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Portable - Blog Posts
I ordered the radio on the right, a Yaesu FT-897, as a gift for myself for passing my General Class exam. I've wanted this radio since it was released in 2002 but as a Technician Class I wouldn't have been able to use but two frequency bands, not to mention it was out of my price range. I got it off of ebay and learned that it's a Japanese version and hard wired to not operate on all U.S. frequencies, even after MARS modding it. I already have the two radios on the left and the handheld (HT) for the 2 meter and 70cm bands so it's not a total loss and the radio still has performance abilities (power consumption wise) that far exceeds modern rigs.
Super Mario Land 2 – Memory Exploration
Retro Game Mechanics Explained is an educational video series from Super Mario World speedrunner Dotsarecool. In Super Mario Land 2, it’s possible to glitch yourself right out of the map and into other regions of the Game Boy’s address space. Wandering around those garbage tiles and randomly flipping bits will usually crash the game, but it’s possible to trigger the ending credits from there. This reminds me of the game-breaking screen warp glitch I played around with in The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening v1.0.
Source: Retro Game Mechanics Explained via YouTube recommendation
Really Bad Chess
Really Bad Chess is a randomized chess game for iOS and Android. Both sides often start with several bishops and knights up front and multiple queens in the back. Never mind protecting all your pieces; both players’ material is going to get bodied for free.
When not occupied with yet another mobile game, I’ve been distracted by the hallway thing in the background, bootleg Famiclones, current events, and feeds getting added, dropped, and shut down. If you want to see more of the kinds of stuff I post, I suggest following TwistedSifter and Something Random.
Source: Really Bad Chess via Jiko via Google Play recommendations
Two-Factor Authentication
Equifax just leaked our personal information to hackers! That’s really bad! It’s enough information that an identity thief could steal your cell phone service and start receiving text messages intended for you. It’s time to beef up security with an authenticator app. Most important Internet services allow you to generate codes with your phone that you enter when you log in. I use Authy for this because it backs up and restores all your two-factor tokens when switching phones or doing factory resets.
Since my phone was in the shot, I had to take this photo with my 3DS. That's why you can't read any of the text. (And yes, you can use Authy with Tumblr.)
Source: Authy via Twitch, photo with my New 3DS
Neon FM
Tokyo Attack came to Matsuricon again and introduced me to Neon FM, a button-drumming music game with some neat features. If you fail a song, the game drops the difficulty level a little and lets you keep playing. The arcade, iOS, and Android versions all work about the same and even support online multiplayer matches between them. I want to try that sometime but the closest arcade with Neon FM is in the developer’s home town of Baltimore.
I thought Orange Lounge Radio had an interview with the developer, but the wiki had no mention of it. Maybe I've got it mixed up with the Kyle Ward interview in episode 596 where he talks about ReRave's arcade and mobile versions. I'm confused.
Source: Neon FM via Orange Lounge Radio episode 524 (1h59m in) which I had to look up again on the OLR Wiki
Michiru Yamane and Tsuyoshi Sekito – Motocross Maniacs BGM3
You know, I really should post music here more often. I’ve got a ton that I want to put up, and I’m starting with the motorcycle puzzle platformer Motocross Maniacs. Before developers got a handle on the Game Boy’s sound hardware, they had to dedicate two of the Game Boy’s sound channels to music and the other two to sound effects. Konami’s talented composers made the best of it. I used the same restriction when I made the music and sound effects for Skeleton Hunter.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxd6FYuNBrk which I recorded from BGB with sound channels 1 and 4 turned off; using OBS; also Game Boy World
QBillion
From my pile of forgotten Game Boy carts comes QBillion. You have a top-down view of stacks of boxes. The goal is to reduce these boxes to a single flat layer. Once you wrap your head around that, it’s intuitive, but the puzzles get downright fiendish. 15 years later, the developer is gone, the copyright has lapsed, and a young developer has made a free HTML5 remake.
Yup, this is the HD version. Everything is about double the resolution of the Game Boy game. Click here to play.
Source: http://qbillionhd.com and LTD Interactive via Wikipedia and Game Boy World. I saw the screenshots in this Rock Paper Shotgun article and thought it was about this game.
Yumi’s Odd Odyssey/Sayonara Umihara Kawase Stage Time Attacks
Two months ago, I told you I was hooked on this game. Since then, I’ve played for 47 hours, reached every door, collected every backpack, and got every survival mode ending. I’ve also brought the heat to the North American version’s leaderboards with dozens of stage times in the top three. Since this game helpfully lets you save replays, I get to show you how I got there. Enjoy!
0:03 F1 → F2 11″83 0:21 F11 → F12 11″63 0:38 F20 → F21 21″83 1:04 F20 → F37 28″86 1:38 F39 → F40 13″90 1:57 F28 → F29 13″26 2:15 F29 → F18 29″83 2:50 F29 → F30 15″73 3:11 F30 → F31 13″53 3:30 F31 → F32 16″83 3:51 F32 → F33 13″80 4:10 F32 → F42 24″73 4:41 F42 → F43 38″86 5:25 F43 → F49 16″56 5:47 F22 → F23 8″16 6:00 F23 → F24 9″43 6:14 F24 → F39 2″13 6:25 F24 → F35 9″03 6:37 F35 → F36 14″86 6:57 F36 → F37 19″20 7:22 F37 → F38 20″40 7:47 F38 → F41 7″16 7:59 F38 → F47 15″63 8:19 F44 → F45 6″73 8:30 F45 → F46 18″46 8:54 F46 → END 35″46
Source: Yumi’s Odd Odyssey (Sayonara Umihara Kawase) Stage Time Attacks – YouTube recorded with my phone’s camera
Yumi's Odd Odyssey/Sayonara Umihara Kawase
The best grappling hook in video games has finally made it to the West! In the hands of an expert, the title character can climb all over everything and fling herself across the screen while stressing the elastic fishing line to its breaking point. Beginners can stick to the main route, but everyone else gives it the finger and looks for shortcuts, backpacks, and hidden exits. This series is very speedrun-friendly and has always let you record replays of your fastest stage times.
It you’re looking for a nice, challenging 2D platformer, pick it up on the North American 3DS eShop for $30. That sounds like a lot, but it’s the lowest price I’ve ever seen a game in this series and you won’t be disappointed. Most of the players on the English version’s leaderboard hang out in this NeoGAF thread which I’d love to post in but NeoGAF has a weeks-long moderation queue for new members. UPDATE: I have now posted there.
Source: Sayonara Umihara Kawase Promotional Video English Subs – YouTube which is a fansub of the Japanese trailer
Wallpaper Watchface
For Android Pebble users, Canvas for Pebble makes plenty of information available to your watchfaces. It’s hard to display much information on such a small screen and still look nice. For Wallpaper Watchface, the time is still large and in charge, and the other two lines are stuffed with so much small text and icons that the screen takes about 20 seconds to load. Missed calls and unread messages make new notifications appear on top of the large wallpaper image. Replace that Pebble Beach wallpaper with any graphic you want from your phone.
Wallpaper Watchface was built on Canvas for Pebble v2.0.6 beta which requires Pebble firmware 2.0 beta 5. If you have that stuff installed, click the links below on your phone to install the appropriate screen on your Pebble.
Wallpaper Watchface Imperial Wallpaper Watchface Metric
It's tricky to photograph e-ink displays indoors, let alone time the shot to the second... Ick, this preview looks ugly. This is why I took a photo of the watch itself.
Source: My wrist again, Canvas for Pebble v2.0.6 beta, and Greg V Music – Lone Cypress Tree, Pebble Beach CA
Canvas for Pebble
UPDATE: I made another Canvas screen called Wallpaper Watchface. Go get that one instead. It’s better.
Wearable devices are the next big thing in tech. I’ve jumped on the bandwagon with a Pebble, and I want to develop for it. On Android, Canvas for Pebble lets you quickly make watchfaces that nicely display the time, date, weather, and your phone’s unread message and missed call counts. I took a few hours and made a watchface I like that displays seconds, and you can have it too.
If you want to try on the Dr. Mo Day 1 watchface, you’ll need a Pebble running firmware 2.0 beta and Canvas for Pebble 2.0 beta. These should still work when Pebble 2.0 and Canvas for Pebble 2.0 are released. Once that’s installed, visit this post on your phone and click the version you want below.
Dr. Mo Day 1 Imperial Dr. Mo Day 1 Metric
Ever notice how almost every watch ad has the time set to 10:10? Analog watches look better that way, but I'm not so sure about digital watches. It's a lot harder to fake the time on a cell phone.
Source: My blog’s first ever selfie, Numberphile, and Canvas for Pebble
Did You Know Gaming? — A Link Between Worlds
UPDATE: Did you know? I actually appear in Did You Know Gaming’s Mario Glitches video at 2:17 with footage from Fun with the Orb Glitch. I’m glad they cite their sources too, but I liked them more when they posted images like this.
Every fandom needs its useless trivia. For video games, you can find tons of useless trivia at DidYouKnowGaming? Their RSS feed is perfect for this sort of thing, and it all shows up on their Facebook page too. You too can find out how in the new Zelda game on 3DS, every character and object is doing a constant Michael Jackson lean because it looks better than looking at the tops of their heads all the time. Smart stuff!
You know, I put too much effort into these posts and I'm not posting often enough. I ought to start posting images and videos without any titles or context. It works for Tumblr! (If only I knew I’d remake this WordPress post on Tumblr 4½ years later...)
Source: Did You Know Gaming? — The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. ..., which sources Iwata Asks.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds.
http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/#/3ds/a-link-between-worlds/0/3
