Aneres11

I cannot wait. It's such a great program. It always makes me laugh though how people just fall apart when they get into the tent. Like they get the cake in the oven and go "oh my god... I've used salt instead of sugar!" Whilst I can't imagine the pressure they're under, it always makes me question their baking skills when they do something like that! I love seeing the journey the contestants go on too. Some of them scrape through at the beginning and then end up flourishing towards the end as they get much more comfortable with what they're facing (mainly Paul Hollywood ) and ain for bigger and better bakes! I can't wait to sit down and watch it. I always have to make sure I have some form of cake in the cupboard though. Absolutely no chance am I watching a baking programme and not having some form of cakey munch to eat whilst viewing! Never considered applying Daft?!

I've only just started browsing mobile gaming on my iPad and some games are pretty fun! Would I be interested in a Nintendo mobile game? Hell yeah. Sometimes the simpler games that have a basic control setup (like Temple Run etc) are really great. It'd be interesting to see what Nintendo could do on these devices. I don't think it will ever happen, but i'd definitely watch with interest if it did. Mobile gaming on the whole though is not something I tend to enjoy, outside of the odd game. Particularly from those type of games the need button input. It just does not work in my opinion, and nothing will take the place of a dedicated handheld machine. I also get bored quite quickly of mobile games but I guess that's not an issue when the whole idea is for short gaming bursts on the go. I don't think it's a bad idea at all to get some form of mobile game out there. I actually think a Mario Party style game would be a great fit! I'm sure there would be loads of great touch style mini games that could be done well on that kind of device. : peace:

I did wonder what you meant when you mentioned the camera issues. Now I understand. I will persevere though! Hopefully I can get to grips! And then when I play another adventure / platform game and it isn't inverted I'll be tearing my hair out with that! I tried to find a thread but couldn't see one! I figured a new one wouldn't go a miss anyway! Be great to get more thoughts on it again! It really is a very unique game! : peace:

Ask and ye shall receive! http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/chocolatecolacake_7614 Also, if you're thinking of making it, just watch for baking times. Some people have said an hour, the recipe says 40 min, it took me 30 min but our oven is fan assisted... And one more thing! I lined the bottom of my tin with grease proof paper and used butter round the sides. So I let the cake cool loads until it was just warm, then removed from tin and peeled off grease proof. Then I made the topping and poured it over. If the cake is anything more than warm, don't touch it! It will break it is that moist! As happened to me earlier in the week when I first attempted it. Happy cola caking! : peace:

: peace: As some of you may know, I recently decided to revisit the GameCube and play through some games I remember enjoying growing up with the console. I wanted to replay the classics, introduce myself to the games I never got to play, and familiarise myself with the games that I played, but hardly remembered. One such game I hardly remember, is Super Mario Sunshine! Having acquired a copy of eBay last week, I've spent a short time with the game, amassing a number of 'Shines' and getting to grips with F.L.U.D.D. all over again. And what a blast I'm having! Like all Mario games, this is just pure fun fun fun. Controlling the FLUDD pack as you run around as Mario never seems to get old. And DEM GameCube shoulder buttons for FLUDD water distribution. Delicious then, delectable now. The story of Mario Sunshine is very basic, as with all Mario games, but there seems to be a bit more in the way of cut scenes with this compared to other 3d Mario's. There aren't many animated scenes compared to other games, but the few that there are at the start set the scene quite nicely and it's something I'd like to see more of in future Mario games. One thing I have noticed early on, is that this game can be pretty difficult. One Shine in particular took me ages, as the aim was to get to a crate in the sky by maneuvering from water to metal framework, to shuffling up and around travelling metal poles, to climbing grates with electric spiders, all whilst fending off angry bloopers and wind blasts! It was hard! It took me a while to get that Shine and that was only my tenth of the game! I could get 10 stars in Mario 64 with my eyes shut! Mario himself also feels a bit tricky to control in this game. He's a little bit slippery, if that makes sense. Whilst his move set is all there, and with the added extra help brought by FLUDD's hover nozzle, he still doesn't feel as easy to move around as he does in Mario Galaxy or 64. But maybe it's just me. Speaking of Mario Galaxy, one of the very early Shines I gained was from a level in the first 'world' where Mario's doppelganger steals your FLUDD pack and you have to reach the end of a tricky stage without it. I believe there is one of these in each world. Anyway, check out the pic I took of it and tell me which Mario game you'd think this was taken from! Maybe Nintendo were experimenting with Galaxy style levels long before it made its debut! : peace: I find myself liking how different this game is from the other Mario games that came before, and have come after it. It really is the black sheep of the Mario catalogue and I can kind of see how it is a love / hate game. Though I haven't played loads of it, and as much as I am enjoying it, I do think it is possibly the weakest 3d Mario game of the bunch. Saying that, Galaxy 2 is not a favourite of mine so I'm hoping that with more play time on this, it will surpass my opinion of that particular game. So far so good anyway! I do have a few gripes, the biggest being the camera. To turn the camera left or right in this game, it is inverted. I've seen an up down invert before and I always have to switch it off, never a left / right one though! In Sunshine, it can't be changed. I'm forever moving the camera the wrong way and it is so annoying! I still haven't got my head around it! The other gripe I have (and this is a bit of a silly one) is the graphics. Naturally, this is over 10 years old so it's going to look ropey. But these worlds that I am exploring as Mario are pretty HUGE, and trying to make your way around them using jump wires, rooftops, moving poles and thin platforms can be tricky when the game isn't really meant for a flat screen 37 inch TV! Like I say, it's a silly negative but having been spoiled with the enhancements on visual capability in the years since this game, it makes this feel lacking somewhat. That's why I'd love it to be upscaled in a Wii U VC release. Yeah right! I'm still very early into the game, but I am thoroughly enjoying it. I thought I'd make a post now so I can continue posting as I play, which is something I intend to do with all the GC games I revisit. I reckon there will be enough people who have played them or had/have an opinion on them to get a nice discussion going, plus it will be good to have some retro appreciation for dem great games! Given how much fun I'm having with this, the inevitable thoughts are now creeping in. I won't say it, I'll just leave this here and hope it happens...! : peace:

Haven't baked in ages and people at work were getting vocal about it. They demanded chocolate cake. So I made chocolate COLA cake. Apparently something in the half a bottle of coke and bicarbonate of soda does some chemical thing to give moist sponge galore. And boy is it moist. It even has cola in the icing! It's like a chocolatey, caramely fudge cake. I cut it and had a piece earlier and it was still warm. All it needed was ice cream! : peace:

Poor Toad. He just wants everyone to enjoy his treasure adventure. Instead, you're all bickering aaaaaaas usual. EVEN TOAD'S HAD ENOUGH. Poor little guy.

I finally did it!!! Aaaand got absolutely nothing for it... In other news... Imma say yes... Yes it is.

I haven't played one since the Wii and DS versions (the original ones) so really looking forward to this actually! It's quite surprising that we haven't seen Mario and Sonic in another setting outside of the Olympics. A Mario and Sonic game could be pretty interesting if it were platform / adventure based!

So I just claimed this as my second free game from the MK8 promotion. Just in time... I had 2 copies of MK hence being able to get 2 games. I chose this as I wanted something fun to play, and I had claimed TW101 from my other free game so there was nothing left to pick as I had played all the others. Going to give it a little go tonight. Did anyone play this? I know it was rated pretty crap, but I like the Mario and Sonic games and this looked ok to me! Not bad for a free game anyway!

I CANT FIND MY DAMN WII POWER BRICK!! URRRRGGGGHHHH. Why cruel world. Got in from puppy class, eats tea, (or rather shovels in tea for more play times ), finds my Wii, finds remote, new batteries go in WaveBird and Wiimote, plug in GC memory card, WaveBird wireless receiver, gets giddy over imminent Sunshine enjoyment, goes to get power brick off top of wardrobe where the component cable was last week when I got it down... NOT THERE. I've looked everywhere. I've basically turned the whole house upside down. I have no idea where it is. 9:30 pm and I gave up. With Mario just looking at me on the Sunshine box. TAUNTING ME. I could have just brought the GC up but it was so much hassle getting my TV off the wall to plug the component in, and getting it back on ready to just plug the Wii in after my house search that I just gave up. So now I will have to wait until tomorrow. Hmph.

Oh yeah... OH YEAH.

My hard drive is amazing. It's a SeaGate one (think it's 2TB, or 1TB?), but I needed one as I have the Basic console... so 8gb is just not enough! Although, if I had to choose again I'd always go for that set up as I prefer the white console / game pad. I have had zero problems with me external drive. It behaves itself perfectly! : peace: Would definitely recommend it to anyone with a few titles downloaded. I have a fair few (TW101, NSMBU, NSLBU, Rayman Legends) and I haven't claimed my Mario Kart free game yet which I only just relaised I need to do TONIGHT! So yeah, for me external drive is the way to go!

He makes me smile too! Then he starts with a hankering for my flesh and I stop smiling. Ha. But he is majorly cute!

Big pooch post incoming! We've had our puppy, Bailey, for about 5 weeks now. He's growing loads and he's a typical puppy. Eating everything, biting everything (and everyone ) but his cuteness kinda overrides it all! Here's some pics of the time we've had him so far! In his big dog bed. With his first collar! Big enough to jump up and say hello! Caught out being naughty... om nom nom Sleepy pups. My ear is good to chew on, apparently: Aaand a pooch selfie. Just coz. He's a lovely dog. My sister and I have been taking him to puppy classes on a Monday evening. He is great around people, but other dogs is a no no right now. He's just so scared of them - poor pooch! But the lady who runs the classes has recommended some stuff for us to do and it seems to be helping. Being a dog owner is great fun! i just don't like picking puppy shit up...

Wowzers That's amazing. I never paid much attention to the stars catalogue until the Wii days tbh and even then I wasn't really that aware of the system. It truly does look even shitter now if that's the kind of thing they used to offer! A Wario one eh?! Now THAT I like the sounds of!

Browsing through Instagram before at Nintendo stuff (which I sadly like to do from time to time ) and came across these on someone's account: Amazing. Looks like they're official, and looks like they're a Club Nintendo item! Does anyone know which country produced them? I'm guessing Japan?! Either way, they are cool as fuck. I want them both. But what I'd REALLLLLY like. Is a Princess Peach one, obvs. Anyone seem these before?! Look cool with the Wii Remotes too!

Hmm see I know one of the Mario parties was a really great single player game. And Im sure it was 2 or it could have been 3?! Something to do with a mine cart and going down a track in it? Shows how much I remember! But yeah pretty sure it was 2. Mario Kart 64 was probably my most played Mario Kart ever. I loved that game as a kid and it was probably around the time I started to fall in love with gaming, so that always holds a special place! I'd love to play it again. I'm going to do a 'nando' anyway tonight. Having read your post in the Wii appreciation thread about how you love having the console as a gateway to 3 different generations (loosely), what with some of the best N64 titles, cube playability and obviously, actual Wii games - it makes it a bit of Nintendo fans dream! So I shall be setting my Wii back up and getting my cube / N64 on through that! Dat hub of Ninty goodness! I'd never really thought of it like that until your post, so it's definitely inspired me to get it on. : peace:

I'll probably just pick Nes...

You definitely struck gold nando! Massively jealous! There is another Sainsbury's near me which is about the same distance as the one I went today, maybe a little closer actually. I might pay that one a visit tomorrow. Or call them. I wouldn't normally be bothered but looking at the list of games on the N64 VC there's some I'd definitely like to own. Mario Party 2!! Mario Tennis Mario Kart 64 Smash Bros Yoshi' Story Need dem games! Anywhere else actually sell the points for the normal price? Or would it just be the same as getting them from the VC directly?

Oh Jesus pratty! Whatever you do then, do not try any of the newer monkey ball games!! They are literally all luck based with hardly any skill required what so ever. The Vita version I mentioned earlier is a good one for skill based but there is still too much reliance on a bit of luck, which is a shame. They need to do a new monkey ball and go right back to the roots! And yeah Metal Arms is amazing! I don't remember much about it so I might even boot that up tonight and see what I remember of it and if it holds up well. The only problem I feel I may have with this GameCube revisit is I'm going to want to see all these series return!! I already want a new Metroid Prime after playing it last night!

Oh yeah Metal Arms is a great game. I remember reading a review of it in the Nintendo mag and they gave it like 80 something from memory. Then a couple of months later I picked it up from GAME in the sale. Spent all weekend playing it. I remember it being hilarious! Eternal Darkness is easily one of my favourite games of all time. Like you say, the sanity effects and the way the game actually physically creeps you out as you play was just something else. I am definitely going to revisit that again soon. I remember playing through that and doing something three times to get the different endings? It's vague I'm memory now, but yeah - definitely played the shit out of it! The original Monkey Ball is by far the best. God I was good at that game. (Dat modesty ) but yeah I was amazing. I loved the stages, I loved the music and I loved the challenge. I spent one whole summer just playing through expert mode and finally completing it was a beautiful moment! The games that came after the original were never as good. The only one that I've enjoyed since is the Vita version. And Retro, you should definitely get some Cube back in your life. Loads of goodness to revisit / discover!

Just got in from the massive Sainsbury's that's about 30 mins from me. I return disappointed . They had loads of stuff and loads of it was on sale, but no Wii points. I even asked the lady behind the counter who opened up the Wii drawer (yup, they still had one ) but it was just full of a select few Wii U games and 3DS. Gutted! Anyway, I tried! : peace:

Ok. I wont be asking again. But... WHERE. THE. FUCK. IS. NESS.

Think I will just keep my eyes open on eBay for any cheeky purchases. The last thing I want to do is buy a load of games and then have a huge back log of old games. Especially when I think Sunshine will probably take quite a while. It's not exactly a short game! But I would still like to get Double Dash as that's a game I can pick up and play in bursts which will go well with a game like Sunshine! I hope Sunshine arrives tomorrow!! So tonight I began my GameCube revisit. I went back to our clutter room and rooted out the games I found last weekend. Imagine my delight when I found a further THREE I knew I had owned, but thought I'd sold! They were Eternal Darkness (YES!), Super Monkey Ball (DOUBLE YES!) and this little gem... Maaaan I loved this game, but I dunno how popular / successful it was. Anyway, in wait of Sunshine, I booted up Metroid Prime. Played it for about 15 mins. MAN. DAT OPENING!? Surely thats gotta go down as one of the best openings to a game like ever?! No bull shit, no talking down to you to ease you in, you get to that parasite queen and you battle that big bastard! And then the epic get out alive which is TIMED!! I was just as nervous as the first time I played it!! Brilliant stuff. Also, the game holds up great still. It's plugged in through the actual cube at the min on the downstairs TV (no one in tonight so just me, the pooch, and the Cube ) and it looks brilliant. Holds up really well. This is a photo of my current view, from my phone, zoomed in from about 12 feet away! Ahh. I think I'm gonna have some fun with this! : peace: