Obscurities- E3 Day 4
E3 Day 4- Final Smash
Well nothing really new today, just more of what was already shown. One interesting game that shouldn’t be overlooked is Fat Princess. This unique PSN title features 5 classes and juxtaposition of Candy Land environments and blood-splattering violence. The flagship capture the princess mode, gives the opposing team the quest of re-taking their princess in their engorged state, as the princess has been force-fed by the opposing team. All the little quirks of the game make it feel like a bizarre mix of TF2 class gameplay and cutesy titles like Animal Crossing. The action gameplay, building, seesaw assaults and piranhas only add to a quirky and unique gem. This original IP gets my digital distribution Game of the Show.
As for console game of the show, I’d go with Dead Space. A surprisingly good game from EA that mixes Science Fiction and Survival Horror, your character finds that a mining colony has been overtaken by organic terrors. Through what is described as “tactical dismemberment” by the developers the hero must destroy his foes through severing appendages.
For PC gamers I’d go with Dragon Age, Bioware bringing a classic RPG can’t be beat. Baldur’s Gate will always be one of the best RPGs ever made and if they can capture that again, they have gold. Handheld game surprises would probably be Resistance or Kirby for the DS. I’d say GTA, but they didn’t show anything aside from talking about it.
Obscurities- E3 Day 3
E3 Day 3- 3rd Strike
No real big announcements today except for Dead Rising being ported to the Wii and Nintendo is working on Pikmin 3. That being said I think the real winner of E3 so far has been the 3rd parties. Especially EA and Capcom displayed interesting games. I now look forward to and plan to Pre-order/Purchase quite a few games I never even thought about before.
The unique games that really excited me were the creative Little Big Planet and the PSN game Fat Princess, which with its quirky charm and strategic class system really seems like a gem. Third person action/adventure and survival horror seems to be a new standard, games like Dead Space, Dark Void, Infamous, RE5, and SH: Homecoming all looked excellent in their own way. Dead Space and Dark Void especially surprised me, Dead Space for being a unique looking survival horror title and Dark Void for looking to accomplish action with jetpack fighting.
The other game I’m looking forward to is Dragon Age, the gameplay looks excellent. Bioware going back to their roots with a Baldur’s Gate style RPG except within their own universe gives an interesting number of awesome possibilities. Mass Effect was an interesting successor to KotOR, though it seems like Bioware might be secretly making a new KotOR anyway.
Obscurities- E3 Day 2 Part 2
E3 Day 2- Paced-station 3
Out of all 3 conferences Sony’s was the worst paced of the three. All the announcements came at the end like afterthoughts and after sitting through an hour plus to get there it was kind of exhausting. That being said, it was still more entertaining than Nintendo. The confirmation for God of War 3 was nice. The new games MAG, a 256 player, 8 to a team tactical based war simulator, as well as Infamous from the Sly Cooper developers looked interesting.
Out of everything they did, Little Big Planet was the most entertaining. A PowerPoint presentation becomes a lot more interesting when made in game and played out using the Sack-boy. The new PS3 features are okay, with in game rentals and purchases in place to rival Microsoft’s use of Netflix. The PS3 price-drop to $399 for the 80 GB model come September will likely be more crucial.
All in all the PS3 didn’t show off much, but then again Microsoft showed off RE5 and Fallout 3 which are multiplatform. The major 3 all kind of had lackluster showings, with the best presentation thus far being EA, which pains me to ever say that. Of course with EA buying up Bioware, I might as well start embracing them. Lets hope the 3rd party showings give us something new to look forward to.
Obscurities- E3 Day 2 part 1
E3 Day 2- Nintendon’t
Well I don’t own a Wii and was planning on buying a DS, but I do play my friend’s Wii. It has a few decent games, and more coming out, Wario and Chocobo Dungeon come to mind. However, Nintendo’s E3 showing was a shit on the face of hardcore/intermediate gamers. Wii Sports 2 sword fighting and Animal Crossing sums up the only good things presented. They made a big deal out of mediocre games like Pokemon Rangers and Rayman. GTA for the DS is okay in concept, but I don’t know how well it work out, I suppose I can hope for the best.
Their biggest announcement as they put it is Wii Music, which in theory sounded great, until they stated that you just push buttons and it plays itself. It’s like Communist Guitar Hero, no skill, no gameplay, In Soviet Russia Sax plays you! This is a toy, they make these for little kids, to push buttons and pretend they are playing music, except slap in more instruments, multi-player and Nintendo music.
On top of that the rest of the presentation Nintendo was singing their own praises, including stating they are at the top of the software sales, which they are technically only through counting Wii-Sports in bundled format. Non-bundled software, Nintendo is equal to Sony in games sold and half of what the 360 has sold.
Otaku Street- Berserk
A dark fantasy setting full of betrayal, blood, gore and evil, Berserk is not for the faint of heart. Created in 1989 and still running, it is an extremely long lived manga series that yielded one season of an anime series and two videogames, one of which made it stateside.
Berserk updates rather slowly, but the art is worth the wait and while the story may be creeping along now, that’s because I read the first 32 volumes already. If you have a taste for dark fantasy action, Berserk is for you. If adult themes, questioning of religion and the Aristotelian take on God is too much for you, avoid at all cost. But, if you seek a deep and engaging adult-orientated story Berserk can’t be topped. The anime doesn’t follow the manga completely, but it is also worth the watch.
Obscurities- E3 Day 1
Well, a lot of interesting announcements came out today, though nothing really incredibly new or exciting. The biggest announcement was FFXIII for the 360, which considering I own a 360 and Ps3 isn’t crucial. I do feel it’s kind of weird and that many people feel betrayed, but most of all I’m annoyed by people stating that Sony is finished. They aren’t all that far behind the 360 and they’ve won the last two generations, plus the PS3 really is a fun system. Regardless I’m looking forward to getting FFXIII. I’ll let time decide which system I pick it up for. (Although if it has online play I’ll go PS3, because I’m too poor to pay for live)
RE5 was big, but in a way looks a lot more like RE4 then I predicted. Not necessarily bad things to look and play like an excellent game, but I’m sure Capcom has a few more tricks with it and the co-op announcement is awesome. Dead Space is another surprise to me, as it seems like RE4 also, but looks interesting enough that I may have to pick it up.
Other games that got me excited were Fallout 3 and Fable 2. I’ve never played a Fallout game before, even though I know I should have. Fable 2 I hope really goes beyond what the first game did, because the first was probably the biggest disappointment I’ve ever had, I was so pumped for the game and it came out being only above average.
In Wii news the accuracy peripheral is an interesting enough attachment as many of the games I’ve played have had terrible reaction sensing as to what I do with the Wii-mote and what happens on screen, but I always pegged it to game design more-so than the controller. However, the fact you have to pay to increase the controller’s accuracy seems kind of stupid. I just don’t see much of a point to pay for it, when it’s not that bad. But, Nintendo prints money, I’m sure they’ll make a ton off of it.
Tomorrow I’ll see what day 2 brings, because Microsoft didn’t really announce anything all that new. While Halo Wars and GoW2 look good, I want to see new and interesting IPs.
To Play or Not to Play: Super Smash Bros. Brawl
I don’t own a Nintendo Wii, it’s the only current generation console I don’t own. I’m not a fan of “Waggling” gameplay, but I do enjoy Wii games that allow the use of a GameCube controller. Brawl provides this feature and gives you enough fun to really enjoy this game with friends.
For those of you who don’t know the Super Smash Bros. franchise is a party fighting game where all sorts of characters from Nintendo franchises come together to kick each other’s asses. This particular incarnation allows you to pit Mario against Sonic the Hedgehog, or pit Solid Snake against…Pit from Kid Icarus.
Prior to Brawl’s release I would regularly play Melee, 4-player with friends. I had to hone my skills because the people I played with are all really good and through play I became better and better. However the character flaws of Melee are far more balanced in Brawl, creating a more casual game where chance plays a bigger part and better closes the gap between players, not to say a first-timer will even remotely take a veteran, because that won’t happen.
Brawl is best with 4 people, but does have interesting enough 1 player content and unlockables to keep dedicated fans glued to their Wii in order to unlock everything the game has to offer. The only flaws I would say Brawl has to Melee, is that the C-Stick on the GameCube controller is less responsive in Brawl. Also while you can create your own levels, there are many in Brawl that are just distracting, where you may find yourself turning them off.
If you played Melee religiously, you’ll notice subtle changes to the gameplay and more so to each character, so much so, you may have to change your favorite fighter, though the new and improved balance makes me enjoy picking random now over picking Fox.
Play it, Rent it, Buy it
Overall: 5/5
Final Cut- Review for Wanted
This movie for all its ridiculous over-the-top, Michael Bay on crack action sequences, possessed a kind of charm. The plot is kind of challenging which is nice, but I found the opening narration to be the best feature of the whole film. James McAvoy’s narration was reminiscent of films like American Psycho and American Beauty and made me think the film could have really been better if it kept this flair throughout.
The film is about an accountant whose life is going nowhere. Soon he finds out that his dad used to be the head of an organization of assassins, known as the fraternity. The fraternity then proceeds to recruit him and save his life from the man who murdered his father. They then train him so he can personally avenge his father by curving bullets and flipping cars.
Danny Elfman provided an excellent adrenaline fueled soundtrack which really added to the pacing of the movie. The film for the most part was extremely fast paced and action packed with fewer then 10 minutes in between a bullet or a fist hitting someone in the head for the duration of the hour and 45 minute running time.
Anyone can see this is a popcorn flick and generally requires your brain to relax and not take it entirely serious. For all the ridiculousness of the film it was infinitely better then Shoot-em-up which features a similar style of action. I’d definitely give it a watch
Overall: 3.5/5
Street Philosophy Vol. 1
I have decided to post my first piece of street philosophy as I call it. I’m not any real sort of philosopher, just someone who does a lot of thinking. It is because I have no accreditation and only base my philosophy off of my own thoughts and observed beliefs that I dubbed it street philosophy. Anyone can be a street philosopher. You just have to speak your mind.
The sides of human nature are vast and numerous. I have only lived for almost 22 year, but in that time I’ve observed and experienced various events and occurrences that have led me to believe what I maintain as my personal opinion of human nature. My hypothesis is subjective and anyone disagreeing with me can feel free to comment in favor or against the thoughts presented in this piece.
In the forefront of human nature is the primitive and basic need for self-preservation. It is the fundamental element of all animals, and even as humans we cannot elude its grasp. Survival of the fittest, putting ourselves in front of the feelings and preservation of those around us, even the most pious and selfless of individuals is afflicted with the urge to preserve themselves over someone else. Occasionally it is both necessary and well-deserved, but it is from the obsession with self preservation that you first gain entry to the darker side of human nature, the thing that often drives us to be little more then filth.
Thinking only of oneself, apathy toward the emotions of others, and greed. People say that money is the route of all evil, but that is untrue, the phrase was misconstrued. The love of money is the drive of all evil. Greed, whether it is toward money, objects, or coveting a human being, it is the internal drive for all vices, sins, and jealous or impure thoughts. It is interconnected with all of the so-called seven deadly sins. Envy, lust, and gluttony are all desires stemming from wanting more then you are allotted and deserved. Rage can stem from any of those desires, and is often triggered by those with weak self control at experiences they wish never happened or did not particularly go the way they wanted them to. But what is that but more greed, greed toward the effects of life, fate itself.
It is the darker side of man, driven by this greed that attributes to all the pain and suffering in the world, the murder, the violence, the senseless killing, and the human filth that appeases all of his vices. The waste of life that kills their self with too much drink, or dies from the drugs they previously worshipped as the necessary component for living happily. The rapists, the fetish driven scum who choose to defile those around them. The bigots, who see the world through unrelenting eyes of hate toward those different then themselves as a way to lessen their own aggravation toward their problems and although many would disagree even those who live so conservatively, as to believe the world should remain without change are part of the problems facing mankind.
Past the darker side of man is the side that drives us to preserve that side. The secretive side of human nature, speaking in riddles and double meanings, hiding away and acting like an equivocator, we serve to only lie and remain silent, when we should speak our mind and speak the truth. Beyond the silent side of man, is the core of our beliefs. Religion, values, and ideology serve to balance of how we choose to live our lives. As I stated before, those who are conservative tend to rely on religion, fundamentals, and traditional beliefs that have been passed down for years. But this is flawed, it is impossible to govern a developing world without the implementation of change. But that’s not to say that living life relying on change is not without its flaws, too much breaking away from traditional thinking would propel mankind into uncharted waters, causing confusion and aggravation. It is only when you balance these things that mankind can run smoothly. Where we can embrace and adapt to necessary change but remember our past, and improve on previously made mistakes. Where we can maintain a separation of running our lives and whatever creed you rightfully belong. Some people may call my moderate ideology stupid, but if you think long enough of it, you may start to see where I’m coming from.
The last part of human thinking is the capacity for love. Whether it be of the opposite or same sex, we are driven to find a partner that both serves to compliment and complete our being. It is the need to share our most personal thoughts, and the desire for human contact that inspires this way of thinking. When this completion comes about people are often happier, but because of the interconnection of love and emotions it serves to affect us more then any other drive in our psyche. The loss of a loved one hurts far more. Stupid things are often done in the name of love, and our emotions can shift from our happiest to our saddest all at the whim of the one we care the most for. By far it is the most interesting and deepest part of human nature. Exploring the foundations of the meaning behind love, could take ages, and is often different with each person, but the fundamentals remain the same. To anyone who reads this, I hope one day you each find that person, the one you’ll care about for the rest of your life.
My thoughts have probably already been stated by someone, or at least explored. That’s the problem I guess, it’s all been done before. But even so, I hope at least perhaps my words have moved you to think, regardless of what you are thinking about, or which part intrigues you, or even perhaps none of it at all tickles your fancy, whether you think I’m wise or a fool, or just some guy with a lot of time on his hands, thank you for taking the time to read this. May everything go better for you, and I hope you have a wonderful life. Until I post again, take heed of my street philosophy and have a nice day.
- Dash
