Otaku Central

PSP - Games That Look Good

2005-12-23T17:50:00.000-08:00

Just like with the PC I'm afraid I don't play PSP games, mostly because I am unwilling to drop 250 large on a PSP. But that doesn't mean I don't have an opinion or two about good PSP games... just don't take my word as gospel truth, it's only an opinion (they might not be as good as I thought they would be).

Final Fantasy VII - Advent's Children
Not a game but a movie on the PSP. Yes, lots of those but only a few I recommend. This is one of them, the movie that should have been Square Enix's first theatrical release instead of the less than stellar movie "starring" Alec Baldwin.
Other recommended movies include Steamboy (Patrick Stewart & Anna Paquin from the X-Men movies) and Ghost in the Shell : Innocence (the GITS theatrical sequel).

Infected
A third person shooter with a twist, and a lovely one at that once you play multiplayer and start to "infect" your opponents with your own avatar (or are infected in turn). Yeah, the game should lose a point for trying to be kind of Matrix-y in it's look and stuff but it's still fun from the looks of it.

Luminos
Just as Medeos is the recommended puzzler for the Nintendo DS, Luminos is the recommended puzzler for the PSP. Both take the tired old Tetris concept and turns it into something worth playing. Definitely a check for you puzzler fans.

Wipeout Pure
I heard this is a solid racer worth checking out, and since I heard it from the people over at X-Play I'm going to assume that it's true to word in recommendation.

X-Men Legends 2 : Rise of Apocalypse
I liked it on the PS2, and thinking of having a portable version of the fun X-Men Legends games sounds too good to be true... mind you it probably is, but just in case it's at least worth checking out and reading a few reviews on it to see if people liked it or not. And who knows, it just might live up to it's PS2 counterpart's excellence... sorry, I mean Xcellence.

Sorry I didn't have much choices, being that I'm more of a Nintendo DS player than a PSP owner, but still at least I had some choices... somebody post and let me know if any of these are not as good as promised please, thanks.

Review Expansion in the New Year

2005-12-21T20:03:00.000-08:00

Looks like I WILL expand for the new year!
Starting in 2006 you can look forward to Nintendo DS reviews... and once the holidays are over I'll hopefully keep to a schedule and post reviews daily!
Tomorrow I'm going to spin some peeks at recommended Sony PSP & GBA games (even if I really am not the most hyped on the overpriced and flaw slash glitch plagued PSP).
Take care and see you tomorrow!

PC - Games That Look Good

2005-12-21T19:43:00.000-08:00

While I use a PC I don't play games on it, it's mostly for work. But that doesn't mean I don't have some good notions about what might be fun to play on the PC.
Here's some of my choices for games you might find interesting for the PC.
Once again in alphabetical order, just so you know. Yeah, I did this before... I think. Did I? Anyway we're only days away from Christmas so now is a good time to get some games... before, you know, it's too late.

Advance Dungeon & Dragons
If you are too impatient to wait for that AD&D Online game in 2006 then try out the strategy game out now. It'll warm you up for the online version (hopefully).

Battlefield 2
Yeah, yeah, it's now out on the PS2 and XBox but if you want a solid first person shooter for multiplayer online action you should check out the PC version. I heard there are some good points about the "Modern Combat" Single Player version, and that helicopter piloting in this one is supposed to be better than the PC version, but still the better of the two (three?) is the PC version, just so you know.

Civilization 4
You can't get more civilized than a world building sim whose previous incarnations drawn such large fans, but having said game voiced over by Leonard Nimoy doesn't hurt either! Very nice!

Far Cry - Instinct
Described by X-Play as "Weekend At Bernie's 2 meets Commando", you take a trip to the tropical side of 1st person shooters where the mercenaries scream like cannon fodder victims in a bad B-grade slasher flick! Gruesome yet oh so interesting.

Half Life 2
If you played the original then you know why this is good, if not now is a good time to check it out. First person shooter that rocks... say, looks like most of my cohices is first person shooters... guess the age of Point & Click and Multimedias like Myst is over, and the age of 1st Person Shooter is on.

Lord of the Rings : Battle for Middle Earth
Want to take a ride with a strategy game that lives in the world of Middle Earth? While some are not the most hyped about this at least it's not another hack and slash button masher like 90% of Lord of the Rings games I've seen to date. And, for me, anything that provides some variety (and heaven forbid some intelligent gameplay) is worth mentioning in my book. Of course strategy alone? Go for Rome : Total War (best of the best), but if you want Strategy AND LOTR tie in this is it.

The Movies
Now I shouldn't be promoting a game that seems more Sims clone than anything, especially since I only have the most base of information on the game, but if it even lives up to half of it's potential from what I heard of it... ah, you better read 5 or so reviews on this game before you go buy it, you know, just to make sure it's not a terrible clone (because nobody likes playing a terrible clone game)!

Rome : Total War
This is the best strategy game I've ever seen on the PC, and the fact that this also has one of the best Expansion games (Barbarian Invasion) doesn't hurt either.

Sexy Beach 2
OHHHHH-kay. No I'm not recommending this because of it's solid gameplay... well, it's good actually from what I heard, in a XXX hentai way... but I just want to Hilaries of the world to know that I'm not afraid to recommend something truly adult every year... like this, even if it's only in Japanese (because nobody will make it in English subtitles due to the Hilaries).
Sexy Beach 2 good. Unfair and Imbalanced Intolerance about video games bad.

World of Warcraft
Why am I not promoting Star Wars Galaxies? Why would I. Now that they're rumored to be shifting gears and kicking up a "WOW" meets whatever style universe (where long term players get the shaft as their data is wiped and cleansed, much like how the Jedi were purged in Episode III) this is not the best time to jump into Galaxies... you know, just in case you buy the WRONG version and your data gets wiped at the rumored purge... in the meantime buy the solid thing, millions play WOW from what I heard and it's fun.

Hopefully that helps you out, if only a little.

Brief Thoughts

2005-12-20T20:20:00.000-08:00

Guess I can post tomorrow, but a few brief thoughts...

1-Guess by now you might have heard some of the rumblings from people speaking out against the new Ang Lee movie "Brokeback Mountain", right? Well in one discussion about it it was compared with The Chronicles of Narnia movie and, well, the person said Narnia made more money on it's first week than Brokeback Mountain would make in it's whole run. Yeah. That's all well and good but Narnia is not going to break even at this rate if it continues underwhelming at the box office the way it is. Two weeks gone and the movie has only made 50% or so of it's cost back? That is not a good sign, especially since the movie is going to continue to downgrade in ticket sales as the weeks past! Narnia is in trouble, while Brokeback Mountain, which probably didn't cost 150 million to produce, should at least break even (if not make a small profit) which is more than what Narnia can promise!

2-OK, who is playing True Crimes : Streets of NY? As you probably know the game has become the latest magnet for M for Mature video game haters, so that means having to listen to the whiney folks over at FOX News (who seem to use the words "fair and balanced" as more of a gimmick to attract viewers than a solid commitment to viewers) complain about sex and violence in video games.
Me? I'll stick to renting it for review. I have no desire to own this game no matter how M for Mature it is. I'll save my money for the next Grand Theft Auto game.

3-Speaking of things you may or may not do, who amongst you devoted BloodRayne game fans are going to drag yourselves to the theaters at the start of January to watch a so-called "BloodRayne" movie that doesn't even seem to come near to the video games from what I've seen on it. Mind you, though, I have not seen much so maybe you might be pleased with it... but in all considerations that this movie has been effectively given a theatrical burial during the quiet month of January (people who cranked out Academy Award caliber movies and are trying to keep said movies on the judges minds prior to selection are more concerned about this month than anyone else) somehow I don't think this movie is going to be winning many fans hearts... but we'll see.

That's that for now. I'll see you tomorrow, good night, Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and take care! (Only a few days left to finish last minute shopping!)

Nintendo DS - Games I Am Hyped About

2005-12-19T19:39:00.000-08:00

Now that I'm going to be opening up to reviewing Nintendo DS games over at AnimeBoredom and here I am beginning to develop a list of games I am hyped about. Games I think are going to be worth playing, games... mostly approved by X-Play with a 4 or 5 out of 5. Well, I mostly agree with them anyway review-wise so why not!
No particular order except alphabetical.

Advance Wars
I've been itching to try this on the GBA, now I can play it on the DS! If you like fun strategy combat sims that make with the action in a vibrant manner then you'll be going to war with Advance Wars for the DS! (Though why they couldn't make Advance Wars for the GameCube, instead making a "offspring" called Batalion Wars, is something I don't understand... sure it's fun and recommended, but still...)

Animal Crossing : Wild World
Because it's an addiction adults are not afraid to admit to from the GameCube, why not be hyped about the "sequel" now out on the DS! Addiction returns, and once again full grown adults will not be afraid to admit they play with their animal friends on a daily basis!

Castlevania : Dawn of Sorrow
I haven't played a good side scrolling Castlevania game in a good long while, but now one has finally come (rejoyce in it since... well... the PS2 version "Curse of Darkness" doesn't look so good).

Lunar : Dragon Song & ?
Because somebody must... the one and only RPG for the DS at present, though I saw what looked like a second game of the Lunar series... I hope it's not as bad as Dragon Song.

Mario Kart DS
What? Me hyped about Mario? Well I did have a place in my heart for Mario Kart, ever since I played it on the Super Nintendo, but now it's here with (for the first time) online play via the use of the newly forged Nintendo DS Wi-Fi Connector! That means you can take you Mario Kart-ing worldwide!

Phoenix Wright : Ace Attorney
I've been hyped about this for awhile now, it seems, and even posted about this before. So, one more time, because legal wranglings should be portable (and people should have an excuse to yell "OBJECTION!" in public, here's a game that should prove to be most fun. Starring the guy who looks like Roger Smith's twin (you know, that Negotiator from Paradigm City in The Big O (BANDAI))!

Trace Memory
Yeah, I'm a glutton for punishment... I reviewed NARC once, didn't I? Anyway this should be kind of fun if you can withstand the irritating star of the game who needs everything "pointed" out over and over again until she figures out what you probably already figured out minutes ago! Oh, and it's short but still... I'm intrigued.

Trauma Center : Under the Knife
First portable law, now portable health care! Next thing you know I'll want to play with a portable politican! Practice the art of medicine and wield the limited power of necromancy (draw a pentagram star to slow time during tricky operations) in this little gem of a doctor game!

Zoo Keeper
One of a pair of Zoo games, this one being the addictive yet simple to master animal matching game that'll have you pointing and clicking like crazy! Oh, yeah!

Zoo Tycoon
One more Zoo game, this time you'll be making a zoo and taking care of the animals (and not just sorting them out). I haven't heard much of this yet but I always have had a fascination with the Tycoon games so I really do want to check this out and see how good it might be... and if it's (bleep) I'll complain like nobody's business, one or the other.

Almost. Pretty soon we'll have some fresh DS reviews to talk about. Soon.
Stay tuned.

PS2 - Prince of Persia : Two Thrones (First Look)

2005-12-19T19:37:00.000-08:00

I think I may have already gone over this, but since this is out now and you might yet be looking for one more thing to put under the Christmas tree this might yet bear one more look at...

Are you tired of the new “badass” prince yet? Swore off Prince of Persia games after Warrior Within?
When we first checked in with Prince of Persia for the PS2 we have a loveable platformer with the classic Sands of Time, featuring a young spunky lively Prince who had a youthful approach to the game… and the bad habit of often talking to himself during the game.
That all went bye-bye when the next game, Warrior Within, hit. Fans, understandably, were kind of mixed emotions about the game. I’m sure some loved the new Prince of Persia, others hated it.
But why the change? Apparently not enough people bought Sands of Time. Yeah, the game was great, a solidly made platformer that played excellently and even earned a 5 out of 5 from X-Play… yet it, like similarly loved Viewtiful Joe (GameCube/PS2) got the shaft from gamers who did not fully embrace it.
I can see not embracing Viewtiful Joe since it’s painfully hard to play, but Prince of Persia : Sands of Time? Wasn’t as hard as previous Prince of Persia games were, and I liked the challenge of Sands of Time, so I really don’t know why it wasn’t embraced by more gamers.

Anyway back to Warrior Within. In an attempt to bring back gamers Ubisoft put out the next game, Warrior Within, which featured a more mature Prince with attitude… an attitude that probably rubbed Sands of Time fans the wrong way. Guess it didn’t help, for instance, that fans who were of a younger age (13+) were locked out of Warrior Within with it’s M for Mature (17+) rating. It also didn’t help much that the new platforming frustrated players at time from being too damn difficult (which wasn’t the case with Sands of Time which is one of the reasons why I was such a fan of it in the first place), also certain things like the “runthrough” visions which helped you scope out levels in Sands of Time was missing which was another downer… and did I mention the godawful and inappropriate rock music including that damn “I Will Survive” riff from The Rock’s Scorpion King movie slash game!? Obviously I was not as infatuated with Warrior Within as I was with Sands of Time, and I wasn’t alone in that sentiment either.

Well, here’s ONE MORE CHANCE to fall in love with Prince of Persia all over again… or shun it further depending on your present POV. At the end of 2005 UbiSoft will “reward” us with one more Prince of Persia release for the PS2, Prince of Persia : Two Thrones. And, yes, once again it means the return of the attitude mal-adjusted Prince… maybe. You see, a lot of stuff happened in the last game and lord knows that might have mellowed him out… yeah, right, considering we’re staring at ANOTHER M for Mature game I don’t think he mellowed much. Yeah, that of course means that the Prince is still screwed.

In the aftermath of Sands of Time it looks like the Prince’s chances of making it to a sequel wasn’t so hot when, out from the darkness of nowhere, came the Dahaka. The Dahaka, the so called “invincible fist of fate”, came to kill the Prince of Persia… apparently it blamed the Prince for inspiring the gameplay mechanics in EA’s Catwoman game. Yeah. Anyway time passes and we rejoin the “chase” ten years later, and as the game opens we catch up to the Prince and he’s now a “badass”… so blame Dahaka for the attitude dys-justment… and he’s off to see the Empress, the wonderful Empress of Time! Everybody sing along now! We’re off to see the Empress, the wonderful Empress of… what… alright, alright, I won’t mock The Wizard of OZ in this review. Sorry! Apparently the Prince of Persia has got it in his royal head to go see her since he might be able to talk her out of him having to be dead, or at the very least he could travel back to before she created the “Sands of Time” in the first place to prevent his death… yeah… wait, on the wind, do you hear that sound? That’s the sound of William Shatner laughing.
Why? ‘Cause good old William Shatner knows the truth about time travel, dammit! The cold truth!
So the Prince prevails, knocks the Dahaka to the curb, and picks up a cuddly new girlfriend in the Empress Kaileena… that’s the “Empress of Time” right? And everything is hunky dorry with everything, right?
Hear that? That’s the sound of William Shatner laughing! He’s laughing dammit! Laughing!!
So it’s off to the city of Babylon, where he is going to become the head honcho and marry that babe Kaileena. So what could possibly derail his well laid plans… only logic. Damn you, Spock!

The guy and his ship barely makes it back to Babylon before he gets fired upon by the city itself.
The city has turned against him, Kaileena is gone, and he’s screwed. Figures.
The ship breaks, he washes up on “Deadly Ground”, and does the world a favor by putting Steven Seagal to death before he goes into action mode… well, maybe not that. Anyway he’s screwed, Babylon’s screwed, his pretty girlfriend soon to be wife Kaileena is missing, and he left his Progressive Ship Insurance in his cabin next to his copy of Prince’s Life magazine : basically things can’t get worse… which they do.

And so, because UbiSoft thinks you still love them (or will once you play this) thus begins the gameplay of Two Thrones (the third and possibly final Prince of Persia game)!
Good news : Prince is supposed to not swear like a drunken Spartan warrior, give Kratos a run for his coins in the suicidal moody dept., and you won’t have to listen to 101 sucky rock songs (including no more renditions of “I -- WILL SURVIVE!!” from The Scorpion King to torment you)!
Bad news : The Prince is still a “badass”. His personality from Sands of Time is still MIA.
Now according to what I read they’re supposed to be bringing back the wonder and beauty of the original Sands of Time, which was woefully absent in Warrior Within, but whether they do that or not remains to be seen. After all, didn’t they do Warrior Within because they thought making the Prince a “badass” would improve sales (which it clearly didn’t)? How can we be sure they’d bring back the Prince we all loved from the original Sands of Time? The game promises to bring the Prince back to his heroic self from the original, though whether or not he’ll pick up his “invisible friend” again and start talking to himself once again remains to be seen.

Though if he is a little bit on the darker side I guess you can’t blame him. He’s wandering through a dead city pretty much, more resembling the shattered remains of Raccoon City than the proud jewel of the Middle East. His people, wisely, have scattered and are hiding, yet some still fight against the darkness amidst the oh so pretty streets whose graphics are supposed to make you go “ooohhhh” and not “Oh, boring” as you play the game.

As for the enemies? They seem to be newcomers, clad in strange armor, though if I suspect what I think I suspect then this game has UbiSoft digging into the past to draw forth “The Sea People” (if I remember right their “name”) who waged war against the ancient world and nearly brought civilization to it’s knees. This ancient “race”, of whom scientists are only beginning to unravel in terms of identity, raged across the old world during the time of the Prince (somewhere around that time) and put the kickass on the old civilizations, and if they are the ones who now appear in this game then you’re going to have a hard road to travel since they are not going to be pushovers. Don’t quote me though since I could be wrong.

Though one problem that already comes up from the first press releases is the gameplay, or to be more precise the LENGTH of gameplay! According to the thing I read about it there’ll be a major plot twist that’ll be wrapped up some 12 to 15 hours into the game when it ends… 12 TO 15 HOURS?!?
That has to be shorter than even Sands of Time! Wasn’t that longer? 12-15 hours! Sheesh!
And in another “questionable” moment we have the Prince himself, and a new power… the ability to “hulk” out to a raging “Dark Prince” Prince ala The Suffering or Evil Dead : Regeneration. Yeah, right.
Apparently the corruption of the sand over three games makes a “Dark Prince”, a brutal monster that will reveal the mystery behind the Prince himself… though coping a gameplay aspect of MIDWAY’s The Suffering kind of rules too I suppose, since for all intents and purposes this just seems to be a riff on something that‘s been “Been there, been there. Done that, done that“. And while early notes says this light and dark Prince thing would make for a compelling story, all I see is it making for a more irritating or confusing story. Also it gives them an excuse to slap on gory gameplay worthy of an M for Mature rating. So much for bringing back the old cool of Sands of Time which survived admirably on a T for Teen.
One thing that this duality offers though is new gameplay in that both Princes play differently (obviously the dark Prince would be more of the savage hack/slash type than the regular acrobatic Prince, which hopefully reflects well in how you play each of them during the game). This should hopefully add new layers to the gameplay, though of course it could just as well irritate the hell out of you much like how Warrior Within irritated you, so then again maybe this may or may not work out. We’ll see.

There is something I want to know about this new Prince though. What I want to know is whether this game will bring back the intense-ness of the original game, cut out the irritating parts from the second, and layer in new gameplay mechanics that will compliment the game rather than complicate it. Is that too much to ask for? A game worth raving about? Is it?

Let’s see… what else is this game offering?
- Newly revitalized boss battles (which promises to be improved over Warrior Within which was such a pain in the butt). In the article I read there was hints dropped about the bosses of Two Thrones. Listed was mention of “twins”, though I am sure it’s not the twins from Fatal Frame II : Crimson Butterfly. Also there’s mention of a “flying enemy” as well as a surprise “final boss”… surprise… oh-kay, just as long as it’s not the Empress he’s going to marry, his formerly dead father (died in Sands of Time), a giant Colossus, himself or Bruce Campbell then I’ll be surprised by the final boss… maybe.
- The game promises a mix of classic and new traps and obstacles to overcome, which hopefully is going to be as cool as it sounds.
- Promised new gameplay mechanics will also pop up, again taking advantage of the duality of the Prince and his “Torque Smash” counterpart, including combat styles that are unique to each.
- New puzzles to pit your brain against are promised, totaling 10 or so… what? Only 10 or so! Cheap!
- Oh, and they also rip off Shadow of Rome by adding Chariot race sequences (for escape or pursuit throughout the streets of Babylon)… and no, Charlton Heston will not make a surprise appearance.
I guess that’s OK just as long as the Prince isn’t chariot-jacking his ride ala Grand Theft Auto III slash Vice City slash San Andreas. Though I guess to further irritate the fans they could add a location where the Prince can pimp out his ride… but after Warrior Within I don’t think UbiSoft is going to piss off fans anymore by adding things guaranteed to make fans “angry”… fans angry, fans smash!

In the end, when it’s all said and done, the game has abit to overcome.
After Warrior Within and the rather disappointing outcome from that UbiSoft is going to have to swing hard to take Two Thrones over the fence to score a homerun with fans who were not so enamored with the previous outing offered by them. Still what they offer above does sound good, and if the game is as hot as the images I’ve seen so far (tossing the things that lagged from Warrior Within and not adding new things that’ll chase players away) we might have a winner on our hands.
Still, with a promise of only 12 to 15 hours of gameplay and 10 or so puzzles to work through I’m kind of bummed from the word go on this. I guess only the actual release itself will remove any concerns I have about this, but that is something for my full review in the near future. Stay tuned.

Sorry! Longest delay to date!

2005-12-18T16:49:00.000-08:00

Once the holidays end hopefully constant regular reviews will be the norm once again, sorry about the delays. Take care and sorry again (Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas in case I forget to wish you it on Christmas Eve this coming Saturday).

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (GBA)

2005-12-18T16:48:00.000-08:00

It comes but once a year… more or less. And for some once a year is more than enough.
No I don’t mean Christmas, New Year’s, or even St. Patrick’s Day. I mean a new Harry Potter game release, mainly Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire which is the game of 2005, the halfway point of the Harry Potter trilogy. And to celebrate, more or less, we’re talking Potter this time out with a fistful of reviews. Two for the GBA, and one for the consoles (in this case the PS2).
For the GBA it’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Year 1) and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Year 4), while for the PS2 we have the last Harry Potter game prior to this new one (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban). This is the latest game, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (for the GBA).

It’s Year 4, and Harry, Hermione and Ron (family and all) are going to catch the Quidditch World Cup and the epic battle between Ireland and Bulgeria! However before you know it Death Eaters are attacking the camp, and the game rolls right into action from there. However just confronting the Death Eaters isn’t the end of it because this year’s going to be different at Hogwarts this year.
Besides the fact that there’s a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher (a man who lives the Mulder way of conspiracy theories, “Mad Eye” Moody), there’s also the TriWizard Tournament which will pit the students of Hogwarts against two rival wizarding schools in a competition that has been banned for some years but is now finally making a comeback. And surprise, surprise, it seems that after the champions are picked (one for each school) the device of the picking (the title’s “Goblet of Fire”) craps out and spits up a fourth name… oh, Harry Potter… big surprise. Oh, and it looks like Potter’s old nemesis Voldemort is coming back (gee, wonder who “arraigned” to have Potter in the TriWizard tournament), and this sets up a cliffhanger that sets the stage for Order of the Phoenix (Year 5).

Now for the gameplay. I bet you’ll think that the game is going to be a drag since the major console version seems to be an action oriented downer (removing the last bits of fun from Prisoner of Azkaban), but believe it or not you’ll actually find the embracing of action orientation in the Potter games works here!
The game’s action pacing is better here, and it makes the most sense since you’d expect that out of a portable. Unlike the larger console games which you expect more, the action orientation of Goblet of Fire works out well and the game is actually workable. The game’s fun, though you’ll probably put this one to bed in 10 or so hours there’s quirks here that make the game fun.

Let’s start off with the team aspect. Like Prisoner of Azkaban you’ll be using all three characters, though instead of switching off between the three you’ll choose at the start which one you’ll run with and the other two will back you up (by pressing the L button you can call your partners to come and assist you in levitating things and fighting). And while the powers are generic here (unlike Prisoner of Azkaban) you don’t have to fuss with selecting powers. This time out the powers automatically pre-select, giving you the right power for the right task which makes everything flow more smoothly without the stop and go of having to swap out powers to pick the right power for the right task. Also because of this you’ll always have two spells at the ready (shot powers A button, and streaming powers on the B). The upside is that you don’t have to fuss with a selection process to pick the spell you need, but the downside is there’s less originality or chances to mix and match spells on your own. But if you’d rather just play and fuss about picking out spells then this system will work well for you. Another thing that should work well for you in the whole teamwork thing. Since you don’t have to jump from character to character you won’t have to worry about monitoring everyone’s health meters (the others that are AI controlled seem to be rather invincible from what I’ve seen of it), and for the most part it works well though sometimes the teamwork thing does suffer from the occasional snafu (as characters will sometimes ignore you, or not use their magic if you are standing where they want to set up, throwing them off their “groove” as it were making them stand about waiting for you to move before they move into position and start spellcasting -- mostly Wingardium Leviosa since the only time you really need them is to move heavy objects, they seem capable of attacking on their own without being told to attack about half of the time.)

Then there’s the whole card thing. In previous games the card thing was not very vital, but this time out it’ll actually have a purpose. Besides collecting cards that use images from the movie (actual images of the actual cast of the movie), and containing little bits of info about said characters, the cards also contain your abilities and powers. You collect cards that contain your magic (yes) but you also can gain special cards that unlock team abilities (this happens when you collect an entire set from a level, which opens access to a special team card from the Weasley’s card shop for purchase -- a continuation from Prisoner of Azkaban game when the Weasley brothers set up their shop in Hogwarts).
The team cards enhance the three abilitys of the game, mainly attack, defense and speed (the higher these stats are the easier it is for you during gameplay).

Oh, did I mention this game has a bonus section that is unlockable? It does! However it’s not easy to unlock the extras, ‘cause I am still working on it. I defeated the game, nothing. I am almost done collecting all the cards and TriWizard Tournament points… maybe that’ll do something. Well, at least the whole thing of unlockable extras means the game has some replay value that’ll keep you at it past the completion point of the game. And that, by the way, is a nice thing (yes) since previous Potter games didn’t have this kind of extras (like Prisoner of Azkaban for the consoles which meant you had little reason to replay the game after you beat it the first time out).

In short? The GBA’s Goblet of Fire has got interesting quirks (like the difficult rhythm game during the Yule Ball, the flying sequence during the 1st Task which wasn’t a ripoff of Superman 64 meets Super Return of the JedI, and more) but the game is also short. But with the unlockable extras and the power ups that can be gained by collecting all the cards in the game (which means multiple playing of levels to find hidden cards and earning enough Bertie Botts Every Flavour Bean to buy all the cards in Weasley’s shoppe) you’ll find yourself playing this above and beyond just beating this game (which is probably more than you can say of the console version which you probably won’t play again once you beat it). Oh, and did I mention the multiplayer option so two people can team up and play? Yeah, this doesn’t have the feel of the Nintendo DS and the ability for two people to play the same game without owning the same game, but it’s still good and if you know someone who has the game then you can most definitely squeeze more playability out of this without missing a beat. My only real complaint is then that this is probably going to be the last hurrah for the GBA in terms of Harry Potter franchise games. By the time Order of the Phoenix rolls around they’re probably going to phase out GBA versions in favor of Nintendo DS ports. Sad, but most likely which makes it the second system it has been phased out of (the first being the PSOne whose last game was Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, which I have praised as being a rather fun Potter game).
Ok, let’s break this down.

Harry Potter and the Breakdown of GBA Year 4
What’s Hot?
The game is actually good. With a better replay value on this version over the big console version (if Prisoner of Azkaban was any indication as to how little replay value the console version will probably have), the game might have abit more of an appeal than the big one. Yes, it probably looks sweet on the graphics and all that, but if the game is short and has zero replay value it won’t make sense to own it if the game plays so simply and has no replay value.
Yes, eventually you’ll unlock all the content and yes you’ll complete the game, but still with the Yule Ball mini game providing some real challenge for your fingers (try to defeat all the levels of difficulty on all three songs) you might find some reason to come back to this from time to time, if only to replay the rhythm game.

What’s Not?
For a portable version it’s not half bad. And at least it makes sense for it to be action oriented, unlike the console version of Goblet of Fire from which I expected more content (but probably will be disappointed with in terms of content). Oh, and eventually I’d like to see the Potter cast ACTUALLY DO THEIR OWN VOICE ACTING! That means you three (“Harry”, “Hermione” and “Ron”!)

Moments to Remember?
The Yule Ball rhythm mini game.

What to Ignore?
Why does it sound that (after hearing the same short phrase over and over again) Hermione is saying something -- off? She has two lines to call for help… “Come here!” and “Help me!”… and after hearing it over and over again (sometimes in rapid succession if the two you’re calling don’t move right away or come to assist that fast) -- well, let’s say that’s all I’ll say about that.

Overall?
It’s sad but this is probably going to be the final hurrah for the GBA on the Potter front, though I guess that’s OK despite the fact that the dumbed down “action emphasis” of the game only works on the portables (while you’ll probably want more out of the bigger version of the Goblet of Fire game). Still if you are looking for a Potter fix and you don’t want to drop $40-$50 large on the console version then you might be happier with the smaller GBA fix. It’ll fill your need for Potter, and it’ll not put as big a whammy on your pocketbook as the $50 Potter. Just for the gamer who’d want a little Potter, since a little Potter may go a long way… sorry, bad pun.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (PS2)

2005-12-18T16:46:00.000-08:00

It comes but once a year… more or less. And for some once a year is more than enough.
No I don’t mean Christmas, New Year’s, or even St. Patrick‘s Day. I mean a new Harry Potter game release, mainly Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire which is the game of 2005, the halfway point of the Harry Potter trilogy. And to celebrate, more or less, we’re talking Potter this time out with a fistful of reviews. Two for the GBA, and one for the consoles (in this case the PS2).
For the GBA it’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Year 1) and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Year 4), while for the PS2 we have the last Harry Potter game prior to this new one (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban). This is Prisoner of Azkaban, the 3rd game of the series (and probably the last to feature the game’s “freeroaming” gameplay capacity, especially in consideration that EAGames seemingly has killed off that option to make the games more “fun”… if such a thing was possible all things considered).

You know the drill. It’s year 3 and Harry Potter has just blew up his least favorite auntie into cannon fodder for the Macy‘s Thanksgiving Day Parade, meaning it’s time for Harry to pull a runaway bride act and vanish -- which doesn’t last long. He’s found, and everything is A-OK so he can go back to Hogwarts without worry… gee, wonder why, maybe it has to do with the fact that he’s being hunted by a certain escaped prisoner named Sirius Black?

Unfortunately the game doesn’t start with the bloviating of Harry’s wicked aunt (in O‘Reilly-isms), which might have actually been cute (or disturbing)… let‘s see, repeatedly tap the X button the blow up Aunt... Uh, never mind. The game starts off on the train to Hogwarts as you get down once again with the way to work your Potter (as well as your Weasley)… as well as the game’s new team-up option, dueling, and the ability to assist your partner character (Ron helping Harry in this instance) as you get your first look at your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Professor Lupin (no relation to the thief Lupin III) and your first look at a Dementor of Azkaban. Dementors, who seem to have the fashion sense of RingWraiths of the Lord of the Ring, are after Black but don’t seem too disposed to also go gunning for Potter from time to time since he seems “tasty“ (which is odd since they’re supposed to be protecting Potter).

Good thing there’s a brand new layer of gameplay to help Harry (and you) get through the new year.
The new gameplay includes co-op with Ron and Hermione (swapping characters to solve certain puzzles), a new “dueling” system, and new “mini games”.
Let’s start with the co-op system. This time out you’ve gained the ability to team up with Ron and Hermione for tag team adventuring (depending on whose available that is, sometimes only one of the two is available for certain challenges). This means you can use each of the three main characters, as well as their specific traits and skills, to solve puzzles and get through certain platforming levels. Oh, yeah, as of this game the franchise takes on an even more platformy aspect, which is still far more intelligent gameplay than the present game which seems to emphasis more on “action” that “intelligent thought”.

There’s still the freeroaming aspect (which they seemingly have spade and neutered out of Goblet of Fire), which allows you to roam freely throughout the game… as long as you mute the sound to the game. Apparently while you can freeroam in this game (to find Famous Witches & Wizards Cards, Bertie Bott Every Flavor Beans and other things) the game’s AI characters seem to have it in their mind to nag you to death about you freeroaming about. This time out the game plays in “days” (chapters), and each day is one chapter. Once the “day” is done you have the opportunity to freeroam… too bad your two AI partners seem to want to follow you, nagging all the way about how they can’t think of a thing to do and it’s time to turn in… people? Whose calling the shots here? Think that’s me! Stop whining!

Let’s see… if you can get over the fact that the trio are occasionally whiney when you want to try and enjoy the freeroaming aspect of the game what else is there to complain about… how about how this game furthers the distance the games seems to be fostering between being true to the books slash movies and going off on it’s own direction. Obviously it can’t be a true translation since the novel (and movie) were not exactly made to be exciting in terms of video game content, but still it could have been somewhat more true to the story than it is. You start a day, maybe go to class or something, then go through a long platforming level in order to learn some spells or whatever (but spell learning is somehow worked into whatever it is your doing on each day). I think the only game to date that was most in tune with at least the movie version of the story was Chamber of Secrets (even adding the lost “Deathday” scene from the novel that didn’t make it into the movie), though I think Chamber of Secrets has nothing to fear in this respect since I somehow don’t think Goblet of Fire will be any truer to the source material than Prisoner of Azkaban was.

Learning spells in this game is abit easier than before. Before you had to do a mini game where you match a sequence of button pushes to an AI characters button pushes to learn a spell, this time out you just need to find a spellbook on a pedestal in order to learn new spells (quicker spell learning is accomplished this way). Furthermore spells are specific to each character. Each character has the ability to learn spells that are unique to them (as opposed to just having the same magic spells plastered on each character in a rather uniform manner), which adds to the gameplay since it means only a certain character can accomplish certain tasks (and the way you manage each character and their skills will determine how you overcome certain obstacles).

Then you have other things that make the game interesting. The ability to fly Buckbeak at certain times of the game, for instance. Confrontations with Dementors during the game. The quicker and easier learning curve on new magic (mentioned above). The game being split into days (which means you can have more time to yourself to freeroam if you wish).

But the game just isn’t the good, there’s the bad in it as well.
The game is woefully simple, despite the platforming premise and the ability to use all three characters which should make it sound as if there‘s depth to the challenge, the game is still easily beaten in about 10 or so hours (and there’s little replay value in the game unless you are a die hard Harry Potter fan).
Then there’s the fact that the game seems to have an allergic reaction to you exploring on your own. As I mentioned above the game, split into days, has you tackling a set amount of tasks each day, then you have freetime to yourself once you‘re done with the day‘s tasks. However once you are done with each day’s task the two AI controlled partners (depending on who you play as) can’t stop telling you how much they want you to end the day and move on, even if you are exploring the game and looking for extras.
You have no idea how much I’d wish the two characters the AI controls during these sequences would just shut the hell up already! All this yak yak yak yak! Stop it already! What’s the point of having the freedom to roam the school grounds if the game constantly wants to spoil it for you by nagging you to death!

Basically it’s a simple game… though apparently not that simple since EAGames thinks the only way to improve sales is to dumb the franchise down even further. Right. That’ll work. If this keeps up it’ll come to the point that you should be able to beat a Harry Potter game in one afternoon, not even breaking a sweat at the complete lack of challenge (which, if it hasn’t happened with Goblet of Fire, should be happening soon if EAGames insists on continuing the dumb down the franchise game after game).
The Breakdown should sum up my finishing thoughts.

Harry Potter and the Breakdown of PS2 Year 3 (game 2)
What’s Hot?
Well, believe it or not, the game is kind of hot. At least it holds onto a few final aspects of good that came from the previous games before they were all completely destroyed (allegedly) in Goblet of Fire.
But this may be the last hoorah for several things, like freeroaming gameplay and intelligent thought in gameplay. Apparently the franchise is only going to sell if the game is simple minded action button mashing… whatever the reason for this lack of reason from EAGames concerning their games? I have no idea, no idea whatsoever… it’s probably not a good thing, though, that compelled them to do what they did.

What’s Not?
HOWEVER the game is probably not going to be winning over Platformer gamers anytime soon.
The game is just way too easy, meaning gameplay shouldn’t take you all that long to beat.
Add to that whiney AI partners who can’t seem to stop nagging you when they shouldn’t be nagging you, and a game filled with “cannon fodder” voice actors (since apparently most of the cast couldn’t be bothered to voice dub their own characters) and you have a game that might drive players away.
And, yes, it can only get worse with Goblet of Fire since there seems to be no bottom to the depths of despair and lowered expectation gameplay the game can fall into. Hopefully the Nintendo DS version turns out to be more intelligent than the PS2 slash Xbox slash GameCube version.

Moments to Remember?
There are moments here and there, but they are too few and far between for my tastes.

What to Ignore?
Probably the Golden Rule, since the Golden Rule is broken with such relish in this game.
What is the Golden Rule? It’s the one where I tell you that, if possible, the people who made the movie or something the game is based on should take the time to actually be in said game. I mean what is the point of playing a game like this if the people you came to spend quality tie with couldn’t find the time to be in said game. If they didn’t waste time being in this game, you shouldn’t waste your time playing this game.

Overall?
A mixed bag of good and bad, this is probably only going to be appealing to the Harry Potter fans. However if you are Potter-curious you might be convinced to buy this, especially since the game should be on sale right now for $20 or less. But, again, you’ll either need to be a Potter-maniac or just really forgiving of the game’s shortcomings. Yes, it’s not as bad as Harry Potter : Quidditch World Cup (nothing is worse), but then again I think it could have been a little better. Ditto with the new game, it should have aimed higher yet it fell short of expectations. EAGames needs to learn it’s lessons, preferably now, before it’s too late, and no amount of fan support will be able to save the Potter gaming franchise.
But I guess we’ll have to wait and see, especially since it’s a long ways off before we even think of seeing Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix out for game systems.

GBA - Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone

2005-12-11T12:55:00.000-08:00

It comes but once a year… more or less. And for some once a year is more than enough.
No I don’t mean Christmas, New Year’s, or even St. Patrick’s Day. I mean a new Harry Potter game release, mainly Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire which is the game of 2005, the halfway point of the Harry Potter trilogy. And to celebrate, more or less, we’re talking Potter this time out with a fistful of reviews. Two for the GBA (one now and one shortly), and one for the consoles (in this case the PS2).
For the GBA it’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Year 1) and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Year 3), while for the PS2 we have the last Harry Potter game prior to this new one (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban). This is Sorcerer’s Stone (aka Philosopher’s Stone), 1st game of the series

It’s Year 1, the beginning. It all begins with The Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter, as he grows of age and enrolls into the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Of course it can’t just be a nice quiet first year since that would be rather boring. So besides your first year classes you’ll also have to struggle with a bully (Malfoy and his goons) and a mystery concerning a mysterious rock called the Sorcerer’s Stone (aka the Philosopher’s Stone in the UK version).
The rest you know. Either you read the book, or seen the movie, or played the original PSOne version of the game, one of these. So instead of talking up the game let’s talk about what makes the GBA version of the game different from the PSOne version.

- The first thing you’ll note is that the game has no freeroaming aspect, which is how the new Goblet of Fire game for the major consoles is supposed to play (from what I heard). The world of the game is Hogwarts, which consists of a small school grounds with a few spots to visit, and a tall “tower” of a castle with seven floors and a dungeon level. With all that you’d think there’d be freeroaming, right? Well all roaming is controlled by locked doors, insuring that you only access certain areas when the game says you can access them. Considering this is a hand held that isn’t much of a hardship, especially since most of the game looks alike in anycase.

- The whole thrust of the game can be summed up in two words. Stealth & Mazes.
Part of the game is stealth, where you wandering through dark corridors trying to avoid being spotted by students and teachers to do a variety of things. Meet Malfoy for a duel, steal something from Snape’s storeroom, etc. By the way this part of the game really requires use of a GameBoy Advance SP since you’ll need the game’s lit screen to see what the heck you’re doing on these levels… either that or you’ll need to sit in a well lit (and I do mean well lit) room. One or the other.

The other part is mazes, as you’ll have to go through maze after maze working platformer style action sequence in order to “earn” new spells. First you do the standard rhythm and roll of motion games (follow the control motions of the person teaching the spell three times in order to master the spell), then you have to collect stuff in order to prove you have mastered the spell.

This pattern doesn’t happen all the time. Sometimes you don’t have to gather stuff to master the spell (for instance after Hermione teaches you a door unlocking spell you “master” it by sneaking downstairs through dark corridors to meet Malfoy), and sometimes you don’t have to do a memory game (sometimes you have to go through mazes for other things, like potion ingredients).

- Flying, believe it or not, is easier on “Advanced” mode. Trust me, it’s easier. Otherwise it’s the Spyhunter of flying (overhead view). If you didn’t think the “art” of playing Quidditch could be any harder? This game makes it harder.

- You have things to gather, but not the same way you do in the PSOne version.
You collect Bertie Botts’ Every Flavor Beans, but not as “currency” to buy things! Instead they’re just to restore your health (and that’s it). You have items to collect during the game, a few things but you have things to collect. Collecting chocolate frogs this time won’t replenish health, instead it’s used to reward Witches and Wizard cards which goes into your card folio (search everything for chocolate frogs which yield cards).

Just because this is a shrinky dink does that mean the game is worse than the PSOne version?
Hmm… I’m going to go out on a limb and say that it depends on you. Mind you the fact this game depends abit too much of mazes and stealth “missions” you might not like this as much as the PSOne version (which doesn’t dip so much into that). But it’s a shrinky little version of the game so they tried the best they could.
The breakdown will sum it up.

Harry Potter and the Breakdown of GBA Year 1
What’s Hot?
Well it is a shrinky Harry Potter game, and you really will have to be a Harry Potter fan to be hot on this version. I guess the game won’t appeal for a wider range of players until the recent Prisoner of Azkaban GBA game but I still have to review that before I say more. It’s not a completely horrible game, and if you are a Potter fan you might be hot for it… and right now you should be able to find it for under $20 since it’s been out since 2001, so for a low cost Potter game it might be worth your while to check out.

What’s Not?
If you are not a major fan of the stealth or maze thing then you might not like this, that and the game is abit repetitive in gameplay. Learn a spell, walk a maze. Sneak about, walk a maze. Do a rhythm game, walk a maze… basically the same things over and over again for the most part.
If you are a Harry Potter fan you might be hot for this little handheld version, if not you might not be so enamoured with this no matter how little it cost to buy.

Moments to Remember?
Hummm… ahhh… nothing much, sorry. Basically it’s a portable and it could have been better, but it’ll fill the small need for Harry Potter, like if you were (for instance) waiting in line for Goblet of Fire tickets or sitting in the theater waiting for the movie to begin. This game would do you well to fill that small gap while you wait to see the latest Potter, for instance. Nothing memorable, but it’ll round out your collection and you could do worse than Sorcerer’s Stone (Quidditch World Cup for the GBA for instance).

What to Ignore?
If you thought the recent games strayed far from the original material then you haven’t seen anything yet! This game has several moments completely rewritten from the original to justify the game’s “levels”. For instance Hermione is crying in the girl’s bathroom NOT because Ron mouthed off at her, but maybe because Harry “broke” his promise about the spell she taught him… maybe.
That and the game seems to think you need to hear Harry comment on every single Bertie Botts’ Every Flavour Bean he swallows (even if you hear the same comments over and over again).

Overall?
Straight 50/50 here. Harry Potter fans will be checking this out, while anti-Potter resistors will probably pan this faster than you can say “Chocolate Frog Burping Noise Making Undead Female Nurse Zombies from Silent Hill 4 : The Room”… though why you’d want to say such a thing… never mind.
It’s not a horrible game, but it’s not the best Potter. Somehow I think the 3rd game might fare better in rating… though it would be nice if the 2nd game is the best since I said in the past how good the 2nd game is.
Guess we’ll find out soon, if I can find a copy somewhere… anywhere. Oh, well.

Gifts For The Christmas Holiday (2005)

2005-12-11T12:18:00.000-08:00

No, I don't feel the urgent need to say "Christmas" every other post, unlike certain factions who seem to think that there's some sort of "war" on Christmas and everyone must be forced to say "Christmas" or display nativity scenes to prove their holiday spirit. I did like it how those in the Christian equation of it seem to not like the thing about everyone wanting to be inclusionary... makes sense since they would absolutely die if they ever had to include gays and lesbians in anything of theirs.

But since we're smarter than the bickers and their pissing matches about Christmas and the "war" on Christmas because we all celebrate the holidays equally be it Christmas, Channukah (sorry if I mispelled), Kwanza (again sorry), New Years, and whatever other holidays I missed (sorry) here's my list of games to check out for each system.

GameBoy Advance
Dynasty Warriors Advance
If you enjoyed the console version you'll come back to take your favorite Koei game on the road with Dynasty Warriors Advance for the GBA.

Final Fantasy IV Advance
The latest Final Fantasy on the little GBA is here, and that's all I need to say. Final Fantasy. GBA. Nuff said.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
I guess if you have to fill a undeniable Potter fixation then try the GBA version. At least the damnable "Action emphasis" fixation EA has works on the GBA version (because you expect the portable to emphasis the action, meaning you'll get what you're looking for and then some on this version). With some added gimmicks like the rhythm game at the Yule ball, the fact that this time the card collecting unlocks useable abilities, as well as unlockable extras? This might be the best GBA version of Harry Potter I have seen to date (and I might even like this better than the PS2 console version!)

Need for Speed (GBA)
There's a Need for Speed on the GBA, and for once it isn't using the over the head Spyhunter viewing mode like Midnight Club. I haven't played this yet but I have hopes this will not disappoint. Guess I need to review this soon.

GameCube
Batallion Wars
Believe it or not this game is tied to the Advanced Wars series, despite the fact it seemingly has nothing in common with the Advanced Wars series! Go out and destroy the enemy in this bliss filled shooter that just cooks for the GameCube! Another reason why GameCube ownership isn't always a bad thing (despite the fact most of the games are bad).

Fire Emblem : Path of Radiance
If you've played Fire Emblem and Fire Emblem : Sacred Stones for the GBA then you know why you've come back to play the first Fire Emblem for the GameCube... if not then this is as good a chance as any to play this fan fave game.

Resident Evil 4
Best game of 2005 and one of the reasons why people own a GameCube in the first place! Though games that rock for the GameCube are few and far between this is one of those games that rocks.

Super Mario Baseball
Yeah, you'd think I would never ever have a Mario title on this list, but this is a good game and if you are burned out playing classic baseball games then this might be the cure for the common baseball game.

Nintendo DS
Animal Crossing : Wild World
The addiction that adults are not afraid to admit that they play is back, and now on the DS. Take your village into the world, and link to other players near and far using either the infrared link or the Wi-Fi connection! It's your favorite 24/7 addiction advanced and improved, oh joy!

NintenDogs
While it's not going to be my cup of gaming, you might find the virtual experience of owning a "dog" in cyberspace to be something you might like. With a version for every dog lover, containing just about every dog type known (make sure to buy the version that fits the owner's personality the best), you should be able to find the NintenDogs that is right for you.

Phoenix Wright : Ace Attorney
Because legal wrangling should be portable, a game that makes the act of screaming "OBJECTION" a joy to behold!

Trauma Center : Under the Knife
Cut cut paste paste operate oper -- quick! Sketch a pentagram to slow time to buy more time to operate!! Ok... cut cut stitch stitch close close... whew! Yeah, a game about virtual surgery is actually fun! Oh, yeah!

PC
Battlefield 2
This works out far better on the PC than the PS2 or XBox! Because the console versions are way stripped down the only way to fully enjoy this military shooter is on the PC, where you get the full monty of wonders which you'll enjoy to the fullest! Yes, if you want you can still check out the console versions but if you have an ultra beefy PC that can handle the job, then go for it.

Rome Total War : Barbarian Invasion
Along with Rome : Total War this expansion pack brings more ancient bang for the buck! If you played the original you'll understand why this is going to be a treasured part of your collection. If not? Then you'll need to get both the original and expansion (for twice the fun)!

Serious Sam II
I haven't played this, but I heard only good words about this PC shooter. And if you can get this nice slice of shooter for only $30 that's all the more incentive to check this slick gamer out. It's not as deep as either Half-Life 2 or HALO 2, mind you, but for $30 it's still worth owning.

PS2
Incredible Hulk : Ultimate Destruction
Hands down the best MARVEL game of 2005 (next to X-Men Legends 2) you'll finally get a freeroaming Grand Theft Auto clone that actually lives up to the promise of being a Grand Theft Auto clone worth playing! Take the Hulk out and go SMASH things, and have fun doing so! Joy, SMASH, joy!

Ratchet : Deadlock'd
Ok, it's got an emphasis on arena combat this time out (unlike previous Ratchet & Clank games) but it's still a solid gaming experience. If you've played the last three games (like I have) then you'll be getting this one!

Resident Evil 4
Because it was fun on the GameCube, it's going to be fun on the PS2. One of the best games of 2005, this is going to be worth owning if you love well made 1st person shooters with a survival horror slant. It's the game that reinvented the RE franchise, and it'll reinvent the way you play survival horror games! The only thing that'll make it better is the PS3/XBox360 release of Resident Evil 5 in the near future (inspired by... what the... Black Hawk Down?!? You're kidding me... you're not? What the...)

Sly 3 : Honor Among Thieves
The finale of the PS2 Sly series, it's the best of the three and closes the franchise up in grand style. It's the kiss off, but what a kiss off! So long, Sly! We loved you on the PS2!!... now hurry up and get a PS3 version ready!

We Love Katamari
Because we loved the original, we return for a whole new round of rolling up the contents of the world (so they may be burned up to create the stars in the sky... or in this case the planets). The sequel brings you back to the Katamari of old with a few new tricks and new cousins to roll up and use.

X-Men Legends 2 : Rise of Apocalypse
If you loved the original then go out and get the sequel. If you haven't played the original then here's the best time to do so, especially since you can get it in Greatest Hits format for $20 (a savings in my books)!

XBox360
I know nothing about the XBox360... but I know what I think looks good.
Call of Duty 2 : Big Red One
Dead or Alive 4
Kamino
Perfect Dark Zero
But that's just what I think looks good. You better do some homework on these before you buy, just to make sure you find the game that is best for you.

What did I miss...
50 Cent : Bulletproof
Merry Christmas! A third person shooter starring 50 cents that seems to... be a clone of The Punisher (THQ)... say what? I guess if you are a 50 cent fan then you should like the game, but only because there's a ton of music videos and stuff with him in this. Otherwise it seems to be a so-so shooter, and if you are looking for a good shooter there are so much better ones than 50 Cent : Bulletproof.

Peter Jackson's King Kong
Despite the fact quite a few reviewers seem to be so enamoured with this I am not so sold on this game. It's halfway fun, but not my favorite.

The Matrix : Path of Neo
Oh, joy, ANOTHER game "starring" Keanu Reeves. Did he at least actually DO this game? Considering he didn't have the time to "Star" in Constantine I'm wondering if he had the time to "Star" in the game that's all about the Keanu... sheesh.

Well, that's that. The rest is up to you. Happy gaming!

GBA - Some Tasty New Picks

2005-12-09T19:39:00.000-08:00

If you've seen the latest commericals for the GBA then you've seen that they've got some tasty new gaming picks for the Christmas season, and for once there looks like there's some nice picks for the GBA!

Tony Hawk has a new game
I'm guessing it's American Wasteland, Tony Hawk's newest game, now on the GBA. From the commercial I say the game looks pretty sweet for the GBA... then again the previous games looked somewhat interesting as well so if you're a Tony Hawk fan then you might find this little portable to possibly be worth at least glancing at.

A whole new racer
Previous racers on the GBA have been less than sterling. With the exception of Banjo Pilots and possibly Mario Kart for the GBA I can't think of anything that looked even halfway decent for the GBA... until now. Now there's a Need For Speed game coming and it's finally a decent racer from appearances for the GBA. The biggest thing, from the commercial, is the camera angle (behind the car instead of overhead ala Spyhunter which was used for Midnight Club's GBA version). If the rest of the game plays as good as it looks then this might be a racer for your GBA to consider... of course considering the last Need for Speed for the Nintendo DS and PSP looked so nice yet fell so short you have to be abit forgiving of this version since it's probably the only good looking game for the GBA for race fans (so even if it is abit pedestrian in the gameplay at least it's a leap above Midnight Club in terms of graphics and gameplay... then again anything is a leap above Midnight Club in terms of graphics and gameplay so that's not much to say in Need For Speed's defense.)

Final Fantasy IV
You know I love Final Fantasy for the GBA.
I own Final Fantasy Tactics Advance for the GBA, I own Final Fantasy I - II : Dawn of Souls for the GBA... did they put out Final Fantasy III yet? Anyway now I'm looking forward to reviewing Final Fantasy IV for the GBA... which is, what, Final Fantasy from the NES? Final Fantasy II from the NES? One of those.

At least the GBA isn't being left out in terms of noteworthy games for the holiday season, though they do seem to be missing a port of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (though I am digging back in time to review past Harry Potters for the GBA in future reviews). Now all they need to do is bring Final Fantasy to the Nintendo DS (or at least a decent Nintendo 64 era RPG) and I'll be one happy portable owner.
We'll see, we'll see.

Nintendo DS - Phoenix Wright : Ace Attorney

2005-12-08T19:29:00.000-08:00

Because legal wrangling seemingly is fun in portable form, let's take a look at the Nintendo DS's Phoenix Wright : Ace Attorney.
It seems that the best games for the DS is the weird unique games, the games that you don't see everyday and offer up gameplay that is something completely new from the usual cut and paste games you've seen in the past.
Games like this, or Trauma Center : Under the Knife, Trace Memory or the dog raising sim known as NintenDogs. Games you don't usually see on, say, the PS2 or the XBox the GameCube, games that offer up something new for the gameplay buck.

And really who wouldn't want to give a game about legal wrangling a chance!
Starring a guy who looks like he's related to Roger Smith (Big O), and offering up a who's who cast of anime like characters on both the good and bad side, you are thrust into the world of legal wrangling and Law & Order Japanese style courtroom antics. From what I've seen of the game you'll have to do some sleuthing to investigate each case (including a case where you are the guilty party), and then take it to court and shake down lying witnesses until the truth sets your client free (especially if said client happens to be you, even if convential legal logic says that you would have a fool for a client if you hire yourself for your own defense... well, at least you're not trying to fool yourself so that you don't arrest yourself for a murder you have no memory commiting (Indigo Prophecy for the PS2))

The best thing about this game is the use of the voice unit on the Nintendo DS, which is used when you yell into it the word of all words -- "OBJECTION!"
That's right. If you need to break into the oppositions questioning and get a word in edgewise you scream "OBJECTION!!"
If you need to question the witness or rebute the lies say "OBJECTION!!"
If you need to blow off steam or just fluster the witness, yell "OBJECTION!!"
Heck, yell "OBJECTION!!" for no good reason whatsover. Go on, do it!
Of course you probably shouldn't play this game in an actual courtroom, or in a place where silence is golden (like a hospital waiting room), but if you can a place where yelling "OBJECTION!!" is acceptible then go for it! Yell "OBJECTION!!" all you want! Yell away!!

As for the cases? I'll leave that for the actual review, and I do plan to review this soon enough. Once I get ahold of this game I should have a better look at it, but if what I've seen is half of what the game is about then I'm going to love reviewing this... in the near future.

Next week (hopefully on time next time) I'll take a look at another one of the games worth checking out for the DS, Trace Memory, the game that's a little bit Myst and a little bit anger management tester. Next week... hopefully, again, on time for once.

Tomorrow is Debate Day

2005-12-05T19:59:00.000-08:00

I'm working on two discussions that I hope to bring to you tomorrow.
One - The Controversy of Narnia : The Lion, the Witch and the Theater Goer
The movie is coming, the game is coming... so what is the debate about? If you haven't heard it yet (and you should since the TV/Print Media have been hyping it left and right) here's the gist of it.
Two - Updated GameBoy Advance picks and pans of the year
Now adding a few new picks from the latest games that are out now.
That's that. Until tomorrow then, good day and happy holidays.

PS2 - Shadow of the Colossus

2005-12-05T19:57:00.000-08:00

I'm still waiting for my local Blockbuster to carry this game so I can review it.
But since everyone else is giving it better reviews than me one more time with a lack of feelings... why I am not so hot on the hype for Shadow of the Colossus.

By now you must have heard about this game.
Ever since E3 2005 there’s been a lot of anticipation for this game.
This game, from the creators of Ico, is supposed to be a first in games in that it’s all gigantic boss battles and nothing else! No cannon fodder creatures, no endless quests, no cities or leveling up… just you, your weapons (and horse) and 16 gigantic Colossus to fight.
The game isn’t out yet, but recently Playstation put out a magazine here in the US which featured a playable demo, which is where we are now… the DEMO review.

Of course the first thing people note is the beautiful graphics, and by playing the DEMO you’ll find the graphics are all the few views you’ve had promised and then some. It’s very beautiful, with wide and vast landscapes that stretch as far as the eye can see and filled with much beauty in each and every scene, and if you have a progressive scan feature on your TV then the graphics will be just that much better since this game will utilize that feature to it’s fullest (however this and two other visual modes in the game were still in the construction mode as of this DEMO, and not available).

The DEMO starts with a minute or so long cutscene that walks you right into the game, which just keeps on looking good as you go from the cutscene to the game itself (no loss in beauty of graphics at all).
You start off in the temple where the lady you are out to save is resting, surrounded by gigantic statues of the sixteen Colossus you are out to nail. Of course you are actually after only ONE Colossus but this is as good a chance as any to get a sneak peek at what the 16 look like. Of course this is not exactly accurate images of each, but at least you have a fair notion of what you’ll have to face in this game.

From there head towards the light and hold up your sword. This is how you find your prey, by the way, by holding your sword up and catching sunlight. The light forms into a beam the closer you aim it towards your destination, while it disperses into many beams the farther you aim. And, yes, for convenience there’s a little icon visible when you do this as well as a rumble feature which vibrates the controller when you are on your target. Well once you do that it’s time to head on out and ride towards the Colossus.

It’s a long way so ride hard! Get on that horse and push forward! Push for-- forward… nothing. Oh-kay… tap the button to make the horse run! Run, horse run! Run… slow start… run… run… oh-kay! Now we’re running! Run horse, run! And look out for…. For… (nothing)… monsters… air creatures… people… boredom… yeah, that’s it! Beware the deadly boredom as you keep riding! Ride and… okay, we’re here so stop your horse…. Stop… stop… pull back and STOP STOP ST--… damn!
And thus we reach my first of MANY problems I have with this game. The horse.
Apparently it makes the horse from Legend of Zelda and Dynasty Warriors a cakewalk to run ‘cause this one is a pain in the rear! Tap a button so it moves, which is slow going to get the horse going! Turn left and right to change direction, which is ALSO SLOW and you might accidentally throw the horse off it’s stride so you’ll have to get it up to speed again! Then you have to pull back to stop the horse, but it’s not exactly the kind of horse that stops on a dime (know what I mean) so you better stop way in advance of your stopping point lest you tumble off a cliff or something horrible!

Second problem (already?) is the traveling… the boring traveling!
At least in other games like Legend of Zelda and Darkwatch you had things to shoot while you were on the move, but here it’s go go go… fall asleep… ride horse off a cliff… boring!
Something, anything to alleviate the boredom of riding would be so nice.
What? You mean the excitement comes when I get to where I’m going and go to the Colossus? Let’s see.
Run run climb… climb… come on climb… huh? Hold down the R1 button to hold onto grassy walls to climb them… ok, climb climb… pull yourself up now… pull up… pull up… PULL -- ack, fell.
Apparently in order to pull yourself up you need to HOLD DOWN THE JUMP BUTTON AND RELEASE IT WHILE HANGING ON A LEDGE! Ditto with jumping up to grab a ledge. You need to jump AND TAP slash HOLD THE R1 BUTTON TO GRAB!! Then you have to HOLD AND RELEASE THE JUMP BUTTON TO GET ONTO THE NEXT… ugh.

Wow. We’re up to problem #3 already.
Problem #3 is the (bleep)y Rube Goldman controls of this game!
You can’t just ride your horse, oh no it can’t be that easy! You have to tap a button to start up the running, and pull to stop and god this horse is a pain being so darn hard to move!
You can’t just climb! You have to hold down the R1 button to hold on and climb, and THEN you HAVE TO hold and release the X button to get onto a ledge! And if you want to grab a ledge you have to…
This is supposed to be the thrilling fun of the game, right?

Problem #4 is the lack of necessity to hurry in this game.
I mean with no creatures breathing down my neck, no enemies to fight, no deadlines to meet, and nothing to get my blood pumping this might as well be a casual Sunday stroll to kill Colossus… then again a deadline would suck ‘cause it’ll be impossible as we reach Problem #5.

Now you’ve finally climbed up to the top and found the huge open area where the Colossus roams. After a cut scene showing the Colossus enter the scene you are sent to kill it… and how do you do that?
You first have to locate it’s weak spot with your sword! Yes, hold up the sword and run the light across it until the sword vibrates (controller vibrates) which means you’ve found the weak spot. In this case it’s on the back inside the maw of what looks like a giant stone jaw on the back of said Colossus.
Now you have to climb the Colossus, and to do THAT you need to target it’s legs with your bow while it marches about… without a target lock… while the damn thing shakes the ground and makes it hard for you to aim properly, as it comes at you trying to kill you, with it’s legs protected by armor bits… yeah.
This game isn’t asking much of you, is it?

Once you kneel the thing you must climb it quickly, using the same pain in the rear R1/jump combos to climb and pull yourself up which (if you become flustered) can easily be forgotten and you fall off.
Of course if you take too long to climb to a spot you can rest your “grip” meter (on the lower right hand of the screen) will shrink to nothing and you’ll fall off… which means you have to repeat the kneeling and climbing all over again!!
Yeah, I know, this game would be dreadfully boring if it was so easy… but won’t it be dreadfully frustrating if it’s so damn hard?!? While I don’t want this to be a pushover I don’t want this to be a pain in the butt!!

Let’s see. What ELSE is wrong?
Problem #6 - No target locking system. Everything is done manually.
Problem #7 - Good luck attempting to hit the creature while on manual! You should take several good hours of gameplay to just down ONE Colossus!
Problem #8 - You will never evolve or level up during this game! You will be the same throughout from beginning to end, with no new weapons, tools or anything to even add any spice to the gameplay. And, sadly, you weren’t very agile or Link-like to start with so you definitely need the upgrades no question!
Problem #9 - There’s no villages or towns to break the tedium of Colossus killing, no monsters to give you something to challenge you, nothing but Colossus and god it gets old fast. Heck, even a chain of brothels would be better than vast nothing! Really!
Problem #10... People will still buy this game. If people snatch up Dynasty Warriors 5 (a game that is a long beatdown button masher) they’ll get this beautiful … uh… platformer? Action? RPA? Well, they’ll get it even if it could have been better, and that’s kind of sad.

Now that I’ve finally got my hand on this highly anticipated game, and played it for myself… I don’t know what everyone is happy about with this game! I don’t know, I just don’t know.
Yes the graphics are sweet, and will be even more sweet if you can utilize the progressive scan feature, and the concept of boss only battles is nice in theory… but it falls apart in execution from my POV.
The game suffers from control issues that are a pain to have to master. There is nothing in this DEMO to even hint at motivation to move you from battle to battle. Then there are the Colossus themselves that are hard to bring down… and did I mention there’s no motivation? There’s that too.

I don’t know about you but I need some motivation to play through games like this, and with seemingly nothing to motivate you from Colossus to Colossus exist EXCEPT this woman who is sleeping what am I doing here anyway. I need motivation, people, motivation! As for the sleeping woman who is she? Is she your beloved wife who now lies near death unless you fight to save her? Is she a princess that you fell in love with but now must save so you can live happily ever after together with? Is she just a girl you found and you’re just got the hots for this strange girl you just met? It’s not like endless hours of Colossus killing will be rewarded with a hot sex cutscene or anything for all your troubles (and right now anything that promises to justify the endless tedium or Colossus hunting is a justification to play this), so what is my motivation to win again? Where am I inspired to struggle to the bitter end to kill all the Colossus?

Yeah. It’s pretty and all… so why am I struggling to beat this if there is no motivation to beat this?
At least Ico was a trippy puzzler that gave you a girl to save, lots of puzzles to overcome and enemies to bash which moved you along with lots of reason to get to that next area and those next puzzles to beat, this game however doesn’t even seem to feature that much joy which is a major disappointment!
Yes, a full review is on this way and I hope the final version is more fun than this DEMO, ‘cause if I based my entire thoughts on this game just from the DEMO I would be highly disappointed right here and now.
Please full and complete game, don’t suck.

Manga - Miyuki-chan in Wonderland One Shot

2005-12-05T12:33:00.000-08:00

Can't remember if I did this yet or not, but just as well since I have more CLAMP reviews coming soon to check out. In the meantime...

Is CLAMP allergic to lesbians? Lord knows CLAMP has a whole lot of male on male lovin’ going on at times in some of their titles, but are they kind of… well… not so equal with woman on woman love?
And yes, if we’re talking CLAMP and female relationships right off the bat we’re talking Tomoyo and Sakura… it seems I’m ALWAYS talking Tomoyo/Sakura everytime that comes up!
Yeah. As you know if you’ve seen the uncut Card Captor Sakura, then you know how much in love Tomoyo Daidouji (Sakura’s friend) is with our star Sakura Kinomoto… of course for all the good that’ll do her since the relationship is doomed to die faster than William Hung’s “career” in singing.
But that wasn’t the worse part, oh no, it’s the part where she ends up with “Mr. Potato Head”, Syaoran Li, which just plain sucks. I mean of all the people she ends up with the annoying git… go figure.
So now that it seems I’ll NEVER EVER get over that one, how about a title filled with “fan service” that seems to speak hidden volumes about their hatred of Tomoyo’s love… okay, maybe it doesn’t speak volumes of that but you’ll never convince me otherwise.
So stand by as we peel away the layers of reality and delve into the untold totally fictional conspiracies of…
The Miyuki Files -- not starring David Duchovny (or are they fictional?)

Worlds upon worlds upon worlds exsist. Each of these many worlds in the grand multi-verse span across the wide plane of exsistence. And in this series all of these worlds are filled with willing women ready to do naughty or violent or violent naughty things that probably would excite many a otaku reading this… except for the girl who happens to be the star of this series, Miyuki, who couldn’t be more of a cold fish with all this “action” going on around her even if she tried. How much of a killjoy can she be anyway!
Apparently a great killjoy since it doesn’t matter what she confronts, or who she is faced with, she’ll continue to be a hopeless killjoy at each and every turn of the switch, and each and every twist of the reality altering gears of fate spun by the wretched (yet girl loving) creature of Silent Hill 3 fame.
Yeah. The words fan service since to have been made for this romp. More women than you can possibly imagine, with situations that would probably be more fulfilling in a XXX rated porn story, helmed by a girl who seemingly can’t stop saying no to everything (yet she doesn’t even work for a credit card company nor is her co-worker David Spade). Yeah. This is odd, but it’s also a fan favorite… go figure.

Color me curious but somehow I think it’s all the girls and all the titlation that never goes anywhere that got fans hot and bothered for Miyuki-chan in Wonderland. Can’t be the star, who is constantly a bitter little pill of denial and refusal to partcipate in anything going on around her, constantly complaining about how she’s a virgin, or not married, or unwilling slash unable or waiting for her Lifetime Channel movie of the week to showcase her angst or a Republican, or something oh goddess something that makes her want to complain!
Still all the females are hot, they do get into some steamy moments (even if the star is perpetually in denial and said scenes really go nowhere), and all these hot girls live in weird worlds like Miyuki-chan in TV Land (which doesn’t mean she has a crossover with Sanford & Son slash The Brady Bunch slash I Love Lucy slash What’s Happening slash Good Times), Looking Glass Land (which ends up involving a chess board of nearly naked women chess pieces), Part-Time Job Land (which is like WWE wrestling which used to be WWF though I guess the other WWF (the wildlife people) complained which is why it‘s now WWE) and Video Game Land (though without the cheesy Zelda reference ala an episode in D.I.C.E. DVD V. 2)… oh, and a crossover with X 1999 in Miyuki-chan in X Land.

There’s no need to go over the story, since it is a simple thing… and really going over the story will just spoil more than reveal anyway so why bother going over the story?
Miyuki does something normal, but then ends up taking a trip to the “other side” and lots of women show up and do kinky or violent or violent kinky things. Miyuki says no (a lot) and resists (a lot), then the story ends with some twisted ending that seemingly implies that the events of this story will never end. Simple. Obviously if you were hoping for a tour-de-force of reading like MKRE, Card Captor Sakura, Chobits or XXXHolic then you are going to be one disappointed CLAMP fan. This isn’t all that deep.
If you just like a titilating little read filled with lots of women falling out of their clothes or into kinky slash kinky violent situations that’ll titliate then by all means pick it up. That and it’s a One Shot which means if you’re looking for a short taste of CLAMP that doesn’t require buying several books to get the whole story then this is also recommendable for that reason. Just remember this is a OT (Older Teen) read so it’s only for 16+ only! Remember that! As for the rest? Well, the breakdown will tell the tale.

Miyuki-chan in Breakdown Land
What’s Hot?
Emm… that goes without saying, doesn’t it… doesn’t it? Yeah, that goes without saying. Yes it does. Yes.
A book full of titilating women doing occasional titilating things. That and it’s a taste of CLAMP in One Shot format -- and it’s short, did I mention how think this book is? It’s short! About 100 or so pages short! Nuff said.

What’s Not?
Yeah. This isn’t the CLAMP title to give the fan of the titles like Chobits, Angelic Layer, MKRE, Card Captor Sakura and so forth who want a strong story to go with the strong artwork. If somebody tells me that it’s the story they love about this… well… I guess I’d have a little bit of a hard time believing it. Which is, by the way, not to say that the story isn’t OK, but it isn’t the overwhelming reason to buy this. It’s the women, the titilating women, that’s the reason you’re buying Miyuki-chan in Wonderland.

Moments to Remember?
Think we can narrow it down to the women doing titilating things. Yeah. Somehow I don’t think it’s going to be remembered for it’s stirring homages to other series like Barbarella, or it’s X 1999 crossover.
Yeah. It’s the women doing titilating things. That’s it.

What to Ignore?
Think we can narrow it down to the parts where Miyuki seems to rear back in disgust where it comes to woman on woman attraction… gee… wonder if that spoke volumes about why Tomoyo and Sakura never became an item… actually it doesn’t but since we’re here we might as well make the connection… such as it is, which isn’t there. And, well, the day I get over that is the day Full Metal Alchemist fans forgive Adam Sessler for his last two reviews of the Full Metal Alchemist games which both earned a 2... Out of 5!

Overall?
You ain’t reading this for the intense storytelling, or the lovable characters… well, lovable is the word but not in the same way the word “lovable” is applied to characters of such series as Angelic Layer or MKRE or something like that. You’re just here for the lovely women… women who strip near bare or wear S&M domination gear, or little little teeny weeny little two pieces of sexy clothing, or titilate in little sexy costumes or… yeah. You are so not reading this for another Chobits storytelling experience!
But, then again, I guess there’s something to be said about this since it is still a beloved title from what I’ve seen, and fans still like it despite the fact it’s short short short, and it’s Anime is -- think it’s just a One Shot from what I heard -- is it? Anyway it’s loved, people who read it like it (from what I heard), and if you are an OT (Older Teen) or a A slash M (Adult slash Mature) then you might get hooked too… allegedly.
Nuff said.

Top Anime Picks of 2005

2005-12-03T16:33:00.000-08:00

Straightforward, what series do I recommend for Anime fans out there this year (as possible stocking stuffers for the Christmas holiday). Alphabetical order.

Avenger (BANDAI)
While I have yet to review it I'm going to take it that there's something worth checking out here. From the people who brought you (dot)hack//SIGN comes a sci-fi series set on Mars which looks promising (sorry, it's not an Anime based on the old BBC spy series or the MARVEL comic super hero group). Add to that the fact you can get the entire series in one fashionably cool collector's tin (with four free mini cells) and you might have something for the sci-fi fans! Review coming soon, by the way, so be sure to check that out when I put it up.

Azumanga Daioh (ADVFilms)
Because the exploits of Miss Yukari's English class never gets old, the series that has been compared to Seinfeld in it's brillance is something for the fan of a good comedy, now available in a complete collection set collect all 26 episodes in one easy to purchase box set.

Big O (BANDAI)
Still one of my favorite BANDAI series, the Big O, part Batman part James Bond and part giant robot series is still a recommended one from me to you. Yes, some people were not pleased with the way the series ended, but it's still recommended and worth checking out (now available in two collected sets last time I checked, though they may have finally combined both sets into one set... wonder if they'll do that).

Chrono Crusade (ADVFilms)
I haven't had the chance to watch the Anime yet, but if it's as good as the manga (ADVManga) that I rave about quite abit in past reviews, then I think it's safe to say that I'm going to be recommending this to you. Of course you should rent it before you buy it... you know, just in case. After all I also happen to like Princess Tutu the manga and yet I would never recommend the disappointing Anime version to anyone under any circumstances... hopefully this won't be a repeat of that but just in case...

Cowboy Bebop Remix (BANDAI)
Have you seen the series yet? Watched it yet on Cartoon Network (Adult Swim)? Saw the movie? Wondering what all the hype is about this series? Why wonder, when you can experience it yourself with the newly re-released Remix series (now in 5.1 digital) which should make for a fine gift for new fans or fans who may have missed the DVD release when it original came out sometime ago.

Galaxy Angel (BANDAI)
Up to Season 3 now, with Season 4 coming soon, this sci-fi comedy is just plain good with lots of laughs and lots of great writing. With a cast of lovable characters, improbable situations, parodies left and right as well as just great stories, this is one of those series that is just so right (4 seasons and hopefully counting can't be wrong)! Recommended for someone who'd like a little bite in their sci-fi series.

Ghost in the Shell : Stand Alone Complex (BANDAI)
The TV Series based on one of the most recognized works of Masamune Shirow, it continues where the original movie leaves off and takes the story in a new direction. Now presently up to Season 2 with a 3rd season rumored to be in development, it's recommended for both fans of Shirow and fans of good sci fi action series.

His and Her Circumstances (RightStuf International)
One of the few series put out by RightStuf, this series is one of the best romantic comedies I've seen in sometime. Put a egotistal perfectionist together with a seemingly "perfect" "rival" and watch as unlikely love blooms and grows between them. Though I was abit critical of some of the glitchy glitchy glitches on the DVDs (hopefully RightStuf fixed those if they ever put out a collected set of this series), and the series "died" before it's time because the series animators and the series creator couldn't see eye to eye, I still recommend it as worth your time to check out.

Hoop Days (BANDAI)
While I am not the biggest fan of sports related items I do like this series, and recommend it to fans of either high school level basketball or well written dramas.

Planetes (BANDAI)
The sci-fi series that is down to Earth and solidly written, with fans of both the Anime and Manga (TOKYOPOP) raving about it? You can't go wrong here. In a time where the most dangerous thing to the ever growing industry of space exploration is space debris it's up to a special breed of men and women to keep Earth's orbit clean of debris several years after a collision incident that killed innocent people (which highlighted the danger of orbital space debris). A fine series, one worth checking out if you haven't done so yet.

As for the coming new year? I don't much about what may come in the new year but I do have a few favorites I'm looking forward to, and recommend.

Aria (ADVFilms)
I raved about the manga, said it was a little treasure of a manga worth owning, but will I feel the same about the Anime once it comes out? Coming out on Japanese TV this past summer, Aria (the anime) hopefully holds true to the series and continues the wonderful story begun there. We can but hope this is the case as the series nears it's port over to this side of the world for English viewers.

Galaxy Angel Season 4 (BANDAI)
I liked the series to date, so I'm sure it'll stay status quo as I look forward to reviewing the 4th season of the mega hot series.

Getting Back on Track

2005-12-02T22:23:00.000-08:00

Seems I have been having lots more of these big reviewing gaps than I would like, but I'm going to try and get back on track this weekend.
This weekend let's talk about what looks good and not so good for Anime lovers out there. Some of my picks and pans for the year, tomorrow.
Meanwhile I'm working on new Harry Potter reviews since we're looking at a fourth movie out now... so might as well do some more reviews.
Sorry for the delay. Take care and good day!

Nintendo DS - Animal Crossing : Wild World

2005-12-02T22:22:00.000-08:00

The first thing I ever remember saying about the Nintendo DS was that I wasn’t going to get into it until they rolled out the new Animal Crossing game. I’m sure I said it a few times in the past, but I was adamant about seeing the new Animal Crossing game come out before I invested in a Nintendo DS.
At the start of 2006 I will add the Nintendo DS to my list of reviews I’ll be turning in, which means… no, Sexy Beach 2 hasn’t been ported to the DS… it’s time to take your first look at Animal Crossing : Wild World!

Wild World, the DS version of the addictive habit known as Animal Crossing, is the long awaited 2nd game of the series. The game, which adults are not afraid to admit they play almost religiously, has been about only for so many years but in that time it’s earned quite a following who have fallen in love with the 24/7 slash 365 day a year world that is Animal Crossing. Originally starting in Japan, the first Animal Crossing in the US was not a port of the original Japanese version as it was an advancement. New furniture sets, new playability, and a new console with it coming out on the GameCube, the game was a step above the original which could be seen as being abit primitive against the new English version.

Of course that is not to say the original did not keep some of it’s goodies away from the English version. For example if you’ve played Animal Crossing then you noticed there are odds and ends of some furniture that seemingly don’t fit into any collection, a pair of toilets for instance. Well there were a few sets of furniture that were “erased” for the most part from the game, except for a few random pieces that somehow were missed from the “purge”. The Toilet slash Super Toilet from the Bathroom Set for instance, or the Shogi chess piece which was supposed to be one of an entire set of pieces.

As you might have guessed, of course, eventually Japanese fans began to demand their own improved version of Animal Crossing, for which Nintendo came up with Animal Crossing 2. Animal Crossing 2, which we know here as “Wild World”, was the answer to Japanese fans wanting more from their Animal Crossing experience, adding new things that took it a step above the English version of Animal Crossing.
Now, before I continue, a word of warning. What I am about to reveal is additions said to be present in the JAPANESE VERSION of Animal Crossing 2! Whether or not these are also present in Wild World or not will probably not be revealed until I get to the official “word” on the game (below) or I play the game and review it in full… so take the following with a grain of Nook as I go over the additions.

- Players can now buy furniture that can be placed outside in the village itself. It used to be that furniture you bought could only be set inside, but now new outside furniture like fountains, benches, light posts, wells and so forth can be put into your village to add to it’s beauty (which no doubt works to attract more animals to the village).

- During certain holidays the animals will dress up to the nines by adding a hat accessory, which they’ll wear proudly.

- Speaking of holidays you now can buy certain “party favors” that you can actually use, like the poppers seen used during New Years’.

- You can now open up delivery items the animals give you to deliver to other animals… though you probably shouldn’t ‘cause you’ll piss off the animal you’re delivering said item to if you open it.

- If you stay in past closing at Tom Nook’s you can now be treated to seeing the Nook-ster running about his store in his jammies while he carries his pillow for sleepy-time.

- Another classic animal that now have a more expanded appearance in this game is the grumpy Resetti, who you can now visit in his underground dwelling. By breaking rocks you can expose the entrance to Resetti’s home, where you’ll drop in on the disgruntled grumpy griper of all things resetting. And when you visit you’ll find out he’s just as grumpy at home as he is when he visits you to gripe about you resetting your game.

- You can now buy the island that exists in the game, and you don’t need to have a GBA link to travel to it… huh? Oh, Animal Crossing 2 was a GameCube game from what I understood of the Japanese version… so you might have to expect some watering down of Wild World if that is truly the case (hopefully not). Also, because you can buy the island, you can work to have an animal move to the island.
- New holidays are supposed to be available, but I don’t have any news on that.

But that’s the Japanese version, what about the American “Wild World”? Let’s see.
You know the drill. Once again you have left home and moved into the Valley of the Talking Animals (the town whose name you‘ll come up with), looking to set out on your own and make a name for yourself (yeah, you’ll name yourself too at the beginning, pick a gender, and so forth) . Once you reach the village you’ll quickly set up shop by getting a house, making friends, and then you’ll begin to pay off the endless debts provided by part time raccoon mobster slash “legitimate businessman” Tom Nook. It’s like real life, only you don’t have to worry about catching rabies from your landlord should he decide to bite you. But unlike the GameCube version, which didn’t have the option to link to the internet for online gameplay, this version is supposed to sport online gameplay… I didn’t know the DS had online capabilities!

- Instead of utilizing all four houses in the village for four players locally (ala the original Animal Crossing), the player has one house while the other three houses can be filled with up to three players who play wirelessly over the internet or Nintendo’s Wi-Fi Connection. This doesn’t make the game online only does it? That’d suck since I usually don’t live near a “hot spot” required for Wi-Fi, and I don’t like linking via the internet.
Also I do have family here who’d probably want to play my game so I’d like to use the houses in the same way as it was used in the original, so hopefully that’s possible.
So I hope this isn’t an online only game, or I’m going to be one ticked off gamer.
By the way… yeah, we both already see the many and varied ways that this is so going to be so abused by certain people, and effectively come back and bite Nintendo in the butt! So I hope Nintendo has taken a few lessons from Microsoft’s X-Box Live and prepared for the complaints from people concerning rude, “dirty” and “juvenile” behavior online! It’s only a matter of time before… you know.

- This time out the stylus makes for an advancement not available in the original, the ability to manage your items, write your letters, and design your patterns in a easier manner. Instead of fussing with a controller to painstakingly write a letter you can now jot down quick dictation by taping out a letter with the use of the stylus which means you’ll be able to write letters faster. This also means item management is now a breeze with the touch screen and stylus to speed up item useage, and it also works in world navigation which is also going to be a breeze!

- As in the original you’ll watch the progression of time in real time as hours pass, days pass, and seasons all pass in real time. That means if you decide to pick up your DS and play at 2AM in the morning it’ll be 2AM in the morning in the game, and if you play during New Years the game will be celebrating New Years (so go down to the wishing well and make a wish, then see Katrina and get your fortune for the year).
Not many games does that. Sure, Poke’mon Crystal does have a realtime 24/7 mode where you play in real time, but it doesn’t record the date (you play the same seven days over and over) so you can’t live out a whole year on the game, which you can do here.

- You’re back to bug/fish collecting, but whether or not you’ll be turning them in to Blathers over at the museum (along with artwork and dinosaur fossils) remains to be seen, though if this is like the Animal Crossing 2 version from Japan you’ll have brand new things to collect in the museum.

- New wearable items like hats and sunglasses are now available, which means you won’t have neighbors endlessly ask you why you wear the same silly hat forever and ever (until you can‘t stand it anymore and assault them with your bug net, or plant a “!” pitfall and push them in just to watch them struggle).

- Many of your favorites from the original are set to return… HOWEVER look at the wording used… “much of the cast of the original Animal Crossing returns,”… so that means you can expect a few no shows of your favorites.
But of the characters that are verified for appearances in “Wild World” there’s the return of K.K. Slider (which means the return of Saturday night music night), Tom Nook (the Nookster, he who holds your sweet dairyaire over the fire and charges you tons of bells for home expansions he forces on you), Blathers (which means the return of the museum and collecting), Mr. Resetti (he who whines when you reset… oh, this should also mean the return of his rarely seen nicer twin brother), and more.

No mention, however, is the following.
No mention of the fortune teller Katrina, the wandering wallpaper guru Wendell, the shyster Crazy Redd, the wandering carpet saleswoman Saharah, the snobby fashion house clothes designer Gracie, or the forever drowning and surfacing on your beach sailor Gulliver. Also no mention of Officer Copper and Booker, the pelicans of the Post Office (though they should be there since you can mail mail in this game), Wisp the Will-o-Wisp… geez, there’s a TON of characters to speak of isn’t there…
Let’s see… did I miss anyone… oh, the Mayor, Chip the Fishing Tournament Judge, Jack the King of Halloween, Tom Turkey, Jingle (Santa’s trusty Reindeer and deliverer of gifts to the animal valleys), the sisters who run the design house (though I suppose they’re there since you can make designs)… oh there’s a TON of characters not mentioned!
Expect a few of these to be MIA, though which won’t be known until the game is played for at least a full year.

- Here’s a piece of good news (for me at least). If you know somebody who has a DS but no Animal Crossing you can download this onto their DS so they can play with you in the same village… nice, guess that means I can play this after all… yeah, I’m such a worrier!
That or Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection will allow you to play with 3 people in realtime.

And that’s that. The rest? It’ll come when I do the full review in the coming weeks.
So stay tuned, because the world of Animal Crossing is going portable, and it should be a game to be on the lookout for if you loved the original! Stay tuned!

PS2 - Monster Rancher 4

2005-12-02T22:21:00.000-08:00

Ever found an obscure game on the shelves at your local Blockbuster or gaming store and wondered about it? Should you check it out, or should you pass? And if you find said game for only, say, $10 or so would that compel you to buy said game? Probably not, especially if said game is an obscure game from a not so loved clone series of a more popular series… right? Monster Rancher, one of a handful of series often considered to be a “Poke’mon clone series”, is not exactly a fan favorite in terms of fan interest… though I guess there must have been some interest in the series since, well, it DID make it all the way to the fourth game of the series. But, then again, Digimon World also reached game 4 recently and it sucked. So does Monster Rancher 4 bite the same as Digimon World 4? Let’s see…

As the game starts your character comes into town and gets into trouble instantly! Being thrown out of school for monster trainers wasn’t bad enough for you, oh no, you had to go and get into trouble… but that won’t last as you’ll find a kind benefactor who’ll give you a small ranch and help you set up with your first monster to raise. Huh? Monsters? Does that mean you’ll have to go out and hunt down creatures ala Poke’mon? Actually, no. Once upon a time creatures and humans once worked together in harmony, until something happened which made humans kind of paranoid. Apparently they sealed away the creatures in stones called “Saucer Stones” and locked them away for sometime. However eventually the original reason for locking away said creatures seemed to have been forgotten, and people began to train monsters again (after reviving said creatures at places called “Shrines” that seem to use some sort of supernatural science thingamabob setup) for competitions ala Poke’mon. Only unlike Poke’mon you can’t exactly “catch ‘em all”. Yes, while the game does boast about over 300 types of monster to train (which is quite abit) you can’t train or catch them all. Instead of going out into the wilderness to hunt down and capture wild monsters, you have to go on adventures and have your monsters locate Saucer Stones. From these stones you can bring forth new creatures (which is recorded into a book from which you revive your creature from, not from disc which I’ll bring up shortly). Ok, you say, so you’ll finds lots and “catch them all”, but it doesn’t work that way. Because unlike Poke’mon (where all your “training” is done on the job, with your monster growing with each battle against wild Poke’mon, here you have to own a “ranch” in order to raise monsters (hence the name of the game, Monster Rancher).

At the start of the game you are given a small piece of land and you begin to train your first monster. That means, and this is probably the thing that killed off interest in the game, setting a schedule!
That’s right! The key to becoming a master Rancher is to set a complex schedule to train your monster by! Think of this as the precursor to Colosseum : Road to Freedom only without the hulking men.
You have a set of training exercises (six in total, which can be upgraded with the use of training gadgets which a merchant will sell and upgrade for you during the game) that raises the stats of your monster, and you have to set a schedule that has your monster train to excel in these six traits.
But it’s not all about training, for like a Sim you also have to make sure your monster is fed, rested, praised (or scolded if it’s naughty) and basically maintained… so basically you have less of a Poke’mon clone game and more like Poke’mon meets Tamagotchi game.

But then there’s the thing that you are training your monster for, fighting.
After a month of training (4 weeks) you’ll be able to enter your monster into tournaments, which somewhat breaks the monotony of training but not by much. This is also where your monster’s Fame meter will grow, the more times your monster wins the more fame it gains (and vice versa in that if it loses it’ll lose fame points). Then comes the opening of Adventure mode where you can take your monsters outside of the ranch and go on adventures. Here is where your creature does it’s other leveling up (it can’t level up in skill levels at home, but it can by adventuring and fighting wild monsters).
Here is also the only way you’ll find new Saucer Stones to create new monsters, as well as excel the “story” of the game which seems to have ancient monsters awakening and causing trouble for the above world.

How’s the gameplay? It’s… well it’s repetitive. You’ll end up doing the same things over and over and over and over again, and eventually it’ll break apart the mild interest players from the ones who really get hooked on this. After awhile you’ll probably only continue on with the training and fighting and adventures if you are hooked on the game, ‘cause once you realize the game is basically a long set of repetitive actions any non-fans will begin to play this less and less, until they’re not playing it anymore.
Also the fighting is nothing to write home about. It’s easy to master (with combat more similar to a fighting game than, say, Poke’mon Stadium or Colosseum) and once you get the hang of it you should only lose due to “cheap deaths” (the computer dodges all your attacks and hits you everytime, or you find yourself unable to act because you’re “Bullish” or something cheap) which might be another downer.
Then things get more complicated when you have to juggle what you’ve already learned with Counters and Attack Chains and so forth… gosh, who would have thought such a “simple” game would actually have a halfway decently done combat system… but if you’d rather not fuss with it once you got your monster trained well enough and it’s been fighting long enough you can begin to trust battles to it more which is a nice thing since once it’s got it’s groove on it’ll fight for itself just fine without supervision.

One thing though, and it’s something I’ve never seen in any game to date, it is the compatibility with this game and Monster Rancher CD and DVDs! Now at the shrine there’s two options, the second (book) being the one you want to use if you just have this game (since it draws the creature from the game itself). HOWEVER if you happen to have the right CD or DVDs it might be possible to draw monsters from OTHER sources! Apparently the PS2 will open up and you have the option to put in a DVD or CD at this point… now I don’t know what that means since I bought this game pre-played (no instruction booklet), but I’m thinking this means that if you have the right Monster Rancher product you can use that to draw in exclusive monsters into this game! This unique compatibility with other media (CD and DVDs) of the Monster Rancher franchise is something unique to this game (never seen any other game before with this kind of compatibility before), mostly since I have not seen any other series take advantage of such a thing, and it’s something I wish I saw more often.
For instance wouldn’t it be nice if a Gundam game could download exclusive Gundam mobile suits from special Gundam SEED (or whatever) series DVDs!? I think that would be super keen and it’d give you just that much more reason to have the game and all the right DVDs.

The idea of the technology that seems to be present in this game is quite innovative, but apparently mis-used since not enough people was into the Monster Rancher Anime to take advantage of the system.
I don’t think we’ll ever see this innovation again, and that is probably a sad thing since this is something that had such potential, but in the end it became wasted potential since nobody took advantage of it.
Long story short (too late) is that this game is a middle of the road fence sitter.
It’s not incredibly fun, but it’s not a completely meritless game. But I’ll let my breakdown say the rest.

Monster Rancher Breakdown the 4th
What’s Hot?
Well it is something for you fans who wanted a little strategy in your monster raising. Here, with the whole schedule thing that’ll help you set up a training schedule for your monster, you can hand train and craft your monster to be all that it can be (customize it‘s moves, it‘s special abilities, and once you‘ve gotten it trained enough it can take over and fight it‘s own battles). With all these things you actually have a hidden little gem here of a game that might occupy you for awhile.
There is a few quirks with the schedule, like for instance you’ll need to constantly change the schedule to reflect the present status of your monster (so checking it daily and adjusting accordingly is advisable), and sometimes you can’t turn over fighting to your monster right away (sometimes a monster needs to be “controlled” longer than others before you can completely let go of the leash and let them fight on their own, especially if they happen to dislike a thing called “Battle“… you‘ll see).
Otherwise if you like a game with lots of data management and character building this might be for you.

What’s Not?
However this is no Poke’mon Stadium! While, yes, there is fighting in this game, most of the game centers around the training and raising over the fighting aspect of the game. You spend more time working you upgrading your monster and training it up more than you do fighting monsters, which might be a turn off for you if you are not a major fan of that sort of thing. Basically the same thing that might be a draw for some might be the killjoy for others. Oh, and the story of the game, as it were, comes out really really really SLOWLY! You’ll have long periods of no story then, suddenly, story happens… then stops and doesn’t happen for what seems like this side of forever! So if you’re hoping for a vibrant active story then you won’t be finding that here.

Moments to Remember?
I guess the “story” since nothing else, even if the story drags it‘s heels forever and ever to “evolve“.
Oh, then there’s the little fairy females who are the most human looking of the monsters, and who often wear itsy bitsy little two piece bathing suits or some sort of clothing… where did they get those anyway?

What to Ignore?
The game seems to fancy itself with a “Story”, though the important part of the game is the training, the “story” (such as it were) will roll along just fine on it’s own with little interference on your part (unless it involves beating some boss monster then the story ends up grinding to a halt without your help).
That usually happens when you have to solve some mystery which sticks you with having to fight some gigantic ancient monster of one kind or another, which is such a cliché I can’t even tell you how cliché that is for the gamers to have put that into the game!

Overall?
Like raising things slowly and watching them grow old? Like the detailed care and maintenance of a tamagotchi but want the fighting of a Poke’mon Stadium game (but in a more fighter game style aspect) along with the adventuring aspect thrown in as well? Then this might be the game for you.
However if the endless repetitive gameplay aspect seems like it’ll be more boring than exciting, and you think the endless management of your monster’s personal workout schedule will bore you to tears (which will become more of a hassle as you juggle up to five monsters at once) then by all means don’t pick this up (no matter how inexpensive it is)! There’s going to be tons of monster maintenance here, and if you are not thrilled by the detail oriented aspect of monster rearing then you are so not going to love this game.
However the game’s true potential is wasted since it seems to depend on Monster Rancher CD and DVDs to draw out unique creatures for training, which should be darn near impossible to get ahold of… or justify getting ahold of since nobody really liked the Monster Rancher series)!
That and the game is rather middle of the road with nothing really making it stand out except for that one aspect which will probably be near impossible to exploit if you’re an average gamer like me, who doesn’t own a single Monster Rancher DVD to their name.

Look, this is basically a choice option for you and it’s for you to decide, of course. However while it does have a few merits it’s not for everyone. And while I don’t want to sound repetitive or anything I think it’s still important that (when you think of this game) you consider the amount of work you’ll have to do.
When it comes to the work that means you’ll spend more time juggling schedules and training than doing fighting or adventuring, which may be the make or break of this game for you.
If the game’s training thing interests you then you’ll find it has merits, but if the whole thing of doing endless training and scheduling (which turns into scheduling conflicts when you try to schedule workouts for more than one monster) bores you then avoid this.
Either way for $10 it’s not a bad thing, it’s just the gameplay may not suit you even at $10.

Wild Wild 24/7 Animal World!

2005-11-29T19:32:00.001-08:00

Seems I'm working at half review speed during the holidays, sorry.
Tomorrow it's another review preparing for the expansion towards Nintendo DS reviews, and it's going to be a good one.
If you've played it on the GameCube you know what a good game it is, so why not check it out on the DS! I, of course, mean the 24/7 365 day a year addiction known as Animal Crossing, now coming out on the Nintendo DS as Animal Crossing : Wild World! Get your first look at this much anticipated game tomorrow!

PS2 - Peter Jackson's King Kong

2005-11-29T19:32:00.000-08:00

Why is it just about everytime somebody rolls out a video game adaptation of a “blockbuster” movie the first thing you do is grind your teeth, and fear for your sanity? Why? Other than the fact that the damn game in question usually sucks more than you can possibly imagine, I don’t see why you’d cringe so… now stop your worrying and swallow your Charlie and the Chocolate Factory disc already! It’s no good as a game so you might as well eat the thing… well, maybe not since (despite the name) it’s not really made of chocolate.
So short of using the disc in the case as a new decoration for your car‘s rearview mirror, or something to practice your sharpshooting skills with, there really isn’t much purpose of owning these failing movie based games (heaven forbid you’d actually PLAY the damn game more than once)!
But because somebody has to earn a paycheck to feed their families somebody put together a brand new game based on a brand new “blockbuster” movie. And because somebody has to review the damn game I guess I’ll jump on the hand grenade and take a look at the latest theatrical release turned video game.
So then, without further ado, from the people at UbiSoft (who brought you the Tom Clancy franchise), Wingnut Films, and from the guru of the Lord of the Rings movies (3 movies about the destruction of the one ring) comes Peter Jackson’s King Kong (one movie about the destruction of the one primate, though thankfully you won‘t have to strain your eyes to see if Gollum is clinging onto King Kong as he falls off the Empire State Building screaming “MY PRECIOUS!!”…. stop that! You don‘t know where he‘s been!)

You know the drill, especially since we’re talking the classic amongst classic monster movies, the one and only King Kong. Based on the classic movie (which spawned a remake and lord knows how many tie ins and spin off and so forth over the years), the movie takes place in the same time and basically is the same movie from what I‘ve seen (with prettier SFX and some changes).
It all starts off with a film crew taking a road trip to this place called “The Island of the Skull”, where they are looking for… a movie to film! Yeah… that’s such a good reason to get people you barely known killed via the unhealthy habit of being “eaten alive”.
It’s the year 1933 (same as the original I think) and some nutjob with a director’s title and a lack of common sense has decided to take a film crew out to this distant land to film the next great epic. He’s got no common sense (as I mentioned before), no brains (you‘ll see that in action as you spend several “lovely“ levels having to follow him about, yet he’s got a screenwriter who seems to have the instinctual screenwriter’s ability to instantly pick up any gun and use it to kill giant flesh eating monsters… yeah, I’m talking about you. You can not only write up a great movie on the drop of a hat, you can also pick up any randomly dropped weapon and blow away said dropped hat all in the same breath… wow.
Me? I personally blame Hollywood for preparing screenwriters for things such as this!
Add to the cast a crew of misfit sailors and a film crew who you rarely see during the game (they’re spending lots of time running for their lives in the game so they’re rarely around) and a starving starlet who was truly a starving starlet on the streets before the mad director “saved” her and you got yourself a recipe for disaster -- even Emeril Lagase wouldn’t touch this with a 20 mile BAM! And you know what? Now that we think about it, maybe starving on the streets of a big city is indeed a better alternative for that “starving starlet” than being fed to some big monster on a distant island.

As for the Island of the Skull? It looks like the big thing on the island isn’t just the big guy Kong, who has his own personal fanbase of primitive natives who often try to play matchmaker by hooking the big guy up with whatever foreign white chicks land on their island… go figure. Anyway there’s also the many monsters and dinosaurs of gigantic size (from the mansize to the mega size), not to mention the primitive humans that also live on the island who live to be Kong‘s groupies and full fledged card carrying members of the Cannibalism Club of the Atlantic. Yeah. Wonderful. Anyway in this game you’ll take control of the two big characters. One, the human Jack Driscoll, is where the 1st Person shooter levels come in. The other, Kong, is where you’ll be doing the 3rd person action gaming. Got that? No? Me neither.

The game starts with a montage of film footage from the beginning of the actual movie, then rolls right into the game itself. That’s where you’ll have lots of pretty things to say. The graphics are beautiful, the game is filled with the nicest and most beautiful graphics you’ve ever seen. The gang who made the game went all out, and that means this is even more beautiful on the XBox360 version as it is on the PS2 -- by the way, if this game blows then that’s going to be a major hardship for Xbox360 fans since there is a slim picking of first gen games to choose from for the 360.
Of course just because the game is pretty eye candy that doesn’t mean the game is hot stuff. It’s going to be the gameplay that makes it hot stuff or not, which is what we’re looking at here. Now, mind you, I can’t say that I know whether or not the actual cast of the movie has reprised their roles in the game (though it seems that they did), but I do know that you can find a certain Gollum in this game. Featured in this game is one Andy Serkis, he who you probably remember better as Gollum from the Lord of the Rings trilogy… I’m not certain what he does in this game though, think he‘s the nutty director with the obsession for the One Primate…. Only he doesn’t eat fish raw and doesn’t talk to himself in this movie. The rest of the names I don’t recognize though, sorry. Guess I should have seen the movie before I reviewed the game.

Anyway back to the game. Split into two parts you’ll find yourself challenged in two different ways, starting with the human equation of the game. The human equation, where you’ll go 1st Person Shooter on the island’s monsters, is how you’ll spend a very large chunk of gameplay in this game. As Driscoll, the gun toting screenwriter of vengeance, you’ll be shooting (whenever you can find the guns or ammo to shoot) or scavenging the ladnscape for spears and bones from neverending carcasses of rib bones that never ever end) that you can use as projectile weapons or burning tools. With these “weapons” you’ll be struggling your way through the island’s madness searching for -- something big, which is actually quite an accomplishment since you ARE playing as a “screenwriter” of all things! Apparently the screenwriter’s guild requires it’s members to be trained in weapons and giant bug slash monster killing… must be all the time they have to spend in Hollywood. Anyway instead of the human monsters like lawyers and film producers you’ll have more primal creatures to deal with, like the anti-Dr. Doolittle you will walk with the cannibalistic animals, kill all the animals, then feed their bloodied carcasses to other beasts… yes, I’ll stop singing now.

Yes, feeding the animals IS very very important by the way, sorta like Zoo Keeper only not as cute.
Apparently since most of the creatures you are occupying space with on this little landmass are of the flesh eater variety, and since you don’t want them to be eating YOUR flesh, you’ll need to give them an alternative to their diet other than the Soylent Green flavored finger food or super sized take out variety of food you could be feeding these monsters (which would be you and your pals served up sushi style).
So at times you’ll have the chance to slay a creature and use it’s desecrated corpse as a “munchie” to protect yourself from attack, and not just you dropping enemies dead and watching their pals descend on their corpse, you can also find little insects and fish which will be used as bait to draw monsters out into the open (from ambush) in order to nail them. This can also be used to buy you time to heal, scramble to gather a new weapon or more ammo, or distract mega predators while allies open paths for your escape… the food chain is so deep here, and guess where YOU stand on that food chain! Go on, guess!

That’s most important since this game doesn’t deal you a health meter as it does a small amount of “health” ala Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon series. If you take a few hits the game screen turns blood red, and dire music begins to play. From this point you’ll need to avoid further hits, lest your dead. However if you can stay away from damage for a little bit you’ll “heal” up and be able to go on again… guess you don’t have to worry about bleeding deaths like in other games since in this game you always seem to recover from the damage as long as it’s not critical (like you being chomped on by a T-Rex for instance).

In fact this whole “Food chain” thing is very important since some “puzzles” require the useage of creatures as food in order to get through. At one point you’ll need to play bodyguard to two guys trying to open a gigantic gate, but a T-Rex wanders by and mistakes your party for the cast of Jurassic Park (or he just has a bad case of the munchies from his 10 giant caterpillar a day habit) and you need to protect your guys from it. Obviously shooting it is NOT a good idea since even your best gun can’t take out a T-Rex, so you’ll need to FEED the T-Rex… now look up and notice the flying things. Yeah, they’re not flying monkeys, and you’re not Dorothy, but they’ll do in a pinch for instant T-Rex Helper, that helps your T-Rex help keep your pals from being mistaken for a great meal.
Oh, but that’s not all. Mind you once you feed the T-Rex the two flyers in the area you are going to end up short some food to keep the thing occupied, and those two working the cranks are DAMN SLOW! Well you did pick up a gun in this level and by the time the T-Rex comes about you should have found refills to your gun so you can work it. You’ll need to shoot the T-Rex in the head (no I’m not kidding you) and keep it occupied. You won’t kill it, mind you, but you can keep it’s attention by firing short bursts at it’s head and staying away from it. You should be able to buy enough time for the gate to open up then run through and finish the scene. Simple.

Another important thing about the human equation is the need to listen. And by that I don’t mean listening to the urge to turn this game off and go back to playing Resident Evil 4. I mean listening as in you listening to your companions who’ll give you hints as to what to do, and you listening to your environments as you’ll often hear potential enemies before you see them (just like how you often can hear people‘s car stereos pounding away some (bleep)y loud thumping song before you see said car in question. Yeah, I know, you actually FEEL the music before you see them however I wouldn’t rely on feel if I were you. Listening will reveal things like footsteps (island natives), roaring (monsters), crunching (feeding monsters), chewing (the sound guy walked over to the food tables with the sound mike), and heavy breathing (just don’t think too hard about who they got to do the heavy breathing for this game).

Now after all that you’d think a game like this would be cool, right? Well it does have it’s faults as well as it’s -- well -- it’s “pluses”. One of the few bright points that should have shined better, mainly the puzzles, is also one of the biggest disappointments of the game. On an island that you would think should be filled with Indiana Jones meets Myst style death defying puzzlers the game is rather dim on the depth of the puzzles. Sad but true, the so-called “puzzles” are way too simple for anyone, coming off more as no-brainers as opposed to well thought out puzzles. For instance… you can turn switches to open gates (or wait for your female love interest to open gates for you), and if you’re down with that you can test your brains by setting bramble ablaze with a flaming spear in order to move through, or something equally simple and pedestrian.
And, worse, sometimes you need to combine some of these “puzzles” to get somewhere.
For instance you would need to burn bramble in order to clear a path for an ally, or to reach a lever to work a gate. Or you need to feed flesh eating spiders a prey (this is the only use for the spear that isn’t you using it as a projectile weapon since it can spear small little insects for bait but breaks when you try to defend yourself from larger beasties) to reach a lever to open a gate… damn, it seems quite a few of the so called “puzzles” revolve Talk about a sad sad state of affairs.

Another sad thing about the game is that the game is supposed to be SOOOOOO realistic! Sure, the animation is damn pretty and everything looks just nice, but a taste for the realisitic also means that the sense of “reality” removes the potential fun that you should be feeling out of a 1st Person Shooter from the game’s equation. Taking up a gameplay engine feel similar to The Getaway : Black Monday, you find yourself playing a game with no health meter, no ammo meter, no GPS system to keep track of where you’ve been (or where you’re going), no targeting system to make it easier to hit what you’re aiming at, nothing. And while you can track your ammo by pressing the circle button you’ll find that you run out of ammo way too fast, often having to scramble to find bones and spears to defend yourself by throwing… yes, you can use it by jabbing but forget it since the damn things blunt almost instantly and the thing is useless as a handheld weapon (it’s only good as a projectile weapon).

You can die way too easily in this game! Because you have no health meter that means you find yourself dragged right onto Death Jr.’s door almost immediately once you get hit a few good times by a creature! That means you constantly find yourself in danger of dying over and over again which makes the game harder than it should be, especially if you run out of ammo way too fast (which you’ll do often) and have to scrounge for projectile weapons which take forever to kill these things!

Perhaps the other side of the equation will be more fun than this…. Then I played it. The Kong equation.
It’s the reason you’re playing a game called King Kong after all, the chance to play as the major primate himself King Kong. When you finally have the chance to play as the ape you’ll find the gaming aspect changed, as you’ll switch from 1st Person Shooter to 3rd Person Action mode here… which is going to take a long while since you have to muddle through quite abit of the human side before you FINALLY FINALLY get ahold of Kong! The first chance you get to play as Kong you’ll have to chase down a runaway flying monster to save Anne, which is more of a pain in the rear than you can imagine!

Unlike your human counterpart who fights 1st person shooter style (in a system ala The Getaway : Black Monday), you’ll control Kong in 3rd Person Action mode using him to bash and smash your way through your enemies with your Primal Rage style of beatdown… only the game seems reluctant to teach you how to make Kong go. You’ll find the game has a damn hard learning curve since you’re expected to absorb the game’s few instructions and somehow master Kong! So expect to see Anne die a few times since you’ll have a bit of a struggle mastering the primate.
One important thing to remember here, about Kong’s part of the game, is that between battles you should start rapping on the triangle button to build up your “Rage” meter… “Rage”… “Primal Rage”… uh, never mind. Don’t bother doing this while you’re chasing the flyer, by the way, since time is of the essence. Do it once you catch up and Anne gets clear so you can fight without worrying about the thing biting her head off. Anyway apparently this “Rage” meter boosts the power of your attacks, HOWEVER it also leaves you open to attack so you should be sure you are quite “alone” before you go rapping your “anger mis-management” button -- but that’s not possible since it also heals you quick so you really should be risking it since (once the world turns red) you need to go “rage” quickly in order to regenerate. Oh, don’t worry, you’ll know you are “raged” since the world turns colors and remains a weird color until you calm down again (and need to rage once again). Then comes the suck -- once you master Kong and catch Anne? You‘re done, back to being a human… damn! You barely get any time on Kong it seems! What the heck!!

Obviously this means the game is by no means a slam dunk by any stretch of the term, which is kind of sad since it’s also one of the opening volley games available on the XBox360! OK, the truth of the matter is the game is not horrible, and it does have it’s good points -- just not for $50 a pop! And considering that this happens to be one of the small handful of opening volley games for the Xbox360 then you are kind of burdening the owners of the new system with slim pickings in terms of Christmas gift games to choose from. Alright, you do also have choices like Dead or Alive 4 and Perfect Dark Zero to fall back on so it’s not like your shafted if King Kong doesn‘t float your Fellowship.
One good thing (which also is a suck thing), however, is the extras.
On the good side we have WETA created galleries which actually play out as REAL GALLERIES! When you choose these you’ll find yourself transported into a gallery area where you can roam about, seeing the exhibits in museum quality set-ups that really put a sense of interactive-ness into this extra which just rocks.
On the suck side we have extras that can only be unlocked with… what the… online codes? Online codes?!? What the…!! Then there’s stuff that only can be unlocked with a certain score -- funny, everytime I check in the game swears I have earned ZERO points… how the hell do I earn points in this game!!
That and the game seems rather stingy with it‘s cutscenes, sharing very little actual scenes from the movie.
But how does the game roll overall? Let’s break it down.

King Kong Breakdown the Peter Jackson Version
What’s Hot?
Now that’s a hard one… what is so damn good about King Kong… oh, wait, Peter Jackson’s King Kong? What is good? Well there is the graphics which is damn good to look at, and then there’s the WETA galleries which allows a little bit of interactive exploration of the exhibits of the stuff that went into the look of the game. And I’m sure there’s more extras too that I have yet to unlock, which should be nice too.
Otherwise as first person shooters slash third person action games goes it does have some bite to it and I can’t proclaim that I was bored by the game, because I did have fun playing it. So I guess I did like it, though I wouldn’t compel people to drop a $50 spot on this game either.
Other people seem to have liked this game better than me though, like X-Play, so maybe it does have more merit than I give it credit for. Ah, you better check this out yourself if you think it’ll suit you. Rent it out and give it a spin, you might actually like it.

What’s Not?
The gameplay, however, drags at times in my opinion. I had fun, but it could have been better.
Adapting the restrictive feel of The Getaway : Black Monday you find yourself without any way of tracking your health or ammo, find yourself short on life and shorter on ammo count, and basically find that if you were looking for an all out frantic shooter to roar through then you’ll be greatly disappointed.
The restrictive element of the game does add quite abit of challenge, and considering the whole game is beautiful visual eye candy that really looks swell you could do worse for a place to do your 1st person shooting in, but if you are like me and like to have a all out shooting experience then you’ll find the way too restrictive element of this game is not going to be your cup o’ tea. Still it’s a fairly good shooter so it’s not all that horrible, but it’s no Resident Evil 4. Then there’s the Kong levels which are too short and too few, which is a bad thing since you did come all the way just to play as Kong only to get less than what you probably expected from your ability to play as Kong!
Add to that the “online code” thing, the point meter that doesn’t seem to ever grow past zero points (which means more extras are hard to unlock) and a game that is a mix of good and bad you have yourself one mixed bag of a game to look at here.
Whether you buy it or not is up to you, but for me it’s not worth the $50 they’re attempting to milk you for to buy said game. Wait until the price is knocked down.

Moments to Remember?
The game is pretty. The graphics is quite nice and the game has such a beautiful look to it, and everything is so damn pretty in this game! But, then again, being pretty is not being good, it just means the game looks great visually. The extras are a mixed bag, and the gameplay is easy enough to pick up and play so you won’t struggle too hard, expect in Kong’s area but once you master it you should be able to swing with it (pun intended).

What to Ignore?
Let’s see… I’d like to ignore the fact that there’s as much flaws or bads about this game as there are good things. The whole Getaway : Black Monday “realisitic” feel of the game drags. The fact you don’t get to play with Kong as much as you should have in this game sucks. The fact that the game is so damn stingy with cutscenes from the movie sucks! Basically it’s a give and take here. The game gives some interesting gameplay, but it could have been abit better. The game has nice extras, but it shouldn’t have been stingy with the extras. And so on and so forth… so I guess the real question is whether or not you can ignore the bad about this game and focus on the good. Can you?
Ok, ok, real ignores…

Ignore the fact that when the T-Rex attacks the character of the director glitches.
Apparently he and the Captain of the ship is working the two gears to draw open the gate (which takes far longer than usual) while you have to distract a T-Rex from eating them. And should you fail the T-Rex will eat the Captain and you will have failed… how do you know you failed? The director calls out “You ready?” as if waiting for you to come up and grab the winch to keep it spinning… guy? The guy next to you is being devoured whole by a T-Rex, stop being so damn calm about it!
Oh, yeah, if you are not a fan of escort missions you’ll find something else to disagree about with this game. It has those in a few instances during the gameplay.

Overall?
Mixed bag. I’ve seen positive reviews of the game but I am not so sold on it as others are. It’s good, but it’s not perfect. I don’t know but for me I’m just not really hyped about this, especially to the tune of purchasing it for $50! But if you want to give it a spin why don’t you go out, rent it, play it, and see what you think. If you like it? Buy it (though if you can maybe you should hold out until the game drops in price and becomes more accessible to your pocketbook). Of course you don’t need to wait for it to drop if you really really want it, if you love the game enough it might be worth even the $50 price tag, but that’s your choice.
Otherwise if you rent this out and don’t like it? Well then don’t get it, get something else. Nuff said.

A Change of Scheduling and The One Primate

2005-11-28T19:19:00.000-08:00

I'm presently working on a change of scheduling, hoping to add a few new things for the week like more articles, maybe a weekly poll if possible and more. But for now I'm still working on that.
Meanwhile tomorrow I have a look at Peter Jackson's King Kong for the PS2 (as soon as I wrap it up today), as to whether or not it's going to be a game worth buying... well, we'll see. Take care and see you tomorrow.

Manga - AI Love You V. 1

2005-11-28T19:17:00.000-08:00

Graphic Novel 1
First off, before I begin, a brief note.
I'm not, by any stretch, a fan of Ken Akamatsu.
Somehow his titles don't seem to appeal to me at all.
Didn't like Love Hina, wasn't entranced with Negima. So, then, why am I talking up this title?
It's actually a work of his that I liked.

Meet Hitoshi Kobe.
He seems to have more luck with non-living computers and technology than he does with living humans.
He's not the best student (despite the fact that he's good at computers), he's a poor athlete (in short he's not going to be entering Olympics trials anytime soon), and he's got the worse luck.

His homelife is worse since his family is never there (being successful people that they are) and he might as well be living alone. Yet there is one thing that keeps him going home night and night again -- and no it's not the concept of a place to sleep and eat. It's his knack for creating artificial intelligences (AI) and the one he's created called Number Thirty (a female AI).

Thirty is the only "girl" he can really speak to freely, and without fear of rejection. Yet she is still only technology and not real... until one night.
Yeah, thanks to the cliché use of the power of nature we see Thirty become a ALMOST living, breathing human woman... almost. In fact she's a solid holographic woman that lives as long as his computer is running (which turns out to be quite the expensive proposition for love).

But from the first day she comes to life you see what could be a great love form between these two, that is if it could ever really be. After all, if an accident can make Thirty almost real, can she make Hitoshi a man?

Despite the fact she's seemingly human she is still a program.
She has no "taste" and doesn't cook well, and she has a lot to learn about being human.
Still there's lots of chances for her to grow as she ends up going to Hitoshi's school, goes on her first (and his first) date, tries out for clubs at Hitoshi's school, goes on a trip which turns into an eco-tale, and almost faces the dark shadow of death at the hands of a virus program.

And that's just the first book... makes you wonder where Graphic Novel 2 will take readers.

AI Love You Breakdown the 1st
What's Hot?
I'm not usually a fan of the works of Ken Akamatsu but there's just something about this that's so appealing. I don't know what it is, but I know I like what I see.
It's got that special something that makes it a nice read. And I think you'll like it too.

What's Not?
Eh... I see the dark touch of his mind coming in future Graphic Novels.
Maybe it's just me but can we keep the female cast of potential "girlfriends" down to below a dozen? If at all humanly possible for Mr. Akamatsu that is... please.

Moments to Remember?
The interactions between Hitoshi and Saati (Thirty) is tops.
But one really memorable scene is when Hitoshi is struggling to purge the virus that is ravaging Thirty's programming and threatening to "kill" (delete) her. When it looks like she's doomed she tells him that all he has to do is "reboot" her and she'll return to him, but he tells her that it won't be the same Saati.
Really touching moment that just makes you want to see them succeed even if it looks like this series will end badly for them.

And the "end" of the virus is a perfect touch to wrap the virus story up as well.
Bad clown virus. Down. Heel. Play deleted.

What to Ignore?
Uh -- just how many more "programs" are going to come to life to make this relationship complicated?
I wish I could ignore that. I really, really do.

Overall?
Even if I have doubts about future Graphic Novels (which I must review soon), it doesn't mean I didn't like this. It's so far the only Ken Akamatsu title I can really rave about and hope future Graphic Novels doesn't change my mind about me raving about said title.
It'd be nice if I don't find a reason not to like this title in future reviews.

Manga - Angelic Layer V. 4 to 5

2005-11-27T13:53:00.000-08:00

Previously...
So far you've met all the major players.
Misaki Suzuhara, newly arrive in Tokyo to go to school there, is instantly seduced into the competitive world of Angelic Layer. Angelic Layer, a combat sport using mini-android robots called "Angels" who link with their user through a special headset that allows their controllers full command over their every move.

With the help of a "Mr. Icchan" (who happens to be the man behind the Angelic Layer craze), and her schoolmates Koutarou and Tamayo she might get through her first tournament in one piece.
Even if she lost to Koutarou's little sister, who she's forged a friendship with, she is still in the game as we go onwards through the tournament.

She somehow makes it to the semi-finals, only to find out that she has a "weakness"...
But even with all her preparations is she ready to face her "weakness" when Hikaru is thrown into a beachside battle with Shirahime, the Angel modelled after the Snow Goddess of the same name?

Graphic Novel 4
It looks like we're about to get the 4-1-1 on what Hikaru/Misaki's "weakness" is... and that is... ah, you can find that out yourself. Regardless of what it is, it seems that (as you might have suspected) Misaki/Hikaru will overcome whatever said weakness is and triumph.

But all this winning, of course, will eventually bring notice and recognition to Misaki as she finds herself suddenly the object of attention at her school! Everyone, it seems, knows her name and she's the person that you simply must know!

But it's not over yet. Her greatest battles are yet to come, for instance her upcoming battle with the Wizard figure owned by a certain someone she met barely in this manga, but met abit more in the anime...

Graphic Novel 5
the battle between Hikaru and Wizard (started last Graphic Novel) is not going well... so why does it look like Misaki may yet pull a victory out of her... uh... hat?
Because she might yet win, even when it looks like things are downright dreadful for her.

But that is only the warm-up for the battle that she may not be ready for... the battle against the angel that inspired her to play Angelic Layer in the first place, and the identity of it's "deus"...

the end is here, but I better stop because it looks like the anime reviews have not reached this ending point.
So I'll keep the rest to myself, and we'll close here... short, but that's for the best.

Angelic Layer Breakdown finale
What's Hot? - Hmm... when I look it all over again I still liked it, even if I... eh... looks like I seem to have quite a few disagreements with how CLAMP wraps their books, don't I?
But that shouldn't stop you from purchasing this series. Hey, if you've seen ADVFilms' release of Angelic Layer, and you liked what you saw, there's no reason not to go and invest in this series.

Yes, it's not as good as the Anime. I happened to have liked the anime version better than the manga, but it's still good nevertheless and well worth reading if I do say so myself.

What's Not? - As I stated before, it seems that I have quite a few disagreements about the way CLAMP wraps their series. I like the series, fine, and I rave about it... but when it comes to closing it up and the payoff at the end? that's where my praise turns to disagreement (which happened a few times already).

this is no exception, however the disagreement is also a spoiler note of sorts so I should not say.
Let's just say that, when the anime is concerned, I do not have the complaint I have for the manga.
Huh? Well, you see, somehow (despite the fact that I haven't seen all the anime yet) I have a feeling that the anime will sell me on the ending far better than the manga, which just didn't seem to bring it home and sell it to me as it wrapped. Confused? Well then watch the end of the anime, read the manga, and see if you feel the same way I do about it.

Moments to Remember? - It's all still memorable, and not just for the fighting. the interactions revolving around Misaki (with her friends, with "Icchan", and so forth) are still the best.
the end I'm not so sure about but that's nitpicking.

What to Ignore? - Uh... can't say. Sorry. Spoiler.

Overall? - It's one of CLAMP's finest moments. If you've seen the Anime then you should take your time to check this out. Believe me, if you are a fan of the anime then you will be able to get into this no problem.

Another Two Days Missing...?

2005-11-27T13:46:00.000-08:00

Sorry to say that I ended up taking another long hiatus, sorry.
Well the month of Sports is just about done and that's just as well since I was always awkward with the whole sports game thing. Next month, however, should be very special since it's time to take a look at the stuff you'll be considering for Chriwstmas! What to buy, what not to buy, the usual. I'll try to theme weekends to discussions of what I do and do not recommend in all categories (games, manga and anime). Sorry for the long dry spot once again, but it's time to get back to work!

Tomorrow is Black Friday

2005-11-24T15:50:00.000-08:00

Yup, the day that people go all out to begin the Christmas Shopping season, Black Friday. I have not yet thought about what I will review but I have a few ideas that I'm working on... I'll see what I can bring in for reviews tomorrow.
So hope you are having a Happy Thanksgiving, and are ready to bear the crowds tomorrow ('cause whether you're shopping or not there's going to be lots of people out there). In the meantime thanks for dropping by and best holiday wishes to you all! Take care!

Nintendo DS - Madden NFL 2005

2005-11-24T15:38:00.000-08:00

Are you ready for some football? ARE YOU Red-E FOR SOME -- oh, wait, I did that already. Sorry.
No need to go over the specifics. We have Football (soccer) and we have Football (NFL), of which we're talking the one and only bus ridin' slash hardware shilling guy of NFL-dom Madden... he who is presently allergic to fair and even competition.
That means, once again, Madden NFL 2006 -- and Madden NFL 2006 for the Nintendo DS -- and did I mention Madden NFL 2006 for the GBA?? Then we're talking Madden and Madde and Madden and... Madden.

So if Madden sucks this year then you are totally screwed since there's just no alternative to NFL Football playing, though you can get the unofficial game (though it's M for Mature 17+ so not everyone can fall back on this unofficial alternative to supply their NFL fix).
This is EA Sports fault! They bought themselves an exclusive ticket to ride, with their Madden franchise being the only game in town that can carry the official NFL franchise logo on it. Yeah, right, competitive spirit and rivalry seems to have died a harsh death via buyout, so it sucks this year to be an NFL fan (doesn't it).
So, once again, since Madden seems to have a fear of rivalry this year I’m going to stick to a review of last year’s Madden… mostly because it’s available cheap at under $20 which fits my budget just nicely (both the DS and the GBA can be had at nice prices, though sadly the DS is only available at under $20 if you can stand buying a pre-payed copy).

Instead of hyping what I know ('cause I can't play this game until I get a DS) let's talk about what this game promises.
- Using the DS wireless link you can play another person without having to carry a clunky wire connection (or a bulky "wireless" link) for your GBA. Of course this probably doesn't mean you can download the game to another person's DS who doesn't own Madden NFL 2005, whcih is sad since that is one of my favorite functions of the DS (the ability to share some games with other people via downloads).
- Using the new Touch Screen Control you can select plays, call audibles and do even more... which sounds nice but does it work? I have to try that out once I get a DS.
- With the split screen you can monitor the gameplay on top and the Xs and Os on the bottom... which doesn't sound that interesting, but I guess they had to do something with the split screens of the DS.
- It's supposed to have great 3D graphics... yeah, except the PSP beats it on that score. Though the DS gets back at the PSP with longer battery life and being a system you can actually trust to take out of your home (unlike the PSP which probably should never see the light of day outside of your domicile).

So the portables is not the greatest slice of NFL you can have, but still if you are a great fan of the NFL you might yet want it. Yeah, this probably won't be the greatest sports game (since it seems the DS doesn't excel in sports as much as the PSP) it's still worth a consideration, especially if you can buy it for cheap cheap cheap. As for the rest? Only time, and a proper review, will answer that.
So stay tuned for a full review in the coming weeks.

GBA - Madden NFL 2005

2005-11-24T15:30:00.000-08:00

Are you ready for some football? ARE YOU Red-E FOR SOME -- which football?
Yeah. We have the two footballs, as if you didn‘t know. One recognized by the world court of sports, and the other an American icon of sports (you know what that means).
Football in the world court of sports (like the UK for instance) means “soccer”, which is the arena of such games as the excellent Winning Eleven 8 International and the not so great FIFA 2005 and 2006 Soccer (Football).
And, well, other than the occasional outing here or there, like that one company that put out a whole fistful of games (each custom fit for each franchise known from what I heard of it) there isn't much to talk about in the soccer games.
When it comes to these games to play, of course, is Winning Eleven 8 International… when a Winning Eleven 9 International will make it’s way into the marketplace, however, is something I have no idea of (hopefully soon).

Meanwhile if we’re talking football in the USA court of sports that must mean it’s time to talk about the NFL, which is the arena of such games as Madden NFL 2006 -- and Madden NFL 2006 for the Nintendo DS -- and did I mention Madden NFL 2006 for the GBA?? How about Madden for… Madden… John Madden, Madden for… Madden. And did I mention Madden? Madden.
Either I’m stuck like a broken record (or a whiney conservative Republican) or there’s only the Madden to be had for official NFL football fixes… which is the situation we find ourselves in this season.
Well, sad to say, as of this year any alternative for the sport of NFL Football that is an officially licensed choice has just flown out the window! That means no ESPN NFL 2K6 (which probably wouldn’t have happened anyway since ESPN seems to have parted ways with 2KSports), no 989Sports Football (though you probably wouldn‘t have missed that anyway since 989Sports is supposed to be having a low moment in sports games that they‘re only recently coming out of with their PSP MVP baseball game), no -- well, no alternatives whatsover in the official capacity! Why? Because EA Sports has bought themselves an exclusive ticket to ride, with their Madden franchise being the only game in town that can carry the official NFL franchise logo on it. Of course that won't mean nothing for you portable players since there hasn't been any alternative NFL games for the portables as far as I know... is there? Won't be now, of course, but still... sorry.

Yeah, right, well as for NFL in general it seems that competitive spirit and rivalry has effectively died a harsh bitter legal death via buyout. So since Madden seems to have a fear of rivalry this year I’m going to stick to a review of last year’s Madden… mostly because it’s available cheap at under $20 which fits my budget just nicely. That and the only other football to speak of is the unofficial Blitz the League which is made from the people who once made ESPN's Playmakers (the show struck down by the NFL because it showed (surprise surprise) that the NFL is not exactly the pure thing they claim it is... jeepers)!

Madden NFL ‘05 for the GBA is your typical football game, hosted by your not so typical Madden. John Madden, who has been at the football game making game for years and years now (spanning from the old NES all the way to the modern GameCube and probably right to the upcoming Revolution) has been making football games for the longest time now, and this is the latest of his game of pigskin that has come out.
Now I know what you’re thinking -- I wanna play the other football -- oh, wait, I mean you want to know how it plays on the GBA… of course you’d rather play the OTHER football, but for those fans of NFL Football let’s stay focused on this game, I’ll -- well I’ll get a game of the other football (soccer) to review soon.
Well this game, which seems to play up like Madden ‘98 (PSOne) with a more -- more -- guess 3-D feel to it -- gives you a new slice of football that you might like… well, at least it’s for a portable that’ll last longer on trips than the PSP despite the fact sports on the PSP looks nicer and plays nicer.
Yeah. Apparently the PSP excels in sports, while the GBA excels in RPGs… or RPG Sports in the case of Mario Golf Advance Tour. But as for NFL Football? Well… it’s a fan thing.

While it does offer up a slice of NFL, and it gives you all the teams and options to customize your game (and even pick out which teams you want to play as during each and every week of a season) there is some issues I have with this game and how it plays. Let’s start off with control issues. Making plays and chosing plays is simple enough, but heaven forbid controlling your chosen player, especially when you are running with the ball! I mean really, somehow I have a feeling that I’m running through molasses or something ‘cause I feel as if I’m having a very hard time controlling my player, which kind of sucks when I’m trying to avoid tackles and I am unable to avoid said tackles due to the lack of manuverability (I run nice, but shifting and moving left and right on the field to avoid tackles blows.)

Throwing is OK, and I’m not sure if it’s the game or me that sucks but -- ah, I’m going to say that it’s me since I don’t think I was any good at throwing the ball in games regardless of what system I’m playing on.
Oh, and the characters are small! Though you can see fairly well you can get a little confused… or is it just me? Maybe it’s just me. Just as long as you know that you’ll be staring at little characters running moves as you play then maybe you’ll be set for this.

There’s a few modes (Season and a few quick play optoins) but sadly there is no career mode for multiple year play. In fact there’s no mode to pick a specific team to play! You can do trades, and so forth managing your teams -- though again you can pretty much manage a whole bunch of teams and I kind of miss the customization of picking ONE team and working on them… guess I could do that though, but still…
Ok. Ok. Nitpicking. Anyway we have a game, it’s Madden, and it’s not a horrific NFL experience. I mean it’s for the GBA so you know you’ll get a watered down experience, right? So it’s not the best but if you are sufferin’ from a NFL fix you’ll want this game. Anyway it’s like $15 or so dollars right now so dammit it’s a nice little drop of cheap and that’s good since it’s better than dropping $30+ dollars for the newest Madden (so you can have a taste of Madden without spending a chunk of change on that taste)!
Anyway playing this hasn’t really made me anymore of a NFL fan than I was when I first played said game, though now I finally have a sports game for my GBA that isn’t a golf game. Oh, well. Breakdown time!

Madden Breakdown the 2005
What’s Hot?
If you are looking for a taste of the football for your GBA? Well then you don’t have a great deal of options to entertain you, yet I have a feeling a taste of Madden might do you some good. Of course it also helps that said taste of Madden is like only $15 a taste, and by golly if you can find a game for such a nice low price then you can afford that taste without dropping too much on said taste.

What’s Not?
Controls seem a little sluggish (especially when you are running with the ball), throwing is probably solid but it’s mastery still seems to elude me, and I wish I could customize a single team and make a Super Bowl ready team customized to my own playing style, which doesn’t seem possible here though there is some customization of teams here. That and you are playing with wee little fellas so you’ll need to pay attention and look closely during gameplay… oh, well, it’s a taste of NFL and if you want such a thing then maybe this is for you. I don’t know, it’s up to you. It’s not the greatest ever played by me, but it’s not horrid either.

Moments to Remember?
Looks like John Madden did a few lines for the game, that and his Madden’ 98 co-anchor… what’s his name… I forgot (sorry)… and that’s about all there is for the memorable. Sorry.

What to Ignore?
I’d like to know what’s up with the whole trading card collecting aspect for “improved gameplay”. As far as extras in a game goes the thing about earning Madden Challenge points to buy packs of cards with power-ups for your players -- well -- it kind of sucks. I usually ignore it when I’m playing.

Overall?
It’s not the worse NFL Football game you have ever seen, and it’s not a nightmare to play. It’s not the best either, but again if you are a fan of the NFL and want a little portable taste to take on the road along with your GBA this might be it… of course it’s not the best, but at $15 a pop it’s good enough.
And if you own a Nintendo DS you can possibly check out the Madden NFL ‘05 game for the DS… though if you can find it for the same low price as the GBA version (or about that much), and if you are that much of a Madden fan then go for it… of course you’d better be a major Madden fan since sports games (again) only seem to look nice and play pretty on the PSP (so don‘t expect perfection out of these Nintendo portables ‘cause you sure as heck won‘t be getting it here), but at least it’s a taste… speaking of which if I ever get ahold of a Nintendo DS I’ll review Madden for the DS… yeah, I have that for the DS -- why yes, it IS the EXACT SAME GAME I reviewed above… go figure! I have two copies of the same football game… guess 2005 was a good year for cheap games. Ok, nuff said.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2005-11-23T17:37:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is turkey day, as some of us who celebrate it gives thanks (depending on where you live and all that)!
To celebrate, I'm going to roll out the turkeys... sort of.
Monster Rancher 4 (PS2) - Probably the last game of the franchise, the game that gives you something for your need to relentlessly control everything (monsters) with a detailed schedule and lots of training comes to your hand from the people at Tecmo (who once made football with Tecmo Bowl).
Poke'mon Colosseum (GameCube) - Because somebody is still playing Poke'mon video games, we take a look at the first major game for the GameCube that is actually worth recommending to you out there.

Take care and have a Happy Thanksgiving... then grit your teeth and prepare to bear the next day, Black Friday, and the beginning of our mutual nightmares to prepare for Christmas gift giving!

Nintendo DS - Five Weeks to Reviews...

2005-11-23T17:29:00.000-08:00

Hopefully we can start seeing real full out reviews of Nintendo DS games in five weeks from today... five weeks... but while we are waiting for that let's start taking a look at games that I think might be worth checking out if you are looking for something for under your christmas tree this year.
This week... a game of the weird.

Trauma Center : Under the Knife
Because nothing says weird like a surgical sim on the DS, here's a Japanese surgery sim with a taste of the supernatural. You are a doctor, obviously, and you use your stylus to perform virtual surgery on virtual patients. With hot nurses to assist, and strange collegues to bother you, you will go from patient to patient working your magic to save their virtual lives... litterly. If you are running out of time and need more of it you can draw a pentagram star and slow time... weird.
Because this is one weird game that gives you a workout with your stylus AND allows you to do something you've never done in games before (surgery) this is going to be some real fun to check out. And at least it's not a game of autopsies like CSI on the PC or (heaven forbid) X-Files : Resist or Serve, the X-Files game that plays like a Resident Evil clone for the PS2.

There's another, a lawyer sim, but I have to look up some more info on it... like it's name, I forgot it, but once I do that I'll come back to recommend it. Why? 'Cause legal wrangling you can put in your pants, let alone a game that gives you a damn good reason to scream "OBJECTION!!" at anytime is something worth checking out in my book! "OBJECTION!!"
Though just don't play this game while sitting in court... "OBJECTION!!"

Next week more weird games including that Lawyer sim and a game that plays partially like Myst, with a starring character who needs to be Hooked on Stylus... more next week.

Manga - Angelic Layer V. 2 to 3

2005-11-23T17:16:00.000-08:00

Previously...
So far you've met all the major players.
Misaki Suzuhara, newly arrive in Tokyo to go to school there, is instantly seduced into the competitive world of Angelic Layer. Angelic Layer, a combat sport using mini-android robots called "Angels" who link with their user through a special headset that allows their controllers full command over their every move.

With the help of a "Mr. Icchan" (who happens to be the man behind the Angelic Layer craze), and her schoolmates Koutarou and Tamayo she might get through her first tournament in one piece.
Even if she lost to Koutarou's little sister, who she's forged a friendship with, she is still in the game as we go onwards through the tournament.

Graphic Novel 2
Basically the entire book for the most part is the rest of the tournament story.
Her battles, new meetings with new opponents and the guy who is the master of the Angel known as Wizard (who happens to be related to "Icchan" and... well... I'll talk about that later).
At the end she makes it through to the semi finals of the tournament, but receives a cryptic warning about her "weak spot"... which she better figure out and fix ASAP before it's too late.

Graphic Novel 3
So what is Misaki/Hikaru's "weak spot"? And how can they overcome it before it's too late?
That is the question to ask as we roll into this book, heading towards the semi finals of the tournament that has been on since Graphic Novel 1.

Too bad she doesn't have enough time it seems to figure it out because well before the book reaches it's halfway point we're thrust right back into combat as the semi-finals get underway.
But with Misaki fighting against a Angel version of a Goddess (Shirahime, the snow goddess... of which CLAMP has a One Shot written about... the goddess, not the Angel) it looks like her weakness is about to come to light whether Misaki is ready or not.

Whether she can overcome said weakness won't be learned until next time though.
So that's it. Breakdown time.

Angelic Layer Breakdown the 2nd & 3rd
What's Hot? - While it's not as endearing as Cardcaptor Sakura, and not as exciting as Magic Knight RayEarth, it is still a good solid read overall. I liked it, and if you've been watching the anime then you should be reading the manga (without question).

What's Not? - Uh... well I could say the long fights that seem to eat up lots of space, but there is something more disturbing than that which centers around how the book ends. However since this is only a review of the 2nd and 3rd books I'll keep my thoughts on that silent.

Moments to Remember? - Besides the many fights you mean? Yeah, there are some great moments (all focused on Misaki of course, and her interactions with Icchan and the others of the series).
The fights might drag on, but there's still plenty memorable things about these books.

What to Ignore? - I'll tell you about that later on...

Overall? - It's another good series from CLAMP. They're A-No. 1 hot stuff with a bullet and series like this shows you why. Sometimes I don't agree with the endings (this being no exception to that rule) but that doesn't mean I don't have lots of praise to go the CLAMP's works, which I do.

Manga - Angelic Layer V. 1

2005-11-22T12:14:00.000-08:00

Before We Begin
For all intents and purposes from what I've seen? The Anime and the Manga are basically two entirely different beasts with some exceptions. So, with that said, I'm going to review the first Graphic Novel of the title now... which is to play it safe until I've seen Volume 2 and compared it to the manga.
That way I don't accidentally reveal any "spoiler" notes of what is yet to come in the Anime version (since you are only up to Volume 2 of the series and I have to get that DVD myself sooner or later).

Graphic Novel 1
She has come from a long way away to go to school in Tokyo... and she's barely fifteen minutes in town before she becomes entranced by the fighting "game" known as Angelic Layer.

Who is "she" you might ask? She is one Misaki Suzuhara, and she has become entranced by the game known as Angelic Layer after watching a smaller white clad "angel" defeat a stronger opponent.
Identifying with the smaller angel she is inspired to build her own "angel" and fight, which might be an easy proposition after she runs into a strange guy in a white lab coat... you know, the kind of guy whose description you take to law enforcement so you can acquire a restraining order against said individual.

But building an angel is just the beginning.
She'll have to learn how to play the game, and there's no better way to do it than a little "on the job" training with some actual combat and some "basic training" by herself -- or is it by herself?

At this point the anime and manga split.
There's abit more depth in the anime version, and you get a lot more content including stuff on Mitsaki's mother (who she hasn't seen in a long time), that guy who is related to "Icchan" (that scientist who is more than he seems)... oh, heck, lots.

Thus comes a problem I have with the manga... and that is you need to watch the anime if you want more depth to the manga, but you DON'T get the same amount of depth if you do it in reverse (read the manga to enhance your experience with the anime). What's up with that?!?
Sure there is SOME info, but it doesn't go to the level you get from the anime (and I got this just from watching ONE volume to date). Also there's way more emotion to the anime version than the manga, and lots more depth that the manga lacks severely.

Didn't read the manga? Maybe you're not missing much.
But regardless of this it's still worth having because, well, as I watch the series I might change my opinion.
There might be times when the manga has more depth than the anime... it's just not now.

Of course before this is over Mitsaki is going to meet the rest of the cast, and be entered into her first major tournament and have her first battles, and her first defeat. All of course needed for her to grow.

Don't get me wrong. I love this series. It's one of the few CLAMP series I praise highly... of course I praised Cardcaptor Sakura until the second half when they shoved Sakura into Syaoran's arms and then I spent a lot of time gripping about it... but I won't give you my standard "Tomoyo/Sakura" lecture so don't worry about that.

Yet somehow the anime came off abit better than the manga. In fact it even takes one or two "flaws" with the manga and fixes them... I'll explain that later as I review this in more depth in the future.

Okay. It's breakdown time.

Angelic Layer Breakdown the 1st
What's Hot?
Are you watching this? You should. It's one of CLAMP's finest and should be watched. From the CLAMP arsenal I like this, Magic Knight RayEarth and Cardcaptor Sakura... at least the FIRST half of the series in anycase. And, so, if you are a fan of the anime you should be owning the manga, right? Right.

What's Not?
Sadly I'm not telling you to own the manga because it's a required read to grasp the anime. In fact, if anything, it's the opposite (the anime is required to better grasp the manga from what I've seen so far)!
Yet as a fan of the series you should have both. And I have only seen DVD Volume 1 of the series so far so it might be different with subsequent volumes... but for now I'll hold to my one Not for this series.

Moments to Remember
Quite abit of this is memorable, and not just the Angelic fights. Lots of the interactions with Misaki and those around her (her aunt... I mean Shoko... forgot she hates to be called "auntie"... her classmates Kotaro and the potentially fatal to be around Tamayo... "Icchan"... etc) are high on my memorable list.

What to Ignore?
Eck. Can't ignore! Why? This AND the anime are pretty much a who's who of references to OTHER titles from CLAMP!
Eriol Academy, where they go to school, comes from "Eriol" from Cardcaptor Sakura.
The café they eat at in Graphic Novel 1 "Duklyon" comes from Duklyon CLAMP School Defenders.
The name of Misaki's "Angel" Hikaru comes from Hikaru from Magic Knight RayEarth (but that connection gets better explained in the manga than the anime).
A several of the angels are characters from CLAMP series like Magic Knight RayEarth, and one is even the snow goddess Shirahime (of which CLAMP did a one shot of stories for that recently got released by TOKYOPOP translated in english).

Overall?
Okay. I said it before and I'll note it one more time.
Sure, the anime at this time seems to have a leg up on the manga and has more depth to it, but a true die hard fan of the series would buy this as a must have. This is also for fans of CLAMP, of course.
And it's even good if your curious about Angelic Layer and want to see if you'd get into it. That's how I got into watching it, by reading the manga.

PS2 - Transformers

2005-11-21T19:58:00.000-08:00

Okay. You know the drill, but just in case...
Based on the recent Transformers Armada, this series kicks off as the Minicons (a new race never before seen in any previous incarnation of Transformers) leave Cybertron for better places, only to end up on Earth. So much for finding better places.

The Autobots and Decepticons, after receiving a signal from the Minicons during, of all things, a major planetwide battle, follow them to Earth and that's where the action starts.

First off you'll notice there's none of the "humans" this time out... of course if you HAD an attachment to certain characters on that score then you'll be disappointed... not really. They weren't that great.
Second off, to suit the game's action, you'll be confronting a new type of Transformers... DeceptiClones. Eh? What's that? Well it's mostly just an excuse to fill each level with Decepticons without creating a million and one distinct and individualized disposable Transformers (or the same several dozen or so that keep coming back over and over again.)

Third off... uh... well, I'd like to say that I shouldn't spoil the story for you... but there doesn't seem to be any story to spoil. You go from mission to mission, retrieve Mini Cons/Data Cons, fight a lot and have a boss battle or two and that's it... kind of disappointing, really, but let's move on.

You start off in the Character Select screen in Autobot HQ, which is just as pretty as the rest of this game... did I mention the graphics are darn pretty? Well NOW I mentioned it! Anyway you can pick between three Autobots, each with their own special uses and strengths.

Optimus is the powerhouse. His truck mode can run over lesser enemies and he's good when you need strength and power. Hotshot is more for speed than power. He has his uses though he's good mostly for recon. Finally we have Red Alert who is a pretty powerful and balanced character.

You have to travel to parts of the Earth. Places like the Amazon and Antarctica for example.
Each "level" has a set amount of Mini Cons and a set amount of bonus objects to find called Data Cons. Yes, yes, it‘s only the one extra to find but that's a good thing.

Finding these (or your portal points for saving or returning to HQ) is not hard, they can be seen from a distance since they glow (yellow for Mini Con or Data Cons, and blue for save point/portal point)... or so I thought. It seems that just SEEING them is one thing, actually navigating yourself to where these things are? Well that's another story! And, yes, it's just that much more difficult without a map feature.

The controls are easy enough to master, and they're customizable so you shouldn't have any complaints about how the controls work. Transformation is done with a one-button push so you can quickly switch out from robot to vehicle mode in short order.

The gameplay is easy enough. Basically you enter a level, seek out Mini Cons or Data Cons (to unlock bonus materials), and fight DeceptiClones. Occasionally you'll have a major battle on your hands, or you'll have to fight one of the Decepticons, but this all shouldn't be a problem since the game autosaves whenever you open a portal gate or find a Mini Con slash Data Con.
The action is solid enough, and it's kind of fun to play.

Now the bad news.
Problem #1 is the lack of "development" for your Autobot characters.
Other than the ability to attach Mini Cons to them to power them up there is NO leveling up!
No experience gains, no skill boosting, nothing. The only adjustments you can make is to the Mini Cons attached to said Autobots and that's it! Your character remains the same from the beginning to the end for the most part, and that's just wrong.
If there IS a way to change the stats on the Autobots other than Mini Con attachments? I sure as heck haven't found it yet!

Problem #2 is what seems to be a lack of a map feature.
I've ended up wandering about the levels occasionally looking for something... not sure what.
Mini Cons? Data Cons? I've looked and looked yet they're not easy to find, and not having a working map feature made them harder to find. At times I just ended up wandering, and wandering, and getting lost, and wandering some more... damn! Having an easy to read map would have been nice. Really.

Problem #3, though this is to be expected, is control of my chosen Autobots.
Now I use Optimus a lot so I guess this is only natural, but the big guy doesn't seem to stop on a dime very well (needs new brakes?), which means I've rolled myself off the sides of roads and walked over edges because he takes a second or two to come to a halt. Though, at this point, I haven't found a fall I couldn't recover from yet (except falling into the deep Antarctic ocean which was instant death) so Optimus falling doesn't seem to be a problem for the most part.

Problem #4, tied into this control thing, is the control of the vehicle mode which is a problem.
The vehicle controls are clunky, and it's pretty darn easy to get yourself stuck fast vehicle mode.
The best way to use vehicle mode is to first position yourself in robot mode, transform, and try to drive in a straight line. Anything more complex or more useage of vehicle mode will just frustrate you.
That's kind of sad since, as Optimus, you can run over most of the weaker enemies but the controls make it difficult to do that!

Problem #5 is the worst though! That would be the lack of a lock-on feature that helps target DeceptiClones! This, if anything, is the biggest problem with the game!
I don't know if this is a feature reserved for a Mini Con or not, but the mere fact that I have this problem (which would make battling large amounts of DeceptiClones, or powerful DeceptiClones) is a disconcerting thing to me.

The problem is even more apparent when your fighting fast boss Decepticons like Starscream (the Antarctic level). As a robot you can fight him fairly easily, but once he changes to jet mode you'll have a better grasp of how much a pain it is to have to dodge Starscream's attacks AND manually aim your weapons at the same time!! And, yes, it'll only get worse as you go along.

But if the controls are a reason to possibly pass on this, the extras are a solid reason to buy this.
NOT only does this have a lot of perks for Transformers Armada fans, it also has a few gems for Generation One fans! And, really, how cool is that!

So far I've unlocked a TV Spot extra which has five classic "public service announcement" clips from the Generation One Transformers series, and a music section that has old and new renderings of the classic Transformers theme song to listen to! I'm still looking, so hopefully there are more of these rare little Generation One gems to savor in this game!

You can view all the extras you unlocked on the main menu (Extras) section. Easy, eh?
Of course you'll have to play the game and find all the Data Cons to unlock all the extras, so that'll keep you pounding away at the game for quite sometime to find out how much stuff you can unlock.

The gameplay is good (though flawed in places), but the animation is where this game really excels!
Talk about pretty! It's all CGI animation, which might remind you abit of the Beast Wars franchise with it's use of CGI... only this is way prettier.

The cut scenes are so darn beautiful, even the game is beautiful animation wise!
Yes, I know, the game does have some shortcomings but you have to admit it's just gosh darn good looking despite all it's "shortcomings"! But are the shortcomings enough to dampen playing this? Let's see...

Transformers Breakdown
What's Hot? - It's a damn beautiful game! With a ton of extras (that seem to even have a few golden gems for Generation One fans though I only found one gem to date) and animation that is just so beautiful to look at? The game is right on. Gameplay is good too, but it could have used a few tweaks here and there... OKAY! It could use some MAJOR tweaks, but still it's got it's good points!
Alright otherwise it's a fairly decent game despite the flaws.

What's Not? - Yes. The game could have done better. The flaws were a major sticking point.
An auto mapping feature (which I don't seem to have), a lock-on feature, maybe the ability to stop on a dime for precision moves or control your Autobot better in vehicle mode, and maybe some unlockable characters -- then again I haven't played long enough yet so MAYBE there are unlockable characters...
I just have to look and see.
If there isn't any, however, then that is just a disappointment! That would have been a good thing.

Overall more work on the gameplay should have been done, but it's still passable despite the flaws.

Moments to Remember? - The cutscenes are beautiful! And the extras are nice too (ESPECIALLY the Generation One stuff which I'm just finding now)! The game? Well there isn't much of a story... find the Mini Cons, stop the Decepticons, and that's it from what I've seen.
So how can things be memorable about the game if the game is so darn straightforward?!? Well, I guess just the fact you get to play with the Autobots and thrash Decepticons is somewhat memorable... now all they need to do is work on a Generation One game and I'd be quite happy!

What to Ignore? - Eh... I'll never get over how some of the Mini Cons are just old "Friends" recycled.
Like that one Mini Con that looks kinda like Bumblebee (somewhat) but is named "Sparkplug"... wasn‘t that the name of an old Generation One Transformer... or was it the name of one of the two humans from Generation One? I can‘t remember.

Speaking of humans? Those wacky kids from Armada are NOT present for the game!
Of course if you actually LIKED the "kids" who teamed up with the Autobots you can forget seeing them since they aren't in this game. But, on the bright side, if you didn't like them much you can "ignore" them since they're not in this game.

Overal1? - All the Transformers (more or less) and none of the humans? This game might be right up your alley... Except that it seems that when they removed the humans they seemed to remove any plot as well.
Somehow just being shuffled from place to place finding Mini Cons doesn't seem to offer much in the way of a deep storyline, but again I guess that's forgivable since there's a ton of things to compensate for that.

The game is animated well, and having fairly decent gameplay... with some flaws here and there.
The game (while having a few flaws here and there as I stated above) should be something for you Transformers fans out there to consider. Then again with the large (larger than any game I've seen before) Extras section loaded with a ton of goodies to unlock (both Generation One and Armada related) you can't go wrong with this game just by the extras alone.

Of course you don't need to be a Transformers fans to at least consider this game (but it helps if you are). Rent it out maybe, if you are not a fan but curious about the game, hell it might even help in your considerations of purchasing this game for your permanent collection.

Me? I think it has some merit, at least to the point of checking out.
It's not a cakewalk due to the lacking functions I talked about, but still it's a halfway decent game with some very very decent extras and CGI animation that is just too good.
It's not perfect, but it's at least passable.
And with the upcoming Transformers movie (2006 possibly) that is just another good reason to be checking this out as it will be one of those things to keep you occupied until the movie hits theaters.

Now all I need is some Generation One Transformers episodes put out on GBA viewing format, a decent GBA Transformers game (or a PSP Transformers game), not to mention a Generation One Transformers game and I'm all set to stand in line for Transformers tickets in the near future!

Because now I know, and knowing is half the battle... oh, wait, that's from the old public service announcements... I thought that was just for GI Joe public service ads though... oh, well.

Manga - Gate V. 1

2005-11-21T13:10:00.000-08:00

What is it with this title and it's obsession with death anyway?
After surviving a freak lightning strike four male friends soon discover that they've been branded with mystical sigils, each of these signifying that they have had a "God Beast" representing the elements of Earth, Wind, Fire and Water sealed into their bodies.

The God Beasts once guarded a gateway between dimensions, but came under attack and were thrown down (which is how they ended up in these guys). So they need to be separated from these four and put back into guard duty, BUT doing so would probably kill them!

So they close the gate instead of separating with their god beasts.
Now they just have to come to peace with their new "companion" god beasts and learn to coexist with them... or it'll kill them. They must not challenge the supernatural or risk saving ghosts while trying to bond with their god beasts or it'll kill them.
Uh... is there anything about this title that won't end with the "kill" option at any time?

Part one of a two parter, this is about as short as Figure 17 but will it be as good? Only time will tell.
Breakdown.

Gate Breakdown the 1st (of 2)
What's Hot? - Short? Yeah that review was short, but then again the title it's based on is short too. Straightforward it's four guys who get merged with powerful beasts and have to learn to first use them to seal this gate, then learn to bond with them before it kills them... eck, everything ends with "death" as an option in this title! Anyway the good part is it's a fair read.
The title has it's merits, and the story of how these four work to overcome shortcomings and become worthy of this power laid before them is interesting, and not at all cliché (I'm sure you haven't seen it before).
It's not exciting or action packed, but it's a solid enough read nevertheless.

What's Not? - It's not so action packed. It's more of a smart read than an action read, but then again there's some action in here too so that's good. It's also short, so the title zips along and wraps pretty fast. That's a minus, but an unavoidable one. Oh, well, it's still a fair read despite that so I have no complaints.

Moments to Remember? - Uh... not much. There are some moments but you'll have to find that.

What to Ignore? - Their "guide" in this book is a rather stone expressioned female who seems to be part Vulcan from her downright lack of emotion! What's with her anyway? Sheesh! Oh, and then again there's the whole male bonding in this book, well "male/god beast" bonding in anycase... sheesh. Most of this book is male bonding or male/beast bonding or something... eck.

Overall? - It's the mastery of superior godlike power through male bonding!
Too bad the title is very short lest we'd see this develop more and maybe go into interesting directions, but I guess I'll have to save my full judgment of the read until I wrap this review with the review of Volume 2 before I can say what I thought of it -- though when I'll get about to doing that remains to be seen... stay tuned!

Ten PS2 Games To... Avoid.

2005-11-20T20:04:00.000-08:00

I've already talked about games I think you should be keeping an eye out for, now let's take a look at games you should NEVER EVER PLAY! NEVER!!

Charlie & the Chocolate Factory (E for Everybody)
Oh dear god why would you want to play the rape of this year's kind of OK adaptation of the beloved classic movie slash book?!? The movie is actually good, and I liked it... but oh dear god don't play this platformer that plays ultra clunky, burdened with a "revised" story that should make your braincells slowly die as you stare at it... avoid this game, for it may be "chocolate" but it's spoiled chocolate! All white and yucky and... eww! Don't play this!

Colosseum : Road to Freedom (M for Mature 17+)
Ever wanted your own personal gladiator tamagotchi? Here's your chance!
Train and work that gladiator until you paid off your debt to your "owner", and win your way to freedom... allegedly. Unfortunately with a set "time limit" to gain that freedom rumored on the 'net you might not be able to get your freedom so easy!
That and the game is a sure cure for insomnia since it is abit of a drag to play, and by that I don't mean the men are going to be wearing dresses... though ladies? If you like watching tanned and toned men shake their money makers and really work for their money? This is going to be a game to check out!

Darkwatch (M for Mature 17+)
It's not a bad shooter, one about a bandit in the old west who is turned into a vampire and has to walk the line between good and evil as he chases the evil creature that did this to him (in order to redeem himself by hunting the evil he released and slaying it), but it's no Resident Evil 4.
With better shooters out there this is a passable game, but you better be totally into this before ownage... and then be settled with the fact this game is going to be over rather quickly and not last long, nor have much incentive for replay value.
Somehow I can't see this as your ideal christmas gift.

Fantastic Four (T for Teen 13+)
Not all things are golden dear readers, and not all things from MARVEL is worth your time playing. The Punisher is good, and so is Incredible Hulk : Ultimate Destruction and the new Ultimate Spider-Man, but for every Ultimate Destruction there's an evil movie adaptation game... like Hulk (based on the less than perfect movie), or this game (based on the summer flop that is Fantastic Four the movie).
Considering you can do far better in terms of MARVEL games why would you want to play this! Don't play this!

Graffiti Kingdom (E for Everybody)
While I do praise the game for having a unique twist with the ability to draw body parts and create your own creature, that is balanced out with the average platforming and the kind of easy gameplay. So if you know someone with a creative side who likes to draw this might be a game to rent to see if they have an interest to own it, but otherwise I can't think of much people who'll be swayed by this one. Yes, it does have a neat one trick pony shot, but it's still a one trick pony.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (T for Teen 13+)
Ah, the dumbing down of the Harry Potter franchise! I haven't been happy with a Harry Potter game since Chamber of Secrets, which is still my favorite! But now that it's dumbed down to an action yarn that removes even the excellent freeroaming aspect that would have made the game at least partially fun? I only see die hard fans and kids playing this, it's not intelligent enough for the rest of us.
And forget Quidditch World Cup! That's the worse Potter game ever!

LA Rush (T for Teen 13+)
Oh dear god how many more street racing games are going to come into exsitence anyway! If you have a "Need for Speed", yet you don't want to own "Need for Speed" anything? Well then by all means buy Burnout 3 : Takedown (now available as the pocket sparing price of only $20) or Burnout : Revenge. Either of these would be far better gift of holiday road rage than LA Rush!

NARC (M for Mature 17+)
Ah, the retarded game that tries to be like Grand Theft Auto and fails miserably. And no, the "gimmick" of using drugs as "power-ups" is just plain no good! Loser game, loser concept, loser even at the so called "special price" of $20. It's not worth it, even at that price! Fuhgeddaboutit!

The Suffering : Ties That Bind (M for Mature 17+)
While it's not truly awful, it's not a step above the original. In fact the sequel, Ties That Bind, is the same old same old from the first game which might not be the best thing (especially if you were looking for innovation and a brand new experience with your sequels). So if you are a die hard fan of the original, and don't mind going through more of the same with the sequel, then this is for you. If not? Well then stick to the original and only rent the sequel if your curiousity consumes you so about the sequel.

Tak 3 : The Great Juju Challenge
If you love the Tak series then oh dear god you're going to come back for Tak 3... if not then this isn't the time to be jumping into it. It's not the worse platformer there is, but I still think you can do much better than Tak 3 : The Great Juju Challenge. Like playing Sly 3 : Honor Among Thieves for instance...

Manga - Real Bout High School V. 1

2005-11-19T18:41:00.000-08:00

Usually I give you a manga review to either tell you how good it is, or how you should avoid it at all cost... today I'm going to give you a review about a title that may yet be blasphemized into a live action travesty that has absolutely nothing to do with Brett Ratner (believe it or not)! So, question, how did a series like this end up being possible material for a live action movie anyway?!?

The action takes place in a school where martial arts mayhem and fighting takes place on a regular basis (fully encouraged by the school higher ups)!
Into this chaos comes newcomer Suizuma Kusanagi, which is nice and all though the book is NOT about him! Moreso it's about the "samurai girl" Ryoko, her friend (sidekick?) Hitomi, and the battles... isn't it?
Basically in this book you will meet and greet the important people, see how things are, and sit in on a few fights. Next time I review this hopefully there'll be more going on. But for now there is more going on... in reality.

The first word on "Real Bout High School the Movie"
Movie? What movie?
Here's a press release I got sometime ago from TOKYOPOP on the subject... but since this was sometime ago then maybe, just maybe, the movie is trapped in pre-production hell (I.e. it'll never see the light of theatrical "day").

(TOKYOPOP Press Release) "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MANGA GOES HOLLYWOOD: TOKYOPOP ATTACHES TOP STAR AND SCRIBE TO FEATURE FILM PROJECT
Melissa Joan Hart to Star, Dan Gordon to Script Live-Action Version of Hit Manga
Los Angeles, CA (September 29, 2004)."

"TOKYOPOP Inc. has made good on its pledge to "take manga to the big screen and beyond." The leading North American graphic novel publisher has inked actress Melissa Joan Hart (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch) and screenwriter Dan Gordon (Wyatt Earp, The Hurricane) for a live-action feature film development project inspired by Samurai Girl: Real Bout High School (SG: RBHS), one of its top manga and anime properties. "

""The storyboard aspect of manga is already custom-built for film," said Steve Galloway, TOKYOPOP's Executive Director of Film/Television. "And with Hart and Gordon attached to this story's fast-moving adventures, we have all the makings of a terrific cinematic package for teens." "

"The project materialized after TOKYOPOP was introduced to Hartbreak Films, the producers of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and other quality family series and movies. Seeking out fun, new starring vehicles for Melissa Joan Hart, Executive Producer Paula Hart reviewed several anime/manga properties before one in particular caught her eye. The SG: RBHS manga called for a strong, dynamic female lead with the same qualities for which Melissa Joan Hart is famous. They immediately began looking for a writer who could do justice to "Ryoko," the manga's protagonist. "
""Our journey led us to Dan Gordon," Paula Hart recalled. "Dan took a few weeks reading the material and then delivered a story that had us sitting on the edges of our seats. It is smart, funny and terribly exciting."
Dan Gordon describes the script as "a delicious action/comedy mix of Clueless meets Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." It's the story of an ancient Samurai warrior reincarnated as a twenty-something-year-old sushi bar hostess. Ryoko discovers she is mankind's only hope in destroying a coven of murderous wolverines who are hatched every 5,000 years and-if left unchecked-will destroy all humanity.
TOKYOPOP and Hartbreak Films are now in conversations with potential studio partners for the project."

Okay. Let's break this down one point at a time.
Point #1 - So this is part of TOKYOPOP's pledge to bring "manga to the big screen and beyond"? While they're at it they should have vowed to take themselves to everyone other than print/TV media... they locked out most everyone in the online media side of things from interview requests... though I guess since so much time has passed somebody might be able to talk now... maybe. Though didn't anyone ever teach the print/TV media about playing nice with everyone? Where's the "Fair" and "Balanced" in that?

Point #2 - I don't know about you... but what was TOKYOPOP thinking when they threw Real Bout High School to Melissa Joan Hart anyway?!? While it is true that RBHS has a strong dynamic lead female... last time I checked Ryoko was also a dynamic lead JAPANESE female. Melissa Joan Hart seems to suffer from a lack of asian-ness... and speaking of oddness.

Point #3 - From this book I'd take it Ryoko is a student in a high school that has lots of butt kicking fight tournaments take place on school grounds... but according to this movie it'll be about how Ryoko, a sushi bar hostess, discovers she's the heir of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer audience attractin' plot when she has to face murderous wolverines... no, no, not Hugh Jackman, that's a completely different Wolverine... to save humanity.

Point #4 - Maybe this might just be me and all but... is this how Real Bout High School is? I guess I better read more but from what I read... then again I haven't read enough to say yet... though from what I do know this has seemingly NOTHING in common with the manga it's supposedly "based" on!
Quick breakdown.

Real Bout High School Breakdown the 1st
What's Hot?
I don't know. It is kind of good, and interesting read at that... and some of it is cool...

What's Not?
Yet I somehow didn't get into it when I first read it. I liked it, but didn't really get into it to a great depth.
Maybe that'll change as I review it in further depth.

Moments to Remember?
The fights are cool, but Ryoko is the main star and she is the focus of all the memorable stuff.

What to Ignore?
...can't think of anything yet...

Overall?
This is an open ended review. I'll be looking into this deeper and adding more news on this upcoming "movie" project as I get the info.

Thanks for the thoughts and comments!

2005-11-19T18:34:00.000-08:00

I read your posting, and saw the link! Thanks for the comments and link!

Ten PS2 Games For Christmas

2005-11-19T18:07:00.000-08:00

With the holidays fast approaching it's time to start thinking of games to get for the christmas holiday. And since I often review the PS2 the most amongst games I review I thought to check out what would be the best choices for PS2 games to get this holiday season. Just don't forget to mind the age warnings next to each name.
By the way, this is an alphabetical list (with no preference as to which is "better" than the other)

Fatal Frame III (M for Mature 17+)
A bit of a risk to recommend something I am only hot on from playing the previous game in the series, but if FFIII plays as good as it's creepy and kind of original past game Fatal Frame II : Crimson Butterfly then this should be another game on your list for Survival Horror fans. Utilizing the original concept of having the player use a special camera as their one weapon (the Camera Obscura), you have to face truly disturbing creatures in a world that really does give you the shivers as you work to solve a new dark mystery. I only hope they rid the game of the bad static camera in this game, since it was a pain in the last game.

God of War (M for Mature 17+)
One of the best action titles of the new year, and one of the few original games that did well this year, God of War unleashes hell as you play the role of one Kratos, and his war that rages through the land of the Greeks in his quest to bring down the God of War (Ares) (who is laying siege to Athens).
The game is violent, buckets of blood violent, and it does have a sex mini game in it as well... so this is for the adult folks, of course. But if you are an adult folk then to hell with that Hilary person! Go buy your violence and enjoy it!

Harvest Moon : A Wonderful Life Special Edition (E for Everybody)
Yeah, I'm going out on a limb here but since NATSUME has gone out of their way to roll out their successful Wonderful Life game from the GameCube to the PS2 then fans of the series who were burned by the (bleep)y Save the Homeland PS2 game should dare to give the Harvest Moon brand a second chance with A Wonderful Life Special Edition.

Incredible Hulk : Ultimate Destruction (T for Teen 13+)
Yeah, if you want the Grand Theft Auto freeroaming mission thing you can just as well play Ultimate Spider-Man... but you can't have the endless joy of SMASHING EVERYTHING like this game, which makes this game a joy to play as you take control of the not so jolly jade giant and have him smash, smash, HULK SMASH, everything.
Oh joy, everything is breakable... even buildings and giant rock pillars! If you can hit it odds are you can break it! Hulk smash!!

Resident Evil 4 (M for Mature 17+)
Yeah, I know I originally reviewed it and praised it for the GameCube, but now that it's out for the PS2 this is as good a time as any to get ahold of THE best game of 2005 (at least the best shooter of 2005)! Six years after the events of Raccoon City told in Resident Evil Zero to 3 : Nemesis, you play as Resident Evil alumni character Leon Kennedy as he has traveled to a small European village of the damned to save the President's daughter... oh, and be reunited with his old potential girlfriend that didn't pan out when he thought she died in RE2 (Aida Wong).
It's the game that revitalized the Resident Evil franchise and breathed new life into it, a must have for Survival Horror or shooter fans!

Sims 2 (T for Teen 13+)
Alright, I'm a sucker for the Sims. I have the previous games (Sims : Bustin' Out for the GameCube and GBA and Urbz : Sims in the City for the PS2 and GBA) so why not one more round! IF you are as much of a Simmy as I am you'll be checking this out... if not then nothing will convince you to get this one, it's either a love or hate relationship (no middle ground with the Sims).

Sly 3 : Honor Among Thieves (E10+ for Everyone +10)
I've been a fan of the Sly Cooper series since I was first exposed to Sly 2 : Band of Thieves last year, and now that the series is making it's farewell performance for the PS2 this is as good a chance to get into the game and pick up the latest (and probably greatest) Sly Cooper game, Sly 3 : Honor Among Thieves.
Also if you have a chance grab the previous incarnations of Sly for $20 or so on Greatest Hits collection status, which will also be a wise investment if you are a fan of platformers done right.

Star Wars : Battlefront 2 (T for Teen 13+)
If you liked the original Battlefront then you will most definitely want to jump in on this newest version. Why? Well for one thing you can now play as Jedi and Sith characters (which you couldn't before), and the second good thing is that this game opens up space combat with the ability to use a great deal of the small ships from the Star Wars franchise in epic spacebound battles! Add to that the great 3rd person shooter combat and the many troop types to use in battle and you have yourself a nice little shooter set in the Star Wars universe. And considering that most of the Star Wars games that came out this year was easily forgettable (with a few notable exceptions) this is a game for Star Wars fans to definitely have on their short list of games to pick up.

We Love Katamari (E for Everybody)
The original puzzler that had you rolling up the world on your Katamari returns!
The success of Katamari Damancy has reached the King of All Cosmos who has sent the Dashing Prince (you) to find out what'll make the fans of Katamari Damancy happy, and what'll make them happy is lots of rolling up of things (living and non-living) so they can be turned into planets and stars in the sky... or blown up into stardust... one or the other... guess that's why the people can't stop screaming when you roll them up.

X-Men Legends II : Rise of Apocalypse (T for Teen 13+)
I'm playing the first Legends now, and if it's as good as the first then you should have X-Men Legends II on your list as a super hero game worth checking out... anyway since Brett Ratner is well on his way to killing the X-movie franchise you might as well since you'll probably be majorly bummed with the X3 movie.

Mind you these are just my opinion. Top games differ by taste, so you might have a completely different list. Depends on what you like the best.

Sorry for the delay

2005-11-19T18:06:00.000-08:00

Though I guess I don't need to worry about being out for periods of time since I guess nobody noticed I was out for awhile. Sorry about that.
Back to work now... sorry again.

Nintendo DS - Lost in Blue

2005-11-16T19:39:00.000-08:00

You'd think a game about becoming stranded on a desert island would be good.
But don't think Myst in a game like this... heck, don't even think Lost here, think Tamagotchi humans. Do you remember Tamagotchis? No? I wish I didn't. In short they're the gimmicky little virutal pets that constantly required much much care and maintenance. And, much like that, you will end up having to take care of a boy named Keith who has found himself washed up on an island.
That means you take him exploring, find foods and stuff, and basically survive... oh, and somewhere along the way you find little things that hint of strange mysteries on the island, like the classic book Mysterious Island only without the interesting twists... and, like Mortal Kombat : Shaolin Monks, a second warm body is required to get through some of these mysteries.

Speaking of which you soon find that second warm body in soft warm female girl Skye, who becomes dependant on you for her survival after you "accidentially" break her glasses... yeah, good one fella. Of course if you think having her lean on you for support will open any "interesting" paths you are so sadly mistaken, there will be no "Hot Coffee" served on this island (if you know what I mean).
But she does cook nicely, and at least it's better than having to go it alone.
But still this is the kind of game that you'll enjoy if you like care and maintenance of people, like The Sims but with less interaction or fun.

Still if you are looking for something fun and different on the DS you have little choices. There's here, and then there's the other game... forgot it's name... something about memories in a game that wants to be a pocket Myst but doesn't work out very well. If I remember the game I'll talk about it shortly... promise.

Nintendo DS - Lunar : Dragon Song

2005-11-16T12:26:00.000-08:00

Do you remember the old Lunar games from the bygone era of the old Nintendo systems like the SNES? Do you? Odds are if you remember that far back then you are probably a Lunar fan. Well for those of us who have been weighting the eternal question of to DS or not DS the fact that they put out the first RPG for the DS (Lunar : Dragon Song) should have gotten us fence sitters off the fence and into buying mode...

Pity Lunar : Dragon Song seems to be more disappointing than fun from what I've seen of the damn game.
You start off the game, from what I heard, as your average not so interesting character who, yeah, somehow ends up saving the world... or something.
Yeah. That is your typical RPG fare so it's not something to poke fun at (since, if done right, this could be actually good).
But my problem with this game isn't the story, which I haven't heard much of to date, as it is with the gameplay itself.

Same standard rhythm and roll of standing in two straight lines and exchanging blows... only you don't get much options here! You don't even seem capable of picking an enemy to attack, or forming any form of strategy here! You just attack and heal and try to keep your team alive (boring)! Worse yet you can't get the standard fare of items/exp. in each battle! No! You have to choose whether your fighting for items OR experience, you can't get both!
And then if you are low on health or want to hurry to the next thing by running? Well... that's not recommended since apparently you lose health if you run... great, simply marvelous. Makes me want to play Riveria : Promised Land for the GBA (which actually sounds better than playing Lunar for the DS)!

Hmm... what else... oh, well, in it's defense it's going to be one of those games that you can play by simply using the stylus alone (just in case you want to get some practice down working the stylus and don't want to push any buttons).
And it's the only game in town for RPG fans, even if it's a rather badly done game at that. I guess when I finally get that DS I'm going to have to weight whether or not I'm that much of an RPG fan to even consider picking this game up.
And, mind you, from what I've seen you are going to have to be so totally forgiving of the failings of this title to even consider this a pick up... of course if you can find it for under $20 the savings might sway you, even if the content seems to push you away from the title.

Yeah, sooner or later I'm going to actually put real reviews for DS games here, but for now (until I get a DS) I'll keep pointing out interesting games... or games you might want to seriously consider renting before buying just to make sure you'll like said game (like this game for instance)!

PS2 - XIII (Thirteen)

2005-11-15T19:24:00.000-08:00

When X-Play reviewed this game it was touted as being "pretty".
Uh... yeah. Pretty is the visuals playing Final Fantasy VII, X or X-2.
Pretty is the visuals in Star Ocean : Til the End of Time, (dot)hack, Sly 2 or any of a number of games that have far prettier visuals than XIII.
It's nice, but by no means is it "pretty". Definitely not.

Besides which if you wanted visual eye candy you'd be playing any of a number of games other than this.
The point of my review, however, is how good is it gamewise.
Using a "comic book-ish" style of animation (right down to the comic book-ish way the cut scenes are presented) we have this standard shooter that tells the tale of a conspiracy between brothers in power.
One was the President before he was assassinated, the other his brother who wants to be elected as the new President (and no doubt had a hand in shuffling off his brother into the great beyond).

You are XIII, one of a set of 20 who are involved in some covert stuff. It seems you are on the good guys side, but I haven't played the game through to the end yet so there might be some twists left.
After waking up on the set of Baywatch with no memories you are set on a quest to find out what happened to you which first takes you to this bank, where you have to retrieve something but end up in a fight for your life (which is complicated since you have to restrain yourself throughout the entire level and not kill any bank guards trying to kill you).

After you are arrested and charged with the murder of the President you have to break out of FBI HQ and meet up with your associate who'll take you to the next level (a complex break out scheme to get your "boss", a General Carrington, freed from this military base under siege).

And that is where I am now. After freeing Carrington now I have to escort him to safety which is a lot of fighting and effort in itself. Where I go next is something I'm still trying to figure out as I put this review out... oh, well. Now, then, how does this game hold up? Let's break it down.

XIII Breakdown
What's Hot?
Sorta reminds me of the thing they posed during the X-Play review.
"XIII - Hot or Not".
Uh... it's not that hot visually. It's different and a nice change to have something like this, but I've seen prettier no questions asked.
Anyway I'm not here to play for visual enjoyment, I'm here for good gameplay.
It has it's moments. Though abit of a standard shooter it does offer some challenge and I liked the whole comic book style visual aids (the sound of guards walking, the "?" and "!" when guards notice you, small panels alerting you to off screen action, etc) which is quite unique.
Basically I kind of had fun playing this, but I wish it was more interesting a shooter than it is.

What's Not?
My first Not goes right to the "heart" of the main character, mainly XIII's voice actor, David Duchovny.
Did David Duchovny need a nap or was his free complimentary pre-reading dose of Nyquil extra strength when he came in for his three hours of reading his lines for this game?
If you didn't think he could be anymore sedated in his acting after playing X-Files : Resist or Serve for the PS2 then this game is out to prove you wrong.
His acting is so sedated I felt as if he could have put me to sleep with his dialogue. Lucky for me he didn't deliver (to this point in the game I'm in) any long speech patterns because I couldn't take a long speech in that emotionless drawl he refers to as acting. It's just not a bearable thing for me. Not at all.

However, on the opposite end of the scale, we have the bang up job by Adam West (Batman) as General Carrington. Now that I got to him (and got a good long dose of his voice acting as Carrington) I can clearly see how good he swings the role, which is quite nice considering how badly Duchovny did XIII.
Maybe Adam West should have been the star of the game. I would have bought that no questions asked.

My second Not concerns the gameplay itself. To be more precise it concerns the ENDLESS amount of stealth missions required in this game! And endless is an understatement! Practically every other action in this game seemingly requires stealth to be accomplished! That is way too much stealth for anyone!
Even a game like Sly 2 : Band of Thieves which is thievery at it's very best didn't require this much stealth, and that marks a major flaw with this game.

I know, I know, as a conspiracy game there's going to be a lot of skullduggery as you lurk around looking for answers and fighting for survival. That, yes, I can grasp. HOWEVER, that being said, it is way too slow and time consuming to have to go through so many stealth missions and moments!

As you know, by the mere definition of the word itself, "stealth" equates having to do things silently and slowly... VERY slowly at times. So a game that, according to PSM, is supposed to be "Unique, stylish, and remarkably fluid." tends to lose it's fluidity when it stumbles into one stealth mission after another.
I don't know about the stylish thing though.

As X-Play noted, and I agree, some stealth is good... too much is a drag and a pain in the butt! This is most certainly true if you botch something mid-mission and have to replay the whole section over again because you made ONE tiny mistake! That is definitely where the whole stealth thing becomes a bother.

Then again stealth isn't the only problem. Another is the lack of "checkpoints". Some areas require a long chain of complicated things you have to do to complete it, and sometimes it's a pain to have to do it over and over again (after being killed over and over again) until you finally get it down pat and get to the checkpoint. Ugh. I don't even want to think how many times I went through the first level of the Emerald Base area before I finally got it down pat. It's not a good thing, oh no.

As for the whole "pretty" thing? Yeah, yeah, the game is kind of pretty, alright, but not THAT pretty! Far better made games (visually speaking) are out there and a lot are games that Mr. Sassler just doesn‘t like because they‘re Japanese RPGs... boo-hoo, too bad (so sad)... not.
XIII is kind of unique, and it's interesting visually, but by no means is it "pretty".
I'm still not certain about this "stylish" thing either.

Moments to Remember?
You mean I actually have to remember this game? Must I? Isn't it just enough that I bought this game and reviewed it? Oh-kay... the gameplay is kinda memorable... when you are not being frustrated by having to play levels over and over again because you got stuck somewhere or made a mistake and got killed or something. Then I don't want to remember.

Then again considering my genre likes/dislikes in video games I guess it's a wonder why I'm not completely won over by XIII.
Shooters are one of a few genres I am totally not into when it comes to video games.
Sports games, fighting games and horror games (with a few exceptions) are also not my thing.

It has it's moments, but I am not a total convert when it comes to this game.

What to Ignore?
Somehow I am not getting into this game if the person I'm playing doesn't even sound like he's getting into this game. Is it me or is this some sort of trademark for David Duchovny? This low key sedated "performances" he's been doing lately in games? It worked in X-Files : Resist or Serve but only barely because that is the way he was in the show. Here, however, is a different thing. He could have shown some enthusiasm for this.

It is pretty much as X-Play put it. It sounds as if he'd rather investigate the odious goings on at a Rent-a-Center... actually it sounds as if he took a large swallow of Nyquil and is well on his way to sleepyland.
So good night, Mr. Duchovny. Sleep well. (And ignore him.)

Overall?
For a game that's supposed to be so "pretty" I wish it was something else... more exciting.
But with gameplay that is standard with only marginal uniqueness, and a "star" that seemed to have came in just for the check and not much else (due to his sedated acting in this game) I'd have to say it's middle of the road gameplaying. (Several names come to mind in terms of people I would have chosen to play XIII, including Bruce Boxleitner (Babylon 5 and Tron 2.0), Bruce Willis (upcoming Sin City movie), or even Bruce Campbell (Evil Dead : Fistful of Boomstick). Anything but Duchovny's sedated acting!

If it wasn't for some of those unique aspects of this game (16 weapons including the ability to pick up chairs and certain objects as weapons), and the performance by Adam West who came in with his gameface on that day to do some serious work, this game would be an underachiever waiting to happen.
As it stands, however, it is worth checking out... renting at first if you must, but if thoughts of buying are in your future then probably a best buy once it goes into the bargain bin at marked down prices... which is how I bought my copy.

It's nice, Adam West is the best part of the voice acting, and it's worth trying out, but don't hold your hopes up for a runaway hit because it's just not going to happen with this game. It's middle of the road gaming, yet unique enough to give it a chance. Especially if you are a fan of shooters and want to try something abit different visually than you might normally be used to.

Oh, and I hope this means we'll see Adam West again in future video games. That would be something I would most definitely be looking forward to.

Anyway that's my position on this and I'm going to stick to it.

Anime - Spirit of Wonder OAV

2005-11-15T12:25:00.000-08:00

Before we begin...
Sometime back Dark Horse ran a mini series for Spirit of Wonder, but I didn't get it.
Wish I did now, after reviewing this, but too late for regrets now.
This might have been your first exposure to this title.

There is also an Anime out there... prior to this of course... which might also be your first exposure to this series. Either way if you missed both then here's your chance to get it now.
I don't know if this is significant or not, however it might be important to dig around if you can and get a copy of that Dark Horse series (Trade Paperback) because it seems to me that somehow it ties into things that happen here (somehow). I haven't seen it yet but that's my impression of things! I could be wrong.

Spirit of wonder
This DVD is broken up into three parts
"Scientific Boy's Club" (2-parter)
This is the "meat" of the DVD, if you will, with the two Miss China shorts surrounding it.

The story starts in 1976, as a group of Mars specialists and enthusiasts are about to receive the first views from a Viking probe sent to Mars. This scene sets the stage for what's to come, and as the first images come in we flash back to 1958 and the story itself.

Once upon a time there was a group of young boys (Cooper, Gordon and Shepherd), and they were fascinated with the solar system, or to be more precise they were fascinated with ONE planet in the system - Mars. Ever since theories of the possibility of life on Mars were published by one Percival Lowell (who was at the time one of the most influential people on the subject) these boys were hooked with the idea and the dream of life on the red planet. Because of this fascination, the three formed the club known as the "Scientific Boys Club."

Years pass, and boys grow into men, but the club endured and survived. For 50 years these three kept the club, and their dream, alive. But now, with the help of Gordon's daughter (Windy) and her husband Jack, the members in good standing of the Scientific Boys Club are about to pursue their lifelong dream of traveling to Mars - that is, if the way they get Jack/Windy's help doesn't ruin their marriage first!

You see, Jack returns home after six months at sea on a ship and he is awfully skittish about his luggage - why? Well, the newspaper reports that the original "globe" of Mars made by Percival Lowell was stolen from its resting spot in Flagstaff, Arizona (USA) and who should end up having it - Jack.

He brought it back for the "boys" because on this, the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the Scientific Boys Club, they're taking a trip to Mars - bad move. First they try to keep it secret from Jack's wife Windy, but it seems she's quite an expert on a key element of the trip and without her help the trip is a no go! Good thing she loves her husband Jack so much that she'll eventually get talked into helping, which leads to the construction of the "Spirit of Science" and the trip to Mars.

But what will they find on the Red Planet? And how does this tie into the events in 1976? You'll have to find that out for yourself when you watch this!
Oh, right, one more thing... how do they get there? Sorry, that's yet another surprise I'm going to leave hidden for you to find out. Let's just say this - Miss China fans will see her cameo in this, but unfortunately her cameos consist of her having her skirt flipped up by one of the "bad" boys of the club (twice), and, when the Spirit of Science passes over her restaurant, a view of her looking out the window of her bathroom naked (topless) (Hence why this gets a 16 and over rating).

(She makes sure the guy doing the skirt flipping gets his though, so he always ends up with food on his face and common sense kicked out of him at the end of each skirt flipping scene - though he also flips Windy's skirt twice so he's a bit of a bad, bad boy.)

"Shrinking of Miss China" (Short Story 1 of 2)
Shows between Parts 1 and 2 of "Scientific Boy's Club"
Miss China, who is she, you might ask? (You missed the original Graphic Novel too, huh?)
Miss China operates a Chinese restaurant in Bristol (a small port town in England) - no, that's not a pun, a girl named Miss China running a Chinese restaurant - then again - anyway, back to Miss China. She's beautiful and sexy (but you can see that for yourself when you watch) and she knows her fighting styles because she's a "Kung Fu master who knows how to fight." (Though I'm certain that at no time during her training was she ever called "Grasshopper,")

She's quite cool, character-wise, and interesting. Hmm - makes me want to get the other Spirit of Wonder anime if I can find it. Probably not considering how long it‘s been.

Anyway, her only joy/headache in life (headaches that is past the thing about taxes, and the shop's mortgage payments, the bills, the occasional unwanted visit from Wolfgang Puck's relatives looking for new recipes and all that accounting stuff) is one Jim and Doctor Breckenridge.

Jim, the assistant to the bad doctor, is in love with Miss China, and I think she has feelings for him too - aww! Breckenridge, on the other hand, is a "self-proclaimed genius inventor" (he said so himself) who rents a room from her - is actually a self-made parasite who NOBODY has feelings for... geh.

He blows all his cash on strange inventions (like that flux capacitor schematic he bought from that Brown guy back in 1955, only to read the fine print later to find it said "Delorean not invented yet") and NOT on the rent! So, consequently, he is months behind on his rent (of course).

If it wasn't for the fact that Jim works with him, and Miss China is really keen on Jim, then she wouldn't tolerate Breckenridge. And this time out, when she shows up to collect the once again late rent, she gets showered by a mysterious beam - well, that might be her fault because she kicks in the door like her own one woman SWAT team which knocks over the table holding the shrinking beam which zaps her which causes the chaos.

Ahhh - I'd take it the alternate title of this story could be "Honey I Shrunk Miss China"! Dammit! Didn't he learn anything from the mis-purchase of that flux capacitor?!? It's a fun story, and while the ending will be happy (no sad "We've lost her forever" thing), it's also quite unexpected and funny - (smiles) - oh, go find out for yourself! Quite good!

NOTE - Just as she cameoed in their part, look for a cameo from the boys of the Scientific Boys Club to cameo in this Miss China short!

"Planet of Miss China" (Short Story 2 of 2)
Shows after Part 2 of "Scientific Boys Club"
Well, it looks like Miss China will never be rid of Dr. Breckenridge - good thing he has Jim, otherwise Breckenridge would have been put out on the street a long time ago! Well, when Jim and Miss China eventually marry they can "adopt" him as a surrogate father-in-law and thus justify him being under her roof without paying any rent... maybe adopt him as their son, he seems childish at times...

This time out he's made yet another "genius" invention - apparently in a scheme to "compensate" Miss China for those 4-6 mon- THREE YEARS of backrent?!? Man, it MUST be love if Miss China is going to tolerate this freeloader for that long - though I mean towards Jim and not the doc. Anyway he's inviting Miss China (and his black market parts dealer, a young woman who runs a produce shop in town but secretly aspires to sell black market technology once there‘s an actual business for black market technology past Dr. Breckenridge) on a "Martian Tour" with his newly invented "Space Reflective Telescope."

This "telescope" acts more like a huge sensory collector device which relays the information it gathers from a distant target into a "holodeck" style holographic projection around the viewer. What they see, however? Well - Mars is too far away. But they do get a good view of the planet. Miss China, however, isn't going to be put off on this trip because she wants to see the canals of Mars - why? Well, you'll have to see this yourself to understand why.

They all get drunk, she talks them into boosting the machine to full power and - somehow they end up on Mars, but it's an illusion right? Well, things get wonky from that point and we're reminded at the end once again of the Miss China "Ring" incident which I'm sure is in the Dark Horse Trade Paperback - but I won't say more because this is one wild trip! You'll have to see this one for yourself!
As Keanu Reeves would say if he was along for the ride - "Whoa."
Not that you'd WANT Keanu Reeves along for the ride. Go away. Shoo, Neo, shoo.

Okay. Let's view the optional extras and then break it down.

Optional Extras
Art Gallery - It's broken down into two parts. Color images (12) and line art (19), and it's all good viewing.

Interviews - It's broken down into four parts.
One is a Creator interview, two interviews with the directors (one the director of the Scientific Boys Club "movie," the other the director of the Miss China shorts), and one interview with the publisher.
I'll leave these for you to discover on your own, viewing-wise.

Miss China Mini Poster - The optional extra password today seems to be Mini Posters. It's part of the booklet in this DVD case (but unlike Love Hina it incorporates both a poster AND info on the contents of the DVD as well as opposed to just a poster) - which of course leaves you with a quandary. While the booklet in Please Teacher and Love Hina was just a mini-poster and served no practical use, this one has information on the DVD contents and staff credits - well, it's up to you how you use your mini poster.
Previews - Basically it's stuff we're either reviewing now (Banner of the Stars), or reviewed in the past (Arjuna). Nothing new here to point out.

Spirit of Wonder Breakdown
What's Hot? - This is quite hot! I watched it from end to end and enjoyed every minute of it! It's most definitely going to be one of the DVDs I'm going to list at the end of the year as my Top Ten favorite movies/one shot DVDs of 2003! It's beautifully rendered with lively animation, nice musical scoring and superb acting (Japanese dialogue version). I just sat there and watched and watched and watched. Sigh. Now it makes me want to see more! Argh - is there more? I have to look!

What's Not? - Nothing. It's quite good, and for 97 minutes you get quite a bit to enjoy. Nice DVD!

Moments to Remember? - All of the DVD is quite memorable! Miss China's shorts are definitely memorable because they're quite fun. The main "movie" is also quite memorable too - oh, it's all good.

What to Ignore? - Uh - maybe you should ignore the fact that Miss China's cameos in the Scientific Boys Club 2-parter seems to be mainly fan service. Two skirt flippings and a view of her breasts - she does kick around the offending party in the skirt-flipping incidents though so that's cool.

Overall? - It's a nice fun little romp and a DVD well worth owning. Spirit of Wonder is most definitely one of my favorite views of the year and one I insist you take the time to enjoy as well! Good viewing, and a must have for your collection! (Don't forget to dig around for a copy of that Dark Horse TPB as well!)

Tomorrow is Hopefully A Better Day...

2005-11-14T18:29:00.000-08:00

Well, hopefully tomorrow is a better day... and as for reviews let's see...

Anime - Spirit of Wonder
Have you seen this yet? There hasn't been much out Spirit of Wonder wise. Two DVDs, and one or two Trade Paperbacks from Dark Horse and that's it... but this is quite good, and I'll tell you more about it tomorrow.
One more review... I have to think of something...
Well take care and see you tomorrow! Bye!

PS2 - Dragonball Z Budokai 3

2005-11-14T18:26:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not, not all things Dragonball Z sucks. I am about as much of a fan of DBZ as the people of X-Play are... wait, oh right... it's their fault that I actually went out of my way to review a DBZ game. Seems that this version, for once, was a DBZ game that they actually liked -- so, yes, once again I have X-Play to point to when it comes to something game-wise that I'm reviewing... seems I take quite a few reviewing cues from X-Play (G4TV)... go figure.
The first thing I noticed about this game is the ton of options you have for it!

Dragon Universe - Story mode. Play this to unlock new playable characters in dueling mode.
Dueling - Basically it's one on one combat. This is where you get to play with all the extra characters that you unlocked in Universe mode.
World Tournament - It is exactly what it sounds like.
Practice - This is where you can learn the basics of playing the game, as well as practice what you learned.
Skill Editing - Here is where you edit your skills (capsules), and purchase new skills (capsules) from the Skill Shop to add onto those skills you already found in Universe mode.
Options - Adjust the game settings. They'll stay the same once you set them (autosaved once your done tweaking the settings).

The Universe storymode is pretty easy.
Starting at the beginning of DBZ (the Saiyans arriving on Earth) and going through the whole series, you fight your way through the story as one of six characters. Goku, Gohan, Krillian, Vegeta, Piccolo or Trunks.
Depending on who you play the story is different for each, which is great for replay value since you can play the game over and over again and have different experiences each time.
And that experience also changes as you increase the difficulty level! The harder it is the more fights and the longer some fights... for instance I have a feeling my battle with Frieza, for example, wasn't supposed to be as short as it was. I guess if I played in a mode higher than Normal mode it would have been longer.

The game is easy. Look for Dragonballs, and the occasional area to find money, stuff or event scenes, and then look for places to fight. The fight areas are easy to find, it's the other areas you need to search for.

Fighting is slick this time, and is way way interesting!
You're main drive of the fighting is the techniques you can use, which is represented by capsules you can "Equip". The capsules, which handle your special techniques, armor, gear and so forth, are all purpose little buggers and proper management of said capsules is a good thing to know as you play this game.

Fighting itself is easy, yet challenging at the same time. If you need to learn it (and you will since there are brand new things to learn in this game) there's a whole section of the game that is there just to teach you the ins and outs of combat. You earn bonuses for completing each lesson so that is a good incentive to do them even if you think you can get the system down pat without practice.

There are a whole lot of ways to visit pain and suffering onto your opponent.
Lots of moves, techniques, and ways to struggle it out including a new teleportation move and the "beam struggle" which (as you and your opponent lock power attacks) means you'll have to spin both analog sticks fast to land a blow (this also happens when you are locked in fast and furious hand-to-hand combat).

The major thing in this game is the ki meter, which governs the useage of your powers.
As it reaches a certain level you can power up, reach Super Saiyan level, and even pull of major attacks called "Dragon Rush"es... but even this has a nice balance in that, as the rush begins, you'll have to hit one of the four buttons (X, O, triangle and square) in a bit of Jan Ken Po to see if the full attack lands. If your opponent doesn't hit the same button you do in three attempts you land the attack, but if your opponent DOES match up with you just once then the attack is blocked. Keen.

Because of all the moves, and all the ways you can attack/defend? This is a well thought out and quite balanced fighter if I do say so myself. And, heck, it's fun too.
You can even devastate the battlefield during the battle! I've seen it happen! Cool!

Oh, yeah, and if you chose New Game during a game you're already playing with a character? You can choose to restart the game with that same character WITHOUT losing levels and such... so power up quite abit, and start again to build up levels, work on technique, find money, etc.
I don't know if that's a glitch or what, but I like it.

The Dueling mode is good, and even good just to watch as you can either pit player vs. player, player vs. computer or computer vs. computer (just to watch the fighting)!

The Skill Shop, where you spend your earned money during your Dragon Universe gameplay, is the place to add on new techniques and stuff for your fighters! And each capsule can only be used by certain players so that add another level of depth to the game. You can also edit capsules (skills) in this section, but I haven't done that yet so I don't know how that works.

And for fan service? Besides the fact you're going to be spending quality "time" with the major characters? You can even play as female fan fave Android 18... And I think you can play as Videl too but I haven't gotten that far to find out. I wonder... nope, sorry, Bulma is just a NPC character. Then again she didn't do enough in the series to warrant her as a playable character so go figure.
Anyway let's break this down now.

Dragonball Z Budokai Breakdown the 3rd
What's Hot? - Who knew I could actually have a good thing to say about a DBZ game? I didn't.
But guess what! I DO have a good thing to say! The game is tight. It's NOT Mortal Kombat but it's solid, and it's got some major moves that just make it sweet to play.

Combine all the elements of this game together and you have yourself a good game that should be considered for your collection. Why? Because you don't need to be a DBZ fan to see that this is playable, and even kind of good to boot, that's why.

Yeah, yeah, of course being a major DBZ fan would be a helpful thing in the playability of this game, but it is just good enough to be appealing to both fan and non-fan alike. Solid game, you should try it.

What's Not? - Still, yes, it‘s not for everyone. Much like how X-Play's Adam Sessler won‘t play a single Final Fantasy game no matter how much those of us who play it say he‘s missing out, there are people who won‘t pick up ANY DBZ games no matter how much people rave about them. Why? Because some people are way too much turned off from the DBZ series to even humor playing a DBZ game no matter how improved it is over the first two Budokai games.
Yeah. Sessler's a whiner for his anti-Final Fantasy stance, check. But what about those who don't want to give Budokai 3 a chance? Well that's their thing, but still at least rent it out and give it the benefit of a doubt. Even if you had a bad experience with the first two Budokai games you should come back and give Budokai 3 a fair shake if you can. Even if you must rent it before you decide on it's merits it's worth the rental fee... and, yes, if the game is still not your cup of Earl Grey (hot) at least you had a chance to have fun with it before you declared it not for you. That's all I ask.

And, yes, Mr. Sessler, that goes DOUBLE for you and your Final Fantasy phobia.
Fingers to lips, shut mouth, and pick up a few good FF games to try out. There are some great games in the FF universe that people can't stop raving about, even if you seemingly have FF allergies.
Go on. Aerith won't bite you. Go on now, go on.

Moments to Remember? - Uh... can't think of much... oh, wait, the BIG attack sequences! The major damage the characters can deal out is cool! That's memorable. Yeah. Very memorable.

What to Ignore? - I didn't like the storymode much. Yes, X-Play praised it as being the best story mode of any fighter but I guess I'm not hot on it since I'm not hot on the DBZ story to begin with.

Anyway it's not like they squeezed in anime footage (there's nice anime footage in the opening as the game starts up) and a lot of the talking is talking heads (well, lot of motionless images at least)... the cut scenes play out more like a radio melodrama than the cut scenes of a big anime series turned game, so that is a disappointment if I ever saw one. So, yes, for me I guess I can ignore the story. My fave of the game is the fighting anyway so why would I want to notice the story? Pass.

Overal1? - Three times is definitely the charm this time for Atari.
After striking out with Budokai and Budokai 2 they finally have cranked out a game worth playing, and one even I (a non fan of DBZ) can get behind and support.
If you can? You should buy it, or rent it, or whatever you do it as long as you give this one a spin ASAP.
It's fun, and that's something I don't say everyday about DBZ... in fact that's something I have NEVER said about DBZ, so it must be good if I actually have something nice to say about DBZ. So give it a try, rent it if you can, before you declare it unplayable... it might surprise you.

Manga - Di Gi Charat Champion Cup Theater

2005-11-14T18:17:00.000-08:00

Before We Begin
There are three publishers for Di GI Charat, past and present.
VIZ is one, Broccoli Books is two, and the troubled Studio Ironcat slash IC Entertainment is the last.
This time out this review in particular focuses on the pulbisher with abit of a dysfunctional side, Studio Ironcat. Formerly the Studio known as Studio Ironcat, then IC Entertainment.

Sometime ago this Studio experienced it's own "exodus" of talent similar to what happened to CrossGen and IMAGE, and for the exact same reasons from what I read of it... money. Of course that in itself is a long discussion and not a really interesting one, but sufficient to say Studio Ironcat is NOT one of the five major powerhouses of English translated manga... that is a designation for other studios (ADVManga, Broccoli Books, Dark Horse, TOKYOPOP and the slowly rising branch of manga titles from DelRey).
Whether or not Studio Ironcat (ICE) is still around is something else though.
I have not followed their releases religiously at all, so basically I lost track of their progress. For the record, however, I'm pretty certain they're no more. Especially in light of how they lost a few of their popular titles like MegaTokyo to rivals (in this case Dark Horse). Though whether or not Studio Ironcat is around? Well, that's a moot point I guess since I'm not reviewing their stuff past this point (unless there‘s demand for more reviews which there has never been a demand for). Sure, they may still be around... maybe... it's just that nobody seems to care whether or not they're around.

Champion Cup Theater
Ah. Short sketch comedy formatting with some having several "parts" to certain sketches. Basically a year in the life of the cast, in an entirely different format than you might have seen with VIZ's Di Gi Charat books. So what is the difference? Between VIZ's books which have many creators doing short manga stories and this book with one creator doing over a year's worth of short insert work?
The difference is in the content.
This book has a lot more Japanese cultural references and flavoring than VIZs book, which is probably it's one major saving grace if you think about it.

Of course if you're a long term fan of the genre you probably know abit about certain Japanese holidays... the top of course being "Golden Week" which has probably been mentioned quite abit in both Anime and Manga over the years. That's a given holiday that you probably heard of at least once (and they talk about it in this book too so you're going to hear about it again).

But did you know about, say, Culture Day? How about Black Day? You know about Valentine's Day but did you know about it's Japanese "sequel" White Day?

Okay. Holidays are one thing but what about customs, traditions and strange facts?
How about the "second button" custom? Know if you've been (or will be in the near future) poisoned to death that you'll be in good company... well, because certain big people died that way?
There's more... and yes there's more disturbing stuff like that whole poisoning thing... but that's just a taste of the true merit of this book in terms of why you should buy it. It's funny... but you also will learn something.

Oh, and there's little things about the series too like skits used to promote an Anime special that showed on TV, or the fact that there is a Di Gi Charat TCG (Trading Card Game) that you might not have heard of.

For a small thin book (about the thickness of a credit card sized camera or a thin cell phone) you're actually getting something worthwhile here.

In content. However my one problem with the title is the "accent".
Since when did Digiko talk so weirdly? And why is Rabi En Rose speaking like she's a "valley girl"? I like the content and all the extras but the way they speak is just too much. For example...

Rabi En Rose - "Like, hi----! Rabi-En-Rose here to ask you all if your feeling, like, fulla pep an' stuff? You haven't, like, caught - SPRING FEVER - an' junk, have you?"

Digiko - "So, Usada... since when's a po' chick like you got th' cheddah to spend at a festival >nyo?<"

Luckily it can be mostly ignored, and isn't as thick in some places as it is in others. Ok. Breakdown time.

Di Gi Charat Studio Ironcat Breakdown the 1st
What's Hot?
Besides it's usual wicked little humor it also scores kudo points for being so rich in cultural references and so forth that just gives you lots to absorb as your being entertained. That is probably the one saving grace that makes this worth searching for -- it has something in it besides just humor otherwise I'd just send you to either VIZ or Broccoli Books books for consideration.

What's Not?
Alright, since when did Digiko and company talk so oddly? Are they supposed to be so damn "hip"? Somehow (unless this is all Koge Donbo's doing) someone decided that Digiko needed to talk "hip", Puchiko needed to talk odd (when she talked at all which is sad since she doesn't stand out in this like she does in VIZ's graphic novels), and Rabe En Rose needed to speak in Valley Girl speak! And don't get me started with Piyoko! It's not natural, I tell you! Not at all!

Moments to Remember?
Once again the humor and the fun stand out as the most memorable thing about this title. The rivalry between Digiko and Rabe En Rose, the interactions, the humor, the skits. I like it all. But more than that there is, of course, the content that gives you abit of insight into Japanese culture and so forth with holidays, traditions, quirks, and maybe even a cooking lesson to expand your knowledge!

Alright, not exactly a cooking lesson but you'll learn abit about Yami Nabe and O-kabe for starters... and no, Yami Nabe is not the name for Yugi Motou‘s hairstyle.

What to Ignore?
Uh -- I know! The nerve wracking, nails on chalkboard style of dialect which is just no good. Please ignore it if you can... and you can since it's not an overwhelming thing (to the point that it drives the rating of this book down kind of overwhelming). I don't know who thought this would work (this dialect thing) but it didn't work. At least not for me.

Overall?
I like it for several reasons, BUT I have issues with some parts of it.
It's a good read, but the "accent" everyone speaks in is nerve wrecking to say the least. Humor with bite and great skits make it a nice read, and the cultural content is a plus too. In the end the pluses outweigh the minuses and it ends up being a good solid read. I don't know if you can get ahold of it, but if you can you should try to. It's good.

An Outage Is Coming....

2005-11-14T13:13:00.000-08:00

I read, I read, there's going to be an outage today for 2 hours, which means I should get on the ball and get today's updates up ASAP!
I'll hurry along and get today's stuff up today!

Anime - Galaxy Angel Z V. 2 to 3

2005-11-14T13:11:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile, now hasn’t it!
But at long last we’re reviewing Galaxy Angel Z, aka Galaxy Angel Season 2!
No need to recap what came before since it’s all episodic here, so you can just jump in and enjoy!
EXCEPT there is the new format to speak of. Yes, the new format. Episodes are now bunched in two packs, in other words each “episode” is now two episodes long, as opposed to Season 1 which had single episodes of about 15 minutes or so each. Also there’s a brand new opening/closing song which will make you want to rush out and get the Galaxy Angel BGM Soundtrack… and if one does not exist you’ll want to demand one.
Okay. Nuff said, time to jump in and enjoy the brand “new” season of Galaxy Angel (Z).

Volume 2 - Galaxy Size Combo
Episode 7 - Deep Fried Egg Rolls of Love
Reunions suck, no question about it. It’s worse when the so-called “reunion” seems to be with strange old clones of the people you happen to be working with at this very moment! That is the strange situation Volcott finds himself in today. Once upon a time Huey Volcott (the Colonel of the Angel Brigade) used to be part of a group known as the Fairy Brigade, who… oddly enough… are just carbon copy clones of the present Angel Brigade… but older, much much older… scary older.
While at this reunion he meets Sylfie who, I guess, is supposed to be another version of Milfeulle… yeah, I don’t get it either. It’s just an excuse for a reunion episode, but I guess it’s a good excuse so I can forgive it since it’s not a bad reunion… it’s scary but it’s not bad… except whenever did Volcott look like the young guy in this episode? I don’t know, I just don’t know.

Episode 8 - Wedding Cake Combiner Special
What happens when people start hiring old technical crews from other series? Series where mechas and giant combining robots are the norm? Series like Mobile Suit Gundam, Macross slash Southern Cross slash Mospeda (the triad of Japanese series which became Robotech in the USA) and Voltron.
I‘m going to focus on Voltron since, well, I watched it in my youth so I know of Voltron.
Now, for argument’s sake, say the old technicians who used to maintain one or two of the three Voltrons were given work with the same military that employs the Angel Brigade? And they were commissioned to build a giant robot to fight the “phantom menace” of the so called Galactic Beasts… what would they build?
Why, you get the plot of this episode of course (complete with the combining robot they built).

Uh? Yeah. Three Voltrons. Inner/Middle(center)/Outer Planets if I remember right (though I could be wrong). One was the lions, one was the 20 or so combining ships, and the last is the never seen in America Middle Planets Voltron that… well… I don’t know anything about. Like I said, it was NEVER SHOWN IN AMERICA so how would I know what it was about. Guess if there are any die hard Voltron fans out there they’d know the answer, it’s just not me.
Yeah, I know, Voltron is not the only combining robot out there… except it’s the only one I watched in my youth so that’s all I know of. Voltron Voltron and Voltron… except I never saw the third Voltron so it’s actually Voltron & Voltron sans one Voltron.

Anyway to make a long rant short (I know, too late) it must be a Lion Voltron parody since it’s five vessels and five girls… five… one, two, three four… waitaminute, something’s missing… oh, right! Ranpha up and quit in a rather strange flashback scene in front of an old train so she could run off and marry this guy she won in a lottery. Apparently he was really hard up for something and marriage was a viable option.
So with one pilot short it looks like nothing but trouble will come, especially since their so-called nemesis the Galactic Beasts are on their way. And the Beasts even come complete with a MechaGodzilla monster thing in their ranks, go figure.

So if Ranpha doesn’t come back however will they manage to merge their five vessels to form that champion of robotic justice… uh… uh… hey look I just picked up Grand Theft Auto : Vice City for $20 and I’m going to review it in a few weeks! How cool is that, eh? And I‘m biting the smack laced bullet and weighting in on this whole NARC controversy with a review… huh? What’s the robot’s name?
What! You think I’m dodging the topic because I don’t know the robot’s name? Do you?
Look, a puppy!! Puppies are cute and… go on, look… Uh… alright, I don’t know. Moving on now!

Episode 9 - GA Analytic Tea-Ceremony
So, just what deep dark secret is Colonel Volcott hiding? How does he keep his team together when it looks like they should be tearing themselves apart? Someone from the military happens to be there to find out, only to find himself experiencing abit of “The Usual Suspect” as they happen to be there at the right time as someone is ripping off the evil corporation known as The Dream Foundation who seems to have a love for skull logos, outrageous flying fortress vessel “money vaults” and ripping people off. Could the Angels be behind it? What’s with the strange retro animation style in some parts of the episode? What’s with thinking Volcott’s some mastermind? Is he a mastermind? I don’t know, but it’s a good episode.

Episode 10 - Served to Taste Revenge Lunch
“Tell me, my old friend, have you heard the Klingon proverb that revenge is a dish best served cold --
It is very cold… in space.”
Ricardo Montalban (Khan Noonian Singh) (Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan)

In a strangely titled episode that probably should have been entitled Revenge Lunch Served Cold (since the reference is probably a Star Trek II revenge reference) this is about how Normad goes Khan on everyone and seeks vengeance when Vanilla is apparently killed while fiddling with the station’s TV antenna while they’re watching soap operas. A soap opera about the love between a half human female/half elephant and a half human male/half giraffe who both work for the airlines… I think. Ugh. Not something worth dying for.

Yes, it does seem that vengeance shall be a dish best served cold… or wet… or Monty Python style… or something like that. Vengeance, served cold, by Normad who suddenly resembles that one eyed weird tyrant bot thing that was the enemy in DC’s One Million crossover event. And yes, of course since this isn’t the end of the season, and nobody said they’ll be replacing Vanilla in Season 2, I’m guessing she’ll be OK… or this is a strange alternate episode and everyone dies.
One or the other, but you’ll have to watch to find out.

Episode 11 - Revolving Sushi to the Hereafter
How odd! Usually I would think that if you were looking at so-called “Lost Technology” in the shape of a tombstone, then you should be checking for the Umbrella Seal of Approval meaning it’s 100% undead generating fun to be had by a whole planet ready to become the next Raccoon City.
But no! It only does a weird body swapping thing and everyone ends up in everyone else’s bodies. Yeah, that’s odd. But it’s also something touched on in a few parody sketch panels in the back of Galaxy Angel GN 5 (Broccoli Books) (only with the cast of the manga swapping bodies).
This won’t last long so enjoy it while it lasts.

Episode 12 - Steel Jambalaya
Sorry, no fun here. It’s a big serious story about Forte’s past, her connection to Volcott, and how they once hunted out of control combat droids codenamed “Silent Soldier”.
Technology runs amok here, lots of drama (no laughs) yet it’s also a nice solid episode (as they all are).
And for a nice bonus you’ll find out a lot about Forte in this episode, so it’s a great way to wrap Vol. 2.

Volume 3 - Stranded Without Dessert
NOTE - No, that’s not a typo. It’s the exact name subtitle used for, yes, Galaxy Angel (Season 1) DVD Vol. 3. Why the same subheading was used for Galaxy Angel Z (Season 2) DVD Vol. 3 is not entirely known. Oh, well. Let’s move on.

Episode 13 - In-Flight Meal (Excuses Curry Loaded with Ingredients)
Question - What do you get when you combine a strange Doomsday Machine type bio monster thing that swallows whole planets and suns… you know, like that Star Trek episode with the Doomsday Machine… and you have five Angels set out to destroy the monster? Lots and lots of excuses as somebody tries to figure out who destroyed it, then whose to blame for it‘s initial awakening.
If you live in certain parts of the galaxy you should consider relocating ASAP, things won’t go well here.

Episode 14 - Love and Doubt Fried Cabbage Cake
Somehow Normad is abducted by a strange guy and he ends up taking a trip. The rest you’ll see when you watch the episode.

Episode 15 - Fresh Catch; Miraculous Boat-Wrap Sushi
The girls take some time off for a vacation on this planet, and it seems they’re on a cruise… as it would have been if the Captain of that boat from Jaws was running the cruise.
Yeah, it looks like Forte has fell off the deep end of reasoning and, dawning the gear of certain Captain from the movie Jaws, is out to hook the great “Phantom Fish”! No, not to save a hapless seaside village and it’s inhabitants, but for the money (a million GC to be precise)! So Forte has become the ultimate killjoy by putting money before vacation. And as for the fish? Does it exist? Of course it does! In fact it’s quite familiar, that big fish! I’ve seen it before… Jaws… Deep Blue Sea… Abyss… Orca… OH! I remember now! Resident Evil 4, only bigger!! Yeah… they should have stuck to Plan B and stood on dry land, at least they shouldn’t have gone vacationing on a planet whose tourism board is funded by Umbrella Corp.

Episode 16 - Forbidden Meuniere; Alluring Grated Yam Topping
If you are a stickler for genetic mutations you’re going to love this, if you are a fan of the ethical treatment of animals then you might be a little put out by this… skip ahead and watch the galaxy hold it’s breath over the emotional stability of Milfeulle.

As for this episode? Looks like a strange human/fish hybrid called the Mock Sunfish is on the verge of extinction! So why are these strange things (looking like a human in a stupid fish costume with their arms/legs sticking out) going extinct? Is it because they taste good with tartar sauce? Is it because people keep trying to “Free” them into the ocean, like Free Willy, only to watch them drown since they’re not very good in water? Or is it because they’re the secret ingredient in something called “Baby Baby Face”, a “magical” liquid that makes skin youthful… it’s the last one, believe it or not.

The girls are thus sent to make sure the fish does not go into extinction. Yeah, right.
Much like holding this year’s Boy Scout Jamboree over in North Korea (or a certain someone’s Ranch) is not a good idea, so too is the idea of putting these girls in charge of this endangered species. Why? After finding out said Mock Sunfish is the vital ingredient of “Baby Baby Face” it seems that Forte, Ranpha and sweet cosplaying addicted Mint has become obsessed with the fish. They want to get close to it, look at it, behold it, then go Anthony Hopkins on it’s sweet self and cannibalize it for it’s meat.
Apparently Soylent Green tastes like human/fish this week, and it cooks well in a nabe (hot pot) too!
Now the only question is WHY are they so obsessed! Considering they’re only in their teens to early twenties you shouldn’t be seeing these girls be so damn obsessed with their looks, yet they are for some reason… so be afraid gentle readers, be very afraid.

Episode 17 - Moon-View Soba sans Moon
Looks like Milfeulle is going to be taking the day off, and she’s going to go hiking down on Traansval (the planet Galaxy Angel HQ orbits over) to see this meadow of flowers she visited last year.
But unknown to her there’s a darkness coming, for today (from their “command center” in this huge borrowed room that looks oddly enough like the bridge of the Yamato (if I remember said bridge right)) it looks like the Angel Brigade, and the galaxy, is about to experience the “Great Inauspicious Day” in the life of Milfeulle as the situation known best in the manga comes at last to the anime!

In the manga Milfeulle experiences a strange balance and counter balance of good to bad luck, but she mostly has good luck in the anime… until now. Now it looks like Milfeulle’s good luck is draining away to be replaced by the most bad luck, but this is even stronger when she’s stressed out. So, like the Hulk, you don’t want to make Milfeulle cry… lest you have a death wish.

Of course it’s easier said than done since they’re not even 30 minutes into the day when the first incident happens, leaving a whole day yet to forge through. Of course it’s only a trip to a meadow of flowers, right? What else could possibly go wrong… other than everything… time once again to “get on da’ bus” and take a ride that may end in tragedy if Milfeulle gets too stressed out.
Everybody hold up a puppy to the screen for Milfeulle to see! If it worked on that one episode of X-Play it might work now!

Episode 18 - A Never Before Seen Mystery Carpaccio
Ah, what is the mystery? The mystery is how the heck did this become a super powers parody.
That and how the heck did Season 2 end so fast! Is this really it? Only 19 episodes?!?
Anyway since we’re just about done you can find out the events of this episode for yourself…

Episode 19 (in the extras section) - Gunsmoke Tobacco smoke Cassoulet
Sorry, you can watch this one on your own to find out what it’s about!

Galaxy Angel Z Breakdown the 2nd and 3rd
What’s Hot?
What isn’t hot? This series is just plain good. It’s funny, got great writing and damn good production value (from the animation and Japanese voice acting to the soundtrack) so what is NOT good about Galaxy Angel Z! One of my favorite series of 2005 I’m sure it’ll find that special place in your heart and become your favorite series as well.
And, for the record, it was darn near close to winning last year’s Best of 2004 Awards for best Series but was only narrowly edged out by Ghost in the Shell : Stand Alone Complex and Azumanga Daioh!

What’s Not?
I now have less to complain about, especially when it comes to the Now I Get It! Lectures!
In fact, in the past, my only real complaint was the whole Now I Get It! Lectures, but I digress since this is a new season and a new batch of lectures, and what a difference a year makes! Now diverting from the previous lectures to Q&A sessions, it looks like our charming “host”, the Japanese voice actress for Milfeulle, is improving on her delivery of these segments.
She now holds onto eye contact longer than before (when she always had her head down looking at her notes), and she is trying to become less stiff and more energized (but it could use abit more work). Also she is doing better than she did in Season 1’s “Now I Get It!” sections.
Of course a little more work is needed. Abit more energy, more focus, and a little more spit and polish to give it the feel that she’s talking to you, and only you, then we have ourselves a winner. I’m looking forward to seeing how much more she improved when they roll out Galaxy Angel Season 3 sooner or later.

Moments to Remember?
I can’t really narrow this down, but I guess if I were to say I’d say my favorite episodes are the most memorable about these DVDs… eh… not telling though what my favorites were because, well, they’re MY favorites! When you watch these (and you will) you’ll find your own favorites and they’ll be your best memories of these DVDs. Basically it’s all good, and quite memorable to boot, and that’s a good thing in my book if I do say so myself!

What to Ignore?
You mean other than how this season was abit short? Hmm… can’t think of anything…. Oh, wait! I thought of something! Mint! Now despite the fact that you see Mint displaying her cosplaying addiction in the opening credits you don’t really see her do her thing in these DVDs! No episode like Season 1’s amusement park mission which saw Mint succumb to the Fowl Side of the Force by donning the chicken outfit!
Maybe there’s an episode like that on DVD Vol. 1, but I guess only reviewing that will answer that question or not, eh? Gotta look into that. Otherwise nothing much to ignore here. No sir, nothing much!

Overall?
It’s good. It’s lasted four seasons, hopefully moving onto Season 5 this year, so you can see how hot it is.
Right now we’re on Season 2, hopefully meaning we’ll be graced with Season 3 shortly.
Until then you’ll have this and the upcoming Galaxy Angel A from Broccoli Books to tide you over, not to mention the upcoming Galaxy Angel Party books from Broccoli Books… if they ever get around to releasing it that is. So hold on, it won’t be long before the next Galaxy Angel fix comes along! Promise!

PS2 - NHL Hitz 2003

2005-11-13T13:58:00.000-08:00

OK. Why the focus on hockey? Besides the fact that I’m going with a sports theme here this November? Well, it seems that gamemakers have not yet given up hope on hockey’s return (which has finally paid off since hockey has indded returned).
Of course that was a gamble for them to show off their new 2005-2006 hockey games at E3 without even waiting to see if there would be a 2005-2006 hockey season, so I guess everything worked out that hockey returned and there was games waiting for hockey's return to get people in the mood -- if there was any fans left to be in the mood for hockey's return.
So since we are indeed celebrating a new season of NHL hockey (now overhyped like nobody's business) why not celebrate the sports’ return by looking back at an age when hockey was a sport, and not just a thing people argued about on the news and on ESPN Radio. That and the price was right and cheap so I figured what the heck!

Oh, yeah, and then there’s this one slight problem… the feeling that nobody will care (even after hockey's return this year). Let’s face it, after that strike does anyone still have any love for the game? I guess so since I haven't heard any discouraging words about fan turnout but still... with hockey getting a kick in the groin recently with their canceling their own 2004-2005 season I’m still wondering if anyone cares anymore about hockey, except for the gamemakers of course who have rolled out new hockey games this year including a Gretzky game for the PSP.

But our sight is turned towards the near past, and in this regard NHL HITZ 2003 might be your fix for the hockey fandom blues, or if you are (like me) a newbie who wants to try hockey but doesn’t want to be saddled with a game that has a hard learning curve (or a hard price to swallow). The ease to learn this game starts off with it’s easy to master Hockey School mode, coached by a coach who has won the most (as of the game’s release) Stanley Cups in history, or something like that.
He’ll walk you through the game, patiently at that (no Bobby Knight choking incidents here), and get you ready to jump right in and start playing.
Next we have the mini games, six mind blowing games that’ll challenge you and are fun to boot. Sure they’re not the party games of ESPN NHL 2K5 but they’re good nevertheless, and they’ll get you on the roll in terms of learning how to put those skills you learned in hockey school to good use.
After that we go into exhibition mode, to try out your game.

And as you enter here you’ll see that you have lots to look forward to.
First off all the teams (as of 2002-2003) are present, and accounted for… but since I’m not a hockey fan I can’t exactly vouch for complete authenticity. But then again nobody’s ever complained about a Barry Bonds of Hockey (I.e. somebody who refuses to allow their image to be put into hockey games) so I guess we have the full monty of players… hmm… and one player that looks an awful lot like Adam Sessler from X-Play… hmmm. That and you can also make your own players, so you can’t beat that!

Then we have the fields. We have real fields AND Fantasy fields ranging from the wild west to shark tanks, and a military base to the moon for starters! You can also pick international fields of play as well and this is NOT only in the Exhibition mode! You can also do it in the Season mode as well!

Season mode allows you to play for the Stanley Cup by picking a team and working them through the year.
From the draft to the playoffs you’ll have lots of work to do if you want to master your chosen team and reach the top of the ladder and the elusive Stanley Cup! I picked St. Louis because on the back of the box the Adam Sassler looking dude was playing for St. Louis… yeah, it’s not him but… never mind.

Once you get into gameplay, and really start playing, that’s when things get fun.
It’s fast paced, the gameplay is hard hitting and it is really easy to get into the action quite fast.
I liked the gameplay the best since it was easy to pick up, and once I got into the basics I was wailing away working hard for those goals. Of course I still have lots to master before I start to really get a hang of this but getting started is easy, and wanting to learn how to master it is no problem here.
And since this game had an easy to master Hockey School section to play I got the hang of hockey fast, and I even earned a bonus fantasy field (Jungle Stadium) for passing Hockey School!

Besides the above modes we also have a Tourney mode, a Franchise mode where you make your own team to face the world, and mini games. Then we have the unlockables! Over 150 different unlockables from gear, to new Fantasy fields, and more! And, if that wasn’t enough? We also have pop quizes that happen after every game (from what I could see of it) that’ll earn you points for each correct ansewr!
Then we have the 2003 soundtrack featuring Rob Zombie, Powerman 5000 and Incubus to name a few.
Which is nice and all except I’m at a loss here concerning the music… well, I don’t know the players but I do know if they’re good or not.

When it comes right down to it all of these quirks and extras serve up some solid gaming fun for the budget minded player who wants a quality game but wants a really good discount too. The only other game I can think of that’s cheap, and also as good, is ESPN NHL 2K5 that is out now. That is also looking good DESPITE the fact ESPN NHL 2K5 probably doesn’t have fantasy fields, unlockable gear and weird mini games like in this game!

Midway’s HITZ 2003 is a hit, and for the low low price you can probably find it for at your local Blockbusters or similar place that sells low priced games? You can’t go wrong with this one!
The gameplay is solid, the modes are fun no matter how you slice it, and I liked the Hockey School and mini games which added some depth to the game. For a newbie like me who is not used to playing hockey playing this game was just too good. A solid experience that made it fun to get my feet wet on hockey gaming wise for the firs time. If you can find it for a good low price you should grab it, you’ll enjoy it!

NHL HITZ 2003 Breakdown
What’s Hot?
I didn’t think I would like hockey, but after giving Midway’s NHL HITZ 2003 a spin I found that it does have some merits and it pretty interesting to play… if it is done right. With a ton of playing features, loads of extras including unlockables, fantasy fields to play on, mini games and more you just can’t go wrong with this game. And considering you should be able to grab this for about a few dollars now if you can find it for so cheap? That’s just even more incentive to give this a spin.
A game that’ll get your feet wet for hockey, and give you a reason to check out ESPN’s NHL 2K5 and possibly it’s 2K6 game (OK, ESPN is no longer connected with the 2KSports people anymore so it's just NHL 2K6 but you might still want to take a rental of it). HITZ 2003 is a good way to get into the hockey “spirit”, and if you can find it you should find the low low price a good incentive to check it out.

What’s Not?
Hockey is for hockey fans, though at the low price this should be available for if you can find it it should give novice "fans" or those who never picked up a hockey game before incentive to give it a try. Who knows, buying this might later give you a taste for the newest hockey games... maybe.

Moments to Remember?
Besides the mini games? Duking it out on fantasy fields is a highlight. The space field, or the shark tank field is nice… what I really liked was the disco field… oohh, all the flashing lights! Good thing I don’t succumb to flashing lights and go into seizures like that episode of Poke’mon featuring Porygon that sent hundreds to the hospitals due to seizures.

What to Ignore?
Nothing. It’s all good here… oh, wait. Don’t you play as an owner in some of these modes? Does that mean your evil now? Did you fall to the dark side without even knowing it?
Then there’s the fighting system (where two hockey players get into a fight) which is kind of awkward and not very easy to control. But then again since you’re not getting into a fight every 5 seconds you don’t have to deal with this enough times to even worry about it.
As for the bone crunching glass breaking moves as you slam and trash your opponents? Hmm… it was OK though I don’t know what “perfect” bone breaking in hockey games is supposed to be so forgive me if I’m not up on what makes a good body smashing system in a hockey game.
Otherwise if I have complaints they are few and not enough to warrant passing on this bargain game.
For it’s low price you are actually getting a fairly decent game here. In my opinion this and ESPN NHL 2K5 should be in your collection if you like tinkering in the hockey gaming arena.

Overall?
For a low priced hockey game from 2002-2003 I have to say this is one that I really enjoyed reviewing, and enjoy playing. With all it’s modes, it’s fantasy fields, it’s extras and unlockables AND it’s mini games (to name a few) we have ourselves a little winner here folks! It got my feet wet on hockey, and now I think I’m ready for ESPN NHL 2K5 and the inevitable 2K6... of course I said that months ago and I'm still not ready for 2K5 or 2K6 hockey... go figure.

Tomorrow is Sports... really!

2005-11-12T18:43:00.000-08:00

Yeah. I have a hockey game I actually sat through... and it should be downright affordable to your pocket since it's right now sitting in bargain bins everywhere.
NHL Hitz 2003 - One of the games from the bygone era when people still actually gave a heck about the sport of hockey, this one has some nice little twists and (for an older title) is actually interesting that even someone like me liked playing it!
Galaxy Angel Z DVD V. 2 and 3 - No hockey, but it is still one of the best sci-fi comedies you can be watching these days, and I'll tell you why tomorrow.
Well, thanks for visiting and taking a look at the latest reviews! Take care and good day!

PS2 - Colosseum : Road to Freedom

2005-11-12T18:40:00.000-08:00

I can't remember if I did this review or not, if I did I apologize... but then again you can't tell people enough times to avoid certain games... games like this!
Do you suffer from insomnia? Does sleep seem to avoid you, much like good movie scripts avoids Steven Seagal, or decent filmmaking seems to avoid Brett Ratner's efforts to direct X-Men 3 (allegedly)? Do you wish there was some way to get a good night’s sleep that does not involve popping sleeping pills on a nightly basis? Well I have a cure for you!

Fresh from the gaming minds of a third party company employed by the people of Koei (yeah, I know, I’ve said TOEI for weeks now -- I’ve confused them with a toy company for sometime haven’t I) who have made Romance of the Three Kingdoms (X), Kessan (III), Dynasty Warriors (V) and whatever else you can think of that is based around feudal Japan slash China comes the cure for the common sleeping ailment, Colosseum : Road to Freedom! Koei should have known better then if they weren‘t the ones making it!

Take this along with the GameCube’s Digimon World 4 and you should be sleeping like a baby! Yeah, BANDAI, it’s BORING!! I don’t know what you were thinking but I never want to see that game ever again, not in my lifetime… please, more RPGs like the (dot)hack Quadrilogy, thanks.

And speaking of boring how about an endless dull of gladiator life for a game‘s premise?
What? Gladiators are cool aren‘t they? Yeah, if you consider games like Shadow of Rome where the blood flowed like rivers in the colosseum, and the death was a beautiful canvas of red painted with a sharp blade, then yeah gladiator games are cool… but this is NOT Shadow of Rome -- which is good since I can’t take another pretty blonde boy Raiden style stealth mission, that sucked.
And yes, the world of ancient Rome has been receiving abit more in the terms of games recently since Russell Crowe did the roman bit years ago in Gladiator… though I don’t think it’s a epidemic as some game review sites/shows would like you to think since it’s not like they’re chucking out a new roman gladiator game every two months, so while you could say the movie Gladiator might have breathed a little life into the invention wheel of game making (contributing to the games coming out now), it can’t all the blame for the games were seeing coming out these days.

But I digress, it’s not like everything Russell Crowe did is responsible for a surge in games. If that was true we should see a ton of sailing ship combat sims after Master & Commander, and lots of mini games where you try to hit obnoxious hotel clerks with telephones after… you know.
Anyway back to Colosseum. Sure this game is more accurate in a sense (the violence is not bloody to the max as Shadow of Rome), and Colosseum tries to have more strategy than the hack/slash bloodfest that was Shadow of Rome, but it could have done much better. This game, which is nothing more than a long boring tedium of gladiator training and arena battles, just drags on and on and on and on… you get the point.
In fact it’s the game’s attempts to be more than a mere hack/slash that contributes to the sheer boredom of the game in the first place!

First off when the game starts you take -- a job interview? Yeah, apparently you’ll be given that all important slavery interview just so they know what kind of slave you’ll be in this game. Somehow I think the choices are supposed to say how the story goes but I didn’t shake the game down enough times to see if there’s any differences in the choices you make. I guess there is a difference since you’re supposed to be able to unlock the option to “hail” from either Athens (Greek) or Rome (Roman) if you beat the game once and start again from the beginning, but then again I didn’t play long enough to find out.

Anyway once you complete your “interview” you are then thrust into slavery in a small backwater Roman town, where you are bought by a major Roman gladiator trainer who brings you to his “camp” where you’ll train to be a gladiator for the rest of the game. There you’ll stay, until once you earned enough money in the arena, then you’ll be able to earn your freedom. Yeah. Good luck.

In the camp you train, which is just a long series of button pushing mini games to earn points… yeah, right, button pushing mini games. Of course this is important since it builds up your abilities, and it earns you food points which is also important. Food points? Well, the better you are at these mini games the more you’ll earn, which in turns is the stuff you need to increase your skills (you’ll see once you start playing).
You also have many skills in battle (put into the form of tablets that you can arm), but sadly this game can easily be surpassed just by learning the old “skill” of “run in circles and beat the square button (or maybe the circle button which works just as well) until something dies”-- almost. More on that below. Then again maybe you’d like to skip a arena day, that you can do. If you don’t think you can take an arena battle that day you can “sleep in”, which gives you more chances to do the workouts to level up your skills.

Back to the skills and running around in circles thing. One twist is that you have to keep an eye on your stamina meter. That meter on your upper left is NOT a health meter, that is determined by the image of what looks like a bird thing (once it turns red then starts flashing your in trouble), the green bar is your stamina.
As long as it’s high you can deliver a heavy smackdown, but once it’s depleted any attempt to attack will leave you winded (and open to counterattack). So basically you rush in and start thrashing away until you are nearly out, then back off and find a spot to stand still (so it recharges), then repeat.
There is some strategy in this (concerning enemies with shields and animals) but for the most part the same tactic of attack/rest/attack/rest should do you good each and every time, so much for “strategy”.

Battles are abit varied, from team combat to survival to duels and animal battles and custom events in the Colosseum, but there just isn’t enough variety in it to really make a big difference. Also the fighting isn’t as rich, detailed, and downright beautiful to behold like the gladiator combat in Shadow of Rome, which was a blood soaked tableau of beauty (even in it’s goriest moments).

Yes, Colosseum is supposed to be more real (and not just be another hack/slash) and feature abit of strategy to it, but that is quickly overcome by the fact you can beat just about anything if you have good enough weapons, and can run in circles and whack buttons when you find an opening. Just make sure you don’t get boxed in by enemies, and always play keep away from time to time to recharge the old stamina meter, and you’ll do fine. In comparison the hack/slash bloodfest of Shadow of Rome is more interesting than this, which gets old real real fast and becomes something more tedious than entertaining to play.
And, lest we forget, this game does NOT take advantage of the arena’s “audience” (which seems to be a rather awkwardly done animation of a “audience” that somebody borrowed from the Madden NFL games) since there’s no “crowd pleaser” move to play to the audience to them them fired up, ala Shadow of Rome.

This is, by the way, how you earn your freedom so that is another minus mark against this game.
Each battle earns you money which is put against your debt to your owner (to the sum of a million coins, which is only just abit lower than the debt you own that no good raccoon Tom Nook in Animal Crossing -- only Tom Nook doesn’t expect you to kill for your “freedom”) and this is the only way you’ll make that money so get used to combat. Yeah. Good luck. It’s a hardship to earn creds, and to knock down a million coin debt is nothing to sneeze at! Worse is the fact there’s supposed to be some sort of stupid “50 day” or “80 day” cutoff point where the game ends while your in the middle of “saving” for your freedom!
How sucky is that anyway?!?

The story is nonexistent, and what story the game has seems to cripple the game by making it shorter than it should be (which is not a good thing in my book). Somehow I think this game could have had longer hours of gameplay if it wasn’t for the so called “story” of Colosseum. Also the story seems to “spurt” along in jolts and splatters, with gameplay going on for abit without even one bit of storyline, only for a burst of storyline to suddenly appear out of nowhere before another lull of non storyline geared gameplay plays out. I don’t know about you but that does not seem like a good thing to me.

As for the paths this game can take? There are two paths and one “non path” in this game.
One is the path of survival, one path is the path of destiny… and the one non-path is one in which you let the game itself chose your path for you. I did the third when I reviewed this game, so I had no idea what “path” I took… but I do know one thing, the path I took had occasional bouts of “story” jabbed into it here, and there, with no uniformity or proper sense of pacing to the “storytelling”. Uh-huh. And that, as they say, is that. I grew bored of the whole setup and ended the review early on account of boredom.

For a company like Koei, that makes games that sells like hotcakes smothered in smack, they sure didn’t do much to make this one very -- well -- intense. Yeah, technically it’s NOT their fault since Colosseum is a third party game and all, but they should have done better nevertheless. Maybe send it back and say “It could have been better”… and it could have been better, just so we’re clear on that point.
Sadly I don’t think there is much else to say about this game… really… I think I said all there is to be said about this game… oh, one more thing. You’re supposed to be able to meet famous gladiators, yeah. Didn’t give a heck about that since I didn‘t care about the “story“ in the first place, so forget about me caring about trying to figure out which of the gladiators I met were “Famous“. OK. Nuff said. Breakdown time.

Colosseum the Breakdown
What’s Hot?
What could have been hot is this game taking off and becoming a gladiator sim with some bite.
However the attempt to make the game a cut above the standard hack/slash drives it down and makes it a less than interesting mediocre hack/slash, with combat that could have just been that much better.
At best this game is a mildly amusing rental that’ll have you challenged for about a few days, maybe a week, before the tedium of the gameplay sets in and you are returning it back to the store whence you got it.

What’s Not?
While the combat is abit interesting, and it should hold your attention for awhile, it’s not perfect.
The combat should have been more fun, and require more of a challenge mode to give you something to sink your teeth into. Let’s face it, the game TRIES to teach you all these combos and stuff, but in reality you only really need to learn how to manage your stamina meter, and then you simply button mash your way through the game once you got that down pat. And sure, while I liked some aspects of the game there is more that I have complaints over than I have compliments concerning. The story, the simplistic combat that is supposed to be deeper, but falls short since there’s no incentive to do complex combos when a simple button mashing technique will do you fine time and time again.
This game just could have been better, period, and in fact it should have been better for what it cost.

Moments to Remember?
The only memorable thing is the fighting. So fight on, you gladiator gaming fan(atic), fight on!

What to Ignore?
The thing about Colosseum to ignore is the story, or lack of story thereof. The so called story just spurts and sputters along in bursts of cut scenes, not really connecting to the gamer at all and mostly just filling space if nothing else since the story is just not really motivating in any sense.
Lots of hack and slash combat, lots of training, and then spurts of story here and there doesn’t make for a well rounded game if you ask me. So guess what, you can pretty much ignore that since the story could have been more uniform and got the player more involved in the game than the few spurts of story that filled in the blanks here and there, and not much else.

Overall?
This just isn’t a good game. It tries to be something more than a hack/slash like Shadow of Rome, and it doesn’t even deliver that much. The story is not very compelling, the action could have been better, and it could have given you reason to learn those combos and to put them to good use, and it overall could have just been a more interesting game.
However, as it stands, Colosseum : Road to Freedom is nothing more than a rental to pass a week, nothing more and nothing less than that. If you rent it, and you like it? Then by all means buy it if it floats your ancient roman boat. However I think you could do better, much much better, than this game.

GameCube - Pikman 2

2005-11-12T18:32:00.000-08:00

Stop staring at me like that!
Just because it’s a review of Pikmin 2 doesn’t mean this is not something you should consider playing -- and I liked this more than the thought of having to review any number of sports related games (and it's way more fun than suffering through a Top Spin or Outlaw Tennis review!)
In fact, just so you know, this game is something best played by people who play military style war strategy games! Yes! The tactics and skills used to play a strategy war sim will go far here.
Anyway it’s games that begin with dire health warnings week, and apparently this game has one of those! After all, who doesn’t want to play a game that features a dire health warning… think this one has to do with seizures from watching flashing lights, ala what happened in that seldom seen Poke’mon episode featuring Porygon.

What happened in the original Pikmin? In the previous Pikmin game you were Captain Olimar, and you were lost on the planet of the Pikmin. Thankfully these little mutated carrot people things were quite friendly, and with the help of this species you managed to get off their homeworld and return home.
Too bad only bad news waited for you when you got back!
It seems that, well, while you were gone the company you worked for went into bankruptcy and now you’ll have to go BACK to the Planet of the Pikmin to get your company out of debt!
So back you go! Using your Pikmin to salvage the strangest treasures and battle stranger monsters on the planet Pikmin… aka the Dead Earth!

Guess what!! You’re wandering willy nilly on a dead Earth!! Nature has overtaken the world and humanity is nowhere to be found! That and your species is micro sized… so in that context the Earth is sort of like the Planet of the Giants from your POV! Good thing the Earth is dead of human life since there’s no way you’ll ever defeat a human! As for the treasure you need to save your company? All you seem capable of finding is the remains of a dead world, scattered (and buried) on lifeless streets, parks and areas overgrown with plant life and debris! So the treasure you’re finding? Some of it is valuable (crystals) but most of the stuff is just junk (except for your species who holds this stuff as treasures). Oh, and some of this stuff is actual corporate logo stuff meaning some Japanese branches of real companies went out of their way to pay Nintendo to be “advertised” in this game (which means you’ll find things like a Duracell battery, bottle tops from Coke, Dr. Pepper & Yoo-hoo, and more)!
At least this time you’re bringing a co-worker (who is responsible for the money crisis to begin with) in one Louie, who seems to quickly take to Pikmin raising.

Ok. How does the strategy thing work? It’s all in the useage of your Pikmin!
You start out with Red Pikmin (good against fire) but as you go along you can pick up other species!
You have the electric Yellow Pikmin, water capable Blue Pikmin, and THREE new species (so far)!
The speedy poisonous White Pikmin (good for poison environs), the large bulky (powerful) Purple (sumo) Pikmin, and a strange hybrid that is part bug enemy/part Pikmin (which embodies the water capable traits of the Blue Pikmin with the durability of the Purple Pikmin -- too bad you can‘t keep them though)!

The strategy comes from first making Pikmin (which is easiest for the Red, Blue and Yellow as you’ll find out as you play), then the deployment and useage of said Pikmin. The hardest being deployment into the many “tunnels” beneath the ground where you dig up treasure, and fight monsters. These are the hardest since you have to complete the level in order to carry your treasure out. If you bail before you reach the end you’ll lose all your treasure and have to go back and re-do the level over again (except for certain levels where multiple escapes are available for a premature “bail out”). However since the game auto-save after each completed level of the tunnels you can always “bail” by just hitting reset and redoing a level if your losses were too great and you need a second chance.

As for creature deployment into situations? Some creatures are best suited for certain Pikmin, same as some environments. Some environs you run into are only suited to one Pikmin, while it is deadly to the others. For instance only the Blue Pikmin and the strange Bug Pikmin hybrid can swim, so they are best used for water environs. Meanwhile only the Red Pikmin can withstand fire, while the Yellow Pikmin is best suited for electrical environs, finally the White Pikmin are best for poison gas environs and for tackling large creatures since they’re poisonous when eaten… so in a pinch you can always put together a small “suicide” squad of Whites and feed them to big beasts one at a time to kill them.
Finding out what Pikmin is best for what enemy/environ, and how best to utilize your troops is the key to success. And since you have a partner (Louie) you can split up your forces and take the right Pikmin to handle the right job. In this sense I usually do it like this : I leave one near the drop point (where the little pod is hovering for pick-up of treasures) with most of my Pikmin (where they will be safe) while I deploy with a small Pikmin unit to survey and battle with so it keeps casualties to a minimum.

My only complaint is the game is abit easy. It’s addictive and fun, but I have 80% of the treasure needed already and I only played the game a few days now. Still, it’s an addiction and once you get hooked you’ll be playing for hours trying to work that debt off… oh, wait, I’m done now and I had a few days left to my rental. Go figure. So I moved on and now I’m reviewing Prince of Persia : Sands of Time… cool. That’s next week, by the way.

Oh, did I mention there’s some sort of health warning with this game? Yeah. I mentioned that.
It was mentioned in the instruction booklet… too bad this is a rental so there’s no instruction booklet to consult. I figure it’s probably a seizure warning (ala that one Poke’mon episode with the flashing lights that caused seizures) but I played the game through from beginning to… well, first end… and nothing happened to me so I guess I’m not one of those people who are prone to seizures from watching flashing lights.

Oh, well, breakdown time.

Pikmin Breakdown the 2nd
What’s Hot? - It’s a madly addictive game. The search for treasures and the exploration of the dead Earth is just something you can’t put down… until you get a better game, but for a GameCube exclusive (since I never heard any other system having this game) it’s a good one. The graphics are great, the gameplay is solid and addictive, and it’s just something you need to see for yourself!

What’s Not? - I do, however, have some issues with this game.
One, despite the fact that this game has two characters you can switch from (Olimar and Louie) and the ability to play 2-Player Battles, there’s no 2-Player co-op mode where you and another player can cooperate in your exploration and treasure retrieval! Yes, the game takes place day by day, but the days do not last long enough for serious exploration and most of the time halfway through a long exploration of an outside environ (time stops when you explore tunnels) I had to call said exploration off since the sun was going down. If I had another player to split the Pikmin (max 100 on the field at one time) then that would have allowed for better useage of time to explore more things in the little time each day had.

Another downer is the fact that, despite the fact this game seems like a natural for online play (multiple players and their Pikmin wandering a larger dead Earth running into each other as they explored, forming alliances or rivalries to pick the many environs clean of “treasure”), this game lacks said online playability.
That is a shame since this would have been a fun online game, same as Animal Crossing which also would have benefited from an online option (and the ability to visit the many villages of other players).

The last downer is the inability to keep the beast/Pikmin hybrids you run into… well, I only saw them once in one tunnel system and that’s it. Wish I could have kept them and used them in other areas.

Moments to Remember? - The endless, addictive search for the many “treasures” of the dead Earth! You’ll never know what weird common place everyday item you’ll dig up next, or what weird name (or even weirder journal entry) will be made of each item! And add to that the fact that some of these items (a dozen or so) have the ability to upgrade your character? That just makes the endless hunt for treasure that much more interesting, and memorable!

What to Ignore? - If you’re like me you’ll take awhile to get used to the quirks of your Pikmin. And, like me, you’ll end up getting whole squads of Pikmin killed off because you made some mistake here, or there, or did something you shouldn’t have and bammo, lots of dead Pikmin.
Eh. The learning curve sometimes is a little steep and I’d like to ignore some of my early mistakes while learning to work my Pikmin. In fact I don’t want to talk about it… so I won’t.
Good thing there’s the reset switch whenever I commit Pikmin genocide.

Overall? - It’s one of the few games out there that Nintendo can be proud of, believe it or not!
It’s a meek little strategy game that has abit of an addictive quality to it, and sure to get you going once you got the hang of Pikmin management and treasure seeking.
A little addiction that is suitable for all ages, Pikmin 2 has that strange unique quality to it that makes it a good game to play, and something you’ll enjoy when you feel like a timeout from the intense games of your collection. Try it, you might like it.

Tomorrow is a Weekend

2005-11-11T19:43:00.000-08:00

I need to think of what I'm going to theme my weekend around... I'm a little indecisive, so I'll just have to swing with it and see what happens tomorrow.
Thanks for all the nice comments and links! I continue to go travelling and visiting links whenever I get them! Thanks! See you tomorrow!

? ? ? - The Red Star

2005-11-11T19:16:00.000-08:00

Well I was going to review Call of Duty : Finest Hour... if not for the fact that I'm having a hard time just getting the heck out of the Russian Stalingrad scenario, which is abit of a hellish battle to get through.

Speaking of things from Russia that is not working out, how about a game set in an alternate reality Russia that won't see the light of video gaming day!
So tell me something, have you ever read the review of a game that is NOT coming out to a video game anything near you anytime soon? You are now, readers, you are now.

If you were a fan of, say, Turok or 100 Bullets prior to the collapse of Acclaim then you might have been majorly bummed by the recent bankruptcy of Acclaim... especially since 100 Bullets is yet ANOTHER title that seemingly will never see the light of day. And, of course, if you actually WORKED for Acclaim then by all means you are most sorely bummed since that means, well, you are now out of work... sorry about that.

Of course the whole going out in a blaze of bankruptcy in terms of Acclaim might be because they've made in the past some odd games worth of more scorn than praise. Huh? Odd games? Top on my list of "odd games" is the much maligned BMX XXX which combines mediocre BMX biking, rude nasty attitude that sucks, and strippers from SCORES... yeah, now there's an award winning game right there... yeah.
I think the only game from Acclaim I really loved was Shadowman (Nintendo 64) which is a first person shooter that was actually fun... oh, well, at least I loved something from them prior to their shutting down.

HOWEVER if there is anything that the bankruptcy of Acclaim has done which has wronged their few loyal customers, there is one spot of the sad event which shine rather brightly as a positive thing. And what might that be? That'd be the bright light of the positive slaying of the horrendous The Red Star video game before it came out to disappoint and demoralize Red Star fans across the world.
Eh? Am I serious? Oh yeah, I am most certainly serious.

The so called "game", whose only sign of it's "existence" is in a demo disc from Playstation magazine some long months and months ago, is about as bad as bad can be. I should know, I played it! I played it, and I wish I didn't.

Taking place, at least as far as the demo shows, from The Red Star II #1-up, you control three of the main characters as you plow your way through The Red Star universe... and when I say plow I mean hack and slash your way through a mediocre button mashing mess of repeating enemies and endless boredom.
I guess if there's something positive to say at this point about the game it's the whole choice of characters for the game, which I thought were fairly good picks.
Still the big problem of this "game" is that for a universe so deep and intense as The Red Star the game is a total letdown... to say the least, and that's me being rather kind to the game and it's former programmers.

To me it's part X-Men Arcade (the endless hack and slash through an endlessly boring parade of lookalike enemies) and part Contra (the overhead shooting scenes versus giant boss things) and that is so wrong. This game, which is in such a detailed and unique world, screams RPG treatment -- or at the very least an X-Men Legends style treatment which would have been just as fun. Hell, something, let alone anything would have been better instead of the people at Acclaim working their ignorance magic much to their failing -- gee, wonder WHY they went bankrupt.

According to an interview I did with Christian Gossett (on this site early on in my days running the site) he said they were doing it for (if I remember it right) nostalgia gamer fans. Are you kidding me? Nostalgia? Nostalgia is good, and nostalgia does sell as you and I know with high selling retro gaming series as Midway Treasures 1 + 2 and the recent Taito Legends, and I really don't have a complaint with nostalgia which is alive and well for the most part, BUT it's NOT good for The Red Star! This game, a game that should have been deep and profound, sucks using old school "nostalgia" where it doesn't fit! If you want a hack/slash beatdown nostalgia game then do it on a title that nobody cares about, or bring back a nostalgic old arcade game nobody re-released yet! This is just not the kind of title meant for the nostalgia road, which is such a travesty that it went that way in the first place!

So I guess I don't need to further explain the sheer boredom of the DEMO... but twist my arm, here's the bad news of the boredom. I could only control two of the three characters in the DEMO, though somehow it just didn't matter who I picked since they didn't seem very different from one another in terms of gameplay.
For two seemingly different character they just bashed/slashed and used power attacks to move on that were so very alike. Boring!
As for what you could play in this level? The playable level was boring due to it's monotony which the game seems to bleed in full amounts from this just DEMO alone. The enemies were carbon copies of each other and also boring to witness, and lest I forget the two characters were pretty much just simplistic things to control with no real challenge to the gameplay whatsoever. They had no depth, no skill needed to use them -- after all what kind of skill do you need to master the ancient art of "push the X button until everything is dead" method anyway?!? In other words if you are looking for something unique and different in games this isn't the place to look.

But then again I think this bankruptcy will do the game some good... that is, of course, if whoever inherit's the game would please destroy this version of the game and forces Mr. Gossett and associates to go back to the drawing board and remake the entire game from scratch. And I DO mean from scratch, litterly!
The first thing that needs to be done to "heal" this video game (heal, video game, heal!) and recreate it's "universe" to make it better, starting with a complete overhaul from the ground up to make this a better, more well rounded game.

In short...
1 - It needs to be an RPG, or at least a game as good as Activision's X-Men Legends game which is quite fun! Other choices for games to emulate the "new" Red Star game on would be Star Wars : Knights of the Old Republic I & II, Final Fantasy VII or X, Arc the Lad (Twilight of the Spirits, not the crappy End of Darkness) or something just as good, if not better. The fighting system also needs a complete overhaul to make it good, if not better, than the RPGs I mentioned above.
2 - The story need to start off with a mind expanding opening cinematic sequence that starts off the same way The Red Star #1 starts off (at the huge national cemetery) which sets the mood of the story.... Which means...
3 - The game HAS to be attuned to the series itself. With cinematic sequences and great amounts of grand battles and epic cut scenes.
4 - YET the game needs to have a few quirks to make it unique! One, for instance, is the chance to keep a certain fan favorite character from dying if you choose to play as her from the start of the game. If you read the series then you know her, and know you'd want her to live too... right?
5 - Another is the promise that the game will be substance over style alone. It needs to be deep, have lots going for it, and just be something you can't stop playing! And if it has to be a quote "hack and slash" then be a good one, ala X-Men Legends which is just damn fun to play even if it is easy to master!
6 - Hmmm... you know what would come next? An online version where you can generate your own character and explore the world of The Red Star in greater detail that even the first game couldn't provide -- and considering I'm recommending that and I don't do the online thing that's got to say something about how good The Red Star Online would be if done right!
7 - Nostalgia is nice, folks... but not here. Innovative gaming that just grips you and holds on tight is what the doctor ordered for this game. Innovation over nostalgia!
8 - I can't think of anything else, but I'm sure someone will think up of new things.
9 - Umm... must we have another Turok game? I didn't like any of the previous ones.

Now while I'd like to hope there's a "when" when it comes to this game's future, I'm afraid it seems like there's no future for this game. And so far, if other Acclaim resurrected game "Juice'd" is any indication, there's no hope of innovation if they just put out the same crap like before with little changes (which is what they did with Juice'd, barely changing it when it released recently).
This game, as it stands right now, is a bomb waiting to explode, and having to suffer it's release without major changes or alterations is not something I want to see inflicted on gamers. Yes, only through a lot of work can this game be made to not only be at least playable, it can be made to be a hit and worthy of the series it's based on... but whether someone wants to do that or not for this game is something else entirely. Oh, well.
But until then the game is an embarrassment, and everyone involved should be glad it died a quick and painless death by bankruptcy before it could be dragged onto store shelves where it would have died a slow and painful death by critics.

The breakdown doesn't seem necessary, but here it is all the same.

The Red Star Breakdown
What's Hot? - Right now, sadly, the only hot thing about all this is that the game has been stopped in it's tracks by the bankruptcy of Acclaim. Hooray!

If this game is released the way it is now expect nothing good to come from said release.
The game must be taken back and redone from the ground up, revisualized and redreamed to be far better than it is now, and that is a good start of what should be a great revival.

What's Not? - Whoever thought the game would have been just so much fun if it was buried chest deep in needless nostalgia gaming that just sucked when it comes to this game is a Not in my opinion.
This game deserved so much better, and yet it got the exact opposite of what it needed. Way to go, guys.

Moments to Remember? - Nothing. Absolutely positively nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Zero.
Not having a game to remember does that to it's chances of having any memorable moments to remember.

What to Ignore? - Hopefully nobody ignores my advice! This game can be far greater than it was supposed to have been if Acclaim hadn't gone out of business! Now all they need to do is go back to the drawing board and remake this game to actually make it good!

This game is NOT fit for human "consumption" at this point! It must be remade lest it will be thrashed the moment it hit's the shelves! Please, please, please REMAKE THIS GAME!
Heck, even a 3rd or 1st person shooter game would have been better than this game they were working on!
Anything! Please do anything to remake this game! Please!

Overall? - What do you know?! It's the first time bankruptcy has done us all a world of good! Go figure!
Now if only Sony Pictures had the decency to have their so called "animation" dept. go belly-up prior to the long dreaded release of Lil' Pimp on DVD... what the heck WERE they thinking, anyway?!?

The short of it? Forget about the game. Just don't ask anymore. The game is doomed, let it go.
Hopefully it'll get a revamping and soon, if they knew what was good for them. If they do not? Then this is just a short prelude to the massacre that will come if they release this game in it's same substandard format that it is right now. Nuff said.

PS2 - Medal of Honor : Eurpoean Assault

2005-11-11T12:55:00.000-08:00

Once again we reunite EAGames with the Congressional Medal of Honor Society for an all new romp through WWII era Europe! As for the CMOHS? One more time on them.
Started in the aftermath of WWII, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society (CMOHS) was formed to uphold the qualities of the Medal of Honor, and also to provide assistance to indigent recipients.
So whether the Medal of Honor winner became rich, poor, or an insufferable politician that nobody liked, the CMOHS seeks to promote a brotherhood between recipients… no matter how difficult that may sound to you and me. And, yes, if you think Medal of Honor (the game) is closely linked to Medal of Honor (the Society) then you’d be correct. They seem to have played a role in all these games, of which one clear aspect of that involvement is seen in one way that I mentioned last time (the whole friendly fire thing).
If you are interested in checking the site of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society for more info on them you can find it at www.cmohs.org.

As for the gameplay? It’s vastly improved as we open up a brand new experience (and a brand spankin’ new can of whup(bleep)) here in so many ways that shows the true potential of the series as European Assault hit’s the markets, and hit’s the mark dead on!
For the first time in Medal of Honor gaming history you now have access to squad combat tactics!
It’s simple, really, you use only a few buttons to set your troops deployment orders, as well as call them back if they get in over their heads… simple, eh? Otherwise they can handle themselves just fiine, and even spread out to engage the enemy quite efficiently without you having to order them to do so (lowers the incidents of characters pointlessly standing in front of you, unless they do that to get at the enemy but that‘s OK because they‘re much better shots now)… which is a most definite improvement over that pesky Tom Clancy squad based combat and it’s difficult squad deployment methods if you ask me!

It’s 1942 and the specter of doom hovers over the UK. Something needs to be done to keep those pesky Nazis from striking and that something is being done right now. Set throughout Europe, North Africa and Russia you are sent as the only American in a unit of British soldiers to first take out a fueling depot for an invincible German warship, then you get bounced to North Africa to neutralize the V2, then it’s over the the cold cold land of Stalin known as Mother Russia to assist in it’s defense as well as learn the secrets of “Virus House”, and finally charge right into the Battle of the Bulge for the game’s finale and your destiny within the place known as “Virus House“!

Yes, you bet your Springfield ‘03 rifle there is lots to be impressed with here, but none greater than the cut scenes which now run less like a documentary and more like an actual movie! With a splendid opening you are drawn into the game and held tight with mission after mission. The game opens with an introduction by what I suspect is the real Holt, the character you play in the game, as he tells you about his role in the events of these missions.

Yes, this time out you are a GI Joe named Holt, only this time you’ll not only have a fictional Holt to go through this game with, you’ll also be spending a little quality time with the REAL “Holt” as well! A first!
Along the way you bounce from the narration of the real Holt to the game’s Holt as you first hit France, then Egypt to fight alongside the Desert Rats, then over to Mother Russia to defend the city of Stalingrad and finally the aforementioned Battle of the Bulge. Each time a new section of the game opens the real Holt intros it, and gives you a human side to the cold events you are witnessing (colder when you hit Russia and it’s winter)! It’s this touch of realism that keeps the Medal of Honor series grounded in history (as opposed to it being a run of the mill generic Nazi or Japanese military shooter which sets it above the generic WWII stuff the competition is rolling out these days), and makes the Medal of Honor series one of (if not the) best there is out there to play.

Despite the fact it came out during the dry Summer of gaming this is one of the bright stars of the Summer that will bring players back into the game stores to buy, buy, buy! Medal of Honor : European Assault should by all rights sells like X-Play style “smack-cakes” and really really be the must have game of June 2005 (along with the upcoming Arc the Lad : End of Darkness game).
And that, once again, is most certainly a good thing in my opinion.

You know what? So what if it’s a WWII game! That’s not a dirty word and it’s not a terrible thing to avoid either! Yeah, X-Play is tired of WWII games, so what! They’re also tired of human interaction and has shunned humanity 24/7 and what good is that! No good! I like the show a lot, and I normally have no complaints about their ratings of games (they hit it out of the ballpark a lot of time) but sometimes I have to strongly disagree, and this is one of those times. I don’t know about X-Play, but I for one can’t recommend the Medal of Honor series enough, let alone European Assault which is just perfect in many ways.
And, yes, there are other WWII games coming out this Summer (BAM!’s WWII Paratroopers) but how can you stand up against something this profound and beautiful to play? I don’t see how, really.

This time the game is just perfect, and the shooting is perfect too. With more strategy, more thought having to go into your actions (running in wily nilly this time WILL GET YOU KILLED), and (FINALLY) the ability to carry medical kits AND (a first for both Medal of Honor and any WWII game I’ve seen to date) a Star Wars : Republic Commando style “revive” item (to bring you back from the beyond)? Well I don’t see how you can go wrong with this game!
How do you earn this stuff? Medical kits you can find all over the place if you look hard enough for them, while Revives can only be obtained after you complete each objective of your mission! Everytime you clear an objective (blow something up or kill somebody) you’ll find a Revive icon nearby where you completed said task (it‘ll appear after you do the deed). Simple.

One thing that is also different from previous Medal of Honor games is the fact that each level features it’s own “boss” German. Lots of the levels each has one specific German, complete with his own “life meter” (in the shape of a German cross), that you’ll need to eliminate. That is another improvement over previous games. Also once you get to Russia you’ll be fighting a frantic battle from level to level that won’t ease up one iota until the game ends and the credits roll! Yet another improvement in the action!

Just from what I said so far you can see how solid in all respects this game is. It’s solid in the animation (now much spiffier and nicer looking with even better cut scenes), gameplay and music are just overflowing with beauty (and lots of things to shoot or blow up), and I can’t tear myself away from this game… well, I had to to review some Animes so I did set it aside eventually to work… but you know what I mean!

The explosions are perfect as well! In previous Medal of Honor games an explosion would rock you, but not much else. In this game explosions rock, shake, rattle AND deafen you all at the same time!
The closer the impact the more violent the result, as everything falls silent and you only hear a humming noise as the world shakes and whirls about you until you regain your senses. Something not seen in previous games! Oh, and the graphics of explosions are also impressive. Tank fire is solid, heavy artillery and bomb drops from planes also rattle you hard and overall a lot of this is just so fine. The explosions are pretty.
As for the basics of combat? Combat is downright frantic, and you’ll need all the support you can get!

Another thing you need to do in this game is remove objectives with explosives, and that too is improved.
Previously you’d just escort somebody who would do the explosives laying for you, or just run up then tap a button and lay explosives… boring. This time you need to prime the explosives by holding the X button for a set amount of time until the timer is completely red, wherein the explosives are automatically laid.
Once that is done (or once more than one is set on larger targets) you quickly make haste and run lest you get caught in the explosion!

As in Rising Sun you’ll have wide areas to explore, and sadly once again you could have used a map… but you know what? This time I didn’t mind so much because everything else was perfect eye candy so I didn’t mind wandering about this impressive world, so a missing map didn’t phase me too much, and it kind of added to the ambience of the game which can only be a good thing. Anyway the radar is improved so now it tracks primary objectives as well as secondary objectives which is a plus so I had just that much more to do, and if you follow the targets on your radar you won’t have any problems with getting lost.

This is the standard for Medal of Honor games so let’s repeat this one more time.
If you’ve played previous Medal of Honor games you should have no problem picking this up, and if you didn’t play Medal of Honor games you’ll also have no problems picking this up since it’s easy to learn.
The controls are once again changed from Rising Sun, but you should be able to pick up the differences with little difficulty and get into the swing right away (of course you could adjust the setting but I found the first “Sharp Shooter” setting works the best.

Friendly Fire rule once again is in place, no killing of your own allies unless you‘re in Multiplayer mode and the Friendly Fire option is activated. HOWEVER there is now a new option, called the “Reflected” option, in which (from what I gauged about this option) friendly fire is reflected back to cause damage upon the offending friendly fire causing person.

As for the Nazis? Yes, while they are not the frantic kamikaze Japanese soldiers who run headlong into you they’ve learned a few new tricks. They try to ambush you more (but not the same way as their Japanese counterparts) and they way more aggressive than their previous Frontline counterparts (in fact they may be even more brutal than the Japanese forces in Rising Sun in some respects). So be mindful to keep your wits about you, and watch your Nazi enemies closely since they’re quite dangerous if you take them too lightly.
Though once again listening for German dialect kinda gives them away at times unless they‘re a long distance away from you.

However the game does suffer some loses from the previous Rising Sun.
Save points (present in Rising Sun) are missing here, as is online play which was only available on the Greatest Hits version of Rising Sun… maybe Frontlines has an Online version on it’s Greatest Hits copy? Guess I need to get that version for myself to see. As for online play for this game? I guess only time, and Medal of Honor : European Assault Greatest Hits edition will bring forth a possible online version of the game. Too bad it wasn’t available now though. Another downer is the lack of levels, again. Rising Sun had about 9 or so levels, and while this has a few more than Rising Sun it’s not much. 11 levels in total, again another low level count and a game that ends a little too quickly for my taste.

And, yes, once again no vehicle riding which seems to be only available in Call of Duty and that’s a shame.
You can blow up a ton of tanks in this game, as well as man lots of machine gun posts, but no vechile driving. And there seems to be even more lacking here than in Rising Sun. No Gallery of cut scenes you’ve earned, no extras (like before) and no unlockable bonuses (like before). Sure, there might be these things in European Assault but if there are these things I haven’t seen any sign of them yet. Maybe if I completed the game these options might become available… but I haven’t done that yet so as of this review I don’t know.
Overall while this game excels in combat it kind of falls short in bells & whistles, but again I‘m OK with that since the overall game is just good (period). Speaking of Ok let’s break this down now shall we? Ok!

Medal of Honor Breakdown 1942-1944
What’s Hot?
This is quite frankly the best Medal of Honor game I’ve played yet. Yes, it does seem to lack in a few areas but when I get right down to it the pros outweigh the cons, and this game holds onto my interest as the best of the series to date. The combat is just so much more beautiful than before, from the cut scenes to the fighting itself in all ways. You can now hold medical gear and new “revives” which means you don’t have to play the game from hand to mouth anymore, and that’s a definite plus!
You can’t go wrong getting this game! It’s one of the few games this summer worth shelling out money for!

What’s Not?
Yes. I wish the game had a few more things.
I wish the game was longer, and offered up more missions. I wish there were extras to earn during the game. I wish there was a map feature to this game, but that isn’t so important as the other things. And mostly I wish there was a extras place where I can watch the cut scenes whenever I want which is another minus.
But still, despite all that I still think the game rules and don’t see these as a hindrance to you buying this game. Maybe it could have used an online feature, sure, but I guess that can be overcome though you’ll need the multitap and some friends willing to come over to your pad for a little WWII action.

Moments to Remember?
The cutscenes are now more beautiful now that there’s an added bit of history with the real “Holt” narrating from time to time during this game. That is an impressive plus. And while we don’t have Mako making another appearance we do have a more feminine star in this game… as in one Olivia D’abo (you surely remember her creds don’t you?) who I suspect cameos during the -- ? -- most likely she’s in the Battle of the Bulge levels, second female character to the right… in fact she probably the only female character in this level. Or maybe she’s in the Russian levels? Or both… anyway it’s just a cameo, that I’m sure of.
Didn’t Mako (Rising Sun) & Olivia D’abo both work on the same Conan movie together? I think they did.

What to Ignore?
Hmmm… what to ignore here… I can’t think of a thing.
This time there’s no bad stereotyping here, and yes I’m not even going to criticize the Russian characters!

Overall?
If I didn’t like the Medal of Honor series enough before, I most certainly do now!
Yes, once again I haven’t tried the other games yet but I think the Medal of Honor series is the best I’ve played to date (though I‘m willing to be open minded for Call of Duty and Brothers in Arms)!
I’m sure there MIGHT be better WWII games out there, but as far as I’m concerned this series is going to be the one for me and when I hear about the next game coming out I’ll be there to review it ASAP!
Of course that doesn’t mean I am going pass up on reviewing the other WWII games (I will, sooner or later I will), and yes I’ll even own them… after somebody knocks their price down to an affordable $20 like Rising Sun or at least $40 like this game)!
With a summer that is rather slim on the good pickings you can’t go wrong here. Go and try it, I dare you!
Now what do I have to wait for… Medal of Honor : Pacific Assault wasn’t it? Yes, I would like to play that on the PS2… I don’t know when it’ll see release but I’ll be looking forward to it.

PS2 - Front Mission 4

2005-11-11T12:52:00.000-08:00

Continuing the trend of war related titles for Veteran's day, we take a look at the veterans of another future conflict in the PS2's Front Mission 4!
First off question, what does Front Mission 4 have in common with, of all things, Yu-Gi-Oh! Capsule Monster Coliseum and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance?
In essence they all utilize the same combat system, more or less.
Deploy your units, move, attack or defend or something, etc.
Now if you just base your first opinion on the excellent opening sequences of the game alone you might not think it's that kind of game, especially with all the fast moving action in these cut scenes, but it is.
And that might be a good thing if you think about it.

It all starts off with the "Wanzers"... which sounds as if it should be spelled "Banzers" from the way they say the word... which would be nice since the word "Banzers" sounds better than "Wanzers"... sorry, what was I talking about again? Oh, right, the Wanzers. Anyway "Wanzers", these huge mecha machines, are the "weapons" of choice of the major nations of the world... I don‘t know, but staring at the Wanzers kind of remind me of the mechs of Battletech for some reason... but that's not important, right now the events of the opening credits is important.

After Germany is attacked by mysterious "Wanzers" (five of it's bases attacked and destroyed) you swing into action. Playing as a new female recruit of this organization called the E.C.‘s Armored Tactics Research Corps. (aka the Drandal) you are thrust into this situation as your team must investigate the goings on, and find yourself at odds with your "allies" in Germany who don't seem too thrilled to have you around.
Things only seem to get worse when it looks like your "allies" in the German military might be, in fact, in cahoots with the nemesis of the game. Huh? Well, after an attack in Poland on a vital resources base you follow the nemesis back to Germany only to have said nemesis' retreat protected by the German military's Wanzers who fight you as you try to pursue the enemy.

That, and the fact that some evidence you found earlier in the game (turned over to the Germans) is "ignored" in order to frame a different organization than the one the evidence points to? Things are not looking good in Germany's defense.

Meanwhile, in a seemingly unconnected story, you join a trio of rather lazy soliders in the sunny rebellious country of Venezuela in another episode of "This Old Political Unrest".
In this storyline the discovery of a downed cargo plane with stolen gold sets you (whose voice actor sounds vaguely familiar though I can't place the name) and your two friends on a strange journey ala the George Clooney movie Three Kings. Now how this ties into the events in Europe remains to be seen, and I haven't gone far enough in the game to figure it out... but I guess if you play it out yourself you'll see how it links.

Combat is quite simple, yet it also has some depth to it.
You control up to four Wanzers at a time, moving them across the field of combat to engage the enemy.
First thing is move your Wanzer, depending on your weapons' range you either move close or pull back (if you're using ranged weapons for the attack).
Next you choose to attack or use an item or something (repair your allies or self if you can, etc).
Simple, eh? You should have no problem learning the basics of the combat system, and there's an easy first combat "scenario" and plenty of training sims to get you into the action ASAP.

Each Wanzer's stats is separated into four meters to track.
Two for each arm, one for the center mass of the body, and one for the legs.
If the arms is reduced to zero they explode. If the legs are reduced to zero they become damage and your movement is greatly limited. Only by destroying the center body can you achieve a quick "kill".
Of course that isn't as easy as it sounds, but then again a little challenge is good for you.

Combat is simple, but leveling up your character is another matter. It's got some detail to it.
There are a ton of stats, ton of upgrades, and a ton to learn as you play... and, heck, that's gotta be a good thing. Combat is easy, yet there's depth to it so you don't become totally bored by it too fast.
You upgrade yourself (and your Wanzers) with points and money you gain from each battle.
After each battle you are scored a set amount of points which you can use to "purchase" upgrades for both yourself... (minus repair cost of course). I'm still figuring out how to upgrade my Wanzers though.
I've only been tinkering with it a little, and haven't done any major upgrades... maybe I need to find a cheat code that gives lots of money so I can have more time with the upgrade feature.

Is it fun? Yes. It's got some nice quirks to it and the gameplay is downright simple (yet also challenging at the same time so it won't be too boring which would be a turnoff).
Hmm -- any flaws? Hmm... I guess the only real flaw is the whole "mechanics" of the Wanzers.
Soon after you start playing you have the option to buy new parts for the Wanzer. The problem is that you have to balance whatever new parts by weight. If the parts you want are too heavy you can't have them, simple as that. Of course that's just no good if you'd like new weapons or something.
I'd like to buy stuff, but I can't get everything I want because of the weight thing... and since I'm still new to this I haven't learned the whole weight mechanics thing and how to make that work. Oh, bother.

Another thing I'm having difficulties getting a grasp on is the linking attacks, or the ability to have two Wanzers back each other up during battle. I need more time to work on that since it's quite useful (the battle at the German border is a good example of the linking system as your enemies use it with devastating results as you'll see when you reach this battle) but I think I‘m slowly getting the hang of it, and how truly devastating it can be once you really get it rollin‘! Using the simulations to work out the kinks of forming links is a good idea.

The voice acting is not horrible, but let's just say you shouldn't be mixing up your French and your Germans from the tad bit overdone accents. It's not horrible, but it's abit obvious.
Anyway it's not so bad that it earned a Chet R. Chase Award by any means.
Eh? What's that?

One problem I have with The Sims : Bustin' Out (GBA) is that some of the characters are bad character stereotypes.... Okay, EVERY non-player character is some bad stereotype of one kind or another.
And, of all the bad ones, none is worse than Dockside Diner's Chet R. Chase (Cheddar Cheese). He dresses like a stereotypical Italian pizza parlor owner, his one movement is to walk about, turn his head, and raise his fingers up to his lips and snap his arm forward as if doing a high stereotypical Italian chef motion thing... Oh, and he speaks of himself in the third person when you speak to him.
Chet R. Chase. What was EAGames thinking anyway. Sheesh. Bad character. Bad, bad character!

Okay. It's breakdown time.

Front Mission Breakdown the 4th
What's Hot? - It's got it's good points. I like the gameplay, and there's quite abit to do so it's an attention grabber. Playability is nice and with the different variations on Wanzers you can put together you can play this over and over and come up with new "Wanzer" teams to fight with each time for different strategies.
The animation is great, especially when it comes to the cut scenes.

What's Not? - The story doesn't seem very strong, but that isn't very bad.
The voice acting is even fair (not too bad) so I don't have much grievances with this.

Moments to Remember? - It's all about the combat. The fighting system is the most memorable, which is not to say the game has lacking personality in the characters (which is not it's problem). It's just that the gameplay is a step higher than the story.

What to Ignore? - Yeah. The box toots it's own horn about the voice acting, HOWEVER that is only half the time. Most of the time though, regardless of whether the voice acting is on or not, a lot of the game is talking heads. Talking heads with voices, and talking heads with just text, talking talking talking heads.
So I guess I should ignore the horn blowing about the voice acting. It's fair and all, but it's NOT 100% voice acted so ignore their pride in that aspect of the game.

Overal1? - It's a nice little strategy game. It's not excellence, but it's not plague material.
It has, in my opinion, enough good merits to at least warrant a rental, if not a purchase (at a nice bargain price if you can get it).

The combat is fine, and the animation is nice too. I liked it and while I can't say I'm a die hard fan I have to say I have some likes for this game and recommend at least renting it to give it a whirl.
Who knows, you might find it has a place in your permanent collection!

Now if I only knew what the heck was Front Mission 1 to 3 all about.

PS2 - Medal of Honor : Rising Sun

2005-11-10T14:43:00.000-08:00

Sorry, one more time for Veteran's Day coming tomorrow... Medal of Honor : Rising Sun for the PS2 (which, sadly, seems to be one of the lesser loved of the Medal of Honor games).

Well, once again you got the standard stuff from Frontline, as well as even more extras, historical footage and so much more in this game! How can you go wrong with that?
Actually it seems you can go wrong, in one way. Sadly the trade off for more history is less gameplay, with the game clocking in at a mere 9 (10 at the most) levels of gameplay (half of what Medal of Honor : Frontlines offers) from what I’ve seen of the game (and I’ve finished 75% of the game).
But that’s what you have multiplayer and online play for, to lengthen the game and give you your money’s worth. Still, for a person like me who doesn’t do the online multiplayer thing it’s abit of a disappointment to have a meager 9 to 10 levels to play with, which falls way short in comparison to Frontlines.

But past that there is still lots to be impressed with. Once again, as I am beginning to feel is standard fare for a good Medal of Honor game, the game just has this feel of genuine authenticity here and there which just adds to it’s charm. From the historical footage to the other extras and the gameplay itself, it just feels so right that I am going to make Medal of Honor my first stop for WWII gaming.
That, if nothing else in my book, makes it one of EAGames hot series that sells like hotcakes… or as X-Play likes to call them, “smack-cakes”… (that’d be hotcakes smothered in smack, which strangely enough did not appear as a breakfast time power-up in NARC)… and that’s a good thing isn’t it.
And considering each time EAGames rolls out a Harry Potter game it seems to degrade little by little in playability EAGames needs a good series to depend on… that way people will forget EAGames had anything to do with that abyssmal Catwoman game from last year.

Yes, I know, once again it’s a WWII game and by now people must be are getting sick and tired of WWII games since everyone and their third party game publisher is making them, and if I continue this review tangent any further you might get tired of reading WWII gaming reviews! But still… a few reviews can’t hurt, and I for one think I have a little space in my heart for Medal of Honor.
Heck, I might have space for Call of Duty down the line, ditto with Brothers in Arms… but as for BAM!’s Allied Paratrooper? I’ll stick to rental first before I buy.

Yes, Medal of Honor : Rising Sun is not a terribly complex shooter, but it is a leap above Frontlines in the combat aspect. Still it’s once again a one man show, and yes while you do have allies to help you battle they are not under your control as of yet! Squad based combat won’t become available until the modern day incarnation of European Assault (again coming this June of 2005), but for now Rising Sun is still good for those who aren’t tired (I.e. sick and tired) yet of reenacting WWII in shooter format. In anycase it’s not RTS and it’s not card battle combat so it could be worse!

The explosions are even more screen rattling this time out, and the combat is more hectic (and beautiful to look at) as well since this time out you’ll be spending lots of time roaming large open area jungles and large civilized areas (the Phillipines & Singapore) where there are plenty of chances for ambushes and sneak attacks all over the place! Add to that an enemy that’s fiercer than the previous Nazi foes in Frontline and you have improved gameplay in Rising Sun.

So where do you start off? You start off as a US GI Joe named Griffin, and you’ve had the misfortune of being on the USS California on the “Day of Infamy”, as Japan attacks Pearl Harbor! You are going to be struggling to get topside onto the deck, where you’ll be fighting for your life against wave after wave of Zeros with only a rifle to take shots at them with… look to your left, see the stairs? Go up them and you’ll come to a larger gun to shoot with. Take this and start gunning.
Oh, and don’t go resetting if you get knocked off the deck of the California, you’ll find a new boat to shoot from and start up your burning desire to pop open a can of whup(bleep) on the Japanese Air Force!

After that you’ll be heading over to the Phillipines where you’ll watch it fall to Japanese forces, but not before you do your most intense street fighting yet battling throughout a section of town in search of a means to destroy a bridge to delay the advance of the Japanese military.
Then you’ll take a trip to Guadalcanal where you’ll fight the good fight though thick jungles which are filled with Japanese soliders looking to cut you a new one… after a few battles on Gudalcanal you’ll hop on over to Singapore… what, no stopover on Iwo Jima? From there it’s onto Burma to locate hidden gold stolen by the Japanese & then you’ll visit the Bridge on the River Kwai and finally have a chance to do payback on the Japanese naval fleet after they trashed Pearl Harbor by trashing their supercarriers in turn!

If you’ve played previous Medal of Honor games you should have no problem picking this up, and if you didn’t play Medal of Honor games you’ll also have no problems picking this up since it’s easy to learn.
However for those of you familiar with the control setup from Frontlines the controls are set up slightly different here in Rising Sun so you better pay attention to the setup before you go out there to wail on the Rising Sun’s butt. Sure it’s mostly the same but the few changes can really throw you off your pace if your not careful. One particular difference is in your M1 Garand rifle. Unlike Frontlines where you could reload this at anytime, now it’s only reloadable after you empty the clip out (which is kind of awkward if your in the middle of a firefight and you end up having to reload).
Otherwise it’s mostly the same as the previous Frontline with some new weapons to lay your hands on, which is just so sweet once you start using them.

Gameplay, as stated above, is easy. Basically all you have to do in this game is lots of shooting in order to take out a lot of Japanese soldiers, like before in Frontline with the Nazis (who make a cameo appearance during the game)… and once again you should have no fears about friendly fire fatalities since that won’t bother you in the slightest… unless your online or playing multiplayer then you can actually set Friendly Fire to active which means you can cause harm unto your allies as well as enemies!
Yes, once again the Friendly Fire rule has been rolled out ala Frontline, but not completely.
Apparently while the Congressional Medal of Honor Society could derail friendly fire damage once again they couldn’t stop the “friendly fire” made by online or in multiplayer combat! Oh, well.

As for the enemy? Sure it has some triats similar to Frontlines, but if you think that’ll mean it’s the same as Frontlines combat here in Rising Sun guess again! The Nazis for the most part hung back and shot at a distance, occasionally running forward to start swinging at you, but the Japanese Army is quite a different beast altogether! Besides shooting they also come rushing right at you to gut you in hand-to-hand combat with either bayonette fixed rifles or katana blades! That’s brutal, as is the damage they can deal out to you if you are not careful! They also are well versed in camoflague and ambushes which the Germans were not very good at in Frontlines! Talk about a major improvement in gameplay here, folks! That means you’ll need to keep your wits about your since ambushes could happen just about anywhere if you are not careful… of course listening for Japanese dialect kind of gives away that Japanese soldiers are nearby.

Another improvement in Rising Sun is the ability to save the game during gameplay, something that was impossible to do in Frontlines! As you play all you need to do is locate radio equipment (which is easily identifiable since it’s the only thing in the game that glows brightly ) and use it to save the game. Easy, eh?
This means you can play through the level and save often so that you don’t need to go all the way back to the beginning of a level if you happen to die during the level, which is a plus in my opinion.
Sometimes it takes a wee bit of effort to find the equipment but once you do you’re all set.

The gaming is stronger here, and it shows. The enemy are a little smarter (though you can still sidestep Japanese soldiers and watch them run past you without changing direction) and more aggressive (unlike the previous Nazis these guys are more aggressive, to the point of even rushing tanks with explosive poles in a kamikaze attempt to disable them or rush you when your manning a machine gun post in an attempt to overwhelm you). There are lots of machine gun posts, and it seems everytime you man one a huge wave of Japanese soldiers appears and attempts to overrun your position, so grab each post as you pass them just in case such an attack takes place (it’s going to happen regardless of whether you grab that post or not so you might as well hunker down and start shooting -- though sometimes it doesn‘t happen but it‘s rare).

There are more useage of vechiles here (to escort and ride in) as opposed to the previous Medal of Honor game though you still end up as a passenger as opposed to Call of Duty - Finest Hour which seems to let you drive a lot more vechiles than you can in Medal of Honor games. But that’s not all, there’s also a killer gunner level at Pearl Harbor which has you knocking down Zeros left and right, which just rocks.
Add all that to the list of extras in this game and this time out there is just that much more to enjoy.

There are more layers of extras in Rising Sun than in the previous Medal of Honor : Frontlines which is a plus in my opinion on the series! The extras are summed up in four categories, which can be viewed either in the extras level or when you replay levels you’ve already beaten (except for one extra which can be viewed right off the bat during gameplay and one extra which you need to work hard at to unlock).
The extras are as follows…
Historical Movie - Watch the intro historical footage sequence to the level again. Since it bridges the gap between levels you automatically earn it by completing each level.
Letter from Home - Playable either during gameplay, when you replay a level or in the extras section, this has your character reading letters from home from his sister. Kind of gives it that extra touch of historical significance since it shows what’s happening on the homefront during WWII. These are also earned at the end of each level since they too bridge the gap between levels.
Valor in History - If you don’t think just getting historical movie footage is enough history for you then how about hearing about each level’s happenings from the actual soldiers who experienced each of these in real life? Each campaign features a “Valor in History” segment where an actual WWII veteran talks about their experiences in each, from Pearl Harbor & the Phillipines (the Bataan Death March) to Guadalcanal, Singapore, Burma and more. It’s quite interesting and something new to the Medal of Honor series from what I can see of it. However you have to locate a film reel during the level in order to unlock this feature (each level has two film reels to locate) so sometimes you have to play particularly pesky levels over again until you find that reel.
Storyboard - Unlockable extra that you need to locate during gameplay to unlock (it‘s the second film reel of the level). These are even harder to come by than the Valor in History reels so you have to REALLY look for these if you want to unlock ‘em. So far as of the closing of this review I have found only one.

Yes, there are some minuses to this game. It lags abit in gameplay despite the fact it’s loaded in extras, and once you get into the game it‘s over. With only about less than a dozen campaigns to go on (give or take) you‘ll be able to finish this in about so many hours and that‘s just a shame in my book. It‘s got some good gameplay and the music/animation is good, but I wish it had a few more levels and campaigns for the single player to work on which it doesn‘t. Yeah, it has two player, multiplayer and online combat but I don’t have anyone else to do reviews with, nor do I play online, so I can never use those.

Then there’s the matter of the AI. Your allies do seem a little smarter this time out, but they still lack a little here (often you‘ll have your own allies running about you like chickens with their heads cut off, seemingly uncertain as to where to go next). The enemy AI is good though, so that’s an improvement… hmm.. Unless you count the moments they seem to run pass you while trying to attack you… ah, breakdown time. I’ll lay out the rest of my thoughts there.

Medal of Honor Breakdown 1942-1943
What’s Hot?
There are many improvements here that make more sense than what they were doing in Frontlines.
The enemy is abit stronger and smarter (even going so far as hiding in ambush not only on rooftops but in pittraps in the ground where they come popping up for a surprise attack), though again you can still sidestep charging Japanese soldiers who’ll run past you without changing course to compensate for your dodging.
The extras are impressive and more detailed than in Frontlines (which only offered historical film reels from what I‘ve seen of those extras). The levels are more detailed and the chance to roam through the jungles of the pacific islands hunting an entrenched enemy was a nice touch, though I wish there was more levels to explore and play through. Not to mention I wish the game had a map to use since occasionally I got lost.
Explosions rock you even harder here than in Frontlined, the action is intense and a kicker, and while it won’t measure up against some of the other shooters out there it is a fine WWII era shooter and something you should consider for your collection.

What’s Not?
I think some people are down on this game despite the fact there isn’t much to be down on. That makes no sense to me. Yes, it could be a little longer. Yes, the story is… well… it does it’s job but it isn’t an epic of wartime storytelling. But you know what? The gameplay is solid and the levels are nice… with one exception. And that is in the need for a map!

It seems a lot of WWII & Vietnam games seem to like to use a compass meter that tells you where your going, but (at least here in the Medal of Honor games) there doesn’t seem to be a map you can use!
That is much more of a hassle here than in Frontlines! Why? Well while you had a pretty easy time of traversing territory in Frontlines (only getting turned about sometimes in gameplay) it’s harder here since you have jungle levels to traverse and (without a map) you’ll end up getting spun about abit more since navigating the jungles of the pacific is not an entirely easy thing. The hardest to navigate is Gudalcanal & the streets of Singapore which will keep you wandering for quite sometime before you beat this level.
Sure you can’t wander too far off the beaten track in this game but a map or at least a Grand Theft Auto GPS maping system would have been better instead of making us memorize everything and walk the level through by what we remember. It’d have saved me the time I spent wandering about looking for the way to get from one area to the next in certain areas that’s for certain!

Then there’s the matter of medical supplies. Once again it’s all hand to mouth (you pick up medical gear, you use it right away) and that means that (once again) you’ll have to backtrack to previous areas you found medical gear to refresh yourself if your injured (and don’t think you can make it through new areas to find medical gear) and that’s a hassle. The game is good, I just wish it didn’t have these few hassles in it.

Moments to Remember?
Sadly it seems this game doesn’t have the same amounts of quirks as in Frontline (like the beer drinkin’ Nazis in the bar, the mission briefings before each level with your quirky OSS commanding officer and so forth) though it tries occasionally to have a little bit of quirky-ness in it.
That, by the way, makes it imperative to find those Storyboard extra reels since they are abit quirky in their own right. These reels are supposed to show you how the level came to be, but for me (from what I’ve seen) it seems to show you what the level MIGHT have been like (and it looks like some levels had a completely different gameplay from the final finished level)! It’s because of that the Storyboards are worth hunting for since they’re so interesting to watch.

Another memorable thing is this.
At one point you have to infiltrate a meeting of Axis mights and you come in dressed like a Nazi officer.
This whole level once you head out for the party is the one really interesting thing that doesn’t involve shooting people. Once you get into the hotel where the meeting is being held you’ll notice you’re in “good” company with German officers waiting to be briefed by one Japanese leader type who happens to be… eh, it’s Mako! Cool! Mako, who you probably remember best from the Conan movies (you know who he played) cameos here as General Yamashita (whose gold you have to uncover next level), and that‘s cool.
But for the most part mostly you’ll remember the action in the game, and that’s a good thing isn’t it.

What to Ignore?
Hmmm… what to ignore here… I can’t think of a thing.
Oh, wait! The bad stereotyped Australian soldier during the battle to silence “Pistol Pete”(s) on Gudalcanal. That’s worthy of ignoring… but is it worthy of the Chet R. Chase Award of Bad Stereotyping? Hmmm… nah. I’ll let that one slide since you don’t see him enough to complain about him.

Overall?
I don’t know about you but I like the Medal of Honor series.
Yes, I haven’t tried the other games yet but I think this is good (and unlike Call Of Duty : Finest Hour you don’t need to fight through hell itself to reach a save point)! I’m sure there are better WWII games out there, but this series has a special place in my heart and I like what I see. Of course I am going to review other WWII games (sooner or later), and maybe even own them… after somebody knocks their price down to an afforable $20 like this game, which can be had right now in Greatest Hits format on the PS2!
Yes, you too can own Medal of Honor : Rising Sun for a low price of $20! That way you’ll get your feet wet in the Pacific theater of combat without having to pay an arm and a leg for the experience!
And, well really, if you can get a fairly decent game at a good low price then I don’t see why you wouldn’t want to at least give this a shot as a rental to see if you like it or not especially since an affordable shooter that is worth playing is not something to sneeze at (unless you have a cold.)
Go and try it, I think you’ll like it.

PS2 - Project Snowblind

2005-11-09T19:21:00.000-08:00

First a review of a war of years past, now a review of a war of years yet to come as we continue to review our way towards Veteran's Day.
This particular game of war takes place NOT in the past, like WWII or Vietnam, but in the future… the year 2065 to be precise, as you find yourself drafted into the defense of Hong Kong from invasion.
Isn’t it strange however that this game was made post Hong Kong being turned over to the Chinese and yet China is nowhere to be found in this conflict… the invading country, however, seems to be North Korea from the flag seen at the start of the game… maybe. I’m pretty sure it’s North Korea.

Well one thing leads to another and while you are in a firefight you end up getting whacked about and laid down for dead… that’s when the science of war meets the science of Robocop.
You are brought back from the dead as a “super soldier”, a technological marvel set to win this war… if the scientists would get around to installing all the upgrades to your systems that is. And, damn, it’s not a pretty sight since it looks like they’re doing the Robocop “dead back to life” gig on everyone sent through this area… damn, that’s disturbing.

After you get the hang of your new implants and such you are sent on mission after mission, starting with a string of missions to help evacuate everyone from the Hong Kong city you were deployed to… eh? You just got there and already your in retreat? Go figure!
Anyway as you go along you’ll get first hand experience in the truth of the saying that war is hell…and while you’re at it you’ll learn why the game is called Project : Snowblind.

Apparently when you get your first taste of an EMP Grenade post your transformation into “RoboSoldier” you get screwed up badly, and your “vision” goes all white and “snowy”… hence the name “Snowblind” which is told to you straight up by your Asian commanding officer who is animated to look like an action figure from the GI Joe Extreme line.

War may be hell, but the gameplay is most certainly NOT.
It’s fine, really really fine. Combat is smooth and beautiful, though not the best.
Yes, Halo 2, Killzone (and it’s upcoming PS3 sequel Killzone 2), Half Life 2 and Resident Evil 4 for the GameCube is just abit finer over Project : Snowblind but still this game kicks hard, and is quite interesting.
It’s a good shooter and has lots of merits for ownership if I do say so myself.

Once you’re in Robocop mode (ten minutes into the game) you have some interesting powers to use, which expands as you play further into the game. One power is this sight thing which allows you to see enemies through walls as well as visually keep track of where you need to go (markers). Then there’s the “shields” you get about a few levels into the game which protects you from enemy fire as long as you have the bio energy to fuel it (extra bio energy pods can be found in supply crates as well as ammo and grenades so be sure to break many supply boxes and check for those kinds of goodies).
Save points are abit weird. Instead of simply looking for a terminal to log into you’ll have to find a door marked with the save point icon and enter this “save room” where, yes, a terminal waits for you to log into.

As a good soldier in any good first person shooters, you know that you’ll have access to some hardedge weapons that give you a chance against the endless onslaught of enemies. You have your handgun, your carbine, your shotgun, your rocket launcher, your grenades, your kicker… kicker? Apparently you can get ahold of a device that picks up and levitates things for throwing, but I never found the time to try and use this on enemies so somebody needs to tinker with that to see if you can JedI “force throw” things into enemies to damage them. Also besides the weapons… weapons… everytime you think you’ve gotten ahold of every weapon you can hold you find yourself a NEW weapon… so you got quite abit of firepower to play with in this game, no questions asked… oh, after the weapons you’ll also have the occasion to grab a vechile or two, but the driving doesn’t look easy… it’s not Grand Theft Auto driving to say the least, and getting the hang of driving is going to take a little while. Also it doesn’t look like you can run over your enemies since I’ve tried that with mixed results… sometimes I think I’ve run over them, sometimes they don’t seem affected by my vechile.

Speaking of enemies, enemies are abit more varied and harder here than, say, Killzone.
Besides foot soldiers with a variety of weapons you also have tanks, helicopters and mech armors (that look like mini ATST Walkers from Star Wars -- for starters) to deal with. That isn’t a big variety but this is only the opening salvos of the “war” so I’m sure there’s more to find along the way.
Each mission also requires some thought to accomplish, and not just a quick hand with the firing switch. However this thought process is more along the lines of how to outflank and outgun your enemies as opposed to problem solving puzzles to figure out. Even when it looks like you’ll be doing some hacking you mostly are just given a clue to where a counter hacker is, then you have to go and kill that person to gain computer access. Maybe it’s just me but I might have wanted some puzzles to work over, but I guess it’s OK since Killzone didn’t feature any mind challenging puzzles to solve either and I liked that game.

I can’t think of any downers about this game… hmmm… maybe a few.
There are better shooters out there, but this still has it’s merits. Shooter fans will embrace this, though it’s only for the shooting since the story is not exactly the best. But when we look at this game just on the merits of it’s action alone it’s fairly solid and worth checking out. The gaming is good, and is one of the better shooters I’ve played in recent memory (though not the best of which several games holds that distinction).
A definite game for those of you who like shooters and can ignore the story.

Yeah, yeah, I’m down on the story of Project : Snowblind yet I think the game itself is worth checking out.
Somehow this so called “story” just doesn’t do it for me. If I think about it more and more about the story, I find that like the story less and less, somehow it’s just not that good.
Of course since you are here just for the shooting I think the story can somehow be forgiven, or at least ignored in some respects except where they’re talking about things vital to the game. Otherwise it’s not a terribly interesting story so you won’t get too caught up in it. Let’s break this down.

Project : Snowblind Breakdown
What’s Hot?
It’s a solid enough game. The graphics, sound effects and gameplay is good.
This place is pretty, and the gaming is a blast. I had fun here and I think you’ll have fun too.
I’m pretty certain this supports online play as well which is another plus in my opinion.

What’s Not?
The story doesn’t do much and is one of the weaker stories for a shooter I’ve heard of late.
The enemies are not varied but what they lack in variety they make up for in numbers and interesting quirks like the ATST style mechs and the EMP grenades that really mess you up.

Moments to Remember?
The gameplay and all that pretty shooting is the most memorable. Sad since sometimes it’s the story AND the gameplay that (hand in hand) is the most memorable… except here.

What to Ignore?
Hmm… where did they come up with some of this dialogue in the game? What the heck!
“If you can’t survive the stone age you don’t deserve to live at all”… or some tripe like that… what the!!
Then there’s a few moments that are just… weird. The following is one of those moments.
Mission #5 has you infiltrating a parking garage to get to a building holding huge rail cannons that are keeping escape vessels from taking off. As you start the level you enter and come face to face with one of your masked enemies… who seems to want to do the heavy breathing Darth Vader impersonation… if he lived long enough to do it before your character blows him away. Weird.

Overall?
This time out I’m afraid you are just here for the shooter. Romping about 2065 Hong Kong killing what probably is North Korean troops is a fun thing and all, but somehow I wish the story behind the violence was abit better. Overall the game is good, and you‘ll find lots of merit in playing this.
And did I mention it has online multiplayer as well as the single player? If you love playing games like this online you should have lots of fun with this game in multiplayer option! Booyah!
While it’s not the Best of 2005, it will be one of the best of the PS2 & Xbox well worth giving a shot for your collection! And with online multiplayer you’ll have lots of fun with this one! Go get it!

PS2 - Medal of Honor : Frontline

2005-11-09T19:16:00.000-08:00

As you may, or may not know, Medal of Honor is one of the major franchises of the WWII genre. That, Call of Duty and the recently released mega game Brothers In Arms, are amongst the most powerful of the WWII games. Medal of Honor, the one we’re talking about, is our topic (which is timely with the upcoming Veteran's Day holiday this Friday). But Medal Of Honor is not only the title of a series of WWII games, it’s also (as you may know) a WWII group… The Congressional Medal of Honor Society to be more precise.

Started in the aftermath of WWII, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society (CMOHS) was formed to uphold the qualities of the Medal of Honor, and also to provide assistance to indigent recipients.
So whether the Medal of Honor winner became rich, poor, or an insufferable politician that nobody liked, the CMOHS seeks to promote a brotherhood between recipients… no matter how difficult that may sound to you and me. And, yes, if you think Medal of Honor (the game) is closely linked to Medal of Honor (the Society) then you’d be correct. They seem to have played a role in all these games, of which one clear aspect of that involvement is seen in one way… but more on that later.

Because of this close ties between EAGames and the CMOHS you are treated to some really good historical content in this game, which is even more detailed and packed in “Rising Sun“ (next week‘s review).
There’s quite abit of historical footage and info on the events of the game (starting off a D-Day and moving onwards) and the game just has this feel of genuine authenticity here and there which just adds to it’s charm. That makes it one of their hot series that sells like hotcakes… or as X-Play likes to call them, “smack-cakes”… (that’d be hotcakes smothered in smack, which strangely enough did not appear as a breakfast time power-up in NARC)… and that’s a good thing isn’t it.

Yes, I know, it’s a WWII game and by now people are getting sick and tired of WWII games, I.e. X-Play (again), but I think I have a little space in my heart for Medal of Honor. Yes it’s not a complex shooter (for now at any rate), and squad based combat won’t become available until the modern day incarnation of European Assault, but it’s still good for those who aren’t tired yet of reenacting WWII in shooter format.

So where do you start off? You start off at a US GI Joe named Patterson, and you’re going to be hitting the beaches of Normandy for the great D-Day Cookoff! You hit the beach… get on the beach first before you hit it… and as you swim by the dead corpses of your fellow soldiers you’ll run across the sandy beaches helping out allies, shooting at nazi entrenchments, working your way into their “hearts” (and fortifications) and giving them a Predator style organ removal as you subtract Nazis from their beachside fortification “summer holes”. Then after that you’ll be going on a whirlwind tour of Europe, raging throughout Europe fighting Nazis left and right as you go. From Normandy you set out to smash a U-Boat factory in France, then go “Dutch” to save a operative who has information on a new German secret air weapon. And that is just the start of it! Oh, yes, there’s much more.

If you’ve played previous Medal of Honor games you should have no problem picking this up, however if you haven’t played it before you might be a little daunted by the tasks ahead of you. In fact you might want to give your first spin on this game in Easy mode since I found Normal mode to be rather difficult -- and at least a once over in Easy mode will give you a chance to get the hang of what you need to do, and how to do it. But even in Easy mode you might get into a jam so make sure to check your progress from time to time (by pressing the Start button) or make sure you get hints from HQ (by pressing the Select button).

Basically all you have to do in this game is lots of shooting, in order to take out a lot of Nazis… don’t worry about friendly fire fatalities though, that won’t bother you in the slightest… but not from a glitch or error!
Like I said above the Medal of Honor Society wants to have their fingers in this game, and that seemingly includes certain aspects of the gameplay like, for instance, the topic of “friendly fire”!

Apparently the CMOHS doesn’t think too highly of “friendly fire” incidents and they have discouraged EA Games from having it in their games, which is nice and all EXCEPT in this game… where the AI Allies at times seems hellbent on making me shoot them.
Best example of this is the start of the mission in Dutch territory to free a captured spy.
You parachute into enemy territory and have to make your way through the Dutch countryside to this small town, and along the way you need to help this demolitions expert destroy Nazi tanks. Well you should be allowed to go forward, purge each area of Nazis, then watch as your man goes to work right? Wrong.
First off they keep trying to move forward fast, rushing right into gunfire when you’d rather take it slow and steady, then they occasionally have a bad habit of trying to step in front of you while you’re trying to use your sniper rifle to take out distant enemies… yeah, a few more steps to the left and I could have removed the head of my demolitions escort (guide)! Then again I guess not since there’s the friendly fire rule in place which won’t let me kill friends… that’s good since I sometimes get carried away with the firing.

Let’s break this down now.

Medal of Honor Breakdown 1944
What’s Hot?
Hmmm… I know X-Play is happier with Brothers in Arms as their favorite WWII shooter, but I have a place in my heart for the Medal of Honor series. I don’t know but I seem to like this series for all it’s quirks and it’s evolving gameplay (it evolves in steps when you play Rising Sun, as you’ll see in next week’s review) and it’s interesting historical footage and history lessons on the actual battles.

I haven’t seen MOH’s chief rival, the Call To Duty series, but if it’s like this game (strong in shooting and historical content) I think I’ll get used to playing both. Anyway Medal of Honor has more games out now than Call to Duty with Frontline, Rising Sun (next week), European Assault (2 weeks) and finally Pacific Assault (out on PC) so I’m focused on that abit more.

There’s another game… another WWII game coming in June… but I’ll see if I can get it or not.

What’s Not?
Hmmm… the lacking ability to carry medical supplies for emergencies is a daunting thing, meaning you’ll have to backtrack when injured to take advantage of medical supplies you couldn’t pick up before to keep your health up. I don’t know about you but I wish I had some room to carry these life giving supplies rather than use them from hand to mouth (immediate use for healing instead of saving some when in full health).

Another is the fact that you have to play through the entire mission level before you can save the game, which is yet another thing that is “fixed” in Rising Sun… hmm… lots seems to be better in Rising Sun than it’s European counterpart Frontline.

Moments to Remember?
At times the title’s quirky sensibility comes into play.
For instance meet your Dutch contact in a bar filled with Germans ready to party like it’s 1944!
Tip the guy at the piano and start up a German drinking song (or something), while you take your shot at the beer toss to distract German officers. And that’s AFTER you take a disturbing ride through the village with another contact who can’t stop talking between stops so you can kill more Germans blocking your path.
Then go over to a manor house to free someone with info (your whole point of being there in the first place) while fighting your way through a house of soldiers, rampant wait help, a knife throwing chef and the occasional drunken Nazi… don’t shoot, they’ll just fall down and won’t get up.
That’s just a few of the quirks of the game. There’s more but I’ll save that for you to discover.

What to Ignore?
Hmmm…. I think I can ignore the lack of friendly fire causalities since I’ve been known to be a little… uhh… heavy on the firing trigger at times. Though I would have liked to have had the choice between friendly fire and no friendly fire damage if I had a choice.

Overall?
I don’t know about you but I think I can definitely dig WWII shooters.
Yeah, I know, it’s something that drives the people at X-Play crazy and I often say I’m in total agreement with them… well people and disgruntled fans also drives them crazy and I think of those as challenges so I guess we’re not in complete agreement after all (myself and X-Play).
If you have to get a WWII shooter make it this series and possibly Brothers in Arms… I don’t know about Call of Duty though, I have to finish playing the game I have right now (Finest Hour). Oh, well.

The Emperor's New Clone

2005-11-09T18:58:00.000-08:00

Sony seems to have lost it's touch, after all what the hell are they doing with their PSP anyway! The emperor seems to have a brand new bag, and it sucks.
The PSP, the newest handheld that should have leaped far beyond the bounds of what's going on with the GBA, Nintendo DS and (oh yes) the highly flawed and unloved handheld known as the N-Gage. Yeah. That sucks.
It's not that the system itself sucks... oh, wait, it does. Lest we forget this is a system that, for all intents and purposes, you should probably NOT take on the road!
First off there's the fact that this system has the WORST power system, i.e. it's able to hold a charge lasting about... eh... 90 or so minutes! 90 minutes!! Even the Nintendo DS has a better length of charge than THAT!! Obviously the only way to enjoy this system is that you either play it SPARINGLY, or you have to bounce from electrical outlet to electrical outlet recharging everytime your 90 min. charge dies out! And, really, what's the point of taking this out if it must constantly be recharged!! Oh, but that's not all!
Apparently the square button is an iffy thing, which seems to malfunction (so heaven forbid if you're playing a twitch heavy game that requires lots of tapping on the square button)!
Then there's the screen itself. It's rumored to be capable of being easily scratched, and if a drop of water hits it there's "color freeze" (well, it's probably not called that but it's what I heard -- and yes, it's really sucky as you think it sounds)!
And then if that isn't enough, and oh no that isn't enough, then there's the games... or the lack of games! If you've been to a local gamestore and checked out the merchandise for the PSP then you've probably noticed that for every one game out there's at least TWENTY of the so-called UMD (or whatever it's called) that is basically movies on PSP... oh, and then everytime you see an ad for a movie on DVD you ALWAYS see that they're having it on DVD and PSP. Right.
First off I thought I heard the first studios out that were doing this were limited to like four or so, so how come there's a glut of movies for the PSP with only four or so studios doing the releasing?
And if that is not bad enough? The glut of movies is mostly movies I can't even imagine PSP players wanting to own, let alone watch on their PSP! I mean what the hell! It's like they're just throwing tons of movies mindlessly onto the PSP without even considering the demographic of people buying said PSP before selecting movies that fit said demographic! Really!
I mean have you seen these movies? Whose chosing these?!?

If you are like me, then you're considering buying a PSP for something that has nothing to do with movies... odds are you're buying a PSP for the GAMES! THE GAMES!! You want new games for the PSP, not an endless parade of movies of which maybe only 2-4 or movies you'll want per quarter or so, not the endless movies they continuously (bleep) out on this thing!!
Oh, and then add to the fact that they're charging like $250 damn dollars for the thing (without bells and whistles, with said bells and whistles going for about $315 or so dollars) and you got something that is just a pain! For that amount you can get an XBox, or a PS2, or a GameCube (heaven forbid seemingly since nobody seems to want a GameCube despite the fact it sports some great titles like Resident Evil 4, Batalion Wars, Animal Crossing and Harvest Moon : Another Wonderful Life). And heck, you can even put a downpayment for a PS3 or XBox360 for that much.

Sony really needs to ask their target audience what the hell they want for the PSP, and then stick to it, 'cause somehow I can't imagine PSP players really wants all of these movies that they're peddling out in mass quantities on a weekly basis! Are these movies really that good that you want to take them on the road -- and how the heck do you find the time to watch them since the charge on the PSP is sometimes less than the length of said movie you're watching on it!

Please, Sony, more games and some explanation as to why we're being buried in so many movies on the PSP!

The Start of Five Days of Theme Reviews

2005-11-08T19:35:00.000-08:00

While most people won't have this many days off, it seems that due to my normal duties I happen to have a five day weekend coming to me, which means a five day theme weekend is coming your way.

Tomorrow
Since we're nearing Veteran's Day let's take a look at titles that showcase the hard work of our military veterans. Starting with EA Games Medal of Honor series...
Medal of Honor - Frontlines
Then we'll take a look at the few, the proud, the military of the 21st Century!
Project : Snowblind (War in the latter 21st century, and a first person shooter that is actually good!)

That's tomorrow, which will run for three days. As for Saturday and Sunday? That's a new sports weekend but... well... I'm still working on that.
Until tomorrow then, take care!

(NOTE - Oh, yeah, and Review #150 is tomorrow... now I just need to think of a theme for said review...)

PS2 - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

2005-11-08T19:34:00.000-08:00

Name five games you are probably not looking forward to this coming holiday season, any five, and odds are one of those five will probably be Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
Yeah, the Harry Potter franchise of games do seem to get more than it’s fair share of fans who buy each and every game when they roll out in conjunction with every movie release (and in the case of Quidditch World Cup NOT in conjunction with a movie release). For fans of the franchise it’s heaven whenever a new Harry Potter games releases, akin to a video gaming religious experience I dare say, though for the rest us who probably don’t care too much about another Harry Potter game it‘s just another release to clutter up the shelves at the local gaming store that doesn‘t interest us in the slightest.
Well, sad to say, with the coming of the fourth Harry Potter movie (Goblet of Fire) this November we are once again faced with a multi-console release of another Harry Potter game. So buck up readers and take heart, ‘cause like it or not we’re taking the first look at Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

It’s been awhile since the last game, hasn’t it? And right about now you should be able to find cheap copies of said game (Prisoner of Azkaban) for $20 or so (either preplayed or, dare we dream, new). But how has the gameplay changed since then? First let’s take a recap of the changes that occurred between Chamber of Secrets and Prisoner of Azkaban. Straying away from the fairly decently done Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (of which I did a review concerning it‘s PSOne incarnation) gameplay, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban embraced a more platformer-y premise as you gain the ability to take control of all three of the main characters (alternating between them during gameplay). This, and the added platformer elements should have made the game better, and yet it drags the game further and further away from it’s ties to the books they are based on, which just sucks.
How so? Well each part of the story basically turns into a thing where you have to accomplish such and such goals by going through such and such levels which are set up with challenges and so forth, with the aforementioned challenges and levels being interrupted here and there with smatherings of something called a “story” which doesn’t seem to hold center court in the game as much as the gameplay does.
Ok, yes, sure Prisoner of Azkaban did manage to keep some of the good elements of Chamber of Secrets intact like the freeroaming gameplay and some puzzles, but it just wasn’t as deep as Chamber of Secrets.
Also while Chamber of Secrets managed to keep some of the spirit of the book intact, including adding the Deathday party into the game while same scene was removed from the movie, the third game just ran like a run of the mill platformer and seemed to be more interested in the gameplay than the story it was supposed to be based on. Not to mention the fact that the game can be finished in 6-8 hours which blows severely.

Now, in November 2005, we are faced with Movie #4 slash Game #4, and a whole new story.
It’s Year 4 and Harry, Hermione and Ron slash family are off to the Quidditch World Cup (just like in the badly conceived “sports” game of the same name -- you do remember Harry Potter : Quidditch World Cup, don‘t you?), only the festive mood of this World Cup event is spoiled when dark robed figures known as “Death Eaters” begin causing chaos, only to be chased away by the sign of Lord Voldemort (he who will not gain his own spinoff series). However the appearance of the Death Eaters and the dark mark are just the tip of the iceberg in the cold mass that is Harry Potter’s worries. Besides the spectre of the resurrection of Voldemort to be concerned over, Harry finds himself facing a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher (the paranoia inducing one eyed Moody), as well as finding himself entered against his will into a competition known as the TriWizard Tournament which hasn’t been played for awhile -- due to sudden death of past competitors. Oh, that and he has to finally get jiggy and start dating ‘cause he needs this date for a dance and oh how awkwardly it’ll go and dear good Hermione looks so hot in that -- never mind.
So I guess it is ironic that this movie’s director once directed the movie Four Weddings and a Funeral, ‘cause it looks like we can safely dub this sequel “Harry Potter : Four Champions and a Funeral”.

The game, of course, takes this premise of the movie itself and runs with it like how Natsume takes the premise of remarketing Harvest Moon : A Wonderful Life over and over again and runs with it to another console (the PS2). But how will this new Potter play out? Last time we had new innovations as the ability to pick between the three characters (Harry, Hermione and Ron) and use each rather well (who in turn had their own special abilities to use during gameplay). What will the new gimmicks for Goblet of Fire be?
Oh, wait, before we go any further I think I should warn you that once again, as with my recent first look at The Chronicles of Narnia game, be warned that this first look is again based on an article which looks at a BETA version of the game! I.e. the game was still in it’s development stages when the article was written, hence (by now) the game is actually done and might not resemble in some ways the game talked about in this first look -- just so you know. Also be warned that this is only a first look of the big console version, and by no mean does this represent the portable version (no more GBA version seems available which is sad if you‘ve been a fan of the little GBA Harry Potter, though you now get both a PSP and a Nintendo DS version to console you (which also happens to be a Harry Potter first for both systems)).

In the review they speak of three areas of the game, all from the book slash movie. And it is in these three areas that my concerns about this game is grown and nurtured into fully developed dislikes about said game.
In the first area you start gameplay in the aftermath of the Quiddith World Cup finals, as the wizard campsite, where everyone is tailgating post World Cup action, comes under assault from renegade “Death Eaters” (those wacky college fraternity attired followers of the soon to be formerly “deceased” dude Lord Voldemort). These so-called “Death Eaters”, who don’t actually eat nor critique the flavor of “death”, are most hellbent on raising heck for no good reason (until the mark chases them away), and that‘s where you start the action as this level kicks in (from what I read about it).
Once again using the ability to use and change between playing as Harry, Ron and Hermione (ala the last game) you set out into the woods to find the Portkey… obviously you’re bailing on the whole scene and not taking a swing at the Death Eaters from what I can see of this level. It is during this search for the Portkey that, along the way, you come face to face with the “wonders” of nature, as well as the many dangers that tries to snuff you out like a outed politician’s career. You’ll be faced with fighting enemies as the strangely named “Dugbogs” (don‘t ask, I have no idea what that means) and the aforementioned “Death Eaters” (of whom one is Draco’s dad whom you had words with at the end of the second game).
This is your basic “Getting To Know You” level, where you get used to the control layout and functions, as well as the basics of individual slash “COMBO” spellcasting, which will all be vital skills needed to progress along the “story” of the game.

Yeah. You see it too, don’t you. Sadly this means EA’s Goblet of Fire game will not be bringing back the depth of gameplay lost since Chamber of Secrets. It’s sad, really, but in order for EA to (and there‘s no kind way of saying it so I‘ll just out with it) (bleep) out a more “pick-me-up and play-me-now” “kid friendly” game for “all ages” (which EA has been doing a lot of lately it seems), they’ve thrown out the depth of Chamber of Secrets (again) and embraced the quick satisfaction of Prisoner of Azkaban‘s gameplay… only as you‘ll soon see this is WORSE than Prisoner of Azkaban, which just sucks and blows! Apparently EA has sold the gamers short by providing a quick flash in the pan game over a deep thought provoker, which is most sad, especially since I fear that before this review is over I’m going to start embracing some of the gameplay mechanics of Prisoner of Azkaban… ouch.

You won’t even need to play this game to figure (probably rightly at that) that you can expect a base commitment of probably 6-8 hours of solid gameplay to put this to bed, since it doesn’t sound all that deep.
And I have to strongly disagree with comments made by the writer of the article I reference when said writer compared previous Harry Potter games as “watered down Zelda clones”, especially when it comes to Chamber of Secrets. At least Chamber of Secrets gave you some meat to bite down on, and chew on as you played, unlike the next game Prisoner of Azkaban which was way too easy to beat and had no substance to it’s gameplay whatsoever. Goblet of Fire seems the same, and in fact it seems to be even worse to boot. So sure, even if Chamber of Secrets was a “watered down Zelda clone” as the writer suggest then at least it was a GOOD clone that took awhile to play, unlike Prisoner of Azkaban which was over before it began, or the present Goblet of Fire which also seems destined to become instantly forgettable before we even play it.

And it can only get worse from here on out, ‘cause you might as well get ready to throw away all thoughts of using your brain with this game, ‘cause you won’t be needing it! The last elements of actual useful thought required to manage a Harry Potter game, including the interesting puzzles of Chamber of Secrets and a few puzzles from Prisoner of Azkaban, seem to have been thrown away for the most part in exchange for shameless combat levels which should insult you more than entertain you. Gimme a break, dammit!
Then again if you look at then, then look at The Chronicles of Narnia : The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, you see this weird tactic in full swing. Now I know playing a ridiculously complex game is not a cherished thing in gaming, but dumbing the game down to this low level is not smart either!
Now if this is supposed reassure me, and show me the “progress” of the Harry Potter series in coming games, then by golly give me the old days again! You know what? Sure it wasn’t the prettiest Harry Potter in terms of graphics and all, but at least I had more fun back with Chamber of Secrets than I seem to be having with this latest batch of Potter games. Honestly, do we really want to be given yet another mindless hack and slash button masher gameplay to chew on over something where actual thought and strategy is required to defeat the game? No, we don’t need more mindless gameplay! We need quality solid games worth playing, otherwise if they (EA) can’t be bothered to roll out a good game then we (the consumer) should not be bothered to pull out our wallets to purchase said game.
This kind of makes me miss the days of the PSOne Harry Potter games, where the game was actually put out to challenge you, and EA didn’t shoot low (as in shoot for your groin low) to hit “paydirt” with lowered expectation gameplay. Heck, this game is beginning to make Prisoner of Azkaban seem intelligent and fun over what this is promising, and it’s not promising much, so how terrilbe is that anyway!
Even with the promise of multiplayer gameplay the game still could have stood some intelligent action and depth, and while the person who drafted the original article I‘m basing this first look at seems to not mind missing out on I most certainly did miss those. Of course that‘s not to say the original writer of the article I‘m referring to is incapable of deep thought, though I don‘t see the joy and wonders of beat-em-up spellthrashing gameplay level after level like the person who I keep referring to. Yeah, if it’s X-Men Legend or Champions of Norrath I don’t mind button mashers… but at least those games are FUN!!

Of course if this is going to be based on Goblet of Fire then you can’t co-op forever. Like the actual book slash movie of the same name you’ll need to go solo sometimes, which is (of course) keeping in line with the material this game is based on (of course). That brings us to the second part of the game mentioned, the first TriWizard Challenge, the dragons and the golden egg.
In this level you must cast the Accio Charm to summon up your Firebolt, so you can take to the air against a particularly nasty dragon (in order to steal a golden egg which is used in the second challenge).
Now this shouldn’t be too hard. The dragon is tied down tight and… and it chases you… through the Forbidden Forest…. As you dodge trees and structures ala the Endor forest level from Super Return of the JedI…are you serious?!? Yeah. Apparently deep thought goes right out the window for a mock Speeder Bike through Endor level that has Harry dodging trees (“Watch out for that tree!”) and playing keep away from a very pissed off dragon. Oh, and while you (as Harry) are playing keep away with the trees and pissed off dragon you’ll also need to fly through rings… wow, it’s Superman 64 meets Super Return of the JedI!
Oh joy and bliss! Will the fun never end?!?

Oh, it gets better… much much better… and by that I mean the game (bleeps) on you more. As if the game hasn’t already (bleep)ed on you enough as is. Remember the other fun of previous Harry Potter games, the full roaming capability? Kiss the amount of full-out freedom you had in previous Harry Potter games “goodbye”, ‘cause the people at EA thinks sticking you in a linear path that demands you go where they want you to go is just so much more fun!! And, according to the article writer, the “action screams along at a more realistic pace”… are you kidding me? Yeah, right, heaven forbid I wanted freedom of movement and action ‘cause that‘s just soooo boring! If I wanted reality I’d be playing Call of Duty 2 : Big Red One or the newest Brothers in Arms game, that’s not what I came to the Harry Potter franchise to be straddled with… go figure!! By the way, do you think this can become any (bleep)ier than it is already? I don’t know, but I bet EA is going to try their hardest to make this final level even more (bleep)ier!!

In the last level talked about in the article, we are witness to the second task of the TriWizard Tournament, the “Under the Sea” level. In this level, Harry has to take his newly stolen… uh… I mean “borrowed” Gillyweed, and dives down into the Black Lake where he faces the local waterbreathers in an attempt to save Ron from -- something. Yeah. And wouldn’t you know it, Hermione AND Cho Chang is also in the same lake in the same predictiment! Damn!
In this level you do the ever so unpopular swimming level, where you wander pass shimmering plant life, “penetrated lighting effects” and so forth… well at least your swimming, and not walking on the bottom of the lake ala Champions of Norrath’s underwater level. Harry can swim faster by holding down a button, while he can cast various spells underwater at the same time, all the while working to save Ron and Gabrielle Delacour (the “hostage” for the third school) from the bottom ot the lake. Along the way he’ll need to… ahh… “dispatch” any Grindylows or Merfolk that happen to wander into his way… zap zap.
Now, if the article is to be believed, EA harps about how the gang over at Warner Brothers was “especially impressed with the developer’s (EA) videogame recreation of the scene as it closely mimics that of the movie”. Oh, yeah? Well considering the people at WB don’t seem to concerned that most of the things that made the past games good were spade/neutered out of this game? Ahh… I wouldn’t be so hyped about their opinion if I were you… yeah.

Despite the original article author’s assertations that the game is “definitely shaping up to be better than we first expected”, I have to say the exact opposite is true of “Goblet of Fire”. Throwing away just about everything that made Chamber of Secrets and (oh dear god I’m about to praise it) Prisoner of Azkaban, the game seems to suck even more than the last game, and how bad must Goblet of Fire be for me to actually think of Prisoner of Azkaban in a good way! Even with the promise of many levels, like the Quidditch World Cup Campsite, the Forbidden Forest, the Defense Against Dark Arts class, the three TriWizard Challenges, a bit of Herbology learning (and probably Potions since you had to endure it in the last three games), various “Moody Challenges” and a brawl with Lord Voldemort, the game still seems so lousy.
Practically no puzzles, no freeroaming freedom, no challenge, no fun, nothing.
If the person who wrote the article I referred to is happy with what they saw then they’ve learned to live with less, but for the rest of us this is going to be one instantly forgettable game. Though I do guess the highlight will be seeing how Harry Potter translates to the Nintendo DS slash PSP for their first go on these new handhelds. Anyway prepare to forget when I put out my full review in the coming weeks… just because I’m going to put my gold where my Gringotts is and tell you the truth about Potters & Voldemorts.
So take that, EA, and we’ll see if this truly is a Potter to remember… or forget… in the coming weeks.