Want to help with the new AG site?

[Nicholas Steel]

We've always had a site, back in the day there was a lot of crap on it, but I think after a host switch or we got hacked or something (I can't remember) the main page was gone and never really came back.

i came here in 05-01-2005... so if the main site was already gone by then then you can understand why i never knew that there was one.

[The_Amaster]

No, there was a site later than that at armageddongames.com for a while.

[Matteo]

I myself grow tired of numbered scores. Its all arbitrary. Scores can range all over the place and values differ on different sites and magazines. All I need to know as a consumer is whether I should buy a game, whether I am going to enjoy a game. What details that are going to sway me one way or the other. A score doesn't tell me that. I want information. Including a scoring system gives too much value to certain aspects of the games that may not be important to the consumer.

I would love to create a system where we take games and allow AGN'ers to give a "thumbs up, thumbs down" mentality to each individual game. Yes, I think including written reviews are important, but I do not like the emphasis that professional reviewers place on categories. In some games plot doesn't matter. In some, graphics aren't as important. I believe using categories to establish a final rating or score of a game to be an obsolete system. I have no problem with reviewers giving us categories and describing details of certain aspects of games. A nostalgia rating would be great. Or a multiplayer one. But I am sick of reviewers penalizing games because they lack an online mode or lauding games because the interface is user-friendly. I just don't believe that a game should have an overall score.

I just wanted to drop the idea out that we can create a review system here that fully supports the true gamer. I think we all can be creative and build something really unique here.

[Pineconn]

Well, we could have different categories, like Enjoyability, Depth, Intuitiveness, etc. I agree with what you said, but I think games should have both numerical ratings (with nonstandard categories), and, as you suggested, or :thumbsdn: tallies. And maybe even a neutral rating if one can't decide if they indefinately liked it or not.

EDIT: Also, why not bring back the AGN Awards? I was reading through some of the 2004 ones, and it seems like a good idea to bring back some diminishing activity in AGN. I mean, most likely to be in jail? That's some good stuff.

[g.iaroos]

I would love to create a system where we take games and allow AGN'ers to give a "thumbs up, thumbs down" mentality to each individual game. Yes, I think including written reviews are important, but I do not like the emphasis that professional reviewers place on categories. In some games plot doesn't matter. In some, graphics aren't as important. I believe using categories to establish a final rating or score of a game to be an obsolete system. I have no problem with reviewers giving us categories and describing details of certain aspects of games. A nostalgia rating would be great. Or a multiplayer one. But I am sick of reviewers penalizing games because they lack an online mode or lauding games because the interface is user-friendly. I just don't believe that a game should have an overall score.

I totally agree with that!! Honnestly I'm sick of games gaining score and graphics when the rest totally sucks. A game should have a base score for it's fun factor and then be slightly modified by things like user-interface, graphics, etc.

IMO, a good game with so-so user interface and graphics should still score higher than a bad game that gets every categorized score correct.

[{DSG}DarkRaven]

Okay, so, I finally noticed the reviews section was created, and submitted my review. It says to contact staff about images, but who am I supposed to contact?

[War Lord]

I've just been manually searching out the images when I approve the reviews.
Your review is up and images added.

[King Aquamentus]

As a reviews moderator, I'll gladly search for images for reviews as well. If a point in a review mentions a certain graphical moment, I'll try to find an image of that.

[Pineconn]

When writing a review, what do I fill out the "Related Link" and "URL Title" fields with? Also, I already have images for my review. Can I just post them with the review and somebody will load them to the AGN server?

So I just left the two fields blank and posted the images. I got permission from the owner of ZeldaPower to use them. Feel free to edit as you want if I did something wrong or unwanted, or have me add more info.

[Eliwood]

As a former newspaper editor-in-chief and someone who's run a VG news/reviews site in the past, here are some suggestions.

First of all, standardize the physical format of the reviews (I'm talking internally) and format them up lightly. Right now, they're plain text, and the images show up as links rather than inline images. What I mean by physical format is to standardize the use of a title, subtitle, byline and make the rating system standard if you are using one at all. Yes, video game reviews can use titles other than the game title itself. See my review below.

Next thing, and this really depends on what you intend this to be, is to standardize the content. Everybody has a different writing style, and that's fine, but I mean standardizing the depth of the reviews and what's generally covered (some people do the old survey-each-category while some only cover story/gameplay). It's a bit disconcerting at times to see someone write up a marvelously detailed review while the next one is a scant 2 paragraph deal.

Lastly, images need captions. Explaining why you chose a certain image (and not stating the obvious) is an important thing to do and shows that the images weren't randomly chosen.

Again, I don't know if you are intending this to be a more formal presentation where you actually take it seriously to cover games in a journalistic manner or whether this is more open user commenting. If the latter is the case, then nothing I say matters, but I got the drift that you wanted to make a "news/reviews site."

I'd lend some of my reviews (I've written about 25 or so game reviews like the one attached), but they are IGN/Gamespot-like in depth, presentation and coverage, so they are in fact, rather long compared to what I've seen here, so I don't know if that's what you're after.

I've attached one of them here. This was actually written the same week that the game came out, so it was more interesting at the time than writing something about a game that's been out for years. Unfortunately, the images are not available, but I've left in the captions in italics.

______________________________________

Mario Kart ushers in a new era of online play for the Nintendo DS
Nintendo’s highly anticipated title crosses the finish line in style

By Eliwood

November 16, 2005 – Mario Kart is one of the most beloved game series in existence, and it’s earned that right for good reason. It’s simply one of the few games that anybody can pick up and play on a whim, and it continues make a ubiquitous appearance at parties. The previous handheld installment, Mario Kart Super Circuit was Nintendo’s valiant attempt at recreating the console experience on the GBA and while it had its merits, the GBA wasn’t powerful enough to make the game fully replicate the magic of the console versions. Mario Kart DS is Nintendo’s second attempt at achieving this goal, and it does exactly that in flying colors. The addition of a wireless multiplayer mode elevates the series to new heights, making this title the most compelling addition to the series since the SNES version. It’s also one of the best DS games to date.

Features

- 32 Tracks + 6 Battle Arenas
- 12 characters total (8 default + 4 unlockable)
- GP, Time Trial, Battle, and Mission modes (54 missions total)
- Single Pak, Multi Pak, and Online enabled

[IMAGE]
This course should look familiar to you.

Like every other game in the series, Mario Kart DS is founded upon the same premise as all the others. Players each choose different characters and race on a track in order to be the first to complete 3 laps. Along the way are items that have a variety of effects; some are helpful to the player who picks them up while others cause harm to his/her opponents. In this respect, MKDS hasn’t changed on bit. It even adopts a nearly identical control scheme to Mario Kart 64 except that the analog stick has been replaced by the D-pad, which emulates the stick well enough.

More Variety

In terms of gameplay mechanics, MKDS has changed in subtler ways. Instead of having characters determine their driving attributes, karts now determine these properties. For each character in the game, you can choose between a normal kart and a special themed kart. Each kart is graded in several categories: (Top) Speed, Acceleration, Weight, Handling, Drift, and a more intriguing category called “Items.” This category determines how frequently a certain kart will receive particular items. All in all, Nintendo has done a good job at providing more variety in this area while preserving the delicate balance that holds the game all together.

Mario Kart DS also offers new tricks to perform during a race. Besides the standard jumping and turbo start, players can slide around corners and perform mini-turbo boosts as well as grab items and use them to their advantage. The game features all sorts of wacky items running the gamut from the perpetual homing shells to the new and highly unusual Bullet Bill item which automatically propels you at high speeds towards the head of the pack, knocking anyone else who gets in your way. It’s like the Blue Koopa shell except that you are taken along for the ride.

[IMAGE]
Track variety and design have improved quite a bit, even for the easier ones like Luigi's Mansion.

Track design is quite good this time around and features greater variety. The Waluigi Pinball course stands out as one of the most innovative tracks both in theme and in execution. It starts with a long launch (representing the launch of the pinball) followed by a few turns and then a large section where try to avoid flying pinballs (think boulders), bumpers and flippers. You end up back in the gutter the repeat the course again. Nintendo didn’t merely just slap simple themes like “Jungle” and “Sea” like they’ve done in the past. They took the time to take each theme and to integrate it cleanly with the gameplay. Even the less sophisticated tracks from the SNES and GBA versions have gotten facelifts and have been modernized to fit in better with the rest.

[IMAGE]
An old favorite gets updated and a recent addition is replicated fully.

Improved AI

The AI in this game is markedly improved over that in every other Mario Kart game so far. The amazing part about the AI is that it’s hard (in later cups), but it’s the good kind of hard rather than the annoying kind of hard. For example, in previous Mario Kart games, CPU karts had a penchant for magically “creeping up” behind you and catching up no matter how far behind they were. That still happens from time to time but not nearly as much now. Instead of playing catch-up, the CPU uses every fair weapon and trick at its disposal to beat you to the finish line.

New Modes

In addition to the standard Grand Prix and Time Trial mode, MKDS now features a battle mode similar to the one on the consoles and a brand new mission mode. In mission mode, players are assigned a particular character/kart and are given a specific mission. These simple missions include driving through gates, collecting coins on the track, or even taking out enemies in a battle arena. The end goal is to complete these tasks as quickly as possible. Achieving new records unlocks brand new karts. While the concept isn’t anything new, mission mode is well thought out and presents an unexpected but nice addition to the game.

Battle Mode offers two choices. The first is a Balloon Battle, in which players attempt to pop each other's balloons while avoiding getting theirs popped. In a good but interesting twist, the player now has additional balloons that can be blown up using the microphone. Although the select button can be used as well (which might help if you don’t want to give away your intent), using the microphone is much faster.The other Battle option, Shine Battle, makes players compete over a set amount of shines that are scattered across the map. This is nearly identical to what players would do in the multiplayer mode for Super Mario 64 DS. The twist is that every so often the players with the lowest amount of shines are eliminated until there is only one player left. During the match, players can use the various items to steal their shines.

Revolutionary Multiplayer

Despite all of the changes mentioned above, the huge feature that everybody’s been waiting for is online play. I’ll briefly go over how the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection works before continuing on with the review.

[IMAGE]
Nintendo's USB WI-FI Adapter

In order for your DS to access the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, you need one of two things, either a compatible wireless router or Nintendo’s USB adapter ($35), which can be purchased exclusively from Nintendo’s online store. After you plug in this adapter, it will create an access point through which your DS can connect to the Internet. You must have a broadband connection for all of this to work.

Once you are connected, a screen pops up on the DS and on your computer and after a few simple clicks, you are ready to play! Now that you’re connected, how do you face off against somebody? Nintendo offers you several enticing choices. Perhaps the mode that you’ll use most is the “Friends/Buddy List.” You add people you know (or know you want to face) to this list and once everybody agrees on their characters and a course, the match begins. Other modes include facing off against people in your area, people of the same “skill level” or even just random people from around the planet.

My first experience with online play truly shows that Nintendo really knows how to setup an easy to use infrastructure. There was no setup required and the game was lag free, not to mention loads of fun. We’ll evaluate online play more fully in a special feature slated to be published soon.[IMAGE]
This game looks as good as it plays.

Graphics & Sound

Graphically, Mario Kart DS is impressive. Each of the tracks consists of several twists, turns, jumps, and other truly impressive environments with Waluigi's Pinball and Rainbow Road standing out as particularly amazing tracks. Not once did the game ever slow down, keeping a constant 60 frames per second even with eight racers and environmental effects on screen.

Music-wise, Mario Kart DS is typical Nintendo fare. Tracks have the usual Mario remixed themes to support it. Nothing strikes out as truly amazing. Sound effects are quite the opposite. Each player has his or her own taunts, cheers, and expressions, all of which stand out discernibly (and not in an annoying way either!). Karts have some impressive sound effects too with screeching and revving up that add to the overall ambience.

Conclusion

If it isn’t clear by now, Mario Kart DS is a must-have game for the DS and is probably the most compelling reason to get a DS at this point. There’s hardly any reason NOT to get this game unless you hate Mario Kart. While MKDS barely makes any use of the touch screen (save for the decal mode), it has no need to. It’s a fine game as is. While it’s taken Nintendo almost a year to deliver on its original promise delivering an online-enabled game, now that this game is out, the DS is truly ready for primetime. This game is a must buy. You will not regret your decision.

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THE VERDICT
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Presentation – 9.5

Nintendo has taken its sweet time on this game, and it shows. The user interface is very polished, and everything in the game is well thought out. Attention is paid to even the smallest details. The decal editor is a nice touch!
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Graphics – 8.5

From a visual standpoint, the game is on par with Mario Kart 64 with the added use of great looking low polygon models for the characters as opposed to pre-rendered sprites. The big plus is in its silky smooth 60 FPS frame rate.
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Sound – 8.0

Sound hasn’t always been a strong feature of Mario Kart, but Nintendo has pulled off a decent soundtrack on the DS that contains a multitude of remixes of songs from all over the map. The sound effects are rendered crisply, and the aural experience as a whole rivals that of the console versions.
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Gameplay – 9.0

Nintendo has taken the original Mario Kart experience and has enhanced it in every way possible. With the addition of online play, this is Mario Kart at its finest. Mission mode adds variety to single player, and the CPU AI is at its best for those times when you can’t face off with another player.
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Value – 9.0

This game will last you a very, very long time and is bound to become yet another classic at parties. Everything is completely customizable! This game would have received a perfect 10 if Nintendo didn’t strip down the online mode (to only include 20 out of the 32 tracks due to lag issues).
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Overall – 9.0
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