Ben asks, I am going to buy a new TV in order to get the most out of my

gamecube, and as i know it uses many cool features such as progresive scan and others i

was wandering what i want to look for in a TV. What other features does the cube support?

Mike H. Says: I'm preparing for the

GameCube as well by looking into new televisions and things.

If you have a lot of room and a lot of money to spend, you'll want to consider getting a

HDTV or digital TV that supports 480p, or progressive scanning (NOT

480i!). Generally these television sets have Component input jacks, but you'll want to

make sure before you buy. The Component input will be required to take advantage of

GameCube's progressive scanning, and gives you the best possible picture. The downside is

the price of these TVs.

For those who have less room or less money to spend, there are smaller and less expensive

standard TV sets out there that have S-video and/or component inputs, and give you a great

picture, even if 480p is out of your reach. Component video is the best option for video,

with S-video being a close second, so consider one or both of those features for your next

TV purchase.

I, myself, am limited in space, so my challenge was to find a 20" TV that contained

these features. It wasn't easy, because they normally only come on larger TV sets, but I

found a nice 20" Toshiba 20AF41

TV for $275 that has a digital comb filter, component input, S-video input, and 3 A/V

inputs. I have my DVD player connected using S-video, and movies look perfect. This tube

has high ratings from what I've seen while shop comparing, so consider this an unsolicited

endorsement. Toshiba also has larger screen variants if you want something bigger than

20".

Billy Says: Personally, right now I have a

32" RCA TV, and run all my systems, including my GameCube via S-Video inputs. It

looks great.

BUT, if I was going to get a new TV, I'd go with a the biggest 16:9 HDTV Tube monitor I

could find. Or even a plasma display. But the chances Santa's going to drop $20,000 on my

doorstep this Christmas are slim to none. If you ask me though, Componant is the way to

go. I want to play as many of these games in wide screen that I can.

Rize Says: I've been debating the merits of

picking up a new and improved TV for my GameCube since the summer. Ultimately, I decided

to skip it for now and get a PS2! GameCube games will look great on a normal TV, even if

they aren't quite as crispy clear. At least I won't notice visible jaggies as much! That

said, if I had the cash to spare, I would love to upgrade my cheap 27 inch TV (which only

has a co-axial cable input).

If you must get a new TV there are some things you might consider. You have two basic

kinds of TVs that you can get. One that supports progressive scan (a "digital"

TV) or one that doesn't (a normal TV). Most digitial TVs will have component inputs, as

Mike said, but you should definitely make sure. Some digital TVs are high definition as

well as digital. These are easy to spot since their price tags will be extremely high. If

you're going to pick up a digital, you're probably thinking more in terms of a Sony WEGA

that simply supports 640x480 in progressive scan.

In my opinion, if you're not upgrading to a full on digital TV, it's almost not worth the

trouble. The benefits of having an s-video or component input on a normal TV is definitely

noticable, but it won't be nearly as drastic a difference as getting a digital TV. If your

current TV is small and you want a larger screen anyway, you'll have to weigh the price

vs. the increase in picture quality to decide if you want digital or not. Just make sure

you have at least RCA inputs (red/white, yellow) if you get a new TV of any kind

(and s-video and component inputs are even better if you have the cash). Say no to

co-axial cable inputs!

Max says: Although I'd love to get a bigger and better TV in the near future, I

already have a TV with an "S-Video Cone" built in and that's quite nice as is.

  Buying an S-Video cable for my Dreamcast drastically improved visuals on this TV,

so I absolutely plan on buying an S-Video cable for my GameCube.  I actually bought

one for my N64 and that should have been compatible with GameCube but my ex-roomate nicked

it.  I have yet to experience Component video but I can say S-Video provides a nice

enhancement and it may be a bit more affordable.

Stik asks, Can I use the RF Switch from my SNES and N64

on my GameCube?

Billy Says: Yes, you should be able to. If

the adapter fits your N64 and your SNES, it will indeed work with your GameCube.

Jonathan Says: I would really, REALLY

recommend saving up for a new TV with at least composite video input, if not S-video. The

difference is astonishing...and that's not even mentioning the fact that you can only have

mono sound over an RF switch. You can probably get a new TV with a decent screen size and

more modern inputs for $100 or even less, just look around.

Rize Says: I completely agree with Jonny

here. If anyone is considering upgrading from an ancient TV to a more modern one,

make sure it has RCA (red/white, yellow) inputs at least! A few years

ago I made the mistake of getting a TV with only a co-axial input to save $30 bucks. I've

regretted it ever since. S-video and component inputs are even better. Much better in

fact.

TYP Says: I must be really bad at

determining quality. I've been using Co-Axial virtually all of my life. Sure the reception

can be funny at times (lines) but I never found it to be a big problem. I've used RCA with

my big TV at home, and I really can't tell a difference! So don't feel too bad if you have

to stick with the cable pass-through technology!

Chris asks, Any chance of having a Daily Mailbag? Reading other people's letters makes me

feel connected to the rest of the GameCube community.

Mike H. Says: We're hoping to spit out more

regular Mailbags in the future. Since E3, I've been getting tied into other PGC projects

that demanded a lot of my time, and resulted in fewer Mailbags. We're interested in

getting new ones out more frequently, and I'm sure we'll accomodate soon. :) Stay tuned.

Billy Says: Mike has been slacking. But due to the fact that we don't want him

to go postal, we've been rather easy on him.

I hope to see bi-weekly mailbags coming soon. But we'll see.

Jonathan Says: If we had just one person who answered all the mail, daily

mailbags would be easy. Still, I think the "group" mailbag approach we take is a

cool, unique feature and worth waiting for. Bi-weekly isn't too much to ask though.

Rize: Mailbags are definitely a lot of fun for us (well, for me anyway)! I'd

like to do them more often, but since the process involves so many people, it's going to

be slowed down a little bit. Here's to getting more frequent Mailbags up!

TYP Says: The only problem with daily mailbags is that more "stupid"

questions would be left in to make the thing long enough. And that number would greatly

increase because readers would be pressured into writing a question, even if it isn't a

good one. Prolonged exposure to pointless questions or varients of the same thing EVERY

DAY can lead to crankiness and fatigue. I think TEH WINDEY DALE can vouch for that.

Max says:  We are definitely taking steps for a more frequent mailbag.

  Over the summer, Mike Hrusecky put a lot of work into producing the E3 video CDs

and Crazy Billy was busy cooking up his plan for Japan.  As you can see, we're all

very interested in doing more frequent mailbags.  Just keep sending in intelligent,

thought provoking questions!

Y2Jeremy also asks, After playing both Luigi's Mansion

and PIKMIN, which would you rate above the other? Both full of innovation, both have

'Miyamoto Magic' in abundance, but Billeh, you've gotta make the cut!

Billy Says: First I want to say that they

are totally different games. I'm guessing (and hoping) Pikmin has more hours of game play.

I would have to go with Pikmin. Luigi's fun and all, but Pikmin is one of my most looked

forward to games for GameCube right now. There's just something about Pikmin that makes me

want to play more, and save those little buggers. I care about the Pikmin...every single

one of them. I will save you.

Max says: While this question was addressed to Billy, I hope you won't mind me

adding in my two cents.  I've also played both games, just earlier versions.

  However, I'd still have to say that Pikmin is the more compelling game.  I'm

very excited about Luigi's Mansion (it's so awesome he finally has his own game) but

Pikmin is just so different than anything we've seen from Miyamoto.  The Pikmin are

adorable in their animations and they work so very hard for you.  The world is so

large and beautiful and you must put your army of Pikmin to good use.  Like Billy

says, it's also tragic to lose any of them.  They're so cute!  I'm excited for

both though-they're quite different games.  There's no denying both games have plenty

of magic from Miyamoto and his teams.

Sean asks, Approximately how long is the AC adaptor? From previous pictures it looks

dubiously short.

Billy Says: Well the

measuring tape that I have only goes up to 92 inches. I measured my AC adaptor and it's

about that length.

It's not short by any means.

Jonathan Says: More than seven feet...not as much as it sounds, depending on

your setup, but still long enough for most purposes.

Rize Says: There's always extension cords. Since the bulky part of the adapter

is in the middle of the cord instead of on either end, you should be able to plug it into

any old extension cord without any problems. I'm a little worried about the adapter

portion being in the middle of the wire myself. My setup has all the wires going through a

tiny hole in the back of my entertainment stand. The adapter won't fit through that, but

I'll figure something out!

Archaon asks, I was wondering where you think the Conker series is going, the domain names

have been registered for a possible sequel, but maybe it was canceled, the game did not

sell well. Or maybe they'll take a new direction with it... or soften it up slightly

because i think that it did not sell very well because people were not allowed to buy it.

What are your feelings?

Mike H. Says: Despite Conker's sales, I

thought it was one of the best N64 games to come around in a long while. Sadly, it's also

the last N64 game I bought. The only thing I would have changed about it was its length...

I thought it was too short.

As for where Conker is going, I hope it stays the course and that Rare sticks to the

vulgar, cocky, parodistic path. But moreso than that, as long as it sustains the great

gameplay, I'm sold.

Billy Says: Conker sold great in it's demo

that could actually buy the game. People over 18 that own a N64 is a smaller demo. That's

why people say Conker sold poorly.

Personally I liked it. I hope Rare (or other companies) do more games like that. It was a

fresh look to console games.

Jonathan Says: I don't think Conker's low

sales have affected Rare too much...they are somewhat used to releasing niche titles that

never get more than a cult following. See also: Blast Corps, Jet Force Gemini. Besides

that, Conker had been in development so long that I'm sure Rare was happy to finally have

it on shelves at all.

Will there be future Conker games? I'm kinda torn. On one hand, a sequel would probably

sell much better on GameCube, and there ARE the domain registrations that at least open up

the possibilities. However, Conker has already proven to be a franchise that doesn't play

by the normal rules. I keep thinking about what my friend said in his editorial about

Conker's ending (www.nformant.net/conked.html

- Full of spoilers, so be warned.), and I wonder if Rare even wants to do a sequel to the

game, and if they do make one, how much it'll be like Bad Fur Day. Part of me realizes

that my delight with BFD had something to do with the fact that the game had transformed

so much...would a new title in the same style work without that kind of history behind it?

While we're on the subject, boot up BFD and watch the Saving Private Ryan

"parody" two or three times in a row. Not really funny, is it? Kinda depressing,

ain't it? There's a taste of what Rare really wanted (and perhaps still wants) to do with

Conker.

Rize Says: If Rare continues the series

(and I hope they do) I hope to see more movie spoofs and especially video game spoofs. The

"adult" language and "adult" humour wasn't particularly to my liking,

but it didn't really bother me. I agree with Jonny in that just because they were spoofing

something didn't always mean it was funny. Conker's BFD had a very dark side to it, and

the more I think back on the game, the more I want to revisit it. It was definitely one of

the most stunning experiences I had on the N64.

Max says:  I only recently got to borrow Conker from a friend.  I like it an

awful lot.  It's different than almost anything I've played before and is certainly

more than Rare platformer with swearing and potty jokes.   It's also quite

abstract which takes a little getting used to, yet this only enhances its uniqueness.

  It plays and looks like a very adult cartoon.  How cool is that?  I think

it's a really fantastic game though I've still got a lot left to play through. Will there

be a sequel?  I'd certainly hope so. Conker the Squirrel is certainly a character

who's come a long way.  Now that Conker is no longer just another cutesy mascot, I'd

hope he'd get another go around on the GameCube.  The domain names  back up the

possibility.  I also wouldn't mind seeing Rare try a few new things too, in the same

vein as Conker, as far as mature games / characters.

Bao354 asks, I was wondering whether Interact will make a GameShark for

Gamecube, and when it will come out?

Billy Says: I'm sure they will. I haven't seen any dates for release, but I'm

sure there will be a GameCube Game Shark. There is for every other system on the planet.

Rize Says: Yeah, there have been game enhancement devices on every system since

the Game Genie was released for the NES. I thought they would be stopped dead in their

tracks by disc based systems, but that's been proven wrong many times now. It's only a

matter of time.

Jonathan Says: InterAct hasn't really said anything about it, but I'd expect

GameShark for GameCube no later than Summer 2002. They'll wait that long just so it ships

with a decent selection of codes for the existing software library.