:25 pm Post subject:

Since obtaining my 360 and Wii, I have found a bizarre sense of peace in gaming. It's hard to describe, but I've finally learned my lesson about certain things. For example, I always want to play certain types of games, but every time I do, I regret it. I've learned to avoid the game stores most days, and the downloadable content offered by the 360 and Wii means I have been able to get rid of old stuff and enjoy a lot of games without worries about clutter or shelf space.

I have also, most importantly, learned to let go. I don't try to reclaim old games that I maybe-sorta thought I'd like, or that I figure I "should" play to be literate. I mostly feel like I am "caught up," and I only look forward now. It's incredibly liberating.

I've also rediscovered the beauty of trying games—through Xbox Live demos and local renting—which has allowed me scratch that itch I get occasionally to play something, even when I know I won't want to play it for more than an hour or two. I love demos, and I wish there were more of them; even back in the shareware days, I was often perfectly happy with one-third of a title that I knew full well was worth the asking price.

Sometimes, time is more important, you know?

So, this weekend while running errands with my wife, I decided to dump some old stuff. I got a game for my mom, which I'll send her as a birthday gift later this month. I also picked up Final Fantasy III for DS, which I may or may not regret at a later date. The game is beautiful and wonderful-sounding, but I know it's hard and repetitive, and who knows if I'll actually be able to stick with it? My wife is going to play it too, so I'm sure it will get plenty of use.

I certainly wish that episodic content was being implemented over Xbox Live. I would love, for example, to just get a few levels for something every month or few weeks. I love recurring content (podcasts, Retrocore, etc.), and even if, in the end, I ended up spending a bit more than a retail game, I would rather be doled out play-time in segments, so I could enjoy one or two games a month on a basis that doesn't involve me dropping $70 for each each and spending 25 or 40 hours of my time before I can think about playing something else.

What do you guys think? Would you prefer a model like this for certain games?

helicopterp · . Joined: 13 May 2006 Posts: 1435 Location: Philadelphia

I still think you should stop rationalizing and go get Pikmin.

And I guess I'm not as on board with episodic content. Sometimes I really enjoy plowing through a whole game, and I wouldn't like more barriers to keep that from happening. For instance, Hotel Dusk would be terrible in episodes.
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Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

It sounds like you're going to start seeing a shift towards some form of episodic content with the new Xbox Live gamerpoints rules that were announced.

I'm all for episodic content so long as it's used correctly and not an excuse to release half-finished games (see: Warcraft III campaign).
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Lestrade · Posted: Thu Feb 08, 2007 10:01 am Post subject:

WORD.

I played a bit of FFIII last night. I'm over-levelling because I hate hard RPGs. If I'm supposed to be at level 5 to stand a chance in a dungeon, I'm going for level 10 first! Again I ask myself; how long will I be able to play this before I bore myself?

The music and characters really are lovely, though.

Ketch · . Joined: 17 Sep 2005 Posts: 420

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Lestrade · Posted: Thu Feb 08, 2007 7:11 pm Post subject:

JAPAN/HONG KONG TICKETS GET

A month and a half away; damn, I'm excited!

Ketch: it sounds like we're in the same boat. I am focused on playing those few games for 360, Wii and DS that I 100% know I want to play. I leave the rest on the shelf and try not to think about them. I have to get Hotel Dusk still (I may get it to play on the plane), and there are a good number of 360 games I want: Symphony of the Night, Bioshock, Assassin's Creed, Halo 3, etc. Not so much that I'll never see the light of day, but enough that my system will get use and I'll still enjoy gaming in general. It's a nice, healthy balance!

I must admit that I prefer the big, hype-filled games most of the time, but I love smaller releases—however, I prefer to stumble upon them on my own. I'm like that with music and movies too; I don't like people forcefully giving me things to see/hear, because what I watch/listen to/play depends entirely on my mood.

If anyone lives in Tokyo and wants to hook up between April 1 and 10, let me know!

Lestrade · Posted: Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:33 pm Post subject:

No hookups? :_:

I think I'm going to stop buying games for a while and buy some music instead. There are some things I really, really need to get.

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

You should probably post on the large prime numbers forum.

What music?!/
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