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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Mar 26, 2021 1:15:31 GMT -5
It's the record 300th episode and what better way to celebrate it than by...going back to a game they already played when James & Mike revisit Double Dragon II: The Revenge for the NES: -It's another one of their challenge videos with the following caveat: James will be taking over Motherbucker Mike's role, so to speak, by playing on the game's side, i.e. they select 2-player mode but instead of James helping Mike beat all the enemies up, James will also try to beat Mike up and Mike has to do the best he can to make it through the level regardless.
-Of course, the game doesn't know this so James still has to contend with the in-game enemies trying to beat him up, too, which Mike uses to his advantage.
-Nothing much in terms of discussion here, although I get the idea why they chose this one as the 300th episode because this is perhaps the most fun I have seen them in for quite some time. Lots of laughing and goofing off and just plain having fun with each other.
-Spoiler alert: the actual episode only takes up half of the video's runtime. The other half is a highlight compilation of the previous 299 episodes featuring all the laughter, anger, triumph, couch-slapping, goofing off and just plain fun moments they had in the past 6 1/2 years. It certainly reminded me how doing this rewatch for almost close to 10 months has been a constant pick-me-up in these trying times and just how much I love doing these. I also realized (going by a comment from someone way earlier in this thread) that at the beginning Mike regularly wore nice shirts but has since started to go the t-shirt route completely. Only nitpick I have with this highlight reel is that it appears that they didn't include any footage from any of the episodes that had guests on them. I can maybe understand Bootsy as well as JonTron and Doug Walker but why not one of the others?
-As an episode, this was nothing special but the highlight reel more than made up for it, making this a good video. Still sad that going forward it wouldn't be as many more mondays, many more games as I hoped for.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Mar 27, 2021 1:03:45 GMT -5
Zombies ate my neighbors, the police and everyone I care about. But there is one man to stop them as we shall see when James & Mike play Resident Evil 2 for the Sony Playstation: -We have another guest this time with Kieran...yeah, I have no idea who this is either (from the looks of him, I doubt that this is Kieran Culkin). From the looks of it, he does seem to be a big Resident Evil fan (just like The Legend Of Zelda is for Mike and Super Metroid/A Link To The Past is to James, Resident Evil 2 is Kieran's favorite game of all time) and he also helped James with the AVGN Resident Evil episode that came around that time.
-For some reason, they are doing this with a greenscreen in the background. Cool idea but I hope it doesn't become a recurrent thing.
-Resident Evil was never a big thing in James's life...mostly because he tried Resident Evil 2 and couldn't get past the first screen at all. And besides, both him and Mike were more into Nintendo at that time and played the Nintendo 64 more than the first Playstation.
-OK, it's another "James & Mike do nothing and let the guest do all the playing" video where it is also not about going far into the game but Kieran wanting to show them two easter eggs: one a special zombie that only appears if you don't kill any other zombie or pick up any items beforehand and after you shoot him twenty times, you get a special key for him that you can use to open a locker in the police station which allows you...to swap your clothes: either into a cool leather jacket or into an Army Commando look. I have to agree with them, the latter looks pretty stupid.
-The other is checking a desk 50 times and then getting a film, going with it to a dark room, develop it...and get a pixelated photo with a character from the first game wearing a basketball outfit. Wow...I bet there were some people who used this photo to get...excited. And that's pretty sad.
-James really loves this fixed camera approach that the Resident Evil (and also the Onimusha series that I vastly prefer) series uses, mainly because as as a cinema affecionado, it gives the game more of a cinematic feel compared to the camera uses in other games.
-Actually, that is a really clever trick: using those door opening sequences as the loading screens and, thus, making it appear as if the game loads pretty fast. Now that I know the reason for it, it is not as stupid as I thought.
-Well, they certainly have their RE expert on board who can tell them various different things about the game like the special zombie being the helicopter pilot from the first game, how Code Veronica is essentially the third game but because Sony wanted a regular sequel to still be released on the Playstation, Capcom did a RE 3 in addition etc.. Probably really neat factoids for someone interested in this game.
-To conclude, a decent episode but it didn't really click with me. Perhaps because Resident Evil was never my cup of tea or because James & Mike didn't play at all, I dunno. After a while, one of their lesser episodes.
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Ultimo Gallos
Grimlock
Dreams SUCK!Nightmares live FOREVER!
Posts: 14,400
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Post by Ultimo Gallos on Mar 27, 2021 2:09:27 GMT -5
Kieran is part of SCreenwave media.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Mar 28, 2021 2:28:25 GMT -5
Come up, come up! We got another 2-for-1 sale right up today!
First up, I didn't get to see much in detail in the previous video. So, it is good to get a clearer view when James & Mike play Resident Evil 2 for the Sony Playstation 4: -Nope, not a typo. They are playing the remake that came out at the time of this video (January 2019). It is definitely a very good looking game with highly detailed graphics and it keeps adding some new stuff so that even the players who played the original RE2 won't feel bored. Too bad that I am not really into those kind of games, otherwise I would probably feel more positive about it.
-Joined by Kieran again who is still dishing out his Resident Evil wisdom although in this case he actually hasn't finished the game yet.
-James and Mike actually get to play in this video! Though James is really bad in hitting zombies in the head (that could also be because from the looks of it, the reloading mechanic is quite asinine).
-Dude, you not only kneecapped the zombie but blew his friggin' leg clean off. That's one powerful gun.
-Love that according to Mike, they really went for the 1998 asthetic by placing the game there (i.e. not modernizing it)...and now I realize that 1998 was over twenty years ago...man, I feel old.
-James is pretty silent throughout all of this because he is just so mesmerized by the game. Makes sense given he is a horror affecionado.
-Overall, another decent video. Nothing bad but Resident Evil just holds no interest for me so I didn't enjoy the video as much as other episodes.
Next up, we go into the more classical realm of horror by helping a noble knight save his betrothed from demons when James & Mike play Ghosts'N Goblins for the NES: -Another challenge video! This time trying to get as far as possible by using the worst weapon in the game, the Torch! However, the first challenge is, of course, to make the torch appear to use it.
-Talking about the hardest games on NES, Mike actually considers it to be the hardest game on NES mostly because of the loops getting harder and harder as you play. In the meantime, having beaten Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, he doesn't consider that one to be as hard anymore (though James still hasn't beaten that one yet...one day). Actually, what they mentioned next, sounds like a decent challenge...playing Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde without uttering any sounds of frustration and annoyedness. Could that be even reasonably pulled off?
-*sings* B-b-birds birds birds, birds are the worst, b-b-birds birds birds, birds are the worst...otherwise, they could have made it through that part already if it weren't for those dang birds.
-Never thought I'd see the day where Alfred Hitchcock movies and Dude Where's My Car? are brought up in the same discussion (the latter being also a movie James has never seen). James also has never seen Master Of Disguise and Charlie & The Chocolate Factory (even though he had the chance with the latter on a flight once...but he thought looking at the seat was more interesting). Perhaps those will come up (or have come up) on a Rental Review one of these days.
-Now, the video's title is misleading. James & Mike do not beat the game (or its first part at least) using this challenge in this video...but Mike did in a livestream later of which we get a compilation of Mike's...outbursts of frustration so to speak. That could be a very interesting livestream to watch. Just to clarify: he made it to the end of the first loop after which you get the shield weapon which you have to use to truly beat the game, so from his point of view, he made it as far as possible you can go by using the torch as your weapon.
-Now where are you on the side of intaking vitamins? Do you swallow them whole or do you break them up like James does?
-All in all, a much more entertaining video with interesting and funny discussions peppered in it while doing a good challenge idea.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Mar 29, 2021 0:50:35 GMT -5
2-for-1! 2-for-1! 2-for-1! First up, we seem to go for a lot of horror games recently despite it not being October and stuff. And we continue on when James & Mike play a Super Castlevania IV hack for the SNES: -Yeah, not a highly original title because this hack either has none or James & Mike do not mention it. From the looks of it, it is also one of the more boring hacks because aside from changing the level design there is nothing that really springs out at you. -The game not having much to mention, James & Mike get to talking about the Castlevania animated series on Netflix. Both of them like it, especially since they have made more references to the games (James especially loved them using the Bloody Tears theme at one point), although James mentions that while it is good, he would have done it differently since he has a different vision of Castlevania. Though I love that the makers even included a reference to the turkey legs in the walls. -It does seem like birds have always been one of the hardest enemies you encounter in a game. -At one point they reach a part where there's guys in the window clubbing at you which James makes it through alright...a part that Mike repeatedly died on in his livestream, accompanied by video proof. Have to say that I kinda like these inserts of Mike repeatedly dying in his livestreams while being even angrier than the AVGN. -Again, James mentions which movie version of Dracula he considers the most faithful to the book...but I have already forgotten which one. Still that's one reason to check the video out if you are interested. Also we learn that at the time of the original SCIV coming out, James was at his height as a fan of classic horror movies. -Love Mike's praise of James being really good at Super Castlevania IV in general and James himself notes that the SCIV controls are perhaps the best controls for any Castlevania game he encountered. -OMG, James's reaction to the leap of faith he did. -So, after a rather hard jump you have to pull off, they decide to leave this game be for the moment. Cannot blame them, that does seem like a pretty poopy jump. -To conclude, a good video with some interesting discussions going on as well as some fun moments. Next up, James & Mike prove that they are not living in a dictatorship but listen to what other people have to say when they do a viewers request episode: -Neat idea but I don't think that they ever did anything similar past this one episode (or at least not multiple games in a single video) which is a pity. That being said I love the nicely designed animated intros that they have been doing for a bit now. Certainly looks more lively than the previous James & Mike Mondays title screen. -Since they currently have the Sega Genesis hooked up, they will be playing three viewer request games for that console. So all the following games are Sega Genesis games. -First is Rocket Knight Adventures. While I have never played that game, I did play the sequel/remake/reboot (?) for the SNES called Sparkster by renting it quite a bit. That one was a fun game to play though I got frustrated eventually that I never made it past that space boxer ship boss. -Both enjoy that game immensely, loving the colorful graphics, the good controls and the fun boss battles. As they mention in the end, their personal favorite out of that viewer's compilation. -Yeah, that would be the day where a game actually referred to 1-Ups as Free Guys. -Second is Earnest Evans. A game that has a cover that makes you think of an Indiana Jones-esque adventure but the opening cutscene and gameplay makes you think more of a weird anime. The game character's physique also looks weird with its ragdoll physiques. -Dang it, I can imagine loving talking Donald Duck comics with Mike because he does seem like a really big fan. -They mention that they have heard this game being referred to as bad, but they don't share that sentiment from what they've seen of it. It is not their most favorite game suddenly but also not as bad as the rumors made it out to be. -Finally, it's Altered Beast. Apparently the game that was included with the Sega Genesis originally before Sonic came along. -Yeah, poop's definitely going down once you gain your wolf form. -Overall, a good idea for an episode which James & Mike also seemed to enjoy pretty much...making it all the more stranger that they never came back to this idea.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Mar 30, 2021 0:10:37 GMT -5
*sings* 2 times the fun, wrapped up and rolled into 1! First up, we return to rid the world of demons and other ghastly creatures through the avatar of a brave marine when James & Mike play Doom II: Hell On Earth for the PC: -While they don't mention it, seeing as they play on a keyboard, I have to assume that they are actually playing this on a PC and not a console. -Furthermore, not a regular play of this game but another challenge. The goal is to beat the Cyberdemon...using only your fists. No normal guns, no lasers, no BFG....fists only. -James is not that familiar with the PC controls for Doom as he did play Doom more on the SNES rather than the PC version. -We all have one of those days...where we get our Christopher Lloyd movie quotes crossed, haven't we? -OK, so the item that turns everything black & white is an invisibility item...yet the Cyberdemon appears to see the character regardless since he still consistently fires in the player's direction? Or did I mishear that and it is really an invincibility item? -I think I don't want James to ever give me boxing tips considering how much success Mike has with his advice. -Love James's poop-eating grin when Mike asks: "What a**hole would ever come up with a challenge like this?" -Just like with Ghosts'N Goblins, this is actually a challenge that Mike pulled off later in a live stream...and which only took him 20 minutes, much faster than he would have ever imagined. -A decent video this time with fun conversations but I am just not that much into Doom at all. Next up, we take a foray into the beauty of nature, especially that rarest of all wild beasts, when James & Mike play Life Of Black Tiger for the Sony Playstation 4: -Have to say, Mike has really mastered the art of a very good poker face, staying calm and collected while leading James on into believing that they would be playing a GTA / Red Dead Redemption-level good game. -What James is getting into though is what he aptly titles the "Big Rigs of Sony Playstation 4", a game with bad controls, less-than-state-of-the-art graphics, enemies that are way stronger than you etc.. But it doesn't matter because James & Mike have a great time laughing at the badness of this game. -Interesting that you can play as a pack of wolves or a group of chicken among the selection. I wonder how that would look like in gameplay. Sadly, we don't get to see any of it since Mike didn't yet earn enough points from playing for an hour and only finishing the beginning. -Oh my, they truly got the rarest trophy of them all: The Tower Of Rhino (have to admit, I was a bit fooled at first before I looked closer at the trophy message). And who ever saw a rhino doggypaddle in the air? -Yeah, it is frustrating when you spend what appears to be hours trying to kill one rhino...only to still have the mission count as failed. That really sucks. -Now what could be the reason that they still have to do the rhino mission even though Mike uninstalled and reinstalled the game so that they could start from the beginning? Do you have to delete the save states from the PS4 in addition? Is that the case with all PS4 games? -To conclude, a very funny video mostly for James & Mike's reactions to this terrible game. As James said, even if he thought that he already played all the terrible games there are, there is still a new challenger awaiting.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Mar 31, 2021 0:05:20 GMT -5
*sings* James & Mike, James & Mike, play whatever games they can...like here when they play Spider-Man for the Sony Playstation 4: -Again, I have to say that I love the beautiful animated title cards they do in these episodes. They look really great.
-What's the first thing you do when you are Spider-Man in New York? You climb the Empire State Building, of course! James had visited that place before and felt really dizzy when he looked up at the antenna on top of it. Have to say that I do feel queasy sometimes when I played those type of games and climbing/standing on high places (like when I climbed the Space Needle in Infamous: Second Son or any time I was on a high building in the PS3 GTA games). I wonder if James and Mike feel the same way sometimes.
-That look of Spiderman looking down at the city from the very top of the Empire State Building...that's an awesome look.
-They are not doing any missions but rather location hunting for Ghostbusters locations (which is comparably easy since the game seems to be using the actual NYC street names and layout). They find the museum/library, the park as well as the fire department house (which even has a graffiti of a ghost on it).
-They go even more hardcore when they try to find a location from the 1990 Turtles movie...and actually succeed in finding it.
-Things I learned today: yesterday Mike proved very good at the poker face game...while James today shows that he has a lot to learn when he sends Mike on a wild goose chase for another TMNT location. Luckily, Mike is too focused on the screen to notice James desperately trying to hide his facial contortions.
-Overall, a decent video showing that you can use a game in more ways than one.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 1, 2021 0:18:17 GMT -5
Hey yo, funka dudes, let's hit this shizzit with our cool bros James & Mike as they diggin' through ToeJam & Earl: Back In The Groove for the PC: -Have to say, until the last minute of this video, I thought they were playing it on the Sony Playstation 4 due to the controller James is holding. But Mike mentioned Steam at the last moment, so I would have to assume they did it on the PC with two controllers. -One other thing besides the rad, tailored-to-the-game title screens is that recently, J&MM is also sponsored sometimes (in this case, a mobile RPG game named Raid...I wonder if that is still a thing two years later). At least, it's not ExpressVPN or the earbuds created by a famous what's-his-name. -Basically a remake of the first ToeJam & Earl game which was also covered a long time ago on James & Mike Mondays (and at that point in the show it had the honor of being the longest episode at over 40 minutes). -We get some more insight into the ToeJam & Earl series by them where each subsequent game in the series did a different take (second one being a side-scroller, third one being a 3-D platformer...that's almost NES-levels of changing up sequels). James is OK with the follow-ups while Mike is not too keen on them although both agree that the first one was the best in the series. -This remake certainly has beautiful, colorful graphics and from the sounds of it, it also controls really good. Definitely seems like the fans of the original game would be in for a treat. -We learn that usually only James's family calls him Jim sometimes. Now wondering if anybody in this family did the "He's dead, Jim." joke with him. -Beware of spring shoes and the rocket shoes, those are gonna really buck you up. -Yikes, that's the kind of double dose I hate. First getting attacked by someone who bucks up your controls that getting an item that switches you around. Luckily, James & Mike pull through this. -A ghost cow? Now I've seen everything. -Also beware of the jaw elevator where you only have one second to escape. Also love that at two points when they actually found two elevators, they managed to choose the wrong ones every time. -Elvis sang a lot of songs about food? Well, he was fond of his momma's cooking after all. -Oh my god, James singing the song his daughter came up with to the tune of the Brother John nursery rhyme. "We are dying, we are dying, gonna lose, gonna lose..." So creepily adorable somehow -Things I should be wary of in Philadelpha: Guys sitting on car hood ornaments voluntarily. *shudder* It hurts just thinking about it. -To conclude, one of the funniest episodes in quite a while. Fun discussions, an entertaining game and just a pleasent time watching it. Definitely one of the highlights in the later J&MM years.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 2, 2021 0:21:53 GMT -5
You thought you got 1? Now you get 2! First up, let's hit the beaches of Florida with a handlebar moustachioed strongman and his ladyman sidekick as well as their crimesolving boat as James & Mike play Thunder In Paradise for the Philips CD-i: -Brought to you by Mike who probably has the only modded Philips CD-i in existence. They do mention that they tried to play this before at James's house but apparently his CD-i didn't have a video card or something to play this game so they postponed it. -Woah, there is certainly quite a lot of FMV in here and I would guess some of it made exclusively for this game. -I am with James. I didn't even know the Philips CD-i had a lightgun (the aptly named "Peacekeeper"), so that's a surprise. -I guess for those not interested in playing a game, the makers wanted them to have the option to watch the show only. I would guess given the capabilities at the time, this would have only been one episode. -The actual game is kinda like a flight simulator fighting game...except with a boat. And the most surprising thing to them is...it is actually decent. -The CD offers one other mode: interactive television aka a rail shooter in the vein of the Action Max videos they played a while ago. I am only wondering if the whole biolink deal (with the guy getting his nether regions sucked off) is actually from an episode or if this whole scenario was written exclusively for the game. -Words we thought we'd never hear: this is actually better than anything on Sega CD (especially the video quality). This is also the first I have heard about this Laseractive console (though from what James & Mike say about it, it is best left in the shadows). -Overall, it is a decent episode. The big problem though (as James & Mike hint at) is that they expected a truly terrible game and what they got was...actually decent and perhaps the best game they have played so far on the Philips CD-i. While that is a good thing, who knows how much more entertaining this episode could have been if they could have just mocked this thing to shreds. Alas, it was not meant to be. Next up, it is time again to take up arms and battle the evil Red Falcon organization in a new way as James & Mike play Contra for the PC: -In this case, it is for DOS in particular. -Wow, does this game look bad. At least with brown, red, black and green, they decided to go for a different look compared to other DOS games (like the Mega Man games). Too bad, it looks like poop. -Interesting to hear that this version and the NES version came out at approximately the same time. They think that perhaps the developers wanted to allow the players who didn't own an NES to play it as well. Bet they then rather went to their friends that had an NES rather than play this version of Contra. -Getting the spread weapon, normally a joyful moment in any Contra game...but not with a poopy spread like this. -So, at less than halfway into the video, they change gears with James playing perhaps the game that is most nostalgic to him...Round 42 for the PC (again DOS in this case). Or as James describes it: "Space Invaders on crack". -It certainly is kind of a surreal experience with the very interesting sounds (like they were provided by a theremin) and the explosions...kinda like an Atari game but a tad more developed. James even mentions using some of the sounds in reverse for his Polybius episode. -Love the story about how his mother recorded him playing the game, him explaining the game, then his mother going away to film something else...only James didn't realize it and you can hear him still talking to the wall about the game in the background. -Love that they now added a little Zelda Reference countdown since the previous episodes. Really makes you realize how many Zelda references those two make. -Sadly, it comes to a crushing end when the game glitches. -Overall, a good episode, not so much for Contra but for Round 42 which is really an interesting find that probably not many people know about.
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Post by Confused Mark Wahlberg on Apr 2, 2021 11:07:37 GMT -5
The guards beating the shit out of the red head in 'Highlander' is still the funniest thing on this series.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 2, 2021 23:43:46 GMT -5
Why waste your time going out in bad weather to play with remote-controlled cars when you can do the same from the inside of your house just like James & Mike do when they play R.C. Pro-Am for the NES? -OK, I was at first gonna accuse James & Mike of being old fogies with cloudy minds who, at this point, forgot what games they had played before I checked...turns out that the game they played with Pat The NES Punk all those moons ago was the second R.C. Pro-Am game while here they play the original one. That would have been embarrassing. -But to be fair, this looks really similar to the other one so I could have been excused for my accusation of them. It looks like a fun game though the non-change in visuals make it seem like you are on the same track all the time. Regardless, it is also kinda a precursor to Mario Kart with you using weapons to take out the competition. -Ah yes, the days when Rare was still in its infancy but already doing some awesome games on the NES (although James is still of the opinion that Battletoads has so much good going for it but just that it is impossible to beat in 2-player mode is a bit of a drawback). -So yeah, James is not very good at this game while Mike is much more adapt considering the trophies he racks up over time. -Remember Pogs? They are back...in James & Mike conversation form. That is one piece of 1980s nostalgia that I missed and cannot remember at all. -Hmm, didn't know that the later Mario Kart games threw bad drivers a bone like this sometimes. Fair or not? I cannot decide. -OMG, that Blues Brothers-style car pile-up that let Mike still finish 1st! As well as his confused face when he still finished despite being so far behind! -To conclude, a decent episode with some good topics but the game is not that exciting to look at.
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Ultimo Gallos
Grimlock
Dreams SUCK!Nightmares live FOREVER!
Posts: 14,400
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Post by Ultimo Gallos on Apr 3, 2021 1:36:56 GMT -5
Pogs was an 90s thing. All I know about them is they kept a few card shops going after the sports card market tanked and before CCGs like MtG took off.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 3, 2021 23:40:42 GMT -5
Hopefully this scientist will have one of those days where you CAN get rid of a bomb when James & Mike assist him by playing Gyromite for the NES: -Since they are 2 persons, they will do 2-player mode instead of letting ROB the robot do part of it. Have to say that he was a part of the NES accessory lore that I never knew existed until I saw the AVGN episode (that actually goes for 90% of the accessories featured in the other AVGN episode). Either I didn't look hard enough for it as a child or those accessories were simply never sold in Germany or the PAL region. -It is definitely an interesting concept for a game with one player moving the character while the other controls the pistons/pillars, something that was very uncommon at the time. I also think that the graphics look good and the music is quite catchy, making for an entertaining game. -Love that when Mike tried to play this game as a kid with a friend, he just had to invite a child version of Motherbucker Mike. -The only thing I would criticize: only one enemy character in the whole game. A variety of enemies would have made the game a bit more challenging I reckon. -Now, was that ROB thing at the end a genuine scare or just a gag they did to end the video? The world may never know. -All in all, a good episode. From the above you can see that they didn't have much in the way of interesting discussions going on but watching them play the game was really fun to watch. Too bad, James very rarely had time to do a livestream with Mike otherwise this could have been a good game for a livestream for both of them.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 5, 2021 0:13:27 GMT -5
Another 2-for-1 sale going on today!
First up, let's join the crew of the Righteous Indignation as they croak some slimy toadies when James & Mike play Bucky O'Hare for the NES: -Now this is nostalgic in a particular manner for me since either this game or Mega Man 4 was the last game I ever rented for the NES. At that time, my brother and I already had the SNES and usually my uncle took our older consoles and played them himself until they were no longer functional. I played the NES in his room still from time to time and there was still a place that rented NES games and from there I rented this one. All I remember was trying the ice level, finding it too difficult and then not trying any of the other levels.
-As Mike says, this has become one of the rarer NES games and is considered kind of obscure nowadays. Which is a shame because in his opinion, it is a great game with fantastic music, great level design and controls smoothly.
-James doesn't remember too much about Bucky in general, mainly finding it weird that the rabbit was green (like everything else that was popular at the time which he lists like TMNT, Toxic Crusaders, Battletoads etc.). I liked the show personally and found it a bit of a shame that it didn't make it to syndication length of 65 episodes.
-Things I learned: in their opinion, Middle-earth: Shadow Of Mordor is perhaps the best LOTR-inspired game (which they find weird that there are apparently very few good LOTR-based games). The one I most remember was a SNES game which was an action-adventure/RPG game or something but it was not very good.
-OMG, that lava flow section looks brutal and inspires James to go outside after failing several times. They do bring up one thing that is kinda neat for a game from this time: if you lose all your lives, and you select Continue, it places you in the section you were just in instead of starting you all the way at the beginning of the level. I guess kind of an offset for the game being hard otherwise.
-Now, would you think that Blinky in this game looks like a teddy bear?
-Hmm, I wonder if the Gradius fire corona is still a well-known game asset today.
-And of course we come back to Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde which will probably be the bane of James's existence until his end of days. Mike played through the Japanese version recently which is even longer and harder than the US version....not exactly filling James with excitement to try it out.
-Overall, a good first part with an entertaining game and some fun interactions. Now, I wonder if the second part will mention certain videos that I watched just a few days ago....we shall see.
Next up, James & Mike not playing a video game but talking about the trailer for the 2019 Sonic The Hedgehog movie: -Well, this is of course based on the trailer before they redesigned Sonic so they are not OK with Sonic's design at all since it doesn't look right. They later bring up a good example of a CG Sonic that looks good (when he appeared in one of the Wreck-It-Ralph movies) and James basically admits that it should have been 100% animated and not a live-action/CG hybrid.
-Also commenting on Jim Carrey and how it is just so hard to see Jim Carrey's style of comedic acting because then you don't see the character he portrays on screen but you just see Jim Carrey (like the example they mention with him playing the Riddler in Batman Forever). Normally, they don't have a problem with that because they both like Jim Carrey but are unsure on him portraying Dr. Eggman. Dunno much about that part of the movie, but wasn't Carrey's performance as Dr. Eggman one of the positive things in the movie after it was released?
-Love the part where James mentions people wanting to hear his thoughts about the Sonic from the trailer and he kept showing pictures because he had no idea what he looks like to the audience to confirm whether that's the movie Sonic or not.
-Overall, a fun little video for being something different.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 6, 2021 0:43:58 GMT -5
2 for the money, 1 for the show...here we go! First, let us catch up to that funky fresh rabbit to take care of it as James & Mike continue playing Bucky O'Hare for the NES: -And that's probably the reason why I couldn't get through the blue planet as a child. Didn't know that you needed Blinky to get through those ice areas. -James & Mike trying to recreate those famous Goofy hollers is certainly a sight to see. Though seeing them mention it makes me sad that they never got around to doing the Goof Troop game on SNES during the show's run. -James really wants that 1-up even if it kills him doing so. -Yeah, Deadeye only seems useful when you have to use the spread for wider range. Mike certainly isn't too fond of his special wall climbing ability. -Also yeah, you would think those rolling blue spiky things would be way more damaging than the purple spikes on top but, alas, it is not so. Still, I have to say that this part is a really unique way of going through a level where you have to think on how to progress. -The everlasting confusion...stalacmites or stalactites. -Sadly, after they finish the blue planet, they end the episode. I was kinda hoping for Mike to show him the HARD! password or show highlights from his Bucky O'Hare On Hard playthrough but it was not to be. Oh well.... -Still a good episode regardless. Next up, it's more than meets the eye when we see robots in disguise as James & Mike play Transformers: Devastation for the PC: -Never have been a big Transformers fan but dangit, if this doesn't look marvelous. And one can tell that James & Mike, being huge Transformers geeks, eat it up with a spoon that there is now a really good G1 Transformers-based game (unlike James's previous "favorite" games for the Famicom and the Commodore 64). -At least according to them, it is most of the original VAs reprising their roles in this game including Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime (of which James hopes that he will never stop doing this voice). -So yeah, this definitely looks like an action-packed game that really makes you feel like you are playing in an old episode of the 1980s show. Even Mike mentions geeking out when he first played this game. -Didn't know Starscream had a flock in the old show. -James mentions that it is great that this came out using the original G1 designs and not being based off of the Michael Bay Transformers movies. He concedes that Transformers as a franchise never left the public eye too much (with stuff like Beast Wars etc..) but it feels like a long time that they did something with the original G1 lineup. Speaking of movies, they consider the 1986 movie the good Transformers movie compared to the ones that came out since. -Whoa, Devastator is friggin' huge! -Mike especially likes that at least on the Decepticon side you get most of the big names from the 1980s show although there are no characters from the 1986 movie since this is strictly based off of the TV show. -Well, James is still happy that he got to see Menasor for two seconds before getting the Game Over. -All in all, a very entertaining episode with both of them visibly having fun playing this game and nerding out over Transformers which makes it a joy to watch.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 7, 2021 0:22:10 GMT -5
Well, a while ago they spent a whole episode just looking at NES hacks. Now it's time to actually play them as James & Mike play some NES hacks: -They are using something called the Everdrive to select all those hundreds of thousands of hacks. Since I have never heard about it before, a quick check reveals that the Everdrive is an NES cartridge (?) that has all those hacks on it, thus enabling you to play it on your regular NES. Kinda misses a bit of the charm of having the hacks on individual cartridges.
-First it is Druggy Final Fight. Darn, never knew Haggar had such a potty mouth. And, this may be a hunch only, but I think that game encourages drug use given all the messages in here. Dunno which game this hack is based on but James & Mike appear to have a bloody good time with it.
-Batman - The Dark Knight is just a slightly changed version of the NES Batman game (with Batman now actually being black rather than purple).
-Darn, the guy making that Everdrive apparently really loved Captain Tsubasa games.
-Castlevania - Stairs Of Doom...King Sombra's favorite game. A much more modified version of the original Castlevania using the aforementioned stairs to their full potential. Mike even acknowledges that despite his complaints in the past about their being too many hacks of Castlevania and Contra etc., he would still probably play several of them just because the originals are so much fun for him to play.
-Now that black enemy in the first Castlevania stage...wolf or panther? Where do you stay?
-Gah, that "treadmill" floating platform really surprised Mike there.
-Dead Double Dragon Twins...just normal Double Dragon with some characters heads chopped off. Even James & Mike question the point of this hack.
-Freddy Vs. Jason...a hack of the Friday The 13th NES game where you play as Freddy instead of a camp counselor (and you even get to use Freddy's claw hand as a projectile weapon which makes it far better than the rock in the original). Definitely something unique since you probably never get much Friday The 13th hacks.
-Metroid F****d...apparently NES Metroid with glitches but James & Mike don't have the patience to wait for something to happen.
-Riddler Tennis...the black box NES Tennis game with Batman characters (and Baby Catwoman as referee apparently). Really gets James & Mike into a discussion about how good these games even very early in the NES lifespan were.
-R.C. Pro-Am...with Mario, a Mario Kart Pro-Am so to speak. Mike's suggestion of James introducing his daughter to R.C. Pro-Am with this brings up an interesting insight in that James's daughter has more fun and is more adapted to Mario Kart 8 and finds it much easier to play than the original SNES Super Mario Kart (since she crashes more into walls in that one compared to the current gen title).
-Finally, we get Super C...amped up to the max with lots more enemies coming on screen at once, leading James to a frenzy at first ("I feel like my brain went into overdrive or something!").
-Through a livestream I watched and Mike mentioning it here, I learned something new about some NES games...I didn't know that games like Castlevania and Contra had loops in it, i.e. after you finish the game you can start the game anew with it getting harder and harder on each new loop. Mike managed 6 loops of Contra and also beat the 2nd loop of Castlevania and admits that it would take a long time to get into those loops since you cannot save them and would have to play the game in one sitting for a long time. That really is a new information for me that I learned in 2021 and it makes me wonder how many other games have this feature besides these two and also Ghosts'N Goblins.
-Another entertaining episode featuring a wide variety of fun hacks to look at.
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Ultimo Gallos
Grimlock
Dreams SUCK!Nightmares live FOREVER!
Posts: 14,400
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Post by Ultimo Gallos on Apr 7, 2021 11:58:31 GMT -5
And Everdrive is a cart that you can load roms to a memory card and put that memory card into the Everdrive and play the games. I got one for my Genesis. And it is great. Can just keep one cart plugged into my Genesis and have access to every game.
And sure while you can get hacks on a cart. That is gonna run ya 30 to 50 a cart. A everdrive is maybe 150 at the most. So for the cost of 3 to 5 hacks you get access to EVERY game.
My oldest son got everdrives for his SNES,Genesis and N64 last year. He loves it.
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 8, 2021 0:35:39 GMT -5
We have visited the king of the monsters in various incarnations in this series so far and now it is time to join him in an even earlier incarnation as James & Mike play Godzilla for the NES: -OK, if he didn't use any fancy video editing in there...it is really impressive that James actually managed to name all 33 Godzilla movies up to that point (May 2019) including the then-upcoming Godzilla: King Of The Monsters from his head. Also really loved the accompanying checklist with the Japanese movie posters. Furthermore...there were Godzilla animes? Didn't know that.
-Also love that they show various clips from the various movies in this video. Just spices up the flow of the video a bit.
-Like how they note Mothra's wing-dropping attack in the game which she didn't have in any of the movies until then. To emphasize it, they actually go through all her attacks that she showed so far.
-Hmm, I wonder how many people saw that overworld map and thought like James & Mike that this would be a Godzilla chess game?
-Always remember: Baragon is Godzilla movies and Barugon is Gamera movies (love Mike mocking James about his pedanticness regarding the name).
-Holy poop, what is that thing that takes away almost 3/4th of your energy?
-Interesting that they use several non-Godzilla movie monsters in this game like Mogura from The Mysterians and the giant squid from Space Amoeba. One could count Varan in this too, but didn't he also appear in Destroy All Monsters?
-Not having seen the 2019 Godzilla: King Of The Monsters movie, I wonder if James's wish came true and the monster fights and destruction took place at least sometime during the day in sunny weather?
-Love the story about James being the only person in a movie theater in 2000 to watch Godzilla 2000 as a midnight screening (since he worked at a movie theater at that point) and when he actually overheard people during a day screening, all they could take about was the lip movement not matching what was said on screen and being confused due to thinking that this would be a sequel to the 1998 US Godzilla movie. Also like James & Mike mocking the clichè about US dubs never matching the lip movements correctly (which is not as noticiable as parodies make it out to be).
-To conclude, a very good episode that is a joy to watch if you are into Godzilla and just want to see two guys geeking out while playing a related game.
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thehottag
Don Corleone
We're here for one reason only: fame, fortune, & the World Wrestling Federation Tag Team Champions!
Posts: 1,668
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Post by thehottag on Apr 8, 2021 9:03:48 GMT -5
I usually only stick to the wrestling parts of the forum, & so apologies for bringing up a post from ages ago. I loved James & Mike Mondays, it was great seeing them play & discuss games (especially ones I've played myself).
My favourite of all of these videos is by far the Shadows of the Empire series. It was a launch game here in the UK (1st March 1997) & came out the same year as the Star Wars special editions were released. Those films are what made me a Star Wars fan, & have great memories of SOTE, & the N64 in general. I go back & rewatch their vids on it every so often, & was very happy to read the review on it!
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Post by Mandarin Dessert Version 0 on Apr 9, 2021 0:25:57 GMT -5
You think you are tough playing the hardest NES games around? Let's see some really manly men as James & Mike play NES games with boxing gloves: -They are using an old pair of boxing gloves James found in his attic that he used for a short film parody of Rocky called "Stoney" (with Kyle Justin as Stoney of which we see some clips...weird to see Kyle Justin with a full head of hair). The glove laces are tied together since they never figured out how to untie them after the Stoney shoot. Interesting to hear James's grandfather mentioning that "you cannot even pick a fly out of buffalo doo-doo with boxing gloves on". Perhaps he was the inspiration for the AVGN. -First up, it's Ninja Gaiden. And James is actually doing pretty well although he mentions the problems with using gloves that there is always the fear of the controller falling out of the gloves. He even manages to beat the first level. -Please don't do a video where you play a game with hands that you had put into poop beforehand. -Unlike James, Mike actually has real problems with the gloves proving to be far less adapt in using them, eliciting some honest praise from Mike how James handles this. -Next up, it's Punch-Out, certainly a game fitting to use the boxing gloves on. -The intracicies of using boxing gloves that are tied together...sometimes your controller cable gets tangled up in it. -Again, James does pretty well, making it all the way to Bald Bull with the boxing gloves despite some minor hiccups along the way. He actually gets the timing down better for the counter on Bald Bull's Bull Charge (something that in previous iterations they couldn't do well with normal dexterity). -There's the next challenge for Mike: trying to beat Contra, Castlevania, The Legend Of Zelda...with boxing gloves on. -Last, Mike wants to try Mike Tyson...but first he has to input the password...which is not too easy with gloves on. -As expected, Mike Tyson makes minced meat out of Mike. And it ends with Mike still being impressed of James's prowess. -Overall, a funny video due to the gimmick they used here. Only complaint I have would be only doing two games instead of several more.
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