64 Bit Memories

I thought it would be fun to talk about my memories with the Nintendo 64 and the games that defined it.

The Nintendo 64 

    I remember the year the Nintendo 64 was released.  I was an elementary school student in the 4th grade.  One of my classmates’ parents recently divorced, so they would buy him anything.  Of course, he got a Nintendo 64, and I was hearing all sorts of amazing things about it.  The moment finally arrived when he invited me to spend the night at his dad’s house.  This meant I would get a hands-on look at the new Nintendo 64!  I remember staying awake long after my friend had fallen asleep to play Super Mario 64 by myself.  I would eventually get a Nintendo 64 for Christmas, which was the start of many years of fun for me and my friends.

    Let me go over the main games of which I have the most memories.


Super Mario 64

    The first game I ever played on the N64 was Super Mario 64.  This game was simply amazing.  This was Mario, the ultimate gaming-mascot, in an entirely 3D world!  I had never played anything like this before.  I was mesmerized as soon as I heard Mario speak for the first time.  He said a phrase that would forever be in the minds of gamers:  “it’s-a-me, Mario!”

    I must have spent an hour or so simply running around outside the castle, investigating every little inch of the 3D world.  Eventually finding my way into the castle and into the levels, the most impressive was the first water level.  The music set the atmosphere perfectly as I guided Mario into the water and dived into the mysterious depths of the lake.  It was a bit freaky to see that scary eel that came out and attack you if you got too close.     

Super Mario Kart 64

    I was a huge fan of Mario Kart on the Super Nintendo, so you can imagine my excitement when I got a look at the new Mario Kart game in Nintendo Power magazine.  This game was (and still is) extremely fun. 

    After conquering single player, I’d spend hours racing my friends.  Besides normal racing, there was a battle mode.  There were four levels, but I only enjoyed playing on two of them.  Block Fort was the main level everyone seemed to agree was the most enjoyable.  My friend and I had a habit of shooting as many green shells as possible off the tops of the forts so that if anyone were to go to the lower part of the level, he/she would face an onslaught of green shells ricocheting off walls.  This pretty much guaranteed a heart rate increase if I found myself on the lowest level.



Starfox 64
   

    Another remake from a Super Nintendo game.  I enjoyed the original and was really hyped for this game.  Nintendo made things worse by shipping all Nintendo Power magazine subscribers a VHS featuring a hilarious video promoting StarFox 64.  The video was extremely corny, but one thing that was not was the gameplay footage.  Star Fox 64 looked amazing!  The characters even had voices and would speak frequently throughout the game.  After I got my hands on the game, I think that was the point in which I trained my fingers/hand to be able to push buttons rapidly.  In this game, you needed to be able to react quickly and take out enemy targets.  The game had 3 paths you could take to get to the final level.  I remember having my mind blown once I figured out how to access the hardest path. 
    Starfox 64 was mostly an enjoyable and challenging single player game, but it also had multiplayer.  Unfortunately, the multiplayer was no where near as fun as other Nintendo 64 games.  It felt very incomplete and seemed it was tacked on at the last minute.

Goldeneye

    This was a surprise hit with me.  I wasn’t interested until I heard some classmates talking about it at recess in the 5th grade.  I had never played a first person shooter in my life until that point, so it’s no wonder Goldeneye never caught my eye.  It wasn’t until I heard my classmates describe sneaking around and shooting people that my interest was piqued. 
    The game was already fun enough, but it took on another level of trying to unlock cheats and versus in multiplayer.  My friend and I got so good at this game, that no one else could touch us.  We learned to play with the cheat “fast mode” on so that our characters could move at a much faster speed than default.  This led to much more fast-paced shoot-outs/dodging.  When other friends would try to play us, they were not accustomed to playing in Fast Mode, so they would complain about it and we’d have to go back to normal.  (For the record:  Fast Mode allowed all players to move fast)
    While I loved Goldeneye, my love for it couldn’t compare with my friend.  He was obsessed with with it.  He’d constantly be using a Game Shark (game enhancing/cheat device) to try and hack the game.  It was due to his passion for this game that we both ended up discovering how to play multiplayer on some single-player-only levels.  He also liked to hack the game so he could move around during cutscenes or access areas not normally accessible. 
    It was through Goldeneye that I eventually discovered the movie of the same name which lead me into the world of James Bond and all the other movies. 

The Legend of Zelda:  Ocarina of Time

What more can I say about what many gamers consider the greatest video game ever made?  I had the pleasure of experiencing the first Zelda game on the NES, as well as the often forgotten second game.  It wasn't until Link to the Past for the Super Nintendo that I fell completely in love with the Zelda series.  After finishing that game, I eagerly awaited any news of a sequel.  It wouldn't be until Nintendo announced the Nintendo 64 that news of a new Zelda game would appear.

I remember first seeing/hearing about "Zelda 64" on the Internet back in 1996.  There wasn't much information available, only the tentative title "Zelda 64" and some very tiny thumbnails.

Let me jump to launch day in the US.  It was my first year in middle school.  It was the month of November, and I distinctly remember going with my Mom to Toys "R" Us before noon and asking if they received their copies of Zelda for the N64.  The employee said they didn't receive them yet, but to check back later in the day.  So, with a disappointed sigh, I went back home and probably paced for hours until we went back at 3 or 4 PM.  This time they had it!  They HAD THE NEW ZELDA!  The world's first 3D Zelda game! 

    The box was the collector's edition (I preordered it, of course!) which had a glossy cover and a gold cartridge inside.  This was very similar to how the first Zelda game was released, because it also was a gold cartridge.
    After bringing it home and popping it into my N64, I was taken into another world.  It was the fantasy world of Hyrule.  Link, the main character, starts off in Kokiri forest.  Everything from the graphics to the music and sound effects came together to form this new universe I was entering.
    I definitely agree that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is one of the best video games of all time.  The game's design and spirit are like none other, pulling the player into an epic adventure that perhaps other games can't seem to replicate as well.  Of course, there are other amazing games out there, but I think Ocarina of Time should be somewhere on everyone's top video games list.  It's a masterpiece and should be experienced by everyone.  I'm really glad that Nintendo re-released it for the Nintendo 3DS so that gamers old and new can relive the magic all over again.
   

My top 3 iPhone apps for studying Japanese

I've seen so many sites do top Japanese app lists, but I wanted to write my own and explain my personal picks.  What works for others may not work for me and vice versa.


These are my top 3 iOS app picks for studying Japanese.

Learning Japanese (Free)
This is an amazing grammar application.  If you're familiar with Tae Kim's Grammar guide, this is his guide formatted for the iPhone. You'll never need another grammar book again with this app.

Midori Japanese Dictionary
If you're itching for something beyond the free "Kotoba" dictionary app, this is a step up.  It has all the usual features, but one feature that really stands out to me is the message/text translate feature.  It doesn't do any translation, but it allows me to paste SMS messages or website text and displays the meaning/hiragana of difficult kanji.  

This makes communicating with native Japanese speakers via e-mail or SMS a breeze.  I should also mention that Midori is supported on both the iPhone/iPod Touch and iPad.  So for the price, you can use this app on a range of iOS devices.

StickyStudy: Japanese 
I don't want to bother creating my lists of kanji or vocabulary, I just want an official list of the things I need to study.  StickyStudy: Japanese is great because it's already done this for you.  It's got Kanji by JLPT or grade.  It also includes JLPT vocabulary.   The design is much better than the dozens of other Kanji apps I've purchased, so save your money and just grab this one.

I have yet to see another Japanese-learning-focused website mention this app and I think that's a shame.  The developer is super friendly/responsive and is constantly improving this app. 
Bonus:  iPad support

There's a lite (free) version also available in the app store if you're not ready to commit to the paid version.




Apps that didn't make the cut but might be useful:


AnkiMobile
I don't recommend the Anki app because it has too many options and can get complex.  You don't want to be dealing with this when you're on the go and just want to dive in and study.  (I should mention that the desktop application is fantastic)


Also, the Anki app does not come with any pre-made decks, so you need to download them first on a computer, then sync them to Anki's sync service.  While Anki can be complex, it can also be extremely powerful/useful for those that take the time to fully learn it.

iKanji Touch
This is probably the most beautifully designed Kanji app I've ever seen.  It's got some great features, but there's a tiny something that prevents me from wanting to use this every day.  Can't put my finger on it, but I bet others will enjoy this.

How to practice Japanese writing and get help!

I'm from an area in the US that has nothing remotely close to Asian language classes, much less Japanese.

So, when self-learning, it became really difficult at times to find a way to test out my Japanese. Sure, I could find penpals, but usually they aren't interested in correcting every aspect of your writing and showing you the proper way to write something.

Enter Lang-8.com
This site's concept is fantastic and extremely helpful! You register for a free account and have a journal. In this journal you can write anything you want, no matter the topic or length, in the language you are studying. Other native speakers of your language of study will come by and give you corrections for your writing.

But where do the magic correction fairies come from?
Indeed. They are also studying another language other than their own and rely on the kindness of others to find and correct their mistakes in their journals. It's like one big circle of giving and receiving.

If you haven't tried Lang-8, I truly recommend it.

Link: Lang-8.com

Why I Love DropBox and you should too!

As a freelancer that fixes people's PCs, I felt like I needed to write about DropBox for a bit. DropBox is a must-have service/utility for anyone with a computer.

What is DropBox?
It's 2* Gigabytes of storage online. Why does this matter? Can't you get more storage space from other places? Yes, you can, but none of them work like DropBox.

*=The free service comes with 2 GB. There are paid versions available.

DropBox installs as an application on your computer and it gives you a folder, known as "My DropBox". This allows you to simply drag and drop anything on your computer into the DropBox folder. There will be little icons that appear under the files which will either be blue arrows or a big green check mark. When you're files all have green check marks, that means those files are safely stored on both your machine and a secure online server.


Why DropBox?
One thing students tend to do (I did it many times) is e-mail themselves copies of their projects or work. That's handy in case something happens to their files. But wouldn't it be nice to skip the steps of going to your e-mail application, putting your own address, attaching the file, and sending it? Just writing those steps was too much work!

With DropBox, you simply take all your important data such as documents or projects and drop them in DropBox. They're synced with DropBox's online server and always there in case something happens to your own computer.

When you're not at your own computer, you can log into the DropBox website. If you've just finished working on a project/paper, you can upload your file directly to your DropBox account. Whenever you return to your computer with DropBox installed, that file you uploaded should magically already be there (both on the DropBox server and your own PC).

Why am I talking about DropBox?
Because people often hear that they should "back up" their data and the majority do not. People simply can't be bothered to back up or don't know how. DropBox is the simplest form of back up available. Anyone can do it!

If you don't have DropBox yet, go sign up for a free account! You get 2 GB free and there's no pressure to upgrade to more storage unless you need it. DropBox works on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux operating systems.

Link: Get DropBox

Memoirs of Final Fantasy VII

My 2nd retro article has been approved by RetroJunk.  I'd appreciate a vote if anyone enjoyed the read.

Link:  Memoirs of Final Fantasy VII

Why I Love Opera Mini for iPhone

I was surprised when Apple approved the Opera Mini application for the iPhone/iPod Touch App store.  Everyone thought it would ultimately be rejected due to Apple not wanting apps that mimic the same functionality as core Apple-developed applications already in iPhone OS.

Anyway, all that doesn't matter because Opera Mini is finally here!

I've heard some people say that Opera on the iPhone is not very good and that Apple's Safari is much better.  Great, but I do enjoy choices when it comes to my web browser.  First of all, Opera Mini on the iPhone has a nice "speed dial" feature that allows you to see visually the main sites that you normally visit without having to open up bookmarks every time. 

To be fair, Safari and Opera render sites very differently.  I believe Opera Mini goes through Opera's proxy where it crunches all the sites to be displayed faster with Opera Mini.  Apple's Safari simply downloads and renders websites, resulting in a complete site to browse, but perhaps slower to fully load.

One site I read the most on my iPod Touch is Slashdot.  Reading it in Safari has always been a not-so-great experience.  Sure, the entire site is rendered, but that doesn't make it easier to actually read.  Opera Mini has a feature called "mobile mode" that will reshape the site so that all content will fit within the frame of the browser.  This means no more scrolling left and right to try and read text.  All I have to do is read and keep scrolling down.  One more feature I am still waiting for in both Safari and Opera is screen orientation lock.  I enjoy reading on my side in bed, but Safari and Opera change the screen orientation to landscape when I attempt to read on my side.  This means I have to adjust my reading position in order to accommodate the software.  Isn't that wrong?  Shouldn't software try to accommodate me?

For mainstream users, Safari will be the only browser people will ever bother using; that's fine with me.  There will be more geek-level people wanting more options when they browse on their mobile Apple device.  Opera Mini is for those people.  Although I suppose I should say the more geek-level people are probably more interested in the Android operating system than Apple's iPhone OS.  I've never used Android, so I can't comment on the browser and other options available.

Opera Mini is free and is available in the App store for iPhones and iPod Touches.  And best of all, it's FREE!

Download Link:  Opera Mini

The Future of Virtual Worlds and Blue Mars Online

A Blue Mars Online user recently posted the top 10 things he/she likes about Blue Mars.


I think one of the problems with Blue Mars is that it's not cross platform. It's Windows-only. That's really a big issue for me. I use Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.

I absolutely agree with the person about the annoyance of relying on "streaming" the world the way Second Life handles areas. Offline building and the ability to use other 3D software before importing it into Blue Mars is fantastic.


However, as it stands right now, I believe Second Life can reach more users than Blue Mars. Blue Mars requires even greater hardware than what is needed to run Second Life. It's also only available on Windows.


I'd love to see Blue Mars continue to develop and perhaps some day go cross platform.

Until then, I'll be watching Blue Mars' development with excitement.