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Negative World Podcast 023 - Poutine Poon Tang
Podcast presented by 
(Editor)
December 20, 2011, 09:45
 


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The prodigal son Guillaume has returned to host episode 23 of the Negative World podcast! Listen to RoyKoopa64 (Eric) and SirMasterSephiroth (Sam) speak on the podcast for the very first time! Also, DrFinkelstein (Stephen) is still hanging around.

The gang talks about the games they've been playing: Pushmo, Mario Kart 7, Rocksmith, more Kirby and Rayman Origins.

Things get serious when the discussion turns to winter levels in games, what makes a game series faithful to itself, reboots and remakes, and Nintendo's QA process!

As usual, the theme music comes from Negative World's owner and dictator, Zero. The wacky music throughout the podcast can only come from Rayman Origins!

Comment on the topics, the podcast, the guests, the host, etc. on Negative World! Or, be a weirdo and post them on Facebook or Twitter instead.

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12/20/11, 09:45   Edited:  12/22/11, 09:09
 
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So I put up the mp3 file on the feed, but for those who asked for it and can wait a bit, an AAC version WITH CHAPTERS may be coming soon. Look forward to it!

Posted by 
 on: 12/20/11, 09:47
Awesome. I listened to a bit already and I must say, you did a fantastic job with the editing! We actually sound far more fluid than during the actual recording. I remember I had a lot of dead space because of first podcast jitters. I can't believe you were able to trim this down to 2:24. I'm syncing the iTunes version to my phone so I can listen to it on my way to Disney tomorrow.

Posted by 
 on: 12/20/11, 10:17
Indeed, I will work on making that chapter-fied version after work today. Stay tuned folks!

Posted by 
 on: 12/20/11, 14:10
Regarding Mario vs. DK, the graphics might look like shit on the 3DS (I haven't played it on my 3DS yet, but the style is not great) but the gameplay is so good. I'm a bit disappointed that there was so much hate on the game. Try to get past the visuals, the gameplay is top notch imo.

Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts is a departure, but it's still an excellent game. It's better than Banjo-Tooie if you ask me. I would love to see a new platformer Banjo game though, as long as it doesn't go way too far into collectathon territory like Tooie did. Tooie just isn't fun, in my opinion -- though I didn't play it when it first released, I played it on XBLA.

I would love to play a Legend of Zelda collection with remakes of the first few games, but I fear I would hate it because I have so much nostalgia for the original games -- particularly the Legend of Zelda 1. I think I'm with Gui, in that I generally prefer playing the original games rather than their remakes. Any games I'd like to see remade are games that AREN'T good, and could be substantially improved. I think Metroid: Zero Mission did wonders for Metroid 1, though not everyone will agree with me (cough*Anand*cough). I don't mind the Ocarina of Time 3D remake, because it's not really a remake. It's more akin to the HD ports we've seen prevalent this generation. It looks much better and the controls/menus have been streamlined, but the core of the game hasn't changed.

(I'll add more thoughts as I keep listening.)

Posted by 
 on: 12/20/11, 16:39   Edited:  12/20/11, 17:24
I definitely had a lot more energy than in past podcasts lol. Thanks for dealing with that fellow panelists and listeners. And hey, I just heard my damn dog. Haha.

Posted by 
 on: 12/20/11, 17:27
I too was lacking energy that night, haha. And there is so much about Rayman that I wanted to say, but forgot to! Like how the game is on the Wii compared to the HD consoles, for instance. Oh well, there's always next time.

I was rusty and tired, haha. Still fun to listen to, though!

Posted by 
 on: 12/20/11, 17:36
Whew, listened to all of it while drawing. Nice contributions, everyone! Here're a few of my own...

-Pushmo sounds like a lot of fun. I'll have to pick it up once I've worked through some of these GBA games.

-MK7 isn't the best in the series, but from a pure controls/gameplay/online perspective, it's probably the strongest so far. I really like the original tracks, the designs are particularly strong.

-Kirby praise is appreciated! Definitely one of the better games I've played this year. I don't feel that the two modes are like night and day (although this may be because I played the first mode alone and the second with a buddy), but the extra challenge is nice.

-Not really thrilled with the idea of remakes in general, outside of maybe some chunky-looking N64 games. Like Gui, I'm fine with 8-bit sprites and especially 16-bit sprites. To me, games like Yoshi's Island, FF3, Chrono Trigger, Super Metroid and EarthBound aren't going to look much better (and certainly not play much better) than they already do now. Gimme something new!

-Looking forward to Rayman Origins. If I don't get it as a Christmas gift, I'll probably seek it out with my MK7 K-Mart coupon.

-Snow levels do have a nice atmosphere, don't they? I definitely have to agree about Banjo-Kazooie's being really nice. Freezeezy Peak was one of my favorite stages in the game, and my favorite music. My next comic is going to be rather cynical about them, though...!

-I don't have much experience with other companies' games in terms of QA. I feel Nintendo's is generally very polished and reliable, though, outside of the occasional oversight.

-You guys kept the discussion rolling and interesting. One critique I have is that things still feel slightly quiet to me. The Rayman Origins music was fun and a good idea for interludes. I've said it before but I feel like some background music when discussing certain games can go a long way. It shouldn't be loud or override the speaker, but it'd be a nice effect to add and pretty simple to throw in while editing. The discussion during the snow levels (Phendrana, etc) would've been perfect for this.

Great job with the podcast! I might be up for jumping into another one of these sometime, now that a better mic is available. I feel like I've got a lot to say about Skyward Sword.

Posted by 
 on: 12/20/11, 23:40
I hear ya with the background music comment. I actually ripped the Freezeasy Peak music from youtube to put it in the background when Stephen started talking about it. But it didn't really mesh so well, I found, plus he quickly started talking about the "death motif" and the music REALLY didn't fit then. So I ditched it.

Also, it was 2am at that point.

I need to find trick for editing the music in, I feel it's taking me longer than it should. I always think editing out the "um's" and the pauses is the long and tedious part. And it is. But I'm pretty sure it was only a little past midnight when I started with the music transitions. I remember thinking I was almost done, as usual. And as usual, I wasn't at all.

If anyone has tips to give, I'm all ears.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 00:06
I'm really hoping I get a better mic for Christmas...

And Gui, upon listening to this podcast today, I heard what you heard better. It wasn't on my end though as I heard nothing. Nothing we coulda done about it anyway. I plugged the mac into the protector and restarted skype and had my audio settings as they were and such. Hopefully soon it wont be so bad. Though the filters I've used on it in the past have helped a lot. I dunno. It's so weird.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 00:15
@Guillaume

You edit out all the "um's" and "uh's"? Dear god, that must take forever! And is it really necessary to edit those out? For instance, Mark MacDonald on the 8-4 Play podcast does a lot of "um"-ing and "uh"-ing, but I don't even notice it most of the time. I just automatically tune those things out.

Also, regarding background music, I really don't like the idea of it. I tried listening to Go Nintendo's podcast a few years ago, and I couldn't stand the background music. Interlude music is fine and welcome, but honestly, I'd probably stop listening if there is constant background music in every episode. I can't focus on the conversation with music distracting me all at once.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 00:24
@canonj

Guillaume and I edit the episodes when we are the respective hosts. So I will be hosting the next episode and editing. I just wanna address some of your points a bit since I can only speak for myself.

I too don't mind ums and uhs. Hell, I say them a lot. When it's gratuitous I try to edit them out but it's a pretty natural thing that your brain naturally tends to tune out anyway and you don't notice when listening to something. However, when you edit, since you're listening to intently to the material that you do hear every um and uh. I know this and I edit accordingly and I don't cut every uh and um but I know Guillaume isn't a fan of them (not to say I am lol). I definitely do edit that a little bit but not on a full-scale.

I like the idea of music behind the discussion but only in specific context really. Like when we were talking about Wind Waker music some episodes ago, Guillaume put that behind my discussion and it sounded great. When ploot was on last, I let the pre-segment interlude of the Xenoblade theme extend fully into his discussion because I felt it made his plea to play more epic. But I don't think you'll find me or Gui ever putting music constantly in the background. I think too it would detract from the discussion at hand.

Anyway, just wanted to say my peace. I hope you've been (are) enjoying the podcast!

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 00:43
@DrFinkelstein

I can understand wanting to edit them out when you're listening intently while editing, but maybe it's not necessary. I just don't want you guys wasting hours editing out stuff that I don't even hear in the first place, that's all.

Regarding background music, I think it's fine when used sparingly to illustrate a point (like the Wind Waker example you mentioned). I thought you wanted background music the entire time when discussing a game.

And yes, I do really enjoy the podcast. I'm always a week behind in podcasts so I probably won't get to this most recent episode until next week, though.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 00:50
I edit out the ones that are easy to edit out. In the end it adds up, but I like to think the podcast sounds better for it. And if the people on the podcast aren't appreciative, I like to think they would if they heard the non-edited version.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 00:55
Man, I wish I was on this one with you guys there are soooo many awesome snowy/winter areas that I thought of that you guys didn't even MENTION. Snow stuff is by far my favorite thing in any game, and getting to "the snow board" is something that just sends a chill up my spine and says "alright, pardner, time to buckle down." Well, kinda. A list!:


-Donkey Kong Country
I think this is the 4th world you get to, and after everything before this was mostly calm and serene, you're met with tense music the second you enter the stage, and then you're thrown right into the mix with this wicked F'n snow. To make matters worse (besides the fact that the ground is covered in snow), you've got a torrential BLIZZARD that you're in, and you're supposed to navigate through these barrel deals? Man, its crazy!



-Super Mario Bros. 3
World 6. Man, ice, so perilous. These stages were soooo difficult as a young child, and it wasn't until years later that I found out that the Frog Suit is a good way of NOT losing your footing. Who'd'a thought? Frogs..and ice?


(Man, that World 6 music is chilly!)

-Secret of Mana
The music is chilly here, too! I can't remember exactly WHEN this is, but I remember it being a great way to build Weapon and Magic levels, and the trees looking all icicly. Yes, thats a word now. The wolves are out in numbers here for sure. Stock up on Royal Jam, folks!



-Final Fantasy III(US)
Opens in Narshe, and you're immediately put in this certain mood. Its dark, its industrial, its cold, its sad. Its like the Great Depression in Russia, or something, I figure everyone here to be wearing furry hats, ragged coats, and fingerless gloves standing near a fire pit. The music here is PERFECT, too, and the *exhale* sound in the music once in a while (its an exhale, right?); and man, that icy piano!



-Mega Man / Mega Man X
Huge fans of both Flash Man and Chill Penguin; their boards are so different than the others in their games. (Well, I guess everyone kinda has their own types of boards, but yeah.) Flash Man is top to bottom ice (with AWESOME MUSIC), and sooo tough to get your footing for a brand new player, especially around areas where there is an enemy at the edge of the screen shooting you. Unless you figure out what you're doing as soon as you start, you're going to get knocked back, and have to do it all over again. Chill Penguin has the ice thing going a little bit, too, and you run into enemies hiding in snow banks. Rough! I remember Ice Man's (Mega Man) level being SO SO TOUGH when I was younger, too. I think I get through it a little bit better, but theres something about it being so freakin' cold that puts you on edge.



-Star Wars
This is more focused around the Rogue Squadron games, though they do appear in Shadows of the Empire as well, and others I'm sure. Battle of Hoth. Need I say more? Its my favorite scene from my favorite Star Wars movie, and its just all around awesome. Battling the elements while battling opposing forces? Dastardly. And we get to see the AT-ATs here. We get to see Speeders and tow cables put to work as well, always a fun sequence.


(This game is awesome, by the way. Rogue Squadron III, also, so you can play with a friend!)


Theres so many ways you can make a snowy level. Usually hot boards are just HOT. Hey, theres lava, its HOT. With snow boards, you can make it so many ways. It can be cold, it can be dark, it can be bright, it can be hard to see, it can be slippery, it can be tough to walk in, it can be calm, it can be windy, it can offer a means for enemies to hide, it can offer a means for you to track something; just SO many ways you can go with this, and the player can feel them all. I mean, not physically, but you kinda know how your counterparts are feeling..and you can see and hear it, too, often by their misty breath. By far the most versatile element that a game can deal with.


Woo, Kickle Cubicle! Just heard it. Icy!! Who said it? Claim your credit!
Gui, good point on likening it to a desert. Monster Hunter Tri almost takes this to that extreme as the desert board -- at night -- is cold as balls.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 03:26
@Guillaume I was there for all the long pauses, "um's," and and "uh's." I can tell you I am VERY appreciative that they were edited out.

@Mr_Mustache I can't believe I didn't mention Hoth or any Final Fantasy game. I thought about SMB3 World 6, but I just hate that slippery feeling.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 03:35
@sirmastersephiroth

The first hour with Final Fantasy III nested in my head instantly. I'll never forget it, including that opening crawl with the Mode 7 stuff? Do you remember?



Its been a while since I've seen this... Awesome.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 03:47
Remember? I played it like a month ago on the VC!

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 04:07
@sirmastersephiroth

Yessssssssssssssssss. Its been a while since I've played it. To-do list..

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 04:08
@Mr_Mustache I'm right after escaping Kefka in Figaro.

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 04:09
@Mr_Mustache

Good stuff, man! I wish you had been there too!

Posted by 
 on: 12/21/11, 06:26
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