Grazza

I don't even like the word "dating", to be honest. It just seems too formal and serious. Personally, I just reckon when there's chemistry there's chemistry, and I don't care if there's years between that happening. Don't listen to me, though, because I'm useless!

Had my first Street Fighter IV Streetpass today. Was surprised that it used my initial choice of figures (seems you have to activate it each time you change your line-up). Still, I won 3-2, which was a thrill!

Well, you still have to be revived, but it's useful in that it guarantees you will be able to do whatever move you want. For instance, if the Legacy Boss has higher Agility than you (and they're all faster than a Paladin), he might K.O. you before you get to cast Kerplunk. The ones with status attacks are irksome though, because you have to use a Sober Ring (or whatever's appropriate) instead of your favourite accessory. It's sometimes necessary though. For the record, mine are: Paladin - Armamentalist's Album (increases chance of Coup de Grace) Gladiator - Critical Acclaim* (increases chance of critical hit) Sage - Lucky Charm (increases evasion) Priest - Mercury Prize - (increases Agility) * still love that pun

Just had an epic fight with the most recent Legacy Boss: [spoiler=] Rhapthorne really has me on the ropes here. Just me left standing, and with only 31 HP. If I can recover from this, it'll be quite the victory. Luckily, I have the Paladin's Coup de Grace: Knight Watch. I attacked on the 1st and the 2nd turns, using the 3rd... ...to cast Kerplunk. Nigel & co are back. Rhapthorne hits hard, but that makes the likelihood of a Coup de Grace stronger. Once all four of us can do one, we activate... ...A Co-op de Grace! In this case, Soul Asylum. Rhapthorne toughed-out all three turns, but Nigel and Kate healed us whilst Gra and Dave carried on attacking. Don't feel sorry for him, he's level 99. See. Uneven EXP. I think it must be related to how many turns each character took part in. That was a long battle. Only one more to go. Now, if only there was an awesome game out this week to keep me busy until the next boss, like a Zelda or something...

Even if the 3DS had the same success as the GameCube, I would be happy with it. It's the best handheld I've ever owned. Mario Kart, Super Mario and perhaps Animal Crossing should give sales a huge boost. If they don't, then it really is in trouble, but look at it this way: the 3DS is Nintendo's handheld for the next six years, however successful it is. OK, 3rd parties may abandon it, but as long as they make a new Zelda for it, I'll be happy.

I must be honest, I'd be disappointed if a Toon Link Zelda wasn't shown at next year's GDC. And yes, it must have a "real" overworld (or ocean, as long as it's like Wind Waker and not Phantom Hourglass!)

Yeah, I know how stupid that must sound. I basically dislike Hollywood, I think British TV does entertainment so much better - Merlin, Doctor Who, Primeval, Robin Hood. When I see something American there's far more likelihood they'll go too far with something. Plus, I just started to find films really boring: pressing "Play" then sitting back doing nothing for 2 hours, watching something that is recorded and is the same every time. They're just not my thing any more.

Isn't this about prejudice? Anyway, I'm an old fogie, I'm given time to most things and don't think I'm prejudiced about much. The one thing I won't give any time to is gambling. I haven't tried it myself, but too many of my friends blow their paycheck on it, and I just see it as a very negative thing, not something that you get your money's worth of enjoyment out of. As for other things... well, I don't actually get excited about sport, but I like the fact it exists. It's very healthy and a great use of live TV. High culture... again, it's good that it exists. At the other end of the scale, I find people are very snobby about Simon Cowell's talent shows, but they can be great fun. Basically, I dislike snobbery, both conventional and inverse. I quite dislike films, and won't give them a chance any more, but I've seen enough. I've come to the conclusion that Hollywood is about stuffing violence and gore down our throats, and I won't give it any more time. It's not an industry I support. Oh, I do know one thing I'm prejudiced about: mainstream gaming. Not that I haven't tried it, exactly, but maybe I could get some enjoyment out of FPSes and such if they gave them a chance. This is happening to me at the moment. I'm guessing your friend was not the brightest person? The people who do this seem to be the ones with not much going on in their head.

I have to say, King V, welcome back. There was a thread once about missing members, and I mentioned you as the one I wanted to return. Can't have a new Zelda without you, chap.

Well done, Retro Link. I think I've only managed to perfect up to Silver. Have you 3-starred all of Platinum yet and seen the credits?

Oh, quite. The whole game is infused with a certain spirit: from the way you find divers searching for treasure, men with telescopes curious about what's over the horizon and fish that emerge from the solid blue who create as many mysteries as they shed light upon. The visual style enhances all this. Also, does anyone else think there's a discrepancy between how cool Adult Link looks and how much fun he actually is to play? Not in OOT, but in the more recent games, the realistic proportions make me feel more distant from the action. With Toon Link, I feel I'm right there in the game world. I look forward to seeing it.

LOL, why's that? It's not a very hard game. Which other ones have you played?

I'm afraid to say I always forget how good it looks. I mean, it's my favourite Zelda, but even I forgot just how spectacularly blue the sea and sky were until Retro Link posted that screenshot. Incidentally, it was 800 x 450, so whilst it might have a higher PPI than actually playing on the GameCube, it's not an HD "bullshot" or anything. I think what it comes down to is confidence and a deep-seated knowledge that they were doing something brilliant. There is no doubt in my mind, that is my favourite style. This Zelda HD demo is technically the best, but graphical styles can span a wide range of technical levels. Take Phantom Hourglass, for instance, it has the Wind Waker style, but it certainly not as good. By the same token, the Wind Waker style could be upgraded to 720p (which is what this demo is), have far more polygons and more layers of shading (like Punch Out Wii). Whether you like cel-shading or not, don't think you've seen the limit of what it can do.

I must say, I'm getting excited about this now, just the realisation that I'll be able to play the next console Zelda in the next five months. I've been waiting for it so long, I think I sort of pretended it didn't exist. As for spoilers, I can understand why this thread exists. I think Nintendo's official trailers are fine to watch, but I've read some previews that stated how many swords and shields are in the game (and which type), which is the sort of thing I like to find out when I play it. I also watched the 20 minute gameplay video (my fault, I know), and that shows you how to do some puzzles in the first dungeon. Anyway, I really like the new trailer. I love the giant birds (hope they were designed before Avatar!) and there were some cool scenes. I'm also pleased the colours are so vibrant again. Another thing is that the tune is really growing on me. Funny how just reversing Zelda's Lullaby can produce a decent melody.

Eh, I like talking to Ronnie, otherwise I wouldn't bother. But if having fantasies about gamers being angry amuses you, go ahead.

Excitebike is really a lot better than I expected. Whereas I thought it'd just be like a NES game, it actually feels much more fluid, and the retro sound is great. The 3D effect is also cool, completely changing your perspective. Surely, this is a test for A Link to the Past. This type of light "remake" of NES and SNES games could be the way to put them on the 3DS, rather than a strict "Virtual Console". Very generous Nintendo, thank you.

I'm not even sure what killer kirby's post was about, It seemed somewhat aimed at me, and yet I'd never said the tech demos were superior to the finished games. All I said was that initial Twilight Princess graphics were far better than the finished game (which they were). Bizarrely, killer kirby uses two 2004 shots as proof of the finished game's "superior" graphics. I can confirm: none are given. Don't take them seriously, Ronnie. It's like when a gnat flies into your room. You might swat it if you can be bothered, but it's not a priority. All I know is that I'm looking forward to playing Ocarina of Time next week, I can't wait to play Skyward Sword and I couldn't be happier with the way they seem to be taking Zelda for the Wii U. With that in mind, I couldn't give a flying fig whether someone is laughing at my "misfortune". Poor me.

Is that a new feature? I remember them eating my shields, but not my tunic. Needless to say, these buggers get the fire-arrow treatment.

The funny thing is, I put it in my pocket afterwards (just to carry around the house) and, about 250 steps later, it suddenly became 1300. It must have added them on, and as such must have been a software problem, rather than a physical one.

Haha, I thought you would! Welcome back. You could see the current price as having the cost of the 3D taken off. It might be both. Is anyone else having problems with their pedometer today? I walked to my local shop, which is 500 steps out, 500 steps back. When I got home it said I'd done... 62! Thankfully it's working again now.

I've been thinking a lot about the 3DS's camera. It has a long focal length, so the subject can't get too close to the lens. My understanding is that whilst the 3DS's screen can display pop-out at times, the camera can't actually capture it. Let's say you're in a museum and you take a photo of a sculpture: I believe the wall in the background would seem distant, but the sculpture itself wouldn't seem very 3D. With this in mind, I wonder if 3D photos could be taken with a better camera (a 3D camera, obviously), saved in .MPO format and resized to 800x240, then pop-out might be possible, especially if the camera has a "Macro" mode.

1. Zelda HD Demo Make no mistake, not all Zelda fans are indecisive about graphics. Many of us loved Wind Waker and the Legend of Zelda 2004's graphics. The problem with the finished Twilight Princess was that the graphics were far worse than the 2004 trailer. However, with this HD demo, Nintendo have surpassed their own best work, and with traditional controls too. With Wii U, Nintendo have laid out all the tools to make the best Zelda ever. 2. Zelda Giveaways A free Ocarina of Time soundtrack CD is pretty generous and something I've always wanted. 3. Er... Skyward Sword I'm sorry, every time I see a good screenshot or video from this, my excitement is tempered by the realisation it'll use motion control. However, it looks like it has some good bits and the colours are gorgeous again.

No, I just mean new games that we hadn't seen before. Unless I'm mistaken, Luigi's Mansion 2 was the only one. Genuinely don't know what you mean there. I meant it's all guns, greys & browns nowadays. Boring.