Ten Reasons to Prefer Project M Over Melee

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What is Project M?

Project M is a project by Super Smash Bros. Fans to modify Super Smash Bros Brawl into a faster, better, more technical game.  Its inspiration is to replicate Melee's gameplay and balance out the roster for a better more interesting selection of characters.

What is Melee?

Super Smash Bros Melee is the second game in the Super Smash Bros franchise and is currently the most popular among competitive fans.  It was created by Hal Laboratires for the Nintendo Gamecube.

So why don't players just play Melee?

Well, there are plenty of reasons to play Melee, but there are more reasons to prefer Project M over Melee.  The common accusation is that if Melee fans love Melee so much, they should just play Melee instead of trying to turn Brawl into Melee.

How it started

Super Smash Bros Brawl was instantly criticized for being slow.  Players wanted to change the game to be faster and more competitive.  Sakurai, the creator of the Smash Bros Series, stated that he wanted a game that both casual and hardcore fans would enjoy.  He hit the nail with Super Smash Bros, and further perfected it with Super Smash Bros Melee.  But, there just didn't seem to be anything for high level players in Brawl.

So Brawl players started to modify it.  There came new versions including Brawl+, which simply speeds up Brawl and takes out its downfalls.  Brawl- did the same, but also hyped up each character to be overpowered in a quick attempt to balance the game and make it fun for Brawl players.

Project M started as a derivative of Brawl+, and is now the biggest Brawl Modification Project in existence.

So, with that long introduction out of the way, here are

10 reasons to prefer Project M over Melee

10. Four ways to play
It's a very small point, but you can still use the Wii  mote, nun-chuck, or classic controller in case you preferred those methods over the Gamecube controller.

9. Higher resolution textures.
Simple as that.  Some people prefer the higher resolution textures, giving Project M a more hardcore look and feeling.

8. No Tripping.
This is a point for all Brawl modifications such as Brawl+, Brawl-, and Balanced Brawl.  But it must be stated.

7. Insane A.I.
The computer players were never really that fun to play against, and couldn't really help you play against other human characters.  But in Project M, that's been taken care of.  Well, mostly.

6. More stages
Melee has about ten usable stages for tournament play.  Project M has about 15 and more.

5. Customization
A lot of people love to see different textures and models on their characters.  And a lot of players love certain stages that weren't in Brawl or Melee.  Thanks to Brawl Vault, players can customize their game with stages, textures, and character models beyond that of a stage builder.

4. Larger Roster
Melee has a roster of 25 characters.  Almost half of them were deemed unplayable in high level gameplay, leaving a repetitive cast of 13 characters to be overused.  The first Demo of Project M only had 14 characters, but was still more diverse and compelling than Melee.  Now, Demo 2.1 of Project M has 29 characters, which not only outdoes Melee, but has a cast brimming with high level gameplay, instead of just half full.

Note: Demo 2.5 is on it's way, and the roster is expanding with it.

3. Balance
Brawl was terribly unbalanced.  Melee had better balance, but still wasn't quite there.  To reiterate, Only half of Melee's roster is deemed worthy of high level play.  When Project M is done, it will have over 35 characters ready for high level play.

2.  Brawl + SD Card is less expensive than Melee
Melee, because of its popularity, is expensive.  It can cost up to 100 United States dollars.  So getting brawl for only 25 dollars and an SD card for about 10 dollars seems a lot more attractive for the cheap people out there.

Note: Project M requires a copy of Brawl and a 2GB SD Card.

1. It still appeals to casual players
Having a party?  Want smash bros to be there?  Want it to be fun and engaging?  Want it with no tripping?  But do you have noob friends who prefer Brawl for its higher graphics and roster rather than gameplay?  Well then you need Project M.  Project M makes Brawl into something that noobs and high level players both can enjoy so that you don't need two different games at your party.  This is really a combination of every point I've made so far.

My Impressions of Skyrim

During the last two months of 2011, two huge games competed amongst many sites and organizations for the title of Game of the Year 2011.  The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.  At first, I got excited for both games.  Having neither a Playstation 3 or a Wii, I couldn't possibly just play both and compare.  Instead, I just pre-ordered Skyward Sword and used a friend's Wii to play through it.

Of course, you know my thoughts on The Legend of Zelda.  It has an interesting, compelling story, emotional moments, sympathetic situations, new and familiar species, very well designed gameplay, challenging puzzles, and a lure of depth in the collection of its extras.  I even acknowledged it as the best piece of media I experienced last year.

Then there's Skyrim, which has been praised left and right, and was the winner of Game of the Year 2011 on both Spike TV and G4TV.  (It failed to beat Skyward Sword for Gamer's Choice, though.)  When I wondered and asked why, I was given a slew of points ranging from an arrow to the knee to fus-ro-dah.  I'm not kidding.  Seriously, I'm not effing kidding.

So when I decided to watch my friend play it, let's call him Brandon, I couldn't help but feel I was watching a single player version of World of Warcraft (I game I found genuinely boring).

Graphics
No doubt, very detailed.  But if it looked like Skyward Sword, it would still be the same game.  This art style just looks photorealistic, like it's deliberately trying to pull you in with graphics alone.  What's worse is the Twilight Princess theory: it tries to be dark with graphics instead of with mood.

Gameplay
The combat is somewhat repetitive and uninspiring.  Metroid: Other M's combat, although just as easy at times, was much more fast paced and on your feet.  Brandon was able to defeat any swarm of enemies, which never consisted of any more than four or five, by just moving backwards, slowly loading an arrow, and firing it.  And even if these beyond slow enemies got close, just use the overpowered fus-ro-dah shout to move them away so you can continue to move backwards and shoot.

That's not even the worst part.  To do anything other than walk, talk, and fire your spell or weapon, you have to enter the menu, filled with so many different categories, with small text, it's nearly unbarable to use.  So imagine having to heal with a potion or restore magic every two minutes.  Enter menu, find it, drink it.  Enter menu, find it, drink it.  Not very immersive if you ask me.

Music

Not much.  Occasionally you hear epic chanting that sounds like the Elder Scrolls theme.  But there is nothing memorable about it.  It's just very hyped up orchestral music, or you're left with the empty sounds of your surroundings.

Characters

The characters in the game are so boring.  Yes, there is voice acting, but they really show no emotion or any type of quality that would connect us to the character to gain out sympathy.

Yes, they move around a little bit and the voice acting is of decent quality, but it is by no means astounding.  Again, it backs up the point of relying on graphics to immerse the player.  We've also had this quality of voice acting in Champions of Norrath (a Playstation 2 title released in 2004).  Comparing the animation quality in Champions of Norrath to Skyrim really illustrates how underwhelming it is, especially for a game 5 years in development.

Note: Skyward Sword shows a great range of emotion in character's faces.  For what little voices there are, it's top quality, emotional, and meaningful.  Character's movements are pretty high quality, especially during cutscenes.

The Twilight Princess Theory

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess had a slew of problems, warning us of the difficulties in creating a huge open world for exploration.  The world was boring.  There weren't many places to go other than caves that all consisted of the same stuff.  This was mostly narrow corridors, keese, and low lit torches.

I want to illustrate this point because these are similar problems with Skyrim's world.  But Skyrim's world is actually a bit worse.  Every weekend, when I would watch Brandon play, I would think he travels to the same cave, beats the same monsters with the same weapons and the same shouts, unlocks the same treasure chests, and goes back to the same place to guy and sell goods.  This only changed when he headed to the mountains, which was also the only real diversity Twilight Princess had as well (not counting dessert or lake).  What I mean is that unless the terraign changes, everything looks the same; empty, open, and boring.

In the End

Skyrim is a game I will not buy, play, or partake in any time soon.  And if it's any representation of the Elder Scrolls series, I guess it's a series I can live without.  You may think it's a great game with interesting gameplay and hundreds of hours of the same dungeons, but I have to wonder who actually gives a crap about any of the main quest(s), or even completing the game.  It seems to me, Skyrim is for people who don't want to pay a monthly fee for World of Warcraft.  Yet again, I thought the same thing about Rappelz.

My flame shields are up.  So are you read?  Skyrim is a sad, sorry excuse for a 100 hour adventure fantasy game.  For a 5 year project, I expect more.

Super Smash Bros 4: Why I Might Not Try It

No introduction.  Let's get right into it.

What Would Stop Me From

Trying Super Smash Bros 4

4. Control Scheme
Since we likely won't be able to use the Gamecube controller, I'm seriously hoping that Pro controllers will be available at a bargain by the time Super Smash Bros 4 comes to the Wii U.  Still, if it is, there better be a very easy and fun control scheme.  After all, if I need to customize my profile just to enjoy a game, it might not be very fun.  I have trouble already taking a classic Controller Pro to Smash Bros parties and having to customize the controls every time I plug it into a new machine.

3. Roster
Short and simple, if they have a bullcrap roster, I might just not play it.  Now, I'm not going to go so far as to say they better have Sonic or else I won't buy it.  That's just ludicris.  But Namco Bandai is working on it, and if it turns into Namco VS Nintendo, I'll be gravely disappointed in Sakurai.  I'll also be disappointed if I hear about a poorly balanced roster.

2. Price
Sure, Brawl was 50 to 60 dollars.  And that was okay.  Although, so many people regret paying for it.  Super Smash Bros Melee however still goes for 50, 60, and even 100 dollars.  It's simply a better game, and it shows on how much people will buy it.

I'm no stub cheap.  But if it turns out that the Next Smash Bros is 80 dollars, I better hear great reviews about it.  Otherwise, I'll try it, but won't buy it.

1. If its anything like Brawl
I enjoyed many things about brawl.  Long single player (a little too long sometimes), great cast, great new stages, and a lot of great ideas like Smash Balls and online play. 

There are many reasons I hate brawl.  Its slow,  its campy, its floaty, and it was very poorly balanced.  I would always be thinking and reacting faster than the game.  Auto-sweet spot on Up+B was so annoying, and I couldn't edge-guard because of it.  There wasn't any skill involved.  Not as much as Melee.  There weren't a lot of character related secrets.  And not to mention the controversey whether Metaknight was just top tier or god tier.

Basically, if none any of these are present (especially number 1), it would show that Masahiro Sakurai simply wasn't listening to his audience.

Thank God there's Project M

projectm.dantarion.com

Google's New Youtube App: A Review

Today I learned that there was a new Youtube App for the iPhone and iPad.  This one, unlike the built in Apple Youtube app, is built by Google.  This excited me.  But then, I thought about how it might compare to Cydia's Protube app.  So without further ado, let's get to the review.

Google's Youtube App Review

How it Looks

Google's Youtube App starts out better than Apple's Youtube app.  You start out with a home feed featuring videos you would see if you were on Youtube's homepage.  Thumbnails are nice and big, and titles take full advantage of the screen width.  Unfortunately, there's no landscape support, and long titles are still drastically cut off.

What I get

There are two buttons.  The search button is at the top right.  It quickly brings you to a nice search interface without unloading your current results like Apple's Youtube app did.  Recommended and past searches appear quickly and smoothly as you type.  And here's a huge turn skyward.  Google has made good use of the microphone on iOS devices with a voice search feature.  Just tap the microphone right next to the search bar in the search interface.  And it actually works very well.

There is a menu button on the top right, which you can grab and swipe to grab the page you have and move it aside.  You can then grab the page and put it back if you want.  This menu has a slew of great options comparable to the home screen on Cydia's Pro-tube app.  This is something completely devoid in Apple's Youtube app as far as I'm concerned.

I can sign in from there, quickly and easily.  Email and password.  Then I'm in.

After I'm signed in, I can view my Youtube Settings, see recommended channels, select a channel to view from my subscriptions, or just see what's been featured on Youtube depending on category.  In Cydia's Pro-tube app, you can view your channel, view subscriptions, few featured, see your inbox, and more.  So it's comparable to say that Google and Cycia's apps are neck and neck in this department.

One thing I'm glad to say is that I can finally see a Youtube Channel!  That was an important feature completely devoid of Apple's Youtube app, which is why I hardly ever used Youtube on my iPhone before being able to get a decent Youtube app from Cydia.

I can view my own playlists on Google's Youtube app.  I could do that in Cydia's Youtube app and they both work pretty well.  Again, these apps remain Neck and Neck.

One thing I absolutely enjoy in Google's Youtube app over both Apple's and Cycia's is the ability to watch without going full screen.  I can read comments, view suggested, and see the description while I watch.  This is important because I don't always enjoy videos automatically starting and taking over my screen when I might only want to view comments.  I can switch between description, related videos, and comments with either buttons or a swipe, making this an app that really thought about everything.

Final Thoughts

There really isn't much more to say.  Both of these apps are great, so it really comes down to personal preference.  I might keep both apps and use them side-by-side so one can pick up the other's slack.  Google's Youtube app seems a little more well designed and a lot smoother and faster than Cydia's Youtube app and Apple's Youtube app.

Apple is suspected to drop their integrated Youtube app in favor of letting users download Google's Youtube app for free from the app store.  I did a post before on how to browse Youtube the best, and this app really obsoletes that post and makes full browsing on iOS a fully viable option.

Google's Youtube App
Design 8/10
Features 8/10
Polish 9/10
Overall 8.3/10
Free

Apple's Youtube App
Design 7/10
Features 5/10
Polish 8.5/10
Overall 6.8/10
Free

Cydia's Youtube App (Protube)
Design 7/10
Features 9/10
Polish 8/10
Overall 8/10
$1.49 through Cydia

Now I'm one step closer to never needing to Jailbreak.

Top 5 Late Night Shows

Even though I am not rampant with subscribers, followers, or fans, I think I must apologize for my unannounced leave of absence. But a great thing has come from it. I have been seeing a lot of great media. So even though these reviews coming up might be old, I feel as though they will valuably contribute to the collective thoughts and feelings of said media.

But for now, I would like to present something that really took up my time. A television channel suddenly released three to four different late night shows. I started getting a little addicted. Not just to these shows, but late night television in general.  So here are the to five shows I love to watch late at night in no particular order.

I. The King of Queens.

This show is hilarious and quite unique in its architecture. Unlike most sitcoms that feature a mother, father, and a few kids, this show features a married couple with no children and a father that needs walking from a dog walker. Already it soun ridiculous, but. It also soun funny. These situations are rath unique and mature for late night television without promoting to the slut pop music fans of today.

II. The Exes

This show is also a sitcom that strays away from the typical sitcom formula.  This is a group of divorced friends who just lost everything to their ex-spouses and end up living together trying to get back into the game of life.  In short, it is hilarious. The cast is great and features experienced comedy actors such as an actor familiar from Jurrasic Park.  He is just as funny here as he was there.  Everything works, and it makes me laugh with delite and it leaves me wanting more.

III. George Lopez

This is a great example of an oldie but goodie.  George Lopez was not afraid to take ethnic jokes and stereotypes and place them on the table. But, that is not the entire show.  It is a lot more than that.  It is a great hilarity to see a dad mess up and explain how he is going to fix it in a hilarious way.  But the way it gets fixed is even more hilarious.  George Lopez could be an ethically soured up Full House with a tad fewer emotional pulls.

IV. Keenan and Kel

"Millions asked for it; and now, teen nick is bringing back 90s Nickelodeon." The 90s Are All That is a promotional nighttime program from teen nick which shows nickelodeon shows from the 1990's. That is my childhood. So I wanted to tune in to see some of my favorite shows from the 1990's. I fell in love again with Keenan and Kel. The show has aged well. All I can say is that I still laugh at the funny situations they run into and the breaking of the fourth wall at the end of every episode.  Awe, here it goes.

V. Movies
Okay, I cannot resist. When there is a movie I greatly enjoy such as Toy Story or The Lion King, I have to watch it.  There is no better way to fall asleep then to a movie you love.  Why do you think people watch DVDs late night night? Of course, sometimes I cannot give up Keenan and Kel or The King of Queens.  However, I just find this so satisfying.  And I believe many people will agree.

What are your favorite things to watch?  Leave a comment!

Domino's Gluten Free Pizza is a Rip-off!!!

I've recently heard that Domino's is now selling a gluten free variety of their pizza.  But it's a rip off.

The pizza was barely bigger than my hand.  It only had 6 slices.  I could eat the entire thing myself, and I still wanted more to eat.

What's worse is that it cost me 11 dollars just for the gluten free pizza.  That's outrageous considering a 1 topping large is the exact same price.  In face, you could probably get a 3 topping large for only a dollar more than this pathetically small Gluten free pizza.

To compare it even further, I can get a gluten-free burrito bowl at a local Chipotle restaurant that will fill me up, if not leave me with leftovers, and that would only cost me 7 dollars without a drink.

There is no way to properly justify the cost of this pathetically small pizza.

I like pizza, but I have a gluten allergy.  But this isn't worth it.

If you have to eat gluten free, and you want pizza, seek out a different vendor close by that has gluten free pizza.  Chances are, they're better for your business.  Domino's has to know that they can't get away with ripping off customers like this.

Continued:
I Googled their corporate office number.  I called their corporate office number.  And they. . . well they don't care about the customer.  They were closed.  They are only open Monday through Friday from 8am to 6pm.  And they didn't even offer to take a message.  Here's the kicker, I called at 5:45.  So are they in a different time zone?

I guess I have no choice but to wait until Monday, and call them first thing in the morning.  Then I'll complain.  I wish I could demand my money back.  But I was hungry, and it was food.  So I can't exactly return it for a refund.

Head my words:  Never order Gluten-free pizza from Domino's.  That is, unless you're desperate for gluten-free pizza and you have too much cash to blow that you just need to get rid of it somehow.

Ten Games That Should Have Been In G4's Top 100

G4 just finished counting down the top 100 video games of all time. Surprisingly the list was very respectable. Normally what I would expect from G4 is a list of games that serve no purpose other than to please graphic whores. After all they just missed skyward sword just because it was not in HD. So why would I even bother to watch it? Simple, I wanted to see what deserving game they left out. Of course, to please the majority is why they probably put Mario in the top spots. Some franchises seem to only get one game to represent them while others got multiple entries which just didn't seem fair. So here's my list of 10 games that should've been on G4's top 100 video games.

The legend of Zelda Skyward Sword.
The Legend of Zelda, Ocarina of Time and A Link to the Past both received very high spots. Even the original received praise in the top 20. But I feel as though at least 4 commonly overlooked Zelda games were better than all of these games. By the narration, G4 was more interested in impact and idolization than what games were actually good. After all, super Mario bros (#1) seemed to be on top for saving the gaming industry and launching the most successful series. Skyward sword is definitely one of the best Zelda games, if not the best, and would have been a better representation of what Zelda has to offer as a whole.

Mother 3
There were plenty of turn based combat RPG games. But none of them were a mother game. Mother hands down is an incredibly pleasing masterpiece, as are the rest of the mother games. But I guess since it didn't change or influence any part of the video game industry, it was completely overlooked despite Mother 2 having the worlds most disturbing final boss and despite Mother 3 being the saddest game ever made (Peanut3423 and JoshScorcher). As I play Mother 3, I find myself believing more and more that it is simply the best RPG game of its kind.

Metroid Prime
Super Metroid was chosen to represent what is my second favorite video game franchise. While it is one of the top Metroid games, and I do not debate it's standing, I feel as though Metroid Prime being just as good, if not better, should have been on this list. After all, it single-handedly proved that a first person shooter doesn't just have to be a shooter. Why isn't Metroid Prime on the list when 2 Halo games are? It is believed that Halo ripped of Metroid and Metroid Prime in some ways. But that's a different story.

Super Mario Sunshine
It's better than Super Mario 64. And Super Mario 64 was at number 41. So there was plenty more room for this polished masterpiece. But again, it seems that groundbreaking and evolutionary counts more than polish and improvement.

Dance Dance Revolution
Didn't this game almost make up everything about how rhythm games are defined? Didn't it t the standard for spit and polish of rhythm games? Or at least dance games? But unfortunately I didn't see one dance game on the list. The only rhythm games I saw were guitar hero and rock band which definitely deserved their placements.

Sponge bob Squarepants: Battle for Bikini Bottom
This game is horribly underrated. It has a great concept, epic music, puzzling levels, frustrating challenges, and a huge multi-stage final boss. What is not to love about it? Oh right, nobody takes it seriously because it has "Spongebob" in the title. Seriously not fair. If you ever have the chance to rent this game, do it.

Hydro Thunder
This is a seriously epic racing game. You choose a boat and a level to race on and you race. You can collect boost time as you go along, and there are tons of secrets to discover and hundreds of strategies to discuss. The music is also three times more epic than I would ever expect from a racing game. And forget the circuit tracks which there are only about three of. The greatest tracks area the long ones that start in one place and ends in another. It is a stupidly simple racing game, but it's water physics were ahead of its time making the gameplay pretty deep and making the game unbelievably frustrating at times. There is nothing to scorn at with this game.

Portal 2
This game should have at least been paired or tied with Portal. It took was portal was and did everything better. The multiplayer was darn near flawless as well. End of story.

Champions of Norrath
This is more based off of a personal preference. This was the first Playstation 2 game I played other than DDR and actually enjoyed enough to level up all the way by putting in more than one hundred hours. That is a lot more I can say for Skyrim, World of Warcraft, and any Final Fantasy game.

Last but not least:

Super Smash Bros Melee.
Commonly and most popularly referred to as the best Super Smash Bros game, it proved that a fighting game didn't need to have hundreds of attack sequences and strict one on one combat to be competitive. It's a party game that evolved upon the fighting engine that was started in the original Siuper Smash Bros. it's definitely worth a try because it defies what a lot of people consider mandatory in a fighting game and has one of the largest competitive bases. That is even after its sequel blew it out of the water in aesthetics, unlockables, and game modes. A game that outlasts its successor? That is an ncredible legacy.

There it is. I feel as though G4's writers left these out to capture attention from more gamers. They traded polish, and quality for the a list where every game supposedly "changed the way we looked at video games". In fact, I heard the phrase "changed the way..." so many times, it lost all meaning. A game changing a vital part of video games doesn't make it good in any way. Looks at Devil May Cry. Changed a lot and defined beat 'em up games, but wasn't good enough to make any list as far as I'm concerned. G4 needed to realize this, but unfortunately, they didn't. That is why we have 3 par Zelda games instead of 1 spectacular one. It seems as though they chose each game based on social standing instead of how good it actually is. Only a few of their choices really challenge that, which is as cry and shame. Whether you agree with me or not is your business. The bottom line, even though they have more money than we do, doesn't mean they are any more capable of building a list better than we can. Their list should be taken with a grainof salt and should be thought of as food for thought instead of the end-all countdown.