#bro how did they get it on a piracy website so quickly

[kiynania]

KNUCKLES SPOILERS

I want me one of those penguins now.

[luigiblood]

Nintendo Switch Online, 1 year in review...

Well, well, well... Nintendo Switch Online...

You’re cheap, but you’re too cheap in return sometimes. I want to talk about it and some of my frustrations about it (and not necessarily with Nintendo). To do this, I will talk about each feature seperately.

Online Play

The most obvious feature is Online Play. It went from being free to being paid, which is pretty much a problem but then the competitors do the same. Many Nintendo games do not have the most stable netplay, even though I do not have most of the problems that other people get.

I’m not going to do a P2P vs Dedicated, or rather I would like to say that people genuinely don’t understand basic netplay and are all going against P2P without knowing that some of the games that works fine are probably all running on P2P to begin with.

I’m not gonna go into the details, nor do I want to say I’m an expert, each have their own pros and cons, but I think the main issue is ultimately the netcode. Here’s hoping with GGPO being open source and free to use for professionals now, the future could be a lot brighter.

I would want Nintendo to take netcode a little more seriously and test it in homes with slower Internet. Testing it with Wi-Fi and Ethernet and everything.

Save Data Cloud

This feature technically works. You’d think it’s hard to fail, right?

Of course they did when some games just don’t provide the support for it because of fear that people may abuse it for cheating... Meh.

Nintendo uses the exemple of having a broken Switch to where this feature might come in handy. Too bad this also means completely lost saves for some of the most important games like Splatoon 2 or Animal Crossing, the latter being really annoying if you lose hundreds or even thousands of hours...

Smartphone App

This one is tough because potential was there. Truly a waste of time.

All of the main services could have just been a website that works on PC and Mobile. But I think the main issue is that people don’t really want to check stuff about their game all the time because there is simply not enough feedback.

There was actually better execution when SplatNet was a regular website accessible on every device, Super Mario Maker Bookmark website too, instead everything is stuck to an app, limiting uses.

Content should be seen from everywhere when it’s possible. Making it work behind a subscription fee was a terrible idea.

And then let’s not even talk about the voice chat. That is a truly depressing thing. Why making it stuck to mobile? I get that you don’t want the Switch to process that stuff for performance reasons but truly that stuff is supported on it too...

Special Offers

Let me list what extra stuff we got from Nintendo Switch Online:

Exclusive Splatoon 2 Gears

Tetris 99

Game Vouchers

The right to buy NES/SNES Controllers

Game Trials (for only one game)

I did not list another thing that will be its own seperate bullet point.

Tetris 99 was truly the best part of this. It’s actually a pretty darn good game. Game Vouchers could have been nice if you couldn’t get the brand new games for cheaper in physical form.

Game Trials was a thing they tested at one point, but then they just didn’t bother...

We, subscribers, don’t really get a lot of extras, do we?

My Nintendo (Bonus Rant)

Nothing has been more of a waste than My Nintendo. Gold Points finally started to be kind of useful since it became an equivalent to a cent for the Switch eShop, but that’s the only good point I could give to it.

Its execution is terrible, and unlike many people, I do not have a lot of good memories about Club Nintendo (the European one, that said), because most of the cool items we only could get the stars we needed much later and then then the item was gone. That’s literally most of my experience with Club Nintendo.

When I learned that with the North American Club Nintendo you could get virtual console games and other cool shit I was genuinely disappointed how the European one was. And I’m not mentioning how the Japanese Club Nintendo had some of the cooler things than the west ever got.

And then My Nintendo has none of the cool things from any regional Club Nintendo... what’s the plan, Nintendo? Why does this exist?

The day 3DS and Wii U will stop being supported, what will happen to the vouchers that you guys always put up? Will it become even more useless?

NES / SNES Nintendo Switch Online

Now the real meat because that’s the stuff I really would like to talk about.

You guys know how involved I am with retro Nintendo content and I can be very invested about this kind of stuff because I just love Nintendo’s games.

Unlike many people, I don’t mind the subscription aspect and the fact you don’t really own these games anymore compared to Virtual Console games. I think this has ultimately been the better thing to do. However I find many problems with the execution of it, especially in the long run.

Due to its subscription nature, I did expect it to have less games than Virtual Console. Rights have to be renegotiated, and the most I expected were Nintendo games. Turns out we got some third parties, some even high profile, pretty cool.

But there are pretty infuriating stuff, like the slow drip feed we get. I get that you want to keep interest going for these games over time but there’s a lot of problems with that entails, and that’s how most of us are frustrated that Nintendo is not using the Switch to its highest potential, and especially about having all of the Nintendo games possible in a small amount of time.

Its portable nature wants us that Nintendo puts all of the retro games as quickly as possible, we want to dedicate our time to the Switch instead of plugging the Wii and Wii U for VC games that aren’t there. We want N64, GB/C/A, GameCube, and more. We want to have Mario Party 2 netplay in an official capacity, and so on...

I noticed the potential of retro Switch Online offer when I found myself addicted to Balloon Fight. Actually a game I’ve never downloaded off ROM sites before, as I usually dismissed it as being too simple. However the game was just there and I gave it a shot. This is one of the reasons why its subscription nature didn’t mind me, it got me to spend time with some games I usually wouldn’t spend time with, especially for NES.

I want to put a list of things that I want Nintendo to do with their retro offering to bring interest, but also sustain it:

- Bigger Drips of games

This seems trivial, but keep in mind that games have to be tested before going live, we pretty much want at least 3 games per month for each console. But stuff takes time and we at least want more communication about this aspect. We just want more games.

- Localized games

This is a personal pet peeve and only works for people whose native language is not English. I do not expect of Nintendo to localize retro games, but at least to release localized ROMs of games when they exist.

I expected of them to release these:

Kirby’s Adventure, French and German versions (yes, they exist)

Super Metroid, European version (that’s a bit more controversial however...)

Zelda: A Link To The Past, French and German versions (French even has an official 60hz version)

Yoshi’s Island, European version.

I know what you could say, 50hz games suck, music is slower- Stop. My only answer is fuck you.

Also, SNES 50hz games cannot have slower music, aside from a few rare ones. If you remember games having slower music on PAL SNES you have a bad memory and mixed up with NES or Mega Drive or something.

I don’t see how, as a developer myself, a selection menu could not be implemented for selecting the language for a game. That way you let people play whatever they want, it’s less painful, everyone is happy.

I still wish for Nintendo to localize retro games however, or maybe even bring unreleased localizations of games if they approved it back then...

- Random Game of the Day / Moment

This seems like a dumb idea, but when I played Balloon Fight I noticed how Nintendo could bring attention to games that don’t necessarily get it.

When the library gets bigger, some games will be left on the side over others, a system to bring motivation to play those games, even as simple as a random game name at the top, is better than what piracy can even bring you.

Maybe you could even implement a button that selects a random game.

- Game Tweaks / Special Versions

AKA USE LUA SCRIPTS IN GAMES

Now we’re starting to get a bit on the expensive side of things.

Special Versions of games aren’t really good on NES, they’re just save states. Some are useful (Golf Course unlocks), some are amusing (Zelda), but most of them are just a save state at the end of the game.

I want them to go on the next stage of this, actually hack the games, or even scripts on top of them. You see, some emulators have scripting features that can alter the game, in ways that improves them (map on Metroid NES), or outright gameplay altering (Kirby Canvas Curse gameplay on Super Mario Bros. 3).

I gave real exemples of use, these could be used to make games easier, harder, balanced, weirder, just like another concept that Nintendo did... NES REMIX. (What a waste of a concept... This really got people into NES games.)

I wish for Nintendo to use their LUA script system already in place for the menus, for their emulator.

This could also aid in development of localization of games without altering the ROM and without space issues.

And this could aid in making SNES Mouse games to work on a touch screen and more, it’s genuinely easy to figure out I could do it myself in a day... ;)

- Shared Library of games between Japan & International

...Well all I want is that I don’t have to need to download the japanese app or the japanese to download the international app to play other games that are not present in the local library. I thought this would have been solved with Super Puyo Puyo 2 but guess not.

This could have the added bonus of japanese games on top of the american (and european?) ones.

- Game Events

Sort of an extra to game tweaks, bringing events for people to play a specific retro game and give them gold points or something. Events could have objectives, achievements, scoreboards, many things could be done here.

You could even bring in the Nintendo World Championship ROMs, other competition stuff, or even games like soundlink games from the Satellaview like BS Zelda, BS Super Mario All-Stars and so on. These games are made for competition!

This is the ultimate thing to bring people to play retro games, bring the unusual games that most people have possibly never even heard about!

- Others

Some of those bullet points don’t need a big explanation:

More Unreleased Retro Games (Japan only or even anywhere)

Localize Retro Games that were never localized (not just in english!)

Borders

Small Control Scheme Help (to compensate for lack of manuals)

5-player Netplay support for SNES (Super Puyo Puyo 2 supports 4 player)

Netplay with Global Rooms with passwords and not just stuck to friends. (This should be a thing for EVERY GAME. This could even be a Switch OS feature.)

Automatic Matchmaking for certain games?

I have also always said this: I’m interested to work with you, Nintendo, on this kind of stuff...

[channelnewswire-blog]

The double lives of New Zealand's celebrity impersonators

How is Austin Powers still relevant in 2019? And why employ the Queen for your birthday party? Alex Casey talks with the lobbyists of New Zealand's celeb impersonator scene.It ain't simple being shagadelic.Orewa local

Gary Brown, the only lawfully authorised Austin Powers impersonator in the world, understands that cold tough truth much better than anybody."The task can be exhausting. When I'm in that clothing, I am the character. I've got no option.

I've got to maintain the mannerisms, the walk, the insane one-liners-- it's what the people expect." By the end of a gig as Austin, Brown's velour match will often

be soaked with his own sweat. Some might presume that celeb impersonators are a dying type.

In a time where Prince can carry out as a hologram and any old Snapchat filter can transform you into a Kardashian catfish, they appear like a relic from bygone days when celeb seemed like something glamorous and illusory. However across the world, and here in New Zealand, there are many industrious individuals who still have a lot of skin-- and sweat-- in the impersonation game.Gary Brown has actually been carrying out as an impersonator considering that 1988, when he initially toured America as Crocodile Dundee. He's now been sharing his life with Austin Powers for more than 18 years, and describes it as" quite the enterprise"at about 40-60 paid gigs a year. Donning the cravat in 1999 for a swinging '60s home celebration, he noticed more than a passing similarity. Not long after, he was gotten in touch with by a buddy requiring entertainment for a large occasion in Australia. He informed them he might sing, he might dance and he could do Austin Powers."They wanted Austin and that was that. I got the jagged dentures done, the fit and the wig made and

discovered the right glasses." Gary Brown as Austin Powers. Image: Adrian Malloch When Brown arrived in Australia, accompanied by

former TrueBliss member Keri Harper in the function of Felicity Shagwell,

he realised the"large event"for his first paid Austin Powers gig was the Sydney Olympics."It was so fantastic, things got so crazy that we had to get guard to stop individuals getting images with us."Just like Brown, Auckland actor Judy

Rankin initially fell into impersonating through her noteworthy look. After playing Queen Elizabeth II in a regional theatre production in

the 1990s, word of mouth began to spread out of her regal resemblance."People began stating' you look rather a lot like her 'and the tasks just streamed in from there,"she states. Her very first gig was for a business association, sitting outside an estate surrounded by cucumber sandwiches and tea. Entry to the imitation game can likewise be born from a deep idolisation of a star. Pauline Berry, an ex-Marilyn Monroe impersonator, can affirm to that."I just really enjoyed her, and no one else was doing her at the time."Working as a backup vocalist, Berry saw an opportunity to do justice to Marilyn's skill."I wanted to do her as classy as she actually was, not because garish sort of way. People think that she wasn't a good singer, but she was the real deal." Her first look as Marilyn was being driven in a classic car in the Auckland Christmas Parade. The crowd, she remembers, went nuts for it. "I could see that it made individuals really happy, they purchased into this nostalgic minute where Marilyn was still alive. It was just so great."

The idea of who Marilyn Monroe is changes depending upon the individual, according to Berry. "I think she is an example for a great deal of people, but likewise a forecast of their failings or their successes. They see her one way, where another person may see her totally differently." Pauline Berry as Marilyn Monroe. Image: Supplied Another fan who was driven to embody his hero is Brendon Chase, New Zealand and Australia's premiere Elvis impersonator. He recently transferred to

the Gold Coast to widen his Elvis audience base, and is wishing to reserve a 3rd trip to Graceland quickly."I have actually constantly liked Elvis ever because I was a kid. When I went down to Rotorua in 1996 to support a buddy in the first ever New Zealand Elvis contest, I believed 'I'm sure I can do this'." He returned the next year, and won the entire competitors."I simply want to keep his memory alive, that's my vision,"says Chase, one of an international network of self-declared ETAs-- Elvis Homage Artists."It's likewise a way of keeping my passion alive in a different method from just purchasing posters and images of him. When you're onstage, you can see individuals return in time

to a various, better, point in their life. Music can bring back those memories pretty quickly. "It's his complete time task, he prefers to call it a"well-paid pastime". The change needs a lot more than a cheap outfit and wig, but nailing the aesthetic is a good place to start."Marilyn is extremely' impersonatable 'because she has such an unique look,"states Berry." If you get all the elements and toss them together, you'll have some sort of simulation."In

her Marilyn days, she maintained the iconic platinum blonde at the salon every 3 weeks."I was never as thin as her though, she was tiny."In a comparable vein, Chase currently owns seven bespoke Elvis suits-- with another in the mail.He has them personalized by Lansky Bros in Memphis, Tennessee. It's the same store that dressed Elvis throughout his profession, and purchased his patterns after he passed away." All my clothes are from there. That's how seriously I take this task, due to the fact that they are

n't inexpensive. If I was a carpenter, I would need a saw. It just so happens that I'm a vocalist and I need a match." Brendon Chase as Elvis. Picture: Supplied As soon as you have the iconography in place, you require to lock down the attributes."I work hard on the Queen's voice,"says Judy Rankin."I have never ever been able to smile like her, so I try and avoid that at all costs. Luckily, she

doesn't smile really much in public anyway."

When preparing for Marilyn, Berry explains an extreme mental game. "I consider being her all day, I watch her old films andfocus in on the method that she talks. It's a mindset that's really tough to sustain. "Having been Elvis for 26 years, Chase does not need to prepare as much nowadays. In reality, he boasts that he can"fall out of bed in character"and often forgets what his genuine voice sounds like. But that didn't come without a lot of practice and study."

It's like attempting to improve at a sport. There are four main points: the look, the presence, the outfits and the voice. Lots of individuals have actually got two or three of them, but not many have got all 4 ... I'm taking a look at three and a half, I believe. "Playing an imaginary character, Gary Brown confesses to having slightly more liberty when it comes to his Austin Powers act. But that didn't come without a few legal obstacles. When he initially released his website, he got a letter from a solicitor on behalf of Warner Brothers in California listing a variety of copyright infringements. He got their piracy supervisor on the phone and persuaded him, then the marketing division in New york city, that he was the real deal. They waived the violations, and gave him authorisation to keep the character alive. Does that mean it's possible that Mike Myers from Hollywood understands about Gary Brown from Orewa? He can't make certain on that one, but he was definitely made mindful of what is outside the Austin character oeuvre according to the character's developer. Promoting firearms is a big no-no. Taking a polarising character like Austin into

the real life isn't without its threats. Brown performs everywhere from birthdays to business events, the Sevens rugby and free public gatherings, and states that nearly everyone he satisfies reacts favorably."People either love Austin or they dislike him, but [the haters]

typically have a change of heart."There was only one circumstances, during the V8 Motorsport in Mansfield, where things turned ugly. "Some person didn't like Austin, so he threw me into the pool. I dislocated my shoulder and I could not perform for the remainder of the day. " Gary Brown as Austin Powers. Image: Adrian Malloch Berry dealt with a couple of unpleasant scenarios when she was working as Marilyn Monroe." I truly loved the singing however I wasn't so much into strolling about with the doopy-doop voice, resting on laps and rubbing men's bald heads."She rapidly discovered that sort of interaction is what some individuals were spending for."I had one female who was extremely dissatisfied that I didn't swoon all over her hubby and sit in his lap. That's just not my

thing. I did find it quite difficult attempting to determine if customers were anticipating Marilyn the singer or Marilyn the slut."In spite of a handful of disappointments, the impersonation market appears to have no shortage of fish stories. Rankin typically just looks like the Queen these days for 100th birthday celebrations, of which there are increasingly more. "If it still makes people smile, then I'll keep doing it. Because I'm certainly not in it for the cash. "It was at one guy's 70th birthday where Chase had an especially excellent day in the workplace. Upon Elvis 'arrival to the celebration, the elderly male immediately stood out of his wheelchair and began trying to dance." His kids all began bawling their eyes out around him. They told me he had not been able to stand up by himself for 20 years. That was pretty surreal."The fond memories icons of Marilyn and Elvis might survive on forever, however their impersonators aren't rather so indefatigable. After taking a trip to Hollywood to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Marilyn's death

, Berry chose to leave the act behind."I initially associated to her sensation alone worldwide, but eventually I stopped seeming like that. I understood that I had actually outgrown her." Judy is less poetic about the Queen circuit.

"If the work dried up, I would not be brokenhearted. It's simply a bit of enjoyable while it exists." Brendon Chase as Elvis. Image: Supplied Working towards winning an Elvis world title, Chase isn't letting go of his blue suede shoes any time soon. The fans won't either."Audiences still like him and they like the music. There are exceptionally fanatic people

out there, I still get screams and screams." One of his good buddies-- another ETA-- didn't secure the world champs until he was 55 years old."I have actually got a little time left in me, which is quite great. I'm fortunate that I keep healthy and the music keeps me young. As long as I do not end up being the fat Elvis, I'll be alright."

When it comes to Brown, he's still" riding the circulation"

of Austin Powers-- 15 years after the last movie was released. He's got gigs booked all the method through up until 2020, but is likewise intending to introduce his real estate career. To manage the two demanding tasks, he's connected to fellow entertainer-cum-realtor Shane Cortese for guidance." It will be a fascinating shift-- I desire to keep doing my programs since that's what I enjoy doing one of the most. "Without missing out on a beat, he uses a service. "Maybe I might simply become the grooviest person in property. "