Wednesday 6 November 2013

Episode 8 - The Nice and Games Trilogy, Concluded

This episode of our meandering discussion podcast is the end of our adventure of silliness with Nice and Games. It's been emotional. And yogurty.

Topics include:
Let us know what you think in the comments, and we promise to get around to answering questions next time!

Download here: 
Jim-PacBilly-008.mp3

or stream here:






6 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for having me as a guest for so many weeks! Sorry to bring the podcast down to the level of yogurt and poop. Now you can get back to better topics. But in quieter moments, you'll miss the yogurt talk. Maybe not. I won't because I have access to actual yogurt. Ah, good ol' yogurt.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Fare thee well Nice and Games. You really ought to get your own podcast, which I imagine would be much less of a time commitment than making new videos constantly. Then you could spend the whole hour talking about yogurts, and there would be nothing that anyone could do to stop you.

    That aside, if you are a fan of Japanese games, there really is no other recourse than to buy a console. Japanese PC games are rather uncommon compared to Japanese console games, though there are a few standout titles like Cave Story and La-Mulana that can be played on PC.

    I think the biggest strength that comes from console gaming is that developers know exactly what they are getting when they are designing their game. Nintendo knows that everyone who buys Mario in a couple weeks has the exact same hardware, so they can specifically tune the game to fit that hardware. I imagine this has to be appealing to game designers when they can save time not having to mull over what concessions must be made, or will not be made, in order to reach a certain audience.

    Another point is that consoles are very restrictive in their use, which makes them ideal for parents looking to buy something for their kids. I think that a lot of parents would be more comfortable buying their kids a system that just plays games, rather than a computer that can freely access the Internet and all the madness that comes with it.

    I think that it just comes down to what kinds of games you like. Japanese RPGs, Fighting, STGs, Platformers, Arcade/Kart Racers, Rhythm, and other genre are, by my reckoning, much less abundant on PCs. On the other hand, PCs are superior when it comes to 1st-Person Shooters, 4X, Simulation, Grand Strategy, and many other genre that I am not well-versed in, I'm sure. This is one of the reasons I am excited for the future of the Wii U. I think that, properly tapped, the Wii U's GamePad could be a powerful asset in the bridging of PC games and Console games.

    In a parallel world where all games are released for all systems, the PC would surely be the choice of convenience for adults, but this is most certainly not the case.

    So those are my thoughts on the matter in a coconut shell. I feel for the poor sod at Yoplait who has to read through this comment.

    ReplyDelete
  3. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Nice Podcast!

    I have a device similar to pacbilly's compact flash drive for my A500. It's a hardware floppy emulator utilising an sd-card. I also like the combination of modern and old tech making it possible to try out games I read about 20 years ago (or watched at jimplaysgames:-)

    Though I think emulators like WinUAE are great, I personally find it's much more fun playing old games on the original hardware. One reason may be the graphics as techguruuk and pacbilly suggest. With a RGB-cable and a CRT-monitor the picture just looks right - and also quite clear: not like with the TV modulator. Also the sound may be another reason. The emulated sound seems to be a little harsh sometimes.

    And of course the old hardware, the joysticks etc. have their own appeal. There also could be weird psychological stuff involved, who knows. ;-)
    Listening to your podcast I realised I somehow missed the whole mouse and keyboard thing. I was always wondering why there are so little fancy controllers for the PC in stores apart from ugly pilot sticks. I think mouse and keyboard are a special case and good for certain games, it doesn't quite make sense to me that this was the standard way of playing. Must have something to do with first person shooters, I guess?

    While I am not into many modern games I am really excited about the new AR/VR developments like Oculus Rift and CastAR and I wonder how this will change the whole gaming experience. Especially with CastAR which could potentially be used for anything between a sci-fi board game, a crazy 3D arcade and a good approximation of a holodeck, it will be interesting to see if and how gaming culture will change.

    I also wonder how consoles will fit into that realm with their proprietary approach.

    I am looking forward to new podcasts and also more videos from each of the three of you (hint, hint)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I'm with PacBilly on this one.

    I use a pc at a desk because I have to use it for work, I can't have it plugged into the telly it just wouldn't be practical for a number of reasons if you could see my lounge layout.

    And I use my consoles for sofa play, and coop play with my friends. Its far more comfortable than us lot crowding around my desk on awful swivel chairs.

    ReplyDelete