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I've got the Tekken 5 arcade stick, and the button layout is like so:


They're also sort of at an angle, but I was too lazy to do that in the picture.

I have several other fightings games, and am considering to get some more, but I am unable to find pictures of their arcade cabinates to see what their button layouts are. I would like to set the controls in the PS2 versions to replicate the games' button layouts. The one's I am currently looking for are:

Guilty Gear XX Slash

And now that I type this, I realize that is the only one I can think of. I'm pretty sure I've got a couple more, though.

Also, what is this? Accent Core is already here, so this isn't another game, is it? Or is it a tournament or something?

Also, what the hell is up with Trio the Punch? That game is so weird.

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Quick Question! In what order should I play these games?

-Darwinia
-Armed and Dangerous
-Shadow of Destiny

I found them at Big Lots for $3.99 each. I figured it was a good deal, so I snagged them. I know about each one, but I don't know enough to assess their individual values.

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Does Kessen III have giant magic spells like the previous games? Those were the most satisfying part of Kessen II.

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Who's the artist for Elebits and Dewey's Adventure? The art for those games is fantastic.

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How does Progear no Arashi's scoring system work? I generally don't pay too much attention to scores as I'm still trying to get good enough to just win shooters (though I have been trying to look at it a bit more), but at the end of rounds it seems to rate your partner's feelings. It just has me really curious as to how that works.

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The Soul Calibur 4 collector's edition will come with an artbook. Do you think it will be a good quality artbook with lots of things you can't already find on the internet? If it's just a some pages showing the character art that all the game sites have already, then I'll pass. I don't know what to expect from a Namco pre-order artbook.

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Titan Quest is pretty good from what I've played. It doesn't have as much personality as Diablo, but it mimics the form pretty well. It doesn't have classes either; you instead have a bunch of different masteries that provide different types of abilities that classes would. You choose one at the beginning of the game, and once you reach a certain level you're allowed to choose a second one. It's nifty. It also has full 3D and physics, so it can be entertaining to blow an Egyptian cat girl off a cliff ledge.

I bought it when it was on sale on Steam that had both TQ and it's expansion The Immortal Throne for $10 I think it was, but I didn't get too far because of school taking up my time. After the Diablo III announcement, though, I've been itching to pick it back up. Overall, I feel it's a pretty good Diablo-like.

Still, I think many people couldn't get into it, so maybe you should try the demo? I don't know how good it is, though.


I hear Mythos is really good, but I never got into the beta and I hear they've stopped giving players the ability to invite others. There's also Fate, which seemed somewhat popular. I noticed the other day that it's now in retail stores for $20, as opposed to having to buy it online. There's more recent Diablo-eque game called Loki; it came out a few months ago. It seemed pretty, but I never bothered to check the game's reviews. Maybe I'll go do that sometime.

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Does the Playstation Network remove older demos or select demos? I've been trying to find the Battle Fantasia demo but have had no luck; all I found was a video.

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Yeah, I've been looking in the Japanese store and downloading random free stuff. Some stuff downloaded quickly and "installed" and I've been trying to figure out what I did. Isn't there one "demo" section or something?

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Ah, I see. So it's videos and demos. And I couldn't find it when I searched by letter; I only found the video. But I think I have it now. Many thanks.

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I have some questions that I hope can be answered by the morning (but probably won't), as I am at Otacon and I am wondering about some stuff in the Dealer's Room, and the convention ends later today/tomorrow today depending on your time zone.

1. Is a Hori Real Arcade Pro 3 for $110 a good deal? I have a Tekken 5 arcade stick and a PS2 to USB adapter, so is that good enough for now, since there really aren't a whole lot of fighting games out for the PS3 right now? I all I have is Soul Calibur 4.

2. Is a full-sized Pop'N Music controller worth $200? My gut instincts says of course not, but it might be one of my only chances to ever get one.

3. Is Initial D Extreme Stage for PS3 good? I saw this for $80 (is that high or normal for PS3 imports?) I heard it's somewhat popular, but I haven't been able to figure out why. The arcade game is fun, but that experience is something different from a console game. There was also Battle Fantasia, but that's coming out in the US, right?

4. I remember seeing a Dummania controller also, though I don't know how much it costs. Worth buying? Is Drummania awesome, or should I just wait until Rock Band 2/Guitar Hero 3 drops in price eventually?

I just hope those shops are still around when I get there.

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Thanks for the advice, even though I left to the convention before they got posted. I really, really wanted the Pop'n Music controller, and I've wanted one for a few years. But as I'm going to live in a dorm in college, I'm not sure how my roommates will be. I may or may not have good opportunities to get good time with the game. I really love it from what I've played at conventions, though. Banging stuff just feels really nice. I also like the music selection's variety.

I decided to hold off on getting the HRAP until I actually get more games for the PS3. It would be really nice to have one, but I'll feel better about the money spent if I can actually put it to use right away rather than in a year.

I also found a Twin Sticks controller for the Dreamcast. It made me want to play Virtual On the way it was meant to be played, it was $150, so I didn't get. Am I going to hell?

In the end, I got the Drummania controller for $50. Considering I didn't buy anything else at the convention and didn't feel like I was probably going to, it was easier to swallow. Well, I also need to get a game now, but I'm going to look into the game first to see which is the best. I also remember seeing that a new one was coming out soon, so maybe I'll get that one. In the meantime, I'm going to try out some of the Drummania emulators for the PC.




As I left the convention building and headed to my car, I noticed some guy dressed as a ninja from Naruto walking down the sidewalk holding the Pop'N Music controller I wanted. :(

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belthegor, you jerk! Why are you so late?

I actually sort of like Drummania, though. I think Rock Band is probably a lot better in most aspects, but I think I like the gameplay better in DrumMania (though this isn't a clearcut opinion either). I like this 6 button setup a lot better than Rock Band's 5 button setup. I'm only playing on easy difficulty right now, but it feels a lot more natural. It may be because Rock Band's drums are just 4 colored circles and DrumMania has three circles and two cones, granting a better illusion of playing the drums. The button placement also helps. DrumMania's selection of music also a nice change. Most of it doesn't really leave a big impression on you, but they are at least fun to play.

Also, Rock Band's drums don't have enough buttons to let me play DTXMania, the "StepMania" for DrumMania. If only GDAMania.net wasn't down, I could actualy start getting some songs for that.

This actually makes me more interested in Guitar Hero IV, since it's drum controller is a lot more like DrumMania's.

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I should probably make it clear that the only controller the dealer had was this red Topway controller, which I got. Research on the internet says it's attrocious, but it's getting the job done. I can see how the actual controller would be a lot better, as crossing my arms is a bit troublesome on this controller. I'm dealing with it though, so I'm still enjoying it. It's not really bad, but maybe it's because I'm not at the advanced levels yet that I'm not getting frustrated at the controller more than my own abilities. Feel free to keep comparing the two games though.

Also, why does Bemani like Gradius music so much? Is there any relation between the teams or something?


On a completely unrelated not, Street Fighter Alpha 1 is coming out on the PSN today. It's a PlayStation Classic game, which means it's a port of the PS1 version of the game. Were there any horrible problems with that version of the game? I wouldn't mind having a fighting game on my PS3 to pull out at any time.

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Where does Taiko Drum Master fit into all of this?

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For a tournament, which PS2 King of Fighters would be better? KOFXI of KOF '98 UM?

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Is SNK vs Capcom Card Fighters DS really that bad, even if I manage to get a copy without the game-breaking glitch?

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That's unfortunate. I have a friend who said he'd get it if I got it so we could play together. Now I just have to somehow convince him it's a bad idea. I already told him it wasn't supposed to be a good game, but it didn't seem to sway him.


Leading me to: What interesting multiplayer games are there for the DS that I could use to make my friend forget about SNK vs Capcom? Games with download play would be nice too, since that allows more people to play. Is there some sort of list out there anything?

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Has anyone here played Geons on the 360? It's a Live arcade game that is apparently getting an upgraded version on the PSN tomorrow. It looks sort of interesting, but only if it has some interesting level design. Anyone know about this?

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At least they tried! Maybe they could have made it more enticing in this new version, but I won't have my hopes up.

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I know the Japanese marketplace has them, though it costs money. I also do not know if it's compatible with other regions.


Does Virtua Fighter 5 (360) have multiple exhibition matches/replays for each character match up? Whenever I choose the characters, I think it gives me the same replay each time.

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I just found out Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI got a US release for a mere $20. I haven't played a RotTK game, but have always been interested in them. Should I pick this one up?

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Is XI really that bad? It doesn't look like X ever got a US release.

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It's a fan mock up of Mother 3, before it was official announced I believe. There are a few more screens around.


Looking at that, whatever happened to that MMO that got in trouble for looking too much like Wind Waker? It would probably be one of the prettier MMOs around.

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I have an extra Resistance 2 beta code. Anybody want it?


It feels more like Call of Duty 4 than Resistance 1, and the multiplayer needs work. Some of it's problems are the map design and this could be alleviated if the maps in the full game are better, but other parts of it still need adjustment. Hopefully the feedback from the beta will fix it with the planned day 1 patch. I still trust Insomniac to make a fun singleplayer campaign, though.

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My roommate has Guitar Hero World Tour and has gotten the midi-to-usb adapter for the drums. How do I get this thing working for DTXMania? I've plugged it into my computer and my computer detects a MIDI device, but I can't get DTXMania to sense any inputs when I try to set keys. I don't know anything about MIDI controllers, so I'm not sure if I need to set it up a certain way.

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The Gundam SEED Destiny: Federation vs. ZAFT II PLUS game is pretty swell, actually. I enjoyed it heaps even though I don't consider SEED high on the Gundam tiers. The new Gundam vs. Gundam game is a sequel to it, I'm pretty sure. I haven't played the other Gundam games with "vs." in the name; are they all part of a line of games, or just the SEED vs. and then GvG?

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Is there anything worth modding a Wii for?

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Are Wii friend codes for games generated solely based on the individual disc, or does it generate one based on your system? As in, when I rent a game and I get my friend code, if I later on actually buy the game (albeit it's not the same exact copy I rented from Blockbuster, of course), will my friend code be different on my new copy of the game? Are my friends' friend codes stored in my save file, or will I have to rebuild my friend list?


Also, what's King's Field like? After reading about Demon's Soul, the spiritual successor to King's Field, I remembered there were a couple of guys I knew in high school who liked the series, but I never actually played it myself. Are they interesting in any way?

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Apparently, the new model for the 360 has finally been coming out in stores, which one would hope works a lot better. It at least uses a lot less power. I hope it's a lot better, as my family is currently on our 8th or 9th 360; we've lost count. As for deciding between a 360 and PS3, think about if the PS3 has anything you really want to play that the 360 doesn't have. Most games are multi-platform and the 360 is $200 cheaper, so if there isn't any preference towards either system, 360 is probably the best bet.

Well, that's the thought process between buying any system, I guess, but it's still cheaper by a lot. I myself play my PS3 a whole lot more than my 360, but I'm an odd one.

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Is it true you can use US credit/debit cards to buy stuff from the Hong Kong PSN store?

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Apparently you can't buy anything in the Japanese store no matter what card you have, because it checks your address of residence. However, recently I've heard that the Hong Kong store doesn't care, and it has many things from the Japanese store that the US store isn't getting. I guess I can always try when I get the chance and find out.

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I was browsing through the clearance bin in the local Sears and bought Dragonball Z: Burst Limit for $10. It was only $10 dollars, so I thought it wouldn't hurt to try. Is it really so hard to give each character their own button combinations for combos? Just by differentiating the button presses would go a long way towards differentiating the characters. Also, I've watched DBZ and I still have no idea what's going on in this game's story mode. The cel-shading is pretty nice though; it's cool to see DBZ with smooth animation and dynamic lighting. And for some reason, a lot of the music is pretty jazzy.

Also bought Fear 2 for $10 from Target, but my 360 can't read it. Nor can it read the Lord of the Rings and Blade Runner DVDs I bought today too. :(


Edit: Why the hell did I post this in Quick Questions?

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I browsed through BigLots and Target, looking at all of the cheap games. I bought of bunch that I knew of in passing. I just need to quick answers on which of these are actually worth playing and which I'm better off returning. If they're worth the little money I paid though, I might keep it. If you know anything about any of these, I'd appreciate you're thoughts! A simple "keep it" response works too.

1) Europa Universalis III- This looks like Super Civilization or something. ($6)

2) The Movies- That PC game that's a mix of the Sims and movie making. Or something. ($4)

3) Sims Carnival: SnapCity- Looks like a mixture of SimCity and Tetris. I think I'll probably keep this one, now that I look at it. Sounds like an interesting concept ($4)

4) Dark Messiah: Might and Magic- I think this was that Oblivion-like that was hyped to heaven but tanked because of it's technical problems. Are they fixed now? ($6)

5) X3: Reunion- Looks like Eve Offline. I heard it's convoluted, but might be worth it? ($10)

6) Disciples II Gold- I remember playing a demo of this, but I don't know how the game was overall. ($10)

7) Supreme Commander- "An RTS from Chris Taylor." Who's Chris Taylor? I remember it had giant robots, but opinions on it were mixed. ($10)

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Should I be installing Unreal Tournament 2004 or Unreal Tournament III?

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