Games you are currently playing or recently beaten

[kitsunebi]

I'm usually vehemently against doing things in "timeline order" as opposed to "release order."  Release/creation order is the correct order, whether in games, books, films  or what have you.  If a later story ends up taking place in an earlier timeline chronologically, both the creator and the consumer go into it with the knowledge of what happens afterwards.  That knowledge is an important part of the experience and informs how the prequel story will be interpreted.

 

Yes, you can watch Episodes I-III before IV-VI, but you'd be doing it wrong.  The whole point of those (abominable) films was to explore the past of characters and worlds we were already familiar with.

Likewise, playing Resident Evil Zero first is a mistake, in my opinion, even if it is first chronologically.

 

With Zelda, though, I'm not as sure that it matters.  Having played through most of them in release order simply due to the fact that I grew up with them, playing them as they were released, it's hard to imagine coming into the series with completely virgin eyes, but I've never really considered the Zelda games to have strong stories.  Zelda is more about gameplay for me, and frankly most of the games seem unconnected story-wise, aside from reoccuring characters and themes (I haven't played the newest games, so perhaps they are more directly related?)  If you want a greater appreciation of how the game mechanics evolved over time, play in release order.  Otherwise, it probably doesn't hurt to play them in any order you choose.

[Data]

Yes, you can watch Episodes I-III before IV-VI, but you'd be doing it wrong.  The whole point of those (abominable) films was to explore the past of characters and worlds we were already familiar with.

George Lucas said that he regrets not making the sequels in the early ninties while the original cast was younger.

He said he sold his company to Disney for 2 reasons.  Spend time with his family and to make the movies he wants to make without being beholden to his stakeholders.  He states that Force Awakens is a derivative of the original movie and that it takes no risks.

 

Harrison Ford was also glad to finally be killed off in Force Awakens.  He never wanted to do a sequel after Empire Strikes Back and requested to be killed off as a character.  Sadly what we got in Force Awakens was one of the favorite fictional characters going out like a bit(h but at "least" he was killed by his own son... I guess.

[kitsunebi]

George Lucas said that he regrets not making the sequels in the early ninties while the original cast was younger.

He said he sold his company to Disney for 2 reasons.  Spend time with his family and to make the movies he wants to make without being beholden to his stakeholders.  He states that Force Awakens is a derivative of the original movie and that it takes no risks.

 

Harrison Ford was also glad to finally be killed off in Force Awakens.  He never wanted to do a sequel after Empire Strikes Back and requested to be killed off as a character.  Sadly what we got in Force Awakens was one of the favorite fictional characters going out like a bit(h but at "least" he was killed by his own son... I guess.

 

After the prequels, I could care less what George Lucas has to say about Star Wars.  Oh, so he doesn't like Episode VII?  So. F-ing. What.  If Uwe Boll doesn't like Casablanca, does that make it a bad film, or does that just mean that a no-talent hack dislikes a good film?  Not to say Lucas is Uwe Boll-level-bad or that ep VII is Casablanca-level-good, but the man had definitely lost his mojo.  We all wanted to like the prequels, but after that sorry showing, the public gave him a vote of no confidence and the franchise is in a far better place now that it's out of his hands.

[Samhain]

I agree with you about there being no real significant ties to each Zelda game in the series, I'd have to get the book out to remember how and why the timeline works the way it does.

Believe it or not, I've on just recently seen my first Star Wars movie (I had to stop reading Jake's post because of spoilers, though Star Wars is probably the largest pop culture thing in it's category I pretty much know it from all the references in modern-ish television). I started with IV and am going to continue in the order that it was released on the big screen. I'm going to let IV sink in and watch it a few more times, before I move on to V (probably in the new year). I've got to say, it did give me that feeling I would have had as a child watching this.

[Data]

I agree with you about there being no real significant ties to each Zelda game in the series, I'd have to get the book out to remember how and why the timeline works the way it does.

Believe it or not, I've on just recently seen my first Star Wars movie (I had to stop reading Jake's post because of spoilers, though Star Wars is probably the largest pop culture thing in it's category I pretty much know it from all the references in modern-ish television). I started with IV and am going to continue in the order that it was released on the big screen. I'm going to let IV sink in and watch it a few more times, before I move on to V (probably in the new year). I've got to say, it did give me that feeling I would have had as a child watching this.

Sorry about the spoilers.  If I was to tell somebody to watch these movies I would say start with A New Hope, Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and then the Force Awakens.  At this point I would seriously reflect on what you just seen and then either wait until Rogue One in 2016 or then watch prequels.

 

I for one was board to tears with the prequels and felt they had none of the "Space Opera" feel to them.  I feel conflicted.  I liked the prequels.  I liked force awakens but for different reasons I score them a 6/10.

 

As for George Lucas, he admitted that some things should have been done differently in the making of the prequels but in my opinion the fault also lays on the yes men around him who never spoke up and protested.

Also I respect George Lucas as a human and as much as I enjoyed Star Wars, I would rather see some more original films like American Graffiti, Indiana Jones, or Red Tails.

[Samhain]

 

 

 

Sorry about the spoilers.  If I was to tell somebody to watch these movies I would say start with A New Hope, Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and then the Force Awakens.  At this point I would seriously reflect on what you just seen and then either wait until Rogue One in 2016 or then watch prequels.

 

I for one was board to tears with the prequels and felt they had none of the "Space Opera" feel to them.  I feel conflicted.  I liked the prequels.  I liked force awakens but for different reasons I score them a 6/10.

 

As for George Lucas, he admitted that some things should have been done differently in the making of the prequels but in my opinion the fault also lays on the yes men around him who never spoke up and protested.

Also I respect George Lucas as a human and as much as I enjoyed Star Wars, I would rather see some more original films like American Graffiti, Indiana Jones, or Red Tails.

No worries about the spoilers. I have an idea of what happens in the first six, but I haven't heard a thing about the seventh, other than it "made a bunch of nerds cry".

I might do it in the order that you said, I know I, II and III were disappointments. I think it was Sheldon on The Big Bang Theory that said "I prefer to let George Lucas disappoint me in the order he intended." I think he might have been referring to Clone Wars, but will still more than likely watch them in release order, like I had initially had in mind. Maybe once I watch them all, I will watch them in that order.

I also agree with wanting to see more original films.
 

[kitsunebi]

You can honestly skip the prequels entirely and not miss a single thing.  They really are irrelevant to the rest of the series.  The only reason you would need to watch them is if you also plan on watching the Clone Wars animated series, since it occurs in the same timeframe and has many of the same characters.  But the prequels don't contain one single valuable piece of insight into the original films that makes watching them give you a more complete and satisfying experience.  In fact, I'd say the opposite is true, and whatever goodwill you have towards the original films will be lessened somewhat after seeing the prequels. 

[Data]

You can honestly skip the prequels entirely and not miss a single thing.  They really are irrelevant to the rest of the series.  The only reason you would need to watch them is if you also plan on watching the Clone Wars animated series, since it occurs in the same timeframe and has many of the same characters.  But the prequels don't contain one single valuable piece of insight into the original films that makes watching them give you a more complete and satisfying experience.  In fact, I'd say the opposite is true, and whatever goodwill you have towards the original films will be lessened somewhat after seeing the prequels. 

I disagree.  As much as they are not fun to watch if you grew up on the originals .  They do in fact tell the story in which George Lucas Intended.  

I did enjoy some parts of the prequels like how a young boy named Aniken was gifted with mechanical aptitude and his father was absent from the story so Anakin was the the "Man".

His mother allowed Anakin to leave to became a Jedi and the story unfolds into meeting a young Old Ben the Jedi, Samuel L Jackson as their boss and fight scenes between Lords like Yoda the teacher and Sith Lords like Darth Maul.

 

The 6 and 1/2 hours it takes to sit through the prequels are not worth it compared to the original in most peoples opinion but they are a part of the series.

[kitsunebi]

I disagree.  As much as they are not fun to watch if you grew up on the originals .  They do in fact tell the story in which George Lucas Intended.  

I did enjoy some parts of the prequels like how a young boy named Aniken was gifted with mechanical aptitude and his father was absent from the story so Anakin was the the "Man".

His mother allowed Anakin to leave to became a Jedi and the story unfolds into meeting a young Old Ben the Jedi, Samuel L Jackson as their boss and fight scenes between Lords like Yoda the teacher and Sith Lords like Darth Maul.

 

The 6 and 1/2 hours it takes to sit through the prequels are not worth it compared to the original in most peoples opinion but they are a part of the series.

 

I can't argue that they aren't part of the series (that's probably why I dislike them so much - if they were just somebody's bad fan films I could just ignore them), but that doesn't make them indispensable to the story told in eps IV-VI.  You may have enjoyed seeing Anakin as a boy, but I don't feel the prequels adequately showed how that character would have developed into the character he became in the second trilogy.  In fact, I came away from the prequels feeling as if I understood that character less than when his past was simply left to my imagination.

 

But really, all I'm saying is that you could watch eps 4-7 and never feel like you were missing a part of the story, other than perhaps wondering what the Clone Wars mentioned in ep IV were all about.  To hear Luke and Ben talk about them, you'd think that they were something pretty important.  Turns out they didn't even matter enough to bother depicting anything more than the build-up to them in the prequels, and were basically left to the cartoon series and now-non-canon extended universe to develop.

 

It's a catch-22, really.  In order to enjoy the series to its fullest, I believe the prequels should be skipped.   But if you love Star Wars, you're gonna HAVE to watch the prequels.  Just pray your love can survive the experience.

[Samhain]

I disagree.  As much as they are not fun to watch if you grew up on the originals .  They do in fact tell the story in which George Lucas Intended.  

I did enjoy some parts of the prequels like how a young boy named Aniken was gifted with mechanical aptitude and his father was absent from the story so Anakin was the the "Man".

His mother allowed Anakin to leave to became a Jedi and the story unfolds into meeting a young Old Ben the Jedi, Samuel L Jackson as their boss and fight scenes between Lords like Yoda the teacher and Sith Lords like Darth Maul.

 

The 6 and 1/2 hours it takes to sit through the prequels are not worth it compared to the original in most peoples opinion but they are a part of the series.

 

 

I can't argue that they aren't part of the series (that's probably why I dislike them so much - if they were just somebody's bad fan films I could just ignore them), but that doesn't make them indispensable to the story told in eps IV-VI.  You may have enjoyed seeing Anakin as a boy, but I don't feel the prequels adequately showed how that character would have developed into the character he became in the second trilogy.  In fact, I came away from the prequels feeling as if I understood that character less than when his past was simply left to my imagination.

 

But really, all I'm saying is that you could watch eps 4-7 and never feel like you were missing a part of the story, other than perhaps wondering what the Clone Wars mentioned in ep IV were all about.  To hear Luke and Ben talk about them, you'd think that they were something pretty important.  Turns out they didn't even matter enough to bother depicting anything more than the build-up to them in the prequels, and were basically left to the cartoon series and now-non-canon extended universe to develop.

 

It's a catch-22, really.  In order to enjoy the series to its fullest, I believe the prequels should be skipped.   But if you love Star Wars, you're gonna HAVE to watch the prequels.  Just pray your love can survive the experience.

I've got a lot of thinking to do. :/ I was hoping to watch CW but not until I after I finished the 7 movies. Maybe I'll really take my time, wait three years in between the V and VI, then sixteen for I. That should give me plenty of time to mull it over. What about Ewoks or Droids cartoon series?

[Data]

I only every watched the first episode of Clone Wars when it was hyped in 2008 and I was not interested in it.

Lucasfilms is not only working on episode 8 and 9 but also at least 4 independent films which focus on one character like Han Solo and a young Yoda.

 

I still remember the 1985 Ewoks and Droids cartoons.  I never cared much for them.  Give me Warner Brothers.

[kitsunebi]

I've got a lot of thinking to do. :/ I was hoping to watch CW but not until I after I finished the 7 movies. Maybe I'll really take my time, wait three years in between the V and VI, then sixteen for I. That should give me plenty of time to mull it over. What about Ewoks or Droids cartoon series?

 

Ha.  Taking 30 years to watch the movies is probably not necessary.  But for the love of god, stay away from Droids and Ewoks.  Actually, stay away from everything in that collage Jake posted above.

 

There's no need to go outside the films unless you become a huge fan, in which case, you won't need anyone's recommendations, you'll want to see everything else, good or bad.  That said, anything labeled "the Clone Wars" is at the very least better than anything in that pic above.  There were 2 cell-animated short films, a CG movie, and 6 seasons of a CG TV series.  And now there is a second series, Star Wars Rebels, which I haven't watched yet but I'm told is better than The Clone Wars.  The real time sink is if you ever get sucked into reading the hundreds upon hundreds of novels and comics (most of which are non-canon since the Disney buyout, but still...)

[Samhain]

Noted. Thanks for all the info. I'll let you guys know how I fare.

[te72]

I agree with you about there being no real significant ties to each Zelda game in the series, I'd have to get the book out to remember how and why the timeline works the way it does.

Believe it or not, I've on just recently seen my first Star Wars movie (I had to stop reading Jake's post because of spoilers, though Star Wars is probably the largest pop culture thing in it's category I pretty much know it from all the references in modern-ish television). I started with IV and am going to continue in the order that it was released on the big screen. I'm going to let IV sink in and watch it a few more times, before I move on to V (probably in the new year). I've got to say, it did give me that feeling I would have had as a child watching this.

The Legend of Zelda games had a story to them? Huh... I've played five or six of them, and never once got the impression there was anything more than a bit of atmosphere to take note of. I don't think it was until Link's Awakening that they even pretended to have a story.

 

Samhain, first off, welcome to Retromags. Second, if you don't mind my asking, how old are you? Not everyday I come across someone who has managed to avoid watching the Star Wars movies. I do recommend doing your best to avoid spoilers, as you seem to have managed. Makes the experience more genuine.

 

 

 

The real time sink is if you ever get sucked into reading the hundreds upon hundreds of novels and comics (most of which are non-canon since the Disney buyout, but still...)

I read most of them, at least what one would consider the "main" books. The ones that started coming out as part of a series ("Young Jedi" I think was the title of one such series), I skipped. So, most of the stuff that came out in the 90's after Zahn wrote that first trilogy of books.

 

So, I've probably read 20 or 30 of them, and you know what? I can't say I regret reading any of them, but this what a more civilized age (the 90's), and I was certainly younger. Sadly, I don't remember too many of the plots, but I did enjoy the time spent in those pages...

 

I still say they should have just adapted the Heir to the Empire trilogy into film instead of the prequel trilogy... would have been a far better use of the license.

[kitsunebi]

I still say they should have just adapted the Heir to the Empire trilogy into film instead of the prequel trilogy... would have been a far better use of the license.

 

This is a really good point, actually.  Samhain, if you become a fan of the original trilogy, you would be MUCH better off skipping the prequels and instead reading the Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn:

1. Heir To the Empire

2. Dark Force Rising

3. The Last Command

 

Most of the Star Wars novels I've read are merely...OK, but these three are excellent and really capture the spirit of the original films.  You can even get them in unabridged form on audio (20th Anniversary edition), and the narrator does an outstanding job with the voices.  Unfortunately they're no longer canon, as stuff in Ep VII contradicts them, but it doesn't change the fact that they're absolutely worth reading/listening to.

[Samhain]

 

 

 

The Legend of Zelda games had a story to them? Huh... I've played five or six of them, and never once got the impression there was anything more than a bit of atmosphere to take note of. I don't think it was until Link's Awakening that they even pretended to have a story.

 

Samhain, first off, welcome to Retromags. Second, if you don't mind my asking, how old are you? Not everyday I come across someone who has managed to avoid watching the Star Wars movies. I do recommend doing your best to avoid spoilers, as you seem to have managed. Makes the experience more genuine.

Thank you for the kind welcome, it's great to be here. I'm looking forward to being a regular here, it's nice to be around people with a similar mindset. The hope is to contribute where I can, I just need to do a bit of research on the scanning of magazines, I really don't want to de-bind any of them.

I am 35, and I don't know why it never happened (watching Star Wars), it's just one of those things, which is weird because I watched just about everything, growing up. It's very hard to avoid spoilers, it's a pop-culture titan, and is mentioned in just about everything.

 

[kitsunebi]

The hope is to contribute where I can, I just need to do a bit of research on the scanning of magazines, I really don't want to de-bind any of them.

 

Scanning bound mags takes significantly more time and usually the results aren't as good. Still, it's possible to scan mags on a flatbed scanner without debinding, although generally that only works with stapled mags.  Squarebound mags will be impossible to lay flat enough to avoid distortion around the gutter.

[Samhain]

Squarebound mags will be impossible to lay flat enough to avoid distortion around the gutter.

That's disheartening. I'll just have to keep an eye open for second and third copies of each. :(

Incidentally, what do most of the people who scan here do with their magazines after they're finished? Hopefully they don't throw them out.

PS: I've got Episode IV on again. Lovin' it!

Edited August 8, 2016 by Samhain

[kitsunebi]

Incidentally, what do most of the people who scan here do with their magazines after they're finished? Hopefully they don't throw them out.

 

I can't speak for everyone, but I throw them away.  There's always a bit of internal drama each time I debind a mag.  Bringing myself to do the first page is always the hardest, but once you've started, the mag is ruined anyway, so finishing is no problem.  Then there's a second round of drama after I'm done scanning and go to throw the pages away. ("But..but...maybe I could keep the loose pages together in a plastic bag...or maybe use some binder clips to keep them together...!") But once I get the courage to actually dump them into the trash, I feel better about it and have no regrets.

 

Scanning mags isn't for the faint of heart.

[Samhain]

I can't speak for everyone, but I throw them away.  There's always a bit of internal drama each time I debind a mag.  Bringing myself to do the first page is always the hardest, but once you've started, the mag is ruined anyway, so finishing is no problem.  Then there's a second round of drama after I'm done scanning and go to throw the pages away. ("But..but...maybe I could keep the loose pages together in a plastic bag...or maybe use some binder clips to keep them together...!") But once I get the courage to actually dump them into the trash, I feel better about it and have no regrets.

 

Scanning mags isn't for the faint of heart.

I can only imagine. I wish there were an easier way, or at the very least, a way to rebind them. Glue and press? I dunno.

What mags have you done in the past? Man, I think I've hijacked this thread. Maybe we should take it elsewhere?

[kitsunebi]

I can only imagine. I wish there were an easier way, or at the very least, a way to rebind them. Glue and press? I dunno.

What mags have you done in the past? Man, I think I've hijacked this thread. Maybe we should take it elsewhere?

 

I only started scanning this February, so haven't done too terribly much (the gallery is another story, though lol).  Most of the mags in the Japanese section are mine.  Japanese mags are all I have access to at the moment!

 

And, uh...I've been playing The Witcher: Enhanced Edition on my PC.  Looking forward to playing the sequels as well.

 

There, you see?  Relevant to the topic again.

[Samhain]

I only started scanning this February, so haven't done too terribly much (the gallery is another story, though lol).  Most of the mags in the Japanese section are mine.  Japanese mags are all I have access to at the moment!

 

And, uh...I've been playing The Witcher: Enhanced Edition on my PC.  Looking forward to playing the sequels as well.

 

There, you see?  Relevant to the topic again.

Lol.

How do the Japanese video game magazines compare to North American? The artwork must be pretty amazing. Reviews a little more harsh? I really want to learn Japanese. I've been meaning to and actually started when I was in University but slowly stopped and I don't remember much. My intention was to pick up all the Famicom and Super Famicom RPGs that never made it this far. I don't really want to resort to a reproduction translation, but if I don't get on it soon, I may have to. :(

I've been playing a lot of Mario Kart 8, lately. Trying to 3-Star 200CC.

[kitsunebi]

How do the Japanese video game magazines compare to North American? The artwork must be pretty amazing. Reviews a little more harsh? I really want to learn Japanese. I've been meaning to and actually started when I was in University but slowly stopped and I don't remember much. My intention was to pick up all the Famicom and Super Famicom RPGs that never made it this far. I don't really want to resort to a reproduction translation, but if I don't get on it soon, I may have to. :(

 

 

 

 

The main difference is the sheer quantity of information.  US mags are practically non-existent at this point, but the halcyon days of 300-page EGMs are long past and most mags barely crack 100 pages.  Then you take a look at Famitsu, which manages to put out more than 1000 pages per month.  It's crazy.

 

I honestly don't read current Japanese mags, though.  They look great, but Japan is mostly into cookie-cutter JRPGs that just don't interest me anymore.  I feel that Japan used to innovate and set the pace for the entire industry, but their influence is lessening year by year as western developers are picking up the torch and creating better and more interesting games while Japan just makes more of the same.

[Samhain]

 

 

 

 

 

The main difference is the sheer quantity of information.  US mags are practically non-existent at this point, but the halcyon days of 300-page EGMs are long past and most mags barely crack 100 pages.  Then you take a look at Famitsu, which manages to put out more than 1000 pages per month.  It's crazy.

 

I honestly don't read current Japanese mags, though.  They look great, but Japan is mostly into cookie-cutter JRPGs that just don't interest me anymore.  I feel that Japan used to innovate and set the pace for the entire industry, but their influence is lessening year by year as western developers are picking up the torch and creating better and more interesting games while Japan just makes more of the same.

 

There are so many ads in NA game magazines!! Famitsu? I've never heard of it. Shows how sheltered of a life I've lived in small northern community, Canada. A thousand plus pages, that's quite a feat! I'd like to thumb through one of those, one of these days. How far does printing date back? Expensive? Would be neat to have an issue #1, to show all of my gaming friends, and my son when he's old enough to (hopefully) appreciate it.

Man, yeah. Those JRPGs, all the characters are the same. Teen-aged kids in some kind of magic school for gifted brats. I can't really pinpoint when this started to happen. My wife really enjoys them, and I'll sit down and watch her play, but I miss the Chrono Triggers, the Breath of Fires, the Lunars, Vagrant Story, the Wild Arms, the Star Oceans, the actual fantasy Final Fantasys. I could go on an on.

 

We celebrated our first year anniversary tonight, and I picked up the remastered Odin Sphere and the new Star Ocean for my wife. I'm looking forward to that one.

To stay on topic, I beat the original Zelda, not too long ago.

[kitsunebi]

There are so many ads in NA game magazines!! Famitsu? I've never heard of it. Shows how sheltered of a life I've lived in small northern community, Canada. A thousand plus pages, that's quite a feat! I'd like to thumb through one of those, one of these days. How far does printing date back? Expensive? Would be neat to have an issue #1, to show all of my gaming friends, and my son when he's old enough to (hopefully) appreciate it

 

Famitsu is pretty much the most influential gaming mag in the world.  It's published weekly in Japan (over 250 pages each week).  It's been in publication since 1986 and was the main influence on the design of Nintendo Power.  EGM's 4-person review crew was also copied from Famitsu.  We have nine issues of Famitsu available in our download section, including a scan of a reduced-size reprint of issue #1.