Super Nintendo Exploration Squad - Super Bomberman 2 casting call

Output Podcast Bonus Round
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Wow look I’m recording another podcast next weekend! I’m trying to get back on schedule for every 2 weeks, and since I bailed for a couple of weeks, figured we could record an extra session before going back to normal.

The doodle below is for next weekend, July 8th and 9th. Check the time zone stated - I’m not sure if it automagically switches to your time zone or not! I’m in PST so it might default to that - just double check.

https://beta.doodle.com/poll/92eryphdy5rm3nn7

So! The game this time is Super Bomberman 2. I think it will be a good excuse to discuss bomberman as a phenomenon, incremental sequels, stuff like that.

Also, we’re introducing a new portion of the show called Mahjong Minute! As you may know, the SNES has a glut of JP only Mahjong games that, frankly, nobody cares about. Instead of dedicating entire episodes to those games, we’re going to play a mahjong game for 5 minutes and then talk about it for 5 minutes in the podcast. This week it’s “Kikuni Masahiko no Jantoushi Doraou 2”, the sequel to “Kikuni Masahiko no Jantoushi Doraou.” So give it a very brief whirl and we’ll discuss our very brief impressions sometime during the episode

Here’s a package containing an emulator and the ROMs, in case you need it. By default it’s set up to use the keyboard - turns out my Xbox 360 controller setup would only work on my computer because of reasons.

Feel free to use your own setup though! Whatever makes you happy.

EDITED OUT THANKS TULPA

As a reminder, we discuss the game based on 5 topics, listed below:

Gun - mechanics of play, essentially
Vanity - look, sound, feel, etc.
Mystery - does this game feel like it has any deeper mysteries? interpret as you will
Poetry - anything particularly striking, visually or word-ually or whatever
Harmony - how does it all come together?

If you’re recording, please play the main game for an hour or so, and take a couple of notes on those 5 topics. I usually just write like, a few things down that I want to remember, but do as you please. I’m going to try and nail down the final time ASAP so everyone knows if their recording or not

And for Mahjong, seriously, don’t spend more than 5 minutes on it unless you’re really digging it.

Ventrilo was acting hella stupid last time, so we’re just going to use Discord. I’ve created a channel just for this purpose:

Once I get 5 or so signups I’m going to call a time, and then we’ll record next weekend! I want to call a time ASAP so people know whether or not they’ll be able to record, and therefore whether or not they are playing the games.

Oh, and thanks to everyone for joining me on these podcasts. It’s been a lot of fun so far!

@Godamn_Milkman @OneSecondBefore @CourierRice @meauxdal @ferrets @Tulpa @sleepysmiles @Father.Torque @shrug @anyonelseiforgot

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I’ll probably have a voice by then.

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Signed up, maybe next week my voice and sinuses won’t be terrible

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Ok my unemployed butt is definitely in this time.

Maybe it’d be fun to do some multiplayer this week in preparation if we can find some way to make that happen

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Damn did we fill up already? Hope I can still join. Also, I was wondering if we’re interested in testing out netplay with this, what with the increasing emphasis on being a party game series.

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I am hyped for this but I hope at least one person knows the rules to mahjong

I would love to be around for this but I unfortunately have plans already!

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Net play is a great idea! Does…anyone know how to do that?

I’ll research it of course but any tips are appreciated

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I haven’t experimented with it in ages but I know that retroarch has an option for it??

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Gosh that did go quickly huh? Like, here’s my thought: let’s have a big raucous podcast party, anyone who can show will show, and I’m fine with that. So sign up if you want to! I’m honestly not that concerned about quality of recording, I just want to have fun with my friends on SB.

Right so, I’m gonna say Saturday from 12-2 PM Pacific time is the time for recording. Works best for me, and seems like that’s becoming a good go-to time.

Maybe it’ll be better if nobody knows.

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SNES era is kind of an interesting experimental period for the presentation of mahjong game UIs on consoles, so I feel like the implications of those design choices might be interesting to surface, but they’d be lost on you if you aren’t familiar with the basics of the game.

I think games like mahjong (or poker if you want a western analogue) are an interesting space to explore because the mechanics of the game are pretty set in stone, and all you can really do to differentiate as a developer is focus on the quality of the AI or the user interface, unless you want to just lean in and bet on unlockable naughty pics to sell your game. It’s easy to dismiss the entire genre as they’re not particularly exciting uses of video games as a medium, but there is still some interesting stuff to learn from them.

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You’re probably right! Maybe after a while we can do a whole mahjong recap episode. Surely one of us will have learned the rules eventually

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My family played mahjong because my grandfather bought sets in Korea when he was in the Army and all his buddies (but most especially the wives) played.

There’s little green books that list all the hands.

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http://mahjonginmame.com/

I remembered @loki mentioned this on his super famous videogames blog. This may come in handy for the cast.

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I have played mahjong with people, but not sure how well I remember the rules : ( Maybe I only remember basic matches plus numbers …

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I went to some party once and people were playing table tennis and mahjong, and not drinking and being reckless; it was weird as hell.

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Has anyone figured out netplay for Bomberman 2? I’d be down, sounds like the funnest possible way to prep for this podcast.

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If I get a chance tonight I’ll look into it - otherwise it might be an impromptu thing on Saturday before the podcast

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but if you wanna figure it out that’d be cool too

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BTW I just finalized the poll. It’s happening tomorrow, Saturday, at 12-2 PM Pacific time. If folks want to log on earlier we can try and do some netplay but no guarantees there! I have yet to do any actual research.

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Netplay:

  1. Download and extract the latest version of RetroArch: http://www.retroarch.com/index.php?page=platforms
  2. Run retroarch.exe, click Load Core, then Download Core.
  3. I think we’re going to want to use the core called “SNES9x 2010”, so find that and download it from the list
  4. Once you have downloaded it, load that core from the main menu (right click to go backwards) (this would be the point to set up your controller and stuff,)
  5. From the main menu, go to Load Content and load the ROM, in this case Super Bomberman 2.
  6. Hit F1 to go back to the menu
    6a. If you want to host and set a password, go to the Network tab, and set a netplay password
    6b. Also if you’re hosting, you’ll need to turn on the multitap for 4 player bomberman. Go to the quick menu (first tab), go to controls, and set the player 2 device to multitap
  7. Go to the Netplay tab (way over to the right).
    7a. If you’re hosting, click “Start Netplay Host.” This should pop you back into the game, and then I guess people can connect??
    7b. If you’re joining, choose “Refresh Room List.” Find the room playing Super Bomberman 2 (not sure how to name a server yet) and select it. I guess it should automatically work???

I tested as much of this as I could but couldn’t connect to my own computer. I’m guessing two RetroArch instances running on the same machine don’t like each other enough to make this work, but I think this should work for an actual real situation! I could at least see myself on the room list, so yay.

I’ll be on all day tomorrow before the podcast so hit me up on discord if you want to try netplay with me.

EDIT: pinging @parker @Tulpa @la_ciel @ferrets @shrug @OneSecondBefore

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