Issue 101 Feedback Thread

[theantmeister]

It would appear you've wholly failed to understand what's been posted in this thread regarding the many failings of this month's 'Collector's Guide'.

That's probably because I haven't read it yet!

I was just making a more general statement really. I honestly hope that the kind of complaining on here doesn't dissuade people from covering the NES and other, admittedly more US based, systems.

I'm not surprised that you loved the Ocean article, but have failed to read the Metal Gear and Lucky & Wild articles yet. I'm the exact opposite! I don't particularly care for Ocean's output, but I love obscure japanese arcade games!

[edit] I do read the mag cover to cover, which is why I haven't read the NES article yet. Really looking forward to it though!

[DreamcastRIP]

It would appear you've wholly failed to understand what's been posted in this thread regarding the many failings of this month's 'Collector's Guide'.

That's probably because I haven't read it yet!

To save you the effort then, here's the post from page two which served to begin what has been a very reasoned, mature and drama-free debate. Please note, the issues don't pertain to the NES but instead to the evidently p1ss-poor standards of journalism that litter the article.

What's with this month's 'The Collector's Guide'?

* "Upon its US launch... the NES, refuelled the country's dying videogame industry."
- Implies Nintendo did this alone. See martyg's fine article in RG 100 for what actually happened.

* "Prior to the console's European release, gamers had been drowning in an ocean of low-quality software... while home computers began to suffer from a heavily saturated market of homemade releases."
- Seriously, just how much more wrong could both claims in that sentence be? Revisionist history at its worst or simply plain ignorance?

* "Nintendo was aware of these issues and proceeded to offer gamers the lifeline they had been crying out for."
- Does the writer know anything about what the UK/European gaming scene was like in late '86 when the NES launched here? A time when games for the 8-bit micros were truly hitting their stride and when the ST & Amiga were new on the scene. Utterly ludicrous.

* "... state of the art visuals and a stunning audio chip"
- a gross exaggeration.

* "... the revolutionary console..."
- What, the NES? Seriously?

* "If there is anything Nintendo is known for, it's innovation."
- Oh dear, oh dear, that old chestnut again.

* "The Japanese gaming giant has always known how we want to enjoy our games, years in advance."
- Another ridiculous claim largely without merit.

And finally, the 'Collector Q&A' box-out states, "The NES was a smash hit in every country apart from the UK." Oh really?

Don't get me wrong, articles in RG can be great when they show passion and enthusiasm for any particular game or system. This article at times does something quite different though. It crosses the line into the territory of rabid fanboyism brimming with unproven claims, factual inaccuracies and revisionist history. In such instances the magazine's journalistic integrity risks coming into question, imho. A major let-down in an otherwise excellent issue of RG.

[DreamcastRIP]

... I'm not surprised that you loved the Ocean article, but have failed to read the Metal Gear and Lucky & Wild articles yet...

My post to which you're referring,

...
* I didn't particularly care for the '25 years of Metal Gear' feature as it seemed rather a dull read to me
...
* Not yet read 'From the archives... Beau Jolly' and 'The Making of... Lucky & Wild'

So, er, yes, I had read the Metal Gear article!

[theantmeister]

... I'm not surprised that you loved the Ocean article, but have failed to read the Metal Gear and Lucky & Wild articles yet...

My post to which you're referring,

...
* I didn't particularly care for the '25 years of Metal Gear' feature as it seemed rather a dull read to me
...
* Not yet read 'From the archives... Beau Jolly' and 'The Making of... Lucky & Wild'

So, er, yes, I had read the Metal Gear article!

I stand corrected, but I think my point still stands. You clearly get something different from the mag than I do. Fair enough.

As for the NES article, I can't comment as I haven't read it. Also, I wasn't living in the UK at the time. I do think, though, that you're coming at this from an entirely UK-centric viewpoint. The NES was the biggest console in the two most important markets in the world - Japan and the US. And of course Lorf is going to say that - he has a massive hard-on for the NES (no offence, Keith).

Also, some of those points are true... from a certain point of view. I completely agree that the NES did have state of the art graphics and sound. I love the NES sound chip, especially the "dirty" drum sounds and samples. And, while Nintendo may not be that innovative now, they certainly were back in the 80's and 90's.

[Megamixer]

I'm not surprised that you loved the Ocean article, but have failed to read the Metal Gear and Lucky & Wild articles yet. I'm the exact opposite! I don't particularly care for Ocean's output, but I love obscure japanese arcade games!

I just read everything . I've never played a game by Ocean and I have no attachment to their main era (the 80's) since I wasn't born until 1990 but I still really enjoyed reading up on their history and what it was like for the teams there to develop games. It was a nice, colourful piece too that made for easy reading.

I have to admit that I've never played a Metal Gear game before but the article has got me interested now in the same way that the last issue of OPM had an Assassin's Creed plot recap which made me want to get into that series.

That's another thing I like about RG: it gives me incentive to try out games/series' that I've otherwise remained ignorant to.

[DreamcastRIP]

I stand corrected, but I think my point still stands. You clearly get something different from the mag than I do. Fair enough.

As for the NES article, I can't comment as I haven't read it. Also, I wasn't living in the UK at the time. I do think, though, that you're coming at this from an entirely UK-centric viewpoint. The NES was the biggest console in the two most important markets in the world - Japan and the US. And of course Lorf is going to say that - he has a massive hard-on for the NES (no offence, Keith).

Also, some of those points are true... from a certain point of view. I completely agree that the NES did have state of the art graphics and sound. I love the NES sound chip, especially the "dirty" drum sounds and samples. And, while Nintendo may not be that innovative now, they certainly were back in the 80's and 90's.

No worries, we all make mistakes from time to time . Yep, it's natural for folk to 'get' different things from such a diverse publication as RG, by its very nature, is. One thing that does unite us all (I hope!) though is a love for retro gaming . I'm happy reading about stuff I know little about (see my comment regarding this month's feature on The Hobbit, for just one example) and plenty of other stuff that isn't confined to what directly appeals to me, e.g. this month's fine article on the BBC Micro. I most certainly don't dislike any articles in RG on the basis they don't directly match my own personal gaming interests.

The article itself was written from a UK, i.e. PAL, collector's perspective so I don't think it's at all justified to suggest it is I who is "coming at this from an entirely UK-centric viewpoint" as that was the context of the article. Once you read it you'll appreciate this fact.

LOL at your comment regarding Lorfarius! If anything, I think you're being too kind to him though... but then again he's clearly long past the point of being saved and I think it's safe to say folk take what he says about Ninty with a shovel full of salt!

"True... from a certain point of view"?
So what you're saying there is that one has to believe in 'the Force' from the fictional world of Star Wars to be gullible enough to swallow the nonsense fanboy drivel as propagated in said article! I knew Shigsy was talented but hadn't yet realised he was a real life Obi Wan Kenobi in disguise!
(Source: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086190/quotes )

No, NES certainly didn't have "state of the art visuals and a stunning sound chip" by the time it launched in the UK in, afaik, early 1987. Anyone subscribing to such a foolish notion is clearly ignorant of such systems as the Amiga.

Agreed, Nintendo may well not be as innovative now as they were "back in the 80's and 90's". However, an examination of the facts, as opposed to believing in the utter nonsense that gets regurgitated ad infinitum on fanboy sites, quickly reveals many of the company's so-called innovations were nothing of the sort. Many of those ignorant of the facts mistake the word 'innovation' for 'popularising' something. Nintendo has been a great company but their many fine achievements often get twisted by helpless fanboys into feats they are not. Saying that is in no way a criticism of Nintendo, it's merely a criticism of the very worst excesses of the very worst type of Nintendo fanboys.

[theantmeister]

Damn, I was hoping the Jedi mind trick might work there.

/waves hand The NES was the best console ever.

[jdanddiet]

Dreamcast why don't you stop moaning about the NES feature and read my Beau Jolly article instead
I shall stand ready to defend.

[DreamcastRIP]

Dreamcast why don't you stop moaning about the NES feature and read my Beau Jolly article instead
I shall stand ready to defend.

I'm quite confident there'll be no need for you to do so given that you do actually know your arse from your elbow! I will of course be reading the Beau Jolly feature soon enough just as i do with every article in the mag' each month.

Seriously though, I find it somewhat surprising that the author of said 'Collector's Guide' feature, Adam Buchanan, hasn't yet responded to the readership feeback present here.

He is after all a member of the forum, albeit that he's not logged in to view the site since 29th March - memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=2126

[DreamcastRIP]

Damn, I was hoping the Jedi mind trick might work there.

/waves hand The NES was the best console ever.

Sheesh, maybe I'm Toydarian!

[killermike]

@jdanddiet

Shhh... He's keeping attention away from a small error I noticed on my BBC Micro feature.

[The Laird]

@jdanddiet

Shhh... He's keeping attention away from a small error I noticed on my BBC Micro feature.

I found 4 and I am pretty sure DreamcastRIP pointed them out earlier

[DreamcastRIP]

@jdanddiet

Shhh... He's keeping attention away from a small error I noticed on my BBC Micro feature.

I found 4 and I am pretty sure DreamcastRIP pointed them out earlier

Four? I only noticed three errors in that particular feature! (Two of which I did indeed mention earlier ) Extra points for you then!

P.S. Did you notice the two errors in the Ocean article?

[ncf1]

tsk tsk the forum poll for best pinball didnt even include Indiana Jones and the Hand of Fate -- the REAL best pinball machine of all time. No clue, seriously. I spent an entire year sleeping on one of those things I loved it so much, just a pillow and nothing else, i worshipped it. had breakfast on it, watched tv, it was deserving.

[deadpan666]

Just finished reading 101, and found it to be another good read! Particluarly enjoyed the Ocean and Beau Jolly articles, although I was shifting stuff around in my flat shortly after reading and was almost knocked out by an avalanche of both companies compilations....so that's tainted my appreciation of those a bit!

Was nice to see Lucky & Wild get some coverage too..that was one of the last games to reach my local arcade before it closed, and as it was big, new and shiny it ate a lot of my coins back in the day! Also inspired by The Hobbit article to give it a go....been a Spec-chum all these years and never played it properly! That must be some sort of heresy....