Nemeses: The Games That Haunt Us

[ZargonX]

Have a new series started up over at Spectacle Rock: Nemeses: The Games That Haunt Us  Enjoy!

[Honest]

Have a new series started up over at Spectacle Rock: Nemeses: The Games That Haunt Us  Enjoy!

Cool, also I nominate Pilotwings 64 for this. Fuck the hang glider levels.

[KarthXLR]

I've got two:

Superman 64
Starshot: Space Circus Fever

[Eschatos]

I remember Panzer General 2.  Hell, I think it was my first strategy game.  Except I never bothered to go through the campaign.  I just set up huge battles with dozens of tanks.

[CaffeinePowered]

Good article, needs more of this in the future

I'd also be happy to write one if you like

[Scary Womanizing Pig Mask]

Any Bullet Hell shooter :<

[Wedge]

[quote author=ZargonX link=topic=2232.msg63796#msg63796 date=1233181348]
Have a new series started up over at Spectacle Rock: Nemeses: The Games That Haunt Us  Enjoy!

Cool, also I nominate Pilotwings 64 for this. Fuck the hang glider levels.
[/quote]

Nubsauce, I gots all golds on everything.  Also I'll never forgive them for not making a sequel since.

[rumsfald]

Folks, please help Zargon build his website by commenting over at his place. He's been good to BRB:u, advertising BRB:u on his site and making better maps than Geoff. Please return the favor and help him build traffic, comments, and a community. Yes, it is easier to post here so you can click "see all replies," but do what is right, not what is easy.

Zargon, I didn't post this in my comment over on your place, but, as you might read between the lines in my questions, I think you totally missed "the long view" in this piece. Without "the long view," your post reads like a "tell us what games you think are hardest, I'll tell you mine" post, which a thousand game sites have already done. I don't mean to be a dick, but you are better than that. Ok, I meant to be a dick there.

[shoopfox]

Europa Universalis makes me feel like a retard

[Geoff]

making better maps than Geoff.

One of these daaays I tell ya'.... ONE of these days....



(norad shouldn't count because he worked with like 6 other people :x)

[ZargonX]

Folks, please help Zargon build his website by commenting over at his place. He's been good to BRB:u, advertising BRB:u on his site and making better maps than Geoff. Please return the favor and help him build traffic, comments, and a community. Yes, it is easier to post here so you can click "see all replies," but do what is right, not what is easy.

Zargon, I didn't post this in my comment over on your place, but, as you might read between the lines in my questions, I think you totally missed "the long view" in this piece. Without "the long view," your post reads like a "tell us what games you think are hardest, I'll tell you mine" post, which a thousand game sites have already done. I don't mean to be a dick, but you are better than that. Ok, I meant to be a dick there.

I will accept your criticism as valid, rummy

I was trying to avoid the "these games are hard" aspect of it, and perhaps I didn't get into enough of an analysis of exactly why it's more than that.  As I said in the piece, there's a difference between just a game being hard (i.e., bullet hell games) and games that are just incredibly challenging and make you step up to plate, as it were.  I'll do my best to expand on that in the next one!

[SAVAGE-0]

battletoads still haunts me...  :-[

[CaffeinePowered]

battletoads still haunts me...  :-[

Ive never gotten through stage 2 without game genie

[copulatingduck]

[quote author=SAVAGE-0 link=topic=2232.msg63913#msg63913 date=1233239408]
battletoads still haunts me...  :-[

Ive never gotten through stage 2 without game genie
[/quote]

edit: I hope you at least mean stage 3... It didn't get that ridiculous until the snake stage (6 I think).

Even using a game genie a few of the stages were still pretty much impossible. The last stage was an exercise in futility, but the worst was probably either the second rat race or Clinger Winger (you bet your ass I remembered the name of that fucking stage)

[CaffeinePowered]

[quote author=CaffeinePowered link=topic=2232.msg63914#msg63914 date=1233240503]
[quote author=SAVAGE-0 link=topic=2232.msg63913#msg63913 date=1233239408]
battletoads still haunts me...  :-[

Ive never gotten through stage 2 without game genie
[/quote]

edit: I hope you at least mean stage 3... It didn't get that ridiculous until the snake stage (6 I think).

Even using a game genie a few of the stages were still pretty much impossible. The last stage was an exercise in futility, but the worst was probably either the second rat race or Clinger Winger (you bet your ass I remembered the name of that fucking stage)
[/quote]

Actually yea, I meant the hover bikes on the third stage, I might have gotten past them a long time ago when I was younger, I just remember saying "fuck this", then I went and played the TMNT arcade ports, which were far superior

[Honest]

[quote author=Honest link=topic=2232.msg63815#msg63815 date=1233187088]
[quote author=ZargonX link=topic=2232.msg63796#msg63796 date=1233181348]
Have a new series started up over at Spectacle Rock: Nemeses: The Games That Haunt Us  Enjoy!

Cool, also I nominate Pilotwings 64 for this. Fuck the hang glider levels.
[/quote]

Nubsauce, I gots all golds on everything.  Also I'll never forgive them for not making a sequel since.
[/quote]

I was like 8 and couldn't grasp the concept of a hang glider going from down on a platform to straight up a fucking mountain. Fuck that game, HANG GLIDERS CLEARLY DON'T WORK LIKE THIS

[Surf314]

[quote author=Wedge link=topic=2232.msg63835#msg63835 date=1233191464]
[quote author=Honest link=topic=2232.msg63815#msg63815 date=1233187088]
[quote author=ZargonX link=topic=2232.msg63796#msg63796 date=1233181348]
Have a new series started up over at Spectacle Rock: Nemeses: The Games That Haunt Us  Enjoy!

Cool, also I nominate Pilotwings 64 for this. Fuck the hang glider levels.
[/quote]

Nubsauce, I gots all golds on everything.  Also I'll never forgive them for not making a sequel since.
[/quote]

I was like 8 and couldn't grasp the concept of a hang glider going from down on a platform to straight up a fucking mountain. Fuck that game, HANG GLIDERS CLEARLY DON'T WORK LIKE THIS
[/quote]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertical_draft

[Honest]

[quote author=Honest link=topic=2232.msg63939#msg63939 date=1233246908]
[quote author=Wedge link=topic=2232.msg63835#msg63835 date=1233191464]
[quote author=Honest link=topic=2232.msg63815#msg63815 date=1233187088]
[quote author=ZargonX link=topic=2232.msg63796#msg63796 date=1233181348]
Have a new series started up over at Spectacle Rock: Nemeses: The Games That Haunt Us  Enjoy!

Cool, also I nominate Pilotwings 64 for this. Fuck the hang glider levels.
[/quote]

Nubsauce, I gots all golds on everything.  Also I'll never forgive them for not making a sequel since.
[/quote]

I was like 8 and couldn't grasp the concept of a hang glider going from down on a platform to straight up a fucking mountain. Fuck that game, HANG GLIDERS CLEARLY DON'T WORK LIKE THIS
[/quote]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertical_draft
[/quote]

I could probably go back now and beat it, but that game sucked when I was a kid.

[Blues]

Speaking of hang gliders



NO PAC-MAN I DIDN'T TELL YOU TO FUCKING GO THAT WAY WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING AND NOW YOU'RE BEING PISSY BECAUSE I SHOT YOU SO YOU DIDN'T DO SOMETHING FUCKING STUPID JESUS CHRIST WHY IS THIS CONTROLLER SO SLOW GOD FUCK I CAN'T SHOOT ALL THE SHIT IN THE WAY OF THE MINING CART IN TIME GOD FUCK I'VE DONE THIS LEVEL LIKE 30 TIMES TODAY GOOOOOOOOOOOODAHF HAIGHSGHGPHSG PGGGGAHGH

Accurate portrayal of my face while playing this game:

[rumsfald]

I was trying to avoid the "these games are hard" aspect of it, and perhaps I didn't get into enough of an analysis of exactly why it's more than that.  As I said in the piece, there's a difference between just a game being hard (i.e., bullet hell games) and games that are just incredibly challenging and make you step up to plate, as it were. 

My argument is, on initial encounter, it is nigh impossible to distinguish what you would call a "bullet hell hard" from a "incredibly challenging" game. Once I hit that first wall, all I know is frustration. It takes repeated attempts at the wall to discern what is challenging me to step up to the plate from just plain cheapness. Several of my questions in my comment at your site raise the question that we spend less time banging our heads on walls, for a variety of possible reasons.

I'll do my best to expand on that in the next one!

Rather than save up ideas for the next column, I suggest engaging your SR readership in the comments for each article. Strangers (i.e., non-brbu-ers) are more likely to get invested in reading, commenting, and re-visiting your thread if they see that you are accessible and spontaneously share your voice. On a blog, good writing gets only the first pageview. A good article title (and article) gets folks to stop by, but a good blog personality gets people to stay.