From podcast #157:

Also, from Liyfda on Resetera (Mysterious Monsters episode 2):

Note: 16.95 million Switches sold still didn't hit Nintendo's revised estimate of 17 million.

Apollo 11

This is documentary film distilled down to a pure essence. Aside from some simple graphics to explain what is happening, there is pretty much no modern-day content - even the soundtrack is made with period synthesizers.

While there is some lower-quality footage shot by NASA personnel and the astronauts, much of the movie is 65mm footage originally shot for the 1971 documentary Moonwalk One. But while that was shown cropped, this time we get to see it full frame, including unused shots.

And that footage is truly like stepping back in time. Crystal clear, with great colour, we get to see the Saturn V being transported to the launch site, the astronauts dressing and travelling to the launch pad, the huge crowds gathering for the launch, the inside of Launch Control, and finally the launch, which is especially spectacular. Then later on, recovery and quarantine.

All of the dialogue is either the actual mission audio (much of it synchronized to footage from Mission Control or from the spacecraft) or from the TV broadcasts. The highlights are the landing shown in real-time complete with fuel gauge and error display, a panorama shot of the moon's surface, and the first steps shown from an alternate, clearer angle than the famous TV broadcast.

The closest thing I can compare it to is Koyaanisqatsi, though not as abstract. It's a completely new perspective on the mission. Unlike the grain and fuzz that's always made the mission seem like a vague ancient artifact, the clarity of this footage, the way it's edited with the mission audio, and the walkthrough-style continuity makes it something you can almost smell and touch.

The only drawback is that it feels sped along at times - it could've used another half hour (the running time is 93 minutes).

The upcoming large-format IMAX version (in contrast to the full-length "Liemax" version which is reviewed below) is only 45 minutes, and I shudder to think what THAT will be like...

Do NOT wait for home video, this is a movie that should ONLY be seen on the big screen.

4 1/2 out of 5.

Youtube Video

1. The Legend of Zelda - perhaps the most polished games ever made.
2. The Elder Scrolls - a genre unto itself. Go anywhere, do anything.
3. Pikmin - an RTS for the rest of us. Ultra charming.

Honorable mention - Tony Hawk's. It's dead now, but the original trilogy are probably the best arcade sports games ever made, and the entire series is home to by far the best licensed soundtracks ever.

I've added Pokémon Sword and Shield to my list at position #3 (of 3).

I didn't 100% it (because the Sick goals are extremely hard), but after clocking up 70 hours, I'm finally done with Tony Hawk's Project 8, which was the last (and biggest) of the classic mainline Hawks that I had left to play.

I managed to get all the goals - 70% on Pro, 30% on Sick - plus a large majority of the gaps.

Definitely Cubivore on GameCube (which they discuss at 38:03). It's minimalist in nearly all aspects, from graphics to controls to sound to story, and the concept is bonkers. It stars creepy cube-shaped creatures (whose anatomy is detailed in the manual and is relevant to the gameplay), and the goal is to navigate the environment and eat the other creatures in a most horrific manner until you grow big enough to reproduce...by a most hilarious method. XD

One of Kyle's bits went off the hook yesterday:

https://www.twitch.tv/easyallies/clip/ObliviousTrustworthyTaroUWot
https://www.twitch.tv/easyallies/clip/AliveWimpyWombatArgieB8

Very nice work! :)

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