Activision is Call of Duty Only Now

In early 2021, video games publisher Activision closed and folded its development studio Vicarious Visions into Blizzard, the second part of the Activision Blizzard conglomerate that operates separately from Activision. They had recently made Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 and the Crash Bandicoot: N-Sane Trilogy. Now at the end of April 2021, Activision has moved developer Toys for Bob off of original projects and will now be a support team for Call of Duty. Toys for Bob were responsible for the Skylanders series, the Spyro Reignited Trilogy and the recently released Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time.

Mario Fakes His Death on March 31, 2021

March 31st has been dubbed by the internet as The Day Mario Dies. This is due to Super Mario 3D All-Stars, Super Mario 35, and all Mario 35th Anniversary merchandise being taken off the market at the end of the 2020 fiscal year. It’s a bizarre move by Nintendo, who has yet to communicate whether the collection, game, and merchandise will be sold in a different manner later on, only confirming the expiration date earlier this week. The one caveat is digital codes for the All-Stars collection will be redeemable after the 31st. Even the servers for Super Mario 35, an online battle royal take on the original Super Mario Bros., will be taken down after the 31st, meaning that game will be unplayable and more or less lost to time unless Nintendo decides to re-release it at a later date.

The Importance of Characters in Fighting Games

I’m a big fan of fighting games. Ever since I first tried out Street Fighter II: The World Warrior when I was a kid, I’ve loved the genre. I love how open ended the mechanics are, and how varied that makes each match. However, one of the most crucial aspects of fighting games that I love are the characters. The combatants you have available to you to play as is probably the most crucial aspect as it’s one of the main reasons people will want to play the game. In fact, considering that characters also heavily affect the gameplay in a fighting game, I would go so far as to say that the roster in a fighting game is the most crucial element in a fighting game.

2016 Was Terrible, But Important

A quick introduction before I get into the editorial proper. This is an article that has been delayed longer than I would’ve wished for. I wanted for some time now to write about more than just video games, music, and movies. Moving forward, this WordPress blog is going to be more based on myself than the topics I typically focus on. I mentioned this in the past, but this is really the start of that. Instead of coming to this blog for stuff on video games, you’ll be coming here for me, for my views and thoughts on a variety of topics. Subject matter will start becoming more serious and more controversial topics are bound to pop up. I thank you for continuing to read my work, and support my content. Video games and the like will still have a big presence here, as I’m still passionate about those subjects. However, you’re going to see a lot more than just that from now on. Now on to the editorial.

Is PC Actually Better Than Console?

http://middleofnowheregaming.com/2016/02/19/is-pc-actually-better-than-console/

Discussing: The Benefits and Detriments of Emulation

I recently updated my Nintendo 64 emulator, Project 64, after finding out it had an update this past year, and downloaded new graphics and audio plugins, Glide 64 and Azimer’s HLE Audio. After doing this, I realized that two games that had major graphical and audio inaccuracies before on the emulator, Paper Mario and Yoshi’s Story, were now mostly fixed. I decided to take advantage of this and start playing these games. However, I also knew that I could buy these games on the Wii U and Wii, as well as the original Nintendo 64, which I do own. I was tempted to buy them but am strapped for cash. For now, I’ve decided to stick with the emulator versions but am still on the fence because of the benefits and detriments of emulators.

Discussing: The Reinvention Curse

I have this theory about certain video game franchises. This theory, which I’ve hastily called the reinvention curse, states that when a video game series reinvents itself with a new iteration and receives widespread acclaim, it is then cursed to attempt to recreate that one title but with worse and worse results. As most do, the clones, sort of speak, become less and less accurate and quality deteriorates. There are several franchise that could fall under this theory but the two best examples, and the ones I’ll be using to describe this theory, are The Legend of Zelda and Resident Evil.

Discussing: Falling Behind The Next Generation

Last week, it was announced that Mortal Kombat X for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 was cancelled. After months of delays, last gen owners won’t be able to play the latest Mortal Kombat game. I was disappointed by this news as I’ve really wanted to play this game but don’t own a PlayStation 4, Xbox One, or a strong enough PC. However, what was worse is this cancellation confirmed something to me I knew may be happening but wasn’t sure it definitely was: I’m officially falling behind.

Discussing: Introduced by Emulation

I wrote a review for Metroid after replaying it recently on my NES. This was the first time I had played through the game in five years or so, when I first got my NES copy. However, the first time I played Metroid was via an NES emulator back in the early 2000s. And not only was it my first time playing the first Metroid, it was my first time playing any Metroid game. It’s the game that got me into the series. After playing it, I got Metroid Fusion and Metroid: First Mission for my GBA and rented Metroid Prime for my GameCube. I didn’t like Prime then but that’s another story that I’ve already told.

Discussing: What is Journalism?

Journalism is a field which has been criticized heavily in recent memory. Whether it’s the validity of the political opinions pundits on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC have to say or the quality of work those in video games journalism do, the question of what these reporters, investigators, anchors, writers, pundits, editors, and interviewers do has come into question, going as far as to even question whether or not what a majority of these people do is even journalism. As someone who considers himself a journalist and aspires to reach a professional level, I understand the frustration that comes from that feeling of being fed bias or incorrect information. I also understand that this will cause anyone to question if the whole premise is even valid. However, I’m also quite offended for not only myself but other likeminded people who respect the work and knows the work that goes into the profession. The idea that we can communicate information to a bigger audience that may be unaware or misinformed is a powerful one. So I thought I would take the time to explain what journalism is, as most people don’t even know.