Terrestrious's Profile

There were actually very few Sky Battles, which was a shame. And one of the worst things with the whole Pokemon series is that they constantly introduce new features that never reappear in the next game. One big reason generation 2 is my favourite is because it's really the only generation that didn't remove features from its predecessor. There really is no time to perfect any of the newer features since many of them are dropped in the next game anyway.

One thing that worries me a bit about the Switch game is that Gamefreak usually don't put up their best games when moving to a new console. Generation 4 (the first game on the DS) and generation 6 (the first game on the 3DS) are my least favourites. Especially in X/Y, I think a lot of time was spent on simply making 3D-modules rather than introducing new features. So there's a risque that the Switch game will be mainly a graphical jump forward, but not really anything else. Overall, putting out games to often usually isn't the best idea. I wouldn't mind at all if the Switch game isn't released this year, or even the next. I rather have fewer games but with more progression.

All I really want from a new Zelda game is a mix between the best parts of BotW and the best parts of the previous games. Mainly the re-introduction of proper dungeons. And maybe a Link that is easier to like, which could be done with a little more linear story.

Fe was a game all about the atmosphere, and the reason for playing it is really just the visuals, the music and the storytelling. So while the gameplay could be frustrating, it definitely didn't ruin the game. And it also improved when you unlocked a few things. So hopefully you will like it!

I really only have the Switch and 3DS, so I don't have much choice on where to play games haha. But I also mainly play the Switch on my TV so I could definitely understand you preferring to play those games on PS4. But I did play through Subsurface Circular the other day, which I absolutely loved. And I played that in handheld mode, which I think was a lot more fitting for that game since it used the Switch's touch screen. It's also so nice to be able to play a few shorter games, after putting down so much time for Zelda.

NJPW main even style matches are usually a little slower at the start, I kind of like that style because it's a good way to build tension and it works wonders with the Japanese crowds which are usually pretty subdued at the start and then they get more and more excited as things build up. The harmony of the crowd and the wrestlers is easily one of my favorite things about New Japan, WWE crowds are generally a lot more rowdy and often times distracting as a result. And the wrestlers are great at feeding off of the crowd in New Japan. I say New Japan because it and a women's promotion, Stardom, are all I've really watched aside from some stuff in a few others.

I'm not sure what I linked before, but there are also guys like Shibata who is just a fucking buzzsaw who beats the absolute shit out of his opponents to the point it can sometimes be uncomfortable. Entertaining as hell, though. And even Nakamura doesn't always put out long 20+ minute matches, Okada though is kind of like Ric Flair in that he usually has long stuff. Anyway, New Japan is great but it's style of wrestling is different by a fairly large margin compared to WWE's. I love it, though.

Yeah, that Angle match is sweet. I was not expecting him to tap out Angle, lol. And, yeah, early Nakamura is a different beast entirely. Dude, his style is almost completely different! About a year into his career, the own Antonio Inoki fast tracked not unlike Reigns into the main event and he won the big belt, the IWGP Title, probably before he was really ready y'know? In NJPW they have trainees called Young Lions who got through training, set up rings for the main roster, and watch the matches ringside before getting sent to another country like Mexico or the US. Nak did the Young Lion thing, but he was fast tracked because he did well in MMA (which Inoki was high as hell on) so didn't get to go on an excursion. Which means he was stuck playing this no frills, bare bones guy which can be a cool character (this is pretty much what Shibata is) but that isn't really a great direction for Nakamura himself. Long story short, he went to Mexico came back as the self proclaimed "King of Strong Style" which may or may not have been a dig against Inoki. Even then, he actually fairly slowly got the iconic look and character down but by sometime in 2011 he was what you know him as.

I've been watching the shit out of Nakamura's New Japan stuff. When it comes to a marriage of wrestling and character, he may end up being my favorite of all time. His character is so good and he's so charismatic that the language barrier means fuck all. Also, the way he moves and uses his feet to kind of just slap his opponents like they are hands is a unique little touch that just really works to me. Now, has that transitioned into WWE? Not entirely, I don't think so. For one he can't be as physical in WWE because they have to work near constantly. Some think his age is catching up, he's 38, but I'm not entirely sure. The only real way to know that is if he went back to NJPW I think. This current character is great, though and his match with Rusev at Fast Lane was good stuff so I got high hopes for his match AJ at the GRR.

Speaking of the GGR, I'm not super excited. I'll watch it, but with no Asuka or Sasha I'm a bit put off in that regard. The IC match should be good, though and I'm curious about the actual Rumble.

Yeah, Morrowind is really close to non-video game roleplaying, for good and bad. As I said, the combat does get better with later levels, but it's really quite dumb and it's easy to feel cheated. And it's of course easy to understand why Skyrim got so big while Morrowind didn't. Some older fans hate Skyrim because it's "dumbed down" for a general audience, but with some mods and by using some of your own restrictions, it can be quite a good game. But a lot of the Skyrim-fans aren't really RPG-fans and it's really more of an Action-Adventure game now.

I haven't actually played Wind Waker HD! I have just seen it, so I can really only judge it visually. And it does look good, but I think they overdid it a bit, and lost a lot of the advantages of the art style. But there are two big changes that some people think drastically improve the game. The first one is that the sailing is easier, as you get a new sail that automatically changes the direction of the wind. In the original, you had to change the direction of the wind using the wind waker every time you wanted to go somewhere. That never bothered me though, and I actually liked that you had to use the wind waker so often. A magic sail seems convenient but not really that interesting to me. The second big change is they made collecting the triforce shards a lot easier, as you don't need to collect as many. That's one of the last things you do in the game, and it requires you to look pretty much all over the map. It can be quite frustrating to find them all and it kind of fucks up the pacing a bit since it happens so late and everything just stops until you have completed this. And of course, the people that already dislike the sailing will hate this part. But I love sailing and exploring so it never was that big of a problem to me. But it definitely is the worst part of the game, so I think the changes in the HD remake were good. A friend of mine has Wind Waker in the bottom of his Zelda ranking simply because of this part of the game, and he never finished the original. For me, all the good parts of WW highly outweigh this flaw. But if I had the option to change it, I would. An easy fix would be to have this quest start early in the game, and that you had the full game to finish it, instead of stopping everything to do all of the quest near the end of the game.

Interesting takes on Pokemon Switch. I think I want the battle system to stay pretty much the same. I have been thinking about having it being more real-time, maybe something similar to Ni no Kuni, but I don't really think that will be an improvement. The battles of Pokemon is one of its best features and one of the things where I can't really think of anything better. One of my favourite newer things with the battles was the introduction of Sky Battles (in X/Y). Here you could only use pokemon that could fly, and it really changed a lot of your strategies, I could only use one pokemon for a lot of these, until getting a second flying pokemon. I would love to see more of these kind of battles where you have to use certain pokemon. And that fits in with geographical location that you mentioned. For example, maybe some pokemon can't fight in the water, or are weaker when doing so. This will make every battle feel a lot more challenging and you will actually have to constantly switch strategies and can't just rely on having a few powerful pokemon.

Story-wise, I actually prefer pokemon games to have very little of it. My favourites are the two first generations, where there really isn't much more than "catch 'em all". I usually don't like when the legendary pokemon play a big role within the story and I'm not a fan of being the chosen one that everyone admires. My old RPG-heart cries and my immersion breaks when a little 11-year old kid catches THE GOD OF TIME in a pokeball he bought at the local supermarket. And then I have to throw it in the PC, since I don't like using legendary pokemon. However, I actually really enjoyed both the story and how the legendary was used in Pokemon Sun. It was the first game where I actually had the legendary on my team, since I felt compelled to after growing fond of it during the story.

But overall, my dream pokemon game, I would just want to play as "some guy". Nowadays, I never even use starter pokemon when I replay games. They are too rare and make me feel too special. Starting out the game feeling like just another Youngster is a lot more fun for me. One of the reasons I prefer the first two generations is that this type of playing is a lot easier.

Where I would have most changes would be in the world, the story and in choices. I would love the game to be a bit similar to BotW I guess. An open world with a non-linear story. But of course, without unlocking memories or anything like that. I really want the story to more be what you yourself make it as, depending on where in the world you go and what you decide to do. So definitely more focus on different side quests, where some of them might be as big and epic as the main stories of past games, but just not something you have to do.

I don't actually think I'll ever get this game though, and I don't know how many people agree with my opinions. I think the new game will probably have a lot of focus on the story. But since Sun/Moon actually had an interesting one, it might still be good. The battling is still my favourite part of the games, so as long as they don't actually make something worse, I can't be too disappointed I suppose.

And btw, I just "finished" BotW a couple of days ago. I'm not really interesting in 100% games and I felt pretty satisfied so I went and defeated Ganon and probably won't play any more on that save file. I explored all the regions on the map and did about 100 shrines. Overall, I would say it's one of my favourite Zelda games even if it's difficult to compare. I really hope Nintendo learns from this game in what worked and what didn't work, and I have high hopes for the next one. Even with all the things I would have preferred done differently, I would still say this is a 10/10 game for me.

Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart 8 and BotW really was a great introduction to the Switch as a console. I'm going to check out some indie games now, as that's something I feel I need to play more of. And a lot of them look more appealing to me than most big games. I played through Kamiko, which I thought was alright. And right now I'm playing Fe, which so far I'm enjoying but feel a bit conflicted towards. The atmosphere, visuals and music is great, but the gameplay can be quite frustrating sometimes.

Hey, dude. Sorry for not replying yet. I haven't been on MAL much recently and just noticed your comment about Mania. I can't go too in depth right now, but yeah to put it simply WM was pretty.....anticlimatic this year. I don't think anyone I wanted to win besides maybe like Taker or Seth won haha. Even in the IC match I would have honestly preferred Balor to win. Also, in a lot of ways Asuka's loss really took the wind out of my sails for the night. I don't I really got back into the swing of things until the Rousey match tbh. And then, yeah, the Nakamura/Styles match was kind of a let down. Someone on reddit described it as "a New Japan match that just stopped halfway through" and that is really accurate. NJPW main event matches are usually about escalation and it's like this match was cut short. Do yourself a solid an watch their earlier match man.

I'll try and go more in depth about that show another time.

The combat of Morrowind is based on a dice roll. So even if you swing your weapon and it looks like you hit your target, you can still miss. It's a highly outdated system. It does become less of a problem when you reach higher levels though. But all of your choices in the game matter. Your race, class, which factions you join, what quests you do, it all has some effect on how you can play, mainly in the form of restrictions. one such restriction is that joining one faction will lock you out of joining some other factions, and the other factions might even become hostile. In Skyrim, every player could do any quest no matter how they played. For example, you could finish the whole Mage's College questline without using a single magical spell. And no characters outside of that questline ever mentions that you're part of the College. And the main quest in Morrowind is a lot easier to skip if you'd want. And you have to earn to be "the chosen one", and it's not something that the game just makes you in the first hour of the game. Overall, it feels more rewarding to play.

I like Wind Waker and Majora's Mask for similar reasons even if the games feel completely different. But both of them just have this atmosphere that I love. MM is creepy and dark, and WW is goofy and fun. All Zelda games have these aspects but these two games really perfected what they tried to accomplish. WW is also what I consider to be one of the best looking games ever made, and the visuals will never really age. I actually like the look of the original more than the HD remake. I also have immense nostalgic feelings for WW, as it was the first Zelda game I played. I entered Rito Village in BotW earlier today and the song that played had a part that referenced a song from WW, and I almost started crying haha.

And yeah, Pokémon is another really flawed series haha. Generation 2 is my favourite (I played Gold.) and it really is an improvement on almost all things from generation 1. But after that, the next generation of games always took away as many features as they introduced. And really, the games have stayed the same for the most part. But as long as you like that first game you will like all of them I guess. X/Ys biggest thing was really just the graphical jump to 3D, and otherwise it was really the most standard of all of the games. But yeah, Sun/Moon did improve on things. In a way, it felt like the first real sequel to generation 2, and it fixed a lot of problems that for some reason hadn't been fixed. But I don't know what else could be done with the formula now, and I wouldn't complain if Sun/Moon was actually the last Pokemon games of its kind. I do really look forward to the new generation on Switch and I really hope they change things. I will be so disappointed if it just feels like a HD version of the same game.

You should really read Berserk! It's really worth it even with the hiatuses. Berserk has been ongoing for about 9 years longer than HxH and yet only has 4 more volumes, so I suppose it actually is worse than HxH. But if you can read HxH without problems than you should be able to read Berserk too! I haven't seen the anime myself, but from what I've seen, it can't really compare visually to the manga. The art of Berserk constantly improves and it looks absolutely beautiful. I will check out the anime one day though, mainly because of the soundtrack, which I already love and have listened to quite a bit.

I guess that can happen when you play a lot of games. I tend to finish all the games i start, as long as I enjoy them and don't get stuck. But I can relate to the difficulties of getting back into a game that you've put on old for a while. That was the whole reason I waited with playing Breath of the Wild after buying it, since I knew I had to have enough time to actually finish playing it.

And I agree on your opinions about open world games. It all comes down to how well you are able to connect to the world. I'm a pretty big fan of The Elder Scrolls-series and Skyrim is probably one of my most played games ever. But at the same time, all the Elder Scrolls games are incredibly flawed, especially Skyrim. The opening of Skyrim is awful and the whole main quest is not much better. My opinion is that the game becomes a lot better with mods that just get rid of the main quest completely. Well, a lot of mods are actually needed to "fix" the game haha. But the foundation is still the same, and that is the actual world that Skyrim has. Still, I think it's quite frustrating to be an Elder Scrolls fan, since all new games get progressively both better and worse. I think Morrowind is my favourite since that one has the most RPG-elements and feels the most real, as your choices actually matter. But at the same time, the combat in Morrowind is pretty shit. Skyrim's biggest advantage is the graphics, which is pretty important for immersion reasons. An Elder Scrolls game that took the best aspects of all the older games would truly be awesome.

BotW certainly had a better opening than Skyrim. But at the same time it has some of the same problems for me. I don't really think open world games fit that well with any big story. I prefer it when the game lets me choose what that characters main story will be. But of course BotW is still a Zelda game so you have to be the chosen one and you have to do the dungeons and you have to defeat Ganon. I have some conflicting opionions, but I love open world games and I love Zelda games, and I probably love BotW, I just don't think the mix is perfect.

No surprise by now I guess, but one of my favourite genres is RPGs. And the other big one would be Adventure. And anything between the two. But I do play all kind of games. I have put a lot of time into both strategy and FPS-games. But my two favourite game series overall are Pokemon and Zelda. Despite of this, BotW is only the fifth Zelda game I've played. For some reason, I just never bought any of the handheld games, even if I owned all of the Gameboys, the DS and 3DS. I do want to play most of them and they are pretty high on my list though. Interesting that you have only beaten Majora's Mask. Majora's Mask and Wind Waker are my two favourites in the series.

Haha, with HxH, I feel so used to hiatuses now that they hardly do anything for me. I'm kinda expecting the hiatus-message at the end of every chapter, so I usually have a bigger reaction when I don't see it. And this time especially didn't really have an impact on me because of Berserk going on hiatus shortly before. HxH is still setting a lot of things up, but Berserk is concluding some 20-year old storylines, and the latest chapter ended on quite the cliffhanger. There's also only been about three hiatuses since I caught up with Berserk, so I haven't really gotten any time to get used to it as I have with HxH.

So you stopped playing Zelda without finishing it? Does that mean you didn't like the game or just that you prioritised other things? I think you mentioned previously that it wasn't your genre. Does that go with all Zelda games or just Breath of the Wild?

I may have sounded a bit negative in my previous message haha. But it's just because the game has been hyped as the best Zelda, or by some even the best game ever. I still haven't done any more of the story, but I have been playing around a bit and done a couple of shrines. And it is a lot of fun. I really like the shrines, and it's good to be able to jump in and finish them pretty quickly, as I don't always have time to play for that long. And so far I feel they are quite varied, some of them have been really easy but there are some more challenging ones. The weapon breaking was really annoying in the beginning, since the weapons you used then broke after like two enemies. But I've already gotten used to it and have better weapons now, so no real complains there. But I'll guess I'll get mad if all my weapons break when facing a boss or something.

Also, I've met some fun characters now, which the tutorial completely lacked. Zelda has always had interesting and quirky characters and that's always been one of my favourite things in the series. Recently I bought a house from this Bolson guy, and I love him.

It's a bit annoying that we still don't know if it's a new game or a port. But even if it's a new game it can't really be that different I guess, considering the Switch not being that much of an upgrade to the Wii U. The Subspace Emissary was the one thing I preferred in Brawl to Melee, so I really want something similar in this new one. For that reason alone I hope for a new game, as it feels a bit much to add in a port.

And I agree on that HxH chapter being my favourite this run. And there was quite a lot of fun discussions going on in the community with how Illumi used the words engagement ring and prenup when speaking of his deal with Hisoka. But once again, this was one of those moments that was really shocking while still making perfect sense. That's always a sign of great writing.

And I have finally started playing Breath of the Wild now! I've really only completed the "tutorial" right now, so I can't really judge it yet. But just from my first impressions, I'm not sure it will rank among my top Zelda games. I don't really feel anything for either Link or about saving Hyrule. And it is quite different to play a Zelda game without some kind of companion. It feels a bit empty. But I guess that's quite common with open world games, so I hope the gameplay and the side quests will make up for that. And I know you recover memories so maybe those will make me care about Link as well. I still really enjoyed it though, and maybe it can surpass the other ones as I continue to play. I haven't played that many Zelda games, but all the ones I have played are pretty much among my favourite games ever.

Speaking of getting a Smash game for the Switch! Pretty hyped for that one now. That was one cool teaser trailer.

And wow, really enjoyed the latest Hunter x Hunter chapter.

So about Sami and Nakamura. Their match at NXT Takeover Dallas is great and I definitely recommend both. Sami also had some great stuff with Cesaro, Neville, Owens, and Joe. Nakamura didn't spend as much time in NXT and I haven't seen all of his stuff but so far other than that match with Sami his stuff with Balor and Joe stand out the most. His stuff in NJPW though, damn dude watch that shit. He had memorable matches with guys like Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi, Kurt Angle, Kazuchika Okada, and Brock Lesnar (though I have not seen this particular match yet). Of couse the AJ Styles match is great. Arguably my favorite of the bunch and, keep in mind, I haven't seen a lot of stuff from Nakamura myself.

One thing that I feel that WWE hasn't really emphasized about Nakamura is that he's a great submission wrestler. Kind of like Asuka, actually. Back before he adapted the King of Strong Style character submissions were basically his go to style. Here is some of his stuff:

vs Yoshihiro Takayama
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5ksrj3

vs Kurt Angle
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5w3840

Vs Okada
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6dxyi3
and
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5sd0gj

Those are just a few of the matches I was able to easily find.
As far as Auka as Kana, I'll have to go through more of her stuff first. I've only watched a few of her matches myself. Here is a channel dedicated to her though: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZy87z0Xh7kZZQJCT-UD5Yg

Her matches with Meiko Satomura are really good, one in particular basically only submissions. I got links for these:

Kana VS Meiko Satomura - 2-13-2011
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx1B35rVcnw&t=1s


Kana(WWE's ASUKA) vs Meiko Satomura（華名vs里村明衣子）
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0aC-dRO0Ek&t=9s

The second I have not seen though.

Apparently that match with Suzuki was something she booked herself, so weirdly enough she booked herself to take that beating. Pretty crazy.

So, I actually don't mind Alexa. I guess she isn't a Asuka, Sasha, or Bayley in the ring but she's a really good heel. This was shown pretty well in her backstage segment with Nia. Also, while I'd love for Asuka to feud with her, I'm pretty excited for a Bayley/Sasha match at Mania. If you haven't watch their matches in NXT in 2015, they were at Takeovers but I'm not sure off the top of my head what the shows were called. One was a Brooklyn show, though. Great stuff.

Well, after monday I'm still not sure which champion Asuka is going for. I know they are setting something up with Nia, but I think it's more that Alexa is trying to get Nia and Mickie to help fight Asuka off. I don't know, it just makes more sense to keep Asuka on Raw right now, I was watching some clips and they kind of set up this match way back in December when Asuka came out to tell Alexa that she would win the Rumble. I feel like the Nia thing will happen after Alexa loses the belt, but I could be wrong. I just think the Asuka beating Alexa cleanly thing could play into why she is trying to get "friends" for Mania.

I do think Asuka vs. Charlotte could be good stuff. I just don't think it would be as interesting with just a few weeks build up, not as much as this thing with Alexa and Nia anyway. More so than Charlotte though I want to see Asuka against people like Becky or Natalya. But the thing I definitely want most is a real feud with Sasha. Fuck that Raw match was great.

Yeah, the Rumble matches were great. The men's rumble got really good when it was down to like the last 6 and the tension was real when it got down to 4. Keeping Cena and Roman in there against Finn and Nakamura was great, because I'm sure pretty much everyone had some part of their mind going "oh shit, Roman or Cena will win right?" I think as a whole I kind of like the women's rumble a little bit more too, it was pretty cool how it was like a who's who of the division throughout the 2000's and man did Trish look great. I was hoping at one point they were setting up a Trish vs Sasha match. Btw, my favorite part of the match was Nia hitting Trish only for every woman in the ring to immediately start stomping this shit out of her like they were pissed at her. It was great. Also, Sasha bumping into Asuka. But, yeah, a lot of great things during both rumbles.

Uh, as far as shirts. Not sure, probably Rollins, Finn, and maybe Sasha if I actually like any of her shirts. Also, Owens or Zayn.

Yeah, I've been into wrestling pretty much all of my life though of course there have been peaks and valleys in my interest. But, I've got to say this is probably my favorite roster since the attitude era. I like a lot of people in WWE but I guess along with Asuka: Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Sasha Banks, Sami Zayn, and Shinsuke Nakamura are my current favorites. AJ's great, of course, but he hasn't quite clicked with me as much as the others. I've also been watching a fair bit of New Japan and Stardom, but so far the only guy I've watched a lot of stuff is Okada and Nakamura when he was there.

If you haven't I'd recommend going through some of AJ's stuff with Okada and Nakamura. The latter is a big reason why a lot of people are excited about the prospect of him facing Nakamura at Wrestlemania, great fucking match. As for Asuka, I don't know if you know, but she was a pretty prolific wrestler in Japan. You can find a lot of her stuff as Kana on youtube, she even did a lot of intergender matches. She's tough as hell, so it makes giving her the streak absolutely legit. And, god damn man, as a fan of both I loved her match with Sasha too. They've got to make that a read deal feud at some point, right!?

Who do you think Asuka will choose at Mania? I think it's building towards Alexa, which I hope is the case because I honestly do not want Asuka on smackdown, the women's division on that show is the pits right now. That said, the popular opinion is that she'll challenge Charlotte which, yeah, will likely be a better match (though not a more interesting one from a story pov, say what you want about her wrestling, but Alexa is really good as a character) . If they do move her to smackdown I hope Sasha follows, the prospect of Becky actually getting something tangible to do is good too though.

Yeah, man, I lost a lot of interest when Stone Cold retired waaaay back in 2003 though I definitely saw WM 20 (what a great show) and other stuff. Anyway, I remember The Rock's return for WM in 2011 caught my eye and then Punk kind of hooked me back on the show. I actually missed a good chunk of his career in WWE, I didn't see much the Straight Edge Society, his MITB win, or his time as the leader of Nexus. I caught a lot of that on his DVD that WWE released, though. After he left I still watched because Daniel Bryan and then Seth Rollins after he screwed over the Shield really hooked me.

Though my interest started waining the last year, but I watched the Rumble this year and damn that was a great PPV. I've also been going through the late 90 RAWs and NXT. I'm actually going through Asuka's reign as champ right now and Ember Moon has just debuted.

So yeah, I'm quite the wrestling fan. I actually ordered my first wrestling shirt since reaching adulthood, it's an Asuka one. I plan on getting others though

Whoa, did not expect such a fast reply. And a new profile as well! Good luck with the whole March Mania thing!

I skipped the Wii U completely and I have not played that Smash game at all. I did think about buying it for the 3DS but I just never got around to it. So I definitely want any Smash game to come to the Switch, doesn't really matter if it's a port or a new game in the series.

With Camilla's power, my thoughts also went to Hisoka's death as I was first reading it. I feel that most of the controversial things in Togashi's works always has some kind of purpose. The Hisoka death and revival certainly got some criticism, but thanks to it it's easy to accept Camilla's power. The Nen Cat's "tail nipple milk" also really reminded me of the greatest scene ever made, when Youpi and Pouf give their power to Meruem. And that scene was heavy on the whole motherly imagery, which I guess breasts also are.

I have never played Super Mario 64 so I didn't know that was a reference, cool! And yeah, totally agree with your opinion about game overs.

Many Mario Kart games are essentially the same, with only slight differences. So Mario Kart 8 being the best still doesn't mean it's that much better than some of the other ones. And I also have a soft spot for the DS version and Double Dash specifically. The DS version is definitely the one I've played the most by myself, and I remember really liking the races and the battle mode in that one. And of course it was really cool with online play back then. And Double Dash would be the one I've played most with friends, it was pretty much my go to party-game together with Super Smash Melee. Before Mario Kart 8, Double Dash was definitely my favourite.

And I still haven't played any Breath of the Wild! Or anything else for that matter. But I'll let you know when I start!

And yes, of course I'm keeping up with Hunter x Hunter! It's a shame you feel that way but it's easy to understand. It can be difficult to hold up the interest when the plot progresses slowly and there's a lot of information to take in. After a while, you just want things to pick up a bit, or introduce something more thematic as you say. These chapters are pretty heavy and time-consuming to read, especially when compared to really anything else in Shounen Jump. It also doesn't help that the Mangastream translation isn't that great imo. The Viz Media translation is a lot easier to understand, at least for me, being a non-native English speaker. I sometimes have to re-read some panels of the Mangastream translation just to understand what they're trying to say, and it does feel like they over-complicate things. There is a great video on Youtube by Uncivilized Elk where he compares two chapters with the two different translations and there is definitely a difference.

I've mentioned it a bit before, but that's why I'm not super invested as I'm reading right now. I know I won't be able to judge the arc until I can read it in its completion and maybe only when I have another translation. The only re-reading I've been doing is in the actual volumes. So I have re-read the beginning of the arc, which was in volume 33. And volume 34 is coming out this month so I will re-read those chapters soon too. And it's during those volume re-reads I'll get the most out of the manga, not really reading weekly. Of course, I still want to keep up and find out what's happening so I'm not going to stop reading weekly.

I always enjoy seeing the Spiders so that's been one of the highlights these past chapters, even if they haven't really done anything yet. But with all these new characters, it's great with some old faces. And Camilla's Nen Cat Power is probably one of my favourites in a long while. It felt both really crazy whilst still feeling obvious with what we know of nen. And Vergei reacting to Bisky's real form was hilarious. A bit of comedy and lightheartedness is maybe the only thing I usually miss when reading this arc. I am a bit disappointed that Hanzo hasn't really been doing anything fun, since he was one of my favourite characters in the Hunter Exam arc. But of course, too much comedy wouldn't really fit the arc.

I think overall I still think the arc just gets more and more interesting as more stuff is happening. But I can definitely understand why you don't. And I do think it could be better. But I think a lot of the problems are solved when reading it in one go, in about 10 years or so.

Oh, and it's the 20th anniversary now! That's pretty cool. I do think it's a bit insane how many years some of these manga take up in my life. Not that I've been reading it for 20 years, but I probably will have before it's finished. I've actually been reading Hunter x Hunter now for half my life. One Piece is even worse though, especially when considering I've been reading it weekly for so many years. Not a month has gone past without reading a One Piece chapter for about 15 years now. Manga really is the only medium that works that way, at least for me. Not that I'm complaining, it's just interesting to think about.

Yo dude, you are an Asuka fan? Sweet. I also wasn't even aware you are into wrestling.

Cool that you liked Made in Abyss that much! I also really liked the world and I think you capture it perfectly when you refer to the Abyss itself as a character. My main problem was that not much else really did anything for me, most of it was just good, but not great. I didn't really care for any of the characters that much (once again, Riko being like Gon without those attributes that made him interesting was another great way to explain it), nor did I find the story very interesting. I think there was too much focus on the story and that in a way kept me from enjoying the world the way I wanted to. I still think the very first couple of episodes where the best.

I also agree with the comedy not being that interesting as well. But I disagree with your comments on the nudity and that you compare it to Dragon Ball or The Simpsons movie. But that is probably since I've read the manga and it's a lot more clear in what way it is portrayed, and what I think was the intent of the mangaka. As I said earlier, it is different in the anime, and that was one of my favourite changes. But for me, the intent is still the same since it's still the same writing, even if it is slightly changed. It's mainly just a tone change so that it feels more comedic instead of sexy. And there's definitely a comedic aspect to those moments in the manga aswell, but in that case it's not just bad comedy but I would say it's hurtful. The anime should just have gotten rid of those moments completely in my opinion.

For me, nudity and sexualization are very different things. There's nothing sexual in seeing Bart's penis and I actually think it's a great joke that plays on your expectations. The joke isn't the nudity itself. Goku is also never portrayed in a sexual way when he's naked. The most problematic nudity in Dragon Ball I guess is with Bulma, but the joke is always people's reaction to her nudity rather than the actual nudity. I think it's never problematic to show anyone naked, neither adults or children, but it is the way the nudity is portrayed that can be problematic or not. I think you do agree with this judging by your comment.

I might be wrong to judge the anime's portrayal by looking at the manga but I just don't think the change was big enough. The whole being hanged naked bit is either sexualized or a very inappropriate joke. And for me it's not really comparable to either Simpsons or Dragon Ball. But I might be biased since I read the manga first. I did almost drop the manga a while back, so I'll see how long I can keep going. I might still watch season 2 of the anime even if that happens though, as there are still enough things that I enjoy.

And I still haven't played any Breath of the Wild! But yeah, Odyssey really is great. I've heard quite a lot of criticism for it being "too easy", but I agree with how having easy moons does give you that feeling of constantly progressing. And for a total newbie to 3D-platformers like me, I just love to be able to play a game without being constantly frustrated and stuck. I mainly want games to be fun and immersive and nothing breaks immersion like dying 100 times. I definitely won't be able to get all moons in the game though and I don't really want to try to either. And yeah, that final level was truly awesome. I just got a huge smile as I realised I was going to possess Bowser. The song that played was also great. And finding Yoshi in the Mushroom Kingdom was almost just as cool, as he's always been among my favourite Mario characters.

I did pick up Mario Kart for the Switch during christmas, and that's probably my favourite in the series. So buying the Switch has definitely been worthwhile just for these two games. But I'm still really looking forward to Zelda. A friend of mine constantly says it's the best Zelda game ever, so that makes me pretty hype. I just need some more time, which I don't have quite yet.