Tag Archives: gaming

Thursday in the Zone

The City of Heroes “New Character Checklist”

Leave a comment

Since I am still hopeful that we CoH players can save our beloved game, I thought I’d do a post this week full of similar hope for the future–and what’s more hopeful than creating a new character?

If you’re addicted to making new characters, as I am, the process is likely a familiar one, but can be a little disconcerting. Like getting anything new, you have to break it in, have to conform it to your particular tastes, and it can be a little difficult to remember all your settings from more established characters.

Here’s an easy way to quickly set up your new character, from the first moment you exit the Character Creation studio:

Upon First Arriving in Atlas Park/Mercy Island

  • Arrange the various modules on your screen to your preference. For instance, I prefer my Chatbox on the bottom left of my screen, while my boyfriend prefers his on the bottom right.
  • Drag and drop your powers on your power tray in your preferred order. For me, I like to have my most-used powers on the first 5 numbers; you may have a different system.
  • If you have a supergroup you’d like to be invited to, message one of the admins and ask them to add you to the group.
  • Go into Options > Keymapping, and make sure all your keyboard shortcuts and mouse settings are to your preference. For instance, I like my Tab key to target the “Nearest” enemy towards me instead of the “Next” enemy, so I change that every time. I also set up my Inspirations to trigger using the YUIOP keys instead of F1 through F5.
  • Go to the nearest Hospital to stock up on Inspirations (the Nurse in the Hospital lobby sells them). Since you only have a few Inspiration slots at level 1, you
  • Talk to your first contacts (look under “Contacts” in your Navigation Console, top center of the screen), and begin to run all the missions you can. When one contact runs out of missions, ask to “Be introduced to another contact” so you can keep the XP going.

When You’re Level 2-5

  • As you level up and receive new powers, don’t forget to add other supportive powers like Rest, Sprint, Mission Teleporter, Mystic Fortune, etc. Go to your Powers menu (linked on the Chatbox module) and scroll down till you get to the “Inherent Powers” box (on the right-most side of the Powers menu). Click the icon for each power that you want to add to your power tray.
  • Use the global email system to transfer a little bit of influence (10-20,000 should suffice) from your other characters. This way, you can buy Training Enhancements for your powers as you level up.
  • If you get Training Enhancements you can’t use, sell them off to Vendors so that you can buy the Enhancements you need.
  • Explore the available Power Pools before you level up, so you can see what kind of powers you might like to pull off those as you level up. (You can choose your first power from any pool at level 4.)

Interested in Saving City of Heroes?

I generally keep up with all the latest #SaveCoH news on Twitter through my City of Heroes Twitter, @skiesoveratlas. Follow and join the fight!

Thursday in the Zone

Old-School Gaming, part VI: Super Mario RPG

1 Comment

Back in 1996, this little gem was released for the SNES, and quickly became one of my favorite games of all time.


Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (its full title) is the result of the only collaboration between Nintendo and Squaresoft (now known as SquareEnix, makers of the Final Fantasy series). And the game bears the marks of both its parent game companies; the rich lore and characters of Nintendo’s Mushroom Kingdom combine with Final Fantasy-style turn-based, RPG combat and mechanics to make a new type of challenge for Mario fans.

The Story in a Nutshell


The first few minutes of gameplay seem more like the end of a traditional Mario game–you fight Bowser to rescue Princess Toadstool. But, just as you’re about to rescue Toadstool, why, a giant sword comes crashing through the heavens (screwing up the Star Road in the process). It stabs down into Bowser’s castle, and the resulting explosion scatters Mario, Toadstool, and Bowser to various places in the world.

The new challenge: defeat Smithy, the bad guy who just threw Bowser out of his own castle with a larger-than-life sword.

Characters Old and New

Besides Mario and Princess Toadstool, there are some old familiar faces and completely new characters in SMRPG…but the story takes a few surprising turns concerning its characters.


For instance, Bowser actually becomes an ally in the fight against Smithy (a move that was revolutionary for its day).


Another ally comes all the way from the Star Road (as basically an angel) to help Mario and his friends. The spirit, ♥ ♪ !?, chooses to occupy the form of a little clown doll named “Geno,” and takes on the doll’s name since his real name is “hard to pronounce.” LOL!

Along with Bowser and Geno, you get Mallow, a little guy with weather powers who looks like a little puff of cloud (for good reason–you’ll find out why later in the game), and Princess Toadstool.

This was the first non-racing game I recall that had Toadstool as a playable character, which is one big reason this is a favorite game of mine. I love that she is the primary “healer” in this game, with her “Group Hug” group-healing power, and her resurrect power, “Come Back.” (I also love the fact that she can whack baddies with a Frying Pan if you know where to find it! :P)

Side Quests and Humor Galore

This game is both challenging and entertaining, rich with both non-essential content and story events that are downright funny. For example:


As part of the story, you have to rescue Toadstool from being forcibly married to Booster, who is pretty much a more playful, inept, and silly version of Bowser. This clip, showing part of the “wedding” ceremony, has some of the funniest dialogue and actions in the whole game.


Your forays into the second major area of the game, “Pond to Pipes,” take you down the Kero Sewers and out into a river course called the Midas River, so named because it can make you rich if you know how to play it right. Precise control over Mario (and good reflexes/timing) are key, but you don’t have to do the course perfectly to get through the area. (You can come back and play the Midas River course over and over again if you want, as well!)


One of the boss battles you’ll face is with a group called the Axem Rangers, who are thinly-veiled references to the Power Rangers. ’90s TV allusion, ahoy! This boss battle is fraught with snicker-worthy dialogue and posturing, even as it challenges you to think strategically.


The music nerd in me still delights in the musical side available in Tadpole Pond (just beyond Midas River). You can compose and play a melody using a still pond and tadpoles for the notes! (Also, if you gather certain melodies from around the game and play them here, the composer Toadofsky will gift you with various access cards to Tadpole Pond’s “Juice Bar,” which provides several team-boosting items.)


You can also visit Yoshi’s Island and hang out with Yoshi and all his pals. (Plus, you can compete with Yoshi in the island races to get Yoshi Cookies, which are great to use when you’re in combat and need an emergency boost!)


Don’t miss the fun cameos and references to other Nintendo games hidden within SMRPG. For instance, Link and Samus appear at various points in the game, as this video demonstrates. 🙂

A Few Special Areas Within the Game

The various towns and zones in SMRPG are well-crafted and provide rest and refueling opportunities, as well as furthering the main story and some side quests. (Seaside Town is a great one-stop shop, for instance, while Marrymore provides a luxury resort experience–try the Deluxe Suite in the Hotel to see what I mean!)


One of my favorite areas in the game, however, is Monstro Town, a town that’s literally a small group of reformed bad guys. I love the kitsch of this place–who would have thought that bad guys could reform, and that they’d make this cute little settlement?


Because the reformed baddies fear overly aggressive retribution for their crimes and want to live quietly, Monstro Town is quite difficult to get into; you have to solve a difficult desert puzzle to even get to the underground entrance. But it’s definitely worth the visit, as you’ll see!

Challenges and Puzzles for the Truly Fearless

SMRPG also has a few non-essential boss battles and puzzles, which are worth the look even if you choose not to complete them.


Jinx, who runs the dojo in Monstro Town, is a great side-quest boss to tackle. He’s difficult to defeat, but if you manage it, you’ll get the Jinx Belt–an accessory that prevents instant death. VERY handy for later battles!


This video shows you how to get the Lazy Shell Armor and Weapon, which are nearly essential for beating Smithy at the last. (By the way, the pair of items do not have to be used together; actually, you’re better off equipping Toadstool with the Armor to make her an almost unkillable healer!)


Also in Monstro Town, you can find a challenge hidden behind a sealed door–a monster only known as Culex. The resulting battle is easily the most difficult in the whole game (and I’m including Smithy’s battles in this estimation!).

Secrets, Hacks, and Amazing Stunts


This video covers a few secrets within the game (Forest Maze Treasure, how to get the Ghost Medal, what the B’Tub ring is for, and how to beat Culex).


An old favorite video of mine, this demonstrates the hilarious results of SMRPG ROM hacks. xD


And finally, for your viewing pleasure: soloing Smithy (the final boss) with Toadstool. Never thought this could be done till I saw this video. WOW.

To Play Super Mario RPG

The game is available through the Wii Virtual Console as well as through the SNES itself. It’s well worth the time to play through–it’s a wonderful, original storyline which takes our old favorite characters in new directions, and introduces us to Mario’s wider world, too.

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars on MarioWiki.com

Thursday in the Zone

Old-School Gaming, Part V: Paper Mario

Leave a comment

Though Nintendo has never quite been able to match the magic of Super Mario RPG (its one and only collaboration with Final Fantasy makers SquareEnix), there’s a couple of games that come close, in my opinion. Paper Mario, for the N64, is one of them.


Paper Mario is memorable and eminently replayable for its many side quests and fun excursions, much like Super Mario RPG. But it’s also got its own distinctive Nintendo flair! Read on for a little reminiscing and description of this awesome game.


In Paper Mario, Bowser steals a magic wand called the Star Rod from the seven benevolent Star Spirits, who serve as the world’s spiritual leaders. He then proceeds to imprison said Star Spirits, and begins to run amok with his newfound power, eventually lifting Peach’s castle sky-high, and even defeating Mario with the aid of the Star Rod. Of course, Mario has to rescue the Star Spirits and kick major butt along the way. 🙂


This video shows the opening scenes and the first few challenges/puzzles of the game, set in Goomba Village. After Mario’s disastrous conflict with the new and improved Bowser, he is thrown from Peach’s castle and is discovered some time later by a little girl Goomba named Goombaria.


From Goomba Village, you eventually move on to Toad Town, and are faced with the wreckage at the spot where Peach’s castle was torn up from the ground. (Your first big boss battle, with the Goomba King, is covered in this video as well.)


In Paper Mario, Mario receives the aid of several individuals he meets in his journey to rescue the Star Spirits. Each one of them can serve as a Partner in battle, helping to defeat enemies; each one also has a special ability that can be used outside combat to help Mario.

Partners in the Game

– Goombario (gives you enemy information, including Hit Points)
– Kooper (can use his shell to attack enemies at range or retrieve items from a little distance away)
– Bombette (can bomb cracked walls or ambush-bomb enemies)
– Parakarry (can carry Mario for a short distance across gaps)
– Lady Bow (can hide Mario from enemies)
– Watt (can light up dark places and display hidden ? blocks)
– Sushie (can help Mario get across water)
– Lakilester (can give Mario faster and longer flight across obstacles)

Each Partner is very, very useful–no duds here!

Peach’s Greater Role in This Game

One of my favorite bits about this game is that Peach is actually given more of a personality, and given meaningful tasks to do within the game. She’s no longer just a victim; she’s proven to be braver and more resourceful than anyone ever figured on.


In between the Mario-centric “chapters” of the game, you get to play as Peach, doing more stealth/spy missions to help Mario’s quest. Her tasks progress in difficulty as the game goes along.


One of the hardest Peach missions in the game is baking a cake for Gourmet Guy. Why do I call it the hardest mission? Because just like real baking, I stink at creating virtual cakes, too, apparently! LOL! This mission requires excellent timing to complete (I used a stopwatch and it still took several tries); however, the payoff is worth it.


Of course, if you don’t care about the payoff, you can always have Peach cook a disgusting cake instead…this one involves using Cleanser and Water as ingredients. Serves that picky Gourmet Guy right, I think. xD

A Few Game Secrets and Side Quests

Paper Mario is littered (sorry, couldn’t resist the pun) with secrets and side quests. For instance:

  • 8-bit Mario in Lady Bow’s Mansion
  • Luigi’s diary
  • hidden 8-bit music if you wait long enough on chapter screens
  • speeding-up and slowing-down music box in Lady Bow’s Mansion


“Empty” Box Trick in Dry Dry Desert: You get a Mushroom, Super Shroom and an Ultra Shroom by whacking this box with your Hammer several times.


Anti Guy is a nonessential boss in the Toy Box levels, and is very difficult to defeat if you’re not careful! (I found that using Lady Bow to hide Mario from Anti Guy’s super-strong attacks is very useful; otherwise, you just have to outlast him in Hit Points.)


There are also some secrets and side quests within the towns you visit:

  • The sorceress/seer Merlee in the back alleys of Dry Dry Outpost; she can give you a spell to help you in battle
  • You can get a Goomnut item from the big tree in Goomba Village
  • You can help an old Koopa in Koopa Village by running some errands for him; each one gets you a Star Piece
  • You can listen to the radio in the blue-shell house in Koopa Village
  • Don’t forget to climb the tree in Yoshi Village!


This video gives you the location of 3 secret Badges; Badges can be equipped to Mario to give him different attacks, better Hit Points and Flower Points, resistance to certain types of damage, and lots of other benefits.


If you visit Merluvlee’s house near Shooting Star Summit, she can tell a “fortune” about Star Pieces nearby. Her brother Merlow, who lives upstairs, sells Badges in exchange for Star Pieces. (Also, the purple-and-gold chest in the far left of the first floor is linked to an identical chest in Peach’s castle–Peach can pass items, like hidden Badges, to Mario in this way.


Talk to Merlon (in Toad Town, in the house with the spinning roof) whenever you’re lost about something. He also helps advance the plot otherwise, but his fortunes will help you get un-stuck.


One of my favorite side quests involves a Pop Diva who used to sing at Club 64 in Toad Town (near the port). Unfortunately, all the unrest in Toad Town has grieved her so much that she cannot sing; she needs a truly inspiring song to make her sing again. This video shows you how to help her!

Final Battle with Bowser


The final battle is divided into 2 parts; this video covers the first part, which is fairly scripted for you. Mario fights Bowser, and Peach fights Kammy Koopa (the real brains behind it all). Good plot development ensues, and because of Peach’s desperate wish, Mario gets a new attack–Peach Beam!


Once Mario gets Peach Beam, the second half of Bowser’s battle commences–and the game has changed. Peach Beam shatters Bowser’s Star Rod power temporarily, enabling him to be damaged, which means that finally, Mario’s attacks can get somewhere!

To Play Paper Mario

This game is available through the Wii’s Virtual Console, and there are probably some N64 cartridges of this still floating around out there, too. Definitely check into it–it’s a great story and well worth a playthrough (or 5)!

Paper Mario @ MarioWiki.com

Thursday in the Zone

A Gamer’s Plea: Do NOT End City Of Heroes

Leave a comment

Last Friday, NCSoft dropped a huge bomb on City of Heroes players, and sadly, it wasn’t an awesome game-wide event. Without any warning whatsoever, it was announced that game production would cease, and that City of Heroes would be discontinued by November 30th.

Mine were among the first shouts of dismay and horror; mine were among the first heartbroken Tweets and Facebook statuses tolling the sad news across the Internet. But they were most certainly not the last.

With this sudden, cutting action, NCSoft not only struck at the heart of its most popular game’s community, but undercut the City of Heroes developers (Paragon Studios) as well. Those developers were simply laid off, seemingly as if the decision meant nothing to anyone. I was appalled at how slapdash and unprofessional it all seemed. Did the developers’ hard work and creativity really mean so little? For that matter, did our creativity and hours of playtime, as customers, really mean so little, too?

I was shocked at the time, and I still am. But I am not ready to roll over and let my heroes play dead. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from City of Heroes, it’s that being defeated is only temporary: you can be brought back into the fight in many ways.

If there is still time to reconsider, still time to talk, I will not simply give up. I want to continue playing this amazing game, and I know that I speak for many CoH players when I say so. So I present my best and most accurate shot, the most powerful I can summon, to ensure that my voice is heard.

Dear NCSoft:

Please, do not give up permanently on City of Heroes. We customers know of your grievous financial losses and are trying to understand that you may have done this out of necessity. But we are saddened that you felt you had to take this highly drastic course of action, when so many more temperate options were available to you (selling the game to another company chief among them).

This move need not be permanent, and in fact may do more damage to your business overall than anyone ever dreamed. With this action, many players, including myself, feel alienated and unheard; we would LOVE to work with you to restore this game, which is your most beloved product, but we do not feel you will hear us. Please consider how this has damaged your reputation as a company among gamers, and at least give thought to mitigating the decision.

We, the players, would love to see the game continue, whatever else happens. If you no longer want to be the parent company of the game (or cannot be, for whatever reason), then perhaps another company can step up and take over leadership. If you do not want another company to take leadership, or if that avenue is blocked by legalities, then perhaps you can make the game code open-source. That way, fans could host their own servers, and still partake of the beautifully creative world you once spearheaded. I know these two options would make no more money for your company, but announcing the closure of the game ensures that anyway.

I know we as players do not understand all of the reasons behind this decision, and I fully admit my ignorance in this. But I respectfully ask for you to reconsider and, if possible, reverse the closing of City of Heroes, at least until other possibilities for continuing the game have been thoroughly explored.

Thank you for your time and patience, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Thursday in the Zone

Old-School Gaming, Part IV: StarFox 64

1 Comment

If I ever have to fly a plane and turn out even passably good at it, I’ll have StarFox 64 to thank. As one of the first really serious simulation games I played as a young teen back in 1997, this game has stuck with me as a challenging favorite.


This is the StarFox 64 introduction sequence, which opens up part of the story for you, as well as introducing the main characters: Fox McCloud, Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, and Falco Lombardi.


This video is the (hilarious) Nintendo Power-produced teaser for StarFox 64, which demonstrates all the newness that came with the game, such as the Rumble Pak and the 3-D graphics.


Continuing the introduction, the first mission’s preface lays out more of the story. Basically, Fox McCloud’s father was captured (and most likely killed) by the mad scientist Andross while trying to stop him invading the Lylat system. Now Andross is invading the Lylat system (again!) and must be stopped.

This video includes the first mission, in which you learn the following things:

  • “Do a barrel roll!”, also known as the takeaway meme from this game 😛
  • The game continually pulls you forward, so there’s little time for investigating much beyond your narrow flight path
  • Slippy is technically a dude, but does not sound like a dude at all (LOL)
  • Peppy has a remarkably fake, almost laughable Southern accent…but only in some scenes
  • Falco’s commentary defines “snarky” before it was a common word.
  • The Backflip will quickly become your favorite evasion technique, as well as a maneuvering trick.
  • Charging your laser and allowing the targeting system to lock on is a great technique for accuracy, especially flying as fast as you generally have to.
  • Collect all the glimmering rings you can; silver rings heal you up, and 3 golden rings give you a permanent health increase and occasionally an extra life.
  • Shoot everything. Who knows, that random 3-D blob might have a bonus hidden in it!


Aside from playing missions, you can also get better at flying by going into Training Mode (seen here in this video). I spent so much time here as a kid, just playing around. LOL


This video shows that it’s possible to kamikaze into bosses and destroy them, apparently. LOL! (Watch for Peppy’s ill-timed comment at the end for extra LOL)


The stark beauty of flying through the meteor belt…kinda reminds me of Star Wars. Wait, that’s the whole point of the game, never mind. 😛


Apart from using the Arwing (the flying ship), you can also use a tank during land missions that require it. The tank is a little harder and slower to maneuver than the ship, so take that into account!


Also, on the planet Aquas, you get to use a submarine; I was terrible at it, but that’s mainly because the levels are generally dark and harder to navigate. If you time your torpedoes right, you can light the way ahead much better.


This video collects together all the boss fights in the game…


…but here’s a little trivia: there are two final-boss endings to this game. This one is the “Easy” battle against Andross (to which I say: “Easy? Are you kidding?”). Many gamers say this ending allows Andross to live instead of being completely wiped out.


And this is the “Hard” ending, which involves Fox’s long-lost father leading him from the battlefield and out of Andross’ realm before it all explodes. (I admit, I never saw this ending. I don’t remember fighting Andross’ brain, nor the flight sequence at the end. Fail! I r not hardcore gamer… xD Guess I get to replay and see if I can find this ending for myself! 🙂 )

To Play StarFox 64

Aside from being released on the N64 back in 1997, this game was re-released on the Wii Virtual Console as well. However, there is also a newer version called StarFox 64 3D, released for the Nintendo 3DS handheld system.

StarFox 64 @ Wikipedia; see more information about the remake for the 3DS here.

Thursday in the Zone

Old-School Gaming, Part III: Donkey Kong Country

Leave a comment

As a kid, I loved just toying around on games, not having to beat a level in a certain time limit. Unfortunately, most of the games in my childhood valued completion under pressure rather than discovering every single nook and cranny within the game…

That is, almost every game I played except for one series: the Donkey Kong Country series. In this game series and this one alone (it seemed), the more you hunted around and tried new things, the more cool secrets you could discover–though some were harder to spot than others. Let me show you just a fun cross-section of the first game in this series…


The above video is the (hilarious) game intro and a playthrough of the first level, Jungle Hijinks. The main conflict in the game is that King K. Rool has stolen Donkey Kong’s beloved banana stash, and he and Diddy Kong have to fight to get it all back.


Each level ramps up just a little in difficulty and variety of challenges, but none of the levels are without secrets and fun stuff to discover along the way. This one is Ropey Rampage, the second level, which involves a lot of well-timed swings on ropes to get through the level, very unlike the level before it.


In this game, you have to use props more than power-ups to get around and complete levels–one of these props is the “cannon barrel”, which propels you more quickly across dangerous areas and can even get you into secret areas. (This particular example video comes from DKC for GBA, but it shows the barrel shooting accurately enough.)


The different scenery within the game provides new challenges with every section of the game map. For instance, the Underground levels have more bouncy tires (my favorite prop for jumping high or long distances), and the Underwater levels have waving kelp for walls, some of which you can swim through to get to secrets.


This game also had some of the finest background music of its day. Here’s an example of the Underwater level music…soothing, with just hints of how vast the water is. 🙂


This video, showing the secrets in the Oil Drum Alley map, is but an example of the hidden areas, items, and challenges sprinkled liberally throughout the game. Since the game isn’t timed, it’s well worth exploring around in each level and not trying to hurry through–you might just stumble across a HUGE advantage!


For instance, the hidden Ostrich-flying minigame…one of my favorite minigames in the whole series, just because you get to play as the Ostrich character and fly around collecting little golden ostriches to get extra lives.


Remember how I said some of DKC’s secrets are harder to get to than others? This video is a collection of how to find all the hardest hidden rooms in the game. (Now that I’ve seen this, I realize how much stuff I didn’t find on my last playthrough, many years ago! :O )


And, as with most video games of its day, DKC doesn’t fail to deliver difficult but rewarding boss battles. (This video covers all the boss battles in the game…I remember hating that purple squawking bird-thing with all the passion in my 9-year-old heart. xD)


There are also some funny scenes in the game besides the intro screen. For instance, if you lose a minigame and are playing Diddy as your primary character, he throws down his hat and stomps on it. (However, the player on this video got an interesting effect by having Diddy slide around just before the loss was triggered.) DKC has fun little human (or monkey) moments like this throughout the game.


One last secret: this video shows several warps to avoid certain levels in the game. And to think, I made it through every single level when I was a kid… 😛

To Play Donkey Kong Country

This game was released for the SNES in 1994, and was made available for various other systems through the years, including the Wii’s Virtual Console in 2006. There’s also a new game for the Wii called Donkey Kong Country Returns, which is a new story set in the same world as the original DKC.

Donkey Kong Country @ Wikipedia.com


Bonus: Though this is a ROM hack, it’s still worth watching–using a mine cart from later levels as a battering ram to get through the first level super-fast. I LOL’ed in real life watching this ownage. 😛

Thursday in the Zone

Old-School Gaming, part II: Super Mario Kart for SNES

Leave a comment

Continuing my foray down Gaming Memory Lane, today I bring you a post about Super Mario Kart for SNES, the game that introduced me to the “racing-game” genre, and probably taught me how to drive. (I may or may not be kidding, considering how I have to drive on the Interstate. xD)


As this commercial for Super Mario Kart shows, this game was (and still is) tons of fun. With a more realistic 3-D gaming environment (especially for 1992!), players were able to orient themselves a little better on the screen. (Not to mention that the choice of characters involved Princess Toadstool for the first time since Super Mario Bros. 2–this delighted my 7-year-old self.)

Drive with me along my fond SMK memories for a little while, via these awesome Youtube videos.


This was one of the more fun secrets in the game–taking the shortcut on the Ghost Valley level. I loved hopping across this little bridge not only in Time Trials (like this video), but during real races. What an ego boost to get around the course in so little time!


I enjoyed the Bowser’s Castle level, even though it was a little scary to play through; on this track, you could get some pretty awesome sliding action going if you concentrated and really worked at it…and if you avoided the Thwomps, of course. 🙂


Oh, the Rainbow Road course! It might make you dizzy, it might even make your eyes too dazzled to play, but it was AWESOME for my Lisa Frank-saturated childhood. It was one of my favorite levels, not least for the fact that I finally bested it on my 8th birthday. 😀


Oh, the horror! The Spiny Shell, the bane of every first-rate kart driver’s life. And yet, it was the unsung savior of those of us who seemed to get bumped to 8th place more than was proper. (The Spiny Shell, also known as the Blue Koopa Shell, targeted the person in first place and bowled them over; great if you’re not in first place, but if you are, well…)


I couldn’t find a SMK video to illustrate the Red Shell properly, so this one is from Mario Kart Wii. However, the mechanism is largely unchanged since 1992: the Red Shell targets the driver directly in front of you and bowls them over. Great for getting back at the cheating CPU player who just passed you for the 4th time. xD


Unlike the Red and Spiny Shells, Green Shells were randomized shells of chaos. Once fired, they would ricochet and zig-zag all over the course, only stopping when they finally hit a player. You could easily end up hurting yourself with Green Shells, but then again, you could potentially keep someone else from usurping your place. (I used to use the Green Shells as a weapon against tailgaters on the game. Kinda wish I could use a Green Shell in real life on the highway sometimes… :P)


With increased gameplay (and skill) came access to the Special Cup, the hardest levels in the game. Many a time I reset the game trying and failing to get a perfect score on the Special Cup, until I finally managed it about a year after I got the game. I remember being so happy I actually did cartwheels in the basement game room. xD


My favorite character to use on SMK, as mentioned above, was the Princess. Not only did I love playing the Princess because she was my favorite Mario-franchise video game character, but she was also the lightest (and therefore the fastest) kart in the game. Because she could hop over obstacles and skate across sand the fastest, her kart was the most forgiving of my early mistakes, and she could speed past others as I got better at playing. It was absolutely HILARIOUS to beat Bowser and even Mario in this game, doing a victory lap with the Princess waving the checkered flag–I reveled in it!

Summary

If you’ve never played Super Mario Kart (or any of the other Mario Kart racing games), I recommend it for some old-school fun. These days, the graphics may be a little dated, but the game is just as fun as ever! (I’ve recently enjoyed playing it through the Wii’s Virtual Console…ahh, reminiscing!)

Thursday in the Zone

Old-School Gaming, part I: Super Mario World for SNES

Leave a comment

When Christmas of 1990 arrived, I had just turned six, and I got a Super Nintendo system from Santa. Oh, the joy–and oh, the hours of trying to play through the first levels of Super Mario World, which, as accurately as I remember, came with the game system itself.

I was admittedly terrible at it, often killing Mario by jumping just a wee bit too far or a wee bit too short, or by getting agitated and sending him straight into the path of an enemy. But I made my slow and careful way around the Super Mario World map–I even made it to the Tubular secret level, by some act of God.


This is the Tubular level, also known as “Where Bad Marios Go when They Die.” xD

Read on for reminiscing about Super Mario World, one of the games I (and many other gamers of our generation) grew up on…


The boss battle with Iggy Koopa, seen above, was very difficult for me as a six-year-old–I kept jumping around thinking I just had to get off the platform onto something invisible on the sides. Needless to say, poor Mario died in the flames quite a lot because of my stupidity. LOL


I remember hating the Roy section of the map because I couldn’t find the way to get to Roy’s castle. This Youtube video would have saved me hours of ROAR and frustration, back in the day.


Wendy Koopa’s boss battle (at the end of this video) was the reason I broke my first SNES controller–those stupid flame ghosts kept getting me, and if by some miracle I managed to avoid them, then the Koopas got me. At least I had the good sense to disconnect the controller from the system before chucking it full-force at the wall…


This is the Donut Ghost House, which allows you to get to both the next official level in the game, as well as a top secret area. I never found this top-secret area, to my knowledge, unless I blundered into it somewhere.

(Random childhood memory: I was playing a Ghost House level near Halloween, while Mom and Dad were watching some kind of scary movie upstairs. Right as I was fighting King Boo, a horrible scream rang out from the TV upstairs–and I just dropped the controller and ran. LOL! Poor Mario, abandoned to die in the Ghost House because I was too chicken to stay in the room. xD)


My favorite levels were the Star Road levels (seen in the video above)–not because they were easier, but because they were pretty. 😀 I also liked how they interconnected with each other, and had lots of secrets to explore. (Not that I ever found any of the secrets without help…or without accidentally stumbling on them. xD)


The Castle Theme track (available through this video) freaked me out as a little kid. *shiver* Still gives me the willies listening to this track!


Image source 		Oh, how I hated the football-player guys that randomly throw baseballs. They always managed to tag me out, or jump up and catch me (like this one is doing in the pic) as I tried to avoid them. Fail.


The Cape Feather was AWESOMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE 😀 Even if I was a terrible flier, it was so COOL to be able to fly! (What I wouldn’t have done for this tutorial back in the day–it took hours of practice before I could get Mario to hold onto his cape like a parachute… LOL)


…And flying with Yoshi (as you might have seen already in the Donut Ghost House video) is pretty awesome, too. 😀 Start this video at around 0:55, and you’ll see!

For More Information

If all this reminiscing has made you want to play Super Mario World again, or perhaps play for the first time, you can play the game through the Wii’s Virtual Console system, as well as playing the slightly edited version made for the GameBoy Advance system. Or, if you still have access to an old SNES that still works, you can probably find a cartridge for this game floating around for cheap, and enjoy it as many gamers have done over the years!

Super Mario World @ MarioWiki
Super Mario World @ Wikipedia

Thursday in the Zone

9 Ways You’re Accidentally Annoying Your Opponent

Leave a comment

We don’t always give a lot of thought to how we treat our human opponents in games. In fact, sometimes we can get so lost in the actual playing of a game that we forget we’re playing against another human being.

Today, as both a reminder to myself and to raise awareness about respecting other gamers, I’ve written this article to help us all remember to treat each other better. We help make others’ gameplay experience either fun or not fun, based on many of the issues I’ll be covering today, but it all comes back to respect. Read on, for the surprising ways you may be annoying your opponent!

#9: Disrespecting Their Stuff

As gamers, we don’t appreciate it if someone handles our stuff without asking, flipping through Magic decks or picking out random Clix figures while we’re in the middle of another game. Yet many gamers do this to each other as if it’s accepted behavior. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been playing another game, only for someone to go rifling through my stuff, picking out things they want from my boxes without asking whether the items are for trade. Not only that, they sometimes handle my Near Mint collectibles with dirty or sticky hands, drop the items everywhere, or shove them back into the boxes willy-nilly.

It’s important to ask before you handle anything that isn’t yours; it’s doubly important to be careful with their items if they give you permission to look through. When you look through someone else’s stuff, remember that they probably spent a good bit of money to get what you’re looking at, and treat it accordingly.

#8: Not Stating Your Actions Clearly, Every Turn

Silent games may be fun for some, but not for everyone. I, for instance, like to know what kind of combos or actions my opponent is doing, so that I can have time to respond if there’s a game opportunity. But if you’re hunched over your side of the table, and you either don’t tell me what’s going on or you mumble it where I can’t understand, you’re in fact making it harder to play the game.

It’s tempting to leave the explanation of your game actions out–believe me, I know. We get so familiar with our strategies that we think they don’t need explanation anymore. But to someone who’s not familiar with them, those strange silent moves seem incomprehensible. Take just a little time to explain what you’re doing–this will help all players understand what’s happening in the game and enjoy it more.

(I do realize that extreme shyness or even medical conditions can lead to silent games as well. If you’re uncomfortable or incapable of speaking loudly, you can also simply offer your opponent the chance to look at the cards or figures you’re playing, so that they may see the abilities for themselves.)

#7: Only Playing Games/Game Types that You Can Win

It’s boring and sad to play a game that you know already is a foregone conclusion…well, at least for most gamers. But there are some gamers who truly enjoy soundly defeating others, so much so that they only play games they know they can win. Unfortunately, this can be very annoying to other gamers, who might like at least a chance of winning. Soon enough, a gamer who only plays what he or she can win will find themselves fresh out of opponents.

We all like to win; that’s natural. But the most fun experiences of gaming, I find, come from a real tooth-and-nail struggle, a game that’s truly “anybody’s game”–not a game where the same person always wins and it’s over in 5 minutes. You grow more as a player when games are not easily won, for one thing, and it’s just more fun for everybody when every player can share in the (imaginary) carnage. If you’re always playing one type of game, allow someone else to teach you a new game similar in style, and branch out. Who knows, you might find out you have a new favorite game! (Just don’t monopolize it… xD)

#6: Not Being Careful with Food/Drinks

You wouldn’t want your hard-earned collection ruined with someone else’s careless positioning of a drink or food item, would you? One of the more annoying things that a fellow gamer can do is to put an open drink right next to where they’re playing, well within range of getting knocked over by a careless hand gesture, or even another player. Greasy food items also come under this heading: if the grease splatters out from the food as you’re trying to eat it, where is that grease going to go but onto the tabletop, where possibly hundreds of dollars of gaming stuff lies?

Using drink cups or bottles with tight-closing lids (and keeping lids closed!), and having napkins handy for surrounding greasy food, are both easy solutions to avoid annoying or worrying your opponent. Plus, you run less risk of messing up your own gaming stuff, too!

#5: Whining About Your Luck

“Yes, I know the Dice Gods are smiting you and Lady Luck is not being a lady for you. You’ve said that 10 times this game already.” I find myself thinking this often during tournament play, when it seems the whole community of gamers becomes overly superstitious. xD A few mentions of luck not being with you is one thing–it can lighten up the mood. But talking about it over and over as if luck is the only thing against you? It sounds suspiciously like whining to most people, and whiners are not happy gamers to play against.

If you’re really having a tough time of it, try talking about other topics other than the game to get your mind off it–anything where you’re not focusing on how bad your luck seems to be running for you. I can be whiny about my luck, too, and this strategy surprisingly works, especially if you’ve got an opponent who’s a little more laid-back. And, if you’re facing an opponent who is doing nothing but whining about luck, try getting him or her off the topic–distract them from the bad dice rolls and card pulls, if you can. One person’s whining quickly casts a pall over other people’s games, and the quicker you can stop the negativity train, the better.

#4: Being Continuously Distracted During the Game

It’s great to have an opponent who’s interested in lots of different games. It’s not that great to have to play someone who’s involved in about 5 different games at various tables, or who has his or her phone out texting the whole time, etc. If you’re playing one game, stick to doing that activity and nothing else if at all possible. After all, who wants to be stuck at a table waiting on your opponent to get back from winning/losing two other random games?

Focusing on one task at a time will make you a more alert player, make the game more enjoyable for everyone, and might actually help you win instead of lose because of player errors and distractions. It also lets your opponent know you respect them and their time enough to play the game in a timely manner.

#3: Taking Forever to Do Your Turn

Slightly dovetailed with #4, “taking forever to do your turn” could mean you’re highly distracted during the game, but also could mean having small nervous crises over which card to play this turn, or which figure to move into combat. It also could mean an impossibly long, detailed, combo-ridden turn, in which the other player(s) are forced to watch you basically play and win the game by yourself. Any of these scenarios are incredibly annoying to opponents–they can end up thinking, “why did I bother even playing?”

If you’re unsure of how to play a new strategy, or just aren’t certain how to move forward, it’s not a sin to ask someone else for strategy help. These are games, not real war tactics, after all. And, if you look around the table and notice that most of your opponents’ eyes are glazed over after your 15-minute turn of ultimate doom, you might want to rethink how you play–at least, if you ever want to play against human opponents again. Super-combos of supreme ownage are great against computer-generated opponents, but we humans like to feel that we’ve got at least a fighting chance of winning. Instead of proving your authority by taking over the game, allow others to be part of the experience, and perhaps take time to observe how they play the game, too!

#2: Being Loud/Inappropriate/Offensive, and Refusing to Act Otherwise

Telling slightly offensive jokes (or hearing them bandied about) is pretty much par for the course amid gamers, but there’s a difference between being funny and just being loudly offensive/inappropriate. Most especially, if you’re playing a game and your opponent is having trouble concentrating because of your “humor,” you could end up alone at the game table in a matter of moments. Not to mention that someone might just decide to leave if you’re talking offensively and refuse to stop even for polite requests.

It’s important, especially in a large group environment, to be sensitive to how others are responding to your words and actions. If you notice that someone looks a little uncomfortable with what you just said, apologize; if someone asks you to tone it down a little, simply do so and make no further comment on the issue. I admit, I’ve made some pretty inappropriate remarks in my past, but learning how to apologize and keep going is part of getting along with others in general. We don’t have to self-censor all the time, but being aware of the people around you can keep you from making major verbal faux pas.

#1: Showing Poor Sportsmanship

Nothing is more annoying to a fellow gamer than to see his or her opponent stalk out of the gaming shop, mad because he or she lost. Mild fits of temper, especially in high-stakes tournaments, are naturally going to happen, but when a gamer lets one loss color the rest of the experience, both for themselves and for the other players, you know the poor sportsmanship has gone too far.

I’m preaching to myself here a good bit, because I don’t like to lose, and I don’t like to lose in 5 minutes with barely any time to fight; it angers me, much more than it should, and I can’t seem to let the anger go easily. But it’s important to realize that every game will have a winner and a loser, and you can’t be the winner every single time. The best thing you can do is to be a cordial, pleasant loser, so that the winner doesn’t end up feeling bad about it. Angrily stomping around, or getting in your car and speeding off, is not going to change the result, but it will disturb the other players and cast a good-sized shadow over everyone else’s games.

Summary

As I said at the beginning, many of these points go back to respecting other gamers and being considerate. I’m not saying that gaming should be conducted with the pinky finger perfectly extended, but perhaps we could put the middle finger away, just for a while. 🙂

Thursday in the Zone

The Wondrous Powers of Null the Gull

Leave a comment

In City of Heroes, there are various strange personages you can meet with, either to receive missions, gain story background, or buy/sell items. But there’s one entity you’ll want to take every character to see, and that’s Null the Gull.

Where is Null the Gull?

Seated atop an unmarked truck on the Villain side of Pocket D, Null the Gull is a little seabird who can help you streamline your CoH experience (and make it a lot less annoying to play in groups, too).


The view of the villains’ Mayhem Mission truck and Null the Gull, looking from the center of Pocket D.


There he is, sitting on top of the truck!

IMPORTANT: Make sure you don’t click the truck when you’re trying to interact with Null the Gull! The truck is the beginning of a Mayhem mission, and you may not be able to back out of it once you click.

Here’s a short list of what Null the Gull can do for you:

  • Keep Speed buffs and debuffs from affecting you
  • Keep you from being affected by Group Fly or Team Teleport
  • Choose to always accept or always deny Mystic Fortune instead of having to click in the dialog box every time
  • Keep up with your Dimensional Warder Badge progress by learning how many archvillains/elite bosses you have left to defeat.

To preview the dialogues so that you don’t accidentally choose the wrong option, check out the Option Dialogues on the Null the Gull page @ ParagonWiki.

Why Are These Changes Worth Mentioning?

This sounds like a pretty simple list, right? And most of these changes or updates are small, almost insignificant. But you’d be surprised how much these little edits help. For instance:

  • Speed Boosts, while greatly increasing your speed, can really mess with how you move your character onscreen–you can end up in the middle of fights you didn’t mean to trigger. Keeping Speed Boost and other speed buffs/debuffs from affecting you helps you play at your chosen tempo, all the time.
  • Group Fly and Team Teleport, while they sound nice, can be very annoying for team members who aren’t expecting a teleport, or have their own movement powers they prefer to use. Turning their effects off lets you move at your own pace.
  • Auto-accepting or auto-denying Mystic Fortune is a GODSEND. If someone throws cards at you during battle, you no longer have to hunt for the mouse cursor and click on the Accept or Deny button–it just happens, or doesn’t happen. Since I play on a laptop, not having to hunt for the mouse cursor keeps me from having to stop what I’m doing (and risk dying) if someone cards me mid-battle.
  • If you don’t keep track of which archvillains/elite bosses you’ve faced so far, your Dimensional Warder badge can be very frustrating to achieve. Null the Gull helps you out with that, helping you remember which ones you’ve faced.

One Small Caveat

The only bad thing about Null? You can’t just make the changes on one character and have that choice affect all your other characters; you must instead take each character to him individually and make the choices. It’s a pain if you want everything to be the same across all characters, but at least there’s the option of going in the first place.

Summary

If you’re a City of Heroes player and have never met Null the Gull, now might be the perfect time to go see him in Pocket D and make your life in Paragon City that much easier. Enjoy this “hidden gem”, fellow CoH players!