Quick Look: Nights Into Dreams

Brad said that they had settled the question of what the best 16-bit console was once and for all earlier this week... Where was that? I love listening to them talk about gaming history.

@TheCowman: People have fun with all kinds of games. If you have fun with Nights, then that's fantastic, more power to you. I was specifically replying to some asshat who was just constantly shouting about how fat Jeff was and how he obviously loves annualized games like Gears COD and Halo and "must have had a sugar low form not eating enough Twinkies to be able to have fun with Nights."

@Bombzinski: I wanna say it was on this week's or last week's bombcast, but I'm not sure. If I'm wrong, I'm sure I'll hear about it...

I'm glad they're finally remaking Nights, since it's supposed to be so good (Why does Jeff hate this so much?), but so few people have played it. Panzer Dragoon Saga needs this treatment too. But man, I wish they'd remake Nights 2 as well. That game needs a remake; on Wii, it's pretty unplayable. The notches on the Wii nunchuk/classic controller analog stick shell are at 45 degree angles, so you can place the stick at perfect up, down, left, right, up/right, down/right, up/left and down/left directions - the 8 way stick. But the levels in that game are not designed at 45 degree angles, so... it's just really badly designed. It actually hurts your hands to play it, since you're constantly adjusting it. It would be more at home on a console with a controller that doesn't have the 8-way notches surrounding their analog stick; the PS3 or 360.

Not to mention, that game - NiGHTS 2, I mean - just got unfairly maligned when it was released. The platforming segments really seemed to rub reviewers the wrong way, but they're fine. Simple and easy, but functional and pretty. I really don't get why those got so much ire. People should play Journey of Dreams again. It would be gorgeous in HD too.

brad asking jeff questions about nights and jeff just saying no

@gladspooky said:

@Andy_117 said:

@BulletConcerto said:

If a games writer or critic is complaining about the game and doesn't know what the point of the game is or even how to play it.

Their critic is not valid. End of story.

If someone who plays games for a living and plays games essentially every hour of every workday without fault, and they do not understand what a game is or how to play it after playing the game, the fault lies with the game. The game has failed to adequately explain itself. These people do nothing but play games for a job. Pretty certain if they can't figure out what a game is doing it's on the game's shoulders at that point.

This happens with practically every game they show off, though.

That's because in the quick looks they are almost always fairly new to the game at hand, which is great, because gives you the feeling you'll get once you play it.

@vinsanityv22 said:

I'm glad they're finally remaking Nights, since it's supposed to be so good (Why does Jeff hate this so much?), but so few people have played it. Panzer Dragoon Saga needs this treatment too.

Agreed. Sometimes I wonder if the leadership at Sega has gone insane, what with their sitting on many of their great classics. With the current eBay pricing on Panzer Dragoon Saga, a re-release would not only be a treat, but an act of mercy.

Also, I get the impression that NiGHTS is the sort of game that appeals to the kind of gamer that enjoys replaying levels for higher and higher scores, etc... Jeff is likely not one of these gamers, and come to think of it, I don't think I am either. Looks decent for fans of that gameplay style though.

I love you Jeff, but the fact that you dislike or hate so many of the classic games sort of blows my mind. NiGHTS is just one of many that I hear him crapping on during a Bombcast that makes me almost crash my car in disbelief.

I really wonder if nostalgia glasses affect all of us, but... NiGHTS was good. Is it just that his tastes are that much different?

@Vrikk said:

I love you Jeff, but the fact that you dislike or hate so many of the classic games sort of blows my mind. NiGHTS is just one of many that I hear him crapping on during a Bombcast that makes me almost crash my car in disbelief.

I really wonder if nostalgia glasses affect all of us, but... NiGHTS was good. Is it just that his tastes are that much different?

Jeff may or may not have been picked on during the early days of Gamespot by angry SEGA fans. He may or may not hold a grudge against those same people today.

I always thought the nights character was a female. That's a dude? Weird.

'96. I was Nintendo fanboy at the time so this didn't cross my radar. I remember ads for it in magazines back then though. Keep in mind this is early early early 3D. Doesn't seem right to be lambasting it so.

Jeff, show us on the doll where Knights touched you.

@Sammo21 said:

I always thought the nights character was a female. That's a dude? Weird.

I think it's supposed to be androgynous actually. So it's neither.

Also, I don't believe the comments where people are saying Jeff dislikes a lot of these games because he is just being funny or sarcastic. If so, then even his jar sessions and literally almost every other video online with him in it are sarcastic too... and I just don't buy it.

@gesi1223 said:

This does not look like a game I would buy a $400 console for back in 1996. It looks like a mess, and the length doesn't even make it worth full price.

I see people trying to play the "art-game" card and trying to claim that makes NiGHTS a "good" game. There are hundreds of games that evoke people's emotions in a meaningful way that are loads better than this. Take off the the shades.

LOL @ all the sheep parroting what some stranger on a website said about a game they never played, and that stranger hasn't played it much himself either!

Nights is not an "art game", I never recall it being labeled as one either, people just liked it period. And since when does length matter in a score attack game? This isn't an open world RPG lol.

ugh, watching Brad play this is so painful. It's like watching someone play Ikaruga, and they never switch polarities, or attempt to chain enemies.

2012 is just not a time for a game like nights. in a world where so many games are vying for your attention, it cant compete with its vague instructions and disorienting pop-up.

But for me back in the 90s, being broke, and wanting to squeeze every once of fun out of the games I purchased, Nights easily became one of my favorite games, A ranking in every level.

Add to the fact that the games theme changed for the holidays made it feel like the gift that kept on giving.

Btw heres what that level Brad played looks like when played by someone who actually cares, lol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaqZJX4HfN8

Sega Saturn was the first console I ever owned. The DEMO of this game was the second video game I ever played. (For context: I was born in 1991). I played the demo so many times... still have tons of nostalgia for this game, and I never owned the game. Hell, my Saturn's disc drive died after a year of owning the thing.

That said, Nights was great. Even if it wasn't.

@BeachThunder: Yeah...the game probably wasn't too terribly great (though I remember it being fun), and he's probably hamming up his opinion for the funnies and playing to the audience, but it really does seem like he just can't stand the thought of anyone liking this game. Which, yeah, is a pretty shitty attitude, I have to agree, regardless of how good or bad the game was. ~shrug~

TIL giantbomb is full of Sega manchildren

@talkingtoast: U mad?

Sega Saturn was the first console I ever owned. The DEMO of this game was the second video game I ever played. (For context: I was born in 1991). I played the demo so many times... still have tons of nostalgia for this game, and I never owned the game. Hell, my Saturn's disc drive died after a year of owning the thing.

That said, Nights was great. Even if it wasn't.

I cannot believe how much of an idiot these two are. How in the hell can you not know how to play the damn game?! It's simple! The dame game is a race track. You free all the ideya energy from the ideya capture using blue chips and get to the goal as fast as possible getting as many links as you can. How F'N hard can it be?! And Jeff, do not get me started. The game is not great, but it's not terrible either. It's a good solid game, you just don't know how to play the goddamn game! I hate when assholes don't know how to play a game and then they mindlessly bash it. It's F'N ok not to like a game but don't bash it, don't mindlessly bash it. And you call yourself a gamer?! It's an insult to gamers everywhere!

I still like Nights. Super colorful, weird bosses and a nice soundtrack too.

Never actually seen this game till now, and i had a saturn. I was under the impression this was beloved. Were is Street Fighter the Movie the Game and Battle Bots?

wow it was painful to watch brad struggle with this game. It's not that hard to figure out. Nights is one of my favorite games of all time. I played so much Nights, just watching that boss battle against the fat globe lady brought back all kinds of crazy memories. Really a great game. The menu music is also sooooo good.

I find it really funny that people are getting all up in arms about whether or not they agree with Jeff on this one, the dude has crazy terrible opinions about games and he is not afraid to admit it. This is a guy who spent a significant amount of time playing on Japanese servers of PSO-2. CASE CLOSED.

@MattClassic said:

@algertman said:

MK Genesis was worse than the SNES version.

That's crazy talk.

You are clearly a troll because everyone knows that Mortal Kombat on the SNES was not Mortal Kombat at all. I mean seriously. It was basically just one big "Fuck you from Nintendo to you."

nights was NEVER good.

Brad and Jeff put on a good show. Funny QL!

@TophBeiFong: You're making yourself look like the saddest little man right now.

Arrg hovering over the movies section in the extras and not playing one was just plain rude.

Man. That commercial.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPTX41MhHnk

I never had any idea that Nights was 2.5D, with the extremely short video clips, never letting you know that you can't control the perspective shifting. I always knew this thing was marketed primarily to make the Saturn itself interesting to people... but I didn't know just how deceptive that marketing was.

It worked on me, I thought this looked amazing back then. Except for the part where I didn't buy it. Waited a couple of years, and bought the Playstation once it had matured some.

...Oh look, FF7, Tenchu, Einhander, Gran Turismo, RE2, Breath of Fire III, Silent Hill, Metal Gear Solid... I am now only ever convinced about a console's greatness once multiple publishers are putting good things on it.

@TophBeiFong said:

I cannot believe how much of an idiot these two are. How in the hell can you not know how to play the damn game?! It's simple! The dame game is a race track. You free all the ideya energy from the ideya capture using blue chips and get to the goal as fast as possible getting as many links as you can. How F'N hard can it be?! And Jeff, do not get me started. The game is not great, but it's not terrible either. It's a good solid game, you just don't know how to play the goddamn game! I hate when assholes don't know how to play a game and then they mindlessly bash it. It's F'N ok not to like a game but don't bash it, don't mindlessly bash it. And you call yourself a gamer?! It's an insult to gamers everywhere!

lol

Only reason I know Nights existed is because of Shenmue.

@RageGoblin said:

Jeff's Nights hate is really funny. He's my favorite of the team, even though our opinions often clash.

This is one of those cases. Very funny, though.

Take a note guys, this is how you disagree and remain classy and cool about it ^

Maaan... I got seasick...

I remember this game. It wasn't nearly as bad or hard to play as Brad and Jeff make it out to be.

God this is bdumb

@7thCylon said:

My god after just 5 minutes of this crap I wish I could reach into the internet and snatch the controller from them and play the game properly.

THIS. Brad is the worst when it comes to QL's. lol.

This ql felt like a bad trip. Especially when the girl first turns into nights. Jesus.

That being said, I feel like I missed out, not having a Saturn.

You guys need to learn to play Nights right because that was the most suck ass playing of nights I have ever seen in my life and I can see why you hate it. If I played the game wrong I would hate it too. It's like playing street fighter 2 with out super movies and mashing buttons with the AI or local arcade punk kicking your ass.

I only just played NiGHTS for the first time and I fucking loved it. That said, Jeff was right about nearly everything, man.

I spent years trying to figure out what this game is. I'd ask people who played it what you do in it and they'd said "you fly through rings" and then I'd go "yeah but what do you do in it"

It’s always fun coming back to this video, so I can remember how terrible Sega was.

nights is dope and i still appreciate its commitment to arcade-game style design. Its weird as hell but if you read up just a tiny bit of what you're supposed to do, it makes sense and you start chasing higher scores and better rankings. Misunderstood classic. sonic team was a vibe back then