Pokemon News - The Acid Rain Glitch

Yet another quick update - the new hot topic in Competitive Battling in Platinum is the weather glitch being called "acid rain," a field weather effect that causes every weather effect to trigger between turns and doing damage to each Pokemon.

The glitch was discovered in the Japanese release of the game months ago, but has undergone some serious testing since its discovery.

The glitch works like this: after a weather condition has been set up, by attack or automatically through a Pokemon's ability, a player's Pokemon is knocked out by using Pursuit when said Pokemon switches out (ex: Player one brings out Tyranitar against Starmie, triggering Sandstorm with Tyranitar's Sand Stream ability. Starmie's controller switches it out while Tyranitar's controller selects Pursuit as his attack. Starmie goes to switch, causing Pursuit to attack first and knock it out). The knocked out player switches in a new Pokemon and, from that point on, Rain, Sun, Hail and Sand weather conditions trigger (not sure of the order, bro), each causing Pokemon to take damage as though it were Hail or Sand (and causing some Pokemon to recover HP depending on weather condition).

Apparently other field effects, such as Gravity or Trick Room, can also trigger the glitch. A research thread detailing every known aspect of the glitch can be found on Smogon's forums.

One interesting effect of the glitch is that it causes an infinite loop for Weather-transformative Pokemon like Castform, effectively drawing the match as neither player can continue battling.

Research has not shown whether this will have any effect on the 2009 Pokemon Championship Qualifiers, though it is possible Pursuit has no such effect in double battles, the format for the championship.

A video of the glitch showing up in the English Platinum game can be seen here.

Quick update: Wiihab

Dr. Bruce Battles, who still has the coolest name of any researcher I've ever talked to, took some time to talk to me for a feature piece I'm writing. Battles' has finished his first study with "Wiihab," using the Wii to aid in physical rehabilitation and actually, you know, get fit.

Battles let a number of patients at Western Kentucky University's Brain Trauma unit use Wii Sports (he specifically mentioned bowling, but there was no word on whether any other programs were used) to help the injured individuals help regain gross motor and socialization skills. And the final word? It worked.

Battles says that while Wiihab does not replace traditional therapy for trauma patients, it is a good supplement to their regular workouts, making the repetitive tasks involved in regaining motor functions fun. Additionally, the multiplayer aspects of the Wii allow individuals who've had this brain damage to recover social skills lost in their respective accidents, putting (and pitting) patients together in a shared experience on the Nintendo system.

Battles' first study was successful enough to spawn a second spin-off study, this time using the Wii Fit in addition to Wii Sports to test balance and other functions.

The doctor has not yet finished his article on the first study, but says it should be ready in early-to-mid April. If so, he should be the first person to report statistically relevant results with the Wii in rehabilitation.

Really quick post. It's about Platinum. Oh joy.

One major problem I've noticed in-game so far: lag.

In Eterna Forest and Hearthome City, trying to run places causes the game to randomly start dropping in frame rates and slowing down pretty frequently (this is especially true in Hearthome).

I haven't really noticed the effect if you avoid running/increasing your movement frames and the effect isn't too crazy (though this makes leveling in Eterna Forest while walking around with Cheryl much more difficult).

While it's clear Hearthome's new "there are like 800 moving objects on screen at the same time" is detrimental to the frame rate, I'm not sure if Eterna Forest's drop is due to the new "canopy" effect with shadows and breaks for sunlight on the forest floor or if the effect is due to you dragging two bodies around instead of one (coupled with the new visual effects). I guess I'll have an update the next time I'm partnered with another trainer.

Other than that, my progress has stifled in-game due to OCD with completing my Pokedex as well as GRINDAN/power leveling my team between gyms.

Just a heads up for those of you still unsure about buying the game or who've had even less time to play than I have. Kind of mad at myself for not reporting this sooner.

Rockefeller Plaza Poke-Invasion

Saturday, March 21 was quite a day for Rockefeller Center's Nintendo World Store.

Patrons were lined up around the block, most all with DSes in hand, many dressed up as or carrying Pokemon characters, in anticipation of the prerelease of the latest game in the Pokemon series, Pokemon Platinum.

The store opened an hour early, 11 A.M., to a massive crowd. Employees tried to bottle-neck traffic to the store by allowing only ten people at a time to enter to reduce congestion throughout the store, though, to be honest, moving around was a difficult task.

The first floor was decked out, as it always is, with mountains of Pokemon merchandise. The merchandise was then surrounded with Pokemon Platinum related paraphernalia, such as standees of the male and female game protagonists, lots of posters and cut-outs (and masks!) of Giratina, the focal Pokemon of the game and promotional back packs, masks and other items related the game's release.

In addition to the giveaways of promotional items, customers purchasing the game were randomly selected to win copies of the game autographed by Game Producer Junichi Masuda and Game Director Takeshi Kawachimaru to enthusiastic shouts and ringing cowbells.

If the crowd and employees weren't enough excitement, the outdoor set-up was just more icing on the cake.

A play area, including ball pit, carnival games, demo stations of the new game, a live stage where young Pokefans could play games, dance and answer trivia questions and a bean-bag chair area with a screening of the new Pokemon movie "Giratina and the Sky Warrior" for patrons. Mascots of DPP starter Pokemon Piplup and Chimchar were walking around to greet fans and take pictures, while various inflatable Pokemon were spotted throughout the fenced-off courtyard.

Oh, and the game's official release date was only one day later.

The massive fan support is just a very slight sign of Pokemon's still massive popularity for all ages, parents, children and those teens who happened to grow up with the gaming phenomenon.

Platinum Release Party: AVAST!

March 21st, aka this Saturday, at Nintendo World in Rockefeller Plaza, NYC, Noon-4. Get ready. It's a party.

Nintendo's celebrating the overly-anticipated (to me, anyway) release of Pokemon Platinum in style with a release party, with giveaways, signings, costumes and, best of all, selling the newest release in the Pokemon series a day early.

Information is available on Pokemon.com, but the real treat is the fact that I'm going and you get to see me. No, just kidding, it's the Pokemon. You guys can see me fanboy over Pokemon like the ridiculous man-child I am. I will demand battles from everyone. No one is safe.

The lost world of the portable console.

While I was growing up, there was one thing that still had some level of "in vogue" to it before the world of portable gaming became sexy... before anything could really be described as "portable."

Yeah, you had Game Boy Color to play your Kirby, Mario, Tetris and Pokemon on and not long after was the Gameboy Advance.

The real unsung gem of that era, however, was the Sega Nomad, what boiled down to a handheld Sega Genesis system that ran off of wall outlets, 6 AA batteries, a car charger and probably other potential power sources. Ignore for a second that it consumed these batteries en masse like it was some sort of device made to consume batteries (and that rechargable battery technology was nowhere near perfection), it was a system you could play any "Sega" game on anywhere. And when you were, say, at a family friend's shorehouse and didn't have the gual to bring your whole system with you, you could hook the Nomad up to the TV and play on the big boy screen. The box even had a second controller port for second players if you so desired.

More recently (though none too recent), Sony released the PSone, a smaller, white, extremely compact Playstation system*. What's more, the system was prepackaged with a fold-up LCD screen, allowing you to plug the system into wall ports in an airport or use a cigarette charger to power you on the fly for a FF9 (because FF7 and 8 are awful games and you should be ashamed for liking them) speed run on a long family car ride across the country.

Now we have behemoths like the PS3 and Xbox360 (and motion sensitive Wii; good luck playing that in the back of an Oldsmobile). We have the Nintendo DS, PSP and iPhone as compact, pocket size, non-cirgarette lighter-charged systems that are almost on par with (even at times outstripping) PS1 graphics. We also have mods to let you play games like Sonic 3 and Knuckles and FF7 on the fly.

So what happened here? Nomad was poorly marketed and released at a time when the Genesis was ending its lifecycle, but the PSone was around well into the age of the PS2 and other last-gen systems, even offering a lower price tag to keep it competitively priced and well-moved from shelves. One was a potential success marred by timing issues, the other a success despite timing. We cannot get "current gen" specs running on a DS. And while we have laptops, there's a lot to be said for controlling Dante on a touchpad.

We're in an age of behemoths and little gnomes that fit in your pocket, but it seems there's no space open for something in between. I remember the fun, but maybe I'm one of the few who do, when systems like the Nomad only sold 1 million units (total).

*Special note: mine did not have a phone.

I didn't hear anything about a recession.

A TMNG projection says the video games industry will hit $40 billion by the year 2012.

The assessment claims that mobile platform gaming will be bringing major money over to the industry, such as through iPhone apps and the like.

In a statement taken from a Boston Globe article on the analysis:

"The expansion of casual games, simpler user interfaces and the proliferation of innovative business models is broadening the gamer demographic. The timing is ripe for service providers to hedge the business cycle."

In short: casual gaming, particularly through mobile phones or anything that can be played quickly via broadband (be it Peggle or Brawl).

So what does this mean for you? Numbers say ~50% of gamers a girls, most are around 33 years-old and, as I reported way back, mobile gaming's stake in the market is growing. Does this mean "more expensive" platforms like the DS and PSP are going to go out of fashion for iPhone apps store downloads? Probably not. But it does mean that gaming is going to cater less towards sitting down for hours and make way for a more on-the-fly experience.

A video from moviebob (THE GAME OVERTHINKER ZOMG) shows a possible third way for gaming to go, though this seems like more of a "full game" experience rather than the portable craze way. The "idea" posits a game that turns into a movie, similar to the failed Alone in the Dark remake, which allowed you to "skip scenes" and go to whichever level you like.

Casuals who can't beat Dante Must Die mode get their full game "experience," while the hardcore set gets the gaming experience. Yeah, you should just watch the video for this one.

...And now I twitter.

Sup' dawg. I heard you liked Twitter so I linked to my Twitter so you can see me Twitter while you Twitter.

In case you don't click links, thiscoolirl is my Twitter name. Hopefully I can use it for something useful. Or not. I'll try not to be an awful Twitterer since I really don't like the concept of Twitter in the abstract.

3 new posts on Vidya Gaem forthcoming! :D

Parents mad about MadWorld.

I'm on a roll with these titles.

So everyone apparently forgot about the over-the-top sexual, profane and violent antics of my lord and savior Travis Touchdown as Sega's "MadWorld" has raised some ire in parents groups in the U.S.

Apparently missing the "M" rating on the game, the game is being condemned for its blood-bath heavy gameplay, according to a New York Daily News article.

MadWorld is a Wii (obv) game where you control mechanic and former marine "Jack" who has inadvertently replaced one of his arms with a chainsaw. The game is in black and white with the only color to the game coming from rampant bloodspatter as you hack your way through a group of terrorists who have turned your town into a murder-themed game show.

MadWorld is not the first M-rated title for the Wii (in fact, a fast Google search shows there are 14 reaaaalllly old games that make that cut), I guess you could argue ads for it showed up on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim late night programming lineup, but I don't buy that for one second. There are tons more M-titles with much less "THIS IS OBVIOUSLY FANTASY VIOLENCE LOL" in their character than the Tarintino-esq MadWorld. Looks like parents groups don't have much to complain about these days. Or it's a slow news day for the Daily News.

Thanks, /v/. You're my only friend sometimes.

"RICK SANCHEZ HATES RAPELAY, WHY DON'T YOU?" was how a /v/, 4chan's Video Game board, started early evening tonight.

Thinking I was well past reporting based on "what was hot on /v/" with my old blog, it doesn't help when the rage-hordes happen to resonate with a note I just happened to have reported on. Well, I mean, when a group of screaming anonymous internet people happen to say what would be considered reasonable counter-arguments to the overwhelming hate this game is getting in press lately.

An early post in the thread (I'd link to it, but in any likelihood it'll be gone before you read this):

"I hate the public outrage over this game. It fucking comes out years in the past and nobody cares. Amazon carries it briefly and suddenly a wave of butthurt feminists catches on, causing other people to catch on. Murder is commonplace but rape causes a stir? I can cut off people's limbs while they cry until they bleed out. I put my dick in a woman who doesn't want it and suddenly there's a news story. The jackass has no experience in video games, so he still thinks that games are all for children. WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE'S MATURE THEMES IN VIDEO GAMES? Not to mention this game is impossible to buy without importing it from Japan, which a parent would need to be involved in.

What's next, a call to ban Custer's Revenge? That's a game about rape. Hell, it's even racist on top of that."

It's true. Video games have evolved well past being merely childrens' toys. This is as true now as it was when Mortal Kombat stopped being a news item and it took violent snuff fantasies being sold at stores like GameStop for people to even get more than half a rise out of extremity in video games. The medium has different demographics now, just as any film or brand of literature (or website, for that matter).

It doesn't help those outraged that the game is rated Adults Only and can only be made available through import.

I really hope Rick Sanchez is an epic troll of some form, because half of the content of the blog entry is not only filled with double standards for other graphic and adult themes in video games, but doesn't take the time to identify what "folger" content is. Maybe a hot-coffee mod for the game already laiden with sex?

edit: Hopefully my comment makes it to prime time on his blog-
This entry ignores several important things that need to be accounted for in video games:
1. The medium has moved past being for "children only." This isn't even just for extreme cases like "Manhunt" or "RapeLay," I mean both in content AND thematic nature. Games like Metal Gear Solid, Gears of War, or even these extreme cases are rated for Adults to play and for good reason.

2. The game is available only through import. You cannot find it sitting in the back of a GameStop or Best Buy. It is not going to magically jump into childrens' hands, nor is it even readily available without considerable searching on the part of the intended buyer (especially after its Amazon.com recall).

3. The game is fantasy. Games, by nature, are fantasy. Fantasy. Not real. As awesome as shooting people in the head with a sniper rifle is in any number of console and computer shooter titles, no reasonable person uses this as an excuse to buy a gun and go for an Ultra-Kill high score. The same is true of this game. While I'm sure some people have sexual "rape-fetishes" (you can google it. I will guarantee hits for it), no reasonable person acts out the fantasy in a fantasy setting and then says, "Wow, that was great. You know what would be better? If I went out on the street right now and raped the first girl I saw."

4. Placing any kind of ban or legislation against a GAME NOT EVEN READILY AVAILABLE ON US SOIL BECAUSE IT IS NOT MADE OR SOLD IN THE US is a tremendous double standard when the video games industry is already ripe with other "socially unacceptable" content that is not or is no longer questioned with more than passing concern.

Is showing a graphic depiction of some guy's head getting blown off repeatedly better than poorly rendered digital non-consensual sex? Probably not, when we take two seconds to consider neither is a desirable thing to do publicly but really no one else's business when acted out in a fantasy setting in the privacy of our homes.

More PR Struggle for Games Industry... also, btw, RE5 comes out tomorrow.

In a bout of responsible advertising, a British ad depicting a child holding a video game controller with the giant text "RISK AN EARLY DEATH, JUST DO NOTHING" was released by the Change4Life campaign.

The ad is one of many, both in print and other media, released by the group, including an television ad showing a child playing video games and getting fatter over the course of the ad.

According to a cnet article on the media blitz, major companies have said nothing on ad-attacks. Whether this means that they are not threatened, have not otherwise been affected, or simply agree with the ads is left unsaid.

The column also points out other attacks made against the games industry with little complaint from them.

This, of course, at a time when gaming is hitting its largest and widest audience in history thanks to the likes of non-gamers taking part in the gaming world (woo who, Wii and Brain Age). But Don Reisinger raises a great point, when will the video game industry start fighting back? Countless studies (JUST CHECK THIS BLOG ROFFLECOPTERS) show that video games aren't all bad news and obviously anything taken to excess will have a detrimental effect. Why should a mud-slinging campaign be allowed to fly when all it does is show the extreme (and not even an accurate portrayal of the extreme side of things, thanks MMORPGS) effects of prolonged, uninterrupted video game use? Why this when there are so many more harmful first-party pressures that can have detrimental effects on a child's life, do we need to first cast blame at what may even serve as an escape from these problems?

Also, in case you're still reading, Resident Evil 5 comes out tomorrow. I won't have a copy because I didn't pre-order the game, but I hope reviews point in either direction for quality- either that it's over the top awesome or a simple rehash of RE4 but in Africa and now you have some spicy ethnic chick as your partner. I'd hope for the former, as this past year and some months have suffered deeply from "Rehashing or Poor-quality Sequel-itis."

Steam has made an art.

I'm not too huge on defining "art" so don't hate me for talking about this... I mean, I got the report from /v/.

Steam, Valve's video game downloading service (the same one you use to download content for Half-Life2 and Team Fortress 2), has a new game on the menu... well, it's not really a game, per say. More like an interactive "painting" than a game. Or an interactive Sundance short.

According to the Steam page, "The Graveyard is a very short computer game. You play an old lady who visits a graveyard. You walk around, sit on a bench and listen to a song... The full version of the game is exactly the same as the trial, except, every time you play she may die."

It's nice that Valve and video gaming in general is trying to go for "something more," but for about the same price, you can get iPhone game downloads or even something for your virtual console on various current-gen systems. And given the choice between watching an old woman die and playing Megaman 9, I think the choice is obvious.

The download is $4.99 through Steam if you want to give it a try. If you have $5 to spare and are willing to give a thumbs up to possible future projects of the same sort, give it a try. I'm sure you've wasted more on lesser experiences.

Who gets to be Ringo?

You must admit you've had fantasies of being a Beatle.

The Beatles - Rock Band has been announced through it's publisher, MTV. While the link is to what boils down to a press release, the concept of "Rock Band" and "The Beatles" should not be too abstract for you to grasp: you play plastic instruments to the tune of Beatles songs in what is likely to be a dorm or basement setting with a group of friends, gathering Star Power, wailing out solos and possibly smashing your expensive toy guitar peripheral through your TV after achieving 100% on "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."

Important stuff:
"Available on 9/9/09:

• The Beatles: Rock Band Software - Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $59.99 MSRP
• The Beatles: Rock Band Standalone Guitars - Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $99.99 MSRP
• The Beatles: Rock Band Limited Edition Premium Bundle: Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $249.99 MSRP"

To be fair, I'll buy ten if there's an unlockable Blue Meanie character skin.

Regigigas and neat Pokemon Platinum News

I am sure you're tired of my harping on Pokemon. Big whoop, wanna fight about it?

This Sunday, March 8, you too can get your very own Level 100 Event Regigigas at any U.S. or Puerto Rican Toys R Us! Wow!Regigigas is a legendary Pokemon regularly available in your Diamond and Pearl game cart, so why bother? This Regigigas unlocks an in-game Platinum event that allows you to capture the Regi-trio (Regice, Registeel and Regirock), similar to how the Shaymin event several weeks ago allows you to unlock Shaymin's Sky Forme when traded to the unreleased game.The event lasts until March 21st, the day before Platinum is released, so if you're reeling from daylight savings March 8, it's no big deal.From a battling perspective, Regigigas is kind of awful; it has an ability that halves its attack and speed. While its stats allow it to be very bulky (its HP and defenses are wonderful), waiting 5 turns to be a useful attacker is no small feat for even the bulkiest Pokemon. The Regi-trio, however, all make rather good walls or tanks (walling is a defensive play while taking involves taking damage and then being able to dish it out in turn).
In Soviet Russia, Regi-trio unlocks Regigigas. Pokemon.com has all the info you need to know before the event!

More violence, more problems

According to a joint U.S.-Dutch study, as reported in the Chicago Tribune, the more warnings and restrictions you put on a game's package, the more a minor is going to want to play it.

The study took 310 Dutch children aged 7-17 and handed them game descriptions with varying degrees of violence and the like in each summary. Participants were asked to rate how much they wanted to play the game and, as a result, the games with the most graphic content were rated highest.

The piece also cites a similar effect with television and movies.

The study should not be very surprising: sex and violence always sell! However, the study SHOULD be a good basis for how to advertise adult-themed games, cut down on all the factors that make it attractive. Or, at the very least, tone down the description of what less-than-wholesome activities you can do in-game.

With the constant legislative struggle with video games (and recent "can't not sell to minors, row row fight the power against what games can be sold in the U.S.") media string, studies like this really reinforce what everyone should already know- sex and violence sell, but if you don't want to sell them based on those merits... don't make them focal.

I'm not an advertising guy (at least not for video games), so I don't know how the video game industry and keeping kids safe from a controlled fantasy violent setting go hand-in-hand. I know showering blood and gore on the cover of your packaging is appealing, though, and not just to 7-17 year olds.