Post by Nester the Lark on Nov 16, 2008 15:54:07 GMT -5
3PS Second Anniversary, Part 1
This Wednesday will mark the second anniversary of the 3PS. For the occasion, I'm putting together this 2-part feature.
For this first part, I'm taking a look back at some of the articles I've written and providing some commentary. Think of it like the director's commentary on DVD's. It doesn't cover every 3PS, just the ones I had something to say about.
In Part 2, there's an announcement I have to make. It will go up on Wednesday.
#1 - Rayman Raving Rabbids
My first official write-up for NinDB seemed like an obvious choice at the time. As I recall, my main challenge was trying to write something a little more formal than the "Third Party 'Cube Game of the Week" posts that I had been doing for several months prior, but still retain the loose style. I suppose it set the tone for most of the 3PS's to follow.
#2 - Trauma Center: Under the Knife
This one is primarily notable for the joke at the very end. At the time, I was wondering if the humor was too cheesy or forced. The last thing I wanted was to have it become cringe inducing and resemble the laborious gags that were on X-Play at the time. But Fry liked it. I think the cheese-factor has become ingrained in the 3PS since then.
#4 - Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Here's an example of where I think I came up with a hook that didn't really work. The introductory scenario is awkward and doesn't really fit in with the rest of the write-up.
#10 - Metal Slug Anthology
I think this was one of my funnier features. It got a pretty good reaction back when I first posted it. It's one of my favorites.
#14 - Elebits
Early on, Fry once offered to draw pictures for the 3PS. This was the only time I decided to take him up on it, due to the storybook style of the write-up. But it was a last minute request, and Fry didn't have time to work on it, so nothing ever came of it.
#17 - SSX Blur
This is another one of my favorites. Sometimes when I write a 3PS, I have a certain "voice" in mind that I imagine is narrating it. In this case, it was the in-game announcer, DJ Atomika. I tried to capture his style, and I think I pulled it off.
I love the game, too.
#23 - Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits
I tried to copy the style of the old Konami/Ultra NES game manuals for this one. I had wanted to do one like that for a long time, and it seemed like a good opportunity. I'm not sure I was entirely successful, but I like the way it turned out anyway.
There's also a mistake in this one. I mention that the playfield for games that originally ran on a vertical monitor can be stretched across both DS screens. I don't know where I got that info at, but it's incorrect. I know because I eventually bought the game.
#26 - Resident Evil: Deadly Silence
Fry once brought up the issue that sometimes the gimmick overwhelms the subject in the 3PS. This is a prime example of that! I think it's just about the most gimmicky 3PS I've ever written. It's entertaining, but ultimately, you don't learn too much about the game, itself. I usually ended up doing that when I didn't actually have much to say about the game anyway.
Also, the reference to Mystery Science Theater 3000 is really obvious, but congratulations to anyone that picked up the reference to another, more obscure "bad movie" show.
#28 - Ecco the Dolphin
One of the various ideas that I stowed away for future 3PS's was doing a fake interview. I have no idea what possessed me to use it here, but I think it was just quirky enough to work!
I remember I really wanted Ecco to seem like he had a very extensive vocabulary and use a lot of big words, but I didn't pull it off well as I wanted. I am happy with how articulate he is, however.
Also, the dolphin sounds ("qui, quy, quay") are a reference to StarTropics.
#29 - Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales
I suppose I somewhat unfairly use this 3PS as my whipping boy. It was written back when I was on a strict once-a-week regimen, and it's basically filler. In fact, it's probably the 3PS that made me decided to forego the schedule and just write a feature whenever I felt like it. At the same time, it probably isn't that bad of a game.
And all the bird puns are ridiculous!
#30 - Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
This is one of those 3PS's where I wrote the feature without having played the game, and then later had the chance to play the game. So, I was able to go back and see how accurate my write-up was. As it turns out, I think it was accurate. The beauty of writing gimmicky descriptions rather than actual reviews is that it turns out pretty close.
But more importantly, I just want to apologize for the horrible pun at the end of the article.
#37 - Contra 4
This is another one of my favorites.
The obvious direction I could've taken it in was to recreate the old Konami/Ultra NES manuals, but I already did that with the Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits 3PS. Then I could've made some overly cheesy jokes about how manly it was, and how it makes Chuck Norris look like a sissy, etc., but that would've been too cliché. So, instead I went in the other direction and gave it more serious, foreboding tone. I'm really happy with how it turned out.
#46 - The World Ends With You
I guess the idea for this came from my wanting to do another "interview" style 3PS, but it turned into something a little different. I like it, though. It's unique, and I try not to use the same gimmick twice.
#48 - Boom Blox
Done in the style of clichéd movie trailers, the "voice" I used here was that of the late Don LaFontaine. I think I really sold the gimmick on this one. The review quotes at the end are all real. It was a lot of fun to write!
April Fools 2007 - Virtua Fighter 5
April 1st happened to fall on a Sunday last year, so I took the opportunity to create a fake 3PS #20 that roasted Nintendo and, ultimately, Sony. This was originally meant to be part of a larger gag in which Fry changed NinDB to "SonyDB." It didn't pan out, but we still had this joke 3PS.
The Lost 3PS - Final Fantasy V Advance
I don't think anyone remembers now, but this was the original 3PS #7. However, it was quickly pointed out to me that it was actually published by Nintendo, and at that time, Fry would've included it on NinDB as a second-party game. That made it ineligible for the 3PS, and I quickly retconned it.
But now, Fry is stricter about what he considers appropriate for the NinDB, so it's probably fair game.
This Wednesday will mark the second anniversary of the 3PS. For the occasion, I'm putting together this 2-part feature.
For this first part, I'm taking a look back at some of the articles I've written and providing some commentary. Think of it like the director's commentary on DVD's. It doesn't cover every 3PS, just the ones I had something to say about.
In Part 2, there's an announcement I have to make. It will go up on Wednesday.
#1 - Rayman Raving Rabbids
My first official write-up for NinDB seemed like an obvious choice at the time. As I recall, my main challenge was trying to write something a little more formal than the "Third Party 'Cube Game of the Week" posts that I had been doing for several months prior, but still retain the loose style. I suppose it set the tone for most of the 3PS's to follow.
#2 - Trauma Center: Under the Knife
This one is primarily notable for the joke at the very end. At the time, I was wondering if the humor was too cheesy or forced. The last thing I wanted was to have it become cringe inducing and resemble the laborious gags that were on X-Play at the time. But Fry liked it. I think the cheese-factor has become ingrained in the 3PS since then.
#4 - Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Here's an example of where I think I came up with a hook that didn't really work. The introductory scenario is awkward and doesn't really fit in with the rest of the write-up.
#10 - Metal Slug Anthology
I think this was one of my funnier features. It got a pretty good reaction back when I first posted it. It's one of my favorites.
#14 - Elebits
Early on, Fry once offered to draw pictures for the 3PS. This was the only time I decided to take him up on it, due to the storybook style of the write-up. But it was a last minute request, and Fry didn't have time to work on it, so nothing ever came of it.
#17 - SSX Blur
This is another one of my favorites. Sometimes when I write a 3PS, I have a certain "voice" in mind that I imagine is narrating it. In this case, it was the in-game announcer, DJ Atomika. I tried to capture his style, and I think I pulled it off.
I love the game, too.
#23 - Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits
I tried to copy the style of the old Konami/Ultra NES game manuals for this one. I had wanted to do one like that for a long time, and it seemed like a good opportunity. I'm not sure I was entirely successful, but I like the way it turned out anyway.
There's also a mistake in this one. I mention that the playfield for games that originally ran on a vertical monitor can be stretched across both DS screens. I don't know where I got that info at, but it's incorrect. I know because I eventually bought the game.
#26 - Resident Evil: Deadly Silence
Fry once brought up the issue that sometimes the gimmick overwhelms the subject in the 3PS. This is a prime example of that! I think it's just about the most gimmicky 3PS I've ever written. It's entertaining, but ultimately, you don't learn too much about the game, itself. I usually ended up doing that when I didn't actually have much to say about the game anyway.
Also, the reference to Mystery Science Theater 3000 is really obvious, but congratulations to anyone that picked up the reference to another, more obscure "bad movie" show.
#28 - Ecco the Dolphin
One of the various ideas that I stowed away for future 3PS's was doing a fake interview. I have no idea what possessed me to use it here, but I think it was just quirky enough to work!
I remember I really wanted Ecco to seem like he had a very extensive vocabulary and use a lot of big words, but I didn't pull it off well as I wanted. I am happy with how articulate he is, however.
Also, the dolphin sounds ("qui, quy, quay") are a reference to StarTropics.
#29 - Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales
I suppose I somewhat unfairly use this 3PS as my whipping boy. It was written back when I was on a strict once-a-week regimen, and it's basically filler. In fact, it's probably the 3PS that made me decided to forego the schedule and just write a feature whenever I felt like it. At the same time, it probably isn't that bad of a game.
And all the bird puns are ridiculous!
#30 - Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
This is one of those 3PS's where I wrote the feature without having played the game, and then later had the chance to play the game. So, I was able to go back and see how accurate my write-up was. As it turns out, I think it was accurate. The beauty of writing gimmicky descriptions rather than actual reviews is that it turns out pretty close.
But more importantly, I just want to apologize for the horrible pun at the end of the article.
#37 - Contra 4
This is another one of my favorites.
The obvious direction I could've taken it in was to recreate the old Konami/Ultra NES manuals, but I already did that with the Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits 3PS. Then I could've made some overly cheesy jokes about how manly it was, and how it makes Chuck Norris look like a sissy, etc., but that would've been too cliché. So, instead I went in the other direction and gave it more serious, foreboding tone. I'm really happy with how it turned out.
#46 - The World Ends With You
I guess the idea for this came from my wanting to do another "interview" style 3PS, but it turned into something a little different. I like it, though. It's unique, and I try not to use the same gimmick twice.
#48 - Boom Blox
Done in the style of clichéd movie trailers, the "voice" I used here was that of the late Don LaFontaine. I think I really sold the gimmick on this one. The review quotes at the end are all real. It was a lot of fun to write!
April Fools 2007 - Virtua Fighter 5
April 1st happened to fall on a Sunday last year, so I took the opportunity to create a fake 3PS #20 that roasted Nintendo and, ultimately, Sony. This was originally meant to be part of a larger gag in which Fry changed NinDB to "SonyDB." It didn't pan out, but we still had this joke 3PS.
The Lost 3PS - Final Fantasy V Advance
I don't think anyone remembers now, but this was the original 3PS #7. However, it was quickly pointed out to me that it was actually published by Nintendo, and at that time, Fry would've included it on NinDB as a second-party game. That made it ineligible for the 3PS, and I quickly retconned it.
But now, Fry is stricter about what he considers appropriate for the NinDB, so it's probably fair game.
