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As of this evening, Prince Snufflemuffins is no longer with us. In the past few months, his health was declining rapidly. We noticed he was losing weight, but still acting normal. We figured it was old age, but we took him to a vet anyway. They discovered he had pancreatitis, and that his diet needed to change. We got his food updated, and just two weeks later, on this day, we had to put him down. Mom called near the end of work to tell me to come over, that she has found him pressing himself up against the corner, and couldn't walk straight. Both of his eyes were dialated, and his normal purring was replaced with heavy breathing. We ran him to the vet immediately, where they diagnosed that it's neurological. With his condition, his quality of life had plummeted. I didn't want him to suffer, I didn't want him to be scared and alone. I didn't want him to suffer like my previous cat, who suffered far more than he ever deserved. But I didn't want to let him go. As painful as it was, through uncontrollable crying and heartache, I made the decision that he would be put to rest. Through the process, he was surrounded by me, my mother, and my girlfriend as we pet him, even after the doctor had confirmed his heart had stopped. I snuggled him before I could tear myself to leave the room. When petting his cold body, I could still hear his purring in my mind. Prince Snugglemuffins was brought into my life just two weeks into my first year in high school. My mom bought him off craigslist for $5, but we gave her $10, because as my mom mentioned to her, "he's just that gorgeous." He was scared of his new home. He would hide behind the guitar case and underneath my bed. It wouldn't be long for him to feel comfortable, to where he would follow me up stairs, lie on my desk, or sleep in bed with me. Anyone who came into contact with him was enamored with him. He was always happy to snuggle up to new friends, whether that was lying across your lap, or finding your leather jacket to be a cozy spot. As the years went on, I would eventually leave home for multiple reasons. Everytime I left for the school year, I would tell him good bye and hug him closely before leaving. When I graduated and returned home, I had to focus on getting my life going. I was caught up in learning to drive and starting my career all at once. It was stressful. But every night, this little guy would be there for me. He would lie in bed with me, and he liked it when I held his front paws. I'd often take pictures of him, a lot of my friends and people online really liked seeing him. Prince Snugglemuffins received so much love, but he had just as much love to return. Even when being examined at the vet, the nurses had difficulty hearing his heart because he was purring so much around them. It's been a few hours now, and I keep tearing up as I write this. My head hurts so much, and I don't know what to think at this stage. It hurts a lot, and I hope I did the right thing. I included some photos of him, including a picture of me:

So quick question....

Recently been trying to organize my Pokémon Home boxes in the Switch app Why’s it so difficult to find good high quality Pokédex images? …… Granted, i have been sending quite a lot of Pokémon over from Go…. So that has something to do with it Would be helpful if it showed the Pokédex number in the info tab with the other information….. edit: now thinking about it, an auto sort feature/option would work too

I'd say yes, you should, but it's not 100% required. Dread quickly recaps the most important story elements. But also Fusion is a great game so you should play it regardless, if you can!

An interesting video about the expansion of the expansion pack.

@Laclipsey Come join us, always looking for more players/participants Same with @Marxforever

Nickelodeon is the Sega of cartoons.

Avatar is the Fire Emblem of Nickelodeon.

My 2nd favorite bit of censorship ever is that the generic enemies from Ice Climber were replaced with little furry waddling heads because they were afraid that Americans would associate it with seal clubbing.

New Community Day to look forward to Looking forward to getting some Shiny Shinx myself Wonder if they’re going to do Community Days for the Kalos starters after the new Year? Some new stuff and events coming Curious what the Festival of Lights and Dia de Meurtos will be Also a special event for BDSP to look forward too

As I'm going for home games for Smash's roster, starting with some easy NES/SNES NSO games, a thought entered my mind: isn't Ice Climber just parkour simulator (e.g. Assassin's Creed, Uncharted, etc.) in NES format?

I don't think I said this but I never played the Advance Wars games but I am excited for those who are looking forward to these remakes. As for the delay, the only thing we saw is one of these games the first Advance Wars at Treehouse Live @E3 2021. I believe they said down the road along with the confirmation of online play that they will show gameplay of the 2nd game. Since then we have not got any news on the first game, the 2nd or any other features or online. Taking all of that into consideration doesn't mean a delay was inevitable but maybe possible. So overall I'm not sort of shocked by this delay and despite not playing the series I feel it for those who looked forward to playing in December have to wait a little while longer. But a delay as usual benefits all. What is surprising but sort of not really that this Spring 2022 date is typically for Nintendo titles that are far from release this jump means that there's more to why it doesn't have a solid date in Spring when before it had one from the jump. EDIT: Just remember that Big Brain Academy game releases the on December 3rd, previous date of Advance Wars 1+2 Boot Camp. I don't think either would cannibalize each other sales wise but just a interesting note that these 2 game were announced a few months apart and one of them is delayed.

@purple_beard @TKrazyO @Eliwood8 @TheBarkinHyena I got reply from Laclipsey via PM and he says no hard feelings. As we thought, he saw I made arena and just jumped in. He says he looks forward to joining future Saturday Smash, tho.

Being reminded of that makes me more curious how Fusion’s hard mode would’ve been had it not been a Japan exclusive feature. The main difference with Dread’s hard mode I found is just having to respect the boss’s attacks more and being less greedy. Probably was much of the same with Fusion’s, but I liked how those difficulty spikes alone kept me on my toes at the time.

I'll post it here since it was an E3 reveal. Advance Wars 1+2 Re-Boot Camp has been delayed to Spring 2022. I'm still looking forward to the game(s) but it'll have more shine with it being away from Mario Party, Shin Megami Tensei and Pokemon's releases. Feel free to make this post into a new topic if that'll get more eyes on this news.

At the very least, I'd recommend watching a Longplay of it. Fusion has a few bullshit difficulty spikes that Dread greatly tones down.

Sitting at only 800 platinum coins and the posters will be gone before i get enough most likely(unless i can find a way to earn more quickly).

Final Scores for Thursday, October 21: Yoshi’s Island 9 Kongo Krystal 7 Kong-Yoshi Cup Wumpa Island 10 Saffron 5 Heliodor 4 Sarasaland 8 Avalar 9 Mushroom Kingdom 6 Nintendo-Sony Cup Narshe 8 New Donk City 5 Smashville 6 Valley of Koopas 4 Popstar 8 Ylisse 4 Los Angeles 3 Hyrule 1 Celadon 6 Fodland 4 London 4 Koholint 2 Twilight Realm 10 Arms 9 Bionis 6 West City 8 Sonic 6 New York City 7 Termina 0 South Town 1 Carnival Night Zone 6 Great Plateau 3 Lanaryu 5 Tokyo 4 Final Scores for Friday, October 22: Yoshi’s Island 10 Kongo Krystal 9 Kong-Yoshi Cup egg emoji Wumpa Island 10 Saffron 7 Heliodor 7 Sarasaland 10 Avalar 5 Mushroom Kingdom 7 Nintendo-Sony Cup mushroom emoji Narshe 9 New Donk City 8 Smashville 8 Valley of Koopas 4 Popstar 3 Ylisse 1 Los Angeles 0 Hyrule 2 Celadon 9 Fodland 7 London 2 Koholint 1 Twilight Realm 9 Arms 5 Bionis 4 West City 8 Sonic 8 New York City 7 Termina 3 South Town 4 Carnival Night Zone 6 Great Plateau 9 Lanaryu 6 Tokyo 4

One question: Should I play Fusion before Dread?

The most important skill Metroid fans have developed since the series began probably isn't shooting, exploring, or even sequence-breaking. It's patience, because how often do fans have to wait 19 years for the continuation of a franchise's story? Clearly good things come to those who wait though, because Metroid Dread is an incredible return to side-scrolling form for Samus Aran. With a combination of classic abilities, exploration mechanics, and intriguing new twists on the familiar gameplay formula, Metroid Dread is well worth the long wait. Samus is back to doing what she does best: investigating mysterious transmissions on dangerous worlds. A video from the planet ZDR reveals that the X parasite, a deadly life form that Samus battled in 2002's Metroid Fusion, may be alive on the planet. The Galactic Federation dispatched a team of powerful E.M.M.I. robots to investigate, but they've lost contact with them. Enter Samus, the one woman uniquely qualified to deal with this threat. Dread takes its storytelling cues from the best of the Metroid franchise. There are engaging mysteries and light cutscenes scattered throughout the game but it never loses that feeling of isolation and exploration that define Metroid games. There's a light touch of world-building at play here and it feels like the perfect amount. Dread also features a fantastic characterization of Samus, not through dialogue or inner monologues but essentially through mime. The way Samus moves through a hostile environment, the way she carries herself, and some small touches during cutscenes paint a picture of a seasoned warrior, perceptive and adaptable, that says so much about her history and thought process without the need for words. Dread's gameplay is exactly the kind of side-scrolling Metroid action you'd expect, and a clear continuation/refinement of the formula that developer MercurySteam established in 2017's Metroid II remake, Samus Returns. Like that game Samus has a melee counter that puts another fast and fluid ability at her disposal, allowing you to efficiently smash through enemies with one sleek counter shot after another. A new slide ability allows her to squeeze through tight spaces or even underneath an enemy's legs, again emphasizing speed and grace in Dread (and don't worry, the Morph Ball is still in the game). There's a real sense of always being on the move in this game without sacrificing the joy of exploring and testing out new abilities to unlock secrets, which really shows how well the developers understand the Metroid series. One of the key features of Dread—and really the source of its name—is being pursued by the E.M.M.I.s. These deadly efficient robots have, naturally, turned to hunting Samus, but her weapons can't pierce their thick armor plating. E.M.M.I.s are confined to specific "hunting grounds" but every time you enter one it's awfully tense. You only have one small window of opportunity to counter if a robot grabs you, and it's a truly tiny, precise window that is pretty hard to master, so your main hope is to outrun or hide from these robots. Samus will also gain new abilities specifically to help avoid these mechanical menaces, adding some fun new twists to the familiar Metroid gameplay. Especially early on these E.M.M.I. sequences are intense and stressful, and they give the player an interesting opportunity to focus on evasion instead of firepower. However, the stakes of escaping an E.M.M.I. are actually kind of low, which is both good and bad. If you're caught it's game over, but the game autosaves every time you enter an E.M.M.I. area so you lose very little progress. That kind of spoils the stakes a little bit though, and by the end of the game these E.M.M.I. challenges are a little more tedious than they are exciting and stressful. The autosave is definitely preferable to backtracking to a save point though, so even if it's imperfect it's maybe an appropriate solution. The rest of the game certainly doesn't coddle the player, though. Recovery stations and save points are fairly generously sprinkled throughout the game but enemies hit hard—you're clearly not expected to get hit often—and even more importantly boss fights can be pretty difficult. However, it's a good sense of challenge. Boss attacks are often well telegraphed and you'll even have opportunities to recover health and missile ammo during the fight. Any of your mistakes will be thoroughly punished, but it keeps the battle exciting and engaging without being too overwhelming. Dread may be one of if not the most difficult Metroid game, but it never feels unfair. Most players will probably clock in around ten hours on their first playthrough of Dread, though of course this game is made for speed-running and testing the full extent of your skills. It feels like just about the perfect length for the adventure—there are twists and turns and depth to the gameplay but the brisk pacing ensures the action never grows stale. There's also a hard mode if you need even more of a challenge, and naturally there are tons of hidden upgrades scattered throughout the planet. The game makes tracking these collectibles easier than ever—not only does the map light up when there's a hidden item in the area, it even tells you what percentage of hidden items you've collected in the region. It's perhaps a little too easy, but then again sometimes it's hard to figure out how to actually reach an item even if you know it's there, and there are some incredibly tricky ones that fully test your Metroid skills. Completionists should have a lot of fun figuring out what are essentially Metroid puzzles. These screenshots don't really do justice to Dread's visuals. The gameplay seems to emphasize speed and fluidity, and that's reflected in the sharp art design, smooth animation, and intriguing environments that have just enough detail to get your imagination going without cluttering the screen as Samus whips past. And as previously mentioned Samus's movements and animation say so much about her, both in cutscenes and outside of them, that really shows a wonderful attention to detail. The soundtrack is sharp as well: intensely atmospheric, as you might imagine, and provides a perfect backdrop for exploring a mysterious world as well as battling deadly enemies. Metroid Dread is a thrilling continuation of Samus's adventures. Developer MercurySteam proved they had the chops for working on established Metroid concepts with Samus Returns, and now they've proven they can go a step further and help lead the series forward in engaging new directions. Combat is satisfying, exploration is engaging thanks to the tools at your disposal—and the steady rate that you unlock new abilities—and the intense challenge of massive boss fights provides wonderful moments of triumph and accomplishment. Hopefully we won't have to wait years for another adventure with Samus, because as Dread proves, the quality of the series hasn't lost a step. Rating: 9 out of 10 Metroids

I'll have to see what I can salvage from the recording since the audio went out of sync, the footage is choppy and the full tournament isn't there. If I can't sync the audio with the footage then there won't be a video next week either. More updates to come.

Halloween Part II