In Praise Of...

I've wanted to write some good words about good things lately. Let me just toss them all into one post:

Sega

In my book, Sega was Best Publisher of 2017 and they aren't slowing down. Their decisions to embrace the geeks and embrace risk have led to a slew of Yakuza series releases, and to the brilliant, fan-made-with-love Sonic Mania. Both franchises get new releases sooner than later. Something ventured, something gained. Hats off.

Nintendo

My goodness, the Switch deserves every ounce of its rousing success.

This device is delightful. It's everything the Wii U wanted to be, but the technology wasn't ready back in 2012. The portable-meets-home-console, hybrid form factor delivers. Don't let the pre-release Internet commentary let you think some nonsense like that the CPU is scaled back in portable form and it kills every game.

It. Just. Works.

It's easy to be cynical about the release library - a bunch of Wii U re-releases and several-generations-old indie re-releases isn't the bleeding-edge of new releases one might expect. On the other hand, by the end of Year 2 the system will have had Mario, Zelda, Mario Kart, Smash Bros., and new tentpole releases for a new audience like Splatoon, all available, in what might be a Nintendo first. And hats off to the many indies re-releasing and finding even more success on the Switch. They all deserve the extra sales here too.

That new Mario. It's joyous. It's the best since 64. Better than 3D Land, better than 3D World, and way better than the Galaxy entries. A few moments do shamelessly play the nostalgia card, sure, but those moments nearly brought me to tears from my lifelong love for the franchise.

Mario or the new Zelda alone would be worth buying the system. But having a full library of games that work well in the hybrid form factor, in year 1, is a remarkable achievement.

I use this system for everything - couch-bound hours of serious Mario, Stardew Valley in airplane mode, and super-easy portability to play Puyo Puyo Tetris with The Lady on the couch or take it to a friend's house.

Looking with my Industry Glasses on, it's also delightful to see Nintendo apparently master what technical types would call the Agile process - we're a year post-release and Nintendo is still shipping individual features, one by one, according to priority. Just last week, Facebook Friend Finding shipped. Pretty clever, I'd say, and it's preventing them from the many many Wii U missteps in software.

The Switch doesn't feel like a quirky Nintendo take on a product that's a generation behind. It feels like Nintendo swung for the fences but executed a perfect unison of design, engineering, game dev, and 3rd party content acquisition.

This system is one for the ages and it might even be one that changes the industry. Does Sony or MS need a hybrid portable now?

Sony

It'd be weird if I left out my own employer, right? The exclusives coming out of Worldwide Studios are really on point lately. It seems like there used to be tiers of studios, some making AAA games and some making weirdo off-kilter stuff or Vita ports. I think we've reached the point where every studio has released, or will release, award contender titles.

Marcus D - Retro'd 2

I'm a big Marcus D fan, that's known.

His latest album, Retro'd 2, is one of his best works - 20 tracks of genuine love for games, expressed over a massive variety of styles.

No one track represents the entire album super well, because of the high stylistic variety. I recommend a listen (and a purchase!):

http://marcusd.net/album/retrod-2

Man oh man, is this thing made with love. Look at that cover art! This American dude has gone to Tokyo to reside to Live The Gaming Dream, and look at that cover that results. Marcus seated intently at a Japanese arcade cabinet. A cigar putting off rainbow-colored, pixel-shaped smoke. Presumably elder game-music-composer dude I can't identify, standing behind him and looking over his shoulder, as if he were a ghost looking in from the beyond.

To say nothing of the source material: Mega Man. Out Run. Super Mario World. PilotWings. SimCity. Mischief Makers. Mystic Quest. Chrono Trigger.

And for the fans who bought physical, it gets delivered in a Super NES game box.

Meeting (and Befriending) Your Heroes

Before Retro'd 2, I managed to catch a Marcus show (with Substantial) in London last March as part of a work trip (such luck!) and I had the great chance to really converse with Marcus (and the inimitable Funky DL)! I didn't sleep that night - way too exciting to meet some heroes and find that they're awesome and genuine people.

Marcus and I, to my surprise, bonded over the Yakuza series (thanks again, Sega!) and I told him I'd shout when I was next in Tokyo, where he resides.

I followed through, and so did Marcus! We've since met up a couple times and bonded over life as expat, games, music, and more. Picture perfect bromance, really.

Still, I was stunned to find myself listed in the Special Thanks in the Retro'd 2 official album booklet (in the shape and style of a Super NES instruction manual, naturally).

Baby's first Special Thanks mention!

As I told Marcus, it was a big surprise and a bigger honor.

Documenting Your Values

On further reflection, I couldn't think of a better place to unlock that achievement. I think Marcus's Retro'd project specifically signifies more than just fun video game tributes. It's the best of that genre, if you want to call it that, but it's building toward a cultural statement about the escapist power in the artistry of video games, the nostalgia toward the 16-bit era, the childhood spent in front of consoles and not TV shows, and those three elements' power to bring people together in this hyper-narrow area of interest.

Or is it that narrow? I want to compose a manifesto, not unlike the Holstee Manifesto:

But one that documents the culture exposed in Retro'd and unites its fanbase. I think there's a broader group of people who live this life and are going unconnected, and it's high time that the Internet (and the occasional PDF print-out taped to a wall) fixed that.

If you can identify with this much, give me a shout. I'd love to hear your thoughts and your sentences and your values.