Kirby's Block Ball
''Kirby’s Block Ball'', known in Japan as , is a 1995 video game developed by TOSE and Nintendo R&D1 and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy portable console. It is a spin-off of the ''Kirby'' video game series. It is a ''Breakout'' clone; the player controls paddles along the screen's edge to knock a bouncing ball, Kirby, into destructible bricks. The game's 55 levels include power-ups, bonus rounds, and minigames. The team spent half a year revising the gameplay to match Kirby's signature characteristics. ''Kirby's Block Ball'' was released in Japan on December 14, 1995, later in North America on May 13, 1996 and finally in Europe on August 29, 1996. Reviewers considered the game an improvement on the '' Breakout'' formula and praised its gameplay craftsmanship and incorporation of the ''Kirby'' series. It was included in multiple top Game Boy game lists and was later released on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console. Gameplay The player controls paddles along the sc ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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TOSE
() (also called Tose Software) is a Japanese video game development company based in Kyoto. It is mostly known for developing Nintendo's ''Game & Watch Gallery'' series, various ''Dragon Ball'' games, as well as other Nintendo products. Tose has developed or co-developed over 1,000 games since the company's inception in 1979, but is virtually never credited in the games themselves (an exception to this is ''Game & Watch Gallery 4'' and ''The Legendary Starfy'' series, as Tose shares the copyright with Nintendo). "We're always behind the scenes," said Masa Agarida, Vice President of Tose's U.S. division. "Our policy is not to have a vision. Instead, we follow our customer's visions. Most of the time we refuse to put our name on the games, not even staff names." As such, Tose has gained a reputation for being a "ghost developer." History Tose was established in November 1979 in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, as an independent entity from Toa Seiko Co. Ltd. In April 1984, the company bega ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Breakout (video Game)
''Breakout'' is an arcade video game developed and published by Atari, Inc. and released on May 13, 1976. It was designed by Steve Wozniak, based on conceptualization from Nolan Bushnell and Steve Bristow who were influenced by the seminal 1972 Atari arcade game ''Pong''. In ''Breakout'', a layer of bricks lines the top third of the screen and the goal is to destroy them all by repeatedly bouncing a ball off a paddle into them. The arcade game was released in Japan by Namco. ''Breakout'' was a worldwide commercial success, among the top five highest-grossing arcade video games of 1976 in both the United States and Japan and then among the top three highest-grossing arcade video games of 1977 in the US and Japan. The 1978 Atari VCS port uses color graphics instead of a monochrome screen with colored overlay. While the concept was predated by Ramtek's ''Clean Sweep'' (1974), ''Breakout'' spawned an entire genre of clones. It was the inspiration for aspects of the Apple II comput ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nintendo Power
''Nintendo Power'' was a video game news and strategy magazine from Nintendo of America, first published in July/August 1988 as Nintendo's official print magazine for North America. The magazine's publication was initially done monthly by Nintendo of America, then independently, and in December 2007 contracted to Future US, the American subsidiary of British publisher Future. Its 24–year production run is one of the longest of all video game magazines in the United States and Canada. On August 21, 2012, Nintendo announced that it would not be renewing its licensing agreement with Future Publishing, and that ''Nintendo Power'' would cease publication in December. The final issue, volume 285, was released on December 11, 2012. On December 20, 2017, ''Nintendo Power'' officially returned as a podcast. History ''Nintendo Fun Club News'' preceded ''Nintendo Power'' as a newsletter sent to club members for free. In mid-1988 it was discontinued after seven issues in favor of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tetris Attack
''Tetris Attack'', also known as in Japan, is a puzzle video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. A Game Boy version was released a year later. In the game, the player must arrange matching colored blocks in vertical or horizontal rows to clear them. The blocks steadily rise towards the top of the playfield, with new blocks being added at the bottom. Several gameplay modes are present, including a time attack and multiplayer mode. ''Tetris Attack'' was first released as ''Panel de Pon'' in Japan in October 1995, featuring fairies as the main characters with a mythical, fantasy setting. The game was released outside Japan in 1996, with the original characters and settings replaced by those from '' Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island''. Though international releases have the name ''Tetris Attack'', the game bears no relation to the ''Tetris'' video game series, leading Tetris Company co-founder Henk Rogers to reg ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Electronic Gaming Monthly
''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' (often abbreviated to ''EGM'') is a monthly American video game magazine. It offers video game news, coverage of industry events, interviews with gaming figures, editorial content and product reviews. History The magazine was founded in 1988 as U.S. National Video Game Team's ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' under Sendai Publications. In 1994, ''EGM'' spun off '' EGM²'', which focused on expanded cheats and tricks (i.e., with maps and guides). It eventually became '' Expert Gamer'' and finally the defunct '' GameNOW''. After 83 issues (up to June 1996), ''EGM'' switched publishers from Sendai Publishing to Ziff Davis. Until January 2009, ''EGM'' only covered gaming on console hardware and software. In 2002, the magazine's subscription increased by more than 25 percent. The magazine was discontinued by Ziff Davis in January 2009, following the sale of ''1UP.com'' to UGO Networks. The magazine's February 2009 issue was already completed, but was not ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jeuxvideo
''Jeuxvideo.com'' (from ''jeux vidéo''; ; ) is a French video gaming website founded in 1997. History The website traces its history to a video game hint collection on Minitel, a precursor to the World Wide Web, and was founded by Sébastien Pissavy while on military service in 1995. As his work became more popular, he moved it to a website, ''Jeuxvideo.com'', in 1997. Gameloft purchased an 80% share of the site in 2000, though Pissavy ran it independently until his departure in 2012. HiMedia purchased the site in 2006 and sold it in 2014 to Webedia for 90 million euros. Webedia subsequently moved the offices to Paris, causing several staff members to leave. In August 2015, the site was hacked; administrators said no private information was leaked but still advised users to change their passwords. Forums ''Jeuxvideo.com''s forums have caused it controversy and legal problems. The forums are often compared in spirit to 4chan and have few rules. ''L'Obs'' and ''Le Monde'' h ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Super Game Boy
The is a peripheral that allows Game Boy cartridges to be played on a Super Nintendo Entertainment System console. Released in June 1994, it retailed for $59.99 in the United States and £49.99 in the United Kingdom. In South Korea, it is called the Super Mini Comboy and was distributed by SK Hynix, Hyundai Electronics. Functionality The Super Game Boy is compatible with the same cartridges as the original Game Boy: original Game Boy cartridges, the Game Boy Camera, and dual-mode Game Boy Color cartridges (in Game Boy-mode). The unit could map the four shades of green to various colors on the screen. Later Game Boy games that were optimized to use the Super Game Boy had additional color information and could override the on-screen colors, display a graphical border around the screen, and display special background sprites, as seen in the ''Mario's Picross'' title screen. Those games would have printed a small "Super Game Boy Game Pak" logo on the box and cartridge. The adaptor ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Copy Ability
is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the ''Kirby'' series of video games owned by Nintendo and HAL Laboratory. He first appeared in '' Kirby's Dream Land'' (1992), a platform game for the Game Boy. Since then, Kirby has starred in over 40 games, ranging from action platformers to puzzle, racing, and even pinball, and has been featured as a playable character in every installment of the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series (1999-present). He has also starred in his own anime and manga series. Since 1999, he has been voiced by Makiko Ohmoto. Kirby is well known for his ability to inhale objects and creatures to gain their powers, as well as his ability to float by expanding his body. He uses these abilities to rescue various lands, including his homeworld of Planet Popstar, from evil forces and antagonists, such as Dark Matter or Nightmare. On these adventures, he often crosses paths with his rivals, King Dedede and Meta Knight, though Meta Knight can be seen as ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Boss Fight
In video games, a boss is a significant computer-controlled opponent. A fight with a boss character is commonly referred to as a boss battle or boss fight. Bosses are generally far stronger than other opponents the player has faced up to that point. Boss battles are generally seen at climax points of particular sections of games, such as at the end of a level or stage or guarding a specific objective. A miniboss is a boss weaker or less significant than the main boss in the same area or level, though usually more powerful than the standard opponents and often fought alongside them. A superboss (sometimes 'secret' or 'hidden' boss) is generally much more powerful than the bosses encountered as part of the main game's plot and is often an optional encounter. A final boss is often the main antagonist of a game's story and the defeat of that character usually provides a positive conclusion to the game. A boss rush is a stage where the player faces multiple previous bosses again ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Extra Lives
In video games, a life is a play-turn that a player character has, defined as the period between start and end of play. Lives refer to a finite number of tries before the game ends with a game over. It is sometimes called a chance, a try, rest or a continue particularly in all-ages games, to avoid the morbid insinuation of losing one's "life". Generally, if the player loses all their health, they lose a life. Losing all lives usually grants the player character "game over", forcing them to either restart or stop playing. The number of lives a player is granted varies per game type. A finite number of lives became a common feature in arcade games and action games during the 1980s, and mechanics such as checkpoints and power-ups made the managing of lives a more strategic experience for players over time. Lives give novice players more chances to learn the mechanics of a video game, while allowing more advanced players to take more risks. History Lives may have originated from t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Air Hockey
Air hockey is a ''Pong''-like tabletop sport where two opposing players try to score goals against each other on a low-friction table using two hand-held discs ("mallets") and a lightweight plastic puck. The air hockey table has raised edges that allow the puck to reflect off horizontally, and a very smooth, slippery surface that further reduces friction by suspending the puck on a thin cushion of air ejected from tiny vent holes built inside the surface. This causes the puck to hover and move easily across the table with little loss of velocity, which simulates the lubricated sliding of an ice hockey puck across a well polished rink, hence the name of the game. Air hockey tables A typical air hockey table consists of a large smooth playing surface designed to minimize friction, a surrounding rail to prevent the puck and strikers (paddles) from leaving the table, and slots in the rail at either end of the table that serve as goals. On the ends of the table behind and be ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Health (gaming)
Health is an attribute in a video game or tabletop game that determines the maximum amount of damage or loss of stamina that a character or object can take before dying or losing consciousness. In role-playing games, this typically takes the form of hit points (HP), a numerical attribute representing the health of a character or object. The game character can be a player character, a boss, or a mob. Health can also be attributed to destructible elements of the game environment or inanimate objects such as vehicles and their individual parts. In video games, health is often represented by visual elements such as a numerical fraction, a health bar or a series of small icons, though it may also be represented acoustically, such as through a character's heartbeat. Mechanics In video games, as in tabletop role-playing games, an object usually loses health as a result of being attacked. Protection points or armor help them to reduce the damage taken. Characters acting as tanks usua ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |