Viewing Thread:
"The Cube made me realise something."

Firstly, as some people on this forum will know, I was an avid Xbox fanboy. After managing to mature and open my doors to other areas of gaming, I was introduced to the Gamecube by my fellow forum friends (emphasis on the alliteration) and purchased one to see what it was like. Impressed with what was on offer I bought many games, until, due to financial circumstances, it had to go.

Bring forward one year, I've shed my love for the Xbox and repurchased a Gamecube. Don't get me wrong, the Xbox is a great console, it's just it didn't interest me anymore. I became fed up with "Realistic Racer #121531443" and all of the 'realistic games' that are on offer. Gamecube had that 'thing', the 'thing' that puts the fun into gaming once again. I remember playing the Amiga and loving all the quirky little games like James Pond and Super Frog, all that just isn't really there on say the PS2 or Xbox.

It's these games that are unique, they offer that fun factor that anyone can play. Which leads me onto the title of the post, The Gamecube made me realise that Nintendo really do make fun games, proved by a session on Mario Kart: DD yesterday with my family. Thats right, you heard it, my family for christs sake. The controls were easily adapted to by my Mum and Dad and my brothers and sister enjoyed the frantic racing.

"So what? I play with my GC with my sisters and brothers all the time" I hear you cry, well lets put things straight here, other then myself, my family never ever played with me on my Xbox, the games were just too complicated for them to really understand. With Mario Kart, you just pick up the game, press A and go. There's nothing more to it, it sounds boring on paper, but it's as funny as hell in the game when you manage to plant a green koopa shell in the back of your sisters kart.

Yeah, it might of just been a Christmas thing, but It's made me realise that the Gamecube is a fun console to have and holds the potential for excellent multiplayer gaming.

It's made me realise that the Gamecube is, for once in my life, a console that I will keep until it's replaced with the next one up.

Heres to the future.

gamesfreak.

The blue coins were hidden along the journey, Nintendo didn't make specific areas for blue coins.

Collecting the blue coins force you to look everywhere and to search in every inch of the levels so that you are made to experience the full game and don't miss half of it out. Without the shines from the blue coins you are only 80% complete and to me that doesn't seem enougth. I imagine that the relief of getting the final coin is a fair reward itself.

Well getting all the treasure in Pikmin 2 and all the blue coins in Mario Sunshine are very different things.

Pikmin 2 encourages you to make Olimar's company a rich one, and you are asked to save Looie so you might as well go back and continue the game.

Mario Sunshine's collecting the blue coins is a little extra, it isn't like a "secret level" which you don't need to complete, it's a pointless exercise and it's probably only about 20 blue coins you've got left to find.

In Pikmin 2, by continuing, you meet new baddies, new challenges and even a new level.

Mario Sunshine didn't do that, it was something for the die hards to do to extend life span. It was far from essential. I loved the game so I did it, and in fact I enjoyed getting the blue coins. But I wouldn't feel bad about myself if I hadn't got them all.

I don't see the point in buying a game unless you intend to fully finish it. I will spend a long time trying to get to the 100% mark but the main reason I don't usually get to it is that I buy another game before I finish and begin to play that. When I go back to the other game I find that I am then not as good at it and not capable of completing the harder level that I stopped on before without going back to earlier levels to practice. This becomes too much of a chore and I give up.

I agree to a point as well. The only reason I went the extra mile on Pikmin 2 and got every single treasure was so I could have a nice complete Treasure List to play around with. But it's also because I adored the game. Skies of Arcadia you get nothing for getting every single little detail in it, but my love of it meant I had to anyway, even if it meant another ten hours of work.
So partly because of rewards, but if you like a game *that* much.. it's a good enough reason for me.

I agree with gerrid, if the game offers me something special for getting every bloody thing then I'll do it.

If not it can sod off.

I only tend to complete games 100% if there's something in it for me. I'm not a completionist, I don't want to overplay a game - I don't really have time to be honest. I'll get as close as I can - I don't just rush through, but I can't be bothered with pointless collectables. It was worth it with Echoes becuase collecting everything gives you tangible benefits, but collecting all the blue coins in Sunshine or all the cheats in Starfox Adventures, because what use are they?

Metroid Prime is a fantastic game, as long as yo uapproach it in the right way. Lots of people buy it expecting some fantastic FPS, and are disappointed. The whole game plays out like a long Zelda Dungeon, with enemies being more puzzles and challenges than the main meat of the game. The only annoyance with MP1 is the backtracking. The game is organised in a straight line, and often you have to go from one end of the world to the other to get something. Metroid Prime 2 is organised in wheel shape, so wherever you are there's always a shortcut to where you need to be with a minimum of backtracking. Saying that, if you HATE backtracking, go for Prime 2, but if you don't mind revisiting familiar locations with new weapons, then Prime 1 is pretty essential.

Pikmin and Mario Kart Double Dash are the only two games I can think of where I've got 100% everything. I could've done it with Starfox Adventures: Dinosaur Planet (and still can if I find out which memory card I've got it on) however I feel satisfied in getting 99% and completing it. All I've missed is one of the five cheat wells or whatever they were.

Rickoss wrote:
> You can get Ms Mows on your squad? :O

Yeah, you have to solve her trouble for her and she'll join up.
She's totally crap, though.

Her special ability is sniffing out items. e.g "Yeah, there's an item around here somewhere!"
Wow, thanks for that.

I like to do 100% of things in games, it just makes me feel better. But only if they're worth doing - with Paper Mario, it is, because it's not boring to get all the star pieces or shine sprites, so I don't really mind it.

I'm usually a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to games.
Although, with Sunshine, I never bothered getting the red or blue coins. I just never felt like it was worth it - yeah, I could squirt this sign then run over somewhere else for a coin, but I don't really want to.