tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8025888703529880782024-03-19T13:53:43.518-05:00Fans On Fire Game BlogCurrently a small scale blog for chatting about games, movies, and music.Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.comBlogger100125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-64302263815402397792017-09-14T09:18:00.003-05:002017-09-14T09:18:50.913-05:00HOW-TO: N64 Controller Setup With Micro's N64 PCB Converter And Mayflash USB AdapterI decided to upload this here from <a href="https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/12836/how-to-n64-controller-setup-with-micro-s-n64-pcb-converter-and-mayflash-usb-adapter" target="_blank">my RetroPie forums post</a> on the same thing, just so it has another chance to be found on a random Google search.<br />
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I'm not sure how many people are actually running N64 games on their RPis or actually using the original controllers, or if anyone even knows about this PCB in general, but I wanted to post about it so if someone needs help down the road like I did, hopefully they will find this thread. This is the result of hours and hours of Google searching and trial and error. I know a lot of people use the Mayflash adapter but in the event that you have something else like Raphnet's adapter for example, these same principles will work.<br />
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<b><i><span style="font-size: large;">NOTICE: I'm also running RetroPie 4.2</span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">N64 Controller with Micro's PCB Converter and Mayflash USB Adapter</span></u></i></b></div>
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<b><u><i>What is it?</i></u></b></div>
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<a href="http://nfggames.com/forum2/index.php?topic=5023.0" target="_blank">It's a PCB made to replace GameCube style joystick replacements.</a> If you've ever replaced the original joysticks and were tricked into buying a GC-style replacement, you know how bad they truly are for accuracy in games. The stepping is very imprecise, meaning no dash-dancing in SSB, no spin attacks in Zelda, and certainly no precision platforming in Mario...<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://image.ibb.co/d8gVrv/badbadbad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://image.ibb.co/d8gVrv/badbadbad.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This PCB that comes with the GC-style joystick really sucks...</td></tr>
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micro's PCB Converter board not only fixes all of that by adding a more accurate potentiometer and faster micro-controller, but adds a few features that are really handy such as being able to calibrate the joystick on startup, and inverting the joystick controls with the flick of an onboard switch! Keep in mind, I am using V3.0 of that PCB located at the end of that thread, but the same principles apply.<br />
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<b><i><u>Why am I posting this here?</u></i></b> </div>
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Well, I had originally been using the GC-style joystick replacement, and it worked after tweaking the AnalogPeak and DeadZone values in InputAutoCfg.ini but it was <i>way</i> to sensitive. You can imagine my surprise when I installed the new PCB and it had gotten worse. Yeah, worse. Even adjusting the values again couldn't make Mario run full speed.<br />
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<b><i><u>OK, well how do I fix it?!</u> </i></b></div>
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It's easy! First thing you should do after installing the new PCB is to calibrate the controller and test its values with <a href="http://s9.zetaboards.com/Nintendo_64_Forever/topic/7349580/1/" target="_blank">sanni's Controller Test ROM.</a> If you have a real N64 then you will need a flashcart, otherwise you will need a <a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B8EgiFDUk0qVWHp0X0lwSmFuZmM" target="_blank">MESS Emulator.</a> The controller enters calibration mode the second it has any power. That means if you are using a real N64, calibration starts upon powering the system. If you are emulating, it starts as soon as you plug in your USB adapter. I'm using the Mayflash 2-port USB adapter, but I assume it works with any adapter. It only needs power to calibrate!<br />
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<b><i><u>Calibration:</u></i></b></div>
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Calibration of the joystick is easy with this PCB. The VERY first time you provide power you will be in calibration mode. If you screw up and need to re-enter calibration mode, you have two choices depending on how you soldered the PCB:<br />
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<b><i><u>IF YOU SOLDERED THE L/Z COMBO PADS</u></i></b>- Just hold L and Z while you power on the console/USB Adapter and re-do your calibration.<br />
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<b><i><u>IF YOU DID NOT SOLDER L/Z COMBO PADS</u></i></b>- You are going to have to open the controller and joystick assembly again. Flip the calibration switch on the PCB, and plug your controller into the console/USB Adapter. Power on and wait 2 seconds, then power off. Flip the calibration switch back to its original position. Next time you power up, you will be in calibration mode.<br />
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Now spin the joystick around, like you would playing a game. Do this for about 4 seconds so the micro-controller can program the stick's values. Now power off the system, or un-plug your USB adapter. Plug it back in/power on, and load the Controller Test ROM. Check to make sure you have full range on each axis. If you do not, re-calibrate the controller as explained above. Then re-check your values. If everything is good, move on to the next step!<br />
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<b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></div>
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<b><i><u>RetroPie and mupen64plus - Troubleshooting buttons and analog range:</u></i></b></div>
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This is where you will either be fine, or not fine at all. First thing to do is to configure your controller in Emulation Station, then load up a game. I always choose Super Mario 64, but Zelda is a good candidate as well. Make sure you have full range in all directions, and make sure it is not too sensitive! Make sure if you are playing Zelda, that you can do spin attacks with ease. If you are good on all fronts, then great! Most likely however, you will not be done yet. You most likely will not have proper range, and your buttons will be mapped wrong. So what now? We need to edit some config files.<br />
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<b><i><u>Button Mapping:</u></i></b></div>
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First, let's make sure our buttons are all mapped correctly. Mupen64Plus automatically configures controllers, but it's very hit or miss and often assigns two buttons to the same button. Exit back to RetroPie, and plug in a keyboard. Hit F4 to enter command line. We're looking for three files in particular: <b><i>InputAutoCfg.ini</i></b>, <i><b>autoconf.cfg</b></i> and <i><b>mupen64plus.cfg</b></i>. First, open up autoconf.cfg in nano:<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><i>sudo nano /opt/retropie/configs/all/autoconf.cfg</i></span></b></div>
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Look for a line that says <b>mupen64plus_hotkeys</b> and change it's value to 0. Now we have to open mupen64plus.cfg:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>sudo nano /opt/retropie/configs/n64/mupen64plus.cfg</i></b></span></div>
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Scroll down to the <b>[Input-SDL-Control]<i> </i></b>block, and find this line:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i># Controller configuration mode: 0=Fully Manual, 1=Auto with named SDL Device, 2=Fully automatic</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>mode = 2</i></b></span></div>
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Change mode to 0. <b><i>THIS NEEDS TO BE DONE</i></b>. This turns off auto configuration of the controls, which is necessary so we can configure the proper controls ourselves without them being overwritten every time. You can do this for the rest of the input devices if you are using more than one controller. Press <b><i>Ctrl+X</i></b>, then <b><i>Y</i></b> to save changes, and <b><i>Enter</i></b> to overwrite the file with our changes. Now we need to get our joystick values and buttons. RetroPie has jstest installed by default I believe, so now run:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>jstest /dev/input/js0</i></b></span><br />
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You will see a table with Axis' and Buttons, and what device we have plugged in. What you want to do here is to press all your buttons and axis' and write down what they correspond to, their values, and write down the name of the device. For example, my Mayflash adapter registers as <b><i>HuiJia USB GamePad</i></b>. The C Buttons use axis controls, so C Left might be -3, while C Right is +3. The L trigger might be button 6. Whatever values you get, make sure you write them down, and don't forget to mark down whether they are positive or negative! After you have all your buttons and axis' written down and the device name, we have to apply them to <b>InputAutoCfg.ini</b>. So open it up:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>sudo nano /opt/retropie/configs/n64/InputAutoCfg.ini</i></b></span><br />
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You will see all the controllers that Mupen64Plus has stored. We're looking for our device name. If it is not there, we will have to create one ourselves. Here is an example of a pre-defined controller:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>;USB gamepad CONFIG START</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>[USB gamepad]</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>plugged = True</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>plugin = 2</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>mouse = False</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>AnalogDeadzone = 4096,4096</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>AnalogPeak = 32768,32768</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>Mempak switch = </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>Rumblepak switch = </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>C Button U = axis(2-)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>C Button D = axis(2+)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>C Button L = axis(3-)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>C Button R = axis(3+)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>R Trig = button(5)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>Start = button(9)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>Z Trig = button(4)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>A Button = button(2)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>DPad U = hat(0 up)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>DPad D = hat(0 down)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>DPad R = hat(0 right)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>DPad L = hat(0 left)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>B Button = button(3)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>Y Axis = axis(1-,1+)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>X Axis = axis(0-,0+)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>;USB gamepad CONFIG END</i></b></span><br />
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Again, if you do not see your controller in this .ini file, copy this block and enter it at the end of the .ini file. Replace all the buttons and axis values with the ones you wrote down earlier. Also, you need to make sure that you replace the "USB gamepad" fields with your device's name. Do not change the AnalogPeak or Deadzone values yet. <b><i>Ctrl+X</i></b> and save your changes. Test your controls in a game. You should now have properly configured buttons, but if not just go back and make sure you have the correct values for your buttons and axises. Make sure your analog stick is working correctly as well.<br />
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<b><i><u>Analog Troubleshooting:</u></i></b></div>
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If for some reason you still do not have correct analog range, then we will have to use <b><i>jscal</i></b> to re-calibrate the joystick. Go into command line with F4, and type:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><i>jscal -c /dev/input/js0</i></b></span><br />
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It will now calibrate the joystick. Your input will be required, so pay attention. It will ask you to do minimum, center, and maximum values for all axises. For minimum, you want to have the lowest value you can get on an axis. For example, doing left and right on the analog stick, my minimum was all the way left. Center is self-explanatory; just keep the joystick centered. Maximum was all the way to the right. C Buttons are axises as well, so again in my case C Left was the minimum, no buttons pressed is center, and C Right was maximum. Your mileage will vary, but these are general guidelines to follow for any joystick. After it is done, try a game out again, and you should have the correct analog values.<br />
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<b><i><u>Last Resort Tactics:</u></i></b></div>
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If you still do not have the correct values, try running <b><i>jscal</i></b> as is. That ended up being my solution after all of this. You can also solder the Range Extender pad on the PCB to try extending the analog ranges. That requires a bit of soldering to the joystick PCB as well as the N64 controller PCB, so be careful!!!! If all else fails, make sure you have properly soldered everything, and if THAT fails you can try <a href="https://github.com/RetroPie/RetroPie-Setup/wiki/Universal-Controller-Calibration-&-Mapping-Using-xboxdrv" target="_blank">mapping your N64 controller as a Xbox 360 controller</a> or <a href="https://raopinion.wordpress.com/2012/01/27/mayflash-n64-controller-adapter/" target="_blank">this slightly intimidating guide</a> using some commands in Linux. Good luck!<br />
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Hopefully this is useful for some people seeking help with their controller setups. If someone has anything to add, please let me know! Happy gaming!R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-13616240556337518762016-02-18T21:22:00.000-06:002016-02-18T21:22:30.751-06:00YOU DIED - A Dark Souls Rant<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FlZDisEPDUhbDll4b9JzWYRINy0FumVAbPurtMr6TuPimSQklp0KvXVPzydPqVTgAxvaTkuxQK-z94DBWKxN70vlbe85GU7uvtcBV0ch5QEuxU-dGxnJCZvhum8pj_QgD6hFuYNibur6/s1600/Dark-Souls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FlZDisEPDUhbDll4b9JzWYRINy0FumVAbPurtMr6TuPimSQklp0KvXVPzydPqVTgAxvaTkuxQK-z94DBWKxN70vlbe85GU7uvtcBV0ch5QEuxU-dGxnJCZvhum8pj_QgD6hFuYNibur6/s400/Dark-Souls.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>DARK SOULS - A.K.A. FUCK YOU I HATE THE FUCKING WORLD!!!</b></div>
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Please do not mistake that caption as my overall opinion of this fine game. That is just a phrase I've repeatedly screamed whilst playing Dark Souls. I've heard a lot of people talk about this series as one of the best action role-playing game series to ever grace the gaming world, and I will absolutely agree with every single one of them.</div>
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Yes, it is mostly an RPG. You know that I <i>hate</i> RPGs with a fiery passion so hot that Hades himself would sweat profusely, but maybe I haven't really discussed in detail as to <i>why</i> I loathe them so intricately. I like RPGs, as long as the rewards for grinding for levels for excruciatingly long periods of time are worth it. I like a good immersive story, with memorable characters and locations. As long as there is a good payout for the shit I have to go through, I will like it.</div>
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What I do not like, is having to do mundane side quests or rather, deal with design choices that I do not agree with. I'm going to look back at Morrowind again and its first person perspective of what is essentially a tabletop RPG. To me, that is two things that do not fucking mix. Part of having the first person perspective is the immersion; I want to feel like <i>I'm</i> swinging a giant sword I could never possibly hope to wield in real life, or cast ludicrously powerful spells as if I was like fucking Merlin <i>himself</i>, or something. I'm not saying its a bad game at all. I just like my combat to be satisfying, and at least give me some feeling of control and dare I say it, <i>FUN</i>. Especially if it is one of the most prominent parts of the game...</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwz_Qxp5G7g5Jdilv0BQ44hmNKerGqwOGlWCa9xEhLmesCNp2gp2W28Wh2-b4OaUHY-b7UWhATpKlbfhTvLlIeGnJgaO_m_tD8ghmtuPe1oPv9sHDud9c8bDb7oRLDejiCxB0lf1ULgo7G/s1600/FiIkDbO.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwz_Qxp5G7g5Jdilv0BQ44hmNKerGqwOGlWCa9xEhLmesCNp2gp2W28Wh2-b4OaUHY-b7UWhATpKlbfhTvLlIeGnJgaO_m_tD8ghmtuPe1oPv9sHDud9c8bDb7oRLDejiCxB0lf1ULgo7G/s1600/FiIkDbO.gif" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty much.</td></tr>
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And after all, we do play games for fun right? To be immersed in the game world whether it is because of the gameplay, the story, or even the graphics themselves. Or am I completely fucking wrong? I'm going to go ahead and say NO, and FUCK YOU.<br />
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I complained that Morrowind was hard. Final Fantasy 1-3 on the NES is hard too. Those are all RPGs... sooooooooooo why am I here praising one of the hardest ones ever made? Well, I have a few reasons for that.<br />
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<b>1 - DARK SOULS IS UNFORGIVING, BUT STILL FAIR.</b><br />
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Yeah, it really is. This is a game that, much like my previous post on Ninja Gaiden, requires a lot of skill to really win. You will need to learn how to block or parry the many and I say <i>MANY</i> attacks that will be dished out to you. There's no fucking stat requirement to dodge attacks. Sure there is <i>POISE</i>, but that is a stat you have complete control over, both in your leveling and equipment, and it isn't even really needed to be successful. Also, depending on your class build, you can go through the game <i>without</i> it and still have a marvelous time.<br />
<b> </b><br />
For example, I have a Ninja. It's based on the thief class. He's very fast and doesn't carry a lot of equipment, just enough to get the job done. He will die fast against strong enemies, but makes up for that by having high elemental and magic resistances. You could easily topple him if I try to block attacks with my shield. However, that whole being fast thing is where I rest my case, because all enemies have attack patterns and strategies, and Dark Souls happens to fair well towards skillful players who know how to roll out of harm's way.<br />
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Dying results in losing all the souls you have acquired, and souls are used for fucking <i>pretty much</i> <i>everything</i>, from upgrading weapons, buying weapons and items, and leveling your goddamn character. When you die, a green aura is left where you perished. Should you make the trek there and deal with newly respawned enemies and traps and survive, you can re-acquire them. If you die, they are gone forever. You could essentially grind for hours and hours of your precious life, only to have it taken away in a few minutes.<br />
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However, even if you do die, VERY RARELY do you feel like it was the game's fault. Yes it does have a lot of questionable areas with even more questionable design choices (the fucking Dragonslayer archers in Anor Londo) but when you overcome the challenge, the reward is well worth it.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkE-BNi5q0DTRqyxeaaDfvUTEWuY9iu4BDnIutaM91gFD_6fYMtrVHXL3xIH-DCmt4iQS2pcnGkoPKYxd7t-xHKEdSytWweWon97QELAZ6JtTEyrildUb-wrCU_BPf9HHrBujBBmL08NtZ/s1600/hqdefault.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkE-BNi5q0DTRqyxeaaDfvUTEWuY9iu4BDnIutaM91gFD_6fYMtrVHXL3xIH-DCmt4iQS2pcnGkoPKYxd7t-xHKEdSytWweWon97QELAZ6JtTEyrildUb-wrCU_BPf9HHrBujBBmL08NtZ/s320/hqdefault.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">WELL WORTH IT</td></tr>
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Dark Souls makes every encounter feel like a worthy battle, and this is especially true with bosses. There are a lot of bosses in Dark Souls, and each require quite a bit of pattern recognition and here's that word again: <i>skill</i>. They all have strategies that need to be utilized to take them down. It wasn't long ago that I was getting my ass handed to me by Ceaseless Discharge in the Demon Ruins, only to figure out that you can just make this behemoth fall to his death quite easily, sparing an otherwise grueling battle. Other bosses are not as easily taken down. The Capra Demon comes to mind...<br />
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Yes, you have to trek a lot. Yes, you will die many times and traverse through the same locations a million times, but once you finally get past a boss or a particularly frustrating dungeon segment is when the overwhelming feeling of joy sweeps you over, and you can throw up a giant middle finger to the past nuances and say FUCK YOU, I DID IT. You will be revisiting locations so much that you will know enemy locations and how they each attack, and how to bait them one by one or by then maybe you can just slaughter them all at once. You will feel like a king, and it's like all of a sudden, that one area that gave you countless hours of pure torture is now a place you walk through <i>leisurely</i>, picking fucking flowers and whistling along.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK0m3QP1vFwqFJkoC4pSXQGtXmJjG2fRFs9E5t4N2PrlRT23izsj_k4vorgdV4pHf3dz7fuZuOcdoy49fR4dCUuW5Bf7ZUxPdUZiNDy_8EneUBxIHEN9vlCZ6CGgG61wRMdYjJSUUxBU8A/s1600/Funny-Owned-41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK0m3QP1vFwqFJkoC4pSXQGtXmJjG2fRFs9E5t4N2PrlRT23izsj_k4vorgdV4pHf3dz7fuZuOcdoy49fR4dCUuW5Bf7ZUxPdUZiNDy_8EneUBxIHEN9vlCZ6CGgG61wRMdYjJSUUxBU8A/s320/Funny-Owned-41.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">JUST.... FUCKING..... HRRRNNGGGGG!!!!!!!!!</td></tr>
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<b>2 - DARK SOULS IS FUCKING GORGEOUS TO LOOK AT.</b><br />
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While the game is a little older now, that doesn't take away from how fucking awe-inspiring it is. Atmospherically, this game is one of the best. It sucks you into the world of Lordran, to the point that "HMMM... MAYBE GODS <i>DID</i> EXIST HERE!"<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNhIM9mNTbZg2chZtNaEhv9JbzO073jg3zhrPWNwtyIjpN1nowrY1VK2aMW7YisoE5D7XvrqowSOPyzUZcThFad2Qpx8Mh7pNcbUIeDn4aDNqnxRGF7pz6FCdxiwK0MkSQ8q3cSwgcsCK0/s1600/anor-londo-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNhIM9mNTbZg2chZtNaEhv9JbzO073jg3zhrPWNwtyIjpN1nowrY1VK2aMW7YisoE5D7XvrqowSOPyzUZcThFad2Qpx8Mh7pNcbUIeDn4aDNqnxRGF7pz6FCdxiwK0MkSQ8q3cSwgcsCK0/s400/anor-londo-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Isn't it a bit early in the morning to be talking about Gothic architecture?" </td></tr>
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<b> </b>Yes, that was a Conker's Bad Fur Day quote, but look at that screenshot. That's Anor Londo, literally a place for Gods in the world of Dark Souls, and you get to <i>go there</i>. Personally, I myself like Blight Town the best, but just look at the landscape and fucking massive scope of this place! The sun piercing through the clouds, shining gold over a once prominent locale where <i>GODS</i> lived. I love the architecture, and the enemies in this area. Not to mention you get a great item that lets you warp between bonfires which saves a lot of time from walking everywhere! Fuckin' A!<br />
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Every area in Dark Souls is unique, and so well designed. The art direction is spot on. Places like the Catacombs and Depths feel tight, claustrophobic, and down right eerie, while areas like Darkroot Garden and the Painted World of Ariamis feel lush and open. Sen's Fortress and Blight Town are full of traps and tricky walkways. The contrast between say, going from Anor Londo to Sen's Fortress is staggering. It's quite refreshing to see the openness and overall bright tone of Anor Londo after struggling through Sen's Fortress. You can almost feel the fatigue of breathing in its dark-engulfed hallways.<br />
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And then we have our actual player models, which are fully realized with various weapons and armors. Wear some raggedy poor excuse for clothes, or go full black iron plated armor. Dual katanas? Sure, one in each hand, or one two-handed. Or maybe you want to wield a giant axe that you don't have enough strength for... watch it drag on the ground and encumber your movement. Every weapon has its own move set, and these are reflected in the player animations, which in turn gives more <i>feeling</i>. For fucks sake, I can't ever foresee that in any Elder Scrolls game. Not once was I swinging a sword around in Skyrim or Oblivion (and definitely not Morrowind...) and feeling like it had a sense of weight to it. It gets even better when you upgrade weapons and figure out how each one scales damage wise. Now it's like, "Woah. My greatsword is heavy and kind of slow to wield, but holy FUCK does it do some damage!" Maybe you want that sword to do lightning damage. Have a blacksmith modify it and watch it shock the living hell out of your foes. Each modifier you imbue or upgrade you purchase is reflected on the item. It's a great touch.<br />
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Also, the enemies are all varied and look pretty bad ass as well, especially memorable bosses like Dragonslayer Ornstein and Smough and Great Wolf Sif... who wields a giant fucking sword in his mouth. Sure you have your generic skeletons and rats and zombie-like enemies, but more unique enemies like black knights and crystal golems are cool to look at, and even more frightening to fight, especially when paired with the locales they reside in. It's just an orgasm to the eyes.<br />
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No, there is no picture for that.<br />
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<b>3 - DARK SOULS HAS A TON OF REPLAY VALUE.</b><br />
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I bought the Prepare To Die Edition for $20 at Gamestop, and I couldn't be any happier. All the DLC and bug fixes in one disc. In fact, I've put probably well over 100 hours into Dark Souls, and I <i>just</i> found out that there are roughly four more areas I haven't even been to yet. That's only for my Thief class character too! I haven't mentioned that there are a few more class choices.<br />
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Its been hinted multiple times that I enjoy a more melee approach. To me, there's <i>way</i> more satisfaction to parrying an enemy attack, and then retaliating with a sword to the chest for a one hit kill. I'm not really one for spamming magic attacks. Yet, Dark Souls has a few classes for exactly that. I've found games like Skyrim to be lacking in one aspect while being strong in another, for example, the magic. Magic in Skyrim blows. Sure, it looks cool as hell to launch fireballs but it's not really as effective or nearly as satisfying as an axe or a good ol' trusty sword. Dark Souls mostly succeeds in this regard.<br />
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For starters, MOST magic in the game has a use, and regardless of choosing to go strictly melee, you will still want SOME of the spells in the game. Magic Weapon for example, is a great spell for any class, since it lets you deal magic damage with any weapon you wield. Dark Souls has a good number of spells and miracles to use. They are dependent on certain stats, but quite frankly you can put a few points into those for ANY class and now you have a knight who can shoot fireballs, or an archer who can heal nearby allies and turn invisible. Sure, you will be better off just picking the Sorcerer class if you go full magic, but there isn't much penalty for mixing it up, and that's a good thing.<br />
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Being non-linear in nature, Dark Souls also does nothing to aid you in where to go. It's based on exploration on your OWN terms. I can remember making it to the bottom of Blight Town and never exploring it fully because it's such a hap hazardous area, but it holds one of the best swords and armor sets in the game. There's little things too like hidden areas and activating mechanisms to open shortcuts to new areas, or back to older ones for a little more leniency. Also, the game is not over once you beat it...<br />
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Once you beat the game, you can start a New Game Plus. New Game Plus increases the difficulty in an already difficult game, and lets you start with all your upgrades, stat upgrades, and extends your level cap! New Game Plus goes until you hit New Game Plus 7, and I'm willing to bet the difficulty spikes really fucking high too, but that just means more challenge to play with. It's like "Okay, you're pretty godly. Now let's see how godly you <i>really</i> are this time around!"<br />
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It's great. I love hard games, and this is like the cream of the crop here.<br />
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<b>"IS THIS GUY DONE YET?"</b><br />
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Yeah, I think so. There's a lot to explain about the game, but I've listed the important ones. I've stated before how a game like Morrowind made me feel helpless and how much it sucked, but here I am gloating about Dark Souls, which tries its best to fuck you over. For me, Dark Souls gives a bigger and better pay off for my suffering. It doesn't have a captivating story by any means, but it has some damn good lore, driven by even better gameplay and graphics. It isn't a tabletop RPG in disguise, and it doesn't ever stop being hard as fucking nails, but that's the great thing about it. Dark Souls makes no false promises to its difficulty. The bosses are gigantic, leading to a sense of wonderment and the occasional "HOW THE FUCK WHERE DO I EVEN BEGIN?" Even the messages you run across in the game world that players leave are subtle hints. Some are deceiving, but thats also the great thing. You have real people trying to trick you as well. Dark Souls is truly a game that rewards the player for overcoming everything it throws at you.<br />
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I picked it up for a measly $20. You can probably get its precursor Demon Souls for the same price. Either way, both are great games to start at if you want to get into the series. One day, I will talk about Dark Souls II and my lack of enjoyment for it, but that will be another post for another day! I just wanted to talk about this first game, and why I love it so much, even if it embodies a lot of qualities I absolutely hate.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbrEn8eemYQt3m_i_OSYDivbr7v7hOENXzMXF3nj-0PAXynvuJAXWdLFByGcy9OAu3EO4PeKGsoWQHFAnUHNI1xD9KRe1FuiLNy0LCxDIsUlDdkMZIrGUkDu6iiCFXNxM9fNY1mZwoHY-i/s1600/21e45fabe4aeb70d5101b075aab1d0e8-d6p6ggk.png.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbrEn8eemYQt3m_i_OSYDivbr7v7hOENXzMXF3nj-0PAXynvuJAXWdLFByGcy9OAu3EO4PeKGsoWQHFAnUHNI1xD9KRe1FuiLNy0LCxDIsUlDdkMZIrGUkDu6iiCFXNxM9fNY1mZwoHY-i/s400/21e45fabe4aeb70d5101b075aab1d0e8-d6p6ggk.png.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hurt me more please. Fucking archers...</td></tr>
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R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-83925417639029040672015-07-19T23:04:00.002-05:002015-07-19T23:10:50.034-05:00The Best Doom Wads - Metroid DreadnoughtLong time no see! And I mean that literally... the last post on this dust-covered blog was in December of 2014! We all celebrated Christmas and New Years, and forgot about allllllllll about this little blog didn't we? DIDN'T WE??!!!<br />
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Of course we fucking did. We all have lives I think, and that gets in the way of writing about shit no one will ever read anyway. I'm definitely guilty of that one. It's been a rough year already. Nothing really compares to LAST year, but this one was starting to get right up there.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIJchJ1cpqLtZoQMuVmaEiG4Sx_TFOKH124NFEEUGXl0WeTEuQKucYvP5mzB-NbGHS_Z9mQachcQp1AsVFFMpCyjUaGFUduVw2j4RCsAWg2bSMpgtP4K2Rwmwk9-ajf3tIG12LWW5o87mK/s1600/life-better.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIJchJ1cpqLtZoQMuVmaEiG4Sx_TFOKH124NFEEUGXl0WeTEuQKucYvP5mzB-NbGHS_Z9mQachcQp1AsVFFMpCyjUaGFUduVw2j4RCsAWg2bSMpgtP4K2Rwmwk9-ajf3tIG12LWW5o87mK/s400/life-better.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is 100% accurate.</td></tr>
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I'm not going to talk about my shitty situation, because that's not why we are here! Besides, that is what Facebook is for these days. Instead, I want to talk about two of my favorite video games. It's a little interesting this time around however, because for once I can enjoy both of my favorite franchises in one neat little package!<br />
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HOW SO? Well I'm glad you asked! <a href="http://fansonfire.blogspot.com/2012/06/bigger-than-doom-source-port-rant.html" target="_blank">It's pretty well known that I loooooooooove Doom</a>. I literally love it. If I could legally marry Doom I would. It is the only game that I know of that still has an active community of modders who love it more than me. I'm fucking serious. Mods are <i>still</i> being released for this goddamn game! Whether it's a high resolution texture pack, 3D models, or just altering the gameplay entirely, Doom is still quite relevant these days.<br />
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Hey you! You know what else became relevant recently? Oh yeah, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGu3Xe1uUUg" target="_blank">Metroid did</a>. And not in a good way. It seems Nintendo is intent on shitting all over one of their best franchises ever. Just fucking watch that so called "trailer" for Metroid Prime: Federation Force. I really have no idea what's going on over there at Nintendo, but I can say with confidence that, AS A FUCKING METROID FAN, THAT IS NOT WHAT WE WANT!<br />
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Seriously??? I know Metroid has never been a best seller for Nintendo over the years, but it has always been a game of 100% quality. Even Other M kept the spirit... sort of... But this game? A multiplayer Metroid game? Didn't Hunters try that on the DS already? And guess what? That game was pretty decent for an early DS game! Federation Force isn't even out, and already it has garnered so much hatred from long time Metroid fans.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidAIPvUW9koe_PNBWeoMjDqhZI1MxufzM5x4VZOs0cUq8HWLvJ4GZ_RDOErLzqVloVk_HoQY8lCs9I_mIXGjMGA5L9EF9ie6RNwXhS6ObcPlr2HTrdYd7-DLukBSYUKIh1W4i98QfqJFfJ/s1600/federationforcepetition.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidAIPvUW9koe_PNBWeoMjDqhZI1MxufzM5x4VZOs0cUq8HWLvJ4GZ_RDOErLzqVloVk_HoQY8lCs9I_mIXGjMGA5L9EF9ie6RNwXhS6ObcPlr2HTrdYd7-DLukBSYUKIh1W4i98QfqJFfJ/s320/federationforcepetition.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I can't make this shit up!</td></tr>
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Yeah, that's a petition, and you know what? I'm almost <i>supportive</i> of it. I have been waiting for a new Metroid game ever since I loathed through Other M, and Nintendo decides to come out with this shit? It really isn't that hard Nintendo. Make one a classic 2D side-scroller but with 3D, in the same vain as Zero Mission or Super Metroid, or you know... JUST MAKE ANOTHER FUCKING METROID PRIME!!!!!!<br />
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It really aggravates me to no end! It isn't rocket science! They know the formula to make a classic Metroid game, so why they won't make one is just mind boggling. As for Federation FARCE, why slap the "Prime" moniker on it? Why tarnish a great series?! WHY NINTENDO?? WHY?!!!! I could make so many arguments as to why Metroid is <i>not</i> a multiplayer game, but I'm about to prove myself wrong.<br />
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Remember earlier how I mentioned Doom? I'm sure you do... I mean, the title mentioned it. You had to have seen that... Let's get to the good stuff finally!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEM3NDaYH4gXPtxk-scm5Sj939zFbQ2YEgFwWGnLSyK06AQ2AgwXUIyUU0PPKdoy8CBsvCxmJ5zmh03dA6P4vmjtHL56uBi5cHA7f3vdJjjxu6UWeLob4g365eGCIhUod9f0DrRk23ztoN/s1600/metroid.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEM3NDaYH4gXPtxk-scm5Sj939zFbQ2YEgFwWGnLSyK06AQ2AgwXUIyUU0PPKdoy8CBsvCxmJ5zmh03dA6P4vmjtHL56uBi5cHA7f3vdJjjxu6UWeLob4g365eGCIhUod9f0DrRk23ztoN/s400/metroid.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>METROID DREADNOUGHT - A WAD BY TerminusEst13</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">As a guy who has played hundreds of WADs, it's a little hard to name off my favorite ones. Wild Weasel's Diaz WAD was my number one for a long time. Combined with the Equinox level set, it was pretty great. Then Brutal Doom took that shit over for the longest time. I just found this quite recently, and it just instantly took the cake. Terminus hasn't created a total conversion... he hasn't even made any levels for this mod. It's strictly a gameplay mod, but a fucking fine one at that! Some serious love went into this mod, and it really shows.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Thanks to Zandronum's ZDoom ACS scripting, this is a true Metroid mod. From the beams, the missiles, morph ball and bombs... even the goddamn <i>movement</i> is true to Metroid Prime in every single way. Jumping has the floaty-ness of Prime, and even the sounds. It really feels like Metroid Prime! I can't stress enough how cool that is, considering the fact that we are dealing with a game that is, oh I don't know... FUCKING 22 YEARS OLD.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">That's it... take it allllll in. Look at that screenshot. That is a multiplayer map, perfectly re-created from Metroid Prime Hunters. Notice the visor, and the overall HUD. It's fucking beautiful. Terminus has somehow combined the essence of the Prime games with Doom, and it <i>works</i>! All the classic beams are here: The Power Beam, Spazer, Plasma, Ice, Wave, and even the Long Beam. Samus starts with some of her latent abilities such as the Morph Ball, Bombs, and the Charge Beam. Morph Ball works exactly like it did in the Prime games, and it is re-created in Doom really well! You can still charge your beam and roll into a ball to pop out a bunch of bombs. You can dash in Morph Ball form, just like in Prime. Spring Ball is here as well. It's so fucking incredible that Terminus did this AND kept the spirit of Metroid in a Doom WAD.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">BUT THAT'S NOT ALL FOLKS! We also have the Space Jump. Just like Prime, it acts as a double jump. Included with that power up is the Wall Jump ability, and it works so goddamn good. The Speed Booster is here as well, and while it cannot be charged into a Shinespark, it can be used to mow through enemies. There's a special effect when it is used, and it looks great.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">All the beams are beautiful, and representative of their classic counter parts. Even better, you can collect the Energy Converter, which works similarly to the Diffusion missiles from Metroid Fusion. When a beam is fully charged, you can use alternative fire to fire a beam/missile combo attack. For example, the Ice Beam's combo freezes multiple enemies in a certain radius, and keeps freezing them. The Spazer combo shoots fast and wide, and cuts through enemies. Each effect is amazingly done, and is absolutely beautiful. On top of the classic beams, Terminus has also added two secret ones: The Chroma Storm, and the Doom Cannon. The Chroma Storm is interesting in that it rapidly shoots small projectiles from each beam. As you hold down fire, it randomly cycles through your current collected beams. It's really neat. The Doom Cannon is basically a shotgun, and it's fucking powerful. It's super secret though, and can't be used unless you use a console command. Still, it's interesting to see Samus shooting bullets from her Arm Cannon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">All of the expansions are here. You can find missile expansions, super missile expansions, and even Energy Tanks. It's so fucking good... I can't stress it enough.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Oh wait, yes I can, because I'm forgetting to mention something... This is on Zandronum. That means you can play this in multiplayer, up to a fucking <i>legendary</i> 64 player deathmatch. Currently, there are only three measly maps for deathmatch, but this is the way to do Metroid multiplayer. I really can't describe it in words; It has to be experienced.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">So you might be asking, is there ANY downside to this fantastic WAD? Unfortunately yes... Terminus is no longer developing it. I've done some <i>serious</i> Google searches for levels made for this WAD, and there is NOTHING. It's so heartbreaking... this would shine in single player. Doom has support for hub based levels, and this WAD could benefit from something like that. It could really become a great total conversion if enough people got on the ball and started making levels for this. I would love to see actual Metroid enemies added, and more abilities added. Everything else works flawlessly, so I could only imagine what Terminus could do with say, the Screw Attack!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">This WAD is fun in Doom, but gets boring quick without a dedicated level set. The closest you can really get to the Metroid experience with this WAD, is to pair it with TeamTNT's Daedalus WAD. They work quite well together surprisingly, despite the lack of Metroid-type enemies.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">But hey... what can you do?</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjonkD0vZvkMS56BtLZmNH1amq3doFpsWC3TLzdGkxF1VZNBOichFeJYkuQuqF4uAV2B4f_nHgFk0CzujLQ7YZgepCu7P2LaIaRomzGKcGIdQgHJ9R34LpSqRR7Ly2fFrlCsUSJ2DBWs17k/s1600/metroid_samus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjonkD0vZvkMS56BtLZmNH1amq3doFpsWC3TLzdGkxF1VZNBOichFeJYkuQuqF4uAV2B4f_nHgFk0CzujLQ7YZgepCu7P2LaIaRomzGKcGIdQgHJ9R34LpSqRR7Ly2fFrlCsUSJ2DBWs17k/s400/metroid_samus.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nothing...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Wait, what am I talking about? YOU CAN DO SOMETHING. You can make some levels for this magnificent bastard! I will really actually pay you to do it! Maybe! Probably not, but someone should do it! It is too good to NOT happen. I know it's an old game, but come on! FUCKING DO IT.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Now I am fully aware that there is a Metroid Prime mod for Halo on PC, but it's strictly multiplayer. This WAD has potential to be something great. Something that would rival Nintendo's efforts. I'm fucking serious. This could be right up there with Super Metroid. IT'S THAT GOOD.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">You really need to find out for yourself! Download it <a href="http://www.moddb.com/mods/metroid-dreadnought" target="_blank">here at ModDB</a>. If you like it, try pairing it with <a href="http://www.teamtnt.com/doom2000/" target="_blank">TeamTNT's Daedalus</a>. Wanna play the deathmatch maps online? Get them <a href="http://www.best-ever.org/download?file=metroiddreadnought-levels-v1.pk3" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Thank you Terminus. I love you.</span></div>
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R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-1550229597191255192014-12-01T23:18:00.002-06:002015-11-13T17:53:18.536-06:00Mercenary Kings ReviewContinuing on the update train. Over the summer and up til now, I've been apart of a YouTube channel that debuted called WinLoseTie. The updates have come twice a week, and our first major playthrough has been a Randomized race of Pokemon FireRed. We plan to add more randomization to each race we do in the Pokemon series, so by the time we hit Gen V, things are going to be wonky.<br />
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In addition to that, I've had my own Twitch.tv channel. Over there, I spend time playing games like Doom, Hearthstone, Just Cause 2, Diablo 2, and a few other games, including practicing speed running Pokemon Red.<br />
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Streaming is an interesting experience. I never get (m)any viewers, but it's always a joy to have someone in the chat to converse with. <br />
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A quick "programming" note. For my personal writing, I'm going to try something new. If you see an image or video embedded in the post, they'll be my own content, open sourced, or properly sourced (like the sprites from my Doom post). I'll grab my own screen shots, and my own videos. Granted, this may go up in smoke in a matter of posts, but it's an experiment I'm interested in trying.<br />
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<br />
Onto the task at hand. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Game</span><br />
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Platforms - PC/Mac/PS4 (PC Played)<br />
Developer - Tribute Games<br />
Genre(s) - 2D Shooter/Platformer<br />
Players - 1 - 4 Local and Online Co-Op<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Elevator Pitch</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span> "Picture 2D gameplay inspired by Contra mixed with the crazy guns of Borderlands."<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Gameplay</span><br />
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</span> So, we got the basics of the game down, let's flesh it out a bit. I feel the Contra comparison is apt in terms of how the game plays, but not quite how the game feels, and that might come down to level design. In Mercenary Kings, you may revisit the same levels over and over (and over and over), but each time the objectives will change. The primary levels include a Jungle, War Torn City, Power Plant, Chemical Plant, and an ancient Temple. There are a few variants for some of these (I know there are two different Jungles, and Power Plant-like maps, for example), which can help keep some of the monotony at bay. Continuing along the lines of "different from Contra", you don't find guns in capsules or as random drops. Instead, you use materials you find throughout the levels to craft your weapons. You don't just build the weapons whole either, oh no. You make monstrous creations of different parts to craft the gun that suits your desires.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgJHpHcfbxafXqe8Anm2kplAVpbOnPI4tpiNt1E-lWoyNBvm7Yhike9SCVrdKXnj9JxtMXX_QKg483W8zfmhDhZdiGwsEHwbOSrBPnU9IDexXBhWFV14JTokLkAZeEm_3wDsMXL5W4Fc_K/s1600/Merc+Kings+Gun.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgJHpHcfbxafXqe8Anm2kplAVpbOnPI4tpiNt1E-lWoyNBvm7Yhike9SCVrdKXnj9JxtMXX_QKg483W8zfmhDhZdiGwsEHwbOSrBPnU9IDexXBhWFV14JTokLkAZeEm_3wDsMXL5W4Fc_K/s1600/Merc+Kings+Gun.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Late Game Character With Lots of Parts</i></span></div><br />
So, what are we looking at here? Well, it's my pistol Sniper with a Machine Gun stock. You have a lot of stats to consider when building your gun, as changing something as simple as your magazine can affect more than your capacity and reload speed. Some guns don't play nice with other parts, and as a general rule, the more bullets you carry, the less damage you do per shot. The main gun stats here are<br />
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POW - Power - Determined by Receiver (type of gun you're using), Barrel, Magazine, and Ammo<br />
RNG - Your Range. Primarily Dictated by Barrel type<br />
SPD - How many Rounds Per Second you fire. A line of "--" means semi-automatic.<br />
RLD - How long it takes to reload, if you don't try for the reload timer (more on that later).<br />
CAP - Capacity, how many rounds you can fire before reloading.<br />
ACC - Accuracy. 100% means you fire in a straight line, lower accuracy has more spread.<br />
WT - Weight. Determines your movement speed.<br />
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That's just the base stats. As you can see, there's two more stat blocks we need to talk about. First though, I want to expand on the Reload Timer.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpRzLon-nCRTkD199DXZuxizBD_IQgpCDBXkxn5K_F3YT1Jl_l26LD69WSK3cRiwqWvFdWlKwtRmxKtWkdAkRxhqepFeQoOkLx4JOpwO9vG7TlDAJa0dFVGQaHTOSSrj80in7-gevmgMDu/s1600/merc+Kings+reload.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpRzLon-nCRTkD199DXZuxizBD_IQgpCDBXkxn5K_F3YT1Jl_l26LD69WSK3cRiwqWvFdWlKwtRmxKtWkdAkRxhqepFeQoOkLx4JOpwO9vG7TlDAJa0dFVGQaHTOSSrj80in7-gevmgMDu/s1600/merc+Kings+reload.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Early Game Character with poor Reload Speed.</i></span></div><br />
Your reload time is how long it takes for the needle to travel the length of the whole bar. If you have say a 6 second reload gun, that can take forever. See those two colored zones though? If you hit the reload button again in the yellow space, you reload right then, instead of waiting the remainder of the timer. If you can hit it in the green though, not only do you reload now, but some of your next shots will be powered up, dealing more damage. This is incredibly useful for reloading long reload speed guns, because you can avoid having to wait without your weapon. If you hit the reload button at any other point in the bar though, you effectively jam your gun. This means you can't fire your firearm for roughly twice the length of your normal reload time. <br />
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Back to the top image, looking at the second box on the left, we have our elemental damage. Going clockwise from top left, we have Incendiary, Cryogenic, Electric, and Caustic. Elemental damage is done on top of your base damage of the weapon, so my gun above does, roughly, 65 Cryogenic damage on a shot. Breaking down the elements quickly looks like this...<br />
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Incendiary - Strong against human/plant enemies.<br />
Cryogenic - Has a chance to freeze enemies solid for a few seconds.<br />
Electric - Good against robotics.<br />
Caustic - Good against enemies with heavy armor (my favorite element).<br />
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Caustic can allow you to deal damage to non-boss enemies who have shields, or other invulnerable states. There are basic troops that carry a riot shield, so they reflect most bullets. Caustic though, deals however much Caustic Damage your weapon deals, so you can deal a sort of chip damage to him. Caustic has a secondary effect though: it can dissolve those shields, which makes the dude panic, and fire six shots in a row, and then reload for awhile. When I first found this out, I laughted to myself, because it was such a neat touch. <br />
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The final box on the left is the really interesting one. These are your weapon's ammo proficiency. Get your weapon up to 100% in an ammo type, and you can equip it. So, now for the ammo type breakdowns, starting from the top left, going clockwise...<br />
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Armor Piercing - Travels through walls and enemies.<br />
Magnum (What I call it) - Larger rounds and deals more damage.<br />
Spread - Shotgun ammo.<br />
Missiles - Missiles with a homing property, no explosions on contact.<br />
Shrapnel - Projectile that when it hits an enemy, wall, floor, or ceiling explodes into tiny shrapnel that travels in 8 directions.<br />
Ball - Ammo that travels in an arc, and bounces upon contact with walls and floors.<br />
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During first few ranks of the game, you'll be mainly using default ammo with maybe different elemental properties, an ammo type that all weapons can use, but once you get about 2/3 through the game, you'll start to see ammo that combines two ammo types to make some hilarious combinations. For example, the weapon in the first picture has Shrapnel/Ball ice ammo. It travels, hits the wall or enemy, then shoots off 8 bouncing balls that can deal extra damage (both regular and ice) in addition to the impact damage. One weapon I built uses what are called Sniper Missiles, missiles that have the Armor Piercing property. Oh, and it was fired out of a machine gun. So I was rapidly firing missiles that would find enemies through walls with a light homing capability. Accuracy was truly overrated. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSBZhWKE1kZw8jRrfYJr2kh-S3t9Fm1LVIfS_8M5dvR1cQi4ae54AVLpb0mhoodmjuNaUcIdeLROba91JSikbOW5xRv4EfNHMsUq9Wca07yJH9CpecWnkZaqGPQeWog6tk4GG-UE69lCiQ/s1600/Merc+Kings+Shrapnel+Ball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSBZhWKE1kZw8jRrfYJr2kh-S3t9Fm1LVIfS_8M5dvR1cQi4ae54AVLpb0mhoodmjuNaUcIdeLROba91JSikbOW5xRv4EfNHMsUq9Wca07yJH9CpecWnkZaqGPQeWog6tk4GG-UE69lCiQ/s1600/Merc+Kings+Shrapnel+Ball.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Shrapnel Ball Ammo Bouncing Around.</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If it feels like I spent too much time talking about the weapons, well, that's kind of the main draw of the game. You spend a good portion of the game busting open item chests, picking up spoils, and taking on extra, hidden objectives on missions in order to earn more supplies to craft your weapons and armor (increases your health). Late game can get repetitive because you need to fight bosses repeatedly to get the items you need. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Repetition is a factor with this game. You will be seeing the same level repeatedly, and you will be fighting pallet swap enemies. This includes some of the bosses as well. There is the Steel Soldier, which is a big walking knife/sword robot that's only vulnerable when you dodge his attacks or from behind, and 4 variants of him for starters (one for each element). This goes on for quite a lot of the bosses actually. The only really unique bossfights are the Violence Kings (Two sword fighters that work in tandem), the three different dog bosses (I'm drawing a blank on all of their names), and the Final Boss. If enemy variety is something you crave from your games, you may want to pass this one over, unless the other factors draw you in.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Aesthetic</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The art style is very reminescant of the Scott Pilgrim vs The World game, which may be due to the fact that the same team worked on both games. I enjoy the almost caricature style portraits and sprites. I'm a huge fan of aesthetics over fidelity, and this game has a style that I really dig. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Music-wise, we get some chiptune styled tracks that vary from merely OK to pretty-toe-tappin'. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/yPZ9ZY0oyIU?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Props to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDZn08MsxwLEVE2i69l9zWg/videos">jhparktc</a> for the upload.</i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>
</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">That's more-or-less what you're going to get from the game audio wise. </div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Sorry, what can I say, I'm not great when it comes to talking about graphics and music unless I absolutely love or hate them. </div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Conclusion</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">I've enjoyed the game, as is apparent 40 hours I've put into it. It's a fun little romp that's great with friends, but awfully grindy. It's a fun enough game where you can turn off your brain and gun through things, and then experiment for 25 minutes on different gun combinations. It's got a $20 price point, which some may think is too high for an indie game. Personally, I feel like I've gotten good value from it, but I can understand how some would rather be more frugal. </div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Get it here: <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/218820/">Steam</a> - <a href="https://store.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/#!/en-us/games/mercenary-kings/cid=UP2114-CUSA00324_00-0000000000000001?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pscom&utm_campaign=pscom-UP2114-CUSA00324_00-0000000000000001&smcid=ps:mercenary-kings-ps4:up2114-cusa00324_00-0000000000000001:ps-ps4-games-mercenary-kings-ps4.html">Playstation Store</a></div>Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-38841881062577064752014-10-27T01:46:00.004-05:002014-10-27T01:46:57.862-05:00"Ada! Wait!"The year is 1998. Fans are eagerly awaiting for the sequel to Resident Evil. Capcom held fans at bay with Resident Evil: Director's Cut, which offered new modes, new costumes, music, and a mostly uncensored intro sequence while Resident Evil 2 was nearing completion. Hopes were incredibly high, especially after screenshots were released, showing a more modern, urban setting. Zombies were now in the streets of Raccoon City, and more dangerous than ever.<br />
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Yeah... until it got scrapped.<br />
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Resident Evil 2 was almost ready to hit shelves, when Capcom said, "Fuck this game. This is garbage, and this isn't what we wanted. Let's fucking re-do the <i>whole thing.</i>" And they did. In less than a year, Capcom completely overhauled Resident Evil 2 into something spectacular.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLW3jTmVVdEQEkF-Y3eijpk2su49AsCfxT7SGlBXbj6qppoolJDd3IdH3N5rYGCJZZWoRgqs86tcmmbYxXg7OqS4aJCAfb08X2_lZ6PbcvOMk_oE49EwzX58YOJHDTGWcKo_0EydmWAhCV/s1600/resident-evil-2-title-screen.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLW3jTmVVdEQEkF-Y3eijpk2su49AsCfxT7SGlBXbj6qppoolJDd3IdH3N5rYGCJZZWoRgqs86tcmmbYxXg7OqS4aJCAfb08X2_lZ6PbcvOMk_oE49EwzX58YOJHDTGWcKo_0EydmWAhCV/s1600/resident-evil-2-title-screen.png" height="192" width="400" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Resident Evil 2 - PlayStation/Nintendo 64 - 1998 - Not Just Another Zombie Game!</b></div>
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Resident Evil 2 is so fucking good, that fans have been hounding Capcom to remake it in HD, like the Gamecube release of Resident Evil. It's no wonder why either! Resident Evil 2 not only boasted higher production values in every single department, it absolutely eclipsed the original is every single fucking category. </div>
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Well, mostly. The voice acting is still sub-par, but it's much better than the original. The story this time around is much better as well, introducing us to some memorable characters like Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield, sister to Chris Redfield from the first game. Umbrella is shown in a much more sinister way this time around, and have much more involvement in the events that unfold. They're still up to no good, but now they've infected the entire city with the new G-Virus. Talk about going from bad to fucking bat shit crazy. It wouldn't be as bad if they, you know, didn't own <i>everything</i>. Think of Umbrella as the Wal-Mart of the gaming world. You go to them for literally everything; medicines, clothing, even the fucking bullets you'll be blasting zombies with.</div>
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What sets this apart from its predecessor is the Hollywood production. Resident Evil 2 feels more like a big budget movie. There's a lot of action, a lot of drama, and a lot of fuckery going on. The set pieces are great, and the game moves at a rapid pace. A lot of things happen in Resident Evil 2, and they're all pretty important and make Raccoon City feel like a real place, and THAT is scary. Could you imagine an outbreak like that happening in the U.S.? A real one I mean... not this Ebola shit.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjASgLJsPo2zXK7QMYQnUIdykeHrhSvjECbTxee3nqo9YFVo_Gww9RDOSa04edhTjPSxtXRC7CUaggl002ZlBpKfuyXYbnT-v2hApg197GFSqWUYJSInF0jLdzY_FMBE0fNx8Xvz_I8kjfR/s1600/image.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjASgLJsPo2zXK7QMYQnUIdykeHrhSvjECbTxee3nqo9YFVo_Gww9RDOSa04edhTjPSxtXRC7CUaggl002ZlBpKfuyXYbnT-v2hApg197GFSqWUYJSInF0jLdzY_FMBE0fNx8Xvz_I8kjfR/s1600/image.png" height="278" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Did you know there's a cure now? That's a whole other argument though...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Right then... let's get to the cast:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKINp2m84rOZYKvNl60rB4YbxjUAMKw-1mdIKyBgf_nf-7nOZJhcrQ3GAYgijfMTag9MXwsmE5WqRDeZDLInPhg9J5BLap1GvHl9_uFW-voLKqjfa9AWiuHSzBPqybq_whdGXXGTCchD8C/s1600/re2leon_vidcap1_lg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKINp2m84rOZYKvNl60rB4YbxjUAMKw-1mdIKyBgf_nf-7nOZJhcrQ3GAYgijfMTag9MXwsmE5WqRDeZDLInPhg9J5BLap1GvHl9_uFW-voLKqjfa9AWiuHSzBPqybq_whdGXXGTCchD8C/s1600/re2leon_vidcap1_lg.jpg" height="124" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b>Leon S. Kennedy - "ADA! FUCKING WAIT!!!"</b></div>
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Leon is rather unlucky. He had to show up for an outbreak on his first day on the job. Poor guy probably didn't even get to eat his first donut yet. He's quite the badass though... taking bullets for bitches and shit...<b> </b></div>
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<b>Claire Redfield - The best step mom ever.</b></div>
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Oh Claire... I wonder if Chris played a prank on you since, you know, he's not in a city infested with zombies. Claire takes care of business. I bet she's great in bed too. She seems to connect with Sherry.</div>
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<b>Sherry Birkin - Her parents fucking suck.</b></div>
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Poor Sherry. Her father created the G-Virus and turned everyone into monsters, and her mother is too preoccupied with shooting people, looking for William, and dying. Someone call Child Protective Services. Despite all the chaos, Sherry is quite brave. She also has the G-Virus sample everyone is after, and doesn't even know it. Ba-zinga!</div>
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<b>William Birkin - THE MAN WHO SEES ALL.</b></div>
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That's a terrible joke. The creator of the G-Virus, and overall dipshit. After being shot to near death, he injects himself with the G-Virus, and tries to kill everyone. If only he didn't knock that container over...<b> </b></div>
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<b>Annette Birkin - Not so devoted mother.</b></div>
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For real. She cares more about William than she does Sherry. William is a fucking monster now. Get your shit together, you have a daughter to protect. She makes things really hard for everyone along the way<b>. </b>She's just a huge bitch in general.</div>
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<b>Ada Wong - The best fake death you've ever seen.</b></div>
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If you go with the canon, she dies a horrific death. If you don't, she still dies a horrific death. How the fuck she lived to see Resident Evil 4 is beyond me. She falls in love with Leon, or maybe that's just another trick. Women are good at that one.</div>
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<b> Brian Irons - Crooked cop extraordinaire.</b></div>
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The chief of the Raccoon Police Department, who's in cahoots with Umbrella. Pretty sinister guy he is, until William plants an embryo inside him and it escapes in the goriest way possible. Guess you get what you deserve, dick.</div>
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<b>Ben - The pen is extremely inferior to the sword.</b></div>
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Ben is a reporter, who finds out about Umbrella's secrets and is on his way to expose them. You know, until the whole city decides to be turned into zombies. He hides in a jail cell because that's always fucking safe right? Suffers the same fate as Irons.</div>
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<b>Kendo Gun Shop Owner - "I ain't got no clue darlin!"</b></div>
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Is it ironic that the owner of a gun shop doesn't kill a single fucking zombie? He doesn't know why the city is infested with zombies, and apparently can't see them breaking through the front window. He leaves a shotgun behind for Leon, or the pathetic bow gun for Claire.</div>
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<b>Marvin - WITNESS MY TRUE FORM!</b></div>
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Marvin gives us our first keycard of the game, and then turns into a zombie right in front of your face. Blow his head off. He seemed like a cool guy too...<b> </b></div>
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<b> Hunk - The 4th Survivor</b></div>
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Somehow survives William's fury in the sewers. He's there to take the G-Virus back to Umbrella. He's playable through a bonus scenario, and it's fucking <i>hard.</i></div>
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<b>Truck Driver - "GUY'S A MANIAC! WHY'D HE BITE ME?!"</b></div>
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Apparently doesn't recognize a crazed zombie in front of his face. Gets bitten, turns into a zombie, crashes his truck, and separates Claire and Leon. That bastard.</div>
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As you can see, Resident Evil 2 has quite the colorful cast. My favorite is Leon, because like Barry Burton in the first game, he has a certain stupid charm. He's overly serious, and for the right reasons. I mean, there's only a viral outbreak going on after all. He tells Ada to wait so many times that it borders on hilarity. She probably faked her death to get away from him.</div>
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Just like the first game, we also have our selection of targets to shoot up:</div>
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<b>Zombies - A household name!</b></div>
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Still deadly, but more common place. At this point it would be <i>weird</i> to not have zombies in the world. They still love flesh, and they're still dead.</div>
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<b> Zombie Dogs - All bark and no bite.</b></div>
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There's like 6 dogs in the game. Still a pain in the ass, but easily out ran. Someone fill the dog dish up and spare the humans for Christ's sake.</div>
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<b> Lickers - One hell of an ice cream eater.</b></div>
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Boasting quite a large tongue, these fuckers are deadly. Thought the Hunters from the first game were hard? These things mutate later on in the game, and get <i>much</i> stronger. They can lob your head off with one strike as well.<b> </b>Could probably eat a lollipop like a champ.</div>
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<b>B.O.W.s - Not your average crop killer.</b></div>
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Seen later in the game, these guys like to spit poison and slap you around with their tentacles. Like any plant though, they don't stand a chance against flames. Light em up with flame rounds, or pop em with the magnum. Or go for the can of Raid.</div>
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<b> William Offspring Monster - Because what else can you call it?</b></div>
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Started as an embryo, and ended up as a hulking monster. Likes to puke up baby offspring monsters that crawl on you.</div>
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<b> Giant Alligator - Nuff said.</b></div>
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How this thing lives in the raccoon city sewers is beyond me... Can eat the player whole if you're not careful. He loves to eat canisters, so shoot it when he gobbles it down and his head will turn to mush.<b> </b></div>
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<b> Mr. X - Tyrant in a fucking trench coat.</b></div>
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Remember the Tyrant you killed in the first game? Yeah, Umbrella made a few more and sent them after you. These guys are strong. Thank God you only have to face one of them. Sports TWO giant mutated claws at the end, and is MUCH faster than the first Tyrant. He still hates rocket launchers though.</div>
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Resident Evil 2 is vastly different from the first game in numerous ways. The best change is the scenario system. For example, if you beat the game with Leon, you can load it up after and play Claire's B scenario. The events of the game unfold in a totally different way. This led fans to figure out which pair of scenarios are canon, and as it turns out, Leon B and Claire A are the canon scenarios. Either way you go though, the game is quite entertaining. You're still solving absurd puzzles and killing monsters. There's a lot of dramatic scenes, and a lot of intense action sequences.</div>
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One of the other awesome additions are the weapons. Like the first game, Claire and Leon both get their own weapons to use, with slightly better results. Leon can collect custom parts to upgrade his shotgun and magnum, while Claire has the grenade launcher with 3 different ammo types to use, each being more effective depending on the type of enemy. B.O.W.s are weak against flame, while zombies and lickers are weak against acid type rounds. Leon's weapons get insanely powerful, and this time around, ammo is much more plentiful. You can live off the magnum near the end of the game, and you can use the shotty as soon as you get it. The pistol becomes useless after getting it. Claire isn't so lucky however. Sure she gets the grenade launcher, and you'll be using it the whole game pretty much, but her alternative is the shitty bow gun. It shoots in a spread pattern, does pitiful damage, and the ammo is fucking scarce. Claire can get the submachine gun, and the spark gun, but both are very limited in use, and subtract points from your overall rank.</div>
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Yes, the ranking system is back, and it's even more strict. If you want an A rank, you better avoid the submachine gun AND the spark gun. This makes Claire's scenarios kind of shallow, since Leon can upgrade both of his better weapons without penalty, but that just means Claire's scenarios are <i>much</i> harder to complete. Not that the game is very hard, seeing as how it throws ludicrous amounts of healing herbs at you, but you still get penalized for healing too much.</div>
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The graphics this time around are a touch better. The presentation is slick, and the FMVs are awesome, especially <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBsbUIAtZvw" target="_blank">this one</a>. The voice acting is much better, but is still laughable at times, namely Leon's interactions with Ada. He's such a ham. The soundtrack is also famous in its own right. It's excellent, and filled with hauntingly catchy tunes. The save room music is enough to get you into it. Then there's <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4y0vIg7AQ6Y" target="_blank">Ada's Theme</a>. It's absolutely beautiful. It fits so perfectly with Ada and Leon's relationship in the game.</div>
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Along with the scenario system, you also get two bonus scenarios you can unlock. There's The 4th Survivor, which shows Hunk's side after retrieving the G-Virus. It's fucking hard as shit to complete, due to having no items to pick up. What he has in his inventory is what you get. It's fun, but goddamn is it hard. However, it has nothing on the Tofu scenario.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIoXVF9QKNlhM6gsbKU7iKHQIh_RpO8pxZoAR_K9Hn0Bnr1MXaFAJLiQPMsmEEGls1ZGRwfsvseZ0MMT2Magd9NyD4nTxGuuuAVT-mh__3IWqHTXZE1taf5bRx5LcZo8JSBKHOPgPixS3s/s1600/E2_tofu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIoXVF9QKNlhM6gsbKU7iKHQIh_RpO8pxZoAR_K9Hn0Bnr1MXaFAJLiQPMsmEEGls1ZGRwfsvseZ0MMT2Magd9NyD4nTxGuuuAVT-mh__3IWqHTXZE1taf5bRx5LcZo8JSBKHOPgPixS3s/s1600/E2_tofu.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Silly? Yes. Hard? You bet your fucking ass it is.</td></tr>
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Tofu is a concept character Capcom created to test hitboxes in Resident Evil 2. But did they leave him out of the game? Nooooooooooooooo.... He's playable after you beat each scenario 3 times. Why is Tofu's scenario so hard? He doesn't get anything. He doesn't get a single healing item. He doesn't even start off with a fucking <i>gun</i>. He gets the knife, and <i>that's it</i>. It's the ultimate challenge for players, and it doesn't get any harder than this. If you can beat this you deserve a fucking medal.</div>
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On top of those two modes, if you're playing the Dual Shock version, you can also unlock Extreme Battle mode. Jesus how many fucking extras did they cram into this game? It's a cool mode though. Various locales from the game act as levels, and you just have to survive. Ada, and even Chris Redfield is playable in this mode. Chris is cool because he sports his outfit from the first game, and even the same weapons. However, he's the hardest person to use due to his low damage tolerance. It's still a really cool extra though.</div>
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All in all, Resident Evil 2 is the ultimate package. Not only is the story excellent AND with great pacing, but all the features it added, the soundtrack, the better graphics... it's just gaming at its finest. The replay value this game offers is incredible, so you won't be bored anytime soon with it. It's so shocking too. I wonder how the scrapped project would have been if it had actually been finished and released. Apparently, copies of it exist on the internet, and can be played with an emulator, but I haven't tried it myself. Maybe one day I'll try it. For now, anyone who is a fan of the RE series and hasn't played this... FUCKING PLAY IT. It's great. It's fantastic. It's so good that fans are <a href="http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2014-04-24-resident-evil-2-fan-creates-re4-style-remake" target="_blank">remaking it ON THEIR OWN</a>.</div>
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And now, without further adieu, I leave you with this:</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/QQw5Sep9e24?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Next post, I look at Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, and we discuss one of the most menacing enemies ever made! Stay tuned!</div>
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R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-85833610360792443092014-10-24T01:07:00.003-05:002014-10-24T01:07:56.631-05:00"I hope this is not Chris' blood!"Welcome! I've been wanting to open up with that quote for sooooo long. It's perfect for this post. Halloween is right around the corner, and gaming has been good to us over the years, blessing us with some great horror games that we've all come to love.<br />
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If you haven't figured it out yet, we're going to be talking about one of my favorite gaming series ever. EVER. still don't know what I'm talking about?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSfSvBPYwoV5r6Od5kKVjFWfRRUzlnEk5flrAK0bxw3vHQcThhLnN5EcoJp4rkrMprAKojlksR8K59abpsmfHf7H-aLLfrs1321D8-KZe14r7i5HeHxSr1PDjtf9UkRLMeeGHGr2b7RBDs/s1600/1895216-tumblr_ln3tyzphpt1qle3dmo1_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSfSvBPYwoV5r6Od5kKVjFWfRRUzlnEk5flrAK0bxw3vHQcThhLnN5EcoJp4rkrMprAKojlksR8K59abpsmfHf7H-aLLfrs1321D8-KZe14r7i5HeHxSr1PDjtf9UkRLMeeGHGr2b7RBDs/s1600/1895216-tumblr_ln3tyzphpt1qle3dmo1_400.jpg" height="148" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">"Just a moment! Just take, a look, at <i>this</i>!"</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">That's Barry there... he's going to be helping me through
this. We're going to talk about one of the best series in the survival
horror genre. It paved the way for Silent Hill and other survival horror games, and it did it in an incredibly cheesy way. </span></div>
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Resident Evil is one of the most famous franchises ever made. Not only are there tons of games on multiple platforms, there's movies, action figures.... you name it. I actually used to have a S.T.A.R.S airsoft pistol, which looked exactly like the Beretta from RE3. Resident Evil is <i>huge</i> today, and not just here in the states. I really wanted to talk about the first three games for a while, because they are my favorite, and were made when Capcom wasn't entirely set on milking it for money. Without further adieu, let's tackle the first game in the series.</div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Resident Evil (Director's Cut) - A.K.A., the game with hilarious voice acting</b>!</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">"What?! What is this?"</span></b></div>
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Indeed Barry, what is this? It's only the first installment of the entire series! Released in 1996 on the ancient Play-Station, it was one of the first games of its kind. While Alone In The Dark came first, Resident Evil came along and did it much better, and offered gamers one of the best horror experiences.</div>
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Save for the voice acting, which was heavily criticized at the time of its release. It's funny though, because these days the voice acting is held in high regard, specifically for how terrible it is, and the dialogue is quoted left and right in various jokes and on various forums. Hell, I've already quoted Barry twice, making him the obvious winner of the Shittiest Dialogue award. It's so unbelievably bad that it's <i>funny</i>. I blame it on the budget this game had at the time. I'm going by the FMV sequences to base this. The costumes the actors wear are something out of a high school play or shitty B movie. The whole GAME feels like a B movie. However, at the time of its release, I doubt anybody cared after actually playing the game.</div>
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For one, the game makes use of some classic horror settings, and does it really well. You'll be exploring an empty mansion (or is it?!!) for most of the game, and it's fucking creepy. The graphics are crude today, but at the time they were amazing. Using static camera angles, the game does its best to instill fear in you. The mansion is believable, and really gives off a certain atmosphere. It's the classic haunted house type after all! Hearing zombies creeping closer, or seeing them at the end of corridors is unnerving as all hell. The sound design is great. You'll hear zombies groaning faintly in the distance. Hunters screech loud, and every chomp a zombie takes is heard. The weapons sound like they should, and ambient sounds like a clock ticking in the background, or the music itself, create a very satisfying atmosphere. </div>
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Unfortunately, you'll be dodging a lot of zombies. Ammo is scarce, hence the term <i>survival horror</i>. It's just you and your pistol (or knife) for a long time. The game does have other weapons you can acquire, but the ammo is even more scarce. This requires players to run away sometimes, instead of blasting everything you see. It adds to the tension this game creates. When you have 5 bullets left and you <i>know</i> there's a monster around the corner, you're going to start panicking. Who wouldn't?</div>
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Let's introduce the characters:</div>
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<b>Chris Redfield - Resident dipshit.</b></div>
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Chris is one of the playable characters, and he's right up there with Barry with stupid quotes. Don't let that mug fool you... he's pretty damn dense. He can't read music, and he can't do basic chemistry. His IQ is probably lower than 100.</div>
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<b> Jill Valentine - The fucking master of unlocking.</b></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
Jill is awesome. She starts with the Beretta for one thing, and she gets the lockpick immediately after. Her side of the story is much more interesting with crazy Barry, and she can read music and mix chemicals. Ignore this derp face... she got pretty good looking later on, especially in the Apocalypse movie. God damn!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3r56WFMlh8To7WXAXf76RYl8jEq8VaTBCyVks6Wqa090zosEoVmSdWcLHwvxhMR7114WVPVKUO-HElFLg8HP4cT3zSqlZUF54OwMBD8Ro5Fy0xoq9FfKTe7mQkCY_wKH7klAxZ9FTPfsm/s1600/1895216-tumblr_ln3tyzphpt1qle3dmo1_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3r56WFMlh8To7WXAXf76RYl8jEq8VaTBCyVks6Wqa090zosEoVmSdWcLHwvxhMR7114WVPVKUO-HElFLg8HP4cT3zSqlZUF54OwMBD8Ro5Fy0xoq9FfKTe7mQkCY_wKH7klAxZ9FTPfsm/s1600/1895216-tumblr_ln3tyzphpt1qle3dmo1_400.jpg" height="148" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b>Barry Motherfucking Burton - "I have <i>this!</i>"</b></div>
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Barry is the man. Full of fucking terrible quotes, but all hilarious. Even in his simplest dialogue, he will warrant a chuckle or two. He also gets an award for stating the fucking obvious: "It's a weapon! It's <i>really powerful!</i> Especially against living things!"</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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Yeah... thanks for the clarification you old bastard you...</div>
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<b>Rebecca Chambers</b> <b>- Resident pain in the ass.</b></div>
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Rebecca is utterly useless. She only appears in Chris' scenario to help play music for him, and start the self-destruct sequence. She gets in the way and has to be saved to get the best ending, because medics can't protect themselves apparently. Her voice is fucking annoying too.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIKOXLm3WHVwWpJN1z8dBtURXRdUtMqPomnFqIvFzp_9Xk5v6YWBGV3IFUQyGY_WIaunA21IVaCTZFwIwAQQ1q7eV92EtQmHqYPsIopv7IXvYq7orOKoxxfKtvYcJ8FWa5F7dHFWpzlbLA/s1600/Albert_Wesker_Intro_Resident_Evil_1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIKOXLm3WHVwWpJN1z8dBtURXRdUtMqPomnFqIvFzp_9Xk5v6YWBGV3IFUQyGY_WIaunA21IVaCTZFwIwAQQ1q7eV92EtQmHqYPsIopv7IXvYq7orOKoxxfKtvYcJ8FWa5F7dHFWpzlbLA/s1600/Albert_Wesker_Intro_Resident_Evil_1.jpeg" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b> Albert Wesker - Resident BADASS TRAITOR.</b></div>
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Wesker is the captain of the S.T.A.R.S. team. He's an all around character. His voice actor is horrible, he has humorous quotes, and he's secretly working for Umbrella, which is painfully obvious from the get go. He has cool sunglasses, and slicked hair. He's too cool for S.T.A.R.S.</div>
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<b>Joseph - "JOOOOOSSEEPPPPPPPPHHHH!!!!"</b></div>
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You literally see him for a minute until dogs eat him alive. He obviously skipped training.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> Kenneth - The dude with no head.</b></div>
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Quite literally. He's the first corpse you happen upon. His only purpose is to introduce the first zombie, and to give you two clips for your trusty Beretta.</div>
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<b>Forest - A.K.A. crow food.</b></div>
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Forest is having a bad day. He's been pecked to death by crows, which is extremely convenient since he leaves behind a bazooka.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> Richard - "TERRIBLE DEMONS."</b></div>
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Richard is great. He gives you a radio, he leaves ammo, and he warns you about a giant snake. His voice actor is incredibly bad, so it's a great thing he dies so quick.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b> Enrico - "Traitor!!!"</b></div>
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Yeah, that's all Enrico is. He tells you there's a traitor among the S.T.A.R.S. members, which by this point in the game, you know already. Thanks anyway.<b> </b></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Resident Evil also has quite the variety of baddies to kill, or be killed by:</span></div>
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<b>Mr. Zombie - Generic, but still dangerous.</b></div>
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Zombies are everywhere in Resident Evil. They're the main focal point of the entire series. You've seen these guys before. Interests include human flesh, dimly lit hallways, and scaring the shit out of people. They hate anything that can't be eaten, except for bullets of course.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> Zombie Dogs - This ain't Old Yeller.</b></div>
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Damn straight. Fast and powerful. Out run them or stand over them and shoot them dead. I doubt milk bones work against them.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> Crows - Threat undetected.</b></div>
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For real. Don't worry about these guys. They do minimal damage, can be out run, and don't deserve a taste of your knife, let alone your precious bullets.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqMiSD-YJCUqvE66u3qEmMOSyB3KYrZHHwZNoZTh0G5Om7vswkGsW9gSP4ci3Q4RXckjJls5XmehIkBhxz3a5jrkTPN4yBKynHBzimx45LcF5S45kSZrcqh3BHEqZ49jo1qwq-2E5vg2Sm/s1600/resident-evil-1-dc-giant-spider1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqMiSD-YJCUqvE66u3qEmMOSyB3KYrZHHwZNoZTh0G5Om7vswkGsW9gSP4ci3Q4RXckjJls5XmehIkBhxz3a5jrkTPN4yBKynHBzimx45LcF5S45kSZrcqh3BHEqZ49jo1qwq-2E5vg2Sm/s1600/resident-evil-1-dc-giant-spider1.jpg" height="127" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b> Giant Spiders - Initiate arachnophobia.</b></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
Quite large, but still not quite deadly. Ignore them to live. Shoot them, and suffer the wrath of baby spiders that will drain your health down. Oh, and they can poison you.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> </b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b> Hunters - Fuck these guys.</b></div>
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Hunters are the deadliest enemy you will encounter in this game. Your Beretta is insanely weak against them, they have weird invincibility frames, and they can lob your head off any fucking time they want. There are a lot of them too. Run away from these fuckers.</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b> Chimera - Fuck these guys too.</b></div>
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Not as bad as hunters, but they are still just as deadly. They crawl on the ceiling and try to cut your head off. Just dodge em and run.</div>
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<b> Yawn Snake - Abssstthhholute trouble.</b></div>
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The first boss you encounter, and a hard motherfucker at that. He guards a crest you need, so fill him full of shotgun shells. Oh, and don't get bit. He's full of poison.<b> </b></div>
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<b> Plant 42 - Break out the weed wacker.</b></div>
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<b> </b>Shotguns work just as well.</div>
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<b>Even Bigger Spider - Protector of doors.</b></div>
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Guards a door to Umbrella's laboratory. Burn him to death with the flamethrower or blow him up with the bazooka. He's a chump.</div>
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<b>The Tyrant - The ultimate failure.</b></div>
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The last boss, and the hardest hitting. Tyrant sports a rather unpleasant mutated claw that he likes to swing at you.<b> </b>He takes a lot of damage and he's really fast. He doesn't care for rocket launchers much.</div>
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Okay, glad we established everybody.</div>
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Resident Evil doesn't have the greatest plot... it's one big conspiracy! Basically, the S.T.A.R.S. team is dispatched to the Arklay Mountains, just outside of Raccoon City, to investigate bizarre murders and occurrences in the Spencer Mansion. There's traitors, double agents, and major fuckery going down around these parts, and it's all thanks to Umbrella, the biggest corporation in America. Biological experiments that went wrong are now being unleashed, thanks to the T-Virus being spread. It's your job as Jill or that lunkhead Chris to figure it out and put a stop to it all!</div>
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The main focus is the gameplay. Resident Evil uses static camera angles, so your only option for movement is tank controls. That means holding up moves the character up no matter what, and left and right turn them in their respective directions. It feels like you're controlling a tank. Holding square runs, and you will use it the entire game. Walking is just too slow.</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">"Look out! He's insane!"</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">You might be. The mansion is intimidating with all its monsters, but thankfully you have an adequate arsenal to contend with. Holding R1 will ready your weapon, and pressing X after will shoot. It's slow, and you can only aim totally up, totally down, or totally straight. Resident Evil offers a nice balanced arsenal. You have the <b>Beretta</b>, which acts as your zombie and dog repellent. The <b>Shotgun</b> is your main weapon later in the game, and is quite effective against bosses, hunters, and spiders. Aiming up at zombies will let you blow their heads off, so that's a nice feature. The ammo is plentiful for it as well. Chris will get the <b>Colt Python</b> later on. It's a powerful magnum that Barry up there similarly uses. The ammo is extremely scarce for it, so its only recommended use is on Tyrant, a few hunters, and chimera if they give you a hard time. It kills everything in one shot, save for the bosses. Jill will get the <b>Bazooka</b> fairly early, and its the best weapon in the game. Not only does it pack a fucking wallop, it has <b>three </b>different ammo types: the flame rounds, acid rounds, and the regular old fashioned grenade rounds. Even if you have to fight Forest to get it, it's still better than backtracking and solving a puzzle to get Chris' Colt Python. Just the fact that you get it so early makes it better.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">On top of the weaponry, you also have a health meter and inventory to account for. The game can be saved by finding Ink Ribbons for typewriters. An EKG tracks your health in three states: Fine, Caution, and Danger! You can restore it by using first aid sprays or by using herbs. The herbs are neat because they can be combined to restore more health, and even cure poison effects. Besides watching your health, you have to keep track of your inventory, as it is severely limited! Playing as Chris grants only 6 inventory slots, while Jill gets 8. That means you need to manage what you collect. Thankfully, the game places save rooms all over that hold storage chests. These things are some how universally linked, so you can leave anything in one chest and it will appear in another. These are crucial to surviving. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Resident Evil is also notable for its puzzle based gameplay. Throughout the game, you'll be collecting keys to open doors, and items that either unlock areas, or allow you to get past a certain part. For example, to get out of the mansion, the player will need to find four crests by searching around and solving puzzles. A lot of items will be collected and used, sometimes more than once. Figuring these puzzles out is half the battle.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">The game keeps track of your efforts with a rank system. Depending on how fast you beat it, how many times you save and heal, and what conditions you meet, you can unlock secret costumes and weapons! And even if you get bored with the main scenario, there's the Arrange option in the Director's Cut edition. It puts every item in the game in totally different areas. With multiple endings, and two characters to play as, Resident Evil offers a lot of replay value.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3r56WFMlh8To7WXAXf76RYl8jEq8VaTBCyVks6Wqa090zosEoVmSdWcLHwvxhMR7114WVPVKUO-HElFLg8HP4cT3zSqlZUF54OwMBD8Ro5Fy0xoq9FfKTe7mQkCY_wKH7klAxZ9FTPfsm/s1600/1895216-tumblr_ln3tyzphpt1qle3dmo1_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3r56WFMlh8To7WXAXf76RYl8jEq8VaTBCyVks6Wqa090zosEoVmSdWcLHwvxhMR7114WVPVKUO-HElFLg8HP4cT3zSqlZUF54OwMBD8Ro5Fy0xoq9FfKTe7mQkCY_wKH7klAxZ9FTPfsm/s1600/1895216-tumblr_ln3tyzphpt1qle3dmo1_400.jpg" height="148" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>"That was too close! You were almost a Jill Sandwich!"</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">All in all, Resident Evil is a great game. It's cheesy as all hell, but it has a certain charm to it. The characters are great in unintentional ways, and the monsters are scary. Playing this back in 1997 when my uncle sold it to me still sticks with me to this day. It truly terrified me, and was the first game to do so. It's a blast to play through. It's great for speed running as well, and to this day I still play through it every so often, just to laugh at the horrible dialogue. It really is funny.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here's a small taste of it, if you don't believe me:</span></span></span></span></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/JRpKbfrMvNo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Whoops! Now I've done it!" Stay tuned for part 2 where I'll tackle the superior Resident Evil 2!</span><b> </b></span></span></span></div>
R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-28684527736111706962014-10-05T01:53:00.000-05:002014-10-05T01:53:53.621-05:00Super Metroid Redesign - Taking It One Step FurtherAnyone who knows me or has read my posts knows that I love the Metroid series. To me, the Metroid series is something that deserves more attention from Nintendo, because if you remember correctly, I did play through the awful <a href="http://fansonfire.blogspot.com/2012/05/review-metroid-other-m.html" target="_blank">Metroid: Other M</a> release on the Wii. While it had its moments that I liked, it just didn't do the series justice at all. Sure the beams looked cool as all hell, and fighting some of the bosses such as Ridley and Phantoon as a bonus fight were awesome, but a lot of the core mechanics utterly ruined the game for me.<br />
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For one, the Metroid series is all about exploration. Other M does its best to go against that. For example, why in the holy mother of fuck are the upgrades shown on the map? When you reach an area that contains an upgrade, your map will show it. While it does take a little searching to find your way to them, it totally ruins the wonder of finding them on your own. The older Metroid games make you find these upgrades, and while to the hardcore player they aren't necessarily essential for survival, they do make it easier, especially to first time players. Getting your ass handed to you by Ridley because you keep running out of missiles? Go find more missile expansions, or go search for the other energy tanks you haven't found yet.<br />
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Other M throws that out the window. There aren't many segments that require backtracking to go get certain items. Some of my favorite parts in Super Metroid involved finding the speed booster upgrade, and then using the shinespark technique to get some expansions you could have missed. It's a cool upgrade that takes some relative skill to use, and feels so worth it when you finally get that last expansion or energy tank.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So worth it</td></tr>
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Even Metroid: Zero Mission and Metroid Fusion on the GameBoy Advance were far superior to Other M; with the latter being entirely linear in design. In my <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxWqyacqj70" target="_blank">playthrough of Zero Mission</a>, I do a lot of tricks to get items you normally can't obtain until much later on such as the Screw Attack, which I get roughly ten minutes into that video using bomb jumps. It's actually a <i>really cool</i> thing, because a lot of items are possible to get based on skill instead of glitches, or you know, playing the game normally.<br />
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One of the best things Zero Mission and Fusion did was add the ability to chain together shinesparks. In Super Metroid, if you shinesparked into a surface with a slope, you would just blast past it until you hit a wall. Zero and Fusion however, you would continue running with your charge, and if you hit down, you would keep that charge. That meant long segments of charging, sparking, hitting a slope and continuing the charge, ultimately leading to some awesomely clever secrets and items. It was also <i>fun</i> to pull off, and required quite a bit of skill.<br />
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Enter <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CB4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdrewseph.zophar.net%2F&ei=Ys8wVJOKKpaoyATN_YCwAQ&usg=AFQjCNECmyTuCOjjTqFtZFSWa_DVNPYk5g&sig2=jBk1pjwrqQvSEkiuSMcuLg&bvm=bv.76802529,d.aWw" target="_blank">Super Metroid Redesign</a>, a ROM hack of Super Metroid for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Made by a user named Drewseph, this hack takes some of the mechanics of Zero Mission and Fusion, as well as Metroid Prime, and incorporates it into arguably the best Metroid game ever made. It's almost an entirely new experience.<br />
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For starters, the map is entirely re-done. If you knew Brinstar and Norfair like the back of your hand, this time you won't. The areas are also much larger, and require use of the game map as well as your own due to the many secret passageways you will encounter. It's absolutely amazing, and brings back the sense of exploration that Super Metroid did so well, as well as the atmosphere that honestly has yet to be matched by any game, save for the Metroid Prime series.<br />
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Unlike most Super Metroid ROM hacks, this one changes the game play mechanics drastically, and in my opinion, for the better. Gone are the floaty physics of Super Metroid. Instead, we get a more realistic physics system. Jumps are a lot shorter, and fall time is decreased dramatically, as well as incorporating the need to crouch before jumping to jump higher. This takes some time to get used to, but is required if you want to make it further. Gone are infinite bombs as well! This hack incorporates the Metroid Prime style bombs, meaning you get three you can use in succession, and take time to regenerate. Surprisingly, this doesn't hinder bomb jumpers; it just requires a lot more timing and skill to pull off. To the guys that mastered the incredibly easy bomb jumps in Zero Mission, you have <i>a lot</i> to learn here.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fuckin A!</td></tr>
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As well as the physics being changed, gone are the days of walljumping off whatever the fuck you feel like. In fact, the walljump technique isn't even available until you find it, which is the second upgrade you come across. Redesign makes it so surfaces with a rough appearance are the only walls you can jump off, adding to a more realistic idea. A smooth wall won't cut it. Another change lies in the Spring Ball upgrade. Instead of being seperate, it is now combined with the Hi-Jump Boots. Sweet!<br />
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Another serious change from Super Metroid is the Beam Combo upgrade. In Super Metroid, any beam you found would just add to the ones you already found. For example, having the regular Charge Beam and then getting the Wave Beam would make you have a charged Wave Beam. Redesign changes this entirely. You'll be switching beams back and forth until near the later part of the game, and even then two beams are not accounted for. This is cool because you feel like you have three classes of beams. You have the Spazer that can be combo-ed with the Charge and Wave Beams, but not the Ice Beam. The Plasma Beam can't be combo-ed with the Spazer, and then you have the regular versions of EACH. A lot of these combos have more use in certain situations, and are a lot of fun to use.<br />
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Redesign brings back the shinespark upgrade, and boy is it a lot of fun. Zero Mission had a lot of segments where you could find a lot of upgrades using this technique, but it required a lot of skill. Redesign uses this A LOT. When you start the game, you'll find upgrades right away that aren't accessible without shinesparking. A lot of them will make you question just <i>how in the hell</i> <i>you get them in the first place</i>. For example, before reaching the elevator to Brinstar, you'll come across a power bomb upgrade, but it's behind a 3 block barrier of shinespark blocks. There isn't even an area around to <i>charge up</i> to get to it. Once you figure out the mechanics of shinesparking however, it becomes obvious. This is actually one of the <i>hardest</i> upgrades to get, because you have to start off in Brinstar, charging shinesparks and making it to the elevator, and finally getting to the upgrade. It's fucking <i>tough</i>.<br />
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You'll need to master this technique, as well as others such as the mock ball technique and in-air shinesparking to find secrets and advance through the game. It's tough to master, but <i>so fucking worth it</i> when you do. Those secrets are some of the funnest moments of the ROM hack. It's also crazy to know that Drewseph added it, seeing as how Super Metroid didn't have that capability.<br />
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As if there wasn't enough, this hack adds another fascinating feature: an actual mission objective. Throughout the game, you'll come across well hidden Chozo statues. Usually these hold the useful upgrades and expansions, but these are much different. When rolled onto, they disable a security lock on the entrance of Tourian, the last area of the game.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The entrance to Tourian in Super Metroid</td></tr>
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In Super Metroid, you had to kill the main bosses to open this entrance up. In Redesign, you'll need to kill the bosses, as well as finding ALL the Chozo locks. There are a lot of them too. It's a rather neat feature because it adds an objective AND encourages exploration.<br />
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One of my favorite segments of the game is the famous "Hell Run" in Norfair. In Super Metroid, you have the Varia Suit by the time you go into Norfair so you can deal with the extreme heat. Redesign said "fuck you" and makes you run through an intense series of brilliant level design. To begin with, you can't even enter Norfair until you have 3 energy tanks, and that's still cutting it! Without the Varia Suit, your energy is constantly being depleted at a rapid fire rate, so you need to fucking <i>hustle</i>. Not only are you dodging enemies, but there are morph ball tunnels that need to be navigated with perfection, and a section where you must kill respawning enemies with missiles to gain more energy to make it the rest of the way. It's one of the most intense sequences in the whole game and it's also one of the hardest. The best part though? You have to get the Ice Beam at the end of it, and make it <i>back</i> to go get the Varia Suit.<br />
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There's a save point halfway through the Hell Run, with a missile station and energy station, and <i>thank fucking God</i> for that because you will need it. This segment renders save states useless, because you don't even have a <i>second</i> to waste saving it. It can get frustrating after a few attempts, so patience is needed. However, this doesn't even compare to Maridia, which is a water themed section much later in the game.<br />
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In Super Metroid, you have to go through the Abandoned Ship and fight Phantoon to get the Gravity Suit before going to Maridia so you can move freely in the water. Redesign makes you go through Maridia <i>without </i>it, and not for a small period of time either. On my first playthrough, I spent almost two hours navigating this section. Not only are you seriously limited in movement, but you'll be facing <i>a lot</i> of tough enemies, including two golden space pirate minibosses. It's fucking <i>hard as shit</i>. There are a lot of ways you can go, but eventually you end up finding the Gravity Suit, and it just feels so rewarding as you go back through annihilating everything and finding more expansions. This hack always makes it worth the frustration.<br />
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After trekking through Maridia, which is more or less one of the hardest parts of the game, you'll come to the Lost Caverns, which is a total change in atmosphere from Maridia. It's a little creepy at first, seeing as how your map will show a blank spot for this area, because it's the only area that requires a specific way to get through. If you keep running right, you won't get anywhere. Instead, there's a pattern, and it isn't easily noticed at first. To get past, you need to follow stalagmites. Yes, you need to follow fucking stalagmites. I won't spoil it, but it is a pretty neat section and doesn't feel out of place. Think of Death Mountain in the original Legend of Zelda, but much more complicated. Ultimately though, it leads to Phantoon, and is so much more fitting than the Abandoned Ship in Super Metroid. It's fucking creepy.<br />
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To anyone that has beaten Super Metroid, and I hope you have because you're seriously missing out if you haven't, you'll know that the fight with Mother Brain is epic and the escape sequence is intense and equally as awesome. Redesign said screw the 3 minute escape sequence, and opted for a fucking <i>25 minute</i> escape sequence.<br />
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Think I'm joking? <a href="http://youtu.be/1OaniAGpQmQ?t=8m35s" target="_blank">Here's the whole sequence done by a first time player</a>. Yeah. <i>25 FUCKING MINUTES</i> to escape. That means you're going through a shit load of the game just to make it to the end, and every minute counts. You won't make it back to the ship with 15 or 10 minutes to spare no... more like 2 or 3 if you're really fast. That's absolutely insane. For the first time player that's quite a daunting task, and failure means fighting Mother Brain again, which is kind of shitty. I honestly prefer the original versus Redesign's fucking 25 minute escape sequence. It's short and sweet, and feels a lot more intense as the clock gets lower and lower. After 15 minutes, you just want to get the fuck out. However, for the first time player, it can be exciting because you're not sure at first what to expect. A great bonus would have been an extra boss, like in Metroid Fusioin where you fight the Omega Metroid before boarding your ship.<br />
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In the end, is Super Metroid Redesign worth it? Abso-fucking-lutely. It adds and changes so much of the game, but in positive ways, and ultimately ends up being something entirely different while still offering the fun and wonder of what made Super Metroid great in the first place.While it's much harder than Super Metroid ever was, it's still a blast to play. Out of all the numerous ROM hacks for Super Metroid, this one is my favorite. The features it adds and changes it makes just blows me away. It brought back the enjoyment of when I first played Super Metroid, and that's something I haven't felt in a very long time.<br />
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<b>Want to try it for yourself? Get the ROM hack <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CB4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdrewseph.zophar.net%2F&ei=xeAwVOaBNIWpyATs6YLIAw&usg=AFQjCNECmyTuCOjjTqFtZFSWa_DVNPYk5g&sig2=RsGa4Q_j4YlFBFGCdOVjCQ&bvm=bv.76802529,d.aWw" target="_blank">here</a></b>.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>BULLSHIT BONUS!</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Oh come on, you think I'd stop talking about Metroid now that I'm on a roll? I've got one more ROM hack for you! Let's take a quick look at Metroid on the Nintendo Entertainment System.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Enter <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp2KV8_wXtA" target="_blank">Metroid LUA on the NES</a>. Using <a href="http://www.fceux.com/web/home.html" target="_blank">FCEUX</a> to emulate, this ROM hack makes use of the implemented LUA scripting to vastly improve the original Metroid.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">For starters, you now have the mini-map that came standard in later Metroid games. To anyone who played the original Metroid, navigating the world was a <i>bitch</i>. A lot of areas look the same, and the map is pretty big for a NES game. This LUA script assists you with that. Another nifty feature is having a map screen as well, with labels for Brinstar, Norfair, and others. It's a really nice feature.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">It also adds an equip screen in place of the pause screen. Yes, for the first time in the original Metroid, you are free to equip or unequip your upgrades. This makes exploring a lot of areas much easier. On top of that, you also get text boxes to let you know what upgrades you've found. Instead of the famous tune that plays when you find an upgrade, you get a small text box that shows <i>what</i> it is, just like Super Metroid! </span></div>
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And if that wasn't enough, there's a secret boss. You can now fight Crocomire from Super Metroid in 8-bit glory. You can thank me later.</div>
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So, that's a look at two awesome ROM hacks for two of my favorite games. I suggest checking them both out. It's absolutely worth the time.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Samus is <i>always</i> worth your time</td></tr>
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R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-55366805283745075572014-01-18T19:34:00.004-06:002014-01-18T19:34:55.273-06:00All Things Big and SmallJesus it's been awhile since I've written anything here. Oh well, let's get this underway. I want to talk about the importance and need of both Indie and AAA studios.<br />
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I know a lot of people want to shit on both of these types of games, but just hear me out. I get that to some, indie games can come off as pretentious or as non-games, and that some AAA games are simply akin to popcorn films, but why do we say these like they're bad things? After all, would cinema be better off without your Die Hard's, Rambo's or even your Godfather's? It takes all kinds to build a medium.<br />
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First up, let's talk about the positives of indie games. Indie games are where you will see some of the most unique game ideas ever. The premise for Portal came from a small team's project called Narbacular Drop. Indie games don't have the same boundaries that AAA games have, due to fewer expectations and fewer restrictions from Publishers, Shareholders, and the like. <br />
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Indie games are useful not only for the unique genres and gameplay mechanics, but often, indie games handle more intricate and nuanced subjects. Where they fail though, is that some of these games that tackle heavy issues, don't have a good game surrounding it. It acts more like an interactive experience that focuses strictly on the narrative, at the expense of everything else. This would be your games like Dear Esther, and the Stanley Parable. I love the Stanley Parable, but there are times where you wish that this content was in something with more meat on it.<br />
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On the flip side, you have your AAA games. The games that can cram content onto a disk. In this context, content isn't just "stuff to do", it can be music, graphics, physics, etc. There's just a certain level of polish and shine you get with most AAA games. Assassin's Creed II had a great city to explore. It was alive, large, and overall fun to explore. These games are what push the mainstream. If you want to get a point across, this would be the size you wish you could reach.<br />
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I'd love for these two things to co-mingle. I'd love to see a game with the moral and discussion about freedom of choice, like a Stanley Parable, but frame it inside something substantial. The question of free will could easily be a subplot in any major game. You could say that the David Cage games might fall into this category, with Indigo Prophecy and Heavy Rain. Those games though, suffered from similar effects. They were close to being great, but Heavy Rain was mostly an interactive cut-scene with many Quick Time Events. <br />
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For an example that does this right: Spec Ops: The Line.<br />
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Advanced warning, I haven't played this game personally, and I'm going off second hand information from various places.<br />
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We good?<br />
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Ok.<br />
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It handles the reality of war, and actually made people feel bad for what they were doing. The game carried weight with it, while being a major release, within the Spec Ops franchise. Granted, Spec Ops isn't the most popular of IP's in the world, but it's been around awhile. It's a First Person Shooter, a genre that's been saturated with Power Fantasy, a definitive foreign bad guy, and bombastic set pieces over the last few years. You could even say that the modern War FPS genre is oversaturated of late, with Annual Call of Duty releases, Battlefield coming out every other years, and then games like Medal of Honor clinging to the sides. So, it's a popular genre that ended up telling an impactful story, which surprised the hell out of a lot of people. <br />
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Also...<br />
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/57/Spec_Ops_The_Line_cover.png/250px-Spec_Ops_The_Line_cover.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/57/Spec_Ops_The_Line_cover.png/250px-Spec_Ops_The_Line_cover.png" /></a></div>
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Are you...</div>
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<a href="http://gaygamer.net/images/1Battlefield-3-Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://gaygamer.net/images/1Battlefield-3-Cover.jpg" height="320" width="224" /></a></div>
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Detecting</div>
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A Pattern</div>
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Here?</div>
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Now, I know I'm picking on Call of Duty and Battlefield with these images, but it proves the point that this is a populated market, and most games within it are seen as interchangeable for the most part, which again, made Spec Ops the Line so surprising to people, because they just expected another Call of Duty/Battlefield-esque First person Shooter, from a smaller studio, that was going to be mediocre. </div>
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So, it can be done. AAA games can bring mainstream attention to serious issues, but it takes the buzz on the indies to make them viable. I may not like games like Dear Esther, or ... what was that interactive story-game about lesbians that made so many people's... GONE HOME. That's what it was. I may not like that sort of game, but I can see that it has value, just as much as a Call of Duty game, or Assassin's Creed game. The indies will drive the direction for the content of our games in the future, but the AAA's are the ones who need to see that the risk isn't as great as they thought, and can wrap an interesting concept in fundamentally sound mechanics.</div>
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Now how to wrap this mess up...</div>
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I suppose with a game recap. I recently finished up the main Story in Pokemon Y, so I'll be moving onto Shin Megemi Tensei 4 soon. Pokemon Y: Pokemon but More and Improved. ALso been bouncing between Okami HD, and DmC: Devil May Cry on PS3. Okami should be played by as many people as possible. Clover Studios did something wonderful with that game, and I highly recommend it, especially if you enjoy classic Japanese art styles. DmC is the reboot of the Devil May Cry franchise, and I'm not sure how I feel about it yet. There was a boss fight that had a gratuitous amount of swearing in it. Hell, I curse some, but when every sentence in their dialogue exchange had some form of expletive, it got real old real fast. Gameplay is really solid for it, and chaining combos together is hella satisfying though.</div>
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Also, PayDay 2 on PS3. Basically the perfect formula for a sequel. Take the core gameplay from game 1, tweak it, and make more of what made the first game great. A review of Payday 2 may come in the future.</div>
Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-30285294907864764222014-01-13T21:45:00.005-06:002014-01-13T21:48:53.451-06:00Morndas, 13th day of Morning Star, 3E 2014 - A Rant On The Elder Scrolls SeriesIt's been a hell of a long time since I wrote on here. What can I say? Life is always keeping me busy, especially with the holidays that just flew by. Christmas promptly kicked my ass and took all my money.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKsx9uQ6iAVXLBLVxjixAuz3uBgyKuLgs8GN0C0SufQzXvaNQuRlGSfnNUOZ1s8UryE8hRTTI8pFNFzIynS1h8hGvk1VnFy3HFh8iG35nEdjsKqk9vvF_6MY760sL7NBNiWPQ91KJihB0/s1600/Thief.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKsx9uQ6iAVXLBLVxjixAuz3uBgyKuLgs8GN0C0SufQzXvaNQuRlGSfnNUOZ1s8UryE8hRTTI8pFNFzIynS1h8hGvk1VnFy3HFh8iG35nEdjsKqk9vvF_6MY760sL7NBNiWPQ91KJihB0/s320/Thief.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Merry Christmas motherfucker.</td></tr>
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But that's what the holidays are for right? I'll tell you what it's not about: playing the ever loving shit out of not one, but <b>three </b>Elder Scrolls games. Yes, you read that right. <b>THREE. FUCKING. ELDER SCROLLS GAMES.</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhm6Zp4S4o1ZnY6lZS7wva5FZfHXksx5JGrHKBK__WFOBc1Z_wx2Lrog-xhUpmkWJH5g3wIdVkZWa0RwaOz9XyKV2NIr-hzaqSmssXZjSOZrBEOc3-mM3OJE-3FJzvM-t_6lvLN3UwIafI/s1600/stoprighttherep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhm6Zp4S4o1ZnY6lZS7wva5FZfHXksx5JGrHKBK__WFOBc1Z_wx2Lrog-xhUpmkWJH5g3wIdVkZWa0RwaOz9XyKV2NIr-hzaqSmssXZjSOZrBEOc3-mM3OJE-3FJzvM-t_6lvLN3UwIafI/s400/stoprighttherep.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">THE INSANITY</td></tr>
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In case you haven't gotten the hint, that could be a combined total of <b>800 FUCKING HOURS OF GAMING</b>. And that's not even the best part! I'm going to go into detail of the three games I've been playing, starting with the one I played first:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCQCd-IRvjRTjUfeV1v8jDEAtqV-M2DB_mEvE8-ZxeUOnyPQhdXqcYxwSQQFqYEv_X-bZXIJgNHCSq_1tRKli4-ienjyO0e7FhxKOVVuQEXCcujxh6hjd831X5_BsEt-YrdCAw0AfgLIop/s1600/es4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCQCd-IRvjRTjUfeV1v8jDEAtqV-M2DB_mEvE8-ZxeUOnyPQhdXqcYxwSQQFqYEv_X-bZXIJgNHCSq_1tRKli4-ienjyO0e7FhxKOVVuQEXCcujxh6hjd831X5_BsEt-YrdCAw0AfgLIop/s320/es4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>THE ELDER SCROLLS IV - OBLIVION</b></div>
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Expecting maybe Morrowind, or Skyrim here? Not quite. The funniest part about this game, is that I've owned it four times over a period of four years, and maybe played a good half hour of it. Why is it here you may ask? I've gotten the RPG itch it seems, <a href="http://fansonfire.blogspot.com/2012/09/looking-back-kingdom-hearts-tribute.html" target="_blank">despite hating RPGs with a passion</a>. Maybe it's the invisible dice rolls, the calculations of all the stats playing out in the code, blind to the human eye. This game is different.</div>
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For one, it's all real-time combat, which makes it playable for me. If I had to wander around in first person, and have to stop for some elaborate turn based combat system to start, I would have forgot this game the first time I sold it. Thankfully, the combat is straight forward, swing-a-sword-until-something-dies affair. It's also one of the only RPGs that gives a shit about starting you off to a good pace with a clear fucking objective.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwT98tpUy4ggiw0eVjFejva1Dyief2oBTAedR92snCRXqpKoYVFS5ajvBWznOOuJX8km7f0qEdyqmgSDzfln_lZfuMNWoI6Wix6CqyCA-kquHUaRKzpzlG39l9WtOMlpXCyn61GNFWFcpw/s1600/morrowind_logo.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwT98tpUy4ggiw0eVjFejva1Dyief2oBTAedR92snCRXqpKoYVFS5ajvBWznOOuJX8km7f0qEdyqmgSDzfln_lZfuMNWoI6Wix6CqyCA-kquHUaRKzpzlG39l9WtOMlpXCyn61GNFWFcpw/s320/morrowind_logo.gif" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh, the irony...</td></tr>
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It helps that the graphics are on par with what I expect things to look like. We will get to that more later... but Oblivion is definitely a pretty game. It also helps that this game makes your objectives easy to engage. You get a quest, your next stop is marked on your map. You can either walk (or take a horse) to said location, or use the Fast Travel system, which basically just teleports you to a location marked on the map. Do not confuse those two. Yes, you can add a marker to your map. No, you cannot fast travel to it. It works by showing locations you have found in the world, such as dungeons, towns, landmarks, etc. It's very easy for me to do quests without feeling lost or bored from having to trek long distances.</div>
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Long time fans of the series hated this apparently. Well guess what? I'm not a long time fan. This is my foray into Elder Scrolls, just like most people. I enjoy my generic fantasy setting. I enjoy easy and engaging combat. I enjoy easy to follow quests. <b>I ENJOY BEING ABLE TO PLAY THE FUCKING GAME.</b><br />
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I'm yelling at this point, and for good reason. The next game I'm going to list will start our shallow journey into the great fucking Elder Scrolls debate that the internet loves soooooo much.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEXCl4eMy7z5dLRNQFETuotGj2b_lWpdoj_KuYRaZAtzwyjNAJmnrJOTHubAIO_wBsm6cZyNu4ssSPtL7aRnLcUEFWshTOMxi0A8Cy1RV5rdJ1cyiZ9dKYhEmx5HV43E2exwMYfeCGBcI/s1600/d8kJEjK.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEXCl4eMy7z5dLRNQFETuotGj2b_lWpdoj_KuYRaZAtzwyjNAJmnrJOTHubAIO_wBsm6cZyNu4ssSPtL7aRnLcUEFWshTOMxi0A8Cy1RV5rdJ1cyiZ9dKYhEmx5HV43E2exwMYfeCGBcI/s320/d8kJEjK.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>THE ELDER SCROLLS III: MORROWIND OMG TEH BEST EVER MAED</b></div>
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Yeah, that's the internet equivalent to describing this slow, unforgiving and absolutely boring game. It's on everybody's top games lists for some divine reason. I've had this game more than Oblivion, and have tried on multiple occasions to get into it and see where the shit ends and the game starts working in all the right ways, BUT IT NEVER HAPPENED.</div>
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Why? Because this game shows no mercy or lends a helping hand EVER. You create your character, and you're thrown into the game world with a vague objective. That's it. You're on your own after that. Okay, so you're thinking, well surely you can ask NPCs for help, at least some directions right? Sure, if you enjoy reading a wall of text after choosing over <b>EIGHT </b>things to ask.</div>
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For example, the first person I see I talk to him. He introduces who he is, and the game shows me some topics to click on that I can ask him. Every time you click one, you get a paragraph or longer of text which more than likely will add <i>more </i>things to ask. I just want to know where the silt strider is, which is the equivalent of a bus in Morrowind. He tells me it's in a certain direction in the town I'm in. Asking about which town I'm in presents me with yet more topics. This is the first guy I've talked to and its starting to be fifteen minutes into gameplay.</div>
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Also, I got 80 gold to help me do the first quest, which involves delivering a package. The first thing I figure I have to do is get a weapon. So I ask the fucking guy where the shops are, and which ones are which. I find the shop, deal with the clunky and ugly interface which takes me five minutes to buy a fucking dagger, and finally I figure out where this silt strider is. But guess what? Remember that 80 gold I got earlier? It's not for weapons or armor. It's the fee for the silt strider to take me to my first objective.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy_1TFClsUAvze8j_WZuf2CXpXA522Ckvjtr41EjylveA4mW5rJjGX-VavIZ65tAq_Z1Av7GNexxF4JuxEBCX1p_w9ZM37qreGTI4E1PeUPVoYE20c_OExjXv7chUmi4sTvcFKK0nMLZdM/s1600/yelllll.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy_1TFClsUAvze8j_WZuf2CXpXA522Ckvjtr41EjylveA4mW5rJjGX-VavIZ65tAq_Z1Av7GNexxF4JuxEBCX1p_w9ZM37qreGTI4E1PeUPVoYE20c_OExjXv7chUmi4sTvcFKK0nMLZdM/s400/yelllll.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Okay, so now that I can't use that method to go to my objective, I have to walk. Walking in Morrowind is the equivalent of crawling in real life. Yeah, it's <i>that fucking slow.</i> So off I go using the map to find Balmora, the city where my objective is. Along the way I encounter a flying monster. I pull my dagger out and start clicking away to slash at it, but nothing. Absolutely nothing. This is where the end of the line drew for me. There's a fucking random number generator happening behind the scenes every time you attack. The game does not make this appear to be so. You look to be slashing the monster, I mean how could you NOT when he's in your FUCKING FACE, but you aren't hitting it because your stats aren't high enough in the right places.After clicking endlessly, I realize this thing has drained almost all of my health, so I start running from it but it's no use. This thing is just on my ass the whole time, and kills me before I can get ten feet away.</div>
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<b>ABSOLUTELY FRUSTRATING.</b></div>
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Fuck that. I'm hoping that when I get to Balmora and deliver this package, maybe things will pick up. I start all over again, this time taking the silt strider. I arrive in the small town, separated by a river. After searching around for the guy I need to deliver this thing to and finally finding him, he gives me massive amounts of text and another objective more vague than the last. I honestly have no idea what to do. So I try joining one of the guilds. The Molag Tong guild seems cool, a bunch of assassins and what not, so I go there. Turns out the guy that takes new members in isn't even in this town, so there goes that idea. I can't go to Vivec where he's at to talk to him because I have no gold to use the silt strider, and I have no weapon to defend myself with if I walk. Fuck the weapon, I don't have the fucking stats to battle a damn worm!!!</div>
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Quit. Done. This game is too unforgiving in the beginning. Yet, it remains a favorite among fans. For what fucking reason? Is that kind of complexity a niche market for some gamers? I don't understand how anyone got past the beginning of this game without being bored to tears or being so fucking frustrated. I cannot understand why Bethesda thought the combat was acceptable enough. Even when you do hit something, you don't get the feeling you did, or that it took skill to do it. In Oblivion, I have to dodge attacks and make sure my sword hits. That is non-existent in this game. The number gods decide if you can hit something. Agility isn't high enough? Oh well, guess you're only going to hit that bat every <b>100 clicks</b> and do <b>FOUR </b>points of damage.</div>
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Yet this is where Morrowind fans will bash Oblivion, stating it had the same system, you just didn't do a lot of damage when you start. Yeah, that's true, but at least I'm doing SOME kind of damage, and it FEELS like I'm hitting something. UGHHHHHHHH. This game just pisses me off to no end, in every single category. The music and story are pretty cool from what I've heard and read of it. It's just sad to say that I've played this game so many times and never got farther than that. It's too fucking hard and too boring for me.</div>
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Which leads me to another surprise in this post.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgPBPf9WvFbGNgDmz8wR_oukhSLzi9PUTFVrDI5Xecme6ct41mcTTcE4WsjtLuu-aUTapJrrXhgOUq8d6VCEPOoI0T8wyIftfELYA6KUbRsU0qb79aDNHZ7yCBnC1Fu6f7YV1hTLYPeZiD/s1600/Daggerfall_Cover_art.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgPBPf9WvFbGNgDmz8wR_oukhSLzi9PUTFVrDI5Xecme6ct41mcTTcE4WsjtLuu-aUTapJrrXhgOUq8d6VCEPOoI0T8wyIftfELYA6KUbRsU0qb79aDNHZ7yCBnC1Fu6f7YV1hTLYPeZiD/s320/Daggerfall_Cover_art.gif" width="253" /> </a></div>
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<b>THE ELDER SCROLLS II: DAGGERFALL</b></div>
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This is the granddaddy of the series. It should be known that Bethesda themselves said the game map is as big as Great Britain. No, that's not an exaggeration or a joke. Just fucking look at this:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin-siB8-3N73t4XfRLolF_59HVl_LIRlKqC_acpiudoGE49S-UQuDTK-Gfb9hWTpwLSr4GXr6QQBJYxHN4JQvOlQc9n5bqePrVR9LfYPqTyDM40ODt_JUUBEpxLq3YTDFQBM0QBztVMWde/s1600/Daggerfall2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin-siB8-3N73t4XfRLolF_59HVl_LIRlKqC_acpiudoGE49S-UQuDTK-Gfb9hWTpwLSr4GXr6QQBJYxHN4JQvOlQc9n5bqePrVR9LfYPqTyDM40ODt_JUUBEpxLq3YTDFQBM0QBztVMWde/s640/Daggerfall2.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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Don't let the size of that boat fool you. It's horribly exaggerated in size. All that land and water you see is totally explorable. Every province and kingdom has over a hundred locations <b>EACH</b>. Think I'm lying?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9P_RbYYX5K-o3IjrrOVTZlhYSneSDwfe0tuOmz7rruOx-Bi5xmO9EKoBaqqkWwGIiG4AfeCSg64WVnCq7-1gIqubC8mNMghNyfZ9qBUXiUsxP_g_i6t-lY0S3-E6RYiuI_BxK-77Nvlet/s1600/Daggerfall1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9P_RbYYX5K-o3IjrrOVTZlhYSneSDwfe0tuOmz7rruOx-Bi5xmO9EKoBaqqkWwGIiG4AfeCSg64WVnCq7-1gIqubC8mNMghNyfZ9qBUXiUsxP_g_i6t-lY0S3-E6RYiuI_BxK-77Nvlet/s640/Daggerfall1.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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That's just the province of Daggerfall. You may recognize its shape on the first map above. All those dots on that one province are places you can go to. Just think about that for a second. Now think about the fact that this game was released in 1996. What a fucking feat Bethesda accomplished back in the day! The scope of this game world is absolutely gigantic. And to think reviewers marveled at Grand Theft Auto V.</div>
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Where Daggerfall is less impressive however, is that it is all randomly generated. Everything keeps the same layout and name and what not, but loot and enemies are random. Dungeons are randomly generated in layout and loot, so they are never the same. That is awesome, but can be frustrating when you consider that the size of these things are gigantic.</div>
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Being archaic as it is, Daggerfall is not very user friendly. For one, the controls suck. It's DOS days though, so what can you expect? It's interesting though. You have so many features. For one, you can swing a weapon using the mouse. Swinging in certain directions makes your character do certain attacks, each having their own damage and chance to hit. I almost cringed at this, but when you fight you actually feel like you can hit things! Yeah, it's all random numbers being generated in the code, but at least the game makes it seem like you are making progress. Morrowind would play the same <i>whiff</i> sound over and over. Daggerfall adds clangs and clashes, and has a distinct hit sound when you do hit things. It's not as ridiculous as Morrowind either. You CAN hit things right off the bat, save for a monster in the starting dungeon if you don't start with the right weapon, but you can skip that monster. You don't have to fight it. And if by some chance it attacks you, you can run away and live.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjjly1OxU81DXZQ_XJq7lAPvdfejUtlpy8dvJfx4bq9qS0WI6ym7O__xSx8MvToGchFoDoAtfI_ifmESmsT5uX63QAeimA4ZDNSNfT4BLZPaL9wyQmxcsBnCrtZMPw_SKVQOj6ZfFmcjqi/s1600/IRrLVBYh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjjly1OxU81DXZQ_XJq7lAPvdfejUtlpy8dvJfx4bq9qS0WI6ym7O__xSx8MvToGchFoDoAtfI_ifmESmsT5uX63QAeimA4ZDNSNfT4BLZPaL9wyQmxcsBnCrtZMPw_SKVQOj6ZfFmcjqi/s1600/IRrLVBYh.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">THANK FUCKING GOD</td></tr>
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And that's just the combat. You can run, crouch, jump, and fucking <i>climb.</i> If you get locked out of a town, fuck it, just climb the gate or the wall. Or get your jumping skill up and just jump over it. You can dual wield weapons. You can cast all kinds of magics and almost all of them are useful. Morrowind has a lot of spells, but there's only a handful that are actually useful. Daggerfall has every spell you need, and at some point you will need to use. Or want to use it. It's just that cool.</div>
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The best part is after escaping the first dungeon and making it to your first town. Navigating is much harder than Morrowind, but it's definitely worth it. Within ten minutes of being in my first town, I bought a new set of armor, and a fucking horse! As soon as you leave the store, you can ride it! Hell fucking yes!!! There's a certain degree of freedom in every choice you make in this game, and it's amazing. Want to steal from the armor shop? Pick the lock and sneak in. Or try to steal it off the shelf in broad daylight. Or just bash the door in and take it. Any of those options are possible. That is amazing.</div>
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All these cool things come with a price though. The game is super buggy, even after patches. It's prone to crashing and doing all sorts of fuckery. It's also just like Morrowind in that it throws massive amounts of text at you. However, the freedom and choices offered in this game is just too awesome. For example, I can't find one of the inns while I'm waiting for my armor and weapons to be repaired (which takes two in game days to repair) so I decide to just sleep behind the shop. I get arrested for vagrancy instead. I'm asked to resist, or accept. I accept my arrest, and I'm presented with a court appearance. I can plead guilty and pay gold and hurt my rep with the law, or I can say not guilty. I say not guilty, and I'm presented with yet two more decisions. I can plead my case by debating it, or I can lie my way out of it. Both choices can be used successfully, since they are both governed by certain skills. Debate will test my Etiquette skill, while Lying will test my Streetwise skill. Either way, you can use both to get away.</div>
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<b>FUCKING AMAZING.</b> It really is. It's even better that, say I join a guild, for example the Dark Brotherhood assassin's guild. If I am arrested and tried in court, they might threaten the judge to let me out. <b>I AM NOT FUCKING LYING ABOUT THIS. </b>This can seriously happen. It pays to have connections, and that means almost everything you do in this game is worth the trouble.</div>
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So yeah, it's safe to say that I like Daggerfall more than Morrowind. I shouldn't, because it has a lot of the same annoying features, but it doesn't make me feel helpless, and that's what matters. Who wants to feel helpless in a video game? It's okay to feel that way for a little bit, but giving up because it doesn't feel like it's going to end? That's just bullshit. Daggerfall just seems to use its features much better than Morrowind. The only problem I really have is that the graphics can be borderline ugly. Scrolling through my inventory and seeing shapes instead of actual things is annoying. Thankfully, there's an Info button that tells you what it is. Indeed, that thing that looks like two potatoes is actually leather greaves. Good to know.</div>
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Doing quests is the same as Morrowind unfortunately. Someone will tell you to bring this gem to so and so, and you have no idea who that person is or if he's even in the same fucking town. Mind you this game has over 700,000 NPCs wandering around. Yes, 7-FUCKING-THOUSAND NPCS. But that's alright. You can venture out and do so many other things that it doesn't even matter. No matter what, you feel like you have control over <i>something </i>in this game, where as Morrowind will leave you fucked unless you know what you're doing.</div>
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Maybe someone will prove me wrong. Someone will show me how to play Morrowind someday. Maybe I should just follow a guide, but apparently part of the magic of that game is not having any help. True, Daggerfall is the same way, but at least I can do other shit while I figure it out. I'm afraid to leave town in Morrowind. Maybe I need some mods or something. Who knows.</div>
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Anyway, I wanted to rant about this series because I have been sinking hours upon hours into Oblivion and Daggerfall, and I've realized that these games are pretty great after all. One day maybe I will feel the same way about Morrowind, but I'm not holding my breath. I want to like it, but it forces me not to. Oh well.</div>
R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-32460289698915328262013-11-08T19:42:00.001-06:002013-11-08T19:42:22.567-06:00Vinyl Report: Arch Enemy - Black Earth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Before I go any further, let me just do the standard introductory drivel. Vinyl Report is a new article series devoted to reviewing albums as well as the quality of their pressings as vinyl records. So pretty much, it's just me ripping off <a href="http://www.metal-fi.com/">Metal-Fi</a> wholesale. LET'S GET TO IT.</div>
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<b>Original year of release: 1996</b></div>
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<b>First vinyl pressing release: 2002, Regain Records (1xLP, Black Vinyl, 33</b>⅓ <b>RPM)</b><span class="st"></span><span class="st"><em></em></span><span class="st"><em></em></span></div>
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<b>Version used for review: 2010, Back On Black/Regain Records (1xLP, Clear Vinyl, 33</b><b><span class="st"><em>⅓</em></span> RPM)</b></div>
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I could just open this review with all the standard ranting about how Arch Enemy was so much better before they switched vocalists and replaced songwriting with tits, but for the sake of this review, I'll just stick to this album on its own merits. Back when they first formed, Arch Enemy was something of a melodic death metal supergroup, with Michael Amott (guitarist of Carcass), his brother Christopher (making his debut appearance on this album playing guitar alongside Michael), Daniel Erlandsson on drums (having previously played on In Flames' seminal EP, Subterranean) and Johan Liiva (of Carnage, another band he performed in with Michael Amott) on vocals. With all of this previous experience, you couldn't really go wrong, and for the most part, this album succeeds on that front. It's a solid melodeath release that still holds up today.</div>
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The biggest issue that some listeners will hold with the album are Liiva's vocals, which, admittedly, take a bit of time to get used to. There's points on the album that his vocals are just "uh what", like his laugh-inducing outburst of "OH" on Idolatress, or his out-speeding the verse riff of Transmigration Macabre, leaving an awkward period in the middle of the verse with no vocals. Ultimately, though, the music itself surpasses these occasional screwups. Memorable riffs and hooks, accompanied with great solo-work courtesy of the Amotts is a constant throughout. Black Earth is a good album on its own, and is a great debut album for Arch Enemy, such as they were until the 2000s. </div>
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Black Earth wasn't pressed onto vinyl upon its inception, with its first release being in a limited run on standard black vinyl by Regain Records back in 2002. Since then, Back On Black has repressed the album (including a Japanese bonus track and two Iron Maiden covers) onto clear vinyl, with a gatefold sleeve including lyrics. I've always had a sweet spot for clear vinyl (and how can you not?), and this release, although a bit barebones, is relatively slick looking. The production of the album shines on the LP as well, with the guitar tone sounding extra crisp and the bass being more audible, as one would expect from a good vinyl pressing. Despite supposedly being a limited pressing, you can find this release going for around $15 on Amazon, which is shockingly cheap for the product. If you like good ol'-fashioned melodeath, you won't regret picking this one up.</div>
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<b>NOTE: </b>Century Media is pressing a 2xLP edition on black and yellow vinyl that includes the same tracks as this release, as well as a second LP of a live performance in Japan from 1997. This release is supposedly "remastered" and features new artwork, but given Century Media's idea of "production", I'd take a more cynical standpoint towards it until the final product is released. </div>
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The Mighty Traestorzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16672664418661463140noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-13232867701180918822013-09-18T09:39:00.000-05:002013-09-18T13:24:01.244-05:00Board Game Corner: Epic Spell Wars Of The Battle Wizards: Duel At Mt. SkullzfyreThis is a real game.<br />
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Honest.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">This is most certainly a real thing.</span></div>
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First off, this game is not really a children's game. While bright and colorful, the game also has some humorous, over-the-top gore involved. In fact, the art style of this game is very reminiscent of the art style of the show SuperJail. Continuing on with the whole "Not for children" thing, this is the first paragraph of the rules booklet.</div>
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Once upon a time, there was a world filled to the brim with radical magic. And not pussy magic, like rabbits in hats or shit like that. No, it was kick-ass magic, where one guy blows another guy's head off with like, a fireball or something! You know, BALL-ROCKING MAGIC!</blockquote>
The background of the game goes on for a few more paragraphs, but you get the idea. While yes, some would think this kind of violence and language is juvenile, well, they're probably right, but it's still presented in a way that made me laugh out loud while I read it. A rule book for a game has never done that before.<br />
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The premise of this game is pretty simple... Construct a spell from cards in your hand, and kill the other players.</div>
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At the start of each round, each player draws to their hand limit, which is by default 8 cards. They then set one, two, or three cards face down. There are three main types of cards in this game that'll be in your hand: Source cards, Quality cards, and Delivery cards. When you play your 'spell' of cards, you can only play up to one of each. So a spell can contain an S, Q and D, or just a D, or any other type combination.<br />
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<a href="http://www.gamehead.com/sites/default/files/images/article/inline_files/1691/epic-spell-wars-of-the-battle-wizards-duel-at-mt-skullzfyre-15t7qfs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.gamehead.com/sites/default/files/images/article/inline_files/1691/epic-spell-wars-of-the-battle-wizards-duel-at-mt-skullzfyre-15t7qfs.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">You play the D.</span></div>
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The turn order is determined like this: The player who played the fewest cards plays first. Any people who've played the same number of cards determine the order by the number on the Delivery, in this image, 16. That's your initiative. If you don't play a Delivery, you have an initiative of 0. A 0 of two cards though is still faster than an initiative 0 of three cards. <br />
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We'll take two example spell here from the internet...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDBP5mb-ojjrw3LoIWrGX9l_qKcdIu-Jq5vnJOvf42DuT7Td_2JKRbwBTJvs1PjzLP-125nyeOfpDAVmp5BAAyVFgqsKMOpwv24wUNB1J1pLOkS4T81i0xRe0E6TAPb2b4aNQlHxT10hFX/s1600/spell-combination-sample.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDBP5mb-ojjrw3LoIWrGX9l_qKcdIu-Jq5vnJOvf42DuT7Td_2JKRbwBTJvs1PjzLP-125nyeOfpDAVmp5BAAyVFgqsKMOpwv24wUNB1J1pLOkS4T81i0xRe0E6TAPb2b4aNQlHxT10hFX/s320/spell-combination-sample.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Sir Lootzor's Mysterious Dragon-Horde.</span></div>
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<a href="http://a248.e.akamai.net/origin-cdn.volusion.com/gzcph.dqcgx/v/vspfiles/photos/EPICSPELLWARS_GAME-3.jpg?1337942609" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="144" src="http://a248.e.akamai.net/origin-cdn.volusion.com/gzcph.dqcgx/v/vspfiles/photos/EPICSPELLWARS_GAME-3.jpg?1337942609" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Hagatha the Heifer's Crushazorian Godstorm.</span></div>
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This game sounds like it could be used to create a metal album...</div>
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Anyways, in these two examples, we see that all three cards share the same glyph typing. The glyph is the symbol in the lower left hand corner. So this means, that for each power roll, you get a die for each card that share a typing with it. For for the Godstorm, you get the one minimum, and you get one for each of the other two cards. If you flipped the delivery in the two spells, you'd only get one die per delivery, since no other cards in the spells share a typing with it. Wit treasures, and added cards to spells through effects, the maximum number of dice you can roll on a power role is four. </div>
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The cards are all designed so they reasonably fit together design wise. You always resolve from left to right as well. Now before, when i mentioned initiative, I said that there's a way to get 0 initiative with your delivery, which is normally never the case. There are cards though, that act as wildcards. They're called Wild Magic cards. They can take the part of a Source, Quality, or Delivery. If used as a delivery, they're considered initiative 0. What you do then, is reveal cards from the top of the deck until you reveal the part of your spell the Wild Magic is replacing. Then resolve the spell as normal. </div>
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The Sir Lootzor card above mentions treasures, so let's dive into those next. <br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Why yes that's a Shit Wand. Yes, it IS terrifying in game.</span></div>
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So we're going to look at these three. The middle one is actually pretty scary, despite it's name. If you're playing with just one other person, it's pretty useless, since, well, once they die, the match is over. But in a larger game, you could be adding +2, +4, +6, or even +8 to your power roles. If you're rolling two dice or more, that's a guaranteed max damage or effect on your delivery. Another important treasure type is the shoe category of treasures. There's one shoe treasure for each glyph type (Arcane, Nature, Elemental, Dark, Illusion), and the shoe treasure acts like an extra glyph in all your spells. This means, if you have the Dark shoes, and a spell of three Dark glyphs, you get 4 dice. If you have a card that says "Deal 1 damage for each different glyph in your spell", it counts as an extra glyph, and thus extra damage. The effects vary but almost every treasure is useful. One of my favorite treasures gives all your spells +10 to initiative. Now, the highest, naturally occurring, initiative is 20. Normally, stronger spells have slower initiative scores, so having this treasure could jump your initiative 2 spell to an initiative 12 spell, which could mean the difference between you getting blasted and you wiping out a few pesky opponents. <br />
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The last card type is called the Dead Wizard Card. These cards don't affect the current match, but the next one. When you are killed, you draw one of these. Each time a new round in the match starts, all the dead wizards draw another Dead Wizard Card. The point of this is to give you a handicap for being killed. The longer you've been dead, the more of these you accrue. The effects of them are things like starting with more HP, drawing a treasure at the beginning of the next game, adding a Wild Magic Card to your hand... or even having nothing happen. There are only a few cards that go into spells that let you draw Dead Wizard Cards, so they're usually reserved for the deceased. <br />
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When I play, normally we play to 3 wins before declaring a victor, but you could almost play this game as long as you felt like. <br />
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The game ran me $30 at retail at a local gaming store, and I got the above Hagatha spell as a promotional extra. <br />
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All in all, the game is tons of fun, and something that has a decent balance of skill and chance to keep it interesting. If you have any more questions about it, feel free to leave a comment and I'll try to answer as best I can.</div>
Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-61575650382405112013-09-08T11:00:00.001-05:002013-09-15T23:27:07.828-05:00The Deus Ex EffectThis post is going to be twofold. First, it's going to be an in-progress review of Deus Ex: Human Revolution. Following that, it's going to be a small expansion on one of the main themes in the game.<br />
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First off, I'm going to say that I'm a huge fan of the Deus Ex games I've played, those being the original, and now Human Revolution.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">"What about..." No.</span></div>
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Smarmy jabs at Invisible War aside, the series has always been great at a few things: Alternative paths through levels, options to fit a vast array of play styles, and absolutely nailing their setting. </div>
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So, for the uninformed, the Deus Ex series is a hybrid First Person Shooter Role Playing Game. The original released in 2000, and is a graphical mess by today's standards, but it was an ambitious game at the time. When I play Deus Ex games, my first playthrough is always as a hacker who opts for non-lethal takedowns, and tries to stay out of view. Granted, sometimes I fall on my face in the attempt, but you get the drift. The main setting of the series is a dystopian future, where cybernetic augmentations are all the rage, and conspiracies are abound. </div>
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The timeline goes Human Revolution > Deus Ex > Invisible War, so the prequel is what I'm in the midst of playing now. </div>
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So far, what I like about the game is a few simple nods to how the technology will advance in the series. In Deus Ex, all grenades can be tossed or thrown as normal, or they could be affixed to walls or floors and become mines. In Human Revolution, the grenades have to be combined with a mine template in order to be used as a mine. Second, we get to see the rise of augmentation in the series, as it played a plot point in the original. In the original, you play a new type of Augmented soldier. You are more biomechanical then mechanical. By that I mean, you don't have gaudy metal limbs, and you look more human than machine. Because of this, other members of the military organization, UNATCO, despise you because of it. In fact, when you fight those two older edition cyborgs, you can defeat them using their deficiencies instead of in straight combat. </div>
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The augmentations in Human Revolution are very obvious, yet they are extremely practical. I don't the augments in Human Revolution are more advanced than the ones in Deus Ex, but I suppose some continuity issues must be accepted for gamplay changes over ten years. </div>
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The biggest hiccup I've come across in this game has been the boss fights. Now, in the original Deus Ex, there were usually some alternatives to figuring out how to beat the bosses, but in Human Revolution, the first Boss Fight I've come across was purely a single's combat with a huge mercenary with a giant assault rifle. This forced me to do more cover shooting that normal, but this guy wasn't completely stupid. He could throw 1, two, or even 3 grenades at once from his apparently inexhaustible supply of them. Because of my habit for playing shadow-lurky, hacky, non-lethal takedowny character, I had some issue here. It took me about 10 attempts to finally get a plan that worked (which was exploding gas barrel followed up by a few grenades), but getting around the room to get all that stuff was really difficult with his eagle eye.</div>
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Apart from that gripe, the game is absolutely absorbing. I find myself reading emails that have no bearing on anything, I read some of the materials that are just lying around, like the newspapers and eBooks. This does a great job of making the world feel lived in. You see emails for maintenance work, or ones about inboxes being full. You see actual employees wandering a building and carrying on work, and personal conversations. It doesn't feel like people are spouting the same two lines over and over automatically. </div>
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So that's the review portion of the game. You should play it, if you're a fan of engrossing worlds and a fairly fun plot.</div>
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I really want to talk about human augmentation though. Throughout the course of the game, you'll find people are split on the issue if human augmentation is either the next step of human evolution, or that it's an abomination to the natural order of things. You can kind of see that happening in reality too, if augmentation technology advanced. You can even see this a little bit today.</div>
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For example, in the last Summer Olympics, there was a sprinter who had prosthetic legs. Oscar Pistorius had both of his legs amputated below the knees when he was a child. The issue with him running with people who have natural legs, is that studies showed that his prosthetic legs provided an advantage to him over other runners. His legs used less energy than a meaty limb would use, and part of that was attributed to less vertical movement when he ran. You know when you run, your body bobs up and down a little, with the lifting and falling of your legs. With his legs, he didn't have to use that extra energy, so his endurance went further. </div>
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Now, some people supported him because he was this inspirational story that someone disabled and who suffered a tragedy when he was young is beating able bodied people. Others feel like his running with other people isn't as impressive, because his limbs give an advantage. Some people might even be worried that if people with prosthetic are allowed to use these technologies with non-augmented people, that it could lead to a slippery slope where people are cutting off their own limbs to get more efficient limbs for athletic competition. </div>
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It's a fine line to draw, between how much of your performance is due to the person's skill, and how much is due to the technology. This is a predominant issue in sports, but imagine it like this. Imagine if you're working a data entry job, and you can type about 40 words per minute. Somebody gets hired with a prosthetic hands that can type 90 words per minute. If your typing speed is the sole basis for your performance, then you would be obsolete. </div>
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I really can't say which is the right answer, because there's merits in both. Do we make separate leagues for augmented athletes? Do we prevent people with them from working certain jobs? If we do that, will they be able to press discrimination issues? if the augs aren't affordable enough many people to get them, then it just becomes another way for the rich to become more powerful, in a sense, than the poorer. I'd like to hear some more opinions on this interesting topic, if anyone is willing to share. </div>
Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-37434374775557210342013-08-13T22:18:00.000-05:002013-08-13T22:18:56.019-05:00Warning: Disturbing Content - Silent HillWhew, back to vidya games. It feels good man, it really does. Been playing a lot of video games lately. Not like it makes a difference I guess, but I've been playing them a lot more than usual. Going back to Marvel vs. Capcom for the arcades, to Spider-Man on PSX, Castlevania... Some off shoot PC games like <a href="http://kayin.pyoko.org/iwbtg/" target="_blank">I Wanna Be The Guy</a>, which if you haven't played it, you should. Sadists would love it instantly, being mind-numbingly difficult as it is, but there's a certain addictiveness about it that keeps you coming back for more, even when it becomes so frustrating that you'd rather nail your hand to the wall.<br />
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No, there's no picture for that. I'd rather not check.<br />
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Anyway, I remember part of my childhood just getting into playing Resident Evil: Director's Cut on PSX, and being terrified of it for months. It was something I had never experienced before. The atmosphere of the old mansion was perfect, and hearing any kind of noise made me jump like a little girl. I played the sequels after adjusting, and still, <i>every time</i>, those games would find a way to creep the living shit out of me. Eventually, I got used to it and bested those games because FUCK YEAH I KNEW I COULD!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Fuck. Yeeeeeaaahhhhhhh.</i></td></tr>
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Until I rented Silent Hill.<br />
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I wish I had known at my tender age of 9 that this game was not meant for children. It's incredibly scary, and not in a "there's a scary monster down the dark hallway hurry up and shoot it" way, but in the "what the fuck i don't even" way. I honestly don't know how to describe the fear I felt experiencing that game from start to finish. It's definitely nothing normal and not something a 9 year old should be playing.<br />
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But my mom didn't give a shit. She rented it for me and single handedly fucked me up for life. Maybe that was her plan. Maybe my mom is evil. MAYBE MY MOM IS SILENT HILL. How fucking creepy would that be?<br />
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Well, if you haven't played any of the games in the long running series, then you wouldn't know. I'll start with the first entry, and hopefully I'll retain my sanity throughout this writing. Hey, did you hear something?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbHYbWm9aUuHztHHeVZjICc48zw2Ra7V1AhIK8XAdFO4UmNtVYer_7cuBHg7ZBXevioYc74vUNtrO1nbYI5fIeJDJdKWRG0VtzcG84hgJg53Mwr0A7Bt2pnBGgAgRLOo80FSrFz3y6llOY/s1600/SLUS-00707.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbHYbWm9aUuHztHHeVZjICc48zw2Ra7V1AhIK8XAdFO4UmNtVYer_7cuBHg7ZBXevioYc74vUNtrO1nbYI5fIeJDJdKWRG0VtzcG84hgJg53Mwr0A7Bt2pnBGgAgRLOo80FSrFz3y6llOY/s200/SLUS-00707.jpg" width="199" /></a></div>
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<b>Silent Hill - Playstation - 1999 - Please end this madness for Christ's sake!</b><br />
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Am I being too liberal with titles already? Anyway, Silent Hill marked Konami's entry into the Survival Horror realm that had long been dominated by Resident Evil, and boy did it <i>really</i> put it's ugly foot in the door. Resident Evil had a cheesy plot, cheesy characters, cheesy dialog... it was just <i>cheese</i>. As revolutionary as it was at the time, Silent Hill came and took it so many steps further.<br />
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For starters, the game doesn't use a fixed camera and pre-rendered backgrounds. It's all rendered in glorious, blocky 3D, courtesy of the Playstation's limited hardware. However, for the time the game was pretty amazing. It's one of the first games I know of to use dynamic lighting, and do it incredibly well. One minute you're in the foggy daylit streets, and the next minute you're in engulfing darkness with a flashlight illuminating the way. I CANNOT STRESS THAT ENOUGH. The atmosphere that little flashlight builds is absolutely crazy. It really makes you question what is around the next corner.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yep. 9 years old right here.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWGYwYr6RRZ60BFDPLLyNUk41knjMfxA0XpVUFFzvLyXPsqqLqLIUxUK99pVYc81fMUlpy5izF5ixlCIo_QqfWYpZWGpxhlVVhy07_qMcE-eSlOpKn2aEddSp8FTM_F_tvvCvIgXCoRtEN/s1600/SilentHill-Radio-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWGYwYr6RRZ60BFDPLLyNUk41knjMfxA0XpVUFFzvLyXPsqqLqLIUxUK99pVYc81fMUlpy5izF5ixlCIo_QqfWYpZWGpxhlVVhy07_qMcE-eSlOpKn2aEddSp8FTM_F_tvvCvIgXCoRtEN/s200/SilentHill-Radio-1.png" width="200" /></a> </div>
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Building to the atmosphere, we have the radio. Basically, it emits white noise when there are enemies around, but it's enough to make you stop in your tracks. It starts as a small little noise, but as you get closer to your enemy, the fucking thing starts going crazy, getting louder and louder. It's one of the reasons this game <i>still </i>scares the living piss out of me. If I ever saw one in real life and it started making that noise I would probably die from shock. It's just one of the mainstays of this game and one that would go on to the later games in the series.</div>
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If Resident Evil is the king of horror games, then Silent Hill surely takes the cake for psychological horror. It explored new avenues that made it stand out. Fans still theorize about the game's story, but the general consensus goes something like this:</div>
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Silent Hill has a way of summoning people to it. In this case, it happens to be Harry Mason and his adopted daughter Cheryl. While driving to Silent Hill, a girl appears in the road and causes Harry to swerve off, crashing somewhere into the town. Cheryl goes missing, and Harry sets off to find her, meeting a few characters along the way. I say summoned because, 7 years before this all takes place, um, fuck this I'll just paste the wikipedia entry:</div>
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"<b><span style="font-size: x-small;">Harry Mason had woken up in a cafe and meets police officer named Cybil Bennet--an officer from Brahms, the next town over. Cybil Bennett and realizes that Cheryl is missing.<sup> </sup>Silent Hill is deserted and foggy, with snow falling out of season<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-plot_kaufmannintro_12-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_Hill_%28video_game%29#cite_note-plot_kaufmannintro-12">.</a></sup> Harry also meets Dahlia Gillespie, who gives him a charm she calls the "Flauros"; Doctor Michael Kaufmann, director of Silent Hill's Alchemilla Hospital; and nurse Lisa Garland, who worked at Alchemilla<sup>.</sup></span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-small;">
</span><span style="font-size: x-small;">Harry encounters a symbol marked throughout Silent Hill; Dahlia tells
him that the girl from the road is a demon spreading the symbol, and
urges him to stop her to prevent the darkness spreading with the symbol,
and thereby save his daughter.<sup> </sup>Harry later encounters Cybil, who is possessed and attacks him. The player may be able to save her if they retrieved a particular item earlier, but if not they are forced to kill her or die.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-small;">The girl appears again, and is put under Dahlia's control by the
Flauros. Dahlia arrives and explains that she manipulated Harry into
trapping it, since only he could approach it. It is a phantasm of her daughter Alessa, who possesses vast supernatural powers. Harry awakens in a logicless void known officially only as "nowhere". He encounters Lisa, who realizes she is dead and begins bleeding; Harry flees, horrified. Her diary reveals that she nursed Alessa during a secret forced hospitalization of the latter<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-character_relation_map_24-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_Hill_%28video_game%29#cite_note-character_relation_map-24"> </a></sup>in Alchemilla.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-small;">
</span></b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Harry soon finds Dahlia along with the apparition of Cheryl and
Alessa, charred. Seven years earlier, Dahlia had conducted a ritual that
impregnated Alessa with the cult's deity through immolation; Alessa survived because her status as the deity's "vessel" rendered her immortal. Alessa's resistance to the ritual caused her soul to be bisected, preventing the birth<sup>.</sup> One half of her soul went to baby Cheryl, whom Harry and his wife had adopted. Dahlia then cast a spell that would draw it back to Alessa.
Sensing Cheryl's return, Alessa manifested the symbols in the town to
prevent the birth. During the endings in which Cybil survives, Dahlia
reveals these symbols to be repellent<sup>.</sup> With Alessa's plan thwarted and her soul rejoined, the deity is revived and possesses her</b><i>.</i>"</span><br />
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...Did you get all that? Can we agree that Silent Hill goes much farther than Resident Evil ever has? And guess what?! The game has 5 endings depending on what you do. While Silent Hill certainly doesn't please in the voice acting category, it still does it much better than other games at the time did. All the characters sound the way they should; Harry being the "everyman", he sounds like it. He's clumsy, he's soft-spoken, and he says "Huh?" a lot. The more devious characters, again, sound perfect for their roles. It's a pretty well-crafted game for a first release.</div>
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But damn is it fucking twisted. There is gore, and lots of it. Silent Hill takes gore to a new level. When the world changes and goes to what fans call the "Otherworld" is when the game really shines. Walls turn to rusty, bloody, fecal (?), fleshy counter-parts of their regular forms. The floors change to rusted steel chain link fencing, or something else that isn't right. Here's a <a href="http://youtu.be/9HiFHOsklho?t=5m37s" target="_blank">video</a> of it, happening at only 5 minutes into the game!</div>
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You will also notice the music, if you want to call it that. It's more of an ambient rhythm. Sometimes you will have music, but most of the time it's either silence (hur hur hur) or some kind of heart-pounding, disturbing... ambiance. I don't really know how to explain it. All I know is it freaks me the fuck out. It took me until I was about 17 years old to play this game from start to finish because of all of this shit. It just fits together in a nice visceral package. It has to be played and experienced. <i>It begs you to play it</i>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxbVlwnvoELnyVFWeOZAjdBkuwkUgCqHbe0fnU0CC7oZUw3pICyzvBFmcZitZeOZPX7AAplAORsWGcA8XK4MiMdP05YkqA9oWZEry12bcoVGs2ER13JqGb5z-IokjELGv7VqQlRS32v3Jh/s1600/silent-hill-1_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxbVlwnvoELnyVFWeOZAjdBkuwkUgCqHbe0fnU0CC7oZUw3pICyzvBFmcZitZeOZPX7AAplAORsWGcA8XK4MiMdP05YkqA9oWZEry12bcoVGs2ER13JqGb5z-IokjELGv7VqQlRS32v3Jh/s320/silent-hill-1_1.jpg" width="320" /> </a></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you can handle that sort of thing.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-4ygIc-A2K7XN_9lxw5wCaJOfpdCc1j6qIXr70mToaxX9Va0v0bxOqusvbTXDCn8ywmQMmLZ6_gN5_NhCgAmB3pm5hJFTyqhEbQ7_q8vKWTbQS-dp4ohaw-RGodUlLLTiFJAyTdXa5yaI/s1600/silent_hill_2_wallpaper_6-1400x1050.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-4ygIc-A2K7XN_9lxw5wCaJOfpdCc1j6qIXr70mToaxX9Va0v0bxOqusvbTXDCn8ywmQMmLZ6_gN5_NhCgAmB3pm5hJFTyqhEbQ7_q8vKWTbQS-dp4ohaw-RGodUlLLTiFJAyTdXa5yaI/s200/silent_hill_2_wallpaper_6-1400x1050.jpg" width="200" /></a><b>Silent Hill 2 - Playstation 2, Xbox - 2001 - Turn the mind fucks up to 11.</b><br />
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A Spinal Tap reference in this kind of post? How dare me! Anyway, released 2 years later on the much more powerful Playstation 2, Silent Hill 2 returned to once again scare the living fuck out of gamers worldwide. Except the Japanese. Nothing scares the Japanese. They probably play Silent Hill 2 when the family is all there, like a little bonding moment.<br />
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Silent Hill 2 doesn't continue the first. If we were to piece the games in chronological order, you wouldn't be able to. The first and third games go together loosely, and the second and fourth games go together loosely. THE SERIES ARE IT'S OWN MINDFUCK. Anyway, Silent Hill 2 stars James Sunderland as he travels to Silent Hill to find his dead wife Mary. Sounds pretty sketchy already doesn't it? Well, that's for you to find out as you play along.<br />
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Silent Hill 2 is a classic. It's even better than the first one. Not only are the graphics much improved to make the experience that much more real, but it's story is much better. You'll meet a new cast of characters this time around, and they all have their own issues that go much deeper than the first game. For example, the first person you meet is a girl named Angela. She seems pretty shy and a little afraid at first, and explains she's there to find her parents.<br />
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Why is this relevant to you? Because you find out that her father raped and abused her numerous times. There's even an enemy that hints towards this. And the place you fight this enemy?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">SEX. EVERYWHERE.</td></tr>
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Those holes? Yeah, a metal rod goes in and out of them. Notice the fleshy textures of the walls and floor. That's just a little taste of what you can expect from Silent Hill 2. It's <i>that</i> fucked up and it doesn't hesitate to let you know.<br />
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And lets not forget Pyramid Head, the game's villain. If ever there was a fucked up design for a monster, this one certainly takes the cake:<br />
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Wait a second, do I really need a picture? Everyone knows who he is! Even if you haven't played this game or watched that shitty movie. He's the ultimate punisher. He wields the biggest knife I've ever seen. He's just plain creepy. Oh, and he <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtrJTn6hd8c" target="_blank">rapes a monster</a>. Yeeeeaaaahhhhhhhh........<br />
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Graphically, the game is gorgeous. The locales this time around are much more sinister. The sound department did a great job in making you jump out of your seat as well. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40wdgcoQOyw" target="_blank">Here's what you can expect from this game.</a> Little moments like that fill this game, and are bound to make you uneasy, or just frighten you to death.<br />
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The music is also something to behold. Silent Hill 2 is widely recognized for it's soundtrack, which is just excellent. You'll find some eerie tunes as you explore a hospital, a hotel, and an apartment building, and all of them are so unsettling that you'll want to escape as fast as possible.<br />
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All in all, from the atmosphere, the locales, the characters, and the best graphics yet, Silent Hill 2 marks the go-to title if you want to mess with your own head. It also has 5 endings that fans have argued about, and still do to this day. Just reading about the theories behind them is interesting and extremely disturbing in itself. A must for any gamer. It's that damn good. Also, it has a side scenario which adds to the story, and it's pretty interesting too.<br />
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Being one of my favorite franchises, Silent Hill still manages to make me uneasy. Just having me explain this to you doesn't do it justice; you need to play these games and find out for yourself. Think of creepypastas you've read, or whatever thing that scares you the most. Silent Hill evokes that feeling and does it so well. Just talking about it is making me uneasy here in my dark, quiet, empty house....<br />
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I just heard that noise again....<br />
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<b>I'll be talking about more Silent Hill in the future. Don't worry, I'll cover three and four, as well as the newer ones! </b><br />
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<br />R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-25310386283326193432013-08-08T20:18:00.000-05:002013-08-08T20:18:36.834-05:003 Things I Hate About The Restaurant Business<br />
This post doesn't even need all this text really. Anyone could just read the title and figure it all out. Restaurants suck to work in. It's a fact. However, they are awesome to be fat in, and spend money. Chinese restaurants are great bang for your buck.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHKI5dJjg-uvFf37bRrBbs85xTJpM83lwPfj9q2xv0WVoI7OVFfJIwXhG60Tliw88z9oYKHeNV0JVz_uJDPvJv_cKGkWO4D9N_ceIQ3T5x4aAcJ0cPu0l9_pKRHFwULHii0oAiXZvW-cIm/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHKI5dJjg-uvFf37bRrBbs85xTJpM83lwPfj9q2xv0WVoI7OVFfJIwXhG60Tliw88z9oYKHeNV0JVz_uJDPvJv_cKGkWO4D9N_ceIQ3T5x4aAcJ0cPu0l9_pKRHFwULHii0oAiXZvW-cIm/s320/images.jpeg" width="256" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In more ways than one.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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You can spend about 15 bucks and eat until you're fatter than fat, until they start asking you to work there to be Buddha. Then you might want to consider a different career path than eating like a slob.<br />
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If they offer you an <i>actual</i> job, by all means take it if you absolutely have to. Otherwise, I don't recommend it. In any restaurant for that matter. AT ALL.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is funnier if you are a chef.</td></tr>
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Not every restaurant is bad. Chain restaurants are much more stable and steady. I work in a little family owned restaurant and these are 3 reasons I dread it sometimes.<br />
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<b>3. Your boss is usually an asshole.</b><br />
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You could argue this about every job, but in the restaurant business this is usually what you deal with, especially in little mom and pop joints. Not only do their moods swing on a dime, but they are also always looking to save as many as possible. (C WAT I DID THER??)<br />
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For example, my boss would insist on paying me under the table, because fuck waiting for payday. Sure it's convenient because you get your money now, but not when he fucks you for some of it. If you work 5 hours for $7.25, you should make about $36. Not if he fucks you over. I've been shorted as much as $30, which I might have well have just worked for free.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Its overcooked! You're fired!</td></tr>
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I'm not saying every boss is like this, but in the places I've worked in, that's how they roll. They care more about saving a couple bucks by selling 3 year old hotdogs (true story by the way) than buying new ones. Or by sorting through rotten long hot peppers and saving any good parts of it, then serving them to customers (also a true story).<br />
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Is that not fucking horrifying? I could go on and on but I'd be typing here all day and I can only waste my awesome talents on you people sparingly. Not that I would <i>ever</i> run out, but I don't want to take the chances.<br />
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<b>2. Your customers are usually assholes too!</b><br />
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Wow! Everybody is an asshole! Well, again, like the boss thing, customers can be incredibly rude for what I believe is the stupidest reason. It's like when they walk into the place they get this assumption that because we are waiting on your every demand that it gives them reason to act like they are your master or something.<br />
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Fuck that. That's not what that means, in any way, shape, or form. Yes, we are here to serve you a nice dinner. That does not mean we are robots that you can bark orders at.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I asked for a white zinfandel. YOU HAD ONE JOB.</td></tr>
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Yet, there seems to be this ignorance barrier as soon as that asshole comes in. "Oh, were in a restaurant. These people serve for a living, so might as well treat them like servants." It's people like that that should work just one week in the restaurant business and see how it is to deal with asshole fuck head pricks.<br />
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The worst thing about these types of customers is that they often leave you nothing after the bill is payed. If you wait tables for a living, then you know that tips are your fucking life bread. Your actual pay rate might as well get donated to starving children because it's jack shit compared to making tips. So say you serve 10 asshole customers out of 40 and all 10 leave you a shitty tip. Congratulations, you've made almost nothing and worked your ass off to please a stranger who could care less.<br />
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And the best part? You have to split those tips. If you work with 3 other wait staff, you can dwindle that money right down. It really doesn't seem like a big deal, but the contrast between a good night and a bad experience is so great it borders on morbid depression. If you add to that the horrible days business is slow, you have a really shitty job.<br />
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<b>1. There is no room for growth.</b><br />
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There's a slight room for growth, but it's nothing too contrasting. For example I used to wash dishes and finally I worked my way up to head chef. Oh, yeah, I forgot the part where I did both at the same time for $7 an hour by myself with no training.<br />
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Basically, my boss thought we would be slow, so he got rid of the dishwasher and told me I could handle both jobs at the same time. Let's get one thing straight here: I'm now in charge of a full dining room, which could easily fill up faster than you can work. I have to keep track of a broad range of inventory, and wash every dish that comes back.<br />
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For someone like me to start that fast cooking and having that much more responsibility than "wash this dish, put it away" it's pretty fucking daunting. I'm also 1 of 2 people who's had to do that at my work. That's the only growth you get. There is no management position. You can do dishes, bus tables, wait, or cook. Each pay exceptionally shitty, especially in mom and pop joints like my work, and each have their own headaches.<br />
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Also, be prepared to do a lot of things out of your job description. As a dishwasher for 2 years, I also helped prep a bunch of shit you don't even realize. It's cool to some extent because you get to learn a lot of new things, but in the end you don't get anything for it. So what you prepped food and desserts for a party of 150 people. So what you got it down like the back of your hand. You don't get any credit! The boss does, even when he didn't do a damn thing. The best part is the whole time you were making it happen he was ordering you around like you've never done it before.<br />
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This happens regularly where I work. Say we serve a party and they want for example, chicken, sausage and peppers, and pasta on a buffet. I can do that all day long like it's nothing. Does that mean I get to do it and ensure it goes the way I want? Not at all. Every little fucking detail, right down to boiling the fucking pasta will be OKAYED by my boss first.<br />
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"Make sure that pasta goes in the water in about a half hour, because the party is eating at 5." NO FUCKING SHIT. It makes me feel like a retard, like I'm incapable of handling my job, and it happens <i>all the time</i>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz5oUm9luspaksQQ10wQrZe5SS46Vf4h96qWWUIx2XD0x1uxJus_66DuYdy7hjPGWc2arPwzaA7aSnAv_PCgONK49ww_2CktwNCV37mHrefVMeSglEDcibaPXNe9tGVvDSge6L9JEWsWsm/s1600/3s8c55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz5oUm9luspaksQQ10wQrZe5SS46Vf4h96qWWUIx2XD0x1uxJus_66DuYdy7hjPGWc2arPwzaA7aSnAv_PCgONK49ww_2CktwNCV37mHrefVMeSglEDcibaPXNe9tGVvDSge6L9JEWsWsm/s1600/3s8c55.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>THIS. </i>Someone out there shares this <i>exact</i> pain...</td></tr>
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It's probably more personal angst than anything, but these are my reasons I hate the restaurant business. Don't get me wrong, I love cooking and I'm glad I got to learn it as a trade, but there's better places to use it. At least I have a job I guess...<br />
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I hope my boss doesn't know how to read a blog.<br />
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<br />R4Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01463463919008007893noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-11375004767884399362013-07-14T23:39:00.001-05:002013-07-14T23:39:15.792-05:00A Take on RPG ClassesSo I've been bouncing between Final Fantasy XIII and XIV lately, and a thought occurs to me. I love the ability to change your character's class. <br />
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In Final Fantasy XIII, for those who don't know, you can change your characters from one "paradigm" to another. A paradigm is a preset class set for your characters. For example: Tri-Disaster has all three of your characters in their Ravanger roles. Relentless Assault has One Commando and Two Ravangers. The point of this allows you to alter your battle strategy mid-fight, in order to heal, rack up damage, debuff, etc. <br />
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The downside to this system is that you have to A) Preset your paradigms beforehand, B) Have a limited number of slots for paradigms (not that bad though, since it covers a wide spectrum of possibilities), and C) For a good chunk of the game, some classes are locked to certain characters, so say, character B can't be a commando. <br />
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All in all, it's a very interesting combat systems, and it keeps things interesting.<br />
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Onto Final Fantasy XIV, and how it contributes to this topic. <br />
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In Square Enix's latest MMORPG venture, you have a class that is determined by what type of weapon you are holding. Holding a spear? You're a lancer. Holding a sword? Gladiator. The benefits of this is that it allows you to change what you can bring to a group immediately, instead of running back to town and changing your class there. Actually, other, non Final Fantasy MMOs I've played lock you into your class at character creation, which is a huge bummer, and just forces you to have multiple characters, thus pay more, in order to see different playstyles. In addition to this fluid class system, you can also equip some skills from other classes you've leveled up. This means, you can have a Lancer who has Cure and Fire spells queued up to deal with monsters in your area. The trade off of this is that it might not always gel well, what with Lancer's not having amazing spellcasting stats. I'm willing to trade optimal synergy though for flexibility with my characters. <br />
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So, I kind of want to hybridize these systems with a few alterations. I want you to have set classes you can level to learn the abilities, but then, after you hit a certain level, or reach an arbitrary story point, you can create your own class. You could choose what stat bonuses you wanted for your class, so you can sort of spec your class to mimic main ones. So for example, if the default Black Mage class gives you a bonus to Magic Damage and Magic Resist, you could make your homebrew Mystic Knight gain a bonus to Magic Damage and Vitality. <br />
<br />
to determine your abilities, you would either have a set number of resource points to spend on abilities, or limited slots, either or could work. Take some abilities from your Warrior class for an HP boost, ability from Thief class for increased Critical Hit Chance as passives, then take Thunder, Ice, and Fire from Black Mage, and then Guard, Provoke, and say, a special blade attack from Warrior to craft your custom class.<br />
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Do this for all your characters. And now you add the Paradigm system from Final Fantasy XIII, and you can now flow between preset classes, custom classes, and other things on the fly. This will allow the enemies to either be more difficult to compensate for increased player coverage, and you could even introduce new things like locking a character into a class as a status ailment.<br />
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This is just something I thought up. I know the programming and implementation for this would be tricky as all hell, but it's something i could see people sinking tons of time into tinkering their characters to match how they like to play. Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-78304710849389857122013-07-14T22:37:00.001-05:002013-07-14T22:37:36.252-05:00Enthusia ReviewIn 1997 one of the first console racing simulators, known as <i>Gran Turismo</i>, came out for the original PlayStation. The physics were, for the time, amazingly realistic, to the point where its tagline, "The Real Driving Simulator," didn't make people chuckle. From then on Polyphony Digital ruled the PlayStation's racing game world, but their throne was not uncontested. In 2005, the same year <i>Gran Turismo 4</i> was released, a new game crashed into the scene from the likes of Konami. But unfortunately, not a single person noticed.<br />
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Yes, ladies and gentlemen. You're looking at the cover for <i>Enthusia</i>, the greatest console racing simulator that nobody knew existed. This game does not have nearly the amount of cars and tracks that <i>Gran Turismo 4</i> has, and Polyphony Digital easily outdid Konami in the graphics department, but what this game lacks in content and graphics, it easily makes up for in gameplay. There are a few major aspects I want to discuss, so I split this review as such.<br />
<h4>
<br />Enthusia Life</h4>
Enthusia life is basically the name of the "career mode". It is very different in that instead of a monetary system like most other games in the genre, you have "enthu points". Enthu points are sortof like your health; if you collide with a wall or cars, go off course, etc., you lose Enthu points. If you lose all of your points, you have to miss the next race. You can also obtain experience points (calculated from your enthu points) which you use to upgrade your car or your driver (upgrading your driver allows you to hold more or gain more points). You obtain cars via a "lottery" of cars that you have beaten in a race. Overall it is a very unique system.<br />
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There was also speculation that the game was initially planned to have an actual story. This rumor is fueled by the intro sequence, which would be easier for me to show via a video than explanation.<br />
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<h4>
Driving Revolution</h4>
Driving revolution is probably my favorite mode in this game. Konami is well known for their <i>Dance Dance Revolution</i> series, and they actually managed to incorporate similar gameplay mechanics into a racing game. I am not joking. In fact, to prove I am not joking, here is a video of one of the stages:<br />
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This game mode is an awesome twist on the license tests in the <i>Gran Turismo</i> series that is equally challenging and occasionally frustrating. There are these gates that you have to drive through (which may or may not be on the optimal racing line) and they have little bars that go up and down based on your speed. You have to match the correct speed when passing through these gates. You're given points for each gate based on how well you match the speed, docked points for missing gates or hitting barriers, and if you gain enough points you move on to the next stage. Utterly brilliant! I have spent countless hours in this game mode, particularly on the challenge level. The challenge level is unique (unique level in a unique mode in a unique game. uniqueception? We must go deeper...) because it has you complete 4 tests where it has the car going full throttle and you cannot use the brakes (though on two of them you do have access to the e-brake). These were a bitch to complete, but it felt so great once I beat them. I love this mode, and it alone makes the game worth it.<br />
<h4>
Physics</h4>
As much as I love Polyphony Digital's series, this game drives much better than <i>Gran Turismo 4</i>. <i>GT4</i> has an issue where there is too much rear grip, which induces understeer (some drivers refer to it as "tight") in cars that don't actually have it. <i>Enthusia</i> essentially nailed the grip balance compared to other console racers of the era. The other thing that gives <i>Enthusia</i> an edge is the force feedback given to racing wheels. Force feedback in <i>GT4</i> was poorly implemented. In the turns it felt fine, but at very high speed on straightaways the wheel simply rattled back and forth in a very unrealistic fashion. Konami did not do such a half-assed thing, and it really makes the driving experience so much better. It also actually penalizes you for driving like a dumbass. If you hit something or go off course, it knows and tells you "hey, you screwed up". In these days, damage was not a major feature to consider, but this was definitely a step forward.<br />
<h4>
Content</h4>
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I did say <i>Enthusia</i> lacked content. It did. Compared to <i>Gran Turismo 4</i>'s astonishing 722 cars, <i>Enthusia</i> makes you feel like a kid looking at a grown man's hotwheels collection when your mother only occasionally bought you one or two at the Target checkout line just to shut you up.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">what an asshole. I would have played the shit out of those</td></tr>
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However the catch is that a lot of <i>Enthusia</i>'s cars are not in <i>Gran Turismo 4</i>, and these "exclusives" were some damn good icons. BMW M1, De Tomaso Pantera, Bugatti EB110...<br />
Right. The game also lacks tracks, especially real ones, but the fantasy tracks that it has are pretty cool and are just as fun and interesting to drive as the competitor's offering, so there isn't too much problem there.<br />
<h4>
Final Thoughts</h4>
So what Konami did was create a damn good racing game engine, infused elements from RPGs and music games, did it really well, and not promote it hardly at all. The result is an amazing game that will never see a sequel (apparently a sequel was in the works at one time, but never actually came to fruition). That said, the masterminds were not suddenly lost. One of the physics developers from Konami has their name in the <i>Gran Turismo 5</i> credits, which explains why there was so much improvement in that aspect over 4. I'm going to give this game a rating of 8.5/10. They nailed the physics and made the game very unique, but the lack of content and unappealing graphics compared to competitors brought the score down. This game really did not get the popularity it deserved, but it has become a bit of a cult classic, much like old Volkswagen Beetles and Reliant Robins are in the automotive world.<br />
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Belisario93http://www.blogger.com/profile/07783637747849623019noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-81882390329145098202013-07-07T14:58:00.002-05:002013-07-07T14:58:55.032-05:00Ingress ReviewI'm not sure how many people can relate, but I used to be a very secluded person. I would wake up, go to school, come home, and go straight to my room to play video games and do other stuff on my computer, only coming out for the bathroom and food. I had a small, close-knit group of friends, and overall I didn't get out much. That changed when I got my requested invite code to Ingress in late January.<br />
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<br />Ingress is an augmented reality MMO game for Android phones (official iPhone port is apparently in the works, though there are some unofficial ones) which some people may consider like "geocaching on steroids". It was created by Niantic Labs, which has a tie to google of some sort (I forget the details on that, you can look it up yourself). The game has little markers scattered around everywhere known as portals. These portals are associated with public attractions and other places of interest. This includes things like statues, historical buildings, murals, historical markers, etc. The whole point of the game is to gain mind units for your faction, which is done by capturing portals and linking them together into triangles.<br /><br />The game itself, like many other MMOs, consists of trying to level up so that you can be more useful, and "farming" for supplies. The backstory for it never really caught my attention, so I don't have an opinion on it. I've heard mixed thoughts on it. But that's not what makes this game awesome.<br /><br />What makes Ingress well worth trying to nab an invite for (it's currently in a closed beta, but they've been giving out invite codes like crazy to people; more on this at the end) is that it can really change you as a person. As I said, I used to be very secluded and stuck inside my shell. This game is great to break that, because often times, especially just starting out, it's hard to do things solo. So you get a chance to connect with people that are just as nerdy as you are and interact with them in person.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">this was from an event some local faction members did. Long story...</td></tr>
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The other benefit to Ingress is that it's almost a fitness game without trying to be. You have to actually get out of your house and visit these locations (which can also cause you to get out and find something new, regardless of how long you've lived somewhere). Admittedly, some people tend to play from their cars, but in many cases it's easier, more legal, and a lot more fun to actually get out and walk from portal to portal. I actually <i>lost</i> 15 pounds in my freshman year of college because I really got into this.<br /><br />I would give this game a 9 out of 10 simply because while they do still have bugs and balance issues to work out, it's a damn good idea, a damn good game, and it is still in beta so they have time to work it out.<br />If you want to play (it is free!), first try requesting an invite code to your email address at <a href="https://www.ingress.com/">their website</a><br /><br />If that doesn't work after about a week, get onto Google+, join the Ingress community, and make a post asking if any local players have an invite code for you to play. Chances are you'll get plenty of responses from people that want you to join under the condition that you join their faction (either enlightened or resistance). As I said, this game is well worth it, so give it a shot.<br /><br />Agent belisario93, signing outBelisario93http://www.blogger.com/profile/07783637747849623019noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-35847308812382835162013-06-30T22:42:00.001-05:002013-06-30T22:42:30.008-05:00Scale and GravityNo, no, no, this isn't about space games, where you have to worry about flight trajectory and whatnot. This is about the plot of a game. <br />
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I was recently thinking about what was lacking in Arkham City, and why I couldn't shake this feeling that I'm missing something. Something about the story in Arkham Asylum immediately sucked you in. The peril seemed much more dire at the same point I'm at in City. In Arkham Asylum, we know the score. Joker has taken control of the island, and now has some control over the villains within. in Arkham City, Batman was injected with a life threatening virus by the Joker, so he'd be forced to find a cure for the both of them.<br />
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The second situation seems more dire, does it not? For some reason though, it doesn't seem like it. The only time that the disease seemed like an issue was for a short, few seconds after I chased down this assassin in the underground of Gotham. Vision got blurry, Batman falls down, and coughs up some blood. That's the first time we see how serious this illness can be, but you wouldn't know it by the two hours I spent between getting injected with the virus, and getting to Mister Freeze, who was working on the cure before being kidnapped. In Arkham Asylum, going from story point to story point felt like progress was being made. Joker would taunt you at every turn, but it Arkham City, the open world actually takes away from story. <br />
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While yes, it is fun, and yes, getting around the city via hookshot/gliding, and the characters are very interesting (the villains, natch), but the situation doesn't feel as important. there is this overlooming "Protocol 10" thing that Dr. Strange keeps yammering on about, but that's been vague. Maybe that's the way they're trying to get the tension up, with an unknown event lurking on the horizon. But it just isn't working all that well. Some games can do intrigue well, but it missed the mark here.<br />
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Let me contrast this with Final Fantasy VII. I'm not huge on the game as some people are, good game, just not 'best ever' category. What it DID do well though was letting you know EXACTLY what the stakes are. Disk one, Sephiroth is the clear cut villain, starting as a SOLDIER gone manic. He commits a massacre in the ShinRa building, which is one of your first indicators that he's snapped. As the game progresses, he gets more and more genocidal. By the start of disk three, he's turning himself into a god among men, and plans on slamming a Meteor into the planet in order to siphon all the planet's energy into himself to make himself a globetrotting vehicle for Armageddon<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Pictured: Sephiroth if he decided to play basketball.</span></div>
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.This is the goal post. You are shooting to stop him. This is established in the first few hours of the game. Every subsequent event in which you see him, aboard a ship, in Nibilheim, Temple of the Ancients, etc, the stakes just keep getting raised. Not only the whole "save the world" thing, but the main character has reasons for going after him for more reasons than "I go because I must". Sephiroth messes with Cloud's psyche so much, that the end fight is one of the more cathartic things in video games. <br />
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Pointing to another example from the same series, Kefka in Final Fantasy VI. Here's how grave the situation is. He succeeds at destroying the world and becoming a god.<br />
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Not as a game over, not as a bad ending. <br />
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He succeeds. <br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Final Fantasy: now with 100% more Killer Clowns.</span></div>
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The entire second half of the game is spent regrouping your forces after they've been scattered, and taking him off his pedestal. Kefka succeeds when you're around, because you get distracted by something else. He then becomes an omnipotent deity, who as the final boss goes through 3 stages of ascension into godhood, who has a cult worshiping him, and shoots laser beams of death when he gets bored. Again, this is the scale of events in the second half. The first half is spent keeping the Empire from obtaining this sort of power. The effects of the statues, the artifacts that grant the power, are brought up fairly early on, so it's not like this comes out of nowhere.<br />
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This breaks so many tropes it's not even funny. How many times do you see that the villain has succeeded in his huge, grand plans? It really leads to some great storytelling in the second half. You don't HAVE to go out and find everyone, but it's recommended. <br />
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In Psychonauts, someone is stealing campers' brain. In Red Dead Redemption, your old gang member betrayed you and left you for dead. Alpha Protocol has you interacting with the 'final villain' throughout the course of the game. You see Halbech all the time, as he tries to profit off a full scale war. <br />
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I'm fine with games going for an intriguing storyline, I really am. They just need to have enough of a pull or mystery to get you invested. Being vague, or too avant-garde can just leave me feeling that something is coming out of thin air. <br />
<br />For a quick example of how I feel this worked out well, I'll point you to BioShock. Wonderfully done game, with an ending that was a bit off, considering the rest of the quality in the game. Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-10785530244992330432013-06-02T20:21:00.000-05:002013-06-02T20:21:19.546-05:00Album Review: Krallice - Diotima<b>The Pretentious Version: </b><br />
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Picture, if you will, the very concept of music. At its core, it is merely arrangements of sound that some may find pleasing. To the listener, however, music transcends what it is composed of to stimulate the listener's mind and even his soul at times. Each piece of music, in its own way, creates a world, some glimpse of another plane within the human mind, some more so than others. Diotima, the third album by New York progressive metal band Krallice, is one such work; each song a piece of the darkly serene world that the work as a whole creates, one of chaos, yet beauty amongst its ruins. <br />
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The intro track "-" (This review may be pretentious as hell, but even I can't justify that title) is brief, but sets the scene efficiently, where tremolo picking and blast beats combine to weave a dark tapestry. It gives way to a solemn guitar riff, which itself crossfades into the feedback of Inhume. There are few moments like this on the album, the other two such moments occurring on the title track and Telluric Rings, but these moments are a stark reminder that despite the beauty of the landscape, its jagged mountains and foreboding gloom still render these lands hostile and uninviting. Krallice are not a band known for being "evil" or "brutal", but the atmospheres evoked by these passages are quite dark indeed, and would work well if reworked into a black metal album. (Note: I don't consider Krallice to be black metal, despite their classification as such. If an artist uses the techniques of surrealism in addition to his own skills and vision, the painting is not exclusively a surrealist work.) Despite the overall solemnity of the album, there are still plenty of points at which some hint of celestial essence can be seen, as moonlight penetrating the clouds. The riff at 5:26 on Inhume, which is repeated shortly after, is an example of this, as is the first climax of Telluric Rings at 6:41. <br />
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A work of art is only as quality as its artist, and on that front Krallice certainly deliver. The twin vocalists, Mick Barr and Nick McMaster, complement the surrounding music perfectly, and, while some may find Barr's higher-pitched vocals grating, the album takes more of a focus on McMaster's growls, which are the deepest they've been throughout their discography on this record. The dual guitarwork of Barr and Colin Marston always strikes a balance between flashy and reserved, with solos used sparingly. Special mention goes to McMaster on bass duty; his playing does not mirror either of the guitars, but cuts its own path to augment the surroundings, often to the effect that lesser bands try to accomplish with over-the-top keyboards or orchestras. His work is the subtle undercurrent to the rest of the band's waves. <br />
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The album holds plenty of stand-out moments, but the most interesting of which to my ears is the track "Litany of Regrets". The production is compressed heavily, not to produce a lower sound quality overall, but to create a sort of motion to the song based around the bass drum pedal. The song keeps a consistent up-beat tempo throughout, which combined with the aforementioned compression, lends the track a sort of hypnotic quality. The music itself is heavily focused on repetition, with occasional theme changes, but ultimately returning to the central riff. "Litany of Regrets" is essentially the modern metal realization of an ancient shamanic trance ritual, a theme with the lyrics touch upon as well: "And the anchorite dreams/He dreams a shaman carving blood unto/Darkened cavern ribs/While shadows dance/To the ecstatic rhythms/Of the Pacan/He dreams of pages of gossamer and spider web/Whose words will not survive their altercation back to dust." The repetition may easily be seen as a weakness, but it fits the concept quite well. The album ends with another example of one of the things Krallice does best; taking a moment and building upon it until it envelops the listener. While not as bombastic as the last minutes of "Monolith of Possession" (from their previous album, Dimensional Bleedthrough), the outro of "Dust and Light" is a more than satisfying conclusion to Diotima, providing a fitting end to the sonic journey through forgotten lands.<br />
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In conclusion, Diotima must be viewed as a whole work, not on a song-by-song basis. It, like all Krallice albums, is not to be viewed on merits of its status as "metal", although to the patient listener, it has more than enough moments to satisfy those listeners as well. It crafts a world within the listener's mind, and then guides him on a journey, bearing witness to both beauty and savagery. If you are a fan of music as an artistic medium, or simply like quality progressive metal, Krallice is certainly a band to check out, with Diotima as another shining example of their status as craftsmen of sonic landscapes.<br />
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<b>NON-PRETENTIOUS VERSION:</b><br />
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Krallice are clearly skilled musicians, with plenty of guitarwork to keep metalheads interested, if they can bear a bit of repetition in "Litany of Regrets" and each song blending together to create a whole instead of simply crafting memorable songs with hooks, choruses, etc. It's worth a listen to see if it's your thing, certainly, but I can't guarantee the appeal of it to a standard metal audience. <b></b><br />
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<br />The Mighty Traestorzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16672664418661463140noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-63671039638850247572013-05-29T21:03:00.002-05:002013-05-29T21:06:31.922-05:00Replay ValueSo, recently one of my friends has finished a game, and he feels underwhelmed by how it wrapped up because it doesn't have the same replay value as older versions of it. He's referring to DmC vs the old Devil May Cry games, in this instance. <br />
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One one hand, I want to agree with him on his point. <br />
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On the other, I can't.<br />
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Let's look at some older games, and see why they've become such mainstays in our libraries.<br />
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We're gonna start old school with these first games.<br />
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The replay value from these games comes from, not the complexity of their design, but from their gameplay. There are a finite number of paths through each of these games. Of course you can skip levels in Super Mario Bros via world 1-2, but it's not really altering your path through the game. You'll still end up going through the same levels you would have otherwise. You can fight Heatman before Crashman in Mega Man 2, but it doesn't really change much beyond what order you get your powers, which you'll still have all of them at the end.</div>
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So how do some people get replay from these? Self-imposed challenges.</div>
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Mario Speedruns. Megaman 2 Buster-Only playthrough. Hell, there are complicated as HELL playthroughs for Pokemon games. Clearly, there are ways to make your games last longer. Mind you, these aren't for everyone. Personally, I won't ever do any of those playthroughs, but there are some people who want to do this.</div>
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So why else do I go back to Super Mario? Well, just because it's fun to play. That's all I need. If a game was fun to play, I will go back to it, despite knowing how it ends, despite knowing all the plot points, or whatever. I've beaten Final Fantasy VII a few times, but that game doesn't really change with each playthrough. Most times, your first playthrough is the best one, simply because you're seeing it with new eyes. What's nice about subsequent playthroughs though is that you can notice new details of the game that you didn't know before. You pick up on foreshadowing that you may have missed, or subtle nods to other things. </div>
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Now, on the newer game side, I've nearly 100%'d Saints Row the Third (all collectables, just missing some wave defenses), and you can sure as hell bet that I'm going to keep that in my library. Same with Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. </div>
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Onto where I agree with him though. There have been some companies who have been known to sort of "sever" their core game in favor of making people pay for DLC. I say "some" for this. Capcom is notorious for their On-Disk DLC policy that they had for some of their games. We'll be talking about DLC in a podcast in the future, so keep an eye out for a more comprehensive take on that. Let's just say I'm fine with DLC made outside of the normal development cycle.</div>
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Another thing is that some games have been shortening their single player campaign to about 8-12 hours, which can seem short for the investment. Then we have to remember that old games from the SNES and NES cost about the same. Now, I'm not saying that we should be having half hour games, or non-ending games now, because that's what we had in 1990, I'm just putting things into perspective. Expectations change, as they should, due to the evolving technology. We also need to look at each genre and how long we expect games to be in them. An RPG? I expect 20+ hours from. An Action game a la God of War? If the game is satisfying, 10-15 hours. An FPS? Well, if it's a straight up one, 10 hours is fine. Hybrid it with an RPG, jump that number to 15+ (hi there Borderlands, Deus Ex, and from the Third Person Side Alpha Protocol)</div>
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The point is, not every game is going to be a monumental creation. If we look at other mediums, not every book is going to be read multiple times. The same goes for movies. There are things that I've consumed once, and been satisfied with. Then there are those games that are profound, interesting, or just plain fun enough where I want to keep them in my library, not for an immediate replay, but for one down the line. That's where real replay is. The one where you can dust it off after a hiatus, and pop it back in and have it all come rushing back. The games where you can say "Why have I waited so long to replay this?". Those are rare, and sadly, many people don't realize it. </div>
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There are games that have a definite replay value, Okami comes to mind with the New Game + option. In fact, any game with that feature adds a second playthrough. The Tales series does this incredibly well. </div>
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A good game shouldn't need these though. When the option to keep your stuff for a second playthrough comes up, it's nice, but a game that sticks with you is one you'll start over to play it again. </div>
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[Edit] Looks like we hit 100 posts on this blog (so what if I'm a tad behind)</div>
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Whoo, party.</div>
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Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-62535465888887119892013-05-25T23:22:00.002-05:002013-05-25T23:22:53.148-05:00The Shadowrun Returns Hype-TrainAlright, with Shadowrun Returns being about a month away, I'm here to run the Hypemobile for it. <br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Not sure what an ACTUAL Hypemobile looks like... Probably not this.</span></div>
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So, the goal of this post is to explain what exactly is Shadowrun and Shadowrun Returns, and why should you care. </div>
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I did a few paragraph description of Shadowrun awhile back, so the link to that is <a href="http://fansonfire.blogspot.com/2011/06/tabletop-gaming-pt-2.html">here.</a> <br />
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Did you read that? So we can continue right?<br />
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No? <br />
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Fine. <br />
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Here's a few key things to take from it.<br />
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<li>Cyberpunk Dystopian future. Set around 2040-2060.</li>
<li>Matrix is the global internet framework. It has crashed on two occasions, both leading to some interesting developments, like Technomancers.</li>
<li>Concerning the Matrix, everyone and everything is always connected to it. It is seen as suspicious if your ID suddenly disappears off the 'grid', so, say 'hi' to Big Brother.</li>
<li>Due to some weird events, humans aren't the only intelligent species. Metahumanity has sprung up in the form of Elves, Trolls, Orks, and Dwarves (not just little people any more).</li>
<li>Also, magic has returned, and it's mechanic is still a little wonky, but it works.</li>
<li>If you think the companies NOW are bad, in the future there about ten AAA Megacorps that run everything. They are considered independent entities that can have their own standing armies and security forces. </li>
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So generally, it's a <a href="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CrapsackWorld">crapsack world.</a></div>
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In 1993 and 1994, Shadowrun games were released for the SNES and the Genesis, respectively. The games aren't the same game, but they were both received as underappreciated games of the consoles, becoming cult classics. They were both action-RPG-ish (for that time), and captured the feel of the tabletop game, according to players. I've only ever played the SNES one, so we're going on a musical safari to the land of Genesis Shadowrun.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Or one of the SNES, since my Youtube Fu wasn't strong enough.</span></div>
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Whatever. Moving right along.</div>
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Then in 2007, we have the Xbox/Windows cross-play Shadowrun. This was a First Person Shooter that was pretty much panned by fans of the Shadowrun universe. </div>
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But now the main reason why the hype train is in town. Shadowrun Returns.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Toot toot.</span></div>
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Shadowrun Returns is a PC/Mac/Tablet/Smartphone game that's coming out next month. It's being made by Harebrained Schemes, which contains people who helped develop the Shadowrun pen and paper game. In addition, they've brought on the people who worked on the music for both the SNES and Genesis soundtracks to work on the SR:R soundtrack. This game was funded via Kickstarter, and received over $1.5 million from it's backers. </div>
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It's going to be an Isometric 2/3D Tactical RPG. There is no multiplayer planned for it at this time. They are focusing on a strictly single player experience. You will be able to create your character from about 5 archtypes, and able to customize further once you gain some karma (the game's XP system). The makers are touting their AI system, that reacts in stages, to try to realistically respond to a potential threat. This means, that you can talk your way past guards, or stealth past, or steal the keycards, and sneak in, or just kill them. There is a bevy of different ways you can play this game.</div>
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In addition to the game itself, there will be a DLC expansion released after the game is out that takes place in Berlin. Also, players will have access to the same builder that the developers used to make the game, so people will be allowed to make their own campaigns, missions, and entire storylines using the same program they used, along with some additional art assets.</div>
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I'm going to sign off and leave you with a gameplay clip from the alpha build of the game being played by two of the devs.</div>
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HYPETRAIN</div>
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Jama7301http://www.blogger.com/profile/14879023184455636184noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-84944181873380831332013-05-10T22:26:00.001-05:002013-05-10T22:26:23.953-05:00Quake II - PC Vs. PSX Vs. N64Let's go back to 1999 for a while. Quake II, the then-cutting-edge FPS by id Software, has been out for almost two years now, and what a game it is. (It's fucking Quake, do I really need to review the game itself?) But, let's say you, for some reason, don't own a computer that can handle it. (It's 1999, OK?) Luckily for you, there are two ports that have released for the PlayStation and Nintendo 64! But how do they compare to the PC version?<br />
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Let's start off with the original PC release. Remember, it's 1999, so source ports aren't a thing yet.To get the basic point across, here's a quick screenshot I snapped of Quake II at its highest settings, including its then-astounding resolution of 1600x1200.<br />
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8-bit textures, OpenGL renderer-compatible... the pinnacle of interactive software, at least until this new game named Unreal releases. The PC release has sets of levels broken up into Units, each one ending with a short FMV detailing your progress through the Strogg stronghold. Not major stuff, but a nice addition and, again, cutting-edge at the time. Framerate depends on the system, but we'll say that in the future, maybe 2013 or something like that, running Quake II at a framerate in the hundreds should be commonplace. The controls are entirely remappable to any key, and support keyboards, joysticks, and even mouse-aiming, presenting an entirely new level of precision that's sure to make the multiplayer modes even more frantic. The multiplayer, by the way, supports LAN as well as TCP/IP online play.<br />
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Now let's look at the PlayStation version.<br />
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The PlayStation port of Quake II runs at the console's native resolution of 320x240. From the outset, the PSX port combines the high-resolution textures of the software-rendered PC game with some special lighting-effects that, while decent enough, aren't as stunning as the OpenGL lighting on the original. The maps in this port aren't just the main Quake II maps, but rather a combination of maps from the base game and the expansions, with some changes made to accommodate the limits of the hardware (more loading areas, less secrets). Some of the soundtrack pieces are shortened as well.<br />
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The multiplayer is still here, with deathmatch, team deathmatch, and a one-life versus mode with up to four players on 12 maps. It's pretty barebones with gametypes, but so was Quake II before Capture-The-Flag released. Players can change their name and color, and you can change falling damage and gravity in the menu beforehand. (Yes, if you're one of those people who has to have it a certain way, you can change the split orientation as well.) One thing worth noting as well is that, no matter how hectic the gameplay gets, the framerate keeps a steady 30FPS at all times. <br />
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All in all, not a bad port at all... except for THE CONTROLS. You can't remap anything, although there are three presets you can choose from. The digital-only controls are kinda standard, so if you're used to those clunky move/turn controls, that'll be your best bet. If you do have a DualShock controller, there's three presets switching the sticks up. I understand that it's 1999, and my ideal design that will hopefully become industry standard six or seven years in the future of using the left stick for all movement and right stick for all looking, isn't quite here yet, but 14 years from now people are really not going to think that this has aged well. The Right-Stick Only preset, which uses the D-Pad for moving and the right-stick for looking, almost works ideally, except that this also doubles as the left-handed preset. You're either stuck with wonky movement and aiming, or wonky firing and action buttons. I'm sure given time, you can get used to it, but the developers could have at least given the option to customize the controls. (Note: Quake II for PSX does support the PlayStation Mouse, but I don't own one so I couldn't test out how it works.)<br />
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Once you get past the controls, you could do a lot worse than this. At its core, it's still definitely Quake II, and, controls aside, there's really nothing outright wrong with this port. <br />
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Okay, so the PSX port fares fairly well, but how does it stack up against the Nintendo 64 release?<br />
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This port is a very mixed bag, but let's start with the graphics. On the one hand, lighting and particle effects are much improved and, dare I say, better than the PC version. But on the other, textures are lower-quality and model animations are much choppier, especially the weapon animations and the players in multiplayer. (Worth noting: The Nintendo 64 port of the game lacks grenades as a stand-alone weapon, as they are now only ammo for the Grenade Launcher.) The industrial-rock soundtrack by Sonic Mayhem that was present in the PC and PSX versions of the game has been replaced with a new ambient OST. Rather than being a compilation of maps from the base game and expansions, the majority of maps in the N64 port are new and exclusive, with only a few original maps. However, getting in the way of this is something that's never been an issue with any prior version - the framerate. It's smooth enough in small areas, but in combat and larger areas it becomes noticeably sluggish, even at the native 320x240 resolution of the console. The Expansion Pak is supported optionally for "enhanced effects", but does nothing to help the performance.<br />
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Unlike the PlayStation port, there are not only five presets for controls, but you can fully remap the controls to your liking. You can also change your character's name and color in multiplayer (six colors to choose from, up from the PlayStation's four). The number of maps for multiplayer is reduced to ten, but the maps there are new as well. Gone are the gravity and falling damage settings, but in their stead are new multiplayer gametypes, which are Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture-The-Flag, and Deathtag (kill the guy with the flag before others do!). The framerate isn't perfect in multiplayer either, but it's certainly tolerable.<br />
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All in all, all three versions of the game are worth your time if you own the consoles. The PC version is the obvious winner, with the expansions, multiplayer, and burgeoning modding and mapping community sure to keep the game active for years to come, while the PSX port lacks new material, but holds up well enough on its own, and the N64 release is loaded with new features that fans of the game are bound to love, if they can deal with an uneven framerate and some lower-quality graphics.<br />
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(Returns back to 2013)<br />
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It sure is hard to believe that something that once was as cutting-edge and popular as Quake II is now a forgotten relic buried in the sea of mediocrity that the genre it helped popularize became. All three ports do hold up (to a degree) and, although the PC version has since become even more of a definitive release with source ports and an online community that lives on still, neither other release is a waste of money if you like the game and own the consoles. (It was also released on the Xbox 360 on a bonus disc with that console's port of Quake 4, as a straight PC port) Quake II is a worthy purchase no matter what system you want it for.<br />
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<br />The Mighty Traestorzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16672664418661463140noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-19438651366239032472013-05-06T23:45:00.001-05:002013-05-06T23:45:55.053-05:00Album Review: Joe Satriani - Unstoppable Momentum<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A bit of backstory: ever since I actually knew what a guitar was and what good guitar playing truly is, I had a soft spot for Joe Satriani. Sure, there are more technically talented players out there (Tosin Abasi of Animals as Leaders, for example), and there are better composers as well (don't really have an example there), but Satch is still, hands down, my favorite guitarist. He combines a great collection of playing and writing ability, among a wide variety of genres and playing styles, and has FUN doing it. Go ahead, tell me he isn't enjoying Chickenfoot and G3 and whatnot.<br />
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When I heard Satch was having a new album come out, I was jumping up and down with excitement. So much excitement, in fact, that I got my copy, erm, imported from Australia (for the first time in... ever, Australia got something released there first!) and gave it a few listens while "studying" for my final exams.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">studying actually meant "doing an internet". Take that as you will.</td></tr>
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It's hard to write a review for this album. It sounds good, great even, but it's not really any new direction for Joe. He's a great player, and there are some subtle differences from his last album, <i>Black Swans & Wormhole Wizards</i>, but overall it's pretty much more of the same. Most of the songs in <i>Unstoppable Momentum</i> are a bit more upbeat and "happy" than 2010's release, which is more fun to listen to, so I will give it that. Your usual "Satch screams", whammy bar wankery, and effects pedal goodness are all there, and it all still sounds very refined and clean in execution, which is good and all. But it's just missing that feel of a new album.<br />
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That said, I do have some tracks that I did like more than others. "Lies and Truths" employs some good shredding and overall is a bit of a mysterious sound. "Shine on American Dreamer" almost comes off as a bit of a love song to me, which is hard to do without words, so that earns props. "Jumpin' In" is easily my favorite. Overall it employs some very bouncy, catchy riffs that I can really get into, and I can just see him on stage playing it and having a good time. And then there's "A Celebration", which is good for what the name implies.<br />
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Despite it being somewhat "average" Joe (does that count as a pun or a cliche?), that's not a bad thing by any means so I won't let it bring it down. I'll give it a 9/10. I wholeheartedly recommend this to someone who likes Satriani and the other guitar virtuosos. If you don't really have an opinion on Satch, give it a whirl. It's great background music for doing work. You'd be surprised at how much more you get done listening to something without words in comparison to something with them.Belisario93http://www.blogger.com/profile/07783637747849623019noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-83486657424759256302013-04-24T16:22:00.001-05:002013-04-24T16:25:33.700-05:00Audio Sadism: Metallica and Lou Reed - LuluDAMNIT.<br />
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WHY DID I DECIDE TO DO THIS. IT BURNS. I WOULD HONESTLY RATHER HAVE WEASELS RIP MY FLESH THAN LISTEN TO THIS ALBUM AGAIN.<br />
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But alas, I must review this... "album" out of self-hatred and because I said I would in the last AS post. So, without further ado... <br />
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First, let me get this out of the way to appease naysayers (if there are even any who try to defend this album): I did listen to this whole album. TWICE. When I put myself through these albums I always put aside any preexisting notion of album quality, listen with a fresh mind, and try to find the best of it. But, both listens turned up empty. You heard me right. There is not a SINGLE REDEEMING QUALITY to this album. NONE WHATSOEVER.<br />
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The production is alright, I guess. I mean, it's overproduced and clipped to hell because "METAL IS LOUD \m/", but at least you can hear the instruments well enough, except for the bass, but this is Metallica after all. The concept could have worked if done by a group of musicians competent enough to actually pull it off convincingly. The album is based off of a series of controversial plays by the German playwright Frank Wedekind, and that in itself is loaded with potential! The stories are certainly dark and gritty, making it ripe for a metal concept album, and the play aspect makes it fitting for lengthy, progressive epics, recurring motifs, and other such thing. Hell, if this album were done by, say, Opeth, it'd be a masterpiece!<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">But here's the thing: Metallica, with their collaboration with Lou Reed, are trying to be something they aren't. They're a thrash metal band, first and foremost (and a suffocatingly generic one at that); they simply aren't suited to the lengthy compositions that this type of subject material calls for. Before the album released, there was some possibility that Lou Reed, in all of his polarizing weirdness, might be able to bring the album past mediocrity, and if it did turn out to be shit, it'd certainly be spectacularly shitty. But, unfortunately, it seems like the bulk of the music was done by Metallica. Lou Reed's biggest contribution to this release is vocals. I know he's Lou Reed and he's supposed to be polarizing and avant-garde and all of that type of stuff, but here, he simply sounds like an old man, and that, combined with the lyrical content of the album, raises the album to new heights of disturbing mental imagery. Take the first track, Brandenburg Gate, and envision this: C-major tuned acoustic chords start the track off, and it all sounds swell, maybe even exciting, when SUDDENLY YOU GET AN OLD MAN STATING THAT "I WOULD CUT MY LEGS AND TITS OFF WHEN I THINK OF BORIS KARLOFF AND KINSKI"</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">And that's among the least cringeworthy of Lou Reed's vocal sections. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">For me, it's not the lyrical content itself, I mean it's certainly unnerving, but there's a difference between unnerving to get across the intended concept, and then there's creepy-perverted old dude unnerving. Maybe if these lines were done by a guest female singer or something, it'd be much improved. But nope, we're stuck with Lou Reed and James Hetfield doing this. With James Hetfield's backing vocals repeating "Small-town giiiiiiirrrrllll!" amidst Lou Reed's creepy old-dude vocals, you'd think that this was an elaborate joke on the fans. And let's not even delve into Hetfield's now-infamous outburst of "I am the table!" on The View. </span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Special mention goes to Little
Dog, the second track of disc two, for being pure, unadulterated WHAT
THE FUCK IS THIS WHY IS THIS EVEN A THING. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">And then there's the repetition. Oh, GODS, the repetition. On the fourth track, Mistress Dread, the first riff is an almost decent Metallica-caliber one, finally kicking the album into the long-awaited thrash metal experience that Metallica are known for! ...And then it keeps going. And going. For the rest of the song. Which also happens to be seven-minutes long. Later, the second-disc song Dragon seems to show some promise with the building-up of the central riff and the increasing heaviness and speed, but again, it's the same riff being repeated for 11 minutes, UNINTERRUPTED. It's literally the only riff in the song! There's verse-chorus-verse song structure with some repetition, and then there's second-wave black metal repetition, AND THEN THERE'S THIS. Sure, the repetition might not be as bad if the riffs were some really great ones, but these are among the most simplistic and generic riffs that Metallica has ever released. (Even by Metallica standards!) That, combined with Lou Reed's aforementioned creepy-old-guy vocals already negates 95% of anything this album had going for it. Case-in-point, the final track, Junior Dad. It's twenty minutes long, and at least ten of those minutes consist of a strings section playing the exact same chords. The orchestra apparently does perform throughout the album, but I barely noticed it, and it's a damn shame that they were consigned to THIS. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">It's boring. It's pointless. It's poorly-executed. It's Lulu, the much-maligned collaboration between Metallica and Lou Reed, and rightfully so as I have borne witness to. Some concepts are better left to memory, for the sake of mankind. I'd say it deserves to be heard just for how much of an atrocity it is, but hearing this entire album is a fate I would wish on no man. If you want experimental Metallica, check the Load albums. If you want Metallica with an orchestra, check the S&M live performance. Spare your sanity and forget that this album exists. </span></span></div>
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The Mighty Traestorzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16672664418661463140noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-802588870352988078.post-18302257887993140582013-04-18T23:17:00.003-05:002013-04-18T23:17:52.223-05:00Hymne *post number here*: Of Updates and The EightiesSo I've been pretty much dead on the blog for a while. I've had some severely outdated-by-now posts I had in the making and may just get around to finishing... someday. But for the present, here's what I've been up to.<br />
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So a few days ago, I picked up the new Tomb Raider, and I've been really enjoying it. It's really well-done and actually quite immersive, dare I say, more so than Far Cry 3 (without mods, anyway). Speaking of Far Cry 3, I am becoming physically unable to contain my excitement for FC3: Blood Dragon, the gloriously 80s-styled stand alone game set for release on May 1st.<br />
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TRY AND TELL ME THAT THIS ISN'T GONNA BE GAME OF THE YEAR.</div>
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I've also been playing Psychonauts (finally!), and reveling in the cutesy-yet-disturbing (Fridge Horror, as the folks at TVTropes would call it) atmosphere. Aside from that, I've been busy with music and school. Not really much else to update on that front. Maybe another album review soon, if I can motivate myself sufficiently. </div>
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ALSO FAR CRY 3 BLOOD DRAGON AHHHHHHHHHHH</div>
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The Mighty Traestorzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16672664418661463140noreply@blogger.com0