Game Digger

Digging up gaming history

[gamedigger88]

Gaming Generations 1972-2019

I made a little Prezi presentation representing the current gaming generations so far. I think its a little interesting to show everyone a little about our gaming history and give a little taste of what systems was out in the past and what impact each generation had on the gaming industry. Please follow the link below to view the presentation:

https://prezi.com/view/e7EmbYjIh7lLkpqOnrWa/

[tosinakibey]

[gamedigger88]

Unwritten Rule: House is Player One

Growing up, I remember one unwritten rule when playing someone’s game at their house. Whoever the console belonged to, they were always player one when playing a two-player game. Its something I think that’s common and probably just second nature basically, but I always wondered if others did this as well. The only exception to this rule was if the game belonged to someone else or they don’t know how to play the game at all.

Did you ever have unwritten rules like that? What gaming rules did you follow or made up growing up?

[gamedigger88]

My Memories of Gaming in 1998

For many of us gamers, we’ve been playing games since our childhoods. If you were like me, most of your gaming years started around the early 90s. Most of the games during that time are what’s well-known, popular or mainstream nowadays. It doesn’t hurt looking back at the past of gaming and reliving those moments, either through memory or actually playing those games that came out during those times.

One time period that seems to always be mentioned is 1998. While I’m sure not a lot of people remember 1998, especially me since I was still a kid then and didn’t really care about what was going on in the world, a lot of gamers remember it as being a prominent year in gaming. This is mostly due to the fact that the games released then were sequels/prequels, innovative and influential or just commercially successful titles. While you can see a list of them here on Wikipedia, I can tell you here a little about some of the games from that year I’ve experienced. I will say, majority of these games were experienced after 1998 and were only a small play sessions or demos.

Marvel vs Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes 

Pretty much my last time playing fighters in arcades. Mostly due to the fact that arcades were hard to come by and the closest one at the time was a 30 minute drive to the mall. Either way, seeing Ryu and MegaMan fight Wolverine and Spiderman was amazing. I wasn’t really good at the game though. I would probably win one match before either the next round or if a bigger kid came and beat me in the next match. It was one of the first games I came across that had crossover characters, which later became a feature I love in fighting games today.

Tekken 3

This version was just a demo of the game my cousins had, but a demo we played non-stop. The only characters available were Xiaoyu and Eddie in the demo, but once learning Eddie’s spinning kicks, we would have matches to see who was better as him. His stage music has been embedded in my mind, I’m glad NamcoBandai added the Jukebox mode in Tekken 7 (only on PS4, though) just to hear it again.

Gex: Enter the Gecko

I’ve been seeing commercials and booths advertising this game so much, I thought he was a game character I just never heard of, and there were a lot of them at the time. I got a hold of the game as a rental and played it. The cartridge I had wasn’t completed, so I continued. After not getting far, I started a new game from scratch. Needless to say, I wasn’t too interested in the game. The gecko mechanics were pretty good, but I think I had problems with attacking enemies. I remember smiling at some of the quips from Gex, but looking back at them now, they still make me smile, but only how lame they are now.

Metal Gear Solid

A game series that I would have never would thought would stick with me. The demo for Metal Gear Solid was so intense for me, that it took me years to actually man up and play the demo in its entirety. I remember my cousin and I were scared to get past the front entrance to the base because we didn’t know how to get pass the guards without getting caught. Hearing the screams and cries of Colonel Campbell, Dr. Naomi and Mei Ling after Snake dies were a bit too dramatic for me. Granted, this was a huge jump from Mario and Sonic games, but the interesting story, realism of the world and dramatic acting was too much for me to not know what the game was all about. After playing the demo, I wanted to play the game, but didn’t had a memory card at the time and Metal Gear Solid 2 was already out. I did finally played it, but it was the Twin Snakes version.

NASCAR 99 & Madden NFL

These were random sports games my father bought. NASCAR was bought one day after work. Madden was a Christmas gift. I wasn’t really interested in sports titles, mostly because I was not good at them. I guess it was his way to get me into sports and get me from playing games so much. I didn’t really play them much with anyone either. For some reason, Madden 97 was still fun on the PSOne.

NFL Blitz

Then this bad boy came out and I was hooked! You telling me I can play a football game in arcade style AND body slam my opponents when I’m mad at a play?! Anyways, the arcade style of the game make someone like me who didn’t understand football at the time learn it quickly. Finding and printing out cheat codes for the game to put in (Headless mode, anyone?) were great, especially rushing to see who can put in the most codes (they even worked in the demo, too!). Plus, the music made each game more like an epic battle was about to go down in the stadium. One of my greatest moments was using the game to predict the Super Bowl XXXIII game between Falcons and Broncos by finally beating my cousin in the game with the Broncos. This game was the hypest shit when it came out and I only wish it continued better than it did.

Spyro the Dragon

I remember when my sister and I finally got ourselves a PSOne, it came with a Playstation Underground disc. It had some games, including Spyro the Dragon, but also promoting the game by having a behind the scenes of the development of the game. I didn’t understand most of it as a kid, but it was cool to see a look into making a game like that. The game’s music always stuck with me, especially the calming sounds of Dark Hollow and the rocking beat of the Title Screen that played in the Overworld in the demo.

Pokemon Red & Blue

Once these games came out in the US in 1998, I wasn’t too sure on what to make of it. It as a GameBoy game, which was already interesting, but it was an RPG style game that came out around the time of the virtual pet craze, which was starting to become oversaturated to me already. I guess it being an actual video game was enough to spark my interest. I only got a chance to play a bit of it thanks to a friend, but it was interesting to see a world were I can just go around, collect, fight and trade monsters and raise them to become stronger. I finally got the game a few years later, but by then Gold and Silver was about to come out.

Delta Force

Another random game I got which I honestly don’t remember if it was for my birthday or Christmas. Regardless, this was my first experience with a military style shooter. Needless to say, this game was only loaded probably three times. The game was too realistic for me to understand how to play and PC gaming was still new to me. I thought it was just a cheap selling PC game, but I’m now learning it was a pretty popular series that had its starting in 1998.

MediEval

The demo of this game was so fun, I can’t think of any time where we would not turn on the PSOne and not play it. I remember really wanting the game when it finally came out, but unfortunately we couldn’t get it. It was interesting to see the game’s dark and gloomy atmosphere. Paired with the weird motion animation common in PSOne games back then and it made some of the cutscenes and enemy movements kinda scary. I was looking forward to playing the remake, but after hearing some of the reviews, I think I will not spoil it and just find the original and play it instead.

Crash Bandicoot: Warped

Another demo my cousins and I had that we played numerous times. The cool think it we both had different versions of the demo. One of our disc had the level were Crash is underwater, while the other had the level were Coco is riding the tiger on top of the Great Wall. We never got the game despite playing the demos so much. Usually because by then, my cousin’s PSOne was starting to wear out and we were losing interest in it.

There are other games I’ve eventually played years after their release, but after playing them and learning how popular they are and when they came out, its easy to see how 1998 could be seen as a prominent year in gaming. Its more prominent to me personally because this was a year were most of my favorite games have came out. Some of these games became important to me personally in other ways. I don’t think I would ever have a year like that in my life gaming wise, but I would like to experience more of these games from 1998. 

Were there any games you played that came out in 1998 you enjoyed? What was your experience playing it?

[gamedigger88]

That Special Someone

Grand Theft Auto IV came out on April 29th 2008, 12 years ago today! I didn’t realized its been that long since the game came out, I remember waiting for it to come out like it was more recent. I was excited but also intimidated a bit about the graphical changes, thinking the mechanics were gonna be more realistic, thus making the game harder. Thankfully, the game’s mechanics made the game fun and challenging and was a big difference from San Andreas. But it wasn’t just the mechanics that changed.

(By the way:  SPOILER ahead, so if you haven’t played a game that’s been out for 12 years, stop reading right now!)

GTA IV brought the change in the narrative from the crude and ridiculous regularly seen in the GTA series, bring a more gritty, tragic and more mature nature of Liberty City.  Niko Belic, the game’s protagonist, has arrived to Liberty City in America to escape his past and to look for the person who wronged him a decade ago. His story is a revenge story brought into the crazed world of Grand Theft Auto and both his story and this world kind of contradict each other, sometimes in a good way. However, for the most part, its Niko’s character that reminds us that the story is not as light-hearted as the ones before.

Niko is focused on one thing; revenge. So much that he gets his cousin in bad situations, from getting kidnapped, to having his place burned down, to getting shot. Anyone who comes in contact with him are just used as much as he is being used to find the answers he’s looking for. All while trying to find the answers he’s looking for, Niko is trying to make light of some situations, usually cracking jokes to his employers or those he’s hired to kill. However, whenever it comes to his main goal, finding “that special someone”, the game starts to get real.

All of Niko’s emotions, everything he’s experience from those years during the war, comes to light. We are told about the horrible things he’s done and how horrible he felt after it has happened. We are also told about what happened that day when Niko and his unit was ambushed, killing twelve of his men. We feel his frustrations when his leads are not what he’s looking for, and thanks to the graphical upgrade using the RAGE engine, we can clearly see it in his face. But once we find Darko, the one who betrayed Niko and his friends, and confront his, its a powerful moment. I cant put it into words, so hears a video, who I believe the creator timed the thunder strikes in the background to time with the dialogue.

To me, “That Special Someone” is a power scene in the entire Grand Theft Auto IV game, even toping the ending. I believe Rockstar Games can have more powerful moments in a game thats not usually known to have dramatic scenes. With GTA 6 in development, its possible fans will see another gritty GTA game. Once can only hope if they do, they keep the ridiculous charm that makes GTA what it is.

[gamedigger88]

The Man Who Paid Sega’s Debts

Anyone who has been gaming in the late 90s and early 2000s know about Sega’s last console hurrah with the Sega Dreamcast. It was released in North America on September 9th 1999 (November 27th 1998 in Japan, October 14th 1999 in Europe). As well as the system sold during its initial launch, exceeding Sega’s expectations and breaking sale records at the time, that didn’t help with the sales of the Dreamcast after the turn of the millennium. 

Despite the plan to reduce cost during the development of the console, Sega ended up spending over $500-$580 USD. The company was already at their third consecutive annual loss, with a net loss of 42.88 billion YEN ($404 million) by March 2000 fiscal year. The Japanese sales for the system was starting to fall ever since January of that year as well as 206 of their Japanese arcades had to close due to little profit, thus, Sega focused used everything in their power to try to sell the Dreamcast in the US market, from reducing the Dreamcast to nearly $50 a unit to adding $149 rebates for 18-month subscription to their SegaNet online service. Despite this, they suffered a net loss due to little profit made after so much investment needed to market in the West. SCK Holdings, a Japanese computer service company, held a majority of Sega’s shares from 1984 to 2004. Its founder, Isao Okawa, became Sega’s Chairman on May 22, 2000.

It was projected that Sega needed to sell 5 million units in the US by the end of 2000 to stay variable, but the company only managed to sell 3 million. Six months leading to September of 2000, Sega loss 17.98 billion YEN (163.11 million). By the end of that year, Sega had lost $58.3 billion YEN. On January 31, 2001, Sega announced that it will be leaving the console market and will discontinue the Dreamcast after March 31 of that year. This lead to nearly one-third of Tokyo’s workforce to be laid off.

Back in the Summer of 1999, Okawa had loaned Sega over $500 USD, which was partly used to fund the Dreamcast. Before his death, Okawa not only forgave Sega debt to him, but even gave them back his $695 million USD worth of Sega and SCK stock. This helped Sega to survive the transitional period to becoming a third party software developer. Isao Okawa died March 16, 2001. His is considered as one of Sega’s iconic persons in their history.

I knew Sega was having the financial problems they were facing based on the news of it I was hearing about it at the time. The thought of a iconic gaming company leaving the console industry was strange to me, but looking back, I’m glad that Sega has turned this out this way. Also, they’re quality in games aren’t the best, I will say I do enjoy some of their games, especially the Yakuza series. Its good to know that someone who really cared about their company that they were running to help keep it going years to come. Hopefully, Sega will stay here long enough to continue entertaining gamers for generations, as well as provide them with mediocre Sonic games.

[gamedigger88]

Gaming Under a Pandemic: Warzone and Apex Legends

Over the past week during this lovely pandemic weather we’ve been having, I’ve been trying to get out of my social norm of not talking to anyone and play some online games with a lot of people. So I’ve playing a few games of Apex Legends and Call of Duty Warzone in their battle royale game modes. Battle royale games aren’t usually something I dive into, most shooters I play are Call of Duty and rarely games like Halo or Overwatch. Those are usually team based games with usually at most 16 people in a game, with 4 to 6 people on the team. However, I usually don’t play with headphones on with random people, unless I’m in a really good mood.

First off, I played Warzone. I got a small introduction to it at a friend’s house and it was pretty fun. I figured with a big map and constantly being in first-person (I’m use to PUBG Mobile) would be a problem, especially if I can’t figure out quick enough where I’m getting shot from. But eventually, it all just came natural, just like playing multiplayer again. The Gulag mini-game is pretty fun and intense. I’m surprise it hasn’t become its own thing yet, but I’m sure it will, if it hasn’t already had been. One thing I’ve overlook when playing is the drops. Usually, most players will camp and take out any one else willing to go for the drops, just to get picked off by a sniper, so I usually avoid them. So far, all I can tell is it’s used to gain Killstreaks. There is one problem I have, but it’s minor and it’s the controls of the game mode. It’s not much, but I really need to get use to having the button for tactical being something that switches between tactical and lethal. Also, I kinda wish there was a clearer way of telling if the weapon you have is better/worse than the one you’re about to pick up. I know there’s a color code, but I can barely see it on the bottom right of the screen. Maybe add a back shadow or something? Or something indicating the item I’m about to pick up is better/worse than the one I have on me right now. Also, I may just be lost, but I can’t find where to go to check my entire inventory. There’s probably a way that I’m not seeing, but if not, I think a lot of players would benefit from an inventory management screen like in PUBG. Overall, the game is still in beta, at least, that’s what it says every time in the corner of the screen when I’m playing it. I’m enjoying the game and can’t wait to see what more they’ll do to it to keep it interesting.

Another friend that I’ve recently met told me she has been playing Apex Legends and has been having fun with it. Since there has been a lot of buzz about the game when it game out, I wanted to see what’s its all about. Just like Warzone, its another battle royale in first-person, but you pick your character, a-la Overwatch, with each character having their own abilities, strengths and I’m assuming weaknesses as well. It took me to get use to the weapon and armor system, but thankfully the game does let you know if the version of the item you have is better or not. Though, you do need to keep in mind what kind of weapon you have, as some items will work with certain kinds. I like this ability to customize your weapon should you find different scopes, barrels and sights for your weapon. The only character so far that I have played is Bangalore. I haven’t really been playing as a lot of the other characters and haven’t unlocked or bought the others, but I plan to try them all out if I can unlock them without paying money. Since they are already in their fourth season, I’m sure new weapons and equipment will be added, as well as more characters. With that, the only real downside I have is that there is no solo mode that I can find. Apparently, EA has experienced with solo mode before in a Season 2 event, but a recent article said that Solo Mode had  “negatively impacted the game”. Hopefully, they can think of a way to implement it in, because I think a game like this with character’s having different abilities would be fun in Solo mode.

So between these two games, I have to say I’m leaning more towards Warzone, just because I enjoy the Solo experience. Don’t get me wrong, I think Apex shines best as a team style game, but if you’re someone like me who usually plays alone, being force to play with other players, especially if they don’t play the game right or just berates and harass you the entire game takes that fun away from me. However, I hope Warzone’s beta will bring a better and more interesting experience to the game mode. With that, what is your choice between the two? I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on these games and maybe I’ll see you guys out in the battlefield someday.

[gamedigger88]

Pocket Monster Stadium (Pokemon Stadium Zero)

Many people who played any of the Pokemon games in the late 90s may remember Pokemon Stadium on the Nintendo 64. It pretty much was just a game where you can battle Pokemon on the N64 as well as transfer Pokemon from the Gameboy games between the titles as well as play the Gameboy games on the N64 using the Transfer Pak. Many people will remember Pokemon Stadium 1 and 2, but apparently there was a third one...or in this case, one before the first one.

While the Pokemon Stadium game we are mostly familiar with was released in 1999, Japan’s exclusive Pocket Monster Stadium (often called by fans as  Pokemon Stadium Zero) was released in August 1998. The game was released to be used with the Nintendo 64DD, the disk drive add-on that was Japan only and became a commercial failure. For the sake of this blog, I will be referring Pocket Monster Stadium as Pokemon Stadium Zero.

The main difference with Zero and 1 is usually first thing you see when you start the game, the game modes. Once you start the game, if you do not have the Transfer Pak with a Pokemon Red/Green title connected, your only gameplay option is Battle (another option is OFF, which just takes you back to the title screen). If you do have a game connected, other modes you can go to are Organize, List, Pokedex, Register, Party and GB (GameBoy), usually used to check on the Pokemon in the GameBoy games as well as view 3D models of them, organize them in the PC, add them to participate in the other game modes or play Red/Green on the N64.

Pretty much, Battle is just like the battle modes in the Stadium 1 and 2 games with two game modes: Tournament and Free Battle. In Tournament Mode, you have two divisions (Lvl 1-30 and Lvl 50-55) with four sub-divisions (Monster Ball, Super Ball, Hyper Ball and Master Ball) in the Lvl 1-30 division and total combined maximum level of 155 in the Lvl 50-55 division. In Free Battle, you can play against another player or the computer under the Tournament mode restrictions or in battle with no restrictions. There were even trainers pre-made in the game with their own set of Pokemon to use ranged from levels 20-30. Interestingly, in the Lvl 50-55 division, the computer opponents and their Pokemon are based on the finalists from the 1997 Nintendo Cup in Japan. They even were added in the Japanese version of Pokemon Stadium 1.

The Pokemon listed in Zero was very limited. With the exception of Pikachu and omitting Raichu, the Pokemon available are all fully evolved forms of their respected species or the “Legendary” Pokemon that do not have an evolution tree. This brought the 151 total down to 42. However, Mewtwo and Mew weren’t available for “rent” for Free Battle, so only players who had them on their GameBoy games could use them there. Despite this, players can still view the others in 3D render.

Other than that, there wasn’t much difference in gameplay compared to Stadium 1 and 2. The 3D renders look similar to Stadium 1 and 2, but there are some minor differences, but a hilariously noticeable one is the 3D renders of Nidoking between Zero and 1. However, some say the game was difficult as the AI was challenging. One case, as YouTuber Yuriofwind mentions, the move “Hyper Beam” in Stadium 1 would have a recharge turn, in which after being used, regardless if it hit or missed, the player would have to wait a turn to do anything else. This wasn’t the case in the actual Gameboy versions as Hyper Beam can be used again if the user misses or knocks out the opposing Pokemon. This same rule was applied in Zero, making the move devastating in the hands of a well programed AI (this was later changed again from Gen. II onward where a recharge turn is required after knocking out an opponent’s Pokemon, but not when the move misses or it is the end of the battle). 

Nidoking in Pokemon Stadium (above), Pokemon Stadium Zero (below)

It is possible that considering this game was made with competition in mind as well as plans to implement it with the N64DD, it was possible more modes were going to be added to the initial game, much like DLC, to appeal to more casual fans of the series as well as possible other features, like adding more Pokemon. However, with the end of the N64DD, the idea to lower the difficulty and add all original 151 in the game for battle made its way to Stadium 1.

Pokemon Stadium was an amazing game to me at the time. The thought of playing, battling and trading Pokemon on the N64 was amazing. I’m glad that all of us in the rest of the world got the Stadium 1 we’re familiar with, because I think personally I would hate playing this version, especially with the difficulty spike (Stadium 1 was hard enough for me, I've never even beaten “Round 2″ mode). Looking back at this game and learning about Zero, it makes me want to go back and visit Stadium again, however, I don’t own the game anymore. 

I can see in the new games on the Nintendo Switch that Nintendo wanting to revisit the concept of stadium-style battling with Sword and Shield. I don’t know if I will find myself playing Sword or Shield in the near future, but I believe that as long as battles are a major concept of Pokemon, I think the stadium like aspect will always be there.

[gamedigger88]

Been playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Warzone and Apex Legends recently. Wgich between the two do you prefer?

[countblumiere]

do not play any valve games and/or source engine games for the time being

the source code for tf2 and csgo just got leaked meaning people can do stuff like this where malware can be put into your computer or your steam account can be damaged, whether it be getting you VAC banned or your inventory deleted.

playing tf2 and csgo right now are definine no-nos, along with possibly just about any valve and source engine game you could think of. however information is still developing on this situation so whether or not other games are affected is unclear. but please avoid tf2 and csgo right now especially, along with any other valve/source engine game for the time being.

[gamedigger88]

When did you started gaming? When I was 4, on my birthday, someone got me a NES. Even though the SNES was already out, I started old school and had fun ever since. Its thanks to a birthday gift that I have embarked on a past time I continue to enjoy to this day!

[gamedigger88]

[we-love-gaming]

“How would you describe yourself in a six panel comic?”

[gamedigger88]

Pretty much how I am. Lol

[gamedigger88]

Uncharted and Journey Free via Playstation’s “Play at Home”

Playstation announced that they are releasing two games for free for their Play at Home initiative. Part of the initiative is to not only provide Playstation owners with free games, but to help indie developers during this time of crisis.

With that, Playstation is giving Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection and Journey out for free via Playstation Network. This is available world wide, however, Germany and China owners will only have Knack available instead of Uncharted.

The second part of the initiative is to help indie developers during this hardship. Playstation has earmarked $10 million for indie developers, but haven’t provided a lot of details on the funds or participation criteria at this time.

The offer is only for a limited time, starting from April 15th (yesterday) at 8pm to May 5th at 8pm. However, once you download them, they are yours to keep and a Playstation Plus account is not required. You can download directly from the PSN store on your browser or your console.

So, which game are you gonna play first?

[gamedigger88]

My Concern of the Fans’ Reaction to GTA6 “Announcement”

Rockstar Games mentioned in an Kotaku article that not only that they are starting “early development” on the next Grand Theft Auto game (many believe to be Grand Theft Auto 6, but it has yet to be confirmed), but that they are changing the way their offices and employees are managed and maintained. Employees are, for the most part, happy with the changes, but some are still quiet skeptic.

Back in 2018, Kotaku posted an article looking inside Rockstar’s crunch culture that according to some employees, current and former, that the crunch times would last for months or even years. The same was for the development of Rockstar’s last game, Red Dead Redemption 2, as according to the New York Magazine article, the writing team had to work three weeks of 100-hours. This brought up questions on ethics inside Rockstar Games work culture.

As I realized on Twitter that the #GTA6 hashtag was trending, I figured that Rockstar Games just announced Grand Theft Auto 6. I was interested, as I wanted to see how much they plan to change the game and when they planned to release it. As soon as I thought that, I wondered if Rockstar would make changes to their work culture and give their employees paid overtime and allowing them to take overtime if needed and wondered how during this coronavirus life we’re living in will they do it all.

Doesn’t seem like everyone was sharing the same concern...

After clicking the link to see what everyone was saying about #GTA6, majority of the Tweets were about how upset everyone was about how the game is now in “early development” after the fact that GTA 5 was released seven years ago. Majority of the tweet were just the upsetting reaction to the news of the game in early development or even possibilties that the game won’t even be released on current systems and probably won’t be out for another few years. But I can not find anything about the concerns of the workers of Rockstar Games should they decided to rush this game if they want it out by a certain date.

Thats where my concerns come in. After learning that the writers for RDR2 had worked mandated 100-hours for three weeks for the game, it made me wonder if Rockstar would do the same for the writers, or anyone in their other departments, to get this game released at a certain time frame. Not to mention, with the coronavirus and COVID19 going around, social distancing and work place health safety will have to be taken accounted for. This is not just something only Rockstar should be looking into, but other gaming companies and other companies in general as well.

Thankfully, an email sent out to staff members at Rockstar by executive Jennifer Kolbe mentions changes inside the company to help provide and promote a better working environment for its employees. However, some do fear when push eventually comes to shove, that Rockstar will fall back on crunch time and overwork their employees again. 

Time will only tell, but I can only hope that Rockstar and other game companies learn from this and make sure to help their employees with their health, mental or otherwise, when developing and publishing these games. I do also help that fans of these games do allow the creators enough time to let these games come out at the best they can for them to be fully enjoyed. Despite some skepticism, some current employees look forward to the changes, at least.

[gamedigger88]

The Intensity of the Majora’s Mask N64 Commercial

I wouldn’t say I am a big fan of the Legend of Zelda series. My first game in the series was Ocarina of Time while most people my age were the NES, SNES or GameBoy games. I didn’t know much about Zelda except it was a fantasy game with swords and magic. By the time I finally got the game, Majora’s Mask was already out.

I hardly remembered the commercial from nearly 20 years ago (Holy crap, I’m old!), mostly because they would normally run the shorter thirty second version rather than the one-minute one. So I did some digging up on YouTube and found the original one-minute commercial. I would have to say, its very bleak for a kids game. 

The intensity of the entire world looking up and noticing that something ominous is coming from the sky all while one boy is playing the game is pretty start to start off. The boy is secluded in a white, sterile room with just a TV, a chair, a Nintendo 64 and a copy of the game. All while this is just advertisement for the game when it’s shown gameplay, the intensity is there through the action shown in the gameplay. The room he is in is windowless, located in an elevated building in an empty Area 51-like desert with only two military personel watching him from inside a room through a one way window as guards surround the perimeter outside.

All while this is going on, you are shown different people in a major city, looking up into the sky, seeing not only the very same game the kid is playing, but also a giant red ball that has already come down through the sky and is on a quick impact towards the planet. This would have to be nerve racking as not only has the world literally stopped to watch this kid play a video game that’s suppose to save the entire world, as traffic has literally come to a stand still in a major city with no one blaring their horns begging traffic to move again, they are simultaneously watching the upcoming of their demise if the boy should fail right above them.

As the commercial goes back to the room showing more of the gameplay, it shows the mask system in the game and the support for the Rumble Pak feature as well. During this time, we see two men watching the boy play the game carefully as well as the look of determination of completing the game. We are also shown other people from different parts to the world looking up into the sky in concern, some even seem to hold their hands in hopes that the destruction of their planet does not happen.

As the commercial goes to different parts of the world, it shows different ethnicities, races, cultures, religions, social groups, genders, ages and etc all watching this kid play this game. We are shown that regardless of what the background and differences between everyone in the world, they all stopped and watch in hopes that their world do not come to an end. But as they watch, the sky is getting darker and the red orb in the sky is getting closer. Back at the room, the boy continues to play as he stands up. Anyone who has played an intense video game or match in a game knows what this means: its getting serious.

Overlooking the strange scene of a group of people holding TV screens to show more of the action in the game, everyone who were watching the screens are now watching the sky and the red orb is getting closer. Before you know it, you see a pack of dogs running. Anyone who know about animals know if you see a group of dogs running in one direction, something bad is happening or is about to happen.

Time is running out, the people know this and panic ensues. People have left their cars, running down the streets. Some people are stuck in their cars as they see the red orb coming down more. Some have already even accepted their fates, deciding not to run, but to face their dreaded fates head on, but with the look of despair on their faces. More people running, screaming, panicking, trying to get away from something they know they can not get away from. All hope is lose and everyone knows it at this point, but the boy keeps playing, intensely, with the tagline spoken as a bead of sweat drops from the boy’s eyebrow...

“72 hours, one hope”

If that commercial and that imagery haven’t given you goosebumps, I don’t know what will. Considering the dark overtone of the game, compared to the other games of the series at the time, it made for a very serous turn for the series and some believed that’s probably what the series needed. I personally didn’t play the game at the time, but I did got my hands on the 3DS version of the game. I haven’t beaten it yet, but I do look forward to at least experience the story and maybe try to save the world while I’m stuck in quarantine.