Symphony

Actually, I'm probably going to have to say achievements. I find them to be a worthless carrot on a stick mechanic that artificially extends the playtime of a mediocre game. I've always gone out of my way to do crazy accomplishments in games I really enjoy, such as leveling all my characters to max level, exploring every nook and cranny, collecting the bajillion collectables, etc. 
 
Besides, there have always been plenty of good games that actually give real rewards for achieving crazy things in them. Goldeneye 007, for example, had the crazy cheat codes that made mulitplayer insane. Give me more games with real rewards for achieving things, not just worthless points or trophies that go towards a meaningless total that proves nothing.

" My gf is a vegan. I'm not. It''s not that big a deal really. I eat vegan most of the time, and i eat a cheeseburger when i feel like it. Easy peasy. "

" @Symphony said:

" @Hailinel: The comic (let alone Samus as a character) was out before Master Chief was even an idea on a drawing board. People need to stop comparing her to him. SHE IS NOT A FEMALE COPY OF HIM. I found her interesting in the comic She was a strong female character in a leading role showcased in a magazine aimed almost directly at boys. She was one of the few characters I could look at and think, "I wish I could be like that". She still had an emotional side that was expressed at the end of the short-run series, but also looked in the face of danger and laughed.  Excuse me for wanting a character like that to look up to in a medium where most women at the time were helpless princesses. I'm sorry you already have master chief and Gordon Freeman and that you're sick and tired of those kind of characters.  "

Sorry if I touched a nerve.  I know of the comic of which you speak; it was well written as I recall, but it's not what I consider Samus to be, nor do I necessarily want her to be that character.  While the characterization may have supposedly been accurate at one time, later games following Super Metroid (Zero Mission, Fusion, Other M) all state otherwise, to one degree or another.  (Well, that, and I can't accept any interpretation of the Metroid universe that comes complete with that useless tag-along imbecile Houston.)  The Samus of Other M, despite being referred to as one by one of the characters, is not a princess.  To suggest that the weakness she exhibits in the game suddenly makes her another Princess Peach or Zelda is not an accurate assessment in the slightest.  Samus has always been the opposite of those characters, and nothing that occurs in Other M or any other Metroid game changes that.  She's neither an unstoppable badass, a weak little girl, or an empty shell masquerading as a character.  She's a character with more than just one or two dimensions, and despite what weakness she does show, she still has strength enough to do what it takes even when it hurts.  That isn't weakening or cheapening her character.  Ultimately, it adds to it because it makes her more relatable as a human being.  Someone capable of overcoming her problems rather than never having any problems at all. "

" @Symphony said:

giving her a back story, personality and emotion "

See, Oni? Humanization. Also, Other M captures a lot of what @Symphony:  said at the end of her post. "

Since you brought up the Metroid manga as canonical reference, I couldn't help but be reminded of the Nintendo Power comics that ran for a few issues and did, what I felt, was a great job of giving her a back story, personality and emotion (and purple hair for some reason o.O). Sure, there were some silly characters that were made just for the comic, but her personality is really what I think most of us have always imagined her as being -- strong-willed and independent, but empathic and selfless.  

Whee posting in epic thread. 
 
I enjoyed HL2 but the story was pretty much utter nonsense for the most part. Granted it was interesting and I'm definitely wanting to know more, but the way they forcefed you the fact that "You're the one Free Man! You're the Savior!" was pretty heavy-handed, and the whole attempt at romance with Alyx was complete bullshit "Oh, Gordon, you're lack of emotion and speech is so manly *swoons*" 
 
But I found a lot of the weapons to work well -- calling those sand bug things and having them slaughter every thing never got old, nor did the improved gravity gun that made you basically feel invincible. And overall I found many of the cast members charming and fairly believable, yes even Alyx when she wasn't too busy swooning over a man with the personality of mud. 
 
Edit: I guess I should clarify "believable", since I said I found the story to be utter nonsense. Basically the dialog and voice actors did a superb job and said things I would have expected to hear in such situations most of the time. Dr. Vance, for example, came across as very sincere and amiable, and what he said and how he said it always fit his character.  

I don't get the idea behind people wanting well done and complete games to be remade. So instead of listing three of my favorite games that still play well and feel complete, I'll go with some that could actually benefit from an update in more ways than "Oh look, shiny new graphics!" 
 
1) Crystalis -- An NES RPG that was a ton of fun and has huge potential to tell a really neat story but the story-telling was hampered by the hardware and general aptitude of translators at the time. I worry that this game could easily fall into the generic JRPG story trap if it's not treated with enough TLC though, but even if that happened, the combat and music would still be enjoyable if left in tact. 
 
2) Destiny of an Emperor -- Another NES RPG that was limited by the hardware. The premise was great -- a fun twist on the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, but the combat was revolutionary at the time and could be even more enjoyable with today's technology. Being able to convert enemy generals into allies was a really fun game mechanic, and the fact some could betray you down the road (ie Lu Bu) kept you second guessing whether or not important generals you recruits would end up stabbing you in the back.
 
3) Xenogears -- Yep, I love my RPGs, but really this is the dream of any big Xenogears fan -- to have a COMPLETE telling of the Xenogears story. Simply put -- the game felt rushed and incomplete as soon as you hit CD2, turning into more of a storybook than a game. CD1 was perfect. I really couldn't ask for more from it besides maybe a few tropes we're used to nowadays like a more robust map and HD sprites. CD2 is where the work needs to be done. Sadly, that'll never happen, but goddamn would that ever be awesome if it somehow did.

I would assume that there would be a free patch which includes balance changes and the characters. However, you'd have to pay for a key to unlock each additional new character ($5-$10 per, I'd guess). Sucks to download content you can't access, but this is really the only way to allow people who purchase the new characters to play against those who don't as well as ensure everyone has the same balancing and updated select screen and such.
 
Personally, I don't care for Yun and Yang, so I'd pass on them, but I'd be willing to shell out $5 per on characters I'd want to use like R.Mika or Ingrid if ever they were to release more.

Haven't played it myself but those definitely sound like moments that would break the suspension of disbelief for me as well. At least you enjoyed the game overall.