2ο Μεσαιωνικό Φεστιβάλ Ρόδου

Πέρσι ήταν το 1ο Μεσαιωνικό Φεστιβάλ το οποίο διεξήχθη στην Παλιά Πόλη της Ρόδου. Ήταν μια προσπάθεια την οποία υπόδεχθηκαν με χαρά όλοι όσοι έχουν περπατήσει στα μαγευτικά δρομάκια και στις τέλεια συντηρημένες πολιτείες του κάποτε τρανού κάστρου των Ιωαννιτών Ιπποτών. Είχα την ευκαιρία να είμαι και εγώ κομμάτι της πρώτης αυτής προσπάθειας σαν εθελοντής: μοίραζα διαφημιστικά σε και είχα πόστο στο infodesk του φεστιβάλ. Η εντύπωση όλων, επισκεπτών και εθελοντών, ήταν ότι τελικά είχε αρχίσει κάτι το οποίο όχι μόνο έλειπε απο την παράδοση της Παλιάς Πόλης αλλά θα γινόταν και μέρος της για τα επόμενα χρόνια.

Έτσι κι έγινε! Το 2ο Μεσαιωνικό Φεστιβάλ ήταν γεγονός και φέτος, το τελευταίο σαββατοκύριακο του Μαϊου. Τελείωσε μόλις 2 μέρες πριν αρχίσει η Πολιτιστική Εβδομάδα, το οποίο είναι πραγματικά κρίμα γιατί είμαι σίγουρος πως κάπως θα μπορούσαν να συνδυαστούν οι δύο αυτές ευκαιρίες. Έφτασα στην Ρόδο απο τις 24 για να μην το χάσω, αυτήν την φορά όχι ως εθελοντής αλλά ως απλός επισκέπτης. Και οι εντυπώσεις μου ήταν θετικότατες!

Πρώτα απ’όλα: πέρσι, τα happenings γινόντουσαν όλα μπροστά απο το παλάτι του μαγίστρου. Φέτος δεν υπήρχαν εκδηλώσεις εκεί αλλά σε 3 άλλες πλατείες της πόλης ταυτόχρονα! Ακριβώς στην μπροστινή είσοδο της παλιάς πόλης, στην Πλατεία Σύμης, υπήρχε ένα αντίσκηνο των ιπποτών. Εκεί έγινε η τοξοβολία και ένα event εκμάθησης ξυλοπόδαρων και ξιφομαχίας. Λίγο πιο κάτω, στην Πλατεία Αργυροκάστρου, ήταν το “κέντρο” των εκδηλώσεων. Εκεί υπήρχαν όλα τα “περίπτερα” του φεστιβάλ όπου κανείς μπορούσε να αγοράσει χειροποίητα κοσμήματα (και να μιλήσει με τον κοσμηματοποιό την ώρα της δουλειάς του!), αγιογραφίες, παλιές ενδυμάσιες και άλλα. Φυσικά, δεν θα μπορούσε να λείψει το φαγητό και το ποτό! Στην ίδια πλατεία υπήρχε η ψησταριά και η κάβα. Στην ψησταρία μπορούσε κανείς να φάει διάφορα τα οποία παρασκευάζονταν μπροστά του, όπως χοιρινό με πλιγούρι, πατατόσουπες και άλλα, τα οποία σερβίρονταν όλα μέσα σε ένα στρογγυλό κομμάτι ψωμί σαν γαβάθα. Χωρίς μαχαιροπήρουνα εννοείται! Και €2 η μερίδα… Η κάβα προσέφερε τοπικα κρασιά και μπίρα Magnus Magister, με δώρο κάθε φορά συλλεκτικές κούπες που έγραφαν πάνω “Μεσαιωνικό Ρόδο”! Το τέλειο σουβενίρ για εμάς και τους φίλους μας! Και πάντα οι τιμές πολύ ικανοποιητικές. Εκεί κοντά υπήρχε και το Infodesk. Καμιά εκατοστή μέτρα πιο κάτω, την Πλατεία Μουσείου, υπήρχε το μαγαζάκι των αναμνηστικών με διάφορα μεσαιωνικά μπιχλιμπίδια: ιππότες, σπαθιά, πίνακες, καρτ-ποστάλ του Μεσαιωνικού Ρόδου και της Πόλης και άλλα παρόμοια.

Τώρα, τα δρώμενα. Σε αντίθεση με το Φεστιβάλ του 2007 όπου μόνο οι Wolgemut ήταν οι καλεσμένοι μουσικοί, φέτος υπήρχαν ούτε ένα ούτε δύο αλλά 4 (!) μουσικά σχήματα που έπαιζαν κάθε τόσο στις πλατείες Μουσείου και Αργυροκάστρου. Οι Wolgemut ήταν ένα απο αυτά: γερμανοί μουσικοί οι οποίοι παίζουν κυρίως δυτική μεσαιωνική μουσική (και οι οποίοι φέτος είχαν μαζί τους έναν contact juggler o οποίος έκανε τα πράγματα πολύ πιο εντυπωσιακά!). Οι υπόλοιπο: οι Al’Ibi, σχήμα της νότιας Γαλλίας οι οποίοι παίζουν μεσογειακή αλλά και αραβική μεσαιωνική μουσική, οι Κώδιξ, Θεσσαλονικείς που παίζουν “σεφαραδίτικη” (όποιος ξέρει τι σημαίνει αυτό να μου πει) μουσική και οι Los Mercatores, επίσης Γάλλοι, μια ομάδα των 7 η οποία είναι μουσικοί, ηθοποιοί και διασκεδαστές όλα σε ένα. Απο το πρόγραμμα: “Περιπλανώμενοι Έμποροι του Μεσαίωνα που πολούν την πραμάτεια τους φωνασκώντας σε φράγκικη μεσαιωνική διάλεκτο”. Βέβαια αυτή η περιγραφή δεν τους δικαιώνει αλλά είναι όσο πιο κοντά μπορούμε να φτάσουμε.

Εκτός της μουσικής, δεν έλειψαν δραστηριότητες όπως ξιφομαχίες, αναπαραστάσεις, μεσαιωνικά παραμύθια, και διάφορα άλλα πολλά. Ακόμα κι αν ήμουν εκεί και τις δύο μέρες, δεν τα είδα όλα οπότε δεν μπορώ να σχολιάσω για κάποια, αλλά σε γενικές γραμμές, το φετινό Μεσαιωνικό Φεστιβάλ ήταν σε πολύ αξιόλογο επίπεδο. Αν συνεχίσει την ίδια πορεία τα επόμενα χρόνια, πιστεύω πως σύντομα θα μιλάμε για ένα απο τα σημαντικότερα πολιτισικά δρώμενα της χώρας!

Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgU4FwJBwa8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JJgjOuWqlE&

Uncommon Ways: A Subjective Look At Rare’s Ventures On The Xbox 360

I got myself an Xbox 360 last Christmas. It was purely coincidential (or was it?) that I found the premium edition along with Perfect Dark Zero and NFS: Carbon for only 120 euros new. If it wasn’t for that super bargain I may not had been writing these lines about one of my most liked developers: Rare.

Up till then, I had been chiefly a Nintendo gamer; as such I had played and loved most Rare games after Donkey Kong Country, even the more obscure ones like Jet Force Gemini or Blast Corps. Classics like Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong Country 3 and GoldenEye all enjoy the view from the top of my favourite game list. Obviously, I was full of anticipation when the GameCube was just getting released, sure that Rare’s slew of great games would continue on Nintendo’s latest console. The announcement of Microsoft buying and Nintendo selling hit me hard. I knew I wouldn’t be playing Perfect Dark Zero or Donkey Kong Racing any time soon, if at all.

Things didn’t change much during last gen since Rare wasn’t all that active during that period. I didn’t even try Star Fox Adventures (though I’d like to try it now)… Games Rare designed for the original Xbox seemed heretical to my preteen eyes, as anything they made could only be associated with Nintendo in my book.

When I got that Xbox 360 with Perfect Dark Zero, again I didn’t expect much from the game. I remembered hearing a lot of criticism during X360’s launch… How the game had little to do with the original and how Rare had dropped the ball for its first major release since the buyout. Sceptical, I tried it for a few hours and indeed, the game was a total disappointment. I couldn’t understand how they could mess it up so much. But the worst had still to come.

Let’s have a look at Kameo: a new IP in Rare’s arsenal, Kameo was first shown along with Donkey Kong Racing as the games they were working on for GameCube’s launch window. When within that same window fell the company’s trade of hands Kameo was moved to Xbox and Donkey Kong Racing was, of course, cancelled. The former reappeared after a second delay as a launch title for Microsoft’s new console hand-in-hand with Perfect Dark Zero, heralding Rare’s supposed revival. Supposed… A friend of mine got me the game for Christmas shortly after I got the Xbox so I had the chance to play it only shortly after the mess that was Perfect Dark. What can I say about this game?

It wasn’t a TOTAL disaster. For instance, the graphics and sound production were of high quality all around, nicely showing off 360’s initial capabilities. The gameplay was fine too: transforming into different creatures and killing stuff with combos? Sounds great! And it did play decently. But as I progressed, more and more did I feel like something was wrong. Every time Kameo uttered so much as a word my face transformed into a mask of disgust, every time I had to play the SAME boss to gain a new Elemental Warrior I slowly shook my head, every time I flip-kicked a boulder using Kameo I’d wonder why it wouldn’t budge when just running into it would make it roll around as if it was a giant titanium ball filled with helium. Yes, every time I played the game I’d find more and more cringe-worthy characteristics: the story (ouch!), the characters (yuck!), the presentation (ewww!), how Kameo’s horse would be too scared to go anywhere near buildings but it’d run head first into huge crowds of identically modelled and animated trolls (what?? trolls are like orcs now?), how the game tried to be fantastically epic but failed so miserably it hurt. OK, as I said the gameplay was fun and enjoyable but picture this: it took me over 2 months of on and off play to get to the last boss of this weekend-filler game and I still haven’t defeated him. Even the respective (high scoring) achievement wasn’t enough of an incentive… To sum up, Kameo played kinda like a Rare game, that is unrivaled when it comes to fun and fulfilling gameplay, but it fell flat on its face concerning the other aspect that make Rare games great: the personality, the humour, the flair and vibrance that make them unique. Kameo felt like it was just trying to be all of these, trying to mimic something long lost… As if it was another company that made the game. Thankfully (?), there was something that reminded me who made this piece of perfumed crap: there’s a hidden radio somewhere within it that plays the Banjo theme remixed in metal! Oh joy! An island of hope in this sea of mediocrity…

That track proved to be much more than what met my eye at first. I liked it so much I looked all over the net to download (still haven’t found it). Meanwhile, I did some research and discovered that it was none other than Grant Kirkhope himself, composer of Banjo-Kazooie music (among many other Rare classics, not least GoldenEye and Perfect Dark) who was behind this remix, a heavy rocker himself. I found his profile on MySpace and asked him about his projects himself, while commenting on his work (add him guys and gals, he’s an open and down to earth guy!) Then I found out that he had made the music to Viva Piñata. Something clicked. Add to that I’d heard good words about it, and next thing I knew was that it had come to my posession for a mere €30.

It didn’t take me more than an hour to realise just why everybody was so hooked with the game: I was hooked myself! Several tens of hours later, more than a LVL50 of mad gardening skillz, 5 gardens filled with little, colourful and oh so childish piñatas and an intense addiction with the game that has thankfully relaxed recently — how else was I going to touch Lost Odyssey? — I can say with certainty that Rare has neither lost their talent nor their soul (although Microsoft may state otherwise). In fact, all the crappy games may have been an unfortunate break for the rest of the great games to come. Viva Piñata was the first game of theirs that I really enjoyed after almost 8 years and that’s 8 decades when it comes to the entertainment industry. Brilliant music, just as expected from Mr. Kirkhope, beautiful graphics and wacky artstyle, addictive-as-crack gameplay and more of our beloved Rare flair with just enough Microsoft casual undertones and direction to make it bearable and suitable for the kids but not without the innuendos that only we “adults” would understand. Definitely not without its flaws — why do I have to whack the entire garden every freaking time, and I’m-fine-thank-you-Miss-Costalot-yes-yes-bright-eyed-bushy-tailed-GET-ON-WITH-IT! AND STOP PUSHING THAT DAMN SLOT MACHINE LIKE A RETARD ALL THE TIME! Eat my melting chocolate coins. — and annoying moments, thankfully they’re not enought to deeply spoil the otherwise satisfying gameplay.

So details for the new Banjo were announced just a few days ago, with Grant Kirkhope perfecting that early metal remix that had appeared in Kameo. Most fans of the old games don’t like the direction of Nuts & Bolts and have erupted into riots about how Rare sucks now and how they’re ruled my M$, how they’re constantly taking wrong decisions and the like. I know that a good chunk of them are still Nintendo devotees like I would have been had I not got my Xbox 360 by the strange twists and turns of luck and may not have had the chance to play some recent Rare games. Viva Piñata is a good indication that the old Twycross chaps haven’t lost it all, even with all the staff changes that they have endured recently and before they became part of Microsoft. I have trust in the new Banjo game’s ambition and scope, how creativity is such a big part of it. I welcome the fact that they’re changing the feel of the series and are taking it to another, more personalised style of platforming. Some things may seem strange at first, like the removal of Kazooie’s moves, but that will only make her bitch and complain about it and how the game would have been better off with them, in-game! The guys know what they’re doing and the crew that is behind this is mostly the same as it was back in 1998, which wasn’t the case with Perfect Dark Zero. I’m now eagerly awaiting what looks like not another great Banjo game, but also another great, groundbreaking Rare game… The kind of groundbreaking and reinventing we had almost forgot they could manage and systematically deliver.

Rare managed within this generation alone to virtually burn its already dying self to ashes with its X360 launch games. Viva Piñata was the little baby phoenix that was born out of the ashes. It’s my belief that with Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts and to a lesser extent Viva Piñata 2 they will revive themselves into one of gaming’s great, brilliant phoenixes. And the gamers will be happy once again.

Rareware

Περι σπατάλης

Δ εν είναι καθόλου σπάνιο για μένα κάθε φορά που είμαι μαζί με άλλους για φαγητό να τρώω ότι αφήνουν εκείνοι. Κάποιοι μπορεί να θεωρούν ότι είναι αγενές, κάποιοι άλλοι το βρίσκουν ένα ακόμη αστείο χαρακτηριστικό μου. Δεν είναι τυχαίο ότι μερικοί φίλοι μου στην Μυτιλήνη με φωνάζουν άλλωστε μεγαλοκαρχαρία. Σίγουρα, η αχαλίνωτη όρεξη μου είναι σημαντικός παράγοντας για αυτό. Υπάρχει όμως και κάτι άλλο το οποίο μου το προκαλεί: δεν θέλω να φανταστώ τον κύκλο τους να τελειώνει σε μια σακούλα σκουπιδιών.

Ας πάρουμε για παράδειγμα, μια μακαρονάδα μπολονέζ. Πώς φτιάχτηκε αυτή η μακαρονάδα; Απο πού προήλθαν τα υλικά για να μαγειρευτεί και τελικά να φτάσει στο τραπέζι μας; Τα ίδια τα μακαρόνια κάποτε ήταν σιτάρι σε κάποιο μεγάλο χωράφι. Για να μετατραπούν σε μακαρόνια και για να συσκευαστούν, χρειάστηκε μια κάποια συγκεκριμένη ποσότητα ενέργειας. Το ίδιο ισχύει και για την μεταφορά τους, συσκευασμένα πλέον, στο σούπερμάρκετ και στη συνέχεια σε εμάς. Ο κιμάς κάποτε ήταν αγελάδα. Και αυτή η αγελάδα σφάχτηκε, ανάμεσα σε εκατομμύρια άλλες γεννημένες και θρεμένες για αυτό τον σκοπό, και με έναν πλήρως βιομηχανοποιημένο τρόπο κατέληξε στην λίστα παραγγελιών του τοπικού μας χασάπικου. Και πάλι, η ενέργεια για το ψυγείο-φορτηγό που μετέφερε το κρέας της αγελάδας αλλά και ό,τι χρειάστηκε να γίνει για να γίνει η αγελάδα φέτες συγκαταλέγεται στο ίχνος άνθρακα του κιμά. (το ίχνος άνθρακα είναι το πόσος άνθρακας κάηκε και εκλύθηκε για οποιαδήποτε δυνατή πράξη — σε αυτήν την περίπτωση, για να φτάσει ένα προιόν στον καταναλωτή, συμπεριλαμβανομένων όλων των παραγωγικών σταδίων). Κάτι αντίστοιχο ισχύει και για το τυρί. Έχουμε όλα τα υλικά λοιπόν, τα μαγειρεύουμε και τρώμε. Ό,τι φάμε θα χωνευτεί και θα επιστρέψει στην φύση (με τον έναν ή με τον άλλον τρόπο) ως άνθρακας, ως η πρώτη ύλη όλων των ζωντανών οργανισμών στην γη, έτοιμος να ξαναγίνει χώμα, γρασίδι, σιτάρι, αγελάδα. Τι θα συμβεί όμως στα μακαρόνια που θα πεταχτούν στα σκουπίδια;

Όταν πετάμε κάτι στα σκουπίδια, ουσιαστικά το περικλείουμε με πλαστικό. Αυτό κάνει την αποσύνθεση του πολύ πιο δύσκολη. Στις χωματερές, όπου τελικά καταλήγουν όλα μας τα απορρίματα, οι συνθήκες δεν είναι καθόλου ευνοϊκές για τους αποικοδομητές. Ούτε το νερό, ούτε ο αέρας, ούτε ο ήλιος φτάνουν τα σκουπίδια, που παραμένουν μέσα στην πλαστική τους σαρκοφάγο. Το μεγαλύτερο μέρος των σακουλών παραμένουν θαμένες κάτω απο τόνους άλλων σακουλών ή στην γη, όπου τίποτα δεν μπορεί να τις αποσυνθέσει. Το χαρτί, το οποίο απαρτίζει το μεγαλύτερο μέρος των απορριμάτων μας (και γι’αυτό είναι μεγάλη παράλειψη που δεν υπάρχει μεθοδική ανακύκλωση χαρτιού στην Μυτιλήνη), μπορεί να μείνει άθικτο για χιλιάδες χρόνια αν δεν έρθει σε επαφή με τα στοιχεία της φύσης. Έχουμε βρει πανάρχαιους παπύρους κρυμμένους σε πυραμίδες και τάφους, μακριά απο τα πάντα, οι οποίοι εξακριβώνουν το παραπάνω, αλλά και πεταμένες εφημερίδες του ’30 οι οποίες είναι σε άριστη κατάσταση. Άλλα οργανικά σκουπίδια όπως τα μακαρόνια, φρούτα ή λαχανικά αποκόβονται επίσης απο τον κύκλο του άνθρακα. Όλα περιμένουν κάτι να τα απελευθερώσει. Ο ήλιος αρκετά συχνά τελεί αυτό το χρέος: με την φωτοδιάσπαση, όπου οι υπεριώδεις ακτίνες διασπούν τα πολυμερή των πλαστικών (συχνά βλέπουμε ξεφτισμένα πλαστικά αφημένα στον ήλιο), υπάρχει μερική φθορά των σακουλών. Οι γλάροι και άλλα ζώα βρίσκουν τροφή μέσα στις σακούλες και τις σκίζουν, επιστρέφοντας ξανά τα οργανικά και διασπάσιμα σκουπίδια στον κύκλο του άνθρακα. Τα πλαστικά τα οποία πετάμε, όπως και οι σακούλες, δεν πτοούνται.

Το 20% των απορριμάτων μας είναι φτιαγμένα απο πλαστικά. Αυτά, στις δεδομένες συνθήκες, είναι ανυπολόγιστο για πόσο μπορούν να μείνουν ανέπαφα. Καθώς τα πολυμερή χρησιμοποιούνται στην βιομηχανία περίπου 50 χρόνια, κανένα πλαστικό το οποίο κατασκευάστηκε μέσα σε αυτό το χρονικό πλαίσιο δεν έχει βρει φυσικό θάνατο. Μπορεί να έχει διασπαστεί τόσο πολύ ώστε να είναι πλαστική σκόνη, αλλά παραμένει πλαστική σκόνη. Πλαστική σκόνη η οποία δεν μπορεί να αποδομηθεί και μπορεί να βρει τον δρόμο της μέχρι και στο πεπτικό σύστημα ενός ζωοπλαγκτού. Το παράδειγμα δεν είναι τυχαίο: ο λόγος που τα πλαστικά σκουπίδια δεν έχουν ήδη κατακλήσει την ξηρά είναι γιατί ένα σημαντικό ποσοστό φτάνει τελικά στην θάλασσα. Εκεί η διάσπαση τους είναι είναι πολύ πιο αργή επειδή το νερό κρατάει την υψηλή θερμοκρασία την οποία παίρνουν απο τις υπεριώδεις ακτίνες σε κανονικά επίπεδα αλλά και γιατί βρύα και άλλοι οργανισμοί αναπτύσονται πάνω τους, απορροφώντας την ηλιακή ακτινοβολία. Όλοι μας έχουμε ακούσει για περιστατικά θαλάσσιων χελωνών οι οποίες μπέρδεψαν ξεφτισμένο πλαστικό ή πλαστικές σακούλες με τροφή, ή ακόμα και θαλασσοπούλια τα οποία πνίγηκαν απο πλαστικά δαχτυλίδια. Η πλαστική σκόνη που ανέφερα πιο πριν μπορει να φτάσει αθροιστικά απο μικρές ποσότητες στα χαμηλά στρώματα του τροφικού πλέγματος σε μεγάλες και πιθανόν επικίνδυνες ποσότητες στους μεγάλους θηρευτές. Είναι αλήθεια ότι ακριβώς επειδή τα πλαστικά υπάρχουν για τόσο μικρό χρονικό διάστημα για τον βιολογικό χρόνο δεν μπορούμε με ακρίβεια να προβλέψουμε ούτε την εξελικτική πορεία που θα έχουν οι οργανισμοί ανα τον πλανήτη για να ανταπεξέλθουν με αυτό ούτε όμως και τις ίδιες τις συνέπειες που μπορεί να έχει ένας κατακλυσμός πλαστικού.

Απο την μία έχουμε την δέσμευση τεράστιου όγκου απορριμάτων απο οργανικές ουσίες και την μερική απομάκρυνση τους απο τον κύκλο του άνθρακα, απο την άλλη έχουμε την συνεχή αύξηση του όγκου πλαστικού ανα τον κόσμο με άγνωστες συνέπειες για το μεσοπρόθεσμο και μακρυπρόθεσμο μέλλον των βιοσυστημάτων του πλανήτη. Για το πρώτο εκ των δύο και επιστρέφοντας στο αρχικό μου θέμα, δεν είναι μόνο το οικολογικό ζήτημα της τεράστιας σπατάλης που βλέπω γύρω μου καθημερινά. Οι άνθρωποι έχουν μια ακόρεστη όρεξη για άλογη κατανάλωση, αγοράζουν πράγματα τα οποία δεν χρησιμοποιούν και πετάνε στα σκουπίδια, παραγγέλνουν φαγητό απο το οποίο δεν τρώνε ούτε το μισό… Μου φαίνεται αδιανόητο το πόσο το να έχεις κάτι είναι πολύ πιο σημαντικό απο το να το χρησιμοποιείς. Ή έστω η δυνατότητα να το έχεις. Μόνο με ανακύκλωση χαρτιού, λιγότερη χρήση πλαστικών στην βιομηχανία και ευρύτερη χρήση της κομποστοποίησης, όπου είναι δυνατό, μπορούμε να μειώσουμε τον όγκο τον σκουπιδιό μας ριζικά και αποτελεσματικά. Είναι πολύ να το ζητήσουμε αυτό απο τον Homo Volemenus; Μπορεί σε μερικές δεκάδες χιλιάδες χρόνια οι αποικοδομητές να έχουν εξελιχθεί ώστε να διασπούν τα πολυμερή, όμως το ανθρώπινο γένος θα έχει μείνει προ πολλού χωρίς πρώτες ύλες ώστε να συνεχίσει. Σίγουρα, το όλο σκηνικό του νεκρού πολιτισμού και των αιωνόβιων σκουπιδιών θα ήταν πολύ ενδιαφέρον για τον περαστικό εξωγήινο. Ας μην είναι όμως τουλάχιστον τα σκουπίδια μας και η υπερκατανάλωση αυτά που θα μας οδηγήσουν στην παρακμή.

Ενδιαφέροντα links:

http://www.thestoryofstuff.com MUST WATCH!

http://www.carbonfootprint.com/

http://ecofoot.org/

http://www.worldwithoutus.com

http://www.freecycle.org

Πηγή: The World Without Us, Alan Weisman, Thomas Dunne Books, Chapter 9 “Polymers Are Forever” σελ. 112-128

Yummers!

(I know I haven’t posted for a while. Great things are stirring!)

Relatively often, we all catch ourselves wondering:”Which is my favourite food after all? How could I possibly rate my favourite flavours and reward the ones that tantalize my taste buds the most? Respectively: “Which is the most horrible, attrocious taste ever, the tang that proves even my bravest of attempts to keep in my sudden regurgitation inadequate?” I’m sure everybody has these thoughts in mind every now and then, so, in association with Marioland, we present to you:

The Yummers Rating System!

What is it? A simple to perceive 1 to 10 rating system designed to rate flavours. The forks may be implying that only food is involved but actually any flavour is eligible to a Yummers rating, from food to drink and all the way back.
What exactly does it rate? Flavours concern texture as well as the aroma, oomph and aftertaste. It is everything relevant with food and drink that has nothing to do with satisfying needs.
Why does it exist? As I described above, it is often that we want to express how much we like or dislike something, but there is no proper gradation. With the advent of the Yummers Rating System and with using it properly it is possible for everyone to understand just how much we enjoyed that souvlaki (I’m not going to argue about what we’re going to call it.), milkshake, or that fasolakia with yoghurt.
How does it work? Each 4-pronged fork represents a single point while the 2-pronged fork represent half a point. In other words, even if the score goes up to 5, there are 10 scores.

Verbal representation of ratings:

Yummers2

I’d much rather eat my own feces.

Yummer1

If it is what it takes to survive…

Yummer1 Yummers2

Edible. Just.

Yummer1

Bland, but won’t cause any stomach trouble.

Yummer1 Yummers2

The flavour goes pretty much unnoticed… Failure to impress either way.

Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1

Mildly enjoyable. Unsophisticated but fulfilling.

Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummers2

Things are getting interesting! While not memorable in its own right, when remembering the particular flavour my senses tingle. 1st level of Yummer!

Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1

4 squared! This denotes a flavour that is indeed among my favourites. I know it, like it and savour it!

Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummers2

Almost, but not quite! But that does not change the fact that I could probably live on this alone. Mentioned in any discussion concerning food and drink.

Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1

5 yummer forks. My taste buds are long screaming in nearly painful orgasm. If taste was a DnD skill, 5 yummers would be rank 100. Stuff of legends. I could cherish this every day and still never ever get bored of it. In fact, the perfect definition comes in 6 words: I could swim in this stuff.

You may use this scale to share with us your favourite flavours. Don’t be afraid: use it in your everyday life as well! Let it be known, the one and only true system for measuring yummers!

POSTSCRIPT: After reading some of your comments, I’d like to add that personally I haven’t, yet, had a food or drink that is pure 5 yummers good. 5 yummers denotes something you may even eat just once in your lifetime and remember the exact flavour for the entire rest of it. It’s something truly special, not just chocolate or pizza… That’s what I believe anyway. Here are some yummers scores for me (in their best renditions I remember):

Pumpkin Soup: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 Chick Peas: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummers2 , Brocolli: Yummer1 , Kinder Bars: Yummer1 Yummer1 , Shandy Rock: Yummer1 Yummer1 , Coca Cola: Yummer1 Yummer1 , Souvlaki: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 , Sushi: Yummer1 Yummer1 , Cauliflower: Yummer1 , Kiwi: Yummer1 , McChicken: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 , Singapore Sling: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummers2 , Pina Colada: Yummer1 Yummer1 , Fasolakia with Yoghurt: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 , Lacta Chocolate: Yummer1 Yummer1 , Cherries: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 , Peaches: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 , George’s Failed Rice: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 , Alexandra’s Fondue: Yummer1 Yummer1 , The cod I ate today at Michalis’: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1 , Domino’s Parmesana Pizza: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummers2 , Cadbury’s Dairy Milk: Yummer1 Yummer1 , Caipirinha: Yummer1 Yummer1 Yummer1

10 years since Christmas 1997 – A N64 Tribute (Part 3)

It’s been more than a month since my initially planned one-off of a tribute was last updated… I guess it’s high time for another 3 games that marked my childhood! Here goes:

13. Diddy Kong Racing

I know, I know. Some of you, when you see this, will be like: “you’ve got to be fucking with me… ANOTHER RARE GAME? It’s the third one in a row, not to mention Banjo-bleeding-Tooie!” All of you naysayers, believe me… It won’t end here. But I’ll rid you from this company for a while… You’ll only see them again in my Top 5. 🙂

Diddy Kong Racing was a must-have for me from even before I actually got my N64. I played all of the Donkey Kong Countrys on SNES the pretty long year of 1997 and the same year managed to turn me into a fan of all things Kong except for the monarchic one. I thought at first that the game would feature more Kongs than just Diddy. It took me a year to find out that that was not the case. Diddy Kong Racing was a kart game, a lot like Mario Kart, just with Rare characters. It’s funny how almost none of the characters apart from Diddy Kong himself and the featured Kremling had appeared in any game before DKR. Banjo appeared, but he hadn’t appeared in any game yet. In fact, Rare used DKR to promote Banjo just a bit before releasing Banjo-Kazooie: DKR was released in 1997 while Banjo-Kazooie in 1998. I got it in October 1998, after I had played and loved Banjo-Kazooie, so I liked that Banjo was in the game.

Aaaaanywhooo. Diddy Kong Racing, while oftentimes compared to Mario Kart 64 and rightfully so, was actually a game of very different scope. For starters, it was the first game of its type, that is cartoony kart game, to have a story/adventure mode which was actually pretty similar to Super Mario 64’s breakthrough idea of incorporating a hub world and a non-linear progression in the game through the means of obtaining golden balloons- – you can call me Power Stars. Games like Crash Team Racing used the exact same formula after DKR and are, due to them generally more popular game, mistakenly deemed as the creators of this system. There were a few worlds, like Dino World, Beach World or Ice World (they did not have such generic names but my memory fails me) and each had a few normal courses you could race in just like any other kart game. But it also had boss stages, where you raced against the boss of each world to rightfully “complete” it (though you always had to go back to each world for some more balloon hunting). Each world also had some battle modes you had to complete to get final access to the real final boss stage (which could grant you access to a 5th, secret world if you had enough balloons by then) and also tournaments, not unlike Mario Kart’s Cups.

The game was just so refreshing and polished. The graphics were great, the racing system was fantastic, what with the 3 different vehicles you could choose from (kart, hovercraft, plane) which by the way hasn’t really appeared in any games since then, the challenge to get the better times in the later courses, the awesome music which is standard in all Rare games… Diddy Kong Racing was a very fun game, had great multiplayer, had lots of secrets here and there that just make these kinds of games and was really a necessary addition to a Rare fan’s collection. Still is actually. Too bad the recent DS port/remake doesn’t really do the 1997 classic justice.

12. Paper Mario

(WARNING. SPOILERS IN THE VIDEO ABOVE)

Paper Mario was one of my last games for my Nintendo 64. I was already almost 13 years old when I played it (November 2001) and was, after Pokemon, my first RPG. I don’t know how I should take this now, having a mario game as my RPG kickstarter does feel kind of weird but then again back then my first PC was less than 3 months old and having been a Nintendo-only gamer for years I had missed many other good games for the PlayStation and computer. So perhaps it’s a suitable title. After months of dad pestering to order the game from Amazon, I managed to get him into buying it for me for my nameday. And it happened at the perfect time. One day before getting my hands on the game, I had an acciden at school where I cracked one of my right big toe’s bones. This is the closest I’ve ever been to breaking a bone, by the way… It was enough for me to stay home for a couple of days because walking was not advised, and what better time than then to start a game like Paper Mario!

This unique RPG, although not being the first Mario RPG (the first one being Super Mario RPG for the SNES, developed by Squaresoft and unreleased in Europe) was the one that launched the in-house Nintendo Mario RPG line. Mario & Luigi, Paper Mario and Super Paper Mario, which are newer games, all belong to this line. Its characteristics: 2-D sprites that look like they’re made out of paper in a 3-D world (2.5-D to be precise), a turn-based battle system which doesn’t have random battles, that is you actually see each enemy before battling and you can strike first (by jumping on or hammering) or be striken which defines who plays first. The story? Bowser gets his hands on the Star Rod, a fairy rod which grants any wish its wielder makes. Mario has to rescue the 7 Star Spirits that control the power of the rod so that he can reverse the rod’s power and defeat Bowser, whose wish (typically) grants him with virtual invincibility. Oh, did I mention that he abducted the Princess in the process? To be precise, he lifted the whole CASTLE from its foundations, trapping her inside her castle which he keeps afloat.

In his usual quest to save Peach, Mario encounters many familiar faces, including Toads or whole races and towns of baddies that in earlier games were just, erm, baddies. You know, they only served the purpose of staining Mario’s shoes with their blood. But no, in this game Mario has a Goomba fan (nevermind Mario could have slain his entire family), meets a whole family of Koopas, gets a pink Bob-omb , visits a Yoshi Village, and more. A lot of these characters join the party so at the end of the game Mario ends up with 7 party members through out of which he can pick one to have as a companion in and out of battles at any time. This gives quite a bit of depth to the game as each party member has a different personality and point of view of how you progress in the game, not to mention different abilities in the adventure or during battling. What is also interesting is the use Badges, which now kind of reminds me of Materia from Final Fantasy VII. It’s the same, only that Mario has certain Badge Points and each badge, that is ability or feat, costs a certain amount of BP. After every Level Up, Mario can choose whether to upgrade Hit Points, Flower Points or Badge Points.

Paper Mario is a good way to spend 20-25 hours. Its humour, loveable characters, great dialogue from classic Nintendo heroes and refreshing battle system make me want to buy this game off Virtual Console right now! I guess I will at some point.

11. Mario Kart 64

Oh, Mario Kart 64… Whenever I think of this game I get mixed feelings. It was one of my first games, the third one to be exact (I got it for my 9th birthday yay!), but whenever I think of it I remember my grandmother. She died not long after I first got it… End March 1998. I remember playing it at her place and her laughing at how the characters, when they got a mushroom/speed boost, burst fire from their asses! It’s a sweet memory. She was like a mother to me back then and I miss her… *sniffle* 🙁 Anywho, back to the game.

Mario Kart 64 is the second Mario Kart game and I came to own it mere months after I had got my dirty hands on the 1992 showstopper. It improved on its predecessor by featuring more items, 3-D tracks (which are all original) and an even awesomer soundtrack than the first game. You must have realised by now that music is a big factor for me, and it can even turn a great game into a stuff-of-legends game. Inclusion of 4 player mutliplayer was also a great hit and I remember just how much I used to play it with Kostas, Manolis and Aldo. Battle Mode especially, Block Fortress! Bring it on!!! It had high production values, great tracks with many secrets each (I still can’t believe how long it took me to realise that the Whomp in Bowser’s Castle could not be freed) and shortcuts. While the game might not have aged well at all (I haven’t played it since forever) mainly due to the newer instalments of the franchise impoving on the gameplay in many ways, it still remains in my heart as the best Mario Kart yet and was initially very disappointed with its sequel, Double Dash, for the GameCube. Fortunately, the 2-player co-op mode saved that one…

Here’s a particularly good ad I found of the game that aired in Japan!

10 years since Christmas 1997 – A N64 Tribute (Part 2)

Click on the pictures, they’ll lead you to some videos of the games on YouTube so you can roughly have some idea about what I’m talking!

16. Yoshi’s Story

Before going into detail about this game, I’d like to point out first that Yoshi is my favorite game character. It’s not something in particular on him (we agree that he’s a male, it’ll make this easier for all of us) that makes him so loveable for me, it’s maybe his absence of anything of the like that draws my fondness to him. He’s not particularly cool, doesn’t have much of a backstory, he’s Mario’s ride and sidekick in Super Mario World but Green Yoshi and his 7 friends save the day in Yoshi’s Island. He just has this inexplicable charm! I’ve loved him since I was little. While I do like complex games with rich storytelling, in my opinion a perfect simple game is better and sometimes even more enjoyable than a perfect complex game and that’s because simple games are based on an intuitive idea that works really well rather on an elaborate plot. Yoshi is just as good a flagship character for simple games as Mario but let’s face it, Yoshi>Mario.

Anyway, having played and loved every second of Yoshi’s Island back on the SNES, I really looked forward to Yoshi’s Story. It looked like a spiritual sequel to YI, but that it wasn’t. For starters, it was way, WAY cuter. Also, it was much slower-paced, easier and simpler than Yoshi’s Island (not in a good way). At first, I was disappointed. I liked the game somewhat, but it couldn’t possibly hold a candle next to the epitome of 2-D platforming a.k.a Yoshi’s Island. The graphics were pretty (like cut out of a storybook), the music was of superb quality, surpassing many current gen games in obvious production values, and was also very well inspired and catchy (I remember getting the OST from Nintendo World magazine… I didn’t really listen to any music back then and friends made fun of me because I used to listen to that) and the game itself was mostly enjoyable and fun. But I couldn’t shake away the disappointment.

It took me some years to fully appreciate Yoshi’s Story for what it really was: not a sequel of Yoshi’s Island in any shape or form but a new, distinct and all-around very well put together game. After making that clear to myself somehow, I started liking Yoshi’s Story a lot more and also enjoyed it more. It’s puffy, care-free atmosphere is just irresistible at times, the Yoshi’s singing less cringe-inducing… You just have to let yourself flow, Dimitris… Yes, that’s better… Be the Yoshis… Eat fruit, lick giant clouds made of candy, smell the air, lay firework eggs, love, peace and happiness… … …

But I’ll never forgive this game for one thing: it debuted Yoshi’s voice.

15. Blast Corps

I got Blast Corps in May 1999, although it was released much earlier. I didn’t really know anything about it before it came to my possession but by then I had come to know that “Rare=Gold”. And I wasn’t wrong! The main idea behind the game is this: A big truck-like vehicle carrying 2 nuclear missiles has gone haywire, is uncontrollable and is literally just heading straight ahead. It can’t be destroyed for obvious reasons and nobody can do anything about it. If it crashes into anything, the missiles will go off… After this briefing’s probably when a genius butted in this idea: “I KNOW! We’ll destroy anything that’s blocking its path”. Apparently they thought it was a decent one. And this is exactly what this game is about: destruction.

Using a variety of vehicles, from jetpack-donning mechs to huge bulldozers (and much much variety inbetween), the player is called to destroy any building that blocks the missiles’ path. This isn’t always as easy as it sounds, for the cities and areas in this world you have to save aren’t exactly built to make your job easier. But this only makes the game more challenging and rewarding. And SECRETS! This one really has a lot of them. I like these games you can complete by only playing decently, you can unlock some goodies if you’re pretty good, but have to be absolutely masterful in to get to places you never thought or imagined were in the game and are so glad you unearthed. Blast Corps has so many secret levels or secrets within a level it’s not only enjoayble to replay but also rewarding in many many ways. What I also liked in this game was the sound department which as usual gets extra special treatment by mama Rare. The sound effects and music is brilliant as well as the little parts and pieces of supportive voice. All in all I remember Blast Corps as a very addictive and fun game!

14. Donkey Kong 64

Another game by Rare here and a special one at that; it’s the sequel to the game that made the company’s name. Donkey Kong! After DKC3 which was my lucky introduction to not only Rare but also Donkey Kong platformers (I worked my way down the series afterwards) comes this piece of excellent gaming, Donkey Kong 64. I first saw it in Austria on the same stands that taught me about Super Mario 64 only it was Christmas, and it was 1999. The game provided players with a free (required by the game) Expansion Pak, a certain hardware component for the console’s deck that expanded the system’s memory by 8MB, a significant booster back then.

Rare learned from Banjo-Kazooie’s magic recipe and built upon it for this one. Set on the original Donkey Kong Island, K. K.’s after DK’s banana stash once more. This time, Donkey Kong has not only Diddy Kong but also Lanky, Tiny and Chunky by his side, new characters that haven’t made their appearance in any game since then(I’d rather have Kiddy and Dixie in there instead of these new guys but eh!) Levels are very intuitive in that they have different parts for each Kong, since every Kong has distinct abilities, and they are built based on intertwining paths. Sometimes I thought they were too complex for their own good, and that is possibly one of the games downsides. Otherwise, DK64 really is very epic and well-made. I’m tired of saying this already but it’s the reason Rareware received so much praise back in the time, every single game of theirs truly was fantastic. Donkey Kong 64 lacked a bit of soul their other games… no no don’t get me wrong, it DID have soul, just not as much as say Banjo-Kazooie or Blast Corps, it’s like going to Switzerland when coming from Iceland and complaining about the lack of snow. It IS there, you’re just used to more of the stuff. Not that Icelanders would actually complain about lack of snow but that’s another story…

DK64 was just a huge game. There were 200(!!) bananas to collect, with most having to do with collecting more stuff. I have no problem with collectathons, especially when done right (which usually Rare succeeds in doing) but there were just too many different small bananas, coins and younameits to gather. It got a bit boring… BUT EVEN LIKE THAT! Impressive worlds, solid gameplay, classic enemies, auditory pleasure, Rare humour, unlockables, primates with musical instruments, cameos of the likes of Candy, Funky and Cranky (old Wrinkly died… :'( ) and… what else does a person that enjoys his persisant gorillas really need?

10 years since Christmas 1997 – A N64 Tribute (Part 1)

Nintendo 64 Tribute

The Nintendo 64. Released 1996 in NTSC markets and in 1997 in PAL territories, it was Nintendo’s first fully 3-D console. Made as a successor to the super popular and industry-defining SNES, the N64 saw in its 5 years Nintendo’s fall from the top of the home entertainment market. Sony, who created the PlayStation from the ashes of the to-be collaboration with them and Nintendo to make a CD platform for the SNES, used the design of this new platform to create the next new most successful console ever. Sony didn’t only bring in the CD platform to the industry successfully and en masse for the first time, it also hosted numerous reiterations of old franchises that practically reinvented their lines. Games like Final Fantasy VII or Metal Gear Solid were parts of older franchises that once belonged to Nintendo’s “side”. New games like Resident Evil, Pro Evolution Soccer, Crash Bandicoot, Tekken and Gran Turismo quickly geared the PlayStation for hardcore and casual gamers alike, with the latter term practically being invented by Sony’s generation. Nintendo’s decision to build its console around the ’80s philosophy of cartridges paid its tolls; even though N64 games had non-existant loading times and were pretty resistant to wear and tear (both factors compared to Sony’s CDs), not only couldn’t they fit 1/10 of what CDs could fit, they were also much more expensive to produce and, for good or for bad, much more difficult to duplicate, using legal means or otherwise. Yes, the possibility of pirating games and playing copies only really kicked off with the PlayStation and many would argue that this is one of the basic factors for its appeal to the broad audience. Cool games for cheap. What more could a bloke ask for? But I digress. This post has little to do with how the PlayStation changed the face of the games industry.

Way back then, in 1997, I didn’t know and I didn’t particularly care about these things. My mother had bought me my SNES for my 8th birthday, which was when I essentially became a Nintendo gamer. I did own a pseudo-NES on which I had numerous classic games of the NES era, among them Super Mario Bros. and Bubble Bobble, but my pre-SNES gaming history is also irrelevant. By 1997 of course, SNES was as new as PS2 is today alive and kicking. OK, PS2 is still selling better than PS3, but that’s not the point here! I had found myself a console that was dying, with N64 coming right around the corner. Neither me nor my mum knew that at the time, but it wouldn’t take long for me to find out (meanwhile I enjoyed such wonderful games as Yoshi’s Island, Donkey Kong Country 3 or Super Mario All-Stars that were already defining my gaming profile.)

July 1997. By now I’ve caught wind of the existence of N64, but I’ve been too busy playing SNES to really care. Suddenly, one day, I get to play Super Mario 64 in a small toy shop in Eisenstadt, Austria. I stand there, jaw hitting floor. I start playing on the demo stand for hours at a time, and the shopkeepers always shooed me away in words I didn’t understand every time it was time for the shop to close… I urged my mother to let me go to the shop again and again or to any other shop that had the game so I could play, even if I played the wrong way, holding the left handle of the middle one (I didn’t even know there was a Z button). It was just sooo good! I had even made her buy me a strategy guide of it in german and pestered her every time to translate bits and pieces to me… Sorry mum! 😛 There was no way around it: that console and that game had to be mine.

The rest of the summer and autumn went by with me wanting a Nintendo 64, fantasizing about it (you know, going to school and thinking about it and stuff) and really looking forward to Christmas. That’s when mum had told me she’d get it for me… Agonizingly, and with me playing some more SNES games, Christmas 1997 finally was upon us. Christmas Eve to be exact. It was a sunny morning, and I was playing Super Mario World while the other children were out singing the Kalanta. That was the day we’d go and get it (yeah it was much less dramatic than the Nintendo 64 kid scene, no trees, no wrappings or anything. But it was cool in its own way) So we did, from that big shop in Kallithea mum used to refer to as “the warehouse (apothiki)” and which later became Max Stores. That’s where we bought most of my SNES games as well. I got my N64 along with Super Mario 64 and GoldenEye. When I got home that day, I connected the system to our small 14″ Grundig I used to play my SNES on and played for hours. We’d have Christmas with friends, and so all the family friends came and brought their kids as well, and we all gathered round the TV and played… I remember Kostas’ and Alex’s faces, they couldn’t believe I had it! 😀 And the next day, (Christmas Day) another sunny morning, I called my then best friend Kostas (it was another Kostas) and we played together… Well with one controller it was much less “playing together” than “letting Kostas watch me play and maybe handing him the controller for a few turns” but that’s how it goes sometimes! GoldenEye didn’t get much playtime at first cause I couldn’t figure out how to play it… That, of course, soon changed…

Anyway, If I wrote ALL of my experiences with the little machine down it’d make for some tall wall of text, so my intro stops here. Intro, because I’m just getting started! This Christmas 10 full years will have passed since the day that was a landmark for my gamer side. As a tribute to those days and to the N64 which I think is (ok nostalgia really talking here but that’s how it works usually, right?) one of the best consoles ever, I’ll post my Top 20 for it, along with any comments, thoughts or experiences from and about each game. So, let me take you back to the past, back to my childhood days…

20. Pokemon Stadium

The year is 2000. Pokemon mania is sweeping the West and every pre-teen boy can’t help but succumb helplessly to the charm of Game Freak’s Pocket Slaves. While Pokemon Blue/Red were released in Europe in late 1999, I first got involved in the huge phenomenon around January of Y2K. The whole thing intrigued me very much, noticing but not really observing the craze that had followed not only the game but also the anime series on TV. It especially hit me when I went to Austria that year. Pokemon was EVERYWHERE!

I quickly made up for any lost time with some vigorous playing on the Game Boy. I played and played Pokemon Blue for hours on my green GB Pocket… I’m somewhat embarrassed to say that Pokemon was my first RPG, and so it was some really fresh material for me. I quickly understood that I shouldn’t only be leveling up my Venusaur leaving my Paras and Pidgeotto at Lv ~20, and deleted my game and started anew once or twice so that I could have a really balanced team and finally get the game mechanics. I was hooked, just like any other 11-year-old at the time. But I wanted more. And I knew that my Nintendo 64 had the key to that.

April 2000. After some months of agonizing wait (I still remember how frantically I looked for the game in all the stores I frequented… Once I even remember getting to the verge of tears after a big disappointment from my local game shop, when they told me that they didn’t know when it would be released), I skipped school and waited for mum to call me from Jumbo and tell me that she had finally got it. Oh BTW, even since then I somewhat organized skipping school with mum, she always was good like that. Or wait… Maybe I was malingering again and she just played along with it, I don’t remember… She wasn’t too strict about that kind of thing and as we can see today no harm came from it. 😛 Anyway, she brought the game home and I was DELIGHTED I can tell you! Popped it in my N64, put my Pokemon Blue in the Transfer Pak so I could use my Pokemon from the Game Boy game in Stadium, and off I went!

The game, while it lacked any RPG mode, had some meat. It was certainly cool looking at your hardy monsters in magnificent 3-D, reading the new Pokedex entries Stadium had, playing the Game Boy game on the big screen through the Transfer Pak or even giving the mini-games a go. Lickitung’s Sushi Bar was a good laugh, as well as another one with Electrode in which I don’t remember what you had to do… All these mini-games were multiplayer, and good thing I had some friends that also were into the whole Pokemon thing. OK, I’ll admit it, I was the nerdier one when it came to games… But Stadium’s best feature was none other than multiplayer battling. We used to play with rentals, looking for quick duels of skill in commanding the little bastards. The game really was ideal if you wanted a quick dose of the rush of a Pokemon battle without having to plunge into the depths of the RPG.

While I also bought Pokemon Stadium 2 when it came out and generally liked it and the second generation Pokemon, the first game made a much bigger impact on how we played with our monsters back then. It was the next best thing after the GB games and it surely deserves a spot in my Top 20.

19. Turok: Dinosaur Hunter

Turok, if I recall correctly, was a whim purchause I made with dad. We looked for a present for me and it ended up being Turok. I have no idea when, but it happened!

Turok Cap The hero was an indianesque person that hunted dinosaurs becauuuuse… Again, I have no idea. I didn’t ever get much into the game’s story. The only things I can tell are: the game was hard, it had some cool and biiig guns and some interesting locales, the game was confusing, and its cheats were superb! Unlocking the uber guns and blasting everything away certainly was fun, as was being invincible and flying (I still remember that the cheat code had something to do with “bird”… But that is as far as my memory serves me), and going to every boss stage and wooping ass. Because I ended up only playing the game using cheats because I thought it was much better using some cheat or another than just playing normally, not to mention much less frustrating, I don’t remember it at all well. But messing around with this game was rewarding! Plus, how cool is a game full of dinos? Even if sadly you have to kill them… Looking back, the “normal” game must have been good, at least its structure was hub-based and linear at the same time. Intriguing, no?

18. Banjo-Tooie

Banjo-Kazooie ranked very high in my top games for a long period of time (still does) and my expectations for the sequel were even higher. B-K’s ending revealed that “Banjo-Tooie” would allow the player to gain access to hidden secrets in the original game by means of using a stop ‘n’ swap kind of system, something to do with cartridge swapping anyway. This in my mind only meant that Banjo-Tooie would have an awful lot to do with the original, and I just couldn’t wait!

Banjo-Tooie was released in Europe in June 2001. When it appeared, I had exams (it was the end of my first year in junior high) so I couldn’t pick it up right away. But when I did, I couldn’t help but be a bit disappointed. I found out that the “stop ‘n’ swap” thingie had been dropped and that only a few connections remained with Banjo-Kazooie, like the appearance of Gobi the camel or other references that should have been dependant on your status in B-K. The real secrets of the original were lost forever (even though lots of hackers are still tearing the cartridge apart to find hidden connections and clues, check out the numerous YouTube videos on this) and were replaced by the same items that the connection would have unlocked but had been hidden quite normally within the game.

Apart from this diasappointment though, Banjo-Tooie was actually pretty good. The worlds were much larger than those of the first game, more transformations, there were connections between levels, the graphics were better, the music was of the same high quality and generally it was a pretty worthy sequel to the first adventure of the bear and bird. Rare also once again showed what a great sense of humour they had throughout this game with their typical style of never ever taking anything too seriously. Unfortunately, unlike the first one, I only played through Banjo-Tooie once and did not even collect all of the jiggies. Thus, my memories of the game are pretty limited. I do remember some special moments, like the T-Rex transformation, Cloud Cuckoo Land and the Jinjo Village. I’d like to play it again some day, if only to make it more vivid in my mind.

17. Pokemon Snap

Another Pokemon title in the Top 20 (and it’s the last one). This time it has nothing to do with battles or collecting monsters… It’s all about…

PHOTOGRAPHS!

In Pokemon Snap you go around on-rail levels like caves, beaches, volcanoes etc and take pictures of Pokemon in their natural habitat. Professor Oak then scores your pictures according to the size of the Pokemon in the picture, its stance, if the Pokemon is using a special move, how interesting or impressive the picture is etc. Interaction with the Pokemon is accomplished through the use of pester balls (throw one at it and see what happens) and apples (which inexplicably all Pokemon like) and a lot of the time a mini-puzzle has to be solved for a Pokemon to forget its camera shyness or even appear at all. Sometimes, Prof. Oak judged pictures on wrong criteria, and a fine, rare and artistic picture could go down the drain… Right? No! The game allowed you to save a fairly lare number of pictures… You could have a very personal Pokemon photo album!

Even if the game becomes predictable after a while because of the linear actions the player has to take to capture the best poses of each Pokemon (which is still not always the case, some Pokemon really allow for creative photographing), it still manages to be addictive and FUN! This game might actually be one of the best-executed spin-offs ever, and I owe that to HAL Labs, who’s behind this… Game Freak wouldn’t be able to pull this off! Anyway, capturing wild Pidgeys flying around in flocks in one picture, a Scyther slashing away or Mew dancing through the air in its bubble surely never felt this good. Sadly, the game only features about 60 out of the (then) 151, but it’s not a big deal since all have their cries straight from the anime and are actually very well modeled. In some cases I think their Snap renditions are better than in Stadium… Anyway, this game is a must for any friend of Pokemon and it’s not hard to understand why I loved it back in October 2000, when I really was a pretty hardcore fan.

TO BE CONTINUED