Wii U Pro Controller

 

I picked up a brand new Wii U Pro Controller off eBay for a much lower price than what most sellers are asking for.  However, these controllers still have a ridiculously high resale price.  It must be related to the console being Nintendo's worst-selling system outside of the Virtual Boy.  Supply must be low.

I didn't buy one of these back in the day because I had no real use for it (the Classic Controller worked fine), but I would like to visit fellow Youtuber Keet next year, and well, let's just say I need all the controllers I can get for some multiplayer recordings.

New purchases

I'm a little late in posting this, but I purchased some new games recently.  Playthroughs of Super Mario Advance 2 and 4 were already posted on my Youtube channel.  I haven't picked up Super Mario Advance 3 (Yoshi's Island) because the game requires a lot of work to complete 100% and I just don't feel like doing that, especially when it's the same game as the SNES version.

After I posted a playthrough of Yoshi's Island DS (the most difficult and frustrating playthrough I've ever recorded), I decided I might as well pick up Yoshi's New Island and post that as well.  I hope to post a playthrough of that game this year.  It seems like it's much easier than Yoshi's Island DS, so I welcome that change.

Power Blade 2 Complete in Box

This one set me back a pretty penny.  After I posted my original Power Blade playthrough on Youtube about 5 years ago I started looking into the sequel, and I quickly discovered that it was both rare and extremely expensive.  I figured I would never be able to get myself a copy of Power Blade 2.

Well, as my Youtube channel started picking up more and more steam, I became more willing to invest in my channel through sometimes expensive game purchases (in addition to satisfying my own appetite for collecting video games).  I spotted a complete copy of Power Blade 2 on eBay that was ironically being sold from a shop in the Netherlands, even though it was a U.S. copy of the game.  The price was ultimately far less than what other sellers were asking for worse copies.  In fact, no other copy on eBay could even come close to this one.  I decided to go for it and picked up what is unequivocally the rarest game in my collection now.  Not even Castlevania: Dracula X or Castlevania Legends can hold a candle to this game's rarity and resale value.

So not only was I able to repatriate a U.S. copy of a rare game, but I will be posting a full playthrough of the game on my channel once I get around to recording more NES footage.

The box is in good condition overall, but the rest of items are near mint.  What a score.

Hauppauge HD PVR 2

Back around late 2012 (not too long after I started my Youtube channel and purchased the original Hauppauge HD PVR) Hauppauge released an upgraded version of its external capture card called the HD PVR 2.  This was around the same time that Elgato entered the capture card market with its Elgato Game Capture HD.  Both of these cards were notable because unlike the original HD PVR, they could record the native 240p signals from retro video game consoles.  This meant that you could record directly from an NES, SNES, N64, etc., with no need for scan converters or other methods to alter the video signal.

I originally did not bother to purchase either of those capture cards back in the day because they had a noticeable flaw as far as I was concerned: they could not record 1080p60, meaning they could not record a 1080 resolution at 60 frames per second.  I waited until Christmas of 2014 and then received the new Elgato Game Capture HD60, which was able to record 1080p60 at a very high bit rate. This gave me high quality recordings from the Wii U and Switch.

As for retro console recordings on my channel, in 2013 I discovered (through forum posts) a rather simple solution after becoming unhappy with my prior Dazzle capture card footage.  I simply plugged my retro consoles into a DVD recorder, and then connected the DVD recorder to the Hauppauge HD PVR.  The DVD recorder inherently altered the 240p signals to a standard NTSC refresh rate, which the Hauppauge could detect and record without problems.  There was no downside to this method, and it suited me quite well for several years.

Approximately last year though, I decided I would like to visit my Youtube friend Keet in Florida once the Super Nintendo World area of Universal Studios opened in Orlando.  So far, Nintendo/Universal Studios estimate that the new park will open in 2023, so I hope to visit that year.

As part of this visit, Keet and I naturally want to record a shit ton of games.  But I quickly realized a problem.  I have too much recording equipment to bring to Florida, especially with the DVD recorder method that I use.  Keet's capture card doesn't record S-video (something I consider absolutely necessary for SNES and N64 footage), so I decided to buy a capture card that could natively record 240p signals over an S-video connection.

While both the Elgato Game Capture HD and the Hauppauge HD PVR 2 were contenders, I discovered that I had to purchase a separate S-video adapter for either capture card directly from the manufacturer (Elgato or Hauppauge).  Unfortunately, Elgato ceased manufacturing its S-video adapter, meaning I could no longer buy the plug off its website.  I also could not find the adapter anywhere on eBay or elsewhere.  Also, I had some issues with my Game Capture HD60 not detecting scan conversions properly when games natively switched between 480i and 480p.  So that concerned me.  This removed the Elgato Game Capture HD from further consideration.

Fortunately, Hauppauge was still selling its S-video adapter on its website, so I quickly purchased one before they could run out of stock and then picked up a new HD PVR 2 off eBay while it was still cheap.  Below is the actual HD PVR 2 that I received from eBay.

I will definitely be running some tests with this new capture card to see how the footage compares to my current HD PVR recordings, but I'm not expecting much difference since they both record at the same maximum bit rate.  Still, it is nice to now have a capture card that can record retro consoles directly.

Once Super Nintendo World opens in Florida, I hope all of you enjoy the flood of video game footage (likely multiplayer) that will be posted afterward.

Star Soldier: Vanishing Earth - Sealed

I had been thinking about picking up a copy of Star Soldier: Vanishing Earth for the Nintendo 64 for quite a while, but I was never really in a rush to do so.  I'm a fan of vertical scrolling shooters, but I prefer the pixel art style from the 8-bit and 16-bit era more than a polygonal 3D style.

As far as I'm aware, this game was the only vertical scrolling shooter to be released on the N64, which isn't surprising since the system went so heavy on 3D games.  It was as if the 2D genre nearly died on home consoles during this time.

Anyway, I managed to find a sealed copy on eBay for basically the same price as a used copy (beat up copies, in fact), so I had to jump on it.  Not a bad find if you ask me.  I hope to get a playthrough posted this year. 

It's DS/3DS Capture Time

Ever since I started my Youtube channel in 2012 I've had people ask me to post DS and 3DS playthroughs.  The problem, however, was that I had no way to record footage from these systems, which don't feature any built-in audio/video outputs to connect to TVs.  Even though some people manage to record these systems with a mere camcorder, I didn't have the means to achieve this setup, and in any event, such footage wouldn't live up to the direct capture quality I've set with my channel.

Starting around 2012, however, some various companies began offering modifications to 3DS systems to install capture devices.  Initially I was against this idea since I view all of my systems as collectible pieces of hardware that I don't want modified.  But eventually one company in particular started offering to sell brand new 3DS systems with built-in capture cards, which would allow me to avoid that problem entirely.

After Nintendo released me (and everyone else) from their restrictive Nintendo Creator's Program and I wholly partnered my channel with Youtube directly, my ad revenue started increasing drastically to the point that I could purchase a 3DS capture card with Youtube revenue alone.

I decided to take some of that ad revenue and invest it back into the channel by purchasing a New 3DS XL with a built-in capture card directly from Katsukity in Japan (https://www.3dsvideocapture.com/).  I ordered the New 3DS XL in the middle of January 2019, and I was told that my my modified system would arrive in three weeks.

Unfortunately, by early February, I discovered that the company had gone bankrupt and shut down its storefront in Japan.  The company also failed to respond to my emails, so I had to demand a refund from Paypal and look for alternatives.

It turned out that a related store in Germany was selling the same capture cards (https://www.merki.net/), but it had limited stock due to the Japanese manufacturer shutting down.  The German store had two US version 3DS XLs in stock with the capture cards already installed, so I rushed and purchased one before they ran out.  It was shipped the very next day.  It just arrived today, as I'm making this post.

These capture cards are now incredibly rare, and even the original 3DS capture card manufacturer (Loopy), doesn't seem to be selling his capture devices anymore.  So it's going to be extremely difficult for people to obtain these devices going forward.

Someone also devised a way to install a software modification for 3DS systems that wirelessly streams the video to a computer for recording, but that setup appears to have framerate issues.

I kept my special edition New 3DS, giving me two systems, and allowing me to record local multiplayer footage with friends.  Since the 3DS is backwards compatible with DS games, I'll be able to record my entire DS and 3DS library now.

I hope everyone enjoys this new addition to my channel.  It's my way of saying thanks to everyone who subscribed and watched my videos.

Return of Double Dragon

The retro gaming scene has certainly gotten more interesting over the past few years.  Aside from digital re-releases and compilations, some old games have actually been re-manufactured or reprinted for their original consoles.  For instance, Capcom re-released Street Fighter II: The World Warrior for the SNES last year (see here: https://nintendoeverything.com/capcom-iam8bit-re-releasing-street-fighter-ii-on-snes/), and some other companies have been seeking to do the same.

About a few months ago I heard that Arc System Works would be doing an American reprint of Return of Double Dragon, the Japanese version of Super Double Dragon.  Back in 1992, Japan received their own more complete version of Super Double Dragon with additional stages and moves, as well as different music and menu options.  However, even this version was actually incomplete compared to the original plans for the game (the designer planned on having way more content in the game, especially story wise).  Many Double Dragon fans, however, argued that Return of Double Dragon was better of the two versions, but in general, Super Famicom games will not work on an American SNES.

I've never been an import gamer, and probably never will be, but when Arc System Works said they would release Return of Double Dragon in a reproduction SNES cartridge by and through Retroism, I decided to jump in for the $50 price tag.  The game actually comes in a red cartridge, but it doesn't bare the official SNES logo.  The box itself also didn't arrive sealed (it wasn't shrinkwrapped), but it did come with a tiny instruction manual.  I have no idea if this reprint will be worth anything in the future, but maybe I can post a playthrough on my Youtube channel sometime to go with my Super Double Dragon playthrough.