Monday, April 02, 2007
Guest Column: Brian's Nights
Brian was nice enough to submit this sometimes creepy, always glowing remembrance of the Saturn's finest hour. Since he wrote this, a true sequel to Nights has been announced for the Wii. Will it be as incredible? Not a chance. Before the new iteration tarnishes people's idea of what a Nights game should be, allow Brian to explain why this game is revered in the first place.
Do you remember when the Sega Saturn was the hottest thing around? Come on, think back to 1995 in the interim between the launch of the Saturn and PlayStation. Surely you must have thought that Clockwork Knight was going to define gaming as you knew it. Please?
Ok, I'll admit it, I was a fool. I was riding high on a wave of euphoria brought on by the Sega Channel on the Genesis. Comix Zone, Vectorman, Sonic 2, Gunstar Heroes, and Shining Force II had me convinced that Sega would prevent me from going to college by keeping me glued to my couch for the rest of eternity. Whatever, I was 12 years old and thought that the Genesis' exclusivity of Street Fighter 2: Championship Edition automatically made the Genesis superior. So I bought a Sega Saturn.
Have you finished laughing? We all know the Saturn was a failure. I was forced to import games to keep my friends from laughing at me due to my poor choice of console. But to this day I will still defend the Saturn, which I still bring out from time to time, based off of one single title: Nights into Dreams.
Playing video games is supposed to be a magical experience, at least that's how I look at it. And let me tell you something: nothing defines magical better than Sonic Team's 1996 release. This was a game so revolutionary that it had to be played with a wacky invention known as an "analog controller." For those of you who are clueless as to the premise of this game, it is essentially a rail flyer. You speed along on predetermined tracks and you pick up orbs and do loops through the air. Perhaps this doesn't sound exciting to you spoiled gamers with your PlayStation 3s and your Xbox 360s, but over 10 years after its release, this game remains in my top 3 of all time. It's pretty damned good for a 3D game released in 1996. In fact, you can even look at it without cringing; and that in and of itself is an accomplishment for a ten year old 3D adventure.
Remember playing Tetris to the point where you would dream about falling bricks? Nights is the only other game in my life that has stayed with me beyond my waking hours. Can you imagine the excitement that I feel now that I hear about a Wii re-release/remake/sequel? Forget about Halo 3 and MGS 4, simply the possibility of Nights into Dreams being updated in any way, shape, or form is keeping me from spending a single penny on any game released ever again.
Wait, I should stop. This is where you cease reading, buy a Saturn off eBay for $40, get a copy of Nights with the analog controller for another $45, and begin to redefine what you know about console gaming. Fall in love with a ridiculous, purple-clad, flying jester and then lie in bed with me, spooning until Nintendo and/or Sega finally announce a Wii port or sequel. And then you won't laugh at me for still believing the Sega Saturn F'ing ruled.
Do you remember when the Sega Saturn was the hottest thing around? Come on, think back to 1995 in the interim between the launch of the Saturn and PlayStation. Surely you must have thought that Clockwork Knight was going to define gaming as you knew it. Please?
Ok, I'll admit it, I was a fool. I was riding high on a wave of euphoria brought on by the Sega Channel on the Genesis. Comix Zone, Vectorman, Sonic 2, Gunstar Heroes, and Shining Force II had me convinced that Sega would prevent me from going to college by keeping me glued to my couch for the rest of eternity. Whatever, I was 12 years old and thought that the Genesis' exclusivity of Street Fighter 2: Championship Edition automatically made the Genesis superior. So I bought a Sega Saturn.
Have you finished laughing? We all know the Saturn was a failure. I was forced to import games to keep my friends from laughing at me due to my poor choice of console. But to this day I will still defend the Saturn, which I still bring out from time to time, based off of one single title: Nights into Dreams.
Playing video games is supposed to be a magical experience, at least that's how I look at it. And let me tell you something: nothing defines magical better than Sonic Team's 1996 release. This was a game so revolutionary that it had to be played with a wacky invention known as an "analog controller." For those of you who are clueless as to the premise of this game, it is essentially a rail flyer. You speed along on predetermined tracks and you pick up orbs and do loops through the air. Perhaps this doesn't sound exciting to you spoiled gamers with your PlayStation 3s and your Xbox 360s, but over 10 years after its release, this game remains in my top 3 of all time. It's pretty damned good for a 3D game released in 1996. In fact, you can even look at it without cringing; and that in and of itself is an accomplishment for a ten year old 3D adventure.
Remember playing Tetris to the point where you would dream about falling bricks? Nights is the only other game in my life that has stayed with me beyond my waking hours. Can you imagine the excitement that I feel now that I hear about a Wii re-release/remake/sequel? Forget about Halo 3 and MGS 4, simply the possibility of Nights into Dreams being updated in any way, shape, or form is keeping me from spending a single penny on any game released ever again.
Wait, I should stop. This is where you cease reading, buy a Saturn off eBay for $40, get a copy of Nights with the analog controller for another $45, and begin to redefine what you know about console gaming. Fall in love with a ridiculous, purple-clad, flying jester and then lie in bed with me, spooning until Nintendo and/or Sega finally announce a Wii port or sequel. And then you won't laugh at me for still believing the Sega Saturn F'ing ruled.
// posted by Tom @ 2:03 PM 
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