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  I wish I was better at researching things at the time, instead of after the fact. As I work on the SHMUPtember blog post, and working my way through, I am reading up on the games. I started making a joke that the character from Legendary Wings' box art could be a prime candidate for one Capcom's many crossover/collab games. But, guess what?! The arcade version of the game featured a playable female character, Michelle Heart, and she has been referenced in a couple of said crossover ga...

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  #SHMUPtember is nearly over, and we have time for one last game. Trouble Shooter for the #SegaGenesis was picked up on name alone. It is not, perhaps, sadly about getting the wireless printer to work. Released in Japan as Battle Mania, you play as Madison and her friend Crystal as the pair are tasked with rescuing a Prince. You play as both characters simultaneously, with Crystal functioning a bit like an option, impervious to enemy attacks and at the press of a button flip to facing to the le...

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  I have a couple of days to see if i can pull together a full blog post on my SHMUPtember journey. Going to see if I can get something published for the last day of September. A smarter individual would have thought about this in advance. A smarter individual would have made notes as he went along. A smarter individual would have given themselves more time. This is going to be pretty disastrous and I can guarantee that I will not learn anything from this experience.

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  So, for whatever reason, Emulation Station stopped loading on my #SteamDeck I did just about EVERYTHING under the sun. Restarted the Deck Updated the Deck Updated Emulation Station Reinstalled Emulation Station Messed about with all different kinds of settings. Changed the boot target Went through EmuDeck to completely rebuild the front end and Emulator settings. Turns out... It would seem. That the default Compatibility mode that had been working since I first started using Emulation Stati...

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  I'm so exhausted after today... I need to find a good comfort game to help me unwind... *Boots up Stardew Valley and starts fishing*

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  To say I had forgotten how much of an absolute banger GG Aleste 3 was would be incorrect. It is still cited as one of my top games whenever I talk people about games. But, god damn, this game is just superb and definitely battling Super Aleste as my top game in the series. Despite being made in 2020 as part of a wider #Aleste collection, the game was developed to be playable on #GameGear hardware. And honestly, I don't think I'd have it any other way. Working within the realms of the...

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  I've played enough XCOM to know that that 80% is really about a 15% chance to hit... I would say Rebelstar: Tactical Command for the #GBA looks like an XCOM game, but it was developed by Julian Gollop of UFO: Enemy Unknown fame... So a direct line can be drawn between the two games. To be fair, Rebelstar itself is a series that dates back to 1984, so it would be fair to say that Rebelstar was the foundation for which XCOM was built. This feels like a game that is worth checking out. I&#39...

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  Spend the better half of the morning re-stringing and helping tune @EmmalenaLEllis@cupoftea.social ' harp. She says she is grossly out of practice, but it is still impressive to see/hear :blob_melt_sob_love:

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  @outofprintarchive@retro.pizza Quackshot is peak Disney. I would love to see them do a remaster of that, in the same vein as what they did for Castle of Illusion and DuckTales.

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  And people told me that playing video games would rot my brain. Little did they know that this silly anachronistic Japanese action adventure game was making me an expert in Japanese geography! Hang on... I am pretty sure there is something missing off this map... #GanbareGoemon #N64 #RetroGames

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  So, I thought I had shot myself in the foot and jumped the gun when it comes to Goemon vocal songs, having showcased 『I am Impact』 a few months back during that particularly Goemon phase. Imagine my surprise when I discover that there are more songs crammed into that little gray cart. 『Gorgeous, my Stage』but more importantly for this #VGMWednesday we have 『The Theme of Mystical Ninja』, what? No fancy name? That's disappointing... At least i couldn't find one in my 5 minutes of searching...

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  Whoever designed the Strogg Gladiator... I want a word with you. #Quake_2

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  Quake 2 should come with a whiplash warning, considering how different it is in terms of tone to Quake 1.

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  A lot of #Quake is playing Peek-a-boo with Shamblers and Vores. This makes Quake, a cover-based shooter... Right?

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  So, like, I have done Doom 64... I have done Quake 1 and 2... I have done Goldeneye 007 and the World is Not Enough... There really is only a handful of peak N64 shooters I need to complete. So that obviously means the next thing I need to play is South Park 64 :blobcatblep:

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  So, I didn't spend as much time talking about Rocket: Robot on Wheels as i did about Starshot. That is a crime, and I plan to rectify that. I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Rocket is a much better game than Starshot. But comparing the two games is unfair. Rocket is a collect-a-thon whilst Starshot is mostly a level based platformer. The latter has one collectable that is required for story progression, making it barely qualify as a collect-a-thon. It would probably be fairer to co...

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  #IshambardPresents Starshot: Space Circus Fever #N64 Developer: Infogrammes I love a good 3D platformer, sadly, Starshot is not one of them. Presents done, cue ending theme. Right, you are probably wondering, what's the beef? I'll see what I can say in 700 characters. Floating space platforms are not a fun place to platform around. Planets are. >50% of jumps are over instant death pits Jumping is theoretical, not always a guarantee Same with activating flight mechanics No invul...

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  Faith has been restored in my love for 3D Platformers, especially those of a Collect-a-thon nature. Well, the collecting portion was never in too much question. After what was a personal disaster for me with Starshot: Space Circus Fever, i had a bit of down time. Some introspection and wondering if I really wanted to go through my list of 2026 N64 games... Knowing that at least two of them were First Person Shooters and then there was 3D Goemon, at least the latter promised me a good time. It...

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  So, I was going to meme dunk on myself for choosing to play Rocket: Robot on Wheels, another N64 3D Platformer after having traumatised myself by playing Starshot. Then I see the game was made by Sucker Punch Productions, of Sly Cooper and Ghost of Tsushima fame... Okay, you have my attention... #N64 #RetroGames

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  So, I finally got around to doing a new blog post on Ishambard's Nest. Yes, I do remember it exists and I want to be better at uploading to that, mostly because it is a better venue for in-depth thoughts on games and stuff. I figured, however, to back up a little bit, and I wanted to talk a little bit about #RetroAchievements I wanted to provide some context to what it all is and why I engage with it as much as I do. It wouldn't be a Nest post without it being a bit of rambling scree,...

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  It's #VGMWednesday !! *techno intensifies* I have a lot of respect for the soundtracks of fighting games. I may not have a huge love for the genre, but I think some of the greatest bits of character music has come from fighting games, Street Fighter alone has given us some absolutely amazing tracks. So, today, I wanted to highlight a specific song for a specific series that perfectly characterises it as a whole. 『Techno Syndrome』is just pure, Mortal Kombat, helped by Kyle Wyatt literally...

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  There absolutely must be a meme template of a woman sweetly, nicely or excitedly waking up a man somewhere... The sort of thing that is like, "Babe, wake up, something positive or cool has happened". Seeing plenty of guys waking up girls like this... Ultimately, it's all for a dumb meme i want to put together and quite frankly it doesn't too much about the characters within it.

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  So, I am not one to go into the details of a games ending too much, if at all. But, i make the exception here with Starshot Space Circus Fever as this ending is pretty heinous. After all the deaths, blood, sweat, tears, exasperation and awful frame rates, you reach your final boss and after a lengthy battle of "what do they want me to do here" you finally defeat him. After his capture, you are told all his infrastructure is destroyed and he is basically unable to compete against you...

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  I say this quite often with the games I played recently. This game is weird! Etc Typically, this isn't done with much hyperbole, because Dr Slump is a weird game. Glover is a strange game. The Goemon Games are bizarre. Starshot Space Circus Fever really seems to go above and beyond for being just off the walls. In the second world of the game, you attend the Killer Expo, a space venue to show off weapons of war because you are trying to find an experimental device that your ringleader p...

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  Perhaps i am being drastic. But, Starshot Space Circus Fever is making me actively dislike 3D Platformers. I can't tell if it is an emulation issue or the game just runs like an absolute dumpster fire. I feel it must be the former, N64 emulation from my understanding is a technical nightmare and most games, even the ones that run well, are secretly screaming about something in the background. #N64 #Emulation #RetroGaming

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  I ripped and teared, until it was done. Wait. Wrong game. I don't dislike Quake, as I made my way through chapters 3 and 4, I could fill some semblance of skill building, it probably helped that layer levels feel a little less claustrophobic, making fiends a little easier to work with. #Quake feels like that friend of a great friend (Doom, in this case), and whilst you get on with this friend there are time when their humour doesn't land or they have a take that you find a little too q...

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  1% health Hype as I run around E4M7 Azure Agony. Incidentally, I went on to finish the level after having cleared out another shambler and 5 vores... 🤣 #Quake #N64

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  It's going to sound weird, but i can't wait to be solidly knocked out of the top 300 on #RetroAchievements So, firstly, why top 300? Well, the top 300 are celebrated in the monthly E-Magazines. So it is quite a coveted space to be, but it is also where, I feel, it gets "competitive" and I just don't have it in me to compete. It's been nice standing on the parapet, looking out, but my choices if I were to remain in this position are not appealing. I could play harder...

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  Man, imagine if people got as upset with the Fate Series and how it depicts historic characters as they have with things like The Odyssey.

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  @Euan@speedlines.stctp.zone The sad thing is, you know there would be a whole load of people who would prefer this over any kind of diversity in the role.