I have become the steward of Ed Bellis's long-running series "Do you like this character?" while he runs his latest Video Game Music Contest! Be sure to participate in the VGM contest because it's really great, and you can also vote in DYLTC! That would be swell!
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"I can set you free, mate." "My freedom was forfeit long ago!"
37. Zero (Mega Man X) Quote: I never cared about justice, and I dont ever recall calling myself a hero. I have always only fought for the people that I believe in. I wont hesitate If an enemy appears before me, I will destroy it!
Zeros another one of those guys whose main appeal is that hes just so cool. He makes one of the best first impressions a video game character has ever made in the original Mega Man X. Right after youve finished getting completely wrecked by Vile, Zero bursts onto the scene by blasting the right arm of his mech completely off. In fact, hes so powerful that he forces Vile to run away at the threat of firing off another shot. At this point, youve known Zero for all of 15 seconds, and youre already completely in awe of him. Plus, hes got such an awesome looking sprite. I spent the rest of the game wishing I could play as Zero instead.
And we dont actually see Zero again until the last level of MMX1, where he shows up to save you from Vile yet again, but this time at the cost of his own life. He destroys Viles mech so you can defeat him once and for all (or not, because nobody actually stays dead in the MMX series), and then he gives you his arm cannon before dying, which allows you to shoot a super awesome charged shot. Well, if you cant actually be Zero, at least you can be kinda like him, so that was cool.
In MMX2, apparently Zeros body somehow broke apart into three sections and got scattered everywhere, so its up to you to salvage his parts and hopefully bring him back to life because we never really considered the fact that oh yeah hes a robot not a human we could just rebuild him when he died in MMX1, so we left his body there instead of retrieving it or something. Anyway, you can get all of Zeros parts back, and when you get to the end of the game, a black Zero that Sigma built will show up to try to stop you. However, the real Zero will appear and destroy it like a boss. But I actually kinda like not getting all of the parts because then you get to fight Zero in a really cool battle with some awesome music. You get a sense of how really powerful he is with how he fires off all those blaster shots, the Z-Saber, and the fact that you cant even damage him from the front unless youre willing to shoot at him while hes shooting at you. I felt really accomplished when I beat him, mostly because Im bad at Mega Man games.
Mega Man X3 finally granted your wish and let you play as Zero, although in a limited role. I actually havent played any of the MMX games beyond the SNES ones, but I do know the gist of Zeros story about being Dr. Wilys last great creation and all. I would like to play them someday though. I have played the first Mega Man Zero game, which was really fun. Im not a fan of MMZs redesign, but hes still a really cool dude with awesome powers, so I can live with it.
Bonus Question: Who is your favorite character in the Mega Man universe?
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Guess who I am! http://gifsoup.com/webroot/animatedgifs3/1345748_o.gif
Probably Zero. I can't think of anyone as good. Closest would probably be Tron Bonne.
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So weve cornered Andy and Kyle in the Swarts stairwell and then this guy comes out of NO WHERE like ****ing Batman or something. ; ExTha is the man
Have you ever had a moment in a game where you were so nervous while you were playing that you were shaking?
Lots of times. So many times during Ace Attorney. When I got to the final part of the final songs in the EBA/Ouendan series while on Hard mode. And when I was on the verge of beating TD Bald Bull in Wii Punch-Out!! I dunno any other exact moments, but it probably happened quite a bit.
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Rank 9, Dr. Peace? Pffft, nothing compared to Rank 1, Dr_Football! when thinking of Krystal, does GMUN's pants get overcrowded? ~ GMUN
Who is your favorite character in the Mega Man universe?
Oh hey. I'm going to break the mold and say Protoman. He just has such a good design, lots of style, dat whistle, and of course, sunglasses under sunglasses. Dr. Wily is great, too. Eyebrow wiggling for no reason and just generally a ridiculous villain. X and Zero are both pretty good...well...as long as X doesn't have any voice acting. Seriously, X was just so badass and his X4 voice just made me feel...bleh.
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Rank 9, Dr. Peace? Pffft, nothing compared to Rank 1, Dr_Football! when thinking of Krystal, does GMUN's pants get overcrowded? ~ GMUN
Aww yeah. That mission is my favorite part of FFVIII. I love the sense of tension and people scrambling everywhere to try and make the mission work; it feels like a timed mission even though it's not.
Bonus Question: What is your favorite The good guys lose moment in a game?
*vague Umineko spoilers*
Does the Umineko ep7 tea party count? Because that was amazing. Bern/Kyrie top tier. That scene was probably the highlight of the series for me (either that or the ep4 dreamenddischarger scene).
Bonus Question: Who you got: Mario or Sonic?
Sonic, easily.
Bonus Question: Have you ever had a moment in a game where you were so nervous while you were playing that you were shaking?
Touhou does this to me -- well, not so much while I'm playing, but afterwards. When I was playing Imperishable Night on hard, the first time I reached the final boss's final attack (and proceeded to screw it up miserably), my hands shook for like five minutes. Same thing happened when I finally beat hard, and lunatic, and Subterranean Animism normal.
-- another place and time, without a great divide, and we could be flying deadly high
This was another one of those games that my friends and I sunk hours and hours into back in the day. Massive 4-player marathon sessions are what I will most remember about the Nintendo 64. Heck, Ive barely touched the thing in years since all my friends and I grew up and went our separate ways. I think Ive done a playthrough of Mario 64, Ocarina of Time, Majoras Mask, and Paper Mario in the last few years on my N64 and thats it, and I only played the first three for Board 8 related reasons.
Anyway, about Bomberman 64, my friends and I would play this game for hours at a time. Its probably one of my most played games ever in terms of total hours logged. This game was almost always busted out at some point whenever friends came over. And you know, I barely touched the single-player adventure mode, even though I heard good things about it from people who played it. Regardless, multiplayer is fun enough for the game to make it on this list based on that alone.
Ive heard people claim that they dont really like Bomberman on a 3-D plane, and they prefer a 2-D plane where the bombs blow up in straight lines and stuff. I enjoy some classic 2-D Bomberman from time to time, but this game is where its at for me. The extra dimension adds more depth to the game (and Im not just speaking literally here!). The stages were good about bringing this out, too. There were some levels that were just flat planes for straight up bomb fests, but you also had several stages where you could try to get up above your opponent to gain a tactical advantage (Yes, in Bomberman 64, the high ground was the best place to be!). Most of the stages were really fun, too, and were well designed so that each one was played differently from the others.
The powerups were really cool, too. I dont know the official names of these powerups, but we had our own names for them. Our favorite was always the one that turns your bombs red (we called them cherry bombs) and makes your explosions bigger, especially when you pumped them up or whatever it is you can do to make your bombs really big before you throw them. Theres that powerup that makes your bombs blow up really fast, too, which can be a blessing and a curse. Trying to kick bombs back and forth made for some really intense fun, too. Good times. If only I still had someone to play with Maybe one of these days Nintendo will release the game for the Virtual Console with online play for the Wii U or something. That would be nice.
Bonus Question: What is your favorite multiplayer game to play locally with your friends?
I only had the game briefly. Forgot if I just rented it or it was stolen/lost. I remember it being fun, but I didn't play the multiplayer long enough to have any distinct memories.
Bomberman Hero had a pretty good single player. Too bad it didn't have multi.
Bonus Question: What is your favorite The good guys lose moment in a game?
But for vidya games, all I can think of is Umineko. Pretty much anything Umineko.
Bonus Question: Who you got: Mario or Sonic?
That's tough. Loved Mario games as a kid, but always thought Sonic was cooler. Now Sonic's a low man... but so is Mario. Really, the only strong answer I could give would be Luigi.
Bonus Question: Is there a game you bought for a reason other than the game itself?
Ooh, besides most comic book games... hmm... not really. If I had purchased any Guilty Gear, Street Fighter, Xenosaga, or FFX/Kingdom Hearts game, it would've been to gain Mercenaries knowledge. But I didn't so I can't think of anything. Closest would be Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles so I could make a good mercenary suggestion.
Bonus Question: Have you ever had a moment in a game where you were so nervous while you were playing that you were shaking?
Hell yes, but remembering when? Gaaah. Everquest. Huge fights (<3 Estate of Unrest), lengthy quests (<3 Burning Rapier), exploring new and highly dangerous territories (<///3 Karanas & nighttime Kithicor Forest), trying to find my corpse before it despawns (<///3 Ocean of Tears & Kunark), avoiding *******s in Qeynos Hills on a PvP server my first time playing (<///////3 Rallos Zek server), and did I mention exploring new and dangerous territory? Running for my life after getting aggroed by Grimfeather or giants or treants or ELITE GNOLL TRAIN TO ENTRANCE! 50 GNOLLS CHOO CHOO.
God I miss Everquest.
Some others: - Amnesia. Just... Amnesia. - Before any close victory after a long, hard fought battle with my last character barely on his feet. Gladius, Skies of Arcadia, Secret of Mana during Spikey Tiger. - Same for multiplayer games like competitive TF2. - Oh god, Mercenaries. Mercenaries had to have given me the shakes every single week. Every time I wanted to make or steal a purchase, every time I knew I was going to be late, every time there were random abilities, every close battle, every upgrade, everything. TEEEEEENNNNNSSSSIIIIOOOOONNN.
Bonus Question: What is your favorite multiplayer game to play locally with your friends?
Haven't done this in so long for two reasons. One, I own practically no worthwhile multiplayer games since the N64. Two, the friend I usually hang out with only has one controller now because he somehow keeps breaking them.
But aside from that... Apples to Apples.
And aside from board/card games... Mario Kart 64? Or the Black Ops Zombies. Or Melee/Brawl.
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"COMMUNITY is back at 8 on the 15th. I have a good feeling about those numbers." - Damon Lindelof
36. Miles Edgeworth (Ace Attorney) Quote: We prosecutors use anything we can to attack the defendant. But every time we did so... No matter how desperate the situation, instead of giving up like most people, that man would hold strong with his undying faith. And then, before I knew it I began to trust in that man as well It doesn't matter how many underhanded tricks a person uses The truth will always find a way to make itself known. The only thing we can do is to fight with the knowledge we hold and everything we have. Erasing the paradoxes one by one It's never easy We claw and scratch for every inch. But we will always eventually reach that one single truth. This I promise you.
A bit of a long quote to open this writeup with, but I love it. Sums up part of what makes Edgeworth and 2-4 so great. Sometimes its better just to let the characters speak for themselves because they say it better than I can. Miles Edgeworth is a fascinating character who goes through some strong development over the course of the games and becomes the best lawyer in the series by the time its all said and done.
When were first introduced to Edgeworth in 1-2, hes a genius prosecutor who has yet to lose a case, but he has the reputation of being a demon who is willing to do whatever it takes to get a guilty verdict, even if it means using unethical methods. I dont really like how 1-5 tries to make it seem like Edgeworth never intentionally did anything illegal as a prosecutor, but he only did it unknowingly. To me, the first three games (1-5 retconning aside) make it pretty clear that Edgeworth wasnt opposed to playing dirty, so I dont know why Capcom is insisting on trying to make him someone who was always a good guy who was just a victim of someone elses mistakes. It makes him much more interesting as a character to be a dirty cheater who was slowly won over by Phoenix Wright than to be whatever he would be otherwise.
I talked a bit about one of the reasons I like Edgeworth so much in my writeup about his face turn in 1-3. Its great seeing him Phoenix gradually change his way of thinking over the course of the first game. And of course, Edgeworth really shines in all of the epic cases. In 1-4, we learn about his tragic past and how he eventually became what he became. He had originally wanted to be a defense attorney like his father, but after he was killed and the crime went unsolved and unpunished, he decided to become a prosecutor instead and make it his task to get every client found guilty. However, part of it was a result of him trying to deal with his own guilt, thinking he was the one who actually killed his father. Helping Edgeworth uncover the truth and freeing him from that nightmare was awesome.
Edgeworth is awesome in 2-4, too, where he puts on the best performance from a lawyer in any case. Throughout the entire case, he is almost always in complete control, guided by his desire to find the truth. The only times he ever gets caught off guard are when the suicide note is revealed to be a forgery and when de Killer claims his client is Adrian Andrews. Plus, his speeches to Phoenix describing his journey to find out what it really means to be a prosecutor are awesome. Getting to play as Edgeworth for the first day of 3-5 is really fun, too. My favorite parts are the times when he starts to realize how Phoenix must feel as a defense attorney, like the shock of finding out that Iriss fingerprints are on the murder weapon, having everyone gang up on him when he asks an innocent question (Is there some sort of Kick me sign attached to the defenses bench?!), or the feeling of pointing out a contradiction. So good.
Bonus Question: Who is your favorite bad guy turned good guy?
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"But you have been given freedom. Freedom to be...outside." "I am lightning...the rain transformed."
Good write-up, although I disagree about the 1-5 retcon - I completely understand your point of view, but at the same time I think the character works well either way. The 1-5 version is that Edgeworth always wanted to have the person who committed the crime found guilty, and he trusted the police to do their job and accuse the correct man. His relationship with Gumshoe is basically built on that (as well as the events of E-4, of course). His defeat to Phoenix in 1-2 is therefore not him realising the error of his ways and resolving to stop fixing evidence, but that he's been too close-minded and too dedicated to finding ways of proving people guilty that he hasn't stopped to think to himself whether they are actually guilty or not. That line of thinking leads into Justice For All quite well, I think.
Of course, like I said I think it works well both ways, and certainly wouldn't begrudge you prefering the original version.
As for the bonus question, I'm pretty sure my answer's the same.
Completely random aside: I'm going to restart FFX, and feel like I should play it in some special way. Not necessarily gameplay related, just... I don't know, different. Any ideas? Figured I'd post it here since there's probably multiple people who read these topics who give a damn about the game.
-- James - Board 8's Resident Warm And Safe, Slipper-Wearing User & The Cream of Porcupine Tree Fanboyism
Eh, I just don't really think it fits the way he's portrayed in the original PW games before they added in 1-5. Edgeworth pretty blatantly plays dirty, concealing relevant facts and evidence, in an attempt to get every client found guilty. It wasn't really a matter of "trusting the police to find the right man." I think the way he puts it is, "There's no way to know if someone is truly innocent or not. Everyone will lie to avoid being found guilty, so the only thing I can do is make sure they do get found guilty," or something along those lines.
Plus, I find it hard to believe that a man who was trained and mentored by Manfred von Karma wouldn't play dirty as well. I think you just end up having to overlook too many things that Edgeworth did to make 1-5 "work," but Capcom doesn't seem to mind overlooking them, so whatever. I think it sort of undermines the impact of his "face turn" in 1-3 as well as his whole appearance in JFA (in particular his speeches about how meeting Phoenix Wright changed him) if he's just a guy who wants to find the truth all along. If you take 1-5 at face value, then Edgeworth really hasn't changed all that much over the course of the series.
If you don't, then he's a great character with excellent development.
As far as playing FFX differently, I'm not sure what you could really do! You could play a limited Sphere Grid or something, where you get all the stats but you never learn the abilities or vice-versa. I dunno. I don't really do "challenges," so I'm not the best person to ask!
The Edgeworth thing, I take your point. It does screw his development up a bit, but I don't think it messes him up as a character - it's not just his turn to the light that I enjoy (and in any case that still exists to an extent) but the person he is at the end of it all. I love him in AAI for instance, and he's fully-developed long before then.
I'm not necessarily looking for a challenge in FFX - after the ridiculous one I did (well, up to and including defeating Omnis) there's not much further to go there - just some new way of playing it, I guess. I don't know what, exactly.
-- James - Board 8's Resident Warm And Safe, Slipper-Wearing User & The Cream of Porcupine Tree Fanboyism
Assassins Creed II is one of those games that found the sweet spot for its series and managed to get it just right. Thats one of the reasons I prefer it over the two games that came after, Brotherhood and Revelations. I know the trademark of a sequel is that you have to add new stuff, but I thought AC2 got it just right and all the new equipment the next two games added was a bit much, like bomb crafting and the like. Plus, I liked being able to visit several cities over the course of the game instead of being relegated to one city, as big as it may be. It had just the right amount of sidequests and stuff, too, like races and, of course, Beat Up Cheat (Seriously one of the greatest ideas for a sidequest/mini-game ever).
I also think Assassins Creed II has the best plot in the series so far. I enjoy Ezios journey from irresponsible youth to full-fledged assassin, as well as his struggle to eliminate the inner circle of people who were responsible for putting his father and brothers to death. AC2 had some pretty good assassination missions, too, and they mixed it up a good bit in the circumstances and the way you had to carry them out. Then finding out that The Spaniard eventually becomes Pope Alexander VI, and the last boss of the game is a fist fight with the Pope There are no words that can describe this adequately. The concept sounds so preposterous, but it works somehow. Then, of course, theres the big shocker at the ending where Ezio meets Those Who Came Before or whatever theyre supposed to be called, only to have them address Desmond instead of him. Again, despite the ridiculousness of it all, they managed to pull it off pretty well and make me interested in what happens next.
Assassins Creed II also introduced my new favorite weapon into the series, the double Hidden Blade. I know the other two games have it, too, but it feels like AC2 gives you a lot more opportunities to do double assassinations, mostly because this is the game where it was introduced. Theres nothing more satisfying than nailing a double air assassination with the Hidden Blades, so good. The poisoned blade is pretty fun, too, watching someone just flail about and eventually collapse. The little sound effect the game makes when you equip it is cool, too.
Assassins Creed II also introduced my favorite element of the series: Assassins Tombs. Man, I love these things so much. Its like puzzle-based platforming, trying to figure out your way through some abandoned site thats about to fall apart. You have to figure out how to navigate through it by climbing, jumping, knocking stuff over, activating things at the right time, etc. As anyone who knows me is aware, I adore platformers, so for AC2 to implement this sort of thing was awesome for me. The Assassins Tombs are what put this game over the top for me and what makes me love the series in general.
Bonus Question: What is your favorite aspect of the Assassins Creed series?
I thought about asking what your favorite AC game is, but AC2 seems to be the overwhelming favorite for the series, so that might be a boring question!
I like the sandbox-open environment feel, and I love the medieval setting. Jumping and climbing is fun and the story was intriguing. Side missions get repetitive, but are generally short and unoffensive.
Finding flags desperately needed to have some of kind of way to track them down like inFamous' blast shards. Also way too many.
But it could have been something that was fun to do. For me, finding flags could have been fun if they had showed up on the mini-map. It encourages exploration, which I like.
What I don't like is that it encouraged painstaking combing through of every alleyway and hidden rooftops.