Andrew Galbraith
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AIM: AndrewG009
Posts by Andrew Galbraith
Miscoded Confidence: Beavis and Butt-Head
Mar 5th
Nostalgia is probably one of the warmest and fuzziest double-edged swords gamers can encounter as they mature beyond adolescence into adulthood. Primarily this is because a particular game can be all too easily remembered as being significantly better than it actually was as a player matures and samples different genres to continue altering their gaming palette with age. Other times, it’s simply due to the simple fact that you mature beyond believing that what you are playing is genuinely funny in the least and is better left fondly in the past.
But, as always, I’ll leave you to be the ultimate judge. More >
Miscoded Confidence: Battletoads & Double Dragons
Feb 19th
Crossovers are a hallmark of the media world since we all love to see references intermixed for maximum appeal if for no other reason than the potential of an extreme amount of fun. Just look back at history: Flintstones meet The Jetsons, Super Smash Bros., more comic books than I can name and most recently, Marvel vs. Capcom 3. People thrive on seeing their favorites characters tossed into overwhelming circumstances because the more incredible the odds are against, the more awesome necessary to overcome the challenge. Yet, when people think of amazing crossovers, I have a feeling their minds don’t immediately jump to Battletoads & Double Dragons.
Well, I can’t say I don’t blame them. More >
Contemporary Alternatives: 1.21 Gigawatts Edition
Jan 9th
For everyone who grew up in the 1980’s, there are a few constants that are forever going to be apart of the very fabric of popular culture – films like Goonies and Breakfast Club – but nothing quite tops the list quite like Back to the Future. Certainly enough, I could go on about the whimsicality of going back in time and engaging in activities that range from just about everything; namely flirting with a younger version of a parent, putting a bully into their place or simply trying to avoid screwing up the rest of timeline via a viciously hilarious paradox. But, digressively, the series purported a significant amount of humor into a traditionally science-fiction trope of time travel. On the other hand, the early games created to cash in on the series didn’t necessarily do the franchise justice as much as later incarnations.
Miscoded Confidence: Battletoads
Jan 9th
Being the first to admit it, Battletoads is probably one of the most ridiculously, unforgiving video games in the history of the medium. Not that that single fact makes it a bad game, on the contrary, Battletoads has earned a legacy that is easily the equal of Sonic, Mario or Master Chief. Stretching beyond the multitude of levels that are packed onto the cartridge the data inhabits, the game undoubtedly purports an efficacy in level design that hasn’t really been seen in the last several years. Hence, sitting down with Battletoads this week wasn’t only a stroll down memory lane, it tossed in a beat-down for free. More >
Miscoded Confidence: Getting into The Club
Dec 19th
As someone who has grown up loving Sega, I’ve spent the majority of my Miscoded Confidence segments discussing games and levels that are not only difficult, but memorably so for being so. And while occasionally I’ll take a break from that to dish on a game for a simply failing in its overall quality, or even to complain about some issue that many would consider to be nothing more than minutia, I try to usually remain positive in my retrospective look at games, regardless of whether they were produced for a Sega console or simply created by them. Hence, few people should be surprised that I’m returning from my lengthy hiatus with a look at one of Sega’s more unique titles that had a few intriguing failings of its own.
The Club. More >
Contemporary Alternatives: Bad Touch Edition
Oct 26th
Sega has this way of constantly bringing back the things they believe their fans really and honestly want and for the most part, they have it nailed down to a point. But, there is definitely something that has been lingering in the back of my mind as a major problem for sometime and while bad games do happen to good developers all too often – its recognizing that there is a decided factor in the platform a game arrives on more so than the game itself. More >
Miscoded Confidence: Sonic 4, Episode I
Oct 23rd
Sonic has returned from the haphazard existence of games like Sonic Free Riders, Sonic and the Secret Rings as well as a brief appearance in The Lion, The Witch and The Hedgehog to lauded appreciation from many in the gaming community who have been ravenously waiting for Sonic 4 since it was seemingly announced a significant time ago. And while a lot of that excitement has been pent up, I’ve been getting a feeling playing through it myself that a lot of die-hard sonic fans may have caught themselves a bit disappointed with what DIMPS offered up as Episode One of the latest incarnation of the fastest blue hedgehog on earth. More >
Contemporary Alternatives: Light Gun Edition
Oct 12th
Lately, I’ve been on a light gun kick and whether you picked up your first with Duckhunt on the NES or didn’t get your taste until you got your hands on one in some arcade you can’t quite remember the name of, light gun games have an immersive quality that pulls players in a bit deeper than they’d normally be comfortable with simply using a run-of-the-mill controller. More >
Miscoded Confidence: Typing of the Dead
Oct 11th
So, I just took a typing test and while I’m still as fast with my fingers as I ever was, I realize that there are some people out there who are completely and utterly comfortable taking as many shortcuts as possible when it comes to typing things out either online, for a blog or within the gentle confines of a word processor. While the use of the letter ‘u’ in place of ‘you’ is usually enough to make me slightly cringe, it does just go on to prove that Sega has a point when they released Typing of the Dead over a decade ago. More >
Miscoded Confidence: X-Men 2: Game Master’s Legacy
Oct 6th
Growing up, I was one of those who kids who spent a fair amount of time at the comic book store. If not, I was rushing home from school to catch the latest episode of The Amazing Spider-Man or X-Men cartoons. While other children played catch or talked about Monday Night Football – I had discussions about what superpowers I would have with my friends. Since then, whenever a game comes out that allows me to step into the boots and suit of my favorite superhero; I’m never one to back down.
That is, unless the game is unspeakably terrible.
