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#1 |
Elf Lord
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: California
Posts: 60,865
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The Glory of Mario: A Gamer's Rant
There was a time when I couldn't get that super-jumping Italian plumber out of my head. In elaborate dreams Mario and his brother Luigi would figure prominently in quirky tales that lingered on in waking life, and soon after I opened my eyes I would concoct a plan to write it all down, to put some good fiction to the most popular video game character of all time.
A few hours later I would come to a couple startling realizations. First of all, Mario would make a horrible story--you just can't make a worthwhile fantasy about a fire breathing dinosaur villains named Bowser Koopa. Second of all, and most disturbing, I was not a Mario fan. Why was I dreaming about this mustached hero? What was so intriguing about "Itsa me, Mario!"? But I remembered my childhood with the Nintendo, moving the brothers up through tiers to save the princess from an oversized ape named Donkey Kong, one of the original platform adventure games. And I remembered so many other wondrous Mario games, and the strange and yet somehow miraculously interesting characters, like Toad and Princess Peach, and her father that always managed to be transformed into something bizarre. And I remembered, too, some later games, and the first Mario game of the RPG genre: Mario RPG, Legend of the Seven Stars (for the Super NES). That game had depth, in gameplay and story telling. No other development company could pull off such a world, could make such characters in such an environment work. There was Geno, and incarnation of a spirit from above, inhabiting a child's toy, and Prince Mallow of the clouds, raised by Frogfucious, believing always that he was a tadpole who couldn't grow up. And I remember the parade to celebrate Mario's victory over an entirely new threat, a parade led by Luigi, who despite his happy, optimistic demeanor seemed deep, deep in his brother's shadow. He was always left out. Was I a Mario fan? Certainly, I had never played a Mario game that I did not enjoy. Maybe I was, but I left it to peculiar dreams. Until this morning. I hadn't slept in many hours, and to pass the time I picked up a copy of Electronic Gaming Monthly at about 3am. Flipping through, I saw some information about the new handhelds being released: the Sony PSP and the Nintendo DS. The Nintendo DS attracted me: the dual screens, the stylus-touch pad chat system, and namely the line up of games. At the launch was a platform adventure title by the name of Mario 64 DS, a remake of Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64. It looked fun. It looked very fun. Then I looked at the release date of the Nintendo DS, and the Mario game. They had the same release date: the 21st of November. Interesting ... wait a minute ... "today's the 21st". And after that I never had a chance. I called my local GameCrazy and made sure they had some extra copies for those who hadn't reserved it, and I arrived at the store five minutes after they opened, and bought my Nintendo DS (which comes with a demo of Metroid Prime, a first-person shooter), and my Mario game. I was hooked, and I fell in love all over again with Mushroom Kingdom, and it's childlike, endearing qualities. Yes, I now realize, I'm a Mario fan. Always have been. And I've got furious ideas racing through my head ...
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Falmon -- Dylan |
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#2 |
Elf Lord
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: California
Posts: 60,865
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Mario World Online
This would be a dream come true. I'm not talking about a haloesque set-up, where players unite to play cooperative or verses modes with up to four players. I'm talking a full-fledged Mass Multi-Player Online Role-Playing Game, based on the Mario Bros Universe. Create your own character from a wide variety of diverse races from the Mario games, and jump, bash, and stomp your way through a vast, vibrant world with thousands upon thousand of other players, going head to head, possibly, in Player vs. Player brawls which pit the evil minions of the antagonist against the allies of Mario, President of Mushroom Kingdom. Or group up with friends, and tackle quests of exploration, and real-time combat. And who's the antagonist? The shadow that has grown too great--Luigi, the "hero" he always should have been, fighting against his brother for supremacy, fame, and revenge. Now that's a rediculous, but charming premise that would make a lot of money. ![]()
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Falmon -- Dylan |
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#3 |
the Shrike
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: San Francisco, CA <3
Posts: 10,647
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Ooh, I'm currently playing Paper Mario, and it rawks.
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"Binary solo! 0000001! 00000011! 0000001! 00000011!" ~ The Humans are Dead, Flight of the Conchords |
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#4 |
Domesticated Swing Babe
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Reality
Posts: 5,340
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Son loves the new Pokemon games...but wants what you talk of for Xmas. Must be fun...
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Happy Atheist Go Democrats! |
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#5 | ||
Elf Lord
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: California
Posts: 60,865
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Quote:
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Falmon -- Dylan |
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#6 |
Saviour of Entmoot Admiral
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: NC/NJ (no longer Same place as bmilder.)
Posts: 61,986
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lizra talk your son out of the pokemon :P
Those games take up so much of your time and are virtually identical. Believe me :P I played the original pokemon games in 1998 and 1999. Played and completed Pokemon Red, Blue (the two originals), Yellow, Gold, Silver. There have been like 5 or 6 more pokemon games after this and I'm glad that I stopped after gold and silver. Huge time waster, lol. The "new" pokemon games are just remakes of the two games that I wasted weeks of my time with - "Fire Red" is a remake of "Red Version" and "leaf green" is a remake of "Blue" Both are virtually the same game ![]() ------------------------ Anyway, back on Mario. Mario games that I like: -I love Donkey Kong -Super Mario Brothers -Super Mario World -all Mario Kart games Mario Games that I think are OK: -SMB 3 -SMB 2 Japanese Version (never released in USA and very hard, often called the "lost levels" or "super mario for super players") Mario Games I don't like - American SMB2, horrible -Super Mario 64 I reallly don't like this game. Never played paper mario
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#7 | |
The Supreme Lord of The Northern Eagles
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: trondheim, norway
Posts: 1,388
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Quote:
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Don't Panic! |
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#8 | |
the Shrike
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: San Francisco, CA <3
Posts: 10,647
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"Binary solo! 0000001! 00000011! 0000001! 00000011!" ~ The Humans are Dead, Flight of the Conchords |
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Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
The Gamer's Thread (Rant of a Geek) | Ñólendil | Entertainment Forum | 9 | 11-08-2004 04:35 AM |
Classic video games | IronParrot | Entertainment Forum | 49 | 04-24-2003 08:39 PM |