mikeszekely

Okay, I get ya... ...man, I wish I could afford a second HD setup in my bedroom. Or a dedicated theater. ...or a house.

Uh... you want to buy another PS3, so you can have a second PS3 that can play PS2 games... wouldn't a two-console solution be a bit cheaper if you just used a PS2 for your PS2 games? Just throwing it out there.

ALL games are supported, David. The only stipulation is that the disc must be in the drive. This is, no doubt, to prevent you from installing every game you can get from Gamefly and never buying another game. More info, including pics, can be found via Kotaku.

It looks like the old blades interface is going still going to be used via the Guide button, so that takes away some of the sting of the crappy new interface.

I was going to link directly to the Engadget story, but the Netflix post looks relevant too. Just hit up Engadget, and it's all on the first page. As for FFXIII, I don't know what to say. Basically, if you bought a PS3 because you thought it would automatically be tops because the PS2 was, you're not screwed, since 95% of the games coming out are available for it and 360. But that really leaves MGS4 as the PS3's only big-name exclusive (although less-popular games like Ratchet & Clank and Uncharted I found to be quite enjoyable).

I'll give you the ads, but I never had a problem with the colors. Fact was, I could find what I wanted without much muss or fuss, and I like my G1 Decepticon theme. The new dash reminds me a bit of Apple's Cover Flow, except it's on white instead of black, and they replaced the old gamercard with a fugly Mii-wannabe. I'm guessing any themes and gamerpics we'd bought (like my Transformers) won't be usable any more.

Apparently, we're getting a new dashboard with the fall update. Microsoft apparently thought that we'd like something more minimalist, with Mii-ripoffs, instead of our perfectly functional, easy to navigate blades. Thanks a f#%*ing lot, Microsoft!

I've said it before, but I think I'll say it again... Mass Effect is, IMO, the single best game available for the Xbox 360. Now that it's available for PC as well, there is no excuse not to play. Is it better than KOTOR? That's pretty subjective. The game is similar in some respects, but it's somewhat different. KOTOR has the added advantage of being set in a well-known and beloved universe. With that in mind, I think I personally prefer Mass Effect (technically, I preferred Jade Empire as well). BioWare has done a fantastic job of fleshing out ME's universe, and I preferred the real-time combat (as opposed to turn-based combat acting out in real time). Bottom line: if BioWare makes a game, it's going to be good. Bring on Dragon Age!

That really sucks. Oh, and JB0, it's okay to call (some of) the new Universe figures Classics. They're being distributed under the blanket Universe label, but they do say Classics on the box, so I gather that Classics is like a subset of Universe, so that down the line they could have Universe Beast Wars or Universe Unicron Trilogy re-hashes.

Dang, I wish I would have paid attention to the bag. I bought two Happy Meals already (Starscream and Megatron), and tossed the bags.

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. TLW, do you know if that mod worked with off-brand controllers? The S did have a better d-pad than the original or the 360, but it still wasn't that great.

Anyone know of a decent 360 controller, import if necessary, that has a worthwhile D-pad? The default controller's good for a lot of games, but I'm gonna need something tighter for Megaman 9 (which, after being rumored to be Wii only, is back to multi-platform). And before anyone says "why don't you just get it for the Wii or PS3," see, I'm probably one of the biggest Megaman fans on these boards, and I will very likely buy MM9 for all three, just in case I get an urge to play with it on one system or another. I'm thinking I'd actually play it the most on the PS3, but I'm definitely playing it first on the 360 for the Achievements.

Forgive me for being cynical, but FactPile creates an account here, and his first post is an "SDF-1 vs. Enterprise" post that links to a website, also called FactPile, filled to the brim with this X vs. Y nonsense. I gotta wonder if the purpose behind this thread isn't to pimp a website. Anyway, Macross wins. Daedalus Attack would slap the Enterprise from here to the Neutral Zone.

I assume you mean alt mode, and yes you do. There's a slot between his legs on the underside of the car, so that the back of the gun looks like exhaust pipes.

Yeah, he has ratchets all over the place. They're actually tighter than Voyager Megs. For me, that's a plus, as my Voyager Megs was a little on the floppy side. While he's only a a head or so taller than Voyager Megatron, he's much larger in alt mode, and he just feels all-around more sturdy. And while I'm not usually one for light-up and sound gimmicks, Megatron's isn't too bad. I could still do without the light-up part, but the sound's pretty cool. The toy knows whether it's in bot mode or alt mode. If it's in bot mode, you get and evil laugh or "Crush the Autobots." When you clip the cannon in place going to alt, mode, it makes the transforming sound. It makes helicopter sounds in alt mode, then when you move the cockpit back onto his back going back to bot mode, you get the transforming sound again. All-in-all, if you're only going to get one Megatron toy, Leader Megatron's the one to get.

IIRC, the shots of the Megaroad-01 departing Earth included a Nupetiet-Vergnitzs. After the near-extinction of humanity, colonization was obviously a priority, and it would have made sense to divert resources to that task by taking the nearly-complete SDF-02 and retrofitting it for colonization to the Megaroad design we're familiar with. The Megaroad-01 had Zentraedi ships, including the aforementioned Nupetiet-Vergnitzs, for protection. But the fact still remains that there was the intention to build more SDF's ala the Macross. With the factory satellite in place industry almost certainly picked up, and the amount of captured Zentraedi ships was finite; sooner or later, colony fleets (to say nothing of planetary defense fleets for the Earth and any newly established colony worlds) would eventually have to be stocked with newly manufactured ships. We're shown what those ships looked like in 2045 and in 2059 (and a very brief glimpse in 2040), but there's still the gap between 2012 and 2040 to consider. In a nutshell, do I think that every Megaroad fleet had a Macross? Probably not. But it's apparent now that the government of post-Space War 1 carried out the plans of the pre-Space War 1's government to build more Macross-class vessels, and it's not unreasonable to think that they were used in some Megaroad missions. It's also not unreasonable to think that it had uses outside of colony missions. EDIT: Here's the real question... why is the Global transformed? The New Macross-clas seems to transform so that it can aim its Macross cannon without moving the entire ship. The Quarter seems to transform because it fights like a VF. But the original Macross wasn't supposed to transform (so it's unlikely that the SDF-02 would have). It only did to fire its Macross cannon, and only because it was missing parts that presumably a new ship wouldn't be missing. Without those parts missing, the SDF-02 (and the Global, I'd assume) would be able to fire its Macross cannon without transforming.

Just a quick heads up on the Classics... Sunstreaker is pure awesome, Octane/Tankor looks good in bot mode, so-so in plane mode (wings are just too stubby), and like a tanker truck if the back half was made out of a plane in truck mode. I still like him. As for Prowl... he has issues. I mean, as a figure goes, he's great. His transformation is cool, his shoulder missiles transform with the rest of him so you don't lose them (but they don't fire), and he's almost spot on for IDW 350Z Prowl. His issue is that his roof, doors, and front quarter panels are all paint on clear plastic. There's no enamel over it, so it smudges, fingerprints, and makes Prowl sticky. If it weren't for that issue (and I hope they fix it before they re-release the mold as Bluestreak/Silverstreak), he'd be my favorite of the Classics 2.0. I'll probably swing by Wal-Mart or something and look for a spray enamel, since the problem's worse on the doors (which pop right off a ball joint), but I'm also somewhat tempted to see if Reprolabels doesn't release a sticker set for him. If they do that, I might paint over the "Police" and "Highway Patrol" on the doors and slap a shield sticker on him. Leader Megatron is a solid figure. He's not nearly as shiny as the official photos make him look, although I wish his Decepticon symbol was painted. He's a little more than a head taller than Voyager Megatron, his cannon is slightly shorter than Deluxe Megatron's, and he's about the same gray, maybe just slightly lighter, than Deluxe Megatron. Transformation is ridiculously simple (much easier than any of the new Deluxe Classics) and leaves a lot of kibble on his back... but the kibble's on him in the cartoon, too, so I can't complain. My only real complaint is that, like Prowl, his canopy seems to be black paint on translucent red plastic. It's also sticky, but doesn't seem as sticky, prone to smudges, or prone to fingerprints as Prowl. It's also in an area that you don't seem to touch as much when you're playing. Also, he talks, but not with his voice from the show. At the end of the day, I do like the Animated toys. A lot. They're especially refreshing after the movie toys, which in hindsight I kinda dislike except for Barricade, Ratchet, and Starscream. And there's some Animated toys I'm definitely still want for my collection. But I'm not as psyched for them anymore now that the first Classics 2.0 figs have hit. Instead, I find myself longing for Ironhide and Galvatron. And especially Unicron. Yeah, you heard me right. Apparently Armada Unicron is going to get repackaged with a Universe Classics box. And since I didn't get back into Transformers until Classics (another reason why I'm so fond of them, maybe?), Unicron's high on my list of most-wanted Transformers.

I'm the only one that uses my computer, so I disabled the login screen (for anyone else that wants to do so, open a Run command box, and type "netplwiz" to bring up advanced login options). With an E8400 and 3GB of RAM, it doesn't take long to go from POST to desktop anyway. I tried SP1 on my HTPC, and it occasionally hiccups with the video drivers now. That's why I won't do it on my desktop. Honestly, I beta tested Vista, and I think things have improved a lot since RC1. Vista still has its share of annoyances, but most of them can be disabled now. My biggest complaints are that it's a resource hog (but XP was too on the computers of six or years ago) and that it's really just minimal upgrades over XP. I still kinda like OS X better for day to day stuff, but until Apple lets me officially install it on desktops I build myself, it's Apple laptops and Windows/Linux desktops for me.

Toys R' Us trip was definitely worth it. I scored AL Megatron, and UC Prowl, Sunstreaker, and Octane/Tankor. They didn't have any Ultras or any of the other Deluxes, but they a few Legends and some of the newer Robot Heroes. I passed on all of those (and AL Bulkhead, since I think I'm just going to stick with the Voyager). I can't wait for more of the UCs. I know I've said it before, but I'm going to say it again... yes the Animated toys are cool because they have so much personality and the cartoon is great and all, but I still like Classics better. It's the characters I grew up with, but with better toys.

Well, you know my aversion to service packs. I avoided SP2 until it turned out to be a requirement for the $400 iPod touch I'd bought. I put Vista on my new build, and Kubuntu Linux on my old XP computer, so XP SP3 isn't really a factor for me... but I have been avoiding Vista SP1.

Not that I've had a lot of time to get out this past week, but I haven't seen any sign of Classics 2.0 or Animated Leader Megatron. I was at Target last Tuesday, and Wal-Mart on Saturday. I think maybe I'll drive down to Toys R' Us tomorrow.

Sony pulls 2.40 firmware. I was too lazy to turn on my PS3 today, so I never downloaded it. Any of you guys having any problems?

Just finished it myself. I wouldn't say it's better than the previous two-parter, "Megatron Rising," but it's definitely up there. I don't want to leave any spoilers for anyone who hasn't watched it yet, but I will say that after that, they definitely need to do a third season.

Fansubbers seem to like mkv because it's a good container for softsubs. That said, I prefer standards, and dare I say it, hardsubs. It's a video file, not a DVD. If I want to watch it without subs to "appreciate the art" (that we complain is poor/inconsistent anyway), the raws are out there. If it's an mkv, I can play it on my computers, but not with the media player I want to use (and while being told that the player I want to use sucks just because it doesn't like softsubs that I wish were hardsubs in the first place). If it's an mp4, I can play it on my computers or my PS3 (or possibly my iPod). But I still like good ol' avi, because it plays on damn near everything, including two DVD players I own. I wish that mkv (as well as wma, wmv, mov, rm, and ogg) would go the way of ATRAC already.

Oh, okay, I haven't seen that one. I'll have to check it out.