2014 Together Retro Calendar

[dunpeal2064]

PC exclusives are fine I say - everyone here has a PC.

It's worlds away from something like, say, a TurboGrafx-16 exclusive.

How about arcade exclusives that run perfectly on mame?

See our SotM thread for more details, but basically.... no.

[BoringSupreez]

If it's not too late, I'd like to throw in my votes:

+1 Ape Escape
+1 Deus Ex (is this the single most divisive game on our forums?)
+1 Metal Gear (preferrably the MSX version)
+1 Psychonauts
+1 Stubbs the Zombie
+1 Gabriel Knight - Sins of the Fathers
+1 Klonoa
+1 Starcraft
+1 Typing of the Dead
And lastly, +1 to Ballz 3D for bad game month.

[mjmjr25]

If this list sticks, it will be the worst TR year since I have been here by a wide margin. For whatever that opinion is worth I suppose. Just wouldnt be good overall if participation drops off.

That isn't really fair though - you said earlier in the thread you have hardly participated in TR in the past.

As for PC only stuff - no, not everyone games on a PC. I don't, I know jmbarnes101 doesn't, and a few others who can speak up for themselves if they like.

I don't know how a fair process where people keep voting and the same titles seem to keep pulling away is turning into this - these are the games the community is suggesting. Where is the issue?

If racket wants to list a game or two to be on the list - it's his site and I don't think anyone would object. Aside that, noises list of top vote getters seems to make the most sense to me. I only personally want to play 3 of them, but it's silly to argue with a fair democratic process.

[Jmustang1968]

If this list sticks, it will be the worst TR year since I have been here by a wide margin. For whatever that opinion is worth I suppose. Just wouldnt be good overall if participation drops off.

That isn't really fair though - you said earlier in the thread you have hardly participated in TR in the past.

As for PC only stuff - no, not everyone games on a PC. I don't, I know jmbarnes101 doesn't, and a few others who can speak up for themselves if they like.

I don't know how a fair process where people keep voting and the same titles seem to keep pulling away is turning into this - these are the games the community is suggesting. Where is the issue?

If racket wants to list a game or two to be on the list - it's his site and I don't think anyone would object. Aside that, noises list of top vote getters seems to make the most sense to me. I only personally want to play 3 of them, but it's silly to argue with a fair democratic process.

Sure it is fair. It is just my opinion, and I specified that it is for whatever it is worth. But as someone who does some coverage of it in the podcast even if I don't participate, I have some interaction. I am also looking out for it as a whole, and it seems I am not alone in my thoughts about the list. I would ideally like participation to be high.

[Ack]

Admittedlly though, that list is just based on what folks are saying now, and even if it ended up being a finalized list of the suggestion process, it doesn't mean it won't be tweaked between now and the end of the year.

[dsheinem]

Admittedlly though, that list is just based on what folks are saying now, and even if it ended up being a finalized list of the suggestion process, it doesn't mean it won't be tweaked between now and the end of the year.

There's also the problem to consider of interest in writing articles on these games by the staff who has done so. lately racket's been pulling teeth to get the front page articles up...

[mjmjr25]

But as someone who does some coverage of it in the podcast even if I don't participate, I have some interaction. I am also looking out for it as a whole, and it seems I am not alone in my thoughts about the list. I would ideally like participation to be high.

That's the point - these are the games with the most votes? What would ensure greater participation - certainly not games with less votes?

As for not being alone - of course not. Has there ever been a discussion / debate / vote without some dissent? Reading through this thread - it seems the majority want those games. Once again, we are making something more complicated than it needs to be.

[ZeroAX]

I think we should try playing more obscure games or games most people wouldn't bother playing through if it wasn't for opportunities like this (Ultima being a great contender for this, since retro PC/Western RPGs are really hard getting into).


And honestly I don't want to start an argument here, so don't take this in a hostile way. If you can't game on a PC cause of hardware limitations I understand that, but if you just dislike the platform and think it should be excluded cause of that, I can make the argument that I dislike shmups and they should be excluded cause of this.

The idea of this feature (as I said at the start of this post, which I noticed now that I'm rereading it xD) is to play a wide variety of games, and it's a great opportunity for people to get out of their comfort zones (I'd be willing to try a shooter just for this feature). So in that sense we need as many different genres/platforms/obscure games as possible.

Even if you dislike a game you can always look forward to the next month. And at least you WILL have tried something new .

I'm not saying we should fill the list with one offs which are impossible to play unless you own a specific system but maybe we can bend the rules if we want to add some extra variety to the list.

[Jmustang1968]

But as someone who does some coverage of it in the podcast even if I don't participate, I have some interaction. I am also looking out for it as a whole, and it seems I am not alone in my thoughts about the list. I would ideally like participation to be high.

That's the point - these are the games with the most votes? What would ensure greater participation - certainly not games with less votes?

As for not being alone - of course not. Has there ever been a discussion / debate / vote without some dissent? Reading through this thread - it seems the majority want those games. Once again, we are making something more complicated than it needs to be.

Haven't you also said there is the issue of those voting who dont play as in the shmups club? But regardless, I put my commentary in, it is no more valuable than anyone else's...

[Ack]

Well then, how about we pore over the current proposed list?

Jan: PSO or FFXI (MMO)

Hmm...I'm still not a big fan of the MMO idea for TR. I think it causes more hoops for us to jump through over Internet connectivity, potential monthly charges, etc. I also worry that a month won't be enough time for us to explore a long running game, and a title like this is not very "pick up and play" friendly.

That said, I used to play PSO offline on Gamecube, and I still had a blast. It's not a bad game by any means, and though I'm not comfortable with the idea, I think it's a fun game to check out. I have no experience with FFXI. If we're not sure on the game but definitely want the genre to be represented, there are a few other titles we could consider.

Feb:

M.U.L.E. This is an easy place to put it, and we can point people to the multitude of computer ports, console versions, and websites like planetmule.com.

Mar: Lost Vikings (Puzz)

I have never played Lost Vikings. But I would like to give it a go. There's a large number of ports across consoles, computers, and even a handheld version. We could also throw in the sequel as a bonus, which adds more options for people to join in.

Apr: Ultima IV (RPG)

Not my first choice, as I still would love to play Castle of the Winds, but that one's limited by platform. Ultima IV is considerably less limited and appears on numerous computer and console formats. The PC version is free on GOG, which makes for easy access. I think this is a great choice, even if I'm sad to see CotW lose out. And let's be honest, this is a great game from one of the most important and influential series in video game history, yet it's not something we often discuss or go back to. This is exactly the kind of game TR was made for.

May: Ikaruga (shmup)

Dedicating an entire month to a single shmup isn't a good idea in my opinion. There are a lot of options, but I don't think we ought to go with just one title. That said, the game is a spiritual sequel to Radiant Silvergun, and Treasure also experimented with color and polarity in Silhouette Mirage. If we really want Ikaruga, I suggest a dual month where we partner it with Radiant Silvergun but also get a game mechanics discussion going by including Silhouette Mirage. It seems the best choice to me.

Jun: Monster World #? (2D Plat)

We would have to figure out the best one of these to play. I'd say Wonder Boy in Monster World, as I think it is the easiest for NTSC-J, NTSC-U, and PAL regions to access, but I'd like to hear further discussion on the series.

Jul: Virtua Tennis (sports)

Do we mean the first game or the entire series? I'm not really interested in tennis games personally, and I've only ever really gotten into Mario Tennis as far as they are concerned. I worry about interest with this. I also worry about access, as I don't know how readily people can find this in each region across formats. Anyone have any ideas?

Aug: Space Harrier (Rails)

Yes! It's a classic game that some of us have missed, it's on just about everything under the sun, there's multiple sequels to point people to if they finish this one or have played it...I'm not seeing a downside here.

Sep: Oddworld or Metal Gear (Action/Adv)

Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee is on PlayStation, PlayStation Network, Game Boy (as Oddworld Adventures), PC (including Steam, GOG, and OnLive), and there is even a remake titled Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty! due out either late 2013 or early 2014 which will appear on more systems. I say we do Oddworld.

Oct: Phantasmagoria (Adv) & Blood (FPS)

These choices feel weak to me, partly because they are limited by format(even if I do really want to play Blood), and partly because they are so disparate. At least both Zombies Ate My Neighbors and Silent Hill 2 are third-person action/adventure games involving shooting elements and exploration to acquire items and solve puzzles for advancement.

I think if we went with this, it would be better to drop Blood and add other, potentially more accessible horror-themed adventure games. Phantasmagoria 2: A Puzzle of Flesh, Dark Seed and its sequel, Mansion of Hidden Souls, Uninvited, I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream, The Legacy, Shadow of the Comet, Scratches, etc. There are a lot of options here.

Nov: Dungeons & Dragons (beatemup)

So will it be Shadow over Mystara, Tower of Doom, some of the collections featuring them, or maybe even The King of Dragons, which while not specifically D&D is still obviously based on it? Why not all of these?

Dec:

Have to figure that one out.

So fellas, any thoughts from the rest of you on this list as it stands and these suggesstions? Is this the kind of list we want, or shall we wait for more proposals? If so, what games do you prefer to see?