The Starmen.Net Newsletter Edition VIII QUOTES OF THE ISSUE: <@Saotome_Ranma> MY MOM IS MAKING ME LASAGNA :D (Note from Carpainter: Shiggity Shwa!) -------------------------------------------------- ------[ T A B L E - O F - C O N T E N T S ]------- -------------------------------------------------- // 1. Introduction Read an introduction by Starmen.Net's newsletter maintainer, Carpainter! // 2. Latest Starmen.Net News EBFGPS'04! CONTINUUM TOURNAMENT TONIGHT! MODERATORS! // 3. Interview After the interview of JP007, I knew I had to get creative. Who could I interview who could make a HUGE impact? Heck, the answer came to me. Literally. Welcome the old Newsletter Maintainer ... no, not Garurugirl. POKE FREAKIN' BOY ASH. (Minus the FREAKIN') // 4. Word Search FIND ALL THE WORDS! ZOOM! // 5. The MikeTheLiarLeader Effect Eliminated eleven questions for this edition to bring you the opinions of those three duders. If this is well-received, I'll keep it for the next one. MikeTheEBGuru, Blackleader and LiarXAgerate, welcome to the hotseat. // 6. Favourite Forum Topics Simple. There are some special topics featured that you should check out! // 7. Carpainter's Rant DAYS OFF! Here's what I have to say! o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- Introduction -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o I'm somewhat pumped about this edition of newsletter. I got to meet one awesome dude in PokéBoyAsh, get 3 of the cooler people in this community to voice their thoughts on some parts of EB. Also, I started playing EB, and I have fallen in love again ... Come for a ride with me! Also, I promised something in HTML format for you today, but I am unable to deliver. Why? After I published the newsletter, I found out by 'accident' that someone else wanted to do an idea like mine. They had it first, so maybe I'll help out or something. It'll be neat should it work! o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- Latest Starmen.Net News -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -------------------------------------------------- EBFGPS'04 -------------------------------------------------- EarthBound Funktastic GamePlay Summer 2004 has begun, and the community is in full-force! If you wish to check it out, http://www.starmen.net/ebfgp We're in Moonside, so you'll have a bit of catching up to do! -------------------------------------------------- CONTINUUM TOURNAMENT -------------------------------------------------- atticus is the man. If you get this soon enough, you'll be glad. The DSB tournament begins at 8:00 CST which is 9:00 EST, and 6:00 PST. MST, it's whatever time in between. ;) Hurry and battle the Best of All-Time! :D -------------------------------------------------- MODERATORS -------------------------------------------------- New moderators are being decided, and as of now, atticus is a mod of General Discussion. Stay tuned, as more moves are to come! o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- Interview -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o Wow. I've interviewed the following people. In the eight editions, I've interviewed 12 people. I'm breaking these 12 people down for you, to show how much I love this section. Why? Because I can! :D Edition I featured an interview with the Starmen.Net webmaster, reidman. Everyone in the community knows him, and respects him. Why go any farther? Everyone knows of this legend! Edition II featured the first lady of Starmen.Net. Well, sort of. Technically, Meeelllla or Meeeellla is the first lady, but ... ah forget it. In this edition, Luna teamed up with n00b Tim L., and Rock Candy's own Jonk to bring three wonderful interviews to newsletter! Edition III brought the funk. Rocky III had Mr. T, Newsletter III had MikeTheEBGuru. Mikey is mailbag maintainer, and is BY FAR one of the awesomest dudes ever. Mikey is a great dude to know. If you don't know him, ask. You might get a good friend like I did! :) Edition IV featured four names that make me shiver whenever I hear them. Why? All the editing I had to do. No comment on that one! This edition had PsychicKid, who is famous in my books for buying a MINT copy of EB for $100. Also, Jim, the fellow XFL enthusiast, who always brings controversy to the table. OnionRingOfDoom was here as well. I don't know him too well, but what I do know, is awesome. Seems to be pretty popular here. :P As for Mansion_Maniac, he might be my best Internet friend, but hey. Former #eb op who can act da fool. This was a fun edition for obvious reasons. Edition V certainly did not let down like Rocky V. At least, not Interview-wise. We got some good views on #eb from Saotome_Ranma! He was, and is still an op there. Boy, he loves his DDR ... Edition VI did not have an interview. Why? Couldn't find anyone. Since then, I've lucked out and got some great ones. In Edition VII, on the verge of EBFGPS'04, I interviewed the maintainer. What fluke luck is that? I love it! I really do! Good ol' JP007. And now, I bring you ... in my opinion, maybe the best interview thus far. Everyone had heard reidman speak. But how often do you hear of the oldbie, PokéBoyAsh? He was the newsletter maintainer way back when. And now, he's back! And he has promised to return in some form. Without further ado ... POKEBOYASH! [11:07:35 PM] Welcome, loyal newsletter...ists ... and I welcome you to another edition of "The Newsletter Interview!" We have a very special treat for you tonight. After a stroke of luck, I have come into contact with the legendary PokéboyAsh. Welcome to our 'show!' [11:08:18 PM] Ah, thank you, thank you. It's a real pleasure to join you. [11:09:06 PM] Now, some of you may not know why this is such a special treat. Those people were not around when Mr. Ash was the maintainer of the newsletter for the ancient newsletter! Anything to say to those people? [11:10:32 PM] Well, first, I'd have to thank those people who did read the newsletter way back when, it was truly a thrill writing for such an awesome website. But, I'm sorry that I couldn't keep writing. But I see it's been left in good hands. [11:11:13 PM] That's a lie, and we're all aware of it! The last bit anyway ... ;) [11:11:28 PM] lol! [11:11:30 PM] As for the original SM.Net, what was your role, and what was so unique about it that makes it different from today's version? [11:12:55 PM] Well, during my time (Boy do I sound old) the site was a lot smaller and was run by just a handful of people, and visited by the same amount. [11:13:32 PM] My role, was to write the newsletter, and let me tell you how hard it was to come up with fresh material all the time [11:13:44 PM] (I believe you. Even now, it's difficult.) [11:14:44 PM] Oh, also, the site focused soley (sp?) on the game. There wasn't much fan contributions then. [11:14:56 PM] souly? [11:14:56 PM] whatever [11:15:01 PM] Solely, I believe. [11:15:17 PM] Gracias [11:15:29 PM] But now, yes, it seems to be all fan contributions. Naturally, because 99% of the game has been released. Does that mean the old SM.Net was better? [11:17:02 PM] Well, with the old SM.net you really felt like you knew everyone, where as now it has a HUGE fan base. Which of course, is awesome, and you can only do so much with a game nearing decade mark [11:17:20 PM] nearing the decade mark [11:17:53 PM] The fan contributions are some of the most amazing things I've ever seen. [11:18:10 PM] Any particular favourite? [11:18:10 PM] I'm a big fan of Jonk's work. [11:18:41 PM] His art rocks my socks [11:18:43 PM] :D [11:18:57 PM] Jonk is awesome. I remember when he first went 'mainstream'. This makes me somewhat of a veteran. I love it! [11:19:13 PM] Now, what makes you bear such a Pokémonistic name? [11:19:18 PM] I just had to ask. [11:20:28 PM] Heh, no problem. Actually, I came up with the name back during the Pokemon craze, I tried out a bunch of different names on AOL but of course, nothing was available. So I eventually settled on "PokeboyAsh" Looking back, it's one of the stranger names I've come up with. [11:20:41 PM] The craze of 1998 I believe. [11:20:54 PM] Oh definitely. I must admit; the games were AWESOME. [11:21:00 PM] What other names have you created? [11:21:07 PM] I still play Pokemon Blue to this day. [11:21:10 PM] Holy cow [11:21:47 PM] Well, right now I'm Y2JMatrix94. Y2J - Chris Jericho (I used to be into wrestling) Matrix for believe it or not Enzo Matrix from Reboot and 94 was the year of my car. [11:21:55 PM] I had another one called "Poo Kato" [11:22:21 PM] I stole the idea from my friend EBounding who used to be known as Ness Alec during our AOL days. [11:22:56 PM] I had another called "EBGuy" or something like that. [11:23:02 PM] I remember a few EBGuys. [11:23:06 PM] Very common name. [11:23:24 PM] And if you tell me you also went by the name "Devil" or something of the sort, I will cry. [11:23:33 PM] Haha, no, you're safe there [11:23:46 PM] Okay. We HAVEN'T really met before then! That was creepy for a slight second. [11:23:58 PM] Anyway, are you playing EBFGPS'04? [11:24:41 PM] Actually, this is the first year that I haven't played. My job has prevented me from taking part in the fun, but I really want to get back into EarthBound. [11:25:13 PM] EBFGPS is probably the best way to get people back into the game. [11:25:36 PM] Well, not probably. It is. [11:25:57 PM] Where do you work? [11:26:14 PM] (And yes, because of this year's EBFGPS'04, I have fallen in love with the game again.) [11:26:32 PM] (Haha, happens every time, I know the feeling) [11:27:05 PM] I work for a radio station here in Metro-Detroit called Magic 105.1. It's an adult-contemporary station. [11:27:16 PM] You lucky little ... [11:27:26 PM] I want to be on the radio like you wouldn't believe. [11:27:34 PM] Haha, it's a blast. I've gotten so much experience being there. [11:27:51 PM] Stations are always looking for interns [11:28:05 PM] Now, as much as I'd like this interview to continue, we can only go so long. However, would you be willing to come back and tell us how you're doing in the future? [11:28:16 PM] Of course! [11:28:42 PM] Awesome! Now, on behalf of PokéBoyAsh, and myself, I say this. GET BACK IN THE GAME! [11:28:51 PM] We'll catch you on the flipside, PBA. [11:28:55 PM] Whichever side that is. [11:28:58 PM] Later man, thanks for having me! o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- Word Search -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o D T P P F E N N E O 0 I M H Y A _ L M H _ F C E M J I L I S I R _ H N I J R M D A A E H _ M A P N E A M B J N O A E M S E O M I M A D S M Y E S N O T E M E R D C I D O M M A M S R M A L K D O E M A E L N A L I N U O I N T O _ 0 M A N I R I E C I L O S _ M K O L D R D C B I K E M M I _ A _ P R C A M S P C R P M A M U F M R C C N E Y R H M O A I K S M I I I A I I 7 G O F E N M J E I E I T 0 A E E H J I C R M T I P B G A H L J F O B U E A B C C I Y M C A I N L O C F E N O A S _ T O O M L I Y A E A I E M R I M A N E _ E I N A _ K M N I A S N G M I D Y J B D I O E E O A H R N A M B D O P N E O R N A L M G N _ N H A A I H T N M K I C C D A N C R A F O A K H 0 O N E S N K E O A _ M R U R K N I 7 S R M M S 0 N 0 K N A I R N K I _ R N E M S A U O M _ _ A P T P _ 7 O R K N P O I N E O R I C S R L N E Y E M C G T A E E I _ E G J M O I O R D N I O I O N B M O I N M R R H R D R D E H N I T H M I C B J I M D O M U C A A G F E C M J A A S P C S A E S N O N N A T M O C N 7 A E N M R M M H S N A K N I A R S O R E O M L E E D C R N A N D T A M O A M Y K P _ M E N I A R R K K M O Y I B M M E P L M N O M S G O N I I M S B E D L A A M N N C L U D N R C F E O D K L K L U S A 0 N A I E R O I A C I K _ N D N M Y 7 T S N I T N C E J N N K -------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ reidman Luna Jonk Tim L MikeTheEBGuru PsychicKid Jim OnionRingofDoom Mansion_Maniac Saotome_Ranma JamesPicard_007 PokeBoyAsh o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- The MikeTheLiarLeader Effect -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o BlackLeader, LXA and Mikey all got 5 thoughts. They would go in order, proclaiming their thoughts. Ironically, it seemed to go NEGATIVE, to TWEENER, to POSITIVE! If you like this section, let me know! THOUGHT #1: "EBFGPS" will never become overused in the EB Community. It's already overused, in my opinion. I'm not doing it this time, because I don't think playing a video game should feel like a chore I have to do every certain time of year on someone else's schedule. And seriously, how many times can we rehash "Hints," "Challenges", and the M2EB sidebar? I'm gonna straddle the fence because I'm an indecisive guy. What EBFGPS needs, besides an acronym that's easier to remember, is a complete rebuild. I've never done it, because I can never remember to, but I've watched the enthusiasm fall as it gets older And me, well, I'm going to kick that fence down and completely disagree with BlackLeader. EBFGPS will never become overused because, at heart, it represents us more than any other exclusive event at Starmen.net. We are here because we played EarthBound, and EBFGPS grabs at our gamer roots more than anything else. I play the game every Summer without officially taking part in EBFGPS, but anything that promotes us to actually get back in the game is a great thing. THOUGHT #2: In your opinion, which is the toughest Sanctuary enemy? Also, which is your favourite? Trillionage Sprout always gave me fits. I don't know if I just never levelled in that area right or what. Favorite boss? Thunder and Storm are pretty cool dudes with a slick level. And easy too. LiarXAgerate> Well, it would probably be the Lilliput Steps boss whose name escapes me (Mondo Mole, Maybe?) if I ever fought him at the right level, but usually I just skip him until he's a wuss. As for coolest... well I mean, come on, he's a MONDO MOLE. MONDO. For me, Titanic Ant was the easiest because I'd always get some quality leveling up done early in the game; also making him a favorite of mine. But for toughest, I'll go with Plague Rat of Doom because poison attacks are sooo crazy, and Mikey can forget his Big bottle rockets. THOUGHT #3: EB is the best game for the SNES. Geez, now you're making my childhood memories fight amongst themselves. Sorry, but I have a pact of brotherhood with my Secret of Mana cart, never to be displaced from it's lofty position. EB comes in at number 2 for me, though. I've got four games I probably couldn't seperate. EarthBound is probably tops, then Mario RPG, Mario World, and Donkey Kong Country. I'm a platformer at heart, and hate most other RPGs actually (too melodramatic), but most of the great platformer series weren't at their best on the Super NES. (Mega Man in particular). So, with a heavy heart, I guess I'll bite the bullet and say yes. I contend EarthBound is the best game for the Super Nintendo. In terms of other RPG's (most notably, Secret of Mana, Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy 3, and Super Mario RPG), it has just as much depth, and one of the most intriguing aspects in a modern, realistic setting. As far as other heavy hitters go (Super Mario World, Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Metroid, and others), I think it exponentially has more humor and culture injected, and from beginning to the rewarding end, is downright epic. THOUGHT #4: EB has the best storyline ever. Well, between The Iliad, The Odyssey, Lord of the Rings, The Divine Comedy, Mrs. Doubtfire, and every other creative work with a storyline in history, I'm guessing no. For video games, it might have a chance, but still, there are so many works out there that I doubt it, even if I can't think of one right off hand. It doesn't even enter into the discussion, videogame or otherwise. What makes it so great isn't its cliche storyline, it's all the stuff that happens in between. I don't think anyone played EB to see what happened next, rather to see what was said or what utter twist ending appeared in their way. Out of ten, it wouldn't be more than a 6 or 7 if the storyline was all that mattered And while there's nothing quite as endearing as a plumber trying to save his main squeeze of a princess, I will go out and say the storyline was the best of all-time. Four modern kids in a modern world save us all from evil. Given the "beginner's RPG" tag the game had, it was perfect for younger gamers. At least, I know it was my first RPG and captivated the imagination to have me running around the yard with my wiffle bat. Beyond that, I think the many fanfics us folks have compiled over the years show just how amazing the story is. FINAL THOUGHT: Most amazing aspect to EB is: The most amazing thing is that the game proves that good gameplay and good humor can keep people coming back for more, even when the graphics were degraded as inferior when it was first introduced. And it kept enough of its admittedly small fanbase loyal for so many years to be able to exist as they are so many years later. That's pretty nifty. The most amazing thing is the community it's fostered. I mean, come on, I love me some EarthBound, but no game is good enough to have me spend 5+ years of my life on a site about it. There's something that seperates the people here from the other video game fandoms. I believe it's called the awesome Gamewise, I think the most amazing aspect would be the ending. I've played games with multiple dogpile endings, but it was the most rewarding. Sad thing is, given the current way games are churned out, we'll probably never get such a rewarding ending again. o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- Favourite Forum Topics -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o Here are some of the better forum topics that you might want to check out! ------------------------------------------------- "The "Have You Died Yet?", and "What Level Did You End Today With?" Topic" (Appears in the EBFGPS'04 forum, started by Mansion_Manic. "Beta Testers Wanted for Online RPG" (Fan Forum. Download this FUN RPG created by a friend of The Losar. A few EBers are playing, and it's pretty sweet!) "EASY Trivia - "What does Frank become after you beat him?"" (WhoopA's contest in the EB forum. Check it out NOW!) o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- Carpainter's Rant -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o Wow. I love this newsletter for some reason. PBA dropped in, I got the MikeTheLiarLeader Effect, and everything is going great. With the exception of my EBFGPS'04 playing. I wanted to die as little as possible, but already I've keeled over three times. Once to a Shark, once to a Mad Duck (lousy Jeff) and today to an Enraged Fire Plug. If it matter, the Shark was a Skate Punk, and not a card player. Get the joke? ;) This rant will be shorter, because I want to update and get in that Continuum Tourney. it's going to be SWEET. Everyone should come! I love EarthBound. I truly do. Let it be said! Anyway, SCHLATER DAYS! PREPARE FOR EDITION IX!