From: sheath@gamepilgrimage.com   
      
   On 12/23/2012 7:02 PM, Kendrick Kerwin Chua wrote:> It's a Sega Sorta   
   Christmas in 2012. Every year we confuse NNTP   
    > aggregators by posting about the qualities and activities of our winter   
    > holidays that were colored by our favorite game developer and publisher.   
    > How Sega was your Christmas this year?   
    >   
    > I've been behind on new releases in the gaming world, partly because of   
    > old age and partly because my priorities are shifting. So forgive me for   
    > making Sonic Colors my major game activity this December. We're all   
    > familiar with the Sonic cycle now, which arcs from anticipation to   
    > disappointment and back again with each new release. But with Sonic   
   Colors   
    > I feel like the pattern has been broken, at least partially. I haven't   
    > really been able to put the game down, or walk away from it like I did   
    > Shadow or Heroes or Secret Rings. Basic 2D platforming (with only   
    > occasional 3D challenges) and a power-up scheme that's consistent and not   
    > based on sidekicks or collecting. I haven't yet played Generations or   
    > given Unleashed a fair shot, but it's my firm impression that Colors is   
    > the best one we've seen in quite a long while.   
    >   
    > As usual, the rest of my Sega Christmas is perfectly retro. Sonic   
   Spinball   
    > occupied me for nearly four hours (!) this past weekend, after I repaired   
    > a Gamecube Gameboy Player accessory in a manly and clever way. That's one   
    > of the games on the GBA version of the Smash Pack, which bizarrely   
    > includes Ecco the Dolphin and Golden Axe. GBA games have been really   
   cheap   
    > lately now that the DS is fully entrenched, and looking at the pile of   
    > purchases this year I'm astonished at how much of the Gameboy Advance   
    > library had Sega ports in it. Crazy Taxi Catch a Ride, the Phantasy Star   
    > collection, any number of Sonic variants too. And this Lunar cartridge   
    > deserves special mention even though Sega had nothing to do with it.   
    >   
    > The most interesting Sega experience this year was finally getting the PC   
    > version of Last Bronx to run on my gaming machine this past Saturday.   
   This   
    > port was released by Expert Software, Sega's old budget desktop software   
    > division. It had a hard-coded version check in it that used a less-than   
    > operator to validate the OS, instead of a greater-than. That meant if you   
    > were running Windows NT 4.0 or higher, you couldn't install. That sadly   
    > included Windows XP, Vista and 7. But I finally hacked my way around it   
    > (easier than I thought, because it needed two Compatibility Mode settings   
    > instead of just one) and now Yoko is merrily bashing heads with her tonfa   
    > in glorious full 640 by 480 resolution. Of all the forgotten Sega   
    > proprties, this is one I'd like to see revisited in HD the most.   
    >   
    > I used to make a big point of playing Christmas Nights every year,   
   but the   
    > last couple of years I've missed powering on the Saturn because I was out   
    > of the house for one reason or another. Ted says the Christmas Nights   
    > functionality is included in the later Wii or Steam PC ports?   
    >   
    > So how Sega was your Christmas? And what are you doing still   
   subscribed to   
    > this newsgroup? :)   
    >   
    > -KKC, who may have a new laptop to play with on Monday. Last Bronx   
   Mobile!   
    >   
      
   Gah, lame, I had a response typed up last week, got sick and lost it   
   before finishing it up.  I got Zaxxon Motherbase 2000 (Complete), along   
   with Robocop vs. Terminator, Judge Dredd, Greatest Heavyweights (All   
   Cart Only), and Jennifer Capriati Tennis (Boxed).   
      
   Not bad overall, I haven't ended up playing any of it yet though.   
      
   --   
   Scott   
      
   http://www.gamepilgrimage.com   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)