Topics

The rules: post a GIF and then someone has to name what it's from. Whoever guesses correctly gets to post the next one. I'll start with one I found today that's from one of my favorite movies:

[DO NOT POST IN THIS THREAD, ANYONE. IF YOU WANT TO SIGN UP FOR THE GAME, PM ME.]

It's frivolous, but here's where I'll post information about the game and who's signed up.

DO NOT POST IN THIS THREAD, ANYONE. IF YOU WANT TO SIGN UP FOR THE GAME, PM ME.

TWG LII: The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya

Haruhi Suzumiya is at it again, forcing the SOS Brigade to do all sorts of insane shenanigans.  This time she has the gang acting in a mystery-themed stage play she scripted, starring Itsuki Koizumi, Yuki Nagato, and Ryoko Asakura as the murderers. However, due to Haruhi's wish for a true mystery, her powers inadvertently switch up all the performers' minds the night before the play, meaning that potentially no one other than her is actually in their own body! It's up to Kyon, your host and narrator--who has also miraculously remained in his original body--and the rest of the performers to deduce in whose bodies Koizumi, Nagato, and Asakura actually are.

List of true roles with according colors:
1. Itsuki Koizumi
2. Ryoko Asakura
3. Yuki Nagato
4. Mikuru Asahina
5. Tsuruya
6. Taniguchi
7. Kunikida
8. President of the Computer Club
9. Kimidori
10. Kyon's Sister
11. Okabe
12. Shamisen

Player List
1. TWG Falcon
2. TWG Mario
3. TWG Waluigi
4. TWG Yoshi
5. TWG Link
6. TWG Pikachu
7. TWG Samus
8. TWG Fox
9. TWG Bowser
10. TWG Kirby
11. TWG DK
12. TWG Luigi

NOTE: "True role" business is gone--rather, this is simply a mystery game as there are no Haruhi Suzumiya-themed accounts.

Because life likes to be a jerk sometimes, here's one way to avoid sadness--just try to think of something that's coming up in your life you can look forward to! That way, you'll feel better about going through sucky times now because better times are about to come along!

I'm looking forward to spring break, which for me begins on Saturday and ends the following Sunday (March 30-April 7). I don't have to work nearly as much as I had expected, and it looks like I'll have plenty of time to play my two awesome new games, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon and Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity.

Well, Oscars are next week and I was wondering what everybody's favorite movies of 2012 were. Here are a few of mine--note that I don't necessarily include only good films, only ones that I really enjoyed (alphabetical order):

The Dark Knight Rises
Dark Shadows <-- yes it made the list...I enjoyed Johnny Depp's performance too much not to include it. Can't help it.
Frankenweenie
Life of Pi
Men in Black 3
ParaNorman
The Perks of Being a Wallflower <--HIGHLY recommended
Wreck-it Ralph

I still need to see a few (apparently) really good movies, like Skyfall, Lincoln Argo, Zero Dark Thirty, etc.... I'm sure some would make the list

Post random things you really like!

I love it when...

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon music comes on my iPod.
I wake up at 2:00 AM and realize I have four hours to sleep.
I finish a really great composition.
I solve a puzzle on the first try without using any hints.
A video game makes me cry.
MassiveMayhem and I have weird conversations about us being total assholes.

Okay, so when you open Finale it defaults to 31 measures right? So I finished the first 31 and needed more, so I added more--then this happened:



....why are the new measures so much smaller? They won't resize themselves and I have no idea how to resize them.

Layton of course

MASSIVE mayhem poll. I listed the major ones, but I had to stop somewhere. I know a lot of you have favorite composers who aren't on the list, hence the "other" option.

You get three votes, here are mine:

1. Tomohito Nishiura -- his music for the Layton series is my favorite in any video game.
2. Mahito Yokota -- his orchestral work on the Super Mario Galaxy games is absolutely top-notch, most likely the best achievement on the list.
3. Hitomi Sato -- although simple, her cute music for the Pokémon series represents some of the best of the newer games in the canon.

Post your own votes below!

Hey guys. I thought I'd make a general topic where anyone can post a game they've been thinking about buying, and people who have played it can post their thoughts--what's good about it, what's not so good, is it worth the money, etc.

For example, I've been considering buying the Nintendo DS game Hotel Dusk: Room 215 for a while now, and am not sure if it's worth buying a new copy or even playing at all. Can anyone recommend it?

NEW VIEWERS -- Here is the episode list in chronological order, with YouTube links (in glorious 1080p HD!):

1. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 1
2. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 2
3. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 3
4. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 4
5. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 5
6. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 6
7. The Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya
8. Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody
9. Mysterique Sign
10. Remote Island Syndrome Part 1
11. Remote Island Syndrome Part 2
12. Endless Eight Part 1
13. Endless Eight Part 2
14. Endless Eight Part 3
15. Endless Eight Part 4
16. Endless Eight Part 5
17. Endless Eight Part 6
18. Endless Eight Part 7
19. Endless Eight Part 8
20. The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 1
21. The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 2
22. The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 3
23. The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 4
24. The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 5
25. The Adventures of Mikuru Asahina Episode 00
26. Live Alive
27. The Day of Sagittarius
28. Someday in the Rain
This is followed by the film The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya.
So nobody feels left out, and we're not spamming the other threads. ^_^

First poll--who's your favorite SOS Brigade member? I like Kyon the best, but Koizumi takes a close second. Third is Haruhi, then Yuki, then Mikuru. I love all the characters though

And don't worry Mashi, I'll do a supporting character poll soon so you can vote for Asakura!

General rule for the thread:
If you're posting spoilers, be sure to mark at the top of your post or before you mention it. Use your own judgment whether something is a spoiler or not.
NSM'S PICKS FOR THE MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA POLLS
1. Who is your favorite SOS Brigade member?
Answer: Yuki Nagato

2. Who is your favorite supporting character on the anime?
Answer: Ryoko Asakura

3. What is your favorite season one episode?
Answer: "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Part 4"

4. What is your favorite theme song?
Answer: "Bouken Desho Desho?"

5. What is your favorite multi-episode arc in the anime?
Answer: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (Episodes 1-6)

6. Who would you most like to have sex with?
Answer: Yuki Nagato

7. Which would you prefer: a new Haruhi season, a new Haruhi movie, or none of the above?
Answer: A new Haruhi season

8. What is your favorite track from OST 1?
Answer: "End Roll"

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney
Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony
Hotel Dusk: Room 215
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Little Inferno
Mario & Luigi: Dream Team
Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice For All
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations
Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask
Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
The Starship Damrey
Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward

Best of 2013
Best of 2014
Best of 2016

Top Ten Pokémon Ending Themes
Game Review: Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward
System: Nintendo 3DS
ESRB: M (Blood, Drug Reference, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Violence)

About three months ago, I was urged to play a small-name, obscure Nintendo DS title: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors. As a big fan of games that rely heavily on plot, I absolutely adored the game. When I found out there would be a sequel, I was ecstatic. And indeed, Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward is incredibly faithful in structure to the first installment, similar in gameplay but with a new story.

The game's plot shows admirable effort on behalf of the writers. It's clear that the story wasn't developed in a day, and likely took much longer than that. Sigma, a twenty-two-year-old student, is kidnapped on December 25, 2028. He awakens in an elevator, with all doors locked and no company save for a mysterious girl roughly his age. Not long afterward, a screen near the elevator buttons flickers on, and what seems to be some sort of rabbit appears on the screen. The rabbit introduces himself as an artificial intelligence program called Zero III, and cheerfully notifies Sigma and the girl that their elevator is going to fall in a few minutes. Well, crap. Soon enough it is discovered that seven others were also kidnapped. In addition to Sigma and the mysterious girl, Phi, there is Tenmyouji, a grumpy old man who can hold his own; Quark, a young boy with whom Tenmyouji seems to be acquainted; Alice, a dark-skinned woman who is apparently so unashamed of her body that the only article of clothing covering her huge breasts is a large necklace; Clover, a 21-year-old girl familiar to most players; Dio, a conniving, straight-shooting man sporting a spiffy top hat; Luna, a soft-spoken, timid girl who trusts her peers a bit too much; and, perhaps the weirdest of this most bizarre bunch, K, an amnesiac who woke up in heavy robot armor which is impossible to remove. And, of course, they all have watches firmly attached to their wrists.

Sounds a bit familiar? That could be because it is--Zero III announces to the group that they will be playing the Nonary Game, Ambidex Edition. It's all very similar to the previous Nonary Game, with a few tweaks--most notably, the Ambidex Game, which forces Sigma to choose between allying and betraying the contestant he just worked with to reach a goal. Needless to say, this entails some painful situations.

But we'll get to that. Let's talk about ways this game improves upon 999. First and foremost is the presence of voice acting. All dialogue outside of the escape scenes are fully voice acted. The Japanese audio is an option, but you'll quickly ignore it in favor of the amazing American cast. Tenmyouj in particular has a great voice. Fans of the cult anime hit The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya will recognize Wendee Lee as Clover. Diehard Professor Layton fans might be interested to know that Dio is voiced by Liam O'Brian, who performed the voices of Dr. Stahngun and Clark Triton (among others) in the Layton games. But most satisfying of all is the voice actress who performs Zero III. Oh my goodness. Talk about over-the-top performances. This woman does a fantastic job emulating Zero III's psychotic nature, switching from the signature squeak to southern hick or ditzy blond girl or even a mock-Japanese voice mimicking cheesy voices from old animes. The only characters I felt who had poor voice actors were Quark (it's really off-putting to hear what is clearly the voice of a grown woman coming from a ten-year-old boy) and a character whom I cannot name without fear of spoilers. Most of the voices are entertaining, and it's fun to set the game to "auto" and hear the conversations play out. The only negative is that Sigma does not have a voice actor, but there is obviously a reason for that and you'll get used to it fairly quickly.

In addition, the multiple endings aspect is far and away superior to that of 999. Rather than restarting the game, going through the same puzzle rooms multiple times, and trying to guess which door to pick to avoid getting that damn bad ending AGAIN, there is a flowchart, which is easily the best innovation in the game. Not only does the game set things up so that you are never required to play an escape room twice (unless you complete an escape on easy mode--which is not recommended, for hard mode and gold files are required to unlock the final ending), it lets you jump to any key point in the novel to choose a different path. While this does take away some of the gravity of the Ambidex game (it won't be so hard to pick Betray knowing you'll be back later to choose Ally), the rest of the game benefits from what is ultimately a great tool.

Escape rooms are refreshingly set up so that the player learns as he goes, and puzzles are delightfully unforgiving. In an age where the definition of a hard video game is one in which only one tutorial is given, it's great to see a puzzle game that doesn't patronize players. There is an easy mode for those who don't have the potential or patience to work out the puzzles, but as aforementioned, it's in your best interest to complete them on Hard the first time.

The horror-centric soundtrack is pretty much exactly in the style of the first game, with several songs being directly ported and a few others remixed. Shinji Hosoe is a master of the technological aspect of music, making excellent synthesizer pieces that are more mood music than they are standalone experiences (which is why I'm pleasantly surprised there was another official OST release). The ending credits, one of the few remixes of a piece from 999, is one of the most beautiful pieces of video game music in existence, and the escape themes use catchy percussion rhythm and synthesized sound effects to effectively hype up the tension.

"Virtue's Last Reward ~Orchestra~"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VSCJAWEPRo

[close]

"Decompression"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IatBBLLCIqo

[close]

"Blue Bird Lamentation"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFJ1r6_4mW4

[close]

Graphics are lackluster. I played the 3DS version of the game, and though the 3D character sprites look pretty, their movement is really no different from 2D sprites. The game itself contains few 3D elements--the closest it gets is having the background far away while the text is glued to the screen. 3D is wasted on the gorgeous scenes. In addition, the 3DS version apparently has a bug which was not fixed during localization, which causes the player's save data to be corrupted when he saves during one of several escape sequences. I never had that particular issue, though the game did freeze out of nowhere several times, forcing me to replay an hour or so to catch up. Finally, the 3DS has a measly one save file as compared to the PS Vita's three save files, making the PS Vita (from everything I've heard) the preferred console--though it is easier to take notes (a frequent necessity) on the 3DS.

Now let's talk about the actual story. 999 had a great story, dark and scary and full of plot twists and intriguing characters. Virtue's Last Reward has a story that is slightly less gripping. Part of the suspense of 999 was that you need to get out of this room and escape because you are on a fucking sinking cruise ship. In this game, the alarm factor is significantly diminished, seeing as you could theoretically stay in the facility as long as it takes for everyone to get 9 BP and escape. The slower pace also makes the player restless, especially considering that every time Sigma moves to a different room, there is a map sequence that shows him entering and exiting every room on the way; this occasionally takes several minutes. Setting aside that factor, the story is largely engrossing. You still won't be able to put it down. The characters are believable and everything is a perfect mystery. That is, until the true endings. There is where the player will have to do two things that a visual novel should not provoke: firstly, he will have to think too hard to understand the story. 999 was complex, but not impossible to understand. In one version of the true ending, a mechanic is introduced that literally had me puzzling hours later after I had finished it. The characters were discussing this, and even though there was a diagram to explain the situation, it's still a very difficult concept to grasp and requires more thinking than it's worth. The second thing is that parts of the ending are so out in left field that even I, who enjoy the outlandish Professor Layton plots and even the crazy story of the first game, decided that they required too much suspension of disbelief. The game seems to acknowledge its craziness at one point, including as a file "Knox's Ten Commandments" of a mystery. Of course, all of the commandments are broken within the story, including the ones ruling against supernatural elements and twins or doubles arriving unannounced. This is all fine as 999 broke most of these too, but the story has to be excellent enough to stray from the mold.

Another thing that annoyed me about this game was how it set up a definite sequel. 999 didn't have to have a sequel--it left it so that there were plenty of things a sequel could do, but also made it good as a standalone title. This game? Nope. The game's final file teases the reader with a decoding mechanism as far as what the next game will be about, and it feels like I'm being manipulated, only getting half the story. To clarify, I didn't dislike the true endings to any degree. I just thought the resolution could have gone in a better, more believable direction.

In addition, while the eleven character endings/true endings were at least conclusive to some degree, the vast majority of the endings were tacked-on "game overs" similar to five of the six endings in 999. This is of course to be expected in a game with twenty-four unique endings. However, these are neither conclusive nor satisfying, and it seems that they could have gone on longer rather than ending abruptly, seeing that Sigma doesn't die in all of these. The locks on some of the endings are also a bit annoying, forcing you to play for a long time only to discover you need a pre-requisite ending elsewhere, then coming back ages later only to forget what had been happening during that timeline.

That being said, the story up until its bizarre final act is excellent. Plot twists abound throughout the adventure are fairly predictable (one in particular was hinted at way too much before its actual reveal), but there are at least one or two genuinely shocking twists before and even during the true endings. The puzzles are great (if occasionally too difficult), the soundtrack is effective and fitting, and the story is good, if unsatisfying and unfinished. This game was not without its flaws, and didn't quite surpass 999, but it was still a great game and one of the best on the 3DS system thus far.

Graphics: 6/10
The graphics are nice, but the 3D effect isn't utilized at all. That combined with the 3D models which fail in comparison with the excellent ones from the latest Professor Layton makes the visuals seem sloppy and a lost opportunity.

Sound: 10/10
Top-notch voice acting and a horror-style soundtrack make turning the volume up a necessity.

Gameplay: 10/10
Same great novel-escape sections in a nice balance, with a great flowchart feature to avoid any confusion or double-tracking.

Plot: 9/10
Excellent and engaging, but with a slightly unsatisfying ending that requires a third installment to fully understand.

Overall: 10/10

[Completed by Shadoninja]

Completed by Shadoninja
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ga4IM6fRBq0

"Shooting in Pokéstar Studios!"
Composed by Go Ichinose
From the game Pokémon Black 2 and White 2

I realize this would be hard to arrange, especially for a solo. If it's too much to handle, I really would appreciate someone doing the intro part. The first ten-fifteen seconds are really tripping me up.

I realize we already have a favorite Pokemon thread, but it hasn't been used in ages and I'm interested in something a bit more specific: Gen V Pokemon. Gen V tends to get a bad rep as many complain that the new monsters are stupid, ugly or useless. I really like most of them personally. Post a couple of your favorites here, maybe with  little description about why you like them so much. Here are three of my favorites (though it's really hard to narrow it down to fewer than ten or fifteen of course).

Gothorita

Gothita, Gothorita and Gothitelle are often the source of a lot of criticism, as some people find them rather ugly. I really like Gothorita's design, though. I used a Gothitelle in my first Black version game (though I stopped training it after beating the Elite Four). I'm planning on using one again in Black 2 since it's been a while, but I don't think I'll evolve Gothorita--it's so cute. And it definitely doesn't have enough bows.

Serperior

Snivy was my starter in my first Black game, and I still think it's really awesome. The highest base speed stat of the starters (which is also the highest base stat of the starters) sets it apart from slow Grass types like Torterra and Meganium, and I think Serperior has a super cool design. Yeah, it looks like Milotic. Still.

Minccino

Come on, you knew this was coming, right? I love Minccino, chinchillas are awesome and it's easily one of the cutest monsters from BW. It's really hard to use because of its rather meh stats, but I can't help loving this adorable little guy.

One that immediately comes to mind is the Emerald Serenade in Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days. Not so much hard as super annoying, I cannot STAND that thing. Flying around Wonderland and the other worlds at top speed, allowing about one hit for every five minutes.

I also hate a LOT of the Mystery Dungeon bosses. I remember the Lairon/Aggron troupe in PMDEOS taking me a really long time. Jirachi was no cakewalk either. Hate Primal Dialga.

What are some of your least favorite bosses?

I'm going to start a thread where I can post random top ten lists of things I like. These things are probably going to be totally random stuff that I'm into. Without further ado, here is my first list.

Top Ten: Studio Ghibli Films

Studio Ghibli is pretty much the Pixar of Japan. They can be counted on consistently to produce high-quality films time after time. There might be a Cars type flop occasionally, but the grand majority of the time, you're getting your money's worth of film. So today I am taking a look at what I consider to be the finest of the films under the impressive Ghibli label.

10. Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

This film is one that seems to be more than just animation. It moved me to tears in a way that few other movies have. The story, which concerns two Japanese children left on their own during World War II, is probably the most upsetting and thoroughly heartbreaking you'll ever see. It doesn't zoom along at the speed of light--it lingers on scenes to allow the audience to think about them. I dare you to find a single animated film that is as poignant and upsetting as this one. It's definitely not one that you'll return to time and time again, but I highly doubt you'd regret watching it (though the English dub butchers any sort of sympathy you might feel for Seita, so I'd recommend watching it in Japanese with English subtitles).

9. My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999)

My Neighbors the Yamadas is quite the oddity in the Ghibli canon. It's questionable to some whether it even qualifies as anime, considering that the art style is made to resemble a comic strip, being as over-the-top minimalist as possible. I think that the art style gives the film character and charm. And charm really is what this film is about. It's not meant to be deep or moving, it's just supposed to present entirely realistic and relatable characters who charm the audience. However, part of the reason I feel that this film is underappreciated is that quite a few of the characters' "relatable" aspects and situations are unique to a Japanese culture, making the casual American viewer a bit confused and somewhat diminishing the humor. Even if it's not animated like a Japanese anime, it's very much Japanese.

8. Ponyo (2008)

Ponyo is the first of the Studio Ghibli films that I had a chance to view in the movie theater, which was very exciting for me. Not only would I get to see a Ghibli movie, I would get to see one directed by the master himself, Hayao Miyazaki! And while I was initially disappointed at what seemed to me like purely a children's film, I have since developed a fondness for its beautifully realized characters and fantastical situations. I still think that it's the most juvenile of the lot, but that doesn't make it a bad film and I'm glad I decided to rewatch it a couple years ago.

7. Porco Rosso (1992)

This is, I think, the most underappreciated of all of Miyazaki's works. It's given a bad rep for not being as deep, complex, or moving as any of his others. Despite that, I dare you to watch this film and not love it. It's hard to describe what's so compelling about Porco Rosso, but it endures as one of the best Ghibli films to date.

6. My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

This is the point where if you haven't seen these movies, you should get out there and see them. This film in particular is one that is utterly heartfelt, one which celebrates the innocence, freedom, and fear that accompanies being a child. It will resonate with you no matter how old you are, and it would take a very mean, very sour person to not immediately fall in love with the characters and story. This is a film that is timeless, and one which I will be showing to my own children someday.

5. Kiki's Delivery Service (1989)

This film essentially accompanies Totoro in its timeless factor, but I ranked this one higher because of its sheer dedication to an all-around beautiful work of art. It's refreshing to see a movie for young kids that doesn't rely on overused clichés or obnoxious "humor," and while kids will obviously get more out of this movie, don't be surprised if you find yourself falling in love with it as well.

4. Whisper of the Heart (1995)

If I say anywhere above that a movie moved me, I don't think it could have been topped by this one. This one moved me profoundly, and moved me in a way that I don't think a film will ever move me again. It easily has the best characters on this list, in my opinion, but perhaps that's because I relate to them so well. The main characters, Shizuku and Seiji, are young teenagers, right about that awkward age when you enter high school. They're instantly recognizable and relatable and although the story takes place in Tokyo, that doesn't make the plot any less timeless. This is the rare Ghibli film that doesn't have any fantastical elements, and while I suppose some might see that as a detriment, I think it makes the story that much more powerful.

3. Princess Mononoke (1997)

Such a deep film for animation. While most of Miyazaki's films contain an environmental message somewhere, this is the most "preachy." It's probably nothing that you'll expect it to be, though. It's the grittiest of his movies, with several decapitations and several very disgusting scenes concerning a wounded boar god. It's a very lengthy movie, but you'll thank me later if you stick it out.

2. Howl's Moving Castle (2004)

I'm sure that awarding Howl's Moving Castle this spot will provoke some outcries of blasphemy, as Princess Mononoke and some of the others on this list are generally agreed to be better films. However, I'm probably still getting some looks of disbelief for ranking Whisper of the Heart above My Neighbor Totoro and Grave of the Fireflies, so a little more won't hurt me. This is a personal list, and personally, this movie was my absolute favorite for a long time and is still in my top ten (maybe even top five). Beyond its spectacular story, beautiful art, and nostalgic setting, this was the first movie that I actually noticed the music. Those who know me know that I strive to be a film composer, and that I listen to film music an almost unholy amount. Well, here's where it all started. The first movie song I ever took the initiative to find on the internet was this movie's theme, "Merry-go-round of Life." The most consistently beautiful theme in any film I've ever viewed.

1. Spirited Away (2001)

Oh, come on! You knew this had to be the top spot from the very beginning, right...? Even if you don't personally like it, you know that I love it, and if Miyazaki never makes another film, I can call him a master of animation, due in part to this beautiful film right here. If you haven't seen it, and don't know what it's about.... I can just advise that you watch it. You might love it, you might hate it, but there's no way of knowing until you see it.
So that's my first top ten article, maybe I'll make more sometime soon!!!! Maybe they'll be a bit more popular than my soundtrack reviews, but they'll definitely be harder to write.

Do you agree or disagree with my choices? Which Ghibli movies were you disappointed to not see on the list? Did I mention any you wouldn't have thought to watch? Leave comments and the like below.

All right, well we got a bunch of 3DS news today, including the announcement of Professor Layton's final adventure releasing in 2013; Animal Crossing releasing in November in Japan and the first half of 2013 in North America; and finally Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon releasing the first quarter of 2013.

Which three of the games listed up there are you most excited for, and why? I'm going with Black 2 and White 2, Professor Layton, and Zero Escape--though Luigi's Mansion and Animal Crossing look epic.

From the OST:

3. Extreme Extrication

The latter two would be especially beautiful, I think, but "Extreme Extrication" would be a lot fun, I think.

A big thank you to whoever, if anyone, takes any of these pieces.

When you're talking to someone and he or she says something that is hilarious, insightful, or just resonates with you, post it here. Here's something Ruto said to me earlier which really hit me as being accurate:

"Dunno, there's something about being smart that makes you feel kind of lonely"
~Ruto

Alright, well I'm arranging a piece and in one measure, there are a few accidentals that don't "agree" with the key signature, so to speak--this is pretty common in music. However, on professional sheets, sometimes there is a natural sign next to the note in the next measure even though it wasn't an accidental since the previous measure. Is there any way to do this in Finale? I feel it would make it easier to play.

snip