In 2012, Nintendo became the audiovisual guide provider of the Louvre. Using a 3DS, users are able to access dozens of hours of audio commentary, rotate 3D sculptures for a unique look, visually highlight details that the average person would probably miss, and even provide direction through the console’s GPS. Though I remember thinking it was an odd pairing at the time, it didn’t cross my mind again until I saw the 3DS guides at the museum on this recent trip.
One of the trendiest phrases in NBA jargon is “load management”. This is the practice of forcing healthy players to sit out regular season games as a means of keeping them fresh for the playoffs. Though it’s a touchy subject – as it devalues the NBA season while robbing paying fans of their opportunities to see the best players at times – we’re starting to see the potential benefits in this strategy. Case in point: Kawhi Leonard on the Toronto Raptors this past season.
Coming off the previous season where he only played 9 out of a possible 82 games due to injury, the Toronto Raptors put Kawhi on an aggressive load management program to keep him fresh. Instead of playing all 82 games, he played about 60, while skipping at least one of two games that were scheduled on consecutive days. Kawhi might have been visibly limping by the end of this past season, but he had enough gas in the tank to lead the Raptors to their first ever NBA championship. Though we’ll never know for certain, there’s a chance his body would have broken down prematurely had he played the season in full.
While I am not a superstar basketball player, applying the concept of load management to the way I manage In Third Person may not be a bad idea.
[Originally written on Friday, June 12st at 1:23pm Paris time]
Getting to the airport was a scramble. Between sleeping in, our Uber taking its sweet time getting to our place, and somebody in our party who shall remain nameless having food in their carry-on, it was a chaotic end to what’s been a grueling trip. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve had a wonderful time in London and Paris. However, our schedule was so jam-packed with activities that we’ve barely had any time to sleep. Any ambitions I may have had to play games or create content fell by the wayside as soon as I fell asleep while playing Reigns: Game of Thrones on the plane during our first flight. Not necessarily the fault of the game itself, but I do have my issues with it. More on that another day.
But our trip has now come to a screeching halt. With our flight delayed indefinitely as I write this, I’ve got some time to breathe. Before I try best to fall asleep in this chair though, let me share something cool from the boarding area of the airport!
In the mid 2000s, my friend Wendy and I ventured out of town to check out an independent video game store. Looking for gift ideas for her friend, we came across two Atari 2600 consoles and a stash of games. She took the original wood-panel 2600 and half of the games, and I took the Atari 2600 Jr. and the other set of games. Since then, I’ve slowly added games to my collection as I’d stumble across games at conventions. While I still don’t consider myself to be a collector, my small Atari set is the one thing I’m collecting primarily for the sake of possessing these items rather than playing them.
Made this one post for GameCube Week, but it kind of morphed into something else. I’m just gonna post it anyway.
On November 18th, 2001, I walked into a Zellers and bought a GameCube. Five years later, I was in line with my friends at that same Zellers, waiting to pick up our Nintendo Wii pre-orders. Between those two sentences, I did a lot of growing up.
GameCube Week “technically” today on In Third Person! One more official post in the series; this time about Animal Crossing!
Whether I’m cracking skulls with gravity-defying uppercuts, or launching mystical dragons from a bow and arrow, or dropping blocks down a well, I primarily use video games as an escape from the ordinary. Animal Crossing – while maybe not the most dramatic departure from reality, was an escape nonetheless. One that I obsessed over for a solid year.
Though I’m somewhere across the pond, the show must go on!
It’s game time! Tune in for every Boss Rush game show game, including all of the mini games from the Extra Life marathon! See you at 7pm EST!
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GameCube Week continues on In Third Person! Did you know that launch versions of Mario Kart: Double Dash came with a demo disc? Let’s explore its contents!
If you were fortunate enough to put in a pre-order for Mario Kart: Double Dash prior to its release, you got a special edition of the game that came with a Bonus Disc. Despite being a key selling point for me to pre-order in the first place, I would ignore the demo disc for over a decade before finally deciding to give the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles demo a try on stream. The ensuing fallout of that stream and the wonderful friendship that grew out of it is a well-documented tale that we don’t have to go over again (despite how much I’d love to).
At this point, nothing in my heart will be cooler than that Ninja Turtles demo for reasons that have nothing to do with the quality of the demo itself. But there’s more content on the disc than that. Let’s see what else it has to offer!
GameCube Week continues on In Third Person! Did I wrongfully dismiss Mario Kart: Double Dash when it first came out in the early 2000s?
From its origins on the Super Nintendo, to the magnum opus that is Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on the Nintendo Switch, I’ve been with Nintendo’s kart racer since its inception. Though it’s never had any real competition to its throne, I haven’t always been high on every entry in the series. I bounced off of Mario Kart 7 on the 3DS really quickly for feeling stale. Mario Kart: Super Circuit on the Gameboy Advance was another weak entry in the series, as the hardware simply didn’t have the horsepower to translate the high-speed thrills to the small screen.
And then there’s Mario Kart: Double Dash. I remember really disliking it upon release. My distaste for the game was so strong that I dropped the game out of my rotation almost immediately. When I hooked up the GameCube again in 2019 to stream it, I had totally forgotten why I hated it in the first place. Do I still feel the same way about it now?
Though I’m somewhere across the pond, the show must go on!
Game night! Tune in for a special marathon featuring every episode of Board Game Talk tonight at 7pm EST!
Never miss a stream by following my channel and turning your notifications on! You can also follow me on Twitter and Instagram for stream updates and other cool stuff posted daily!
Buy the Nintendo Switch from Amazon.com
[Purchasing through this Amazon affiliate link gives me a small commission without adding any extra cost or effort to you. Thanks for your support!]
In Third Person 