Messages

1

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2026!!!

« on: May 19, 2026, 05:24:49 pm »

ABANDONED


NEED FOR SPEED UNDERGROUND 2


Abandoned Need for Speed: Underground 2 [PS2]


Need for speed underground 2 is a case of 1 step forward 2 steps back. It gives an invigorating open world to race in which is a fresh and amazing change of scenery from how Linear Underground 1 was.  But the gain of extra world is almost entirely wasted on driving to and from races which bloats 5 hours or more into this games run time. It is tedious.  Nothing is actually done with the open world. It is a bare void. The gameplay is beyond repetitive and the car selection is fairly lacking variety.  Even the soundtrack is overhyped.  I think it must have played Riders on the storm remix ft snoopdog 27x since I started playing it 2 hours ago. I cant stomach it.  The game is ugly as well. It is community consensus that this game just hasnt aged well and I concur sadly. I loved this game as a kid but looking back it was extremely bland and tbh was a big step down from even it's namesake predecessor. It's tough on the eyes. The levels are mostly winding and ugly. And the cars take way too long to make cool if ever.  A miata? A civic?  Ok I love the starting bare bones vibe. Can we at least get nitrous and body kits early?  Idk. It doesn't jingle the dingle for me.

2

General / Re: May 2026 - Recently added to collection/recently purchased

« on: May 16, 2026, 11:40:10 pm »

I went to a local TV mom and pop that has been open since the 50s. They sold my grandfather a Zenith space saver floor model TV way back when my father was like 10.  So when he posted on marketplace that he had the exact size of CRT I needed. I fell in love.  I can't have a monstrosity anywhere over 30 inches because they weight as much as a small Buick lol.   But I also wanted an upgrade to my tiny Sanyo 13 inch TV which is nice but you gotta sit close.   This 25 inch Sears LXI with an RCA chassis was built in 1992 and hopefully it can get some love here.  I am happy for 50 dollars.  He even loaded it into my car.  It has a strong tube with great compression.  And has AV and even Composite inputs. 






MY QUEST FOR PS3 LIBRARY


I am not going for the full American NTSC set.  But I am going for all the games I want within that set which basically is everything except bummy sports titles and some corny rpgs.  I decided with birthday money to knock off some of the rarer North American Releases. Which are as follows



1. Afrika by Natsume (limited NA print run. Bad sales. Cool concept)

2. Spiderman Shattered Dimensions (niche and beloved causing a demand higher than supply scenario)


3. Class of clans 2g (becoming niche.  Small print run. Very small following that may grow.  Sealed copy)


4. The Last Guy (Korean International version with English translation very rare in this format)

5. Driver: San Fransisco (for some reason. Even in purgatory it has seen a rise in appreciation and thus price. 


Aside from NBA Elite 11 this gives me 3 of the 4 harder to get PS3 games. So as I chip my favorites I won't have to fuss over these later.

3

Modern Video Games / Re: Xbox is now XBOX

« on: May 16, 2026, 08:46:55 pm »

Just like their new CEO!  Bold and Refreshing. I think it looks way more natural this way. They are in a rebuilding phase and lately as much in the gutter Xbox is. They at least have shown bare minimum care to try. Tbh the amount of attiment hate this gets randomly slandering Xbox for a decision their own fans made on a branding namesake is shocking to me but shouldn't be. There has been great news out of the Xbox camp recently. Nothing a spelling or logo can override. 


Also XBOX is capitalized on the original console. If anything this is their roots.  I conmend them for at least listening. It's a start.   Will they survive? Be a major console player again? Probably not.  But at least they are not ENTIRELY tone deaf like the other two circus shows.

I do feel like they are heading in a better direction lately, I was worried when they were bringing on former AI leads into XBOX positions, but the one lead woman, Asha, made a big note that they weren't going to be utilizing AI for their games (I'm sure to some degree they still are, but anything at all to downplay is a good thing), so we'll just have to see.

This is spot on!  Asha has been a lightning bolt in this company so far and while Xbox most certainly is brutally in an identity crisis. They have at least pivoted in positive ways.  Xbox is the only company actually lowering subscription fees while also listening to consumer feedback, scrapping co- pilot AI intergration, and hiring new CEOs to intentionally try to not only rebrand but restructure their global image.  The Xbox Logo has been more sleek and nostalgic of its predecessors.  Good. Distance themselves from what joke they've become.  Bring competition back.


The fact their wasn't enough praise when she went counter consumerism and actually stood tall on artist first philosophies.  Weather it's a genuine rebrand or a marketing ploy. They have given me enough to at least glance their way.



Also  Playstation went from PSX, to Playstation to Ps One, to then Playstation 2, on cases only though. PS2 on the hardware branding. Then back to Playstation 3 in spiderman font, back to PS3, within the same console life cycles they were altering packaging, side labels, colors 3 times, started red and small, then black and large, then BLUE?? seriously? and even the material of the cases. Then PS4, then PS5.  Gone through like 3 logo changes,   couldn't even distinguish their flagship console branding from Spidermans branding lazily and they dominated throughout.  It matters almost minimal.  I rather have spontaneous spelling changes than literally my library of ps3 games looking like I collected for 3 different consoles. 

4

Modern Video Games / Re: Gamestop Offers 56 Billion Dollars To Buy Ebay. Good or Bad?

« on: May 14, 2026, 08:16:32 pm »

eBay has rejected the offer, calling it "not credible nor attractive."  And most outlets are referring to it as "unsolicited," so unless GameStop really steps it up this ain't happening.

What stands out to me about that circulating response is not so much the term "attractive" but the term "credible" which insinuates that Gamestop either doesn't have the money offered or isn't serious about the actual offer itself.  A far greater accusation than just "your offer sucks" lol.  That's just brutal. 

Idk the legality of making offers you can't adhere to or the legality of accusing a company's offer of being non credible are. In terms of fraud, libel.  All I know is this is a messy nothing burger.


Based on this in conjuction with what Dhaabi has said, I'm just under the impression gamestop is being run by a troll who is trying to garner attention with buzzing headlines.  That will not work for them imo.

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General / Re: 4 New Games Added to the "World Video Game Hall of Fame"

« on: May 11, 2026, 11:19:33 am »

But I was always under the impression that Silent Hill 2 is the game that is largely credited with shaping the enduring, philosophical legacy of the franchise. It is way more searched, quoted, and beloved.

To an extent, you're not wrong because Silent Hill 2's legacy pertains to its moral dilemmas. However, this sequel entry is also a complete outlier among the entire franchise that, by contrast, isn't grounded in any sort of matter relating to morality.


Because a game like Dragon Quest was inducted simultaneously with Angry Birds, does that mean they're equal? Halo: Combat Evolved was inducted in 2017 before Final Fantasy VII in 2018, so does this mean the former is better than the latter and that all games later inducted are lower in quality than it? The answer to these questions is no, and that's because the quality of a game in the context to how this museum has curated its exhibit is not grounded in such subjectivity but instead by various objective and historical metrics related to the industry as a collective entity, meaning the order by which they're inducted holds no bearing to the importance these games have had on gaming altogether. In fact, they're even questions being asked as this exhibit is not attempting to form a ranking of any kind.

Perhaps I should have been more clear that i'm not so much critical of the inclusions this company has made but more critical of the exclusions and the order. Which i'll get into why below. So for example, to answer you. Yes.  Having a game like Barbie inducted first over Fallout 3, Half Life and Metroid is an issue. Because it means it took priority.  It does scream that one is more deserving that the other. Normal hall of fames for sports get similar backlash when a inductee is less deserving than someone on the cutting room floor.  But this is 90 percent due to the intervals in which they induct imo.  They just give themselves no room.  I'd rather they take all hall of fame worthy entries and dump them in.  No playing games with cat and mouse.


4 games per year is simply not enough for this medium spanning 23,000+ games.  It pidgeon holes them into not being as wide.ranging as it needs to be.  I don't think I'd even conclude that the entries that are in don't belong in but when you operate something on a timed entry system yearly. You either need to have a giant starting pool of no brainers to add to like a lot of Hall of Fames do. So add optional to a pool of "of course" games like pac man and Mario.  Or add way more than 4 games per year.   Otherwise you end up putting niche recensy bias picks over juggernauts.  Or just bald spots where a needed game missing.  That's my opinion.


 I just feel the term "hall of fame" is used to try to fein authority over a topic.  It is exclusionary by design and always leads to these kinds of debates we are having which is why I dislike hall of fames. 

You would for at least one person—me. Does that make me less of someone who plays games?

No I would not lol. I would not have to give you a link for you to know what Metroid is. I feel you are being a tad bit facetious on your lack of knowledge of the success or acclaim of Metroid. I never said someone has to be an expert on metroid. Know its lore. Plot. I certainly dont. I said its self explainitory that its a big deal. Its a majorly important title that has cult acclaim. It's a pop culture staple. Idk why you think i'm insinuating you have to play Metroid to know its hall of fame worthy. Please let it be known that I have never played a Metroid game.for more than five minutes myself lol. I intend to. I want to.  But by no means am I any differently experienced in the game than you.  You don't have to play metroid to know it is revered on cult status.  It has a genre named after it and its on countless subjective top 10s.  Not top 100s. Top 10s.  It's also spanned 40 years and almost never missed in being good. Quality consistency.  All of it.   


In fact it was You and Cartagia that actually sat and educated me about what the genre "metroidvania" even entails because it was so vague imo.  By no means am I saying anyone has to be a metroid fan.  I dislike Final Fantasy VII but if someone asked me "is it hall of fame worthy" instant yes. Just off it's impact alone. Let alone how deeply millions love it. What it did for the franchise as a whole. The PS1 as a console.  All of it.  My point was you could take a Minecraft nerd who works at gamestop part time.  And he will know the basics of metroid.  Because it's Metroid. Angry Birds has similar impact. Candy Crush. Even dragon quest to a lesser extent.  But Barbie? Not so much.   That doesn't mean its excluded. Just not equal.  And within a hall of fame with inducing guidelines. Why does it take precedent?

Most have never heard of Barbie Fashion Designer.  You have certainly Heard of Metroid.  That is a huge deal. 


But if you believe the order doesnt matter I suppose that's the crux of this. And I feel that's actually a more glass half full approach. Probably less cynical.  That's understandable. To me I feel it does.  I feel it's like me giving someone a ration of food and tell you that you have to wait till next month for food.  It shows I clearly favored that other person over you.  That's why the exclusionary design of hall of fame inductions causes issues and why they suck.  I really never took to them. 

So to answer you. Yes.  Saying "you're hall of fame" to Halo.  And "wait till next year" for final fantasy. Is them saying Halo is better.


I give this hall of fame more grace considering it seems to be gamers trying to curate a medium for others. They aren't actually harming the legacy of games to any extent worth mentioning. Some hall of fames exist solely to play cat and mouse with inductees like the rock n roll hall of fame which is a discriminatory joke riddled with favoritism and corruption.   

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General / Re: 4 New Games Added to the "World Video Game Hall of Fame"

« on: May 10, 2026, 04:43:31 pm »

Personally, I'd consider these sorts of experts far more capable of making selections in this sort of process based on history and cultural influence than the kinds of industry figures you're suggesting. In the end, there is an exhaustive list of games that could be nominated or inducted. This is just one organization's selections.

Can I ask why? Just off curiosity.  I myself meet every criteria for what you just mentioned. Mostly all of that is self defined. You cant self define yourself as Shigeru Miyamoto or a legend in the medium. An artist. Anyone can say they are an expert. Self proclaimed experts do things like put Silent Hill 1 in a hall of fame before any Metroid title lol.

I also don't understand your backtrack on Silent Hill 1 because I feel your gut instinct was definitely right, as it meets none of the criteria you show their site posted for a submission to the hall of fame. It's sole existence is because of a lane Resident Evil carved 3 years prior, even its own devs admitted this, so it cant possibly be considered innovative as a first entry into a genre.  It didn't chart new ground.  It altered an existing formula's mood. Aside from being first. 2 did everything better.

I'm sorry. Off this alone this particular site loses credibility.  To me anyway.  I just wish these sites would say "our top q00" which screams "opinion and biased" not "hall of fame" which indicates consensus, authority and gospel. The entire hall of fame just off that observation alone doesnt have "historians" and game archeologists that should be taken with any ounce of sincerity over a typical guy.  There is no universe where Silent Hill 1 gets in before 2.

Considering that these individuals are well-connected to a highly reputable institution related to the preservation, documentation, and education of video games, I will assume that they are far more informed about the history of games than you and I, and I would also argue that have more knowledge pertaining to games as a collective medium than individual developers whom often are far more like you or I as hobbyists of games than as people who actually study them.
 

The credibility you claim they have is given by whom? What institution holds this kind of authority? What makes them more knowledgeable than say AVGN?  Or us?


As a database mod for this site. A site cateloging more games than most sites do.  For years. Why would you assume these random people have more knowledge on games than you?  I don't believe that. I kinda feel you are taking to bat for them with not much context as to why.  Even if they are gaming intellects. Possibly equal to other nerds. But not more. I could be wrong.  But I guess unless you know these people personally we cant know their credentials so to me it's just another online opinion.   I would even argue consuming media doesn't make you an expert.  Pat the Nes punk knows more than us about the NES library i'm sure. But he's still biased by design. Knowledge isn't weighted in opinionated topics. 

To say Silent Hill 1 having a more iconic legacy in the realm of gaming I feel is hot and counter cultural take. 


I mean you are far more familiar with the silent hill franchise than me. So i'll defer tbh.  But I was always under the impression that Silent Hill 2 is the game that is largely credited with shaping the enduring, philosophical legacy of the franchise. It is way more searched, quoted, and beloved. I cant imagine 2 being less impactful.  The PS2 was the king of horror games. Isn't it kinda sad not to display one?  It seems the museum favors foundation over innovation.  2 is a top metacritic critics choice game.



As for Barbie Fashion Deisgner. This is a random assumption with no context in a critique stating that we aren't using context when I feel my reply gave about 3 contextual elements within the museum's own guidelines that qualifies Metroid over both Silent Hill and Barbie Fashion designer.  I included sales, staying power, influence. So both of Sly's critiques of the admission remain. In what way is Barbie Fashion designer impactful? We arent pretending it made girls like actual home console video games are we? It sold a lot of units and was successful with girl demographics. Mostly because it wasn't a traditional video game at all, it was a fashion add on to be sold in conjuction with dolls.  Interactive software. Barely a video game under extremely vague defining practices. It sold units because of its attatched IP and Doll clothes. Not as a stand alone.  It's color a dinosaur for dolls. I don't have to pretend it's legendary because this museum says so.  Especially when its offending the medium and other games that are being left on the chopping room floor.    I was under the assumption that lasting power. And iconic legacy were heavily weighted. The fact that you need to pull a link from a website for 2 game collectors who own over 1000 games and exist in the gamer sphere to even care what the thing is shows that it is not impactful the way anyone is claiming it is.  Have you ever even heard of it before today? Be honest.   You read their synapsis of it for a reason. Because it's mostly irrelevant and barely a game anyway.   


I'l keep my argument clean with one simple statement.


Do you have to share a link with any gamer even a casual to educate someone on what Metroid was and why it is iconic?   


No. It speaks for itself within this industry.   Barbie Fashion designer is silly as an entry.  To say I was ignorant for saying that, is imo ignorant because even the sites reasoning alludes to the fact that it had very specific circumstances and a boost from outside hobbies and culture to assist it's Growth.  In that sense Skylanders would be just as worthy if not more.   They seem to be insinuating this toy add on opened the doors for girl gamers. I'd need more proof of that.  It happened to be girl centered IP and sold a lot.  That's all it got for reasons.  Is it even good? 



But my main point was ignored.  I want someone to argue for the sake of arguing that Barbie Fashion Designer is more worthy of a video game hall of fame than the Entire Metroid franchise or any singular entry. This is barely subjective anymore that's how silly this has become.   And I don't see much opening for blindly accepting the logic of a museum that does or says that.   So that is my motive for mistrust.  I stated my reasons fairly clear. It wasn't just blind hate. Its the comparison.



Hall of fames and museums shouldn't blend anyway because like you said. They have clashing intents.  One is made to display the best of the best.  One is made to display the innovative and Unique for people to discover new lanes.  In that sense. Yes. Barbie is fun to learn about.  Its neat. Its unique.  It's not Red Dead Redemption though lol.

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General / Re: 4 New Games Added to the "World Video Game Hall of Fame"

« on: May 09, 2026, 11:34:09 pm »

Bejeweled over Castlevania?  Isn't Bejewled Extremely Derivative? Why not Bubble Bobble.

While it wouldn't be the first puzzle game i'd think off, certainly not before Columns, Klax, Puzzle Bobble, it is a big franchise (50 million sold by 2010, obviously a lot more now) and it started the whole Match 3 Fad. There were and are thousands of copycats jumping up everywhere from straight up clones on google play to more interesting titles. It definitely belongs in a hall of fame but not before the other puzzle games that existed. Not before Klax or Colums that did all that connect stuff long before.

Personally, I'd consider these sorts of experts far more capable of making selections in this sort of process based on history and cultural influence than the kinds of industry figures you're suggesting. In the end, there is an exhaustive list of games that could be nominated or inducted. This is just one organization's selections.

I would say it depends on who these "experts" are. There are video game "scholars" in the way there are archaeologists or historians or scientists. In the end it might be some ex-ign morons or some random youtubers (god forbid some clueless people like the AVGN or Pat the NES Punk)

The problem is that the foundations are ignored. Rogue gets nominated once, when it should be in there from the start (especially considering today where tons of games are "roguelite" or "roguelike") and Starcraft first and Warcraft never even mentioned? Without the success of Warcraft 1 & 2, Starcraft would not even be a thing and Warcraft spawned World of Warcraft.
And tons of games never mentioned that should. I would put Wing Commander in there, given the fact that it pushed technological boundaries, is popular enough to spawn mods, was in the Guinness Book of World Records (WC3 and then 4 as most expensive video games until Shenmue) and where the reason why the whole "space opera" genre even exists (Colony Wars, Freespace, Freelancer, Starlancer and so on)
Same with Half-Life (shouldn't that be first ballot? influenced, the mods (counter-strike!), the culture about it, it made Valve and led to Steam and for over 20 years people ask where Half-Life 3 is)
Again, i just look at it, i don't claim to be an expert, but i definitely shake my head at those weird choices and nominations.

And then there's the induction of Barbie Fashion Designer...what exactly did that influence or how did that have any longevity?

I'm starting to think Barbie Fashion designer is meant to troll. Because it's definitely a head scratcher.  I notice a lot of these lists. Even ones done by rolling stone magazine always put a ridiculous take.  They do this so people share it and roast it which only helps engagement. 


Welcome to the video game hall of fame folks! To your left you will see Barbie Fashion Designer.  Oh Fallout 3 and Half-Life?  Those are in the archives. Didn't quite make the cut lol.  Not up to snuff with Barbie. A titan of industry.


Half-Life is a good pick though. I had no idea they excluded it.  I know its all opinion but some games just have to be there.  And early. Half-Life is one of those. 

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General / Re: 4 New Games Added to the "World Video Game Hall of Fame"

« on: May 09, 2026, 11:16:54 pm »

Personally, I'd consider these sorts of experts far more capable of making selections in this sort of process based on history and cultural influence than the kinds of industry figures you're suggesting. In the end, there is an exhaustive list of games that could be nominated or inducted. This is just one organization's selections.

Can I ask why? Just off curiosity.  I myself meet every criteria for what you just mentioned. Mostly all of that is self defined. You cant self define yourself as Shigeru Miyamoto or a legend in the medium. An artist. Anyone can say they are an expert. Self proclaimed experts do things like put Silent Hill 1 in a hall of fame before any Metroid title lol.  I am a curator of retro games, I educate people on games I suppose, run a gaming page and media presence, and know vague game history. That bar is so vague and so low. I'm just a guy. I know as much as anyone else or less. None of which make someone's subjective opinion gospel to exclude and include people's sentimental gaming choices. At least with a developer or inventor they have autuority on the matter I can't have as a consumer. That is the problem with most review publications and hall of fames in general but at least most of those have board members that actually have created or transformed the medium.  I'm not saying developers would be universally better. But that criteria you just quoted basically means any gamer on this site to James Rolfe or any other person in between.  I guarantee our hall of fame would be better.  Didn't this site make a top 100 games thing once? 




I also don't understand your backtrack on Silent Hill 1 because I feel your gut instinct was definitely right, as it meets none of the criteria you show their site posted for a submission to the hall of fame. It's sole existence is because of a lane Resident Evil carved 3 years prior, even its own devs admitted this, so it cant possibly be considered innovative as a first entry into a genre.  It didn't chart new ground.  It altered an existing formula's mood. Aside from being first. 2 did everything better.


For every other aspect of gaming

Icon Status - 2 is far more known, sold way more units and is the beacon of the franchise that has been remade like 3 times because of how iconic it is.


Geographical reach - 2 sold more units in every country and was a cult classic in Japan

Innovation-   2 is the main torch bearer for psychological terror. It did it far better than 1.  And 1 has mostly been considered to have aged poorly. And is not revered by casuals while 2 is.


To induct a game into the hall of fame that 97 out of 100 consumers hasn't even played is just insane. 



And now I add the main reason why I dislike hall of fames.


What metric that you listed does Silent Hill do that Super Metroid or Metroid didn't do better?


Metroid is so genre innovating that it is literally the co-name of an entire genre. People literally couldn't name the genre without using the name Metroid.  Metroid is more globally recognizable. Far more accessible to the average player considering Silent Hill isn't even played by children or casuals.  Metroid has more staying power being that its older.   It's not even in the same realm.   It's maybe 10x more qualified.  It is a pioneer.


I'm sorry. Off this alone this particular site loses credibility.  To me anyway.  I just wish these sites would say "our top q00" which screams "opinion and biased" not "hall of fame" which indicates consensus, authority and gospel. The entire hall of fame just off that observation alone doesnt have "historians" and game archeologists that should be taken with any ounce of sincerity over a typical guy.  There is no universe where Silent Hill 1 gets in before 2.   And no world where it comes even close to GTA 5 (the best selling game of all time. Other franchises have 2 entires)   and Metroid.  Metroid is possibly more hall of fame.worthy than Donkey Kong if i'm being frank.  Unless we include spinoffs


I don't think I could have done worse if I intentionally tried. Like the rock n roll hall of fame. Its lost all meaning.

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General / Re: 4 New Games Added to the "World Video Game Hall of Fame"

« on: May 09, 2026, 11:09:37 am »

Omg The level of baffoonery of this hall of fame is on par with what I'd expect from any hall of fame.  Like Sly said.  It seems universal for hall of fames to be lacking.  But boy oh boy do we got some meat on this bone.  What were they thinking?


My main thing is I don't know what gives this company the accolades or litigious credibility to even do this to begin with outside of a subjective self contained Joke. Isn't there usually a board and isn't that board usually selected at random by unanimous vote to assemble a "hall of fame" in other mediums? And doesn't that board usually consist of legends of said medium. Like for example Shigeru Miyamoto and Niel Druckman ect.  I suppose I should take it with a grain of salt but I feel there is a large difference between a museum level "hall of fame" and some guy posting his top 20 games on YouTube. The care is lacking here.  Not by who they put but by who they left out.


These 4 selections aren't entirely bad. But they become insanely bad once I find who's left off.  If one were to represent mobile as a gaming medium it has to be through Angry Birds. It is peak for mobile gaming.  Silent Hill seems quite a bit forced though. Get all the way out of here.  If there is not one entry of Metroid, Castlevania, the Red Dead Redemption, Bioshock or Starfox franchises here.  Get Silent Hill as far distanced from my face as possible lol.

On top of that. Why is it the first entry?  2 is far more influential and genre pushing and by far the critical consensus for the best Silent Hill game. We cant say the hall of fame always picks the first because they didnt with Grand theft auto III proving they are trying to pick the most influential to the franchise.  Has anyone outside of silent hill die hard fans even played the first entry on OEM hardware?  2 is the king.  2 is the entry.   

I think the company has also pigeonholed itself by allowing so few entires per year. It makes it so they dont get to everyone fast enough. 



Bioshock not being here is quite frankly a loss of credibility. It has one of the most quoted endings in video game lexicon and pushed fps story telling in the 6th Gen landscape. A generation dominated by story driven fps.

Dude where is donkey kong country? 

Banjo Kazooie?


Punchout!!!!!   Literally punch out.

Do I have to get into the absence of fallout?  Is fallout not one of the most innovative RPGs of all time?  Am I in the twilight zone. That game is probably top 5 all time in terms of sheer influence on industry and cult establishing of a falollowing.


You get not one metroid or castlevania both of which have an entire genre named after them but you get garbage ass FIFA? Which has gone through an identity crisis most of its existence and only sells because its the only soccer game allowed on the market because of EA bully stranglehold on sports licensing.  Applies to Madden to.  Easy to sell 150 million units with no competitors.

Bejeweled over Castlevania?  Isn't Bejewled Extremely Derivative? Why not Bubble Bobble.

Barbie Fashion Designer over Super Metroid?



This whole thing needs to be scrapped now.  The more I ponder it the worse it gets lol.   Started off a meh but now it's resentment.  The hobby should he handled with care by now. Either do it right or not at all. Its not that hard to not do this imo.

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Off Topic / Re: What Was The Last Movie/Anime You Watched?

« on: May 06, 2026, 06:46:54 pm »

MICHAEL - Intensely magical, perhaps doesnt tell the average fan anything they didnt already know but I learned a lot about the man. Michael's legacy is so sad and cruel that this is a great visionary portrait into his life. Directed by his own brothers, sisters and family. It is really well done. With deeply emotional but also amazing parts of symphonic mastery.  Jafarr captured the soul for sure. One of the better biopic of recent memory.


devil wears prada 2 - It's a elegant and cute return to fashion. Pun intended.  The cast is superbly talented but it perhaps lacks the syncopation and overall mood of the first. It's fine and had nice twists but overall didn't engross me like part 1. Mostly due to a more subdued Miranda Priestley.  Imo Emily Blunt is the star of this one in both character development and story pushing drama. Which sets the stage. It's funny and great but often feels like the shadow of something monumentous

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Modern Video Games / Gamestop Offers 56 Billion Dollars To Buy Ebay. Good or Bad?

« on: May 06, 2026, 01:34:26 pm »

GameStop offers $56 billion to buy eBay. Here's what to know - ABC News https://share.google/QA15EKQDrU5RYC6gN


So this rumor has been circulating for about a week now but I was waiting to see if this was concrete or would flake out but seems official. And is gaining traction. Gamestop is officially taking sight on Ebay leaving fans to ask how does a company like gamestop randomly go from slashing stores, layoffs, verge of bankruptcy and odd business model switches to randomly deciding to offer to buy one of the largest online marketplaces ever created?  Gamestop came up with a lot of phantom cash. Most people had their market cap pegged at much less. People question the actual intentions of all this.   Gamestop claims "we want to be more competitive with Amazon" which to me sounds ambitious but perhaps genius.


But my question is, is this good for either company?


Does buying Ebay give Gamestop so much more letigious overhead and navigation nonsense to endure changing their competitors from best buy and Walmart to literally amazon and temu?   How does that merger look?   If done right. It could make Gamestop into a gaming pop culture centric "cool kids Amazon" lol.  Reeking of Iroc Leather and Surfboard wax. Just the new site that has it all.  It happened with tik tok. A rebrand can go a long way. But taking aim at Amazon is like challenging Jordan 1 on 1.  Does gamestop have the leverage with Ebay behind it? What advantage is gained?


Does being bought by gamestop risk making Ebay like..... well.... GAMESTOP lol.  Who as a company has shown a very poor track record with avoiding scam returns, handling retro games, making sure people ship legit merch, offering fair market fees for sellers and being accurate on descriptions, packaging and returns...


My thoughts are

1. This isn't going to happen.  If it were close to happening Amazon will outbid them.

2. If it does. Gamestop is going to start to transition itself into collaborative thrift stores that act as hubs to sell and ship Ebay items for independent sellers.   Perhaps acting as a Ebay drop off point the way staples acts as a Amazon drop off point.  Which would make them a middle man.

3. As someone who uses Ebay maybe 1250 times a year and most of my collection comes from there.  Versus walking into a gamestop maybe twice a year if you're lucky. This just scares me.  Ebay has a great customer service model and a buyer first pride about it that has helped me many times.  Gamestop not so much although I dont hate gamestop. I just find it to be DK Oldies on a larger scale.



How does this news make everyone feel?    Any yays or nays in the room?   And if it happens what do you hope this entails for modern gaming as a whole? 

12

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2026!!!

« on: May 04, 2026, 01:11:40 am »

26. PRAGMATA [PS5] - Finished May 3rd, 2026





All Hail CAPCOM

Capcom is running away with 2026 truly. Capcom has it's proverbial sack in the air. Full of pride. And I am glad to be part of the ride


I can't even fathom a development studio having a 1, 2 punch this glorious back to back. It may be one of the strongest examples of this. And also with the release of GTA 6 nearing (most likely) 2026 is saying very attimently from the roof top. Set the bar low and we'll hurdle over the sun!   Pragmata is a delicious treat that may even outpace RE9.


Diana is adorable of course, and really not only makes the entire sad dad robo kid space adventure energy feel raw and alive but she also gives the player a connection to both Hugh as an esoteric lone wanderer to this melancholy regression into the deep void of space a whole paternal instinct about itself. He grows as real life dad's do by having a "daughter" it evolves both protective and extremely gentle qualities of the protagonist to show true value of soul. You grow to care about this digital rug rat and in doing so it makes the game connect to the purest parts of the human element within ourselves.  Diana is both helpless and extremely powerful in the same breath.  Helpless because she is isolated in a dangerous realm of polluted bots. But powerful because she can literally alter space time and hack telepathically.  So yeah she's OP.   Definitely not a "babysit" game. She kicks wholesale ass.


The bond forms slowly. Naturally. Going from Hugh being like "do I gotta explain the same things 25 times" to visible anger to any and all that attempt to harm the pragmata.   Dreams. Plans. Earthly escapes and restored earth memories that make up part of the ever expanding collectibles. 


It has a bit of Joel and Ellie vibes where the disgruntled and hardened dad who has been scorned by circumstance finds a child who at first is part of obligation but quickly becomes a product of deep sentiment.  And from hand drawn doodles, hop scotch to educational convos.  It really gives the play many opportunistic to hone that dynamic like a ginsu blade.




Most of this conversational bonding happens at "the shelter" the shelter is part of the larger cradle which makes up the mini universe you're in. Without giving up much of the plot. Your main goal is to get to a relay tower to signal to earth for rescue. Diana is a tag along who quickly becomes your adopted daughter essentially.  The shelter offers opportune time to not only interact with Diana (play hide and go seek) but also upgrade both your armor, weapons and Diana's hacking abilities. Which are upgraded using collectible elements. Cabin tokens fill out bingo cards and can be collected witjin each sector. These unlock outfits. More mods for Diana to hack with ect.  And within the shelter is also side missions known as training Sim which also reward you with the things you need to upgrade. It's laid out cool and acts as a very frequented sanctuary from battle to automatically heal and resupply ammo.


The game is pure substance. And it made me a bit emotional to find myself part of this world. It sort of shined the mirror on my childless existence and perhaps made me see the value in extending your knowledge and overall presence into the life of another creation (even in robotics form) that will carry your legacy and words throughout its finite existence. It's almost as if when we die. The trees eat out body. Roots grow. Air cycles. Nothing is lost.  All absorbed like spoken fertilizer.  The games story really tugs at the heart strings.  The sacrifice. The mortality of it all when in direct contrast with a robot AI essentially. The game is bonkers depth.


But to get off the plot sap. It's all really freaking badass! Think astral chain meets bomberman meets resident evil 9.  It has elements of dual character hacking, moving blocks on puzzle grids to electrocute enemies as you shoot them with the other character at the same time. Dual wielding entire personas. It's fresh conceptually and that hack and smack concept carries the core of the game to wonderful limits.


Long story short. Capcom is just daddy right now. Between RE Requiem and This in one damn year? Like save some drool for the other devs.   It seems more and more often that Capcom is passionate about the art of it all. Aiming to be respected as much as consumed and also willing to push both new and old IP to the highest of standards.  I admire that.

Oh and there are Mr. Cabins to collect. Mini statues of adorable computers that have led faces on them. Robo buddies Galore. What a cinematic good time this was!


99/100.

13

Off Topic / Re: What Was The Last Movie/Anime You Watched?

« on: May 02, 2026, 02:43:41 pm »

Super Mario Bros Movie


The Mario Movie truly sucks. It is the typhoid fever of movies. I am so sick of it's hype, it's sequels hype,  kids loving it. The posters. It all feels like i'm in the bad dream. I'm sorry. I hate the idea, execution and finesse for the movie.  It's another example of us eating spooned garbage designed for consumerism by a company or better yet companies who lost the plot. I can't even pretend it's good and the sole reason is Chris Pratt.  Almost exclusively.  And anyone with objective thinking will agree.   It's dumpster foder

Remember when companies would actually give a care in the world about respecting source material?  Remember when VAs were unknown and talented?  Remember when they wouldn't cast some American Irish Catholic sellout who can barely act as himself to play possibly the most notable Italian accent in pop culture outside of Joe Pesci?  It'd be like having Mr. T play Link.  Mario is "its a me, mario" and hes peppy. Hes all over the place. But most of all hes an italian plumber from new York. Its the most simple premise to nail. First at least get the character correct. Then distort it later. It is so insanely idiotic Hollywood's obsession to just recycling the same 5 names to play roles.  Collective multi film contracts have killed film industry as a whole.  Jack black is also beaten to death but at least I can imagine him as Bowser he sounds like Bowser.  Bowser rarely talked in the games and being gruff is about all that's needed.

Chris Pratt always plays himself.  This isnt mario. And truthfully. The price you pay a Big budget actor to do this. You could have either gotten the actual voice of Mario or if he didn't want to do it. Get someone who sounds literally exactly like him. The Mario impression is so abundant online. It's not hard. 

Why do I gotta hear my film Mario sound like a blockbuster Employee 4th generation American who eats CBD brownies.  No New York accent let alone Italian.  No pep. No spunk.  Even without the accent he doesnt have the pitch.  It single handedly removes the character from any premise of objective immersiveness.  It's a complete joke.


Oh did they just phone in a side character? Maybe give Wario to PewdiePie?   Nope.  They ruined and half passed the titular character and possibly the most iconic video game IP ever.  So sad.


It does numbers off little kids who know no better and weird millennial fomo


Chris Pratt as Mario was and always will be one of the worst decisions in film history. Im sorry.  You couldn't have chosen a worse actor to play Mario.  So with the main character ruined. They try to fix it by flashing lights and making goofy sounds and songs for kids attention spans. 


It's bad bad lol.


Literally 10/100

14

Classic Video Games / Re: SNK and Plaion are re-releasing the NeoGeo AES Console.

« on: April 27, 2026, 06:48:38 pm »

As an idea or hopefully trend? I adore this.  Forwards and backwards compatibility releasing old games on new carts is genius for preservation alone.  My gripes are with the console itself. The console was never worth it's price to me. Not now, not in the retro market and certainly not at its original launch which was more than a used car at the time.  Anything marketed as being for the "affluent gamer" is more than likely propagandist trash.  Everything about the original neo geo annoyed me. Now for this cheaper spin off. Id say id not pay more than 100 for it.   It's library is so weak and lacks variety.   I hope it enables others to enjoy it who love it for fheaper but to me this is a nothing burger.  In my extremely subjective world. But I do like the idea of physical retro revivals if done right.


Now if they did this with the vectrex id be really happy.   A modern vectrex with the same vintage display tech for like 300 with fresh caps ready to last decades would be a dream to me.

15

Modern Video Games / Re: Report: PS6 2029 | Switch 2 price increase soon?

« on: April 27, 2026, 03:50:16 pm »

Yeah I saw the price increases coming last year when RAM prices started skyrocketing. I saw that with the Black Friday $100 off and my 10% employee discount, $585 (before tax) for a PS5 Pro was the cheapest I'd ever be able to get it for, so I jumped on it. Man am I glad I did now that they're $900. Regardless of whether or not physical is still a thing next-gen, I'm done with mainstream gaming after this gen. There's just hardly anything worth buying anymore. From generations 1 through 7, every time a new game came out in a series, it was usually a significant improvement (at least visually). But ever since 8th gen, sequels keep getting worse and worse with each new iteration. Now they've reached the point where there's usually no point in buying sequels because the previous games were better (with very rare exceptions). I'm still looking at the next Xbox because I want a gaming PC powerful enough to emulate anything in my collection, but if it ends up being locked down in any way, I'll just go with a regular gaming PC.

SSD and internal hard drives have sky rocketed too.  I got my 1tb internal SSD M.2 with graphite and special carbon heat sink. All of it for like 56 dollars a few years back. Now they are 150+ some of them.  80 dollar games. Physical key cards with digital innards. Having to pay extra for a disc drive. Man what a sad time to be a gamer...


Although I was thinking the other day working on my PS2. With how often PS2s disc drives fail. And it becoming a bigger issue than ever before.  You are left with 2 options. Either buy oem and aged hardware and hope for it to not brrak.  Attempt a laser eye replacement which doesnt always work. Or buy a Chinese replacement part with varying build qualities that may fail faster than before. 

With PS5 having literally millions of disc drives being made seperately.  Think when PS5 gets into its senior years. 20 to 30 years old. It will have an abundance of disc drives on the market to buy. And even if they are expensive. I think they will be more consistently readible and thus make PS5 the easiest of the disc based consoles to keep alive.  No solder. No assembly.  The idea of a swappable plug and play disc drive is actually genius even if they did invent it for the wrong reasons.   Idk. Maybe thats just me trying to shine sunlight on a dogs ass lol.