NESfiend

Bases Loaded 2 is done. Had one game left of the world series to do today, so I got a takeout lunch and finished it this afternoon. That way, when I get home tonight, I wont even have to look at that cart. My wife wondered why I went to the basement in the middle of the work day. Hard to explain that I really enjoy the game, but I cant look at it again for a long time. 80 games is just too many. If it were 30 games, Id love it all the way through. But you start to really despise the repetitiveness of it all after like 50. And by 70, you want to take a hammer to the cart. Second image is what you get for winning the penant. Thats 75 wins to get a single still image where someone forgot to draw a face in on the player. Maybe they figured no one would actually get there anyway. And if they did, theyd be far too fatigued to notice

I kept checking back over and over to see when the dates would be put on the schedule. Turns out, they have been there all along. If you are looking on a cell phone, you have to scroll right to make them appear. Only a couple weeks out! A PSA for the tech dummies like myself

Recca is so freaking good. Might be the best shooter I have ever played. Hard - I played it plenty after we had in the contest a couple years back. Still could only get thru 3 levels or so. Black vega broke it, but there was a big dispute about the photo submitted and how photography works in general. This schedule is incredible. Dont sleep on anarctic adventure. Cant wait for pro am. @PII better start practicing. Im pretty solid with the remote control cars

That's 600 games. Ties the total games beat in 2023 with ten months to spare. Lots of people making incredible efforts this year

I am now 50-0 in bases loaded 2. 2/3s of the regular season down.

This is a great example of a game that changes entirely for the better when played for points. I found it boring as hell trying to play through it for progress. When we played it for points in the weekly, it was one of my favorites of the season. There are so many hidden bonuses and options you wouldn't otherwise care about. Searching those out and playing the bonus levels was an absolute delight

There are different versions of happy middle grounds on this that us elderly people employ. Some players just throw up a participation score most weeks, but go hard when their prefered game category pops up. I always try to score well in sports games, but mail in shooters where I dont stand a chance. Some people do it by testing the game and deciding if its for them. If not, quick participation score and see ya next week. If so, dive in as desired. You can obviously always factor in your own work life schedule. It sucks when a game you love comes at a tough time. But sometimes a game you wouldnt otherwise get real into comes during a week you have lots of time and you end up digging it after some practice. Goal each week should be participation. One or two runs, post a score. Your own sick desire as a nes enthusiast will get you to go beyond that when the game is right and you can make the time Edit: and the shorter formats bea mentioned really do help. Lots of games you may just be playing 2 or 3 levels. In example, playing the last 3 levels of rad racer this year was a lot of fun. You can get a lot of runs in without putting in a ton of time under rules like that

A lot of those cupcakes would be on the weekly contest list though. All these games that no one wants to play (bottom 150 or so), they don't get played because it would kill participation. You would have background/experience with a lot of games on the list. Playing one game that can be beat in an hours time for an entire week, you will eventually get good enough to not embarass yourself. And plenty of people try once or twice and throw up a participation score. So you will always find your way to the middle, at least, just putting in a few hours time. Also, if you did it week to week, it changes the way you play. Its very different and a lot MORE fun playing games for score. You may be better at it then you know because you have never played that way. Thats why I have gotten so hooked on weekly stuff. NES games often times have really well thought out, intricate scoring systems. But none of us ever knew that because no one ever cared about scoring, just progress. Try it. You will get hooked quick. And if I can hang in and occassionally find my way to a podium, you will be just fine

Can you PLEASE join in on the weekly contests this year? 1. We need players. 2. We need more entertainment. Your posts are always the funniest shit ever. @Gaia Gensouki should join in as well. Id suggest @nerdynebraskan too, but I know the photo requirements are a problem for you

Looks like wiz provided the answer, but I wouldn't have known it. The original has always been the only one of the four I dont like at all. Could be that I had 2 and 3 as a kid and 4 is the latest release. I still prefer 2 and 3 to 4, but its playable. I could never get into 1. Id play 4 or 5 games before committing. These games are beyond a grind

I have now won 10 of the 75 games needed for bases loaded 2. I was thinking about making it a surprise and holding out until I finished it, but a good call to make sure no one else gets into it and gets sniped. Doubt that would have happened with this one, but better to be safe Someone said they were doing bases loaded 3 and 4, so we just need some grinder to step up and claim the original

Jack Nicholaus' Major Championship Golf is done. Goal was to break 90 this year. Came way under that, but still bittersweet. I was +2 if you dont count the 12 I had on #10. There is a janky thing where sometimes you have to putt at a 45 degree angle. Think I had 7 putts that hole. This one would be hard to come up a fair win condition. It would be an inhuman feat to shoot 72. But in previous years I have cleared it with like a 103. Probably needs to be some standard beyond completing 18. The load time is maddening, btw.

Bad News Baseball is done. This is the game for you if you like homeruns. The field is shallow and the ball carries. Early on, I had 8 homers in a game I lost. The fielding aspect isnt the best for an nes baseball game. But 5-10 homers a game keeps it interesting anyhow

Started on bad news baseball. Will have it done by the end of the weekend

Last year we beat 600. That leaves 77 unbeaten. Seems like a lot of tough titles that went unbeaten last year are already down. Even if we aren't ahead pace wise, gotta be looking good as far as last years unbeaten games goes.

Damn - I had this one popped in the NES to work on tonight. May be for the best. I need a break after the billiard grind. Seems like great progress this year. I hesitate to ask how it compares to previous years. Seems like whenever I think we are ahead, it turns out we are in pretty much same place as previous years

Start with Side Pocket and make that your preferred proto. Basics are the same, but side pocket is a lot cooler, a lot more fun, and with no opponents, you can get a lot more practice in without staring at thinking screens forever. Or clicking through endless prompts that say "Its Rob's turn," or "Rob can now put the cue ball anywhere he likes" on breaks or shots following a scratch. Side Pocket also has an 'aiming line' (can't think of a better term) that often extends to the rails for bank shots, and that really helps you learn NES pool where all the games require the balls to be hit in numerical order. Break time doesn't have that and my side pocket experience paid off a lot there, especially with break time having larger pockets to target. The grind can get long fast trying to beat these things because there is so much repetition, but they are fun to dive into. My fatigued bitching aside, I would recommend checking them out some as you are clearly into pool. Its funny, my NES pool game and my real one look pretty similar - always using way more high english than at all necessary and always ready to attempt a crazy combo on the 9.

Break Time: National Pool Tour is finally done. All credit goes to the above inspiration from @PII. Really cool that the congratulations screen tells me to now move on and win the WORLD pool championships. When that doesnt exist on this cart, nor was it later released on a different one. All that effort, and the game tells me its not impressed in so many words. Good times.

I am so dejected. Had that bastard Rocking Rob on the ropes last night. One shot away from beating him 2 games out of 3 to put break time on the completed list. Sank the 9 ball, but put just a little too much english on it and it spun back jusssssst fast enough to roll into the corner pocket. Loss. God knows how many games I will have to sit through before another opportunity like that comes up.

I have been working on Break Time: The National Pool Tour because Im apparently a glutton for punishment. The pool playing aspect is fine. Not great, but fine. The waiting for your opponent aspect is torture. Your opponent spends a LOT of time thinking. Then, after a long period of time thinking, he or she will say something like "grumble grumble," or "Im not sure," or my favorite, "Im starved." Then he or she will go back to thinking again. The eyes on the opponent's face blink here and there, so you have that to watch while you wait. There so many useless prompts to click through, so you cant really walk away and just play here and there. An actual game of pool against a person who spends way too much time thinking would be faster. I have made it to the last opponent and have a password for him. But he is beyond ridiculously tough. I may be stuck for a long time. You have to beat each opponent 2 out of 3 games and you cant save after winning one. This really eliminates the possibility of winning with lucky RNG. I have won game 1 against him several times only to have him wipe the floor with me games 2 and 3. Its a pickle, but Im too far in to give up

Didnt fail at Eliminator Boat Duel this time. 2nd to last race is longer and harder than the last. Great game.

I assume you are talking about the AT walkers? If so, you have just scratched the surface of a gem. The 2 Dagobah levels are where the jedi aspects really get crazy. They are tough, but they are well designed to train you. And by the end, you are controlling the character in ways you wouldnt have thought possible. You also gain force powers to heal yourself, glide, and power up the saber and blastsr. You were one level from those 2, and in that level you drive the 2 legged version of the walkers and fight a few of them with the Saber. Cant say enough about the gameplay. Easily in my top 5 for the system

Empire Strikes Back is once again down. Formerly a 10 pointer and it is that tough, but so damn fun once you know what to do. My impatience to play it continues to deflate its point value. Oh well, I feel like a jedi!

RC Pro-Am 2 is done. Couldnt risk letting @MegaMan52 beat me to the other (better) one too.

Fist of the North Star is done. Not horrible, but certainly not good either. Its a quick one to clear if you know what enemy moves are particularly crippling.