CM30 on September 1, 2016
Recently, a bit of controversy has started up about YouTube’s new ‘advertiser friendly content’ rules. Basically, they’re a list of things that are seen as ‘inappropriate’ for monetisation.
They’re bad. Bad enough that just about every big channel on the site has complained about them and said that enforcing them will kill YouTube. Seriously, Gaijin Goomba may have said it best here:
But while they’re bad for most people in general, the rules are worst for one specific group above all others. Namely, gamers and gaming fans in general.
Why is this?
Because by definition, they make it a risk to post gaming content on YouTube.
This is because every one of these points is dangerous for gaming videos. For example, take the point about ‘sexually suggestive’ content. The one about ‘partial nudity’ and ‘sexual humour’. What can that easily describe?
Oh wait, a lot of video games. Dead or Alive is the obvious one, and the VR demo footage makes this even more apparent. As is the entire Leisure Suit Larry series, or any other gaming franchises that focus around adult humour and a character spending the entire game trying to get laid. And that’s just the start of it. What about games like GTA, where some games are shown in a sexual way in some situations (like say, the strip clubs)? How about a typical racing game where attractive women are shown next to the cars at the start or end of the race? The list just goes on and on.
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With Mario & Sonic being such a success, lots of people have wondered whether a proper crossover game starring the duo could work out. As in, a 2D or 3D platformer which mixes both franchises and their gameplay styles.
And well, there’s been a lot of disagreement here. Some people say they could work, and point to games like Mushroom Kingdom Fusion as proof. Some say they couldn’t, with the gameplay styles just being too different. And I’ve even seen a few folks claim it’d only work in 2D. As if 2D Mario and 2D Sonic were compatible, but 3D Mario and 3D Sonic work.
But let’s look at it rationally; could a Mario & Sonic action game really work?
On a story level, there aren’t many reasons it wouldn’t. Remember, Bowser and Eggman have always teamed up in the Mario & Sonic titles. And strangely enough, they’ve mostly got on pretty well. I mean sure, that might not last out for forty hours or so, but damn, they’ve been aggressive to each other than Bowser and his paper counterpart. And stabbed each other in the back less than Bowser did to Antasma.
Add Mario and Sonic (who seem to be on better terms on a personal level than their companies were in the 16 bit era), and a simple ‘heroes vs villains’ setup would work fine for a crossover like this. Heck, the two bad guys even both like running their own theme parks!
But could it work gameplay wise?. Because as some people have pointed out, the gameplay in the Mario series and Sonic series is... fairly different. Mario’s gameplay is slower paced and focused more on careful platforming and exploration, Sonic’s is about high speed and platforming requiring good reflexes.
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Earlier today, the 2016 Rio Olympics officially ended. The next one will be the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
And as is the norm for the Olympics, the new host nation creates part of the closing ceremony for the last one.
So what did Japan use to celebrate the handover for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics?
Why, Nintendo of course! And so Mario appeared in the closing ceremony, creating a warp pipe from Tokyo to Rio as a shortcut. After arriving, he then got replaced by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who appeared in the stadium with a Mario hat and basketball!
Here’s a video of the event courtesy of YonceeKnowles on Tumblr:
That’s pretty good for Nintendo, I must say. I mean, to get free advertising during one of the biggest events in the world? That’s saying a lot about how much you’ve contributed to society with Mario and your other well known characters.
So you should try not to waste it. Release a new mobile app akin to Pokemon GO, except based around another popular series. Make the Mario & Sonic game for this Olympics as good as it could be. You’ve got an ad others would die for; don’t waste it.
Do you fancy yourself a video game journalist? Have a game or gaming event you really wish to give your opinion on, but have nowhere to post it? Want to potentially win 200 dollars in video games of your choice?
If so, then you’re going to love the new writing contest at Gaming Reinvented. It’s pretty simple really; write a good article, and if it’s better than everyone else’s, you can win up to 200 dollars in video games of your choice. There’s no catch, no fees and nothing to worry about, it’s purely about who can write the best article on Gaming Reinvented.
Here’s how it all works:
- You register on Gaming Reinvented via the forums. This gives you access to the article posting features on the main site.
- Once you’ve registered, you return to the site and post your article. It can be a standard article, a review, a walkthrough or an interview.
- The article then gets added to a list of other articles posted by contest entrants.
- This contest will then end on the
22nd September. No wait, 23rd September, 10pm - Then, each article is scored by a group of judges (once of which is myself). These judges will rate the article based on the following factors:
- How unique or interesting the topic of the article is. Things you can’t easily find elsewhere will score well here, while bland top/bottom ten lists and clickbait will score low.
- The written quality of the article. Does it flow well? Has anyone proofread the thing, or is it filled with spelling and grammar errors?
- Once everything else is done, the winner will be contacted and the prizes sent out.
And that’s it.
So what are you waiting for? Write your dream article today!
[button removed, contest over]
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Want to see more of Yooka-Laylee? If so, you’re in luck, since Playtonic Games posted an all new trailer for it at Gamescom 2016!
Here it is:
Wow, that was one hell of a great trailer. Lots of footage regarding the levels, some interesting transforms, some absolutely gorgeous visuals in general… Yooka-Laylee is looking more and more like the ultimate 3D platformer every time a video comes out!
But let’s break it down a bit more, shall we? After all, it doesn’t seem right to skim over all those interesting details, does it?
Like that interesting factory/library area the duo start in. Hmm, seems like Capital B’s HQ based on the giant gold statue they’re jumping off of. And talking of the statue… guess that makes him as egotistical as K Rool and Gruntilda were. Why else would you have a giant gold statue of yourself in your office?
It’s also probably best to assume the rooftop area is also part of his factory. The colour scheme and decorations certainly shout ‘Hivory Towers’ if you ask me.
There’s also what appears to be the outside of the building from a distance. Guess he’s literally absorbing the world’s literature, based on the flying streams of books in the sky. Makes you wonder something though. Namely, what does anyone else think of this? It’s not every day you see thousands of books flying through the air towards an ominous looking factory building. Even in England that’s uncommon!
We also see that Capital B has robots in his army. Like that laser drone that tries to fry Yooka and Laylee.
And now we get to one of the actual worlds. Well, I think it is. The pipes are probably all its ‘energy’ or whatever being absorbed by Hivory Towers.
There’s also a quick shot of some googly eyes. No, not googly eyes on some inanimate object. Just googly eyes on their own. Given how one suddenly seems to be attached to a battery of some kind, this raises interesting questions about biology in this world. Maybe the eyes are actually a weird interdimensional parasite that controls inanimate objects? Or maybe they’re just battery enemies in the ground… eh, the first one sounds more interesting.
This is followed up by a new transformation. Seems like Yooka and Laylee can become a bulldozer in this game, and use the plough to move snow and other heavy objects. That’s pretty neat, especially given how it seems transformations are world specific.
The snowy level itself is quite neat too. Bit dark and gloomy, but that’s neat to see in a game. After all, we’ve already got legions of happy and cheery looking snow levels out there. Another industrial one to join 40 Below Fridge and Freezing Furnace is far more original.
Swimming next, and dear god that water looks cloud. Hope players aren’t hydrophobes, since the water levels here might give them nightmares. Still, if you can deal with Clanker’s Cavern in Banjo-Kazooie…
There’s also a clip showing Yooka and Laylee in a bubble. Which they seem to generate by farting underwater. Yeah, that’s… different. Either way, the mechanic is interesting, since it lets you use non water physics underwater. So you can run and jump about as if you’re on land, despite being hundreds of feet underwater. Surprised how few other games have thought of the idea to be honest.
And what game is complete without going through rings? Not a 3D platformer apparently, since one mission has them go through a series of rings underwater. That said, the bubble mechanic makes it seem more fun, and the googly eyes on the rings are a nice touch too!
Following that, we get a scene showing a weird golem like creature. This thing (which might act as a doorway) seems to lie at the end of a series of flamethrowers that the duo must navigate. No idea if you actually fight it, but if so, that eye is probably its weak spot.
Back to the factory now, and we get the first look at Capital B’s minions. These goofy looking creatures seem to play the same role as Gruntlings in Banjo-Kazooie, and put up about as much of a fight.
Another mine cart section is shown off too. This one has the heroes using a cannon to blast away obstacles while riding. Pretty cool that, especially given how few mine cart stages in games give you a good way to fight back.
There’s also a short clip showing Capital B with his minions. This guy looks every bit as good a villain as those in Rare and Nintendo’s games.
And now we get to see the books being ‘converted into pure profit’. This involves them being sucked through a series of transparent pipes and sent through a bunch of machines. It’s in the same room as Capital B’s statue too, which is pretty neat.
Time to look at some of the worlds now! Yeah, this game has really nice graphics (especially for an indie title), and the tour of the worlds featured makes it all the more apparent. The lighting in the ice level is especially beautiful. I mean, look at that pink glow, or the stain glass windows or the shiny tint on all the ice in general. It’s a very pretty game, and makes me imagine what a Wii U Banjo-Kazooie title could look like.
The levels also seem really big too, which is quite cool. Just look how long it takes to show all of the ruins area! That’s impressive. So much so in fact that they’ll likely give many sandbox games competition on the world size front! It’s reminding me a bit of the Breath of the Wild trailer, and that’s certainly a good thing here.
Moving back to the factory now, and the trailer ends on two characters. Who are they? Good question, we don’t get close enough to see. But they look to be a female robot and a ball like creature wearing a nice hat. Presumably they’re NPCs you’ll encounter at some point in the adventure.
And so that’s the new Yooka-Laylee trailer. As you can see, it shows a game with an amazing amount of variety in it, and one which looks to surpass even our insane expectation of the title. Roll on 2017 Playtonic, because this game will be likely up there with Breath of the Wild as some of the best games of the year when it’s released.
But what do you think? Do you like the new trailer for Yooka-Laylee? And if so, what else do you want to see in this title?
