No, I try to keep in mind that most situations are transient and I don’t really know what people born today are going to be dealing with.

Climate change looks pretty bad for people going into the future, don’t want to discount or downplay that. But other things, from the terrible political trends and hatred to wars to failed or booming economies will ebb and flow over lifetimes, and it’s hard to say in many ways if the future holds better or worse for today’s children.

It’s funny, Sakurai addresses something like that right at the start of this Direct. He mentions that he made the game on request, and was confused that they wanted it. “It’s a frantic racing game with familiar characters, isn’t that just like Mario Kart?” Then he kinda shrugs it off, like “Yeah, guess it is lol.”

Yep! For those that aren’t already aware of it, GMTK has this whole series of videos showing the development process for this game: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc38fcMFcV_uH3OK4sTa4bf-UXGk2NW2n

I remember a while back, thinking I’ll be done with StS once I beat ascension 20. Then, I’ll just get 20 with the first three characters. Now I’m eyeing the leftover achievements. Never ends. StS2 will destroy me lol.

I’ve been playing Kid Icarus (NES) here and there, and really having a good time.

My past experience with it was with the 3D Classics release on 3DS. I guess I didn’t stick with it very long, but I remember thinking it was excessively difficult at the time.

This time around I’m just winging it. But this time I had more patience and managed to make it past 1-3. That level does have a lot going on. You’re early in the game, so barely any health. You’re platforming upwards, so the ground that was below you scrolls away for constant death traps. And you’re being pressured to move quickly, by enemies spawning in from below. You also can’t afford pretty much anything from the shops to help you. Makes a satisfying little challenge.

After that you get to a labyrinth, which is like a teeny tiny Metroidvania. Very different kind of pace and feel that makes for a fun change up. I’m on the second labyrinth now, and I think I’m gonna have to take paper notes next time to navigate.

The going seems much easier now in world 2’s platforming stages, since I have several powerups. Glad this game has infinite continues and gives passwords though.

Anyway, I want to be playing more of the new DK… but right now KI’s been kinda hitting the spot.

The idea you’re getting at is ‘security by obscurity’, which in general is not well regarded. Having secret code does not imply you have secure code.

But I think you’re right on a broader level, that people get too comfortable assuming that something is open source, therefore it’s safe.

In theory you can go look at the code for the foss you use. In practice, most of us assume someone has, and we just click download or tell the package manager to install. The old adage is “With enough eyes, all bugs are shallow”. And I think that probably holds, but the problem is many of the eyes aren’t looking at anything. Having the right to view the source code doesn’t imply enough people are, or even meaningfully can. (And I’m as guilty of being lax and incapable as anyone, not looking down my nose here.)

In practice, when security flaws are found in oss, word travels pretty fast. But I’m sure more are out there than we realize.

Basically, but there are some differences. It’s more like a physical key to a digital game, rather than a one-time unlock code.

GKC:

• No data on card, requires internet & Nintendo service first use
• Installs to storage, taking up space
• Requires card inserted into system to play
• Box is an artifact to display on store and home shelves
• Freely re-sell or buy used

Full physical:

• All data on card, no internet dependence
• Only requires enough space for a save game
  • (Unless you download patches and updates, but still takes less storage)
• Requires card inserted into system to play
• Box is an artifact to display on store and home shelves
• Freely re-sell or buy used

Full digital:

• Internet & Nintendo service required to purchase.
  • Long term, store front will likely go down much earlier than re-download servers
• Installs to storage, taking up space
• No need to put card in system, play any digital game installed at any time
• Retail presence is limited to codes, either printed on cardboard or code-in-a-box
• No need to store any artifacts, saving valuable space in your home
• Unable to re-sell or buy used.

So, it’s just a slightly different mix of pros and cons. Gotta pick which things you care about.

I’m a big fan of https://shmuplations.com/

They translate or host a bunch of first-hand interviews with developers of classic Japanese games. (Not restricted to shmups, despite the name.)