Donkey Kong Country, great or awful?

[irixith]

Every 3D N64 game I ever played gave me motion sickness. That console was a complete waste of money for me.

Yes. A combination of the muddy textures and awful frame rate did it. I wasn't able to play Ocarina of Time all the way through until they released that special disc for the GameCube. I found the text unreadable when playing on the N64, and the motion vomit inducing. When I finally finished, that was what all the fuss was about?! (Yes, I'm in THAT camp.)

I really don't understand why anyone would love the N64 -- it produced stinker after stinker, with maybe a handful of 10 games worth hanging on to. As evidenced just by people talking about DK64, the consensus is very polarizing. They either loved the game or hated the game, much like the N64 in general. There doesn't seem to be anyone out there who liked it halfway. :p

[Opa Opa]

I loved the first one and the second one was pretty good. DKC 3 is pretty much a waste of time if you can't play as Diddy or Donkey Kong.

I played a little bit of the new one but I couldn't play it for long. The motion controls felt a little tacked on as opposed to enhancing the game experience.

For me, the series gets progressively worse as you proceed.

And as for Donkey Kong 64, I think I enjoyed playing the arcade games that were included more than the actual game itself.

[AppleQueso]

Every 3D N64 game I ever played gave me motion sickness. That console was a complete waste of money for me.

Yes. A combination of the muddy textures and awful frame rate did it. I wasn't able to play Ocarina of Time all the way through until they released that special disc for the GameCube. I found the text unreadable when playing on the N64, and the motion vomit inducing. When I finally finished, that was what all the fuss was about?! (Yes, I'm in THAT camp.)

I really don't understand why anyone would love the N64 -- it produced stinker after stinker, with maybe a handful of 10 games worth hanging on to. As evidenced just by people talking about DK64, the consensus is very polarizing. They either loved the game or hated the game, much like the N64 in general. There doesn't seem to be anyone out there who liked it halfway. :p

What were you guys using a messed up coax cable or something? "unreadable" text? Wtf?

I still think the n64 has at LEAST 30-40 or so great games if you're willing to really dig for them. Enough to justify the purchase for me. So many people loathe the n64 compared to the psx or saturn, I really never understood it much. Guess I preferred 'blurry' to 'jagged and pixelated'. Of course I like all 3 systems a bunch but hey.

[Opa Opa]

I really don't understand why anyone would love the N64 -- it produced stinker after stinker, with maybe a handful of 10 games worth hanging on to.

Every system is worth something to someone.

[alienjesus]

I think there are loads of great games for N64 personally.

I also like DK64, and as far as I'm concerned, DKC3 is the best DK game.

[swiftzx]

DK64 > DKC

/thread

[Ack]

I found the text unreadable when playing on the N64, and the motion vomit inducing.

While it wasn't an issue for me with the N64, that first part is a major complaint I have with modern games. My vision's not very good, and I'm too poor to afford an HDTV. I wish companies would begin putting in some method of increasing the size of text or something, because it makes some games very difficult to play when I can't read what I'm supposed to do next.

As for the quality of the N64, I didn't have the problems you mentioned, but then again I've never experienced motion sickness from a game. The console did have some games that appealed to me, and when I go back I find a good bit of titles to explore, but I definitely spent more time with my PlayStation during that era.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand...meh, they're good platformers from an era when 2D platforming was still quite big. If they want to criticize them, fine, but I'd be interested in hearing what they thought was better. They may come back with valid reasons for loving a platformer many of us haven't ever played or find terrible.

[AppleQueso]

I found the text unreadable when playing on the N64, and the motion vomit inducing.

While it wasn't an issue for me with the N64, that first part is a major complaint I have with modern games. My vision's not very good, and I'm too poor to afford an HDTV. I wish companies would begin putting in some method of increasing the size of text or something, because it makes some games very difficult to play when I can't read what I'm supposed to do next.

This is infuriating. Don't these companies realize that something like 40 percent of the population still haven't upgraded to HD?

At least Metal Gear Solid 4 had a large text option. I wish all games had it.

[irixith]

This is infuriating. Don't these companies realize that something like 40 percent of the population still hasn't upgraded to HD?

OK I admit it..I totally looked up that statistic because I half wanted to be snotty and half couldn't believe that SD penetration was still so high. (Most major electronics outlets haven't even sold SD TVs for almost 10 years now!) However, according to Neilsen's most recent report, 44% of homes in the US do not have an HD set. Incredible.

When it comes to the 360 & PS3 specifically, they are intended to be HD consoles, even if they cheekily include composite cables in the box. Just about every game for those consoles is developed with HD in mind. A few notables (Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts comes to mind) actually issued post-release patches to improve readability on SD sets due to complaints. I'm of two minds here -- if you can afford a 360 or PS3, chances are you can afford an HDTV, many of which are cheaper than the consoles themselves. I mean really, why would you be buying an HD console for use on an SD TV? It doesn't make a lot of logical sense. On the other hand, because they include composite cables, it seems that they are saying you can play on a SD set (albeit with degraded quality). In my opinion, they should wipe out the composite option, and only output component or HDMI, If you truly want to be an HD console, be HD! Don't pretend your console can function on SD when the reality is that many games suffer for it.

Frankly, SD is dead -- we know it simply in terms of the hardware we can buy. It's all LCD monitors and LCD televisions. How long realistically are game developers required to support legacy formats? They are now providing entertainment for a new technology medium after all.

I suppose for those that insist on keeping their SD set in service..there's always the Wii.

[AppleQueso]

I imagine that when the next gen of consoles comes around, HDMI will be the standard packed-in connection.

or at least, it'd better be.

Funfact: at wal-mart we were selling a SD CRT model until about a year and a half or so ago. Technically they were "ED", but 480p isn't exactly what I'd call HD.

I can understand holding onto your SD sets, but buying a NEW SD TV?

Also, LCD monitors and TVs are not the only thing available. There's also plasma sets and (in the near future) OLED.