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Mike: @usagi704 | Domain of Usagi704

Hart & Usagi #79: Thanks a lot, Microsoft!

Posted by HartKnight on January 11, 2017

podcast79

Episode 79 of the Hart & Usagi Podcast is here! We chat about a variety of topics like the Scalebound cancellation, our playthrough of Shadow of the Colossus, quality of Nintendo’s Virtual Console service over the years, and more.

Enjoy and remember to subscribe via RSS or iTunes and follow the Hart & Usagi Podcast on Twitter!

NEWS:
* Recent games played
* Microsoft Cancelling Platinum Games’ Xbox One Exclusive, Scalebound
* Yakuza: Kiyami, Yakuza 6 announced
* First Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite Gameplay Trailer Shows Power of Infinity Stones
* Parappa, Wipeout, Crash Bandicoot Getting PS4 Upgrades
* Nintendo Switch Will Play GameCube Games via Virtual Console [Report]
* Hackers Crack the NES Mini To Add More Games Via USB
* Ex-SNK Devs Develop New Fighting Game for… Super Nintendo
* The King of Fighters XIV Holiday Promo and Graphical Update Announced
* Double Dragon 4’s Gameplay Looks Unbelievably Old School
* Beyond the NES Classic Edition: Super NES, Genesis, And More
* Game-Rave TV Ep. 81 & 82: PlayStation Classic Console – Part 1 & Part 2

Listen or Download (1:32:38)

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Mike: @usagi704 | Domain of Usagi704

NEWS:
* Last Chance to Play Uncharted 4’s Closed Beta, “No Plans” for Open Beta
* DariusBurst Chronicles Saviours PS4 Review: Taking it Back to the Old School
* Street Fighter’s Akuma Joins Tekken 7 Roster
* Street Fighter V Changes Made “Internally” To Reach Larger Audience
* Street Fighter 5’s Final Launch Character and DLC Fighters Revealed
* Former FCC commissioner drags ISIS into net neutrality fight
* PlayStation 2 on PlayStation 4: The Good, the Bad, the Plain Ol’ Ugly
* Max Payne Rated for PlayStation 4
* These Eight PS2 Games Are Coming to PS4 Tomorrow With 1080p Graphics
* Yakuza 0 Will Get A Physical Release In The West!
* How Dare You Criticize Fallout 4 Jeff Gerstmann!
* Onimusha Meets Dark Souls in Team Ninja’s New PS4 Action Game
* Uncharted 4 Has Branching Dialogue Options in Some Parts

RE: E3 2016 Reactions

Posted by HartKnight on June 20, 2016

re-e3-2016-reactions

Below are my thoughts on @ebbderelict’s “E3 2016 Reactions” blog post.

• I own a number of Spider-Man games, but I’ve only really played Ultimate. Of course, Insomniac helming this new entry does seem promising.
• So much VR talk these days. It’s like the days of motion controls and stereoscopic 3D in gaming. I feel the need to be against it simply because it feels like it’s being forced on me. Utter crap, I say.
• I only played a little bit of the first Resident Evil. Despite that I have an appreciation of that game because of how much of an impact it had on the industry. I haven’t had any interest beyond that.
• I’m the same. I just want to read reviews of The Last Guardian. There’s nothing more they can really show.
• As I mentioned on the podcast, I don’t understand exactly how the Crash Bandicoot games can be legit remasters. You’d think it’d look particularly bad at a higher resolution than the original game releases. I’m fine with being proven wrong, but it feels simply like too much like a Halo Anniversary style of “remaster.”

Video Game Deals

Posted by HartKnight on April 27, 2016

Hi, there folks. I’ve new purchases to speak of and movies I’ve since watched in the last week.

The Hunt for Red October is a thriller of a film with Sean Connery as a defecting Russian sub captain. It’s probably the only time I really liked a Tom Clancy book come to the silver screen. The next, as voted on by my followers via Twitter, was The Deer Hunter. Sadly, I didn’t get more than an hour into this one. It just didn’t hold my attention and, at the length of three hours, I felt it was too long so I moved onto the next vote. This one was Ghost from 1990. Regardless of the main stars on the poster, Whoopi Goldberg’s character interacting with the ghost of Patrick Swayze’s character is played seriously, but ends up fairly goofy. It was hilarious to watch.

The next two films to vote on are Zoolander (2001) and Sicario (2015). You can vote in the comments section below, if you wish.

Onto video game purchases:

A controller I had seen from Capcom was advertised back in the ’90s with the Super Nintendo and Genesis port of Super Street Fighter II. It’s called the Capcom Pad Soldier. Its design is quite odd. After remembering it all these years later, I wanted to try it out so I purchased a used one from eStarland. The buttons are at an odd angle for use of your thumb, though it’s doable. It’s at that angle to suggest the use of your fingers instead. It’s quite the unique experience that I can see using on a SNES, but Sega’s 6-button controller on the Genesis is more than adequate.

capcom-pad-soldier-snes

Usagi704 on Twitter said:

“I just told @hartknight #Yakuza5 is 40% off and he immediately rushes back where he came from to make the purchase! heh”

This is true and exactly what I did. As soon as he told me about the sale on Yakuza 5 I was like “Oooohhhhhh!,” turned around, and took advantage on said PSN offer.

yakuza5-psn

Also, speaking of offers I took advantage of, I had major discounts available to me at the nearby Meijer. I took them up on a $30 off Assassin’s Creed Syndicate digital coupon, 20% off GM employee coupon, and the regular 10% employee discount. This got me three PlayStation 4 titles: Batman: Arkham Knight, Bloodborne, and the previously mentioned AC game.

bloodborne-batmanak-acs

I’m sure it won’t be difficult to find co-op buddies for Bloodborne in the future once I’m ready to Game On once again.

A Hart of Gold

Posted by HartKnight on January 19, 2016

The first new buys of the new year are here. I have four movies, one game, and one wrestling product.

First up is the game, DmC: Devil May Cry. This is the Definitive Edition on the PlayStation 4. I do have the original version of the game on PS3, but I was happy to hear mainly about the when wrong colored weapon is used on the opposite colored enemy that the strike still hits instead of deflecting off. The trade off of smoother combat in this aspect was to make the wrong colored weapon just do less damage and also doesn’t stagger the enemy. I’ll admit it’s an odd top reason to get this version over the better reasons of a higher resolution and all of the DLC, but there you have it.

Onto the four movies.

The first two are the dumb fun ones: Terminator: Genisys and The Scorpion King. The smart action film is the obvious one: Mad Max: Fury Road. Lastly, I picked up Good Will Hunting on a whim for $6. I always heard it was good. Now to find out if I like it.

I don’t follow WWE’s home video releases closely anymore so I was caught by surprise that a double disc set was released focusing on Owen Hart entitled, “Owen: Hart of Gold.” It was full price, but I figured it wasn’t a big deal since I don’t buy Blu-rays at that rate on a regular basis. I’ve watched most of it and for someone who’s seen most of Owen’s matches it was still worth it. I’m not totally sure how to go about recommending this set to a newer wrestling fan who hasn’t seen much of these matches. It feels like something that was made with more of the older fan in mind who’s already familiar with the man.

Hart & Usagi #73: Yakuza Zeroes In

Posted by HartKnight on December 21, 2015

podcast73

In this new episode of the Hart & Usagi Podcast we talk much about the Yakuza series and specifically the North American release of the 5th game and about the announcement of Yakuza 0. We also touch on Street Fighter V, Tekken 7, Uncharted 4, and more!

Enjoy and remember to subscribe via RSS or iTunes and follow the Hart & Usagi Podcast on Twitter!

Listen or Download (1:19:10)

Subscribe: RSS | iTunes

Mike: @usagi704 | Domain of Usagi704

NEWS:
* YouTube Launching Stronger Fair Use Protection Measures
* PS2 Emulation Confirmed For PS4
* The Man Responsible For Sega’s Blast Processing Gimmick Is Sorry For Creating “That Ghastly Phrase”
* Dark Souls 3 Interview: “It Wouldn’t Be Right to Continue Creating Souls”
* You can fight Majima anywhere in the world in the Yakuza remake
* New Onimusha Trademark Registered By Capcom
* Report: New Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Game Leaked, Bayonetta 2 Studio Developing

Hart & Usagi #72: TMNT Goes Platinum

Posted by HartKnight on December 2, 2015

podcast72

In this new episode of the Hart & Usagi Podcast we talk about PlayStation 2 emulation on PlayStation 4, the ghastly phrase “Blast Processing”, YouTube’s Fair Use protections, and a Black Friday rant among other topics.

Enjoy and remember to subscribe via RSS or iTunes and follow the Hart & Usagi Podcast on Twitter!

Listen or Download (1:07:22)

Subscribe: RSS | iTunes

Mike: @usagi704 | Domain of Usagi704