Spring RTS Engine

Being in the process of moving out from my parents house, I am still considering wether to have a TV + console + laptop (non-gaming) or go with good ol'e Gaming desktop Bob + laptop.. Any input is appreciated

The problem with Bob is the price, and the "gaming from the sofa with some mates and beer"-factor, which the console option has nailed dead on.
Though iv'e got to say Iv'e been a diehard PC fan since forever, lately it seems most of the games im hyped for are coming to consoles :/ The 360 also seems to be the best overall to me, am i right y/n?

On to my last subject, Ikaruga.
Ive seen this game here and there but never really checked it out
Now today i did, and it looks to be a awesome game. Is it? Tryed getting it on my GC, but noone sells GC-games here anymore saw it was on 360 marketplace, which could be a damn sweet deal

Im really leaning towards a console + TV at the moment, being on a tight budget as i am. On that subject, is it worth it to invest in a sweet big flat TV or get an old CRT from second hand?

If you're looking at the 360, then HD (even a dinky one you play at 3' away) is a must, since a big feature of the 360 is the high def support. HD CRT TVs are kinda rare, but they're out there... but I doubt they're much savings over an LCD.

Personally, I'm a caveman - if I've got the room I'll stick to the giant environment-smashing heavy-duty pile of lead and vacuum that is a CRT. But LCDs are nice.

are you moving out to college or getting your own place?

I like the xbox, some people do not, you are going to hear RROD from a lot of people who want to bust your nuts.

Ikaruga is very chalenging, I like the idea of topdown shooters, but I am more a raiden fighers/1940 guy.. They have 1940 and ikaruga on marketplace. The port is very nice and if you like very chalenging games like that go for it.

Comp1337 wrote:The problem with Bob is the price, and the "gaming from the sofa with some mates and beer"-factor, which the console option has nailed dead on.

Why not just go with desktop + huge TV monitor (I'm sure it can be done somehow) + gamepads? You would have a huge game selection that would be multiplied with emulators and from what I see splitscreen gaming is gradually dying even with consoles. It's something to consider at least.

Comp1337 wrote:The 360 also seems to be the best overall to me, am i right y/n?

No. There's no best overall console.

Comp1337 wrote:On to my last subject, Ikaruga.
Ive seen this game here and there but never really checked it out
Now today i did, and it looks to be a awesome game. Is it? Tryed getting it on my GC, but noone sells GC-games here anymore saw it was on 360 marketplace, which could be a damn sweet deal

Poor Ikaruga, game only gets ported to systems with shitty d-pads.

Comp1337 wrote:Im really leaning towards a console + TV at the moment, being on a tight budget as i am. On that subject, is it worth it to invest in a sweet big flat TV or get an old CRT from second hand?

I would think you would benefit from not having to waste room space on a large CRT and if your budget does allows for avoiding it, don't spend money on outdated technology.

I think Ikaruga is overrated but many people love it. Playing shmups with an analog stick just feels weird to me. Though TBH the only games where I think an a-stick is better than a d-pad are FPSes (and games that control like them) and Kururin games. Maybe 2d fighting games too since a-sticks hurt the thumb way less than pads.

Most PC games these days are console ports anyway so a real gaming PC would probably be a waste of money.

The playing with mates factor probably depends on how often you expect to have mates over. You could get some good board games (Puerto Rico and Agricola to name a few) instead but I guess overall a console will provide more variety. The Wii is said to be the best for local multiplayer, depends on what you want I guess.

smoth wrote:are you moving out to college or getting your own place?

like very chalenging games

Own place, though i do attend uni (which is my reason for moving in the first place) so i guess i almost would qualify for your college category (friends living close by, classes to study for etc)

And yeah, i do like hard games. Also i have no problem playing a game over again getting better scores (well at least games like portal or guitar hero) which i hear is kind of a thing with ikaruga

Zell wrote:Why not just go with desktop + huge TV monitor (I'm sure it can be done somehow) + gamepads?

First thing, cost. the desktop is alot more expensive than an xbox
second, cant really compete with the splitscreen games on a console :/ And let me tell you, friends + beer + xbox is all about splitscreen

K on to TVs.. How important is the "full HD" stuff really? Cause it costs me 150 bucks extra on the deal im checking out..

Ikaruga is awesome, worth every frustrated moment. It is miserably, awfully, painfully, viciously hard. When we talk about "playing over and over again" we don't mean "to get a higher score" but "to get through the third level". The game is Hard Core.

And honestly, I'm not a 360 owner. I was just repeating what i'd heard - you really want the HD.

It's more the annoying kind of hard "hay here's a hueg bullet pattern, have fun dodging".

KDR_11k wrote:It's more the annoying kind of hard "hay here's a hueg bullet pattern, have fun dodging".

The game doesn't just rely on sheer Bullet Hell - like the moving crate maze. Or even just the chaos at the beginning of the 2nd level where planes are flying all over blasting took a long time to get the hang of. The big blaster ships are cool.

Either way, the game is 99% rote memorization, of course. That's part of the genre.

Comp1337 wrote:K on to TVs.. How important is the "full HD" stuff really?

Not important at all, 720p is fine, unless you're trying to buy a future proof setup. You won't get much games in 1080p and even if you're watching blu-rays you need a huge monitor to tell the difference between 720p and 1080p.

Copm1337 wrote:First thing, cost. the desktop is alot more expensive than an xbox

Yes, but you can drop the laptop (unless you really really need one). Besides, a decent desktop isn't that expensive.

Comp1337 wrote:And let me tell you, friends + beer + xbox is all about splitscreen

If your friends can't find something they like in all the game consoles before the PS2, arcade games and PC games then you just need to convince them otherwise. Oh and as mentioned, the Wii is also a good alternative. You don't need a XBox for multiplayer fun, unless all your friends have sucky taste in games. Which is probably true.

KDR_11k wrote:It's more the annoying kind of hard "hay here's a hueg bullet pattern, have fun dodging".

That's not annoying kind of hard at all. I suggest you play more games in the genre to learn what annoying kind of hard is. Ikaruga has a very nice difficulty curve.

I did play more games in the genre. Maybe it's the mushy feeling of using an analog stick but dodging patterns in Ikaruga is just annoying, constantly hitting the A button doesn't help. That fourth stage is just annoying to play and I had zero desire to attempt mastering it. I think the only level I didn't end up hating immediately was the first though I've never made it past the fourth (as I said, too annoying).

It's difficult, but not in an annoying way, if you said that you're just lucky enough to have not seen a truly annoying game. I believe the problem lies with you even thinking about mastering it, just focus on getting through it alive. And no, you're not supposed to finish the game in a day.

That's what I meant with mastering in this case, just being able to actually navigate that freaking shot pattern that's pretty much the entirety of Stage 4.

How about you actually try your best to finish it before complaining it's too hard?