Ys Book 1 & 2 - GamePro review (and other stuff from old magazines)

[Keranu]

I definitely prefer it without the apostrophe.  I wonder what missing letters its inclusion could possibly represent.

I always thought of Y as being a name and the title was refer to Y's vanished omens.

HAHAHA, such an awesome deep thought! Wow, I've never even thought about that before, but that could be right.

I think another thing that should be taken into consideration is the old legend of the mythical city of Ys. Now I have always heard, from on Ys fan, is that the video game is actually loosely based off the King of Ys book, but I'm not sold on that idea these days. Granted I don't really know anything about the legend, but I don't really see much of a connection. Perhaps the name itself inspired the video game.

[Cleria]

I definitely prefer it without the apostrophe.  I wonder what missing letters its inclusion could possibly represent.

I always thought of Y as being a name and the title was refer to Y's vanished omens.

HAHAHA, such an awesome deep thought! Wow, I've never even thought about that before, but that could be right.

I think another thing that should be taken into consideration is the old legend of the mythical city of Ys. Now I have always heard, from on Ys fan, is that the video game is actually loosely based off the King of Ys book, but I'm not sold on that idea these days. Granted I don't really know anything about the legend, but I don't really see much of a connection. Perhaps the name itself inspired the video game.

I just checked out some links on the books of Ys and it doesn't look like they'd have a connection at all. There's a mythical article about something named Ys here.

[Keranu]

Yeah I linked to that article in my post. Still doesn't sound like the game, so if anyone has any proof regarding this, please post! I seem to recall reading a link somewhere gave info about the King of Ys books and I recalled some slight similarities, I think either a "red head" or possibly even a "floating island", but my memory is very hazy!

[Cleria]

Lol the way you described that was funny..."Hiya I'ma red head on a floatin' island and ma king is like this dude. Wassup y'all?"

[Turbo D]

I think that the apostrophe sucks and should go away 

[Cleria]

I just received my GST paycheck - I'm going to go see if I can find one of those novels and see what they're like.

[Ceti Alpha]

I just received my GST paycheck

Cool, another Canadian. 

[Cleria]

Yeah...thas me...eh?

[Joe Redifer]

Do all Canadians get a special paycheck from this so-called "GST"?

[Cleria]

No idea. Why?

[Gentlegamer]

I was about to quip that perhaps GST is Canadian welfare (  ), then I Googled and saw that it is a Goods and Services Tax, and a GST check is a refund on this tax (I think).

[Ceti Alpha]

I was about to quip that perhaps GST is Canadian welfare (  Whistle ), then I Googled and saw that it is a Goods and Services Tax, and a GST check is a refund on this tax (I think).

Correct.  The GST was created to basically help pay down our debt. We've been paying off our debt annually for the last 13 or 14 years and we've made a considerable dent. Thanks to the GST and excellent fiscal management from the Liberals. But there's still a lot more to pay off.  But there's no turning back now. Running a deficit and wild spending is a sure way to lose power in Canada. It's become part of Canadian policy whether you're a Conservative or a Liberal. I can't speak for the NDP, but they'll never be in power anyway. hehe. So, at the rate we're going now, Canada should be debt free in about 15 to 20 years.

The US has to really hunker down and start paying off their debt. And we're talking trillions and trillions.  Makes me nauseous just thinking about it. 

[Keranu]

The US has to really hunker down and start paying off their debt. And we're talking trillions and trillions.  Makes me nauseous just thinking about it.   

But don't you just love the fact that we spend millions of dollars each day for our troops in Iraq?  We gotta get dem terrorists, damn it!

[Joe Redifer]

GamePro hates the TurboDuo with a passion.  They gave it a HUGE thumbs down!



Are you gonna just sit there and take that?  WELL??!!?

[NecroPhile]

Eh, some of the article is fact.  The Duo was $300 and a good value, had less buttons than the competition, had a smaller library with minimal third party support, yet had some of the best five player gaming action.  I won't argue with the words, but the giant thumbs down graphic can suck my sweaty sack.  This is for you, bud:

....................../´¯/)
....................,/¯../
.................../..../
............./´¯/'...'/´¯¯`·¸
........../'/.../..../......./¨¯\
........('(...´...´.... ¯~/'...')
.........\.................'...../
..........''...\.......... _.·´
............\..............(
..............\.............\...

[Ceti Alpha]

Are you gonna just sit there and take that?  WELL??!!?

haha Joe. 

Well, first of all, "2 Super CD"? What is that? Secondly, it's 8 bit CPU is faster and more of a work horse than the SNES' CPU. As for its 16-bit processor, there's actually two of them, which explains why the Turbo makes games hold up and in some cases are better than its Genesis and SNES counterparts.

The two button controller was kinda embarrassing back in the day when you had the 6 button SNES and the 3 button Genesis. However, there really weren't that many games that actually used anymore than two buttons at that time. So, the controller issue really was more of an image thing. "Look, we have more buttons!!!" Though it was annoying the times when you had to use the select button.

CD access time annoying? Yeah, those couple seconds are really annoying....   I hope that reviewer has gotten over his CD apprehension over the years given the fact that even NINTENDO uses CDs now. I'd hate to see his review of Halo: "It's an amazing game, but I just can't wait around for the maps to load so I don't bother playing it."

TTI's titles are more suited for the Japanese market. Well, that's what I loved about the Turbo. I believe EGM, in their 16 bit war review, said that the Turbo Grafx 16 would lead the pack if they could bring over more of their Japanese titles. The Turbo's Japanese flare was an asset, not a hindrance. If only TTI/NEC understood that, the system would have done a lot better in North America. But instead they seemed to take these lame reviewers to heart.

57 games, eh? I'm pretty sure the number of games (CD and Turbochip) was higher than that by '93....no, I'm actually positive. And apparently this reviewer really didn't bother to look beyond the 4-in-one disc.  Bonk and Bomberman are great games and the most familiar, but I think most here can agree that there are many more games that are equally if not more fun.

Anyway, I remember these dark days for the Turbo. It seemed that these magazines were out to destroy it with dumbass reviews like this. I think what I hated most was the whole "it's actually only an 8-bit CPU 'revelation'". Sure, it's true. The Turbo Grafx 16 only had an 8 bit CPU, but it still stood up to the competition. Instead, these reviewers completely dismissed the Turbo based on this without really taking a look at the machine and its games.

I give this review a thumbs down for being lame. 

[ccovell]

As for its 16-bit processor, there's actually two of them, which explains why the Turbo makes games hold up and in some cases are better than its Genesis and SNES counterparts.

I love the Turbo, but I don't think it's fair for the other systems to call the VCE a 16-bit "processor".  It primarily handles pixel width and colour generation from the VDC's output.  You know, kinda like the VDC is the Michelangelo drawing 124,000 boxes on a canvas in intricate formations, and the VCE is a child with a box of crayons filling in those boxes like a colour-by-number project.   

[Ceti Alpha]

love the Turbo, but I don't think it's fair for the other systems to call the VCE a 16-bit "processor".  It primarily handles pixel width and colour generation from the VDC's output.  You know, kinda like the VDC is the Michelangelo drawing 124,000 boxes on a canvas in intricate formations, and the VCE is a child with a box of crayons filling in those boxes like a colour-by-number project.   Smile

hehe. 

Fair enough, but it's the fact that the reviewer knew next to nothing about the Turbo Duo and it's specs, games, library, etc....

[CrackTiger]

Since the Duo Pad is identical to the NES pad, does that mean that the 6-button Genesis pad is identical to the japanese Saturn pad?

[awack]

Ha, i love reading those old mags.
To get a sense of where these people are coming from you have to read a few of there mags, hell, actually one is enough.

In one of magazines reader mail sections some one had sent them mail saying how their neo-geo ports comparison was all screwed up, he went on to say how the duo's versions were far better than what was on the genesis or the super nintendo, the authors response did not really say anything until the end....quote (i do agree that the duo's neo-geo ports are the best 8 bit versions out there)

[Ceti Alpha]

i do agree that the duo's neo-geo ports are the best 8 bit versions out there) Very Happy

Dear god. How do you take a statement like that?! That is ridiculous. haha.  I remember the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end reading crap like that.

[awack]

This kinda crap still takes place today, this is from the internet site videogames101.

The Turbo Duo was NEC and Hudson Soft's (or TTI) last attempt to save their share in the very competitive North American video game market. This sleek and smooth game system will play all those Turbografx-16 cards (like Keith Courage), the Turbo Grafx-16 CDs (like Fighting Street), and the upgraded Super CD-ROMs (like Gates of Thunder). Fairly good value, eh? Unfortunately, the Turbo Duo is still only a out dated 8-bit gaming system

and he goes on to say

56 FATAL FURY SPECIAL (Hudson Soft/SNK, 1994)
*Arcade Super CD-ROM2 Japanese
I was looking forward to this one one one fighting game but the music and sound effects here were very disappointing considering all the additional hardware support (you need a Duo system and a special Arcade card as well or the game won't play) needed to play this SNK fighter in the first place. Although this is a decent translation of the Fatal Fury 2 upgrade and it even has the scaling effects, but you're better off with the Super Nintendo and Sega CD versions instead anyway because they are not only cheaper but they also higher in quality.
*Compatible with the 6 button Avenue pad
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 5
gameplay: 6

[Ceti Alpha]

Dear lord....

Anyone who sees the Neo Geo ports acknowledges that they're better than the SNES/Genesis ports. They're not as good as the Neo Geo, but they put up a good fight.

I've just come to assume that these people are in fact dumbfounded how an "8 bit" system can put other 16 bit systems to shame. So instead of giving the system props they choose to stomp on it, not realizing that repeating lies over and over doesn't actually make them true.

I love the scoring though. haha. Utter nonsense. 

Here's a link I'm sure most of you have seen. Just a montage of the arcade card fighting games.

[TR0N]

This kinda crap still takes place today, this is from the internet site videogames101.

The Turbo Duo was NEC and Hudson Soft's (or TTI) last attempt to save their share in the very competitive North American video game market. This sleek and smooth game system will play all those Turbografx-16 cards (like Keith Courage), the Turbo Grafx-16 CDs (like Fighting Street), and the upgraded Super CD-ROMs (like Gates of Thunder). Fairly good value, eh? Unfortunately, the Turbo Duo is still only a out dated 8-bit gaming system

and he goes on to say

56 FATAL FURY SPECIAL (Hudson Soft/SNK, 1994)
*Arcade Super CD-ROM2 Japanese
I was looking forward to this one one one fighting game but the music and sound effects here were very disappointing considering all the additional hardware support (you need a Duo system and a special Arcade card as well or the game won't play) needed to play this SNK fighter in the first place. Although this is a decent translation of the Fatal Fury 2 upgrade and it even has the scaling effects, but you're better off with the Super Nintendo and Sega CD versions instead anyway because they are not only cheaper but they also higher in quality.
*Compatible with the 6 button Avenue pad
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 5
gameplay: 6

LOL well that's alot of bs all those neo ports that,Takara did for the snes&genesis realy falled short.

Either the sprites were too small...or they were missing a few characters or,there were frames of animation missing.

Yet the pce came much more close then what the snes&genesis did 

[TurboXray]

This kinda crap still takes place today, this is from the internet site videogames101.

The Turbo Duo was NEC and Hudson Soft's (or TTI) last attempt to save their share in the very competitive North American video game market. This sleek and smooth game system will play all those Turbografx-16 cards (like Keith Courage), the Turbo Grafx-16 CDs (like Fighting Street), and the upgraded Super CD-ROMs (like Gates of Thunder). Fairly good value, eh? Unfortunately, the Turbo Duo is still only a out dated 8-bit gaming system

and he goes on to say

56 FATAL FURY SPECIAL (Hudson Soft/SNK, 1994)
*Arcade Super CD-ROM2 Japanese
I was looking forward to this one one one fighting game but the music and sound effects here were very disappointing considering all the additional hardware support (you need a Duo system and a special Arcade card as well or the game won't play) needed to play this SNK fighter in the first place. Although this is a decent translation of the Fatal Fury 2 upgrade and it even has the scaling effects, but you're better off with the Super Nintendo and Sega CD versions instead anyway because they are not only cheaper but they also higher in quality.
*Compatible with the 6 button Avenue pad
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 5
gameplay: 6

Wait.. where was that review from?

[Keranu]

This reminds me of a scene in the movie Idiocracy where the dumbasses of the future are trying to explain what electrolytes are to the main character.

"What ARE electrolytes??"
"It's what plants crave."
"Yeah but why do plants crave them?"
"Because they're electrolytes!"
"But what ARE THEY!?!?"
"They're electroltyes!"

Instead:

"Why is the TG16 less powerful?"
"Because it's 8-bit!"
"Why does that make it less powerful??"
"Because it's less than 16-bits!"
"But it's faster than SNES!"
"But it's only 8-bit!"

[awack]

      Bonknuts

Wait.. where was that review from?

Its from videogames101 not to be confused with hardcore gaming 101, is that what you were thinking?

Keranu, you hit the nail on the head with that.

[nat]

I was pretty sure I was the only person on the planet who saw Idiocracy.

I'm glad to know I was not alone.

I have to admit, I liked it in a weird twisted way. That one chick in it from SNL was pretty hot, too.

[Ceti Alpha]

"Why is the TG16 less powerful?"
"Because it's 8-bit!"
"Why does that make it less powerful??"
"Because it's less than 16-bits!"
"But it's faster than SNES!"
"But it's only 8-bit!"

I haven't seen Idiocracy (at least not that I can remember), but Keranu, you summed it all up there. The fact is the TurboGrafx 16 was more powerful than any 16 bit system hands down. GamePro and all the 16 bit wannabees can suck an egg because they know it's true. 

The Turbo does what the 16 bit "players" can't. Period.

[CrackTiger]

This reminds me of a scene in the movie Idiocracy where the dumbasses of the future are trying to explain what electrolytes are to the main character.

Doctor: "Basically your shit's all fucked up and you talk like a fag."

Reviewer: "Basically it looks good for 8-bit but it sounds like an NES."

[GUTS]

Mike Judge is a genius.  Idiocracy was pretty good, but Office Space is one of the greatest comedies ever written, I've watched it about 20 times and STILL laugh at all the jokes.

[nat]

Mike Judge is a genius.  Idiocracy was pretty good, but Office Space is one of the greatest comedies ever written, I've watched it about 20 times and STILL laugh at all the jokes.

"It's a jump to conclusions mat. It's a mat that has conclusions that you can jump to!"

"PC Load Letter? What the fuck does that mean?"

One of my favorite parts is right at the beginning when what's-his-name is in his car bumpin' the rap music and that black guy selling flowers approaches him so he rolls his window up and locks the door.

GUTS, do you like King of the Hill, too? I get a kick out of that show sometimes.

[Ceti Alpha]

Haha. Yeah Office Space is hilarious.

[Keranu]

I was pretty sure I was the only person on the planet who saw Idiocracy.

Hilarious movie. It kind of takes time to really appreciate it, but me and my bros reference to it all the time now. Terry Crews has the best role as President Kamacho (or whatever). "I thought yo head would be bigger. Looks like a peanut!" (while holding onto his crouch).  Terry Crews is the funniest man on the planet.

Doctor: "Basically your shit's all fucked up and you talk like a fag."

Reviewer: "Basically it looks good for 8-bit but it sounds like an NES."

HAHAHAHA! Exactly!

"It's a jump to conclusions mat. It's a mat that has conclusions that you can jump to!"

Hahaha, that's one of my favorite parts!

Beavis & Butthead will always remain as my favorite work from Mike Judge, that show is pure classic in every way possible. Office Space is a pretty big jump from Beavis & Butthead and a great movie, but man I can't think of many things I've laughed at more than Beavis & Butthead.

Have you guys seen any of Mike Judge's old independent animation stuff like the original Office Space sketch and that cartoon called like "The Inbred Hillbillys" or something? It's cool stuff!

[Ninja Spirit]

Perhaps I can vouch for some...



Argh...my fatal mistake of accidently erasing my save data is coming back to haunt me..

[kenomac78]

i loved the egm buyers guides!!

i wish i had saved them , do theu still have them? the last one i remember was 96.  id die to see some more scans

a complete online EGM and VG and CE  would be heaven.

gamepro is was and will always be crap

[Cleria]

To each there own though. Some megazines out there are weirder...there's more twisted places out there in the world. Just remember that.

[rag-time4]

The US has to really hunker down and start paying off their debt.

Why should the US pay off its debt?

[Ceti Alpha]

Why should the US pay off its debt?

That's a big question. Fortunately I'm not an economist so I don't have to provide you with a big answer. 

Well, for the same reasons why people should pay off their credit card debts/mortgages/student loans. Every year a certain amount of the country's surplus (something the US hasn't had since the Republicans came into power) towards the debt. Kind of like minimum payments on credit cards. There's also interest.

So as a tax payer I would be very concerned about my money going into pay interest on my country's debt. That money could be used towards education, health care, research and development, etc...

The fact is that the world is losing faith in the American dollar. The Canadian dollar is above par with the American dollar. EBay is looking pretty sweet now.  The reason for this is because Canada has been paying off our debt yearly for 13 years. It's called running good finances and other countries see this and invest in our economy. The US has managed to convince the world that the US dollar is the most stable currency, however, the longer the US continues to falter in regards to it's national debt the less faith nations will have in their currency. I wouldn't be surprised if the Euro becomes the world's standard currency.

[NecroPhile]

Lumbergh: Ummm, yeah.  I'm gonna need you to come in tomorrow, mmmmk?

Why should the US pay off its debt?

The interest paid on the $9 trillion debt is a huge part of the annual budget ($406 billion in '06).  Like ceti alpha said, this debt is a large factor in the dollar's falling value, which is part of the problem with the US economy.