Wanted to share this Noclip interview / doc where Tim Schafer outlines the history of Double Fine and it's roots at Lucas Arts. It's fun that it came full circle where Tim could return to the ol' Lucas Arts adventure games and properly remaster them. He also provides an interesting explanation for selling to Microsoft. I don't love seeing huge tech giants own more and more of the gaming pie but on the other hand, Double Fine no longer has to worry about how to fund their next slate of games.

"Tim Schafer explores 20 years of Double Fine Productions by telling us about the design and development of games like Psychonauts, Brütal Legend, Grim Fandango Remastered, Happy Action Theater, Stacking and way more."

One criticism I hear from a lot of folks that played Borderlands 3 is that the games twin antagonists are very annoying and drag the game down. This is an unfortunate thing to hear as, to date, the Borderlands franchise has created very compelling villains. All that to say, over the holidays I found the base Borderlands 3 on a good PC sale for $15 and I picked it up and I've played it a bit so far and haven't experienced the twin villains yet so I can't weigh in on that part but wanted to get a few thoughts out anyway.

Again, I'm quite early in playing Borderlands 3 on PC but I have a few bits to share and also wanted to get your thoughts on Borderlands 3 and what systems you've played it on. Firstly, Borderlands 3 feels like one of the most polished updates to a base game I've played in a long time. Right now, the game shines because of how many little things it updates making the core mechanics feel effortless and fun. I'm not saying it's an easy game, I've died a handful of times, but even so it's not punishing or frustrating it's just Borderlands but that much more fun.

I'd also say tonally it feels like it's heading back to the tone of the original Borderlands, but again, i'm still early days with the game which is why I'd love to get some more thoughts from everyone else.

I really enjoy that I come late to certain games, meaning I can pick them up for a very fun price but historically I've waited to pull the trigger when the base game + major DLC is super cheap as well. That said, I frankly never get to the sea of DLC and barely have enough time for the game itself so I've realized that if I want more, I can come back and get it so might as well just pick up the base game now. By the time I complete it it will be 2052 and I imagine all the DLC won't be hard to come by.

I'm a big fan of the New Super Mario Bros. games and plan to collect, play and beat em' all. This Holiday I was fortunate enough to have been gifted New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe on Switch and have been playing it a lot since that joyful day. Is it a good entry in the series or does it fizzle out and is made ENTIRELY OBSOLETE by Super Mario Maker 2? Read on for the answer...

Is New Super Mario Bros. Obsolete Now?

We live in a hyped social media and hot take first world where the opinions that make it to the top aren't always the best but the most controversial. I suppose it's hard to say what opinions are "best" but we are all driven to serve up our takes as fast as possible and that doesn't always mean things are well considered. Take for example the extremely hot take that SUPER MARIO MAKER 2 MAKES SIDE SCROLLING MARIO OBSOLETE or at least future side scrolling Mario or something? Where as this thought isn't owned by all it seems popular enough and it's not entirely wrong as it's based on some truth but comes to a needless conclusion.

Is Super Mario Maker 2 really good. Hell yep. Are the Nintendo created single player stages contained within Super Mario Maker 2 _VERY_ unique, fun and refreshing? Oh yeah. Are the top of the crop player created levels a breath of fresh air and the inclusion of the Mario World mode that allows you to thread levels together in a pack a Godsend? Yeah it is but all of that being true doesn't mean that a more traditional side scrolling Mario is dead or need not exist.

I appreciate that I played a lot of Super Mario Maker 2 before New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe because I appreciate them both for what they are and it's not at the exclusion of the other. New games that do something unique or even better than games of the past doesn't need to invalidate the past game, it just means we have more good things. I think one aspect of hot take culture is that it likes to dish on the past because saying "old thing bad" is a fun angle. It's often reductionist and simplistic but it's also a lot of fun as being cynical often is.

Thanks For Whatever That Was, Can We Talk About The Game Now?

Sure! We can yadda, yadda our way to the crux of my thoughts on New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe on Switch which is "if you enjoy classic Mario side scrolling and want more of that, get this game." Frankly I'm not sure a lot of people really love that formula save for a very focused audience which I am very much part of.

I'd say New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe feels more like a sequel to the Wii version but improves it in a very helpful way. I think the biggest flaw of Super Mario Bros. Wii wasn't that it was challenging but alongside that made the worlds too long. I'm not sure what the proper amount of stages for a Super Mario World zone is but New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe nails it. I found myself VERY annoyed when you'd beat a Koopa Kid boss and they'd rally to the "real castle" and you'd have another half of the World to go. Felt way too tedious and is why I haven't completed the Wii version yet. (I plan to but the Wii game feels like a chore where the rest of the games in the series really don't)

My Thoughts On The Characters in NSMBUD

New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe adds Toadette and Nabbit and that was fairly contentious for a few fans that lamented you _HAD_ to select one of the "easy" characters if you played 4 player co-op. This critique is valid and there is no way to play 4 player co-op I know of with Blue toad meaning you _HAVE_ to pick Toadette or Nabbit and I also don't care. If I was playing couch co-op with hardcore New Super Mario Bros. players and someone had to fall on the sword of an easy character I'd do it. I'm not sure it would be a hard sword to fall on because Toadette is a fun character to play as and Peachette is kick ass even if she is a form of easy mode. From time to time I play as Toadette in New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe and don't care I might miss some secret Mario street cred as she's a fun addition and I love the small changes they make to how she plays.

The Way Things Are Headed

Playing New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe on Switch is a joy and at the moment I'm slowly unlocking all the secret exits for fun. At the rate I'm going I plan on completing each level in the base game. I don't care to collect each levels star coins, but who knows, I may end up doing it. I've never really been a game competitionist but somehow in New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe it just feels like the right way to play it.

Games Done Quick is the premier game charity speedrun that raises money each year for The Prevent Cancer Foundation. It started on Sunday with a collection of incredible runs and is going strong today with a really unique Sonic block. If you are working from home and have the ability to put some cool speedrun videos on the in the background, you really should! While you are at it donate some money to the Prevent Cancer Foundation, it's a great charity and the donation is tax deductible!

https://gamesdonequick.com/schedule
https://gamesdonequick.com/

Let me know what runs you plan on watching and if you've seen anything awesome so far!

Watched a very short video by John Riggs where he explains how to unlock small Fire Mario and I decided to share here for folks that don't know about this old glitch.

From the glitch topia wiki:

* Be Big Mario or Fire Mario and go to a Castle level (World 3 Castle recommended).
* Try to touch the Axe and get hit by Bowser at the same time.
* When you are in the next level you will be big. Collect a Mushroom and you will turn small.
* Now collect a Fire Flower and you will be transformed into Small Fire Mario/Luigi.

https://glitchtopiathevideogameglitching.fandom.com/wiki/Super_Mario_Brothers:_Small_Fire_Mario

The holiday season and end to 2020 is finally here! 2020 was seen and experienced as a challenging year for many so here's to a better 2021.

Feel free to drop in the comments anything fun you picked up this holiday season in terms of what you are playing or watching. Also as a bonus let us know if you are looking forward to anything releasing in 2021.

When I heard Ghosts 'n Goblins was getting a reboot today I was happy. That's an odd thing to say considering I've never played a version of Ghost 'n Goblins I've enjoyed. That said, it's always been a game with a great art style and premise and Resurrection seems to take it in a very true to the games roots feel. The hard part about playing Ghosts 'n Goblins on NES is that it felt like you die more to game jank than it being "difficult but fair" and I hope this reboot fixes that.

"The beloved Ghosts ‘n Goblins series from Capcom makes a comeback on Nintendo Switch! Armor up as Arthur for an all-new adventure in Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection, releasing on 2/25!"

The Epic Games Store on PC is giving away 15 free PC games this year to help ring in the new year. So far I've netted well over 50 PC games free from Epic including Grand Theft Auto V, FTL and the entire Batman Arkham series. I'm not sure what other games Epic has hidden under the tree but we'll find out as they release one free game per day starting on December 17th!

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-US/news/the-holiday-sale-returns-on-december-17-plus-15-free-games

My 4 year old son Finley got a Pokeball with 3 packs of Pokemon cards as a Thanksgiving present from his Grandma. Since he's still quite young we don't really play the Pokemon card game as much as pretend to bring out cards and attack each other. It's quite silly and he wins a lot because, magically, the made up rules always seem to favor him. One thing I noticed in these new Pokemon card packs he got for Thanksgiving was that they contained a lot more cards than the ones we've picked up at the dollar store and also they come with a digital code to redeem a pack on the Pokemon digital card game. I've haven't played the Pokemon digital card game yet so I decided to give it a shot. One thing to keep in mind that you can play the Pokemon digital card game on Windows, Mac, iPad or an Android tablet for free.

When the Pokemon card game came out 1996 it was huge and I remember playing it with friends. It wasn't quite as challenging to pick up as Magic the Gathering and it was accessible enough for kids. After playing it for a year I decided to walk away from it and after trying my hand at the digital collectable card game I have to say I really enjoy the simplicity of it still. I also think it's cool that each card pack and pre-made deck you buy in real life you can redeem in the digital game. This is something Magic doesn't quite do you and really should consider as it gives more value to the physical & digital game.

So far I'm just playing the training missions starting out but am looking at buying some dueling decks to pick up and play against friends when we can get to that sort of thing.

If you love all things Wololo then you need to watch this LGR Ages of Empires retrospective. Age of Empires is one of the more historically impactful RTS games of all time and as such has received quite a few modern remakes. Age of Empires III was the last game to get a definitive edition and at this point it's all up to Microsoft to launch the brand new Age of Empires IV. I hope Age of Empires IV can take us to some kind of high tech space Age but at this point we don't know a lot about what it will be yet.