TGWTG User Blogs

12.30.08

Yo,




A little bit of a rehashing of this middle-of-the-road Year for you all today. 2008 was an....interesting year, for lack of a better term. There certainly wasn't as much comedy fodder, although that didn't stop people for looking for it. The privatization of space travel reached new heights with the completion of a British Billionaire's first commercial shuttle, Russia rose again to near super-power heights, globalization cost millions more people to lose their job with no hopes of re-immersion training, and Michael Phelps gave America hope that we could actually do something right in the eyes of the World. We elected our first black President, our Congress stupidly bailed out companies that far from deserved it, a couple of mainstream shows fell far off the quality wagon, and we lost some truly great people while discovering the talents of many more. All in all, the year rings out as being one of progression, not in the liberal sense, but of the directional sense. The year seemed to be indicative of things to come, and sowed the first few steps in that direction.

Personally, this was the year I transferred to a new school, entered heavily into the blogosphere, witnessed a friend get into the deepest personal trouble I've ever seen a single person in (worst part is, he still doesn't know the depth he is at,) the year I got heavily into following gaming, and got further away from following films. I got my most sexual satisfaction out of this year, my cultural knowledge expanded significantly, and my writing talent really developed thanks to writing for the newspaper and for you. So, thanks to all those that read, commented, and helped me better myself. This year didn't really end up on the best note for me, but here's hoping 2009 could at least be as personally fulfilling as this year....maybe with a bit more idiotic news stories to laugh at.





The official Holiday Season for the Winter-based celebrations is over, and with that comes worries over New Year's resolutions, sorrow at gained weight, and immediate nostalgia like no other. Like many people in the United States, I spent my secular holiday break of 2 1/2 weeks with family. Aside from the flight troubles (remember them here) and other issues that arose during the Yule festivities (told here), it was a pleasant holiday, and the best way I could think of to round out the year. I would have been literally penniless if I had stayed down in Southern California, but that's a point best not made in the afterglow of Secular Christmas.



I say Secular Christmas because a religious, Judeo-Christian Christmas doesn’t exist anymore. The average family doesn't actually properly celebrate Christmas, most likely because they don't know what Christmas actually is. Like many seasonal celebrations, this Holiest of Christian holidays actually comes from the manipulation of several generations of Pagan traditions. During the Roman, Norman, and Viking occupations of Celtic Scotland and Ireland, one of the main goals was to acclimate the Druidic cultures with Christian control for political dominance of the region, and the easiest to do that would be to assimilate them to Christian dogma. The most efficient way to ease the native Nature-worshippers (or any different cultural mythos, really) was to combine the less 'heathen' aspects of their religion with Christian lore. The mixing of the two cultures occurred across the board, Testaments, and rituals.



Recently in the news, a group of astronomers dictated their findings: that, based on current data and star-charts, the only star to have shone bright enough for anyone to be able to plan a course (as the Three Kings of fable did) during the 1 A.D. period was during the earlier, Spring months. This fits along with earlier Biblical drafts that Jesus of Nazareth was born between March and June, nowhere near his current birthday of December 25th. Why the move? Well, in order to indoctrinate the Celtic tribes, Christian scholars moved their savior's birthday to correspond with the birth of the ‘pagan’ Sun God Mithra of both Ancient Rome and Briton. 'See, we have a sacred day like yours! But ours is more righteous, why don't you drop those silly rituals and come and worship with us?' Funny thing is, the modern Christmas contains less Christian rituals than a visit to a KFC.



For one of many instances, where in the Bible is a Tree of any significance? Sure, there is the burning bush, but specifically tied to the birth of Jesus and the earlier days of the Christian Lord and Savior, where the fuck are all the trees? The many acts of modern Christmas are actually decried in the Bible as the act of heathens, because the Tree is an incredibly strong Celtic symbol encapsulating the breadth of nature within a single organism, acting as a microcosm for their worship. In Rome, it was a metaphor for the everlasting powers of the god Baal-Berith, hence the use of the evergreen, lush fir trees. The god was born from his mother after she was transfigured into a tree. Christians incorporated the symbol, and the decoration thereof, into the celebratory rituals of their holiday in order to ease the religious transition. Kissing under the mistletoe was also a Druidic tradition with origins in Babylon, stemming from the sacred nature of the branch as told in one of their legends (it was the sole object that could kill the nigh-immortal Balder in Scandinavian lore), being known as ‘the tree of pure gold.’ Standing under the tree and kissing was an act of pardon and reconciliation of crimes against man, as those that kiss are beneath a branch so sacred it was believed to be connected to the Gods.



The Roman celebrations of the Yule season, pre-Christianity of course, was a celebration of nearly everything Christianity despises, called Saturnalia. The Winter months brought a less stringent work day and, depending on the City-State, less Senate rituals and days of worship. This free time lead to the creation of a 5 day celebration, spent in the best way possible, pure and unadulterated gluttony. Roman 'Christmas' celebrations were day – sometimes multiple days - long orgies of excess. Literal orgies both hetero and homosexual sex, an overeating of all delicious sweetmeats available (for the upper class anyway), and complete laziness and intoxication for the 'down' periods of the day. One day of feasting and sex covered the majority of the Seven Deadly Sins. I'm not going on any historical backing here, but I'm pretty sure the early Christians bearing witness to this were probably inspired to write the more close-minded portions of the Bible.



Why go through all this? Because celebrations that have those gaps in logic get me to researching. Especially with ancestors in the Celtic regions of the world, I want to know as much as possible as I can about the periods that lead them from 'pagan' Nature worship to conservative Man-God worship. ....ok, maybe I don't really have an overall point, but I do like pointing this little facts out to people for some damned reason I can't really think of.


It was an extremely light gift season this year, with my main haul being a new MP3 Player (thankfully without a lower case I in front of it) and a couple of PS3 games. Most of my list was composed with the understanding that I would be spending the rest of the money I receive from family abroad in getting my ass a Playstation 3 unit when I return to Southern California. My little brother got himself a copy of Guitar Hero III for the family's 360, so I played a career or two with that before my arm gave out.



Thankfully my step-father took it upon himself to find a damn copy of Fable II to rent, and we succeeded under our combined efforts and I have been plugging away at a playthrough ever since. Perhaps I'll include my thoughts on the IP during the new year after my proposed articles have been put up. Around the same time my aunt and uncle had sent up the clothes I had left up at their house over this past Thanksgiving, and upon opening the box, I had discovered that they had purchased new socks as well, so add that to the pile of swag.

Yesterday was a belated gift day, as my Mum and I went out and did the yearly clothes purchasing on my behalf. It's one of the lone positive side effects of having a mother with entirely too high moral standards, I never measure up with my current clothes, and thus must be given new ones to rise my supposed societal level. Along the way we picked me up a new laptop bag and rolling luggage bag to take home, as - again - the ones I was using did not live up to standards, and for the more logical reason that I needed a non-black bag to stand out in the damn baggage claim at the airport to save time.

Complete Christmas / Birthday Haul



- 'Solo' leather messenger / laptop bag (black)

- 'Palm Springs: Ricardo' rolling luggage bag (burnt orange)

- 'Fallout 3' for Playstation 3

- 'Eternal Sonata' for Playstation 3

- Phillips 'GoGear' Portable MP3 Player (4gb)

- Box of Hershey Premium Chocolates

- Tin of Hershey Kisses

- approx. 15 pairs of socks (ankle-high and tube)

- pair of Jeans, three pairs of shirts

- Lazer Pointer

- various swag




For those that have followed my writing, the biggest public loss for me this year was the death of one of my idols, George Carlin. Like many of his fans, he spoke on a deeper level than most comedians, a deeper level than most people. His routines were mostly grain of salt musings and wicked syntax, but the man operated on a whole other level between the lines, for all of his rantings and bitchings, he actually had a foundational desire to see the world in better times. He was universally respected in the field of stand up, but his death really did hit people as hard as it did me. Sure, HBO blew up their schedules with documentaries about the man's life and work, but for me it was a wound that cut deep. I had grown up with this man's style and humor, from the 'Hippy Dippy Weather Man' of my youth the 'Uncle Dan' speech of his last tour. Perhaps its because I had missed the window of getting a ticket to see him in my former hometown, minutes away from where I used to live. My friend Ben got to go, and I sighed and told myself I'd catch him next time. I'll never get the chance now, and it was a missed opportunity that would have been a lifetime in the making. He missed his goal of living to his nineties, and the world of comedy and commentary will never be the same again.



Another fantastic person we lost this year was the more publicized death of Heath Ledger. Personally, with no fault assigned to the man, a lot of people are inflating his career due to his death, and assigning much higher praise to roles formerly garnering middling criticism. Its a common practice in Hollywood, but when his work in 'Four Feathers,' a film that made no critic's best of anything list, now being hailed, there is something curious going on. All post-mortem praise aside, I had fallen in love with this man's skill when I saw him in a lame teen remake of Taming of the Shrew, aka 'Ten Things I Hate About You.' He was so genuine, a word assigned to him often, and so relaxed within his character that enjoying him was as natural as keeping your eyes open. Like many of the film going public, I took little notice of his career moves, but certain roles caught my eye at times. His role in 'Brokeback Mountain,' now surely entertained in the annals of history, is a dissapointing turn for me. He was astounding of course, but the film as a whole faltered, and for him to remembered from such a bad movie is kind of a sour aftertaste. I'd much rather see the public and film historians remember him as the Joker, a role so deep and complex that he controlled the very time and energy of any room where the movie is shown. His portrayal of simple insanity is one for the ages, but I'm sure it will get the public recognition it deserves in time. For me, I'll always remember him as Patrick Verona, a loveable man completely intoxicating in his simplicity.




If this past Presidential Election proved anything to me, it’s how pathetic the field of political debate has devolved in the States. Reading Matt Taibi of Rolling Stone, one of my favorite magazine reporters, really drew a clear picture for me on how the media's focus on particular aspects of a candidacy has changed over the years. Whether it’s because we are getting more shallow and asinine by the day, or for some deeper reason, the most discussed and debated topics surrounding a possible President have gone from his ideals and his potential policy ideas to rumors and character attacks. Breaking down the candidacies leaves us with soundbites and mudflinging advertisements. McCain the 'Maverick,' Obama talking about 'change' more often than an alley way full of beggars. Obama is 'Hope,' McCain 'reaches across the aisles.' Obama might be a Muslim, McCain's old. In retrospect, I'm comfortable proclaiming that Obama's team didn't really have that strong of a focus on mudslinging, but what comes from the individual candidate teams isn't really the issue here. In the ever-constant quest for ratings, media networks leech off any possible tidbit of juice to milk for the shock value and viewership. Never mind were you stand on the existence of 'liberal media,' there is a constant influx of 'idiot media' that needs to be stopped.



Yeah, it’s annoying, and most people shake it off as lame deterrents that don't amount to much. But my issue with this media blitzkrieg is that it makes it more and more difficult to find out the necessary information to make educated voting decisions. I could honestly give a shit if Obama is a Socialist Muslim, what I need to know is his voting record and his plans for his administration, and when all MSNBC can provide me with is two hours of human interest reporting about his campaign stops, its incredibly frustrating. The placidity with this barrage of intellectual fluff coming out of the news rooms is one of the most aggravating flaws I find with the American public, and it makes me recite the infamous 'I'm as Mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!' speech from 'Network' in my head.



In terms of the campaign itself, I went into a lot of detail about my thoughts about it in my Blue November, but in summary it was a fairly predictable outcome to a humorously polarizing trail. With the economy sharply turning downward in the worst way in recent memory, it killed McCain's - who hold partial responsibility for it - hopes for any amount of victory. Although, I lost faith in the man when I saw what he had become. It would have been a much harder decision for me in 2000 (theoretically, as I was too young to vote then) if it was a match between Gore and McCain. I still would have chosen Gore, but McCain's left leanings on many of the social issues I cared about, and his strong fiscal conservativism would have made it a choice that would have taken serious musing. His 2008 campaign, however, was almost difficult to look at some times. First of all, he never held a stance for longer than a few months, which called to mind the much harder backlash John Kerry suffered for doing a lesser version of the same thing in 2004, and his voting record over the past 8 years really sealed the deal in terms of my vote. However, in this world of sound bites and video clips, I think it was the selection of Sarah Palin as his Vice President that nailed him in the coffin. Did anyone take that seriously? The party must have known they stood no chance for them to sign off on that deal. It was mind boggling to hear people arguing over her political stances, when I was wondering if the bitch could properly tie her shoes.

But, the election came and the proper outcome was achieved, so we can release a slight bit of tension and look forward to the next four years with optimism. Or we can learn from our mistakes this past 2 terms and stand next door to the Oval Office with all the necessary paperwork for Impeachment standing by.





Everything's going multi-platform!!! Square and Microsoft's big announcement started off E3 this year with a huge hit against Sony, and the convention never got close to equalling that reveal. But 'Final Fantasy XIII' leaping ship to the Xbox 360 is just one of many hardcore franchises ditching exclusivity with the Playstation brand, some even shipping themselves off solely to the Wii/DS without hopes of a release on any other platform. I'm sure you got a list already in your head, but for me the two biggest ones were the aforementioned Final Fantasy and 'Tekken 6.' It might not be the largest or most popular fighter on the market, but the series has always had a special place in my heart ever since I played the first one in the arcades. On the practical side, one might say that this means more people can enjoy it, and in that case, they are absolutely right. But that's not the whole deal. The universal concern is that a project formerly developed for a single system must now curtail its development time and money to build up a new version of the game, at least one version of the IP suffering due to the new constraints. But that's not the whole issue.

This consistent abandonment of exclusivity has stripped a lot of the Playstation 3's bargaining power, providing more and more reason to buy elsewhere for hardcore console needs. Although 2008 saw a lot of 3rd party power coming to the Playstation 3, these former exclusives going multiplatform speak of a lack of confidence in the system. The install base of the console is currently the worst of this generation, which forces publishers to develop alternate versions to cover their finances. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem. You and I know that. Exclusive DLC seems to be the future of inter-console battles for superiority, leading consumers to select the machine with the specs and support more to their preference. But we currently live in an era of an expanding marketplace bloated with casual gamers (thanks Wii) who hold a near majority of the sales chart in their ignorant wallets. Their first console was the Wii, and now they are looking for a second, deeper experience. Do they research into DLC support or a system's tech guts? No, they fall back on the logic of a bygone generation, which console has the most exclusives that I personally care about. And in that case, Playstation is getting stabbed in the back. Before the branding of 'Playslave' or 'Sony Fanboy' are grilled to my flesh, allow me to just say that I want to see consoles get a fair shake, as long as they aren't the Wii. In this new consumer base, both Microsoft and Sony are scrambling to please an audience more temporary than snowfall in Vegas, and it leads to a lot of ill business practices. The worst part of this is that I don't have a solution, short of instituting a national education policy about the nature of video games (and starting a service were all the mistaken Wii purchases are bought and taken off the sales charts.)

2008, like many years before it, suffered from a severe case of sequel-itis. Although somewhat redeeming itself with the most original content to be available for years, the heavy hitters this year were as predictable as the sales tax that came with them. 'Gears of War 2,' 'Resistance 2,' 'Metal Gear Solid 4,' and the latest from the Need for Speed, Burnout, and many other franchises. While not as bad as 2007 in terms of franchise-milk, 2008 continued to prove that the tired true staple of brand loyalty can still push millions of units in the marketplace. The horizon looks to be a lot fresher content-wise, but unless consumer tides change drastically, we can assume anything with a number beside it will sell.



The Playstation 2 has still been kicking ass, which just makes me giddy as all hell. Sure, it takes a bit of know-how into video game releases to know of anything good, but its still selling, which astounds me. It actually had a lot of releases relevant to me, and taking into account the porportional lack of disappointments found on the newer consoles across the board, the case can be argued that the Playstation 2 had one of the best lineups of the year. Sure, it’s dated IPs shipped from Japan, 3-D remakes, and sequels that should have made the console leap, but damnit, its great that the old timer is still ticking, especially after the immediate defeat of the Gamecube and Xbox. Especially now that the idea of players being unable to play their PS2 games on its shiny younger brother, units are being picked up for their bargain price (although a drop to 99 bucks couldn't hurt) and players are basking in the glow of one of the best back catalogs in gaming.

Another issue prevalent to this year is the sheer amount of franchises being 'toned down' for a broader appeal, the entertainment value for each series suffering as a consequence. This is most apparent in Nintendo's franchises, like 'Super Smash Brothers Brawl' and 'Mario Kart Wii,' but IPs across the board have willingly cut off their nose to spite their face. Handling the parkour elements in 'Prince of Persia' felt like your hand was being held the entire time, combat in 'Fable II,' while being easier to use, lacked any amount of complexity in comparison to its prequel. Its happened everywhere this year, developers somehow got the idea that simplier gameplay means higher sales, and so far, the gaming public has put up with it. While attempting to broaden a fiscal range is not that bad of an ambition, we can hope that developers instead later opt for an overall difficulty decrease, so the hardcore players can just get used to playing on 'Hard,' rather than feel that the game itself is beneath their abilities.



I originally had an entirely too long piece here about the Wii's year and my rant against it in nearly all of its forms. But, on insight, I have spared you the grief of reading it until I dedicate a full entry to it, and possibly the other consoles as well.





The ending of Mass Effect was exactly like a major action film. Not because it was emblematic of a rousing cinematic conclusion, but because it was the strongest setup for a sequel I have seen in a video game for a long time. The IP was planned to expand into a trilogy earlier on, but these plans ran a lot deeper into the first game's development than I thought. Although pre-production for the title has surely already begun, methinks we can take a look at how a Mass Effect sequel could turn out for the better, just for fun. I'll attempt to cover as many bases as I can, but I'm not a codex, so some references may go over the heads of those that have not played it, I have included hyperlinks to Wikipedia articles, so hopefully that will provide the information necessary to understand my point. Also, as I will be discussing the ending of the first game in some detail, spoilers will run rampant throughout this piece. I'll try to keep them soft and not to harmful to a first playthough, but be warned nonetheless.



The ending of the original Mass Effect was considered with Commander Sheppard personally dedicated her/himself to finding and eliminating the entirety of the Reaper threat after defeating the mind-controlled Saren and his controller, Sovereign. The Reapers are an ancient race of AI constructs so advanced, that their existence and purpose is inconceivable by any other race. They exist in dark space, the far reaches of the universe un-patrolled by the Council (the organized governmental organization of the game's galactic community), biding their time and saving energy as new races evolve and rise to power, only to be absorbed by the Reapers at their apex. Mass Effect ended with Sheppard walking away from the Council, who just entered the first human into their ranks, vowing to begin the search immediately for the regions of the universe where the Reapers reside. It’s safe to assume that the sequel can follow immediately or shortly after this ending, titled simply 'Mass Effect 2,' or with a subtitle such as 'Mass Effect: Dark Space.'



In continuing the storyline, we must assume that the proposed trilogy is the main plan for the series, so the tale of this middle game should not resolve all loose ends. Needless to say the main quest will concern the tracking of the Reapers, taking the player to new and old locations throughout the galaxy. I’d be nice to see the political side of 'Mass Effect' also explored in more depth in the main quest, possibly with the mission objective of getting representatives of each alien race on your side to organize a joint force against the Reaper threat, forcing the player to play through all of the discontent and inner-workings of each species. Its also to be noted that the entry of the first Human into the ranks of the Council after only 26 years of space exploration would make talking with some races (that have waited upwards of thousands of years for the same privilege) more difficult than others. Side missions would most likely include the same 'Save the Missing Survey Team from the Insect Threat' structure, with various versions of either saving or destroying people on arrival. Other extremely short side missions could revolve how many of the collected gases/rock material the player collected in the first game. Mini-games like opening a locker or decrypting a computer were simple enough to not be canned the second time through, but it would be nice to add a bit of variety to mini-games, like an unlocking doors mechanic similar to the one found in ‘Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.’



In terms of starting the game, players should have the option to either continue with the character specs they created in the first game, or create a new Commander Sheppard at the start of this one. A similiar option would probably be presented in the third game as well. Loading a Commander Sheppard from the first game will not only take their personality and stats into question, but the decisions the player made over the course of gameplay as well. For instance, if during the first game Sheppard set free the Rachni Queen, the second game will find the after effects of said rescue, whether it be a race of peaceful insect creatures making moral political choices, or whether it was a mistake to free her and the player must now exterminate the threat once more. In terms of the ultimate threat of the trilogy, it shouldn't really be revealed in full until the end of the second game - if that. But for a tangible bad guy, to be disposed of (or not) by the end of the second game, Bioware could take several routes.



They could use a character known from the first game and increase her/his power, or introduce a new character for the same purpose. Here's my idea: a Krogan Battlemaster, fed up with the failure of the galactic community to find a cure for his species' genetic disease, leads an assault against the Council Races in retribution, taking along other species fed up with the political unfairness their race has received, like a group of Volus, Hanar, or Batarians. The threat posed by the Krogan is not taken seriously until the Consort comes under his control, spewing propaganda for his mission and becoming deathly ill. Sheppard is commissioned for the project when the Krogan soldier reveals his intent: to offer the Council Races as sacrifices to the Reapers in order to gain their favor and avoid extinction. On the way to stop the Krogan the true baddie is revealed, and more is learned about the power of Prothean technology, the game ending with the entry into the final onslaught against the Reapers with Allied-Race Military. Hell, they could even discover a secret to fight against the Reapers if they explore the Necropolis of the Zeioph.There are many possible ways Bioware can either incorporate the previous game or shoot for a plot of completely new adventures, this was just one possible thought that occurred to me.



In regards of larger side missions, the ones that take hours and contain cut-scenes, the one thing I hope will be explored in the sequels is the identity and power of the Shadow Broker, an elite mysterious being (or beings) that have control over all of the most secret information across the galaxy, offering it for the highest bidder. If a player selected to get a favor from the Shadow Broker rather than payment - in the first game - that decision could come into play as well. Depending on which of the characters from the player's squad are left alive at the end of the first game, they could offer side missions to complete, and the game could fill out nicely with old and new NPCs that need stuff to be done.



Keeping the player connected with the character of Commander Sheppard offers one bad side: you can only play as human. It would be absolutely amazing to select a race for your character from any of the ones available in the game, save for the non-combat capable ones. I would love to play a male Turian. Each race could have a set of pluses and minuses to their stats, similar to how Dungeons and Dragons divides different species' abilities. Unfortunately, if the player was to start out with an entirely new character, it would mean Bioware would have to develop multiple campaigns, with dozens of explanations on possible character backgrounds and various dialogue interactions with other races. It’s not impossible, but it would take a lot of time away from the main development. Although it would be cool to have played a male Sheppard in the first game and play as a female Sheppard in the next...wonder if Sex Change operations offer stat bonuses?



In terms of combat, the squad-based shooter controls of the first game were pretty solid. Bioware could probably add an augment system for the weapons to increase the RPG element to most battles, but in terms of aiming, movement, and firing, the game was spot on. Perhaps more in-depth control over your squad, with basic orders to give to them at different times, could broaden the appeal of the combat. Bioware might have to tweak the sprint toggle to make it easier to control during combat, but nothing too drastic would have to be changed in that respect. A short-range weapon would definitely switch up the gameplay and keep it from becoming monotonous, although I'm unsure how you can make a bladed/bludgeoning weapon using futuristic sci-fi technology without the inevitable comparisons to a light saber. Perhaps create a wrist device that contains a holographic shield that can be retracted? Or a futuristic gauntlet that has a high frequency lazer across the knuckles (lazer knuckles?)



The biggest change in terms of combat mechanics would probably come in the form of biotics, the game's 'spells.' The controls for each ability were fine, but the result in using them was too much time and effects we have all seen before. Levitate an enemy, push one back, lift one up, etc. Perhaps an expansion of the abilities, or a substitution with more varied results, could benefit the combat structure and make it more rewarding to play. I'd love to have my hand glow purple and see an enemy shake violently before their head explodes. In terms of actual biotics they could implement, maybe one that turns an enemy against his own kind? Maybe one that cuts off an enemy’s oxygen temporarily, enough to make him drop his/her weapon and gasp? There are tons of ideas out there; it just seems that Bioware didn't tap into them as much as they could. Although the Singularity ability was pretty bad ass.



One of the best things Bioware did with 'Mass Effect' was the way the dialogue helped shape and build relationships with other characters. It was the first game I can remember to truly dedicate good chunks of its story to creating strong romantic subplots without gratuitous sexual innuendo or over-developed character design. If they can further expand this mechanic to make it so every character one can talk to will have the option to later become a best friend, a rival, or a sexual partner, it would really go a step further into creating a living, breathing universe that Bioware already dipped their toe in with the first game. Don't know why, but playing a female Paragon (good) character and talking with Garrus made it seem that there was a lot of sexual chemistry between them; I kinda wanted to explore that.



Another big change Bioware could add to the sequel of 'Mass Effect' would be to make the Mako upgradeable. It was a damn good all-around vehicle in the original, but there were times when the map required me to drive vertically on a mountaintop that I had wished I had points to spend in 'traction' or something. Points could be won by battle victories and exploration of all of a planet's specific points of interest, and divided into such things as 'armor,' 'traction,' 'speed,' and 'weapons.' It doesn't need to be nearly as deep as the character experience spending, but it would be nice. In terms of main character points and reputation, there were times in the game that it felt like there was only a dichotomy of personalities that you could adhere to: good or bad. If the classifications of your heroine/hero could go beyond Paragon or Renegade, perhaps to reflect your loyalty to a specific racial or military cause, it would really serve to increase the personalization effect each choice in the game has on Sheppard.



Mass Effect may not be my favorite game of all time, but it did scrape my Top Ten RPGs. With the ending begging for a sequel, I thought it would be discussion-provoking if we went into some possible details on how the universe and plot could expand into a solid and profitable trilogy with new elements and revamped old ones. Regardless of how the sequels turn out, as long as they are true to the origins of the saga in the original game, it will be a quality experience for all that enjoys strong narrative and rewarding gameplay. It's just fun to play the Idea Guy once in awhile.



This was the first entry I've ever made for any site that took longer than a day's effort to complete, and I hope it was a worthy read to finish 2008 on. I hope all of you had at least a memorable year, and are looking forward to what 2009 could bring. It's been an oddly satisfying ride, starting out posting around here and seeing the comments of those that read, it really helped hammer out a decision of what I want to do with my life and how I can achieve it. I wish each and every one of you a future year of accomplishments and victories, hopefully with minimal depressions. I'll see you guys on the other side.

Till Next Time,
'Hawke

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12.23.08

Yo,



Name:Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4



Genre:Role-Playing Game / Simulation

Developer:Atlus

Publisher:Atlus (North America, Asia, Japan) Square Enix (Europe) Ubisoft (Australia)

Rating:M for Mature

Release Date:December 9th, 2008

Platforms:Playstation 2




Moving away from the portside urban sprawl of its prequel, Persona 4 sets itself up in the rural Japanese town of Inaba. Rumors circulate about the local high school and hangouts of something called “The Midnight Channel,” which can be accessed during the midnight hour of rainy nights. A broadcast of “The Midnight Channel” directly corresponds with murders happening within the town proper, two of which are tied to a local celebrity’s infidelity. The main Protagonist (named by the player) has recently moved into the countryside and roomed with a police detective named Ryotaro Dojima and his daughter, Nanako. Immediately after the move the town is shrouded in a mysterious fog, during which the two aforementioned murders occur. The Protagonist learns of and discovers “The Midnight Channel,” and his special abilities surrounding Persona, a skill allowing its user to summon apparitions of various parts of his inner being and command them in battle, and rounds up a team to investigate the murders about town.



Among your squad mates, and friends, are; Yosuke Hanamura, a clumsy son of a local merchant, Chie Satonaka, a student of martial arts, and the calm inn-hand Yukiko Amagi. All of your squad mates learn of their Persona abilities, and vow to enter “The Midnight Channel” through various television sets across town in order to track down the one murdering the citizens of Inaba. Once inside the world of “The Midnight Channel,” your team comes across a friendly creature guised as a weird teddy bear, appropriately named Teddy. Your team will later inflate to include bike gang leader Kanji Tatsumi, Rise Kujikawa, a former teen idol posing as a student to avoid the press, and a young recruit of the local police, Naoto Shirogane, all of whom also lend their skills to your quest. As your skills and relationships with other characters grow, you slowly come closer to figuring out the mystery of the deaths of Inaba’s citizens, and a philosophical plotline revolving around humanity’s true nature.



The story of Atlus’ Shin Megami Tensei series has always been distinctly Eastern in terms of aesthetics, but always retains certain quirks that appeal to its Western audiences as well. Not a light series, Persona 4 continues the trend of its brood by tackling some incredibly deep subjects, like a character’s battle with sexual identity and the tendency for people to shelter themselves, both publicly and privately, from who they truly are. The more hardcore plot points are buffered with the lighter, slice-of-life elements of the daytime gameplay elements, but the story as a whole digs deep and will hopefully make players think more in depth than they usually do.




Exceptional in the most literal sense of the word, Persona games have always had an undeniable sense of individual style, and Persona 4 is no different. Forgoing the dark – yet oddly non-controversial – motif of shooting yourself in the head to release Personas, characters this time around use various glasses to call upon their ethereal servants. The entire game substitutes the high fashion of city life for a more laidback and conservative design this time around, from the more comfortable looking character wardrobes to the idyllic level design of lived-in houses and lush, lower contrast color palettes. Partly due to the game revolving so much around a rain cycle, Persona 4’s surroundings are detailed with lush greenery and slick, wet surfaces, giving the game a moody, yet peaceful sentiment.



Menu designs are sharp and concise, with monster designs reflecting the game’s ‘inner self’ mantra with surreal imagery rooted in noticeably normal foundations. On the audio front, the game opts for a more retro pop-driven soundtrack than last year’s hip hop / rap tracklist, the softer sound cutting off some listener tension without relieving too much of the game’s intensity.



You only need to see a couple of gameplay videos to know if this design works for you. It’s incredibly otaku-centric, but the engrossing plot and addictive gameplay should come together to make it worthwhile for anyone not to excited about the very Japanese-inspired direction. Even if you fear being lost in translation, a fleeting glimpse can’t hurt.




Persona 4 comes in two flavors: RPG and High School Sim. Though it doesn’t sound appealing at face-value, especially with the proposed length of 70 hours, the combination eventually hits a rhythm and can become incredibly involving as the story progresses. During the day your Protagonist is a high school student, free to make and break friendships with various people across Inaga. Doing so creates and builds up Social Links, levels of attraction and camaraderie between the Protagonist and the person in question, which can be leveled the more you hang out with said person and affect the abilities of your Personas during the nighttime events. Players also have the options of attending a party time job or other various duties/activities to build up their basic statistics, which also have an in-battle effect come the moonlight hours.



When the moon rises, players will have the option of entering ‘The Midnight Channel’ and doing battle with various creatures called Shadows. Entering into the battle will trigger a turn-based encounter with the spell and attack trappings one can expect from a traditional RPG. The player can call upon her/his Persona in battle do either do damage, cast status effects, or heal party members. If an enemy is knocked down by either an exploited weakness or damage, your squad can pull together an “All-Out Attack,” an ultimate damage unison attack that uses all party members. The Protagonist having the rare skill to summon and hold more than one Persona, the player will later have the option to fuse, or combine, two or more of her/his collected Personas into a stronger single Persona with the help of the denizens of the Velvet Room, a mysterious older man and his female assistant with a subtle relationship to the outcome of the Protagonist’s efforts.



The timeline of the game is centered on weather forecasts, specific days of rain and/or fog indicative of boss battles. The player must also ‘save’ various people from the fatal nature of ‘The Midnight Channel’ by specific monthly deadlines. Dungeons within the Channel are randomly generated, their design indicative of the captured persons deepest fears and worries. Some weather forecasts also offer Fusion specials, fusing a specific Persona on that day will give the creature a specific bonus to certain abilities.



This is the most hardcore element of the Persona-universe, extremely focused style and gameplay may not appeal to the entirety of the gamer consumer base, but those that strive the extra mile will find the patented addictiveness of the RPG-cross-Sim gameplay that has given the series one of the strongest fan bases in the Playstation 2’s lifetime.




Much like Final Fantasy, Persona entries in Atlus’ “Shin Megami Tensei” line are not direct sequels per say, although they do share extreme similarities, and exist in the same world, as their prequels (which is not to say that playthroughs of the earlier games are necessary for a Persona 4 purchase.) In terms of the most recent entry, Persona 4 begins on April 11, 2011, one year and two months after the Persona 3 conclusion date of January 31, 2010.



Several characters from the previous iteration make guest appearances as well. President Tanaka, the ‘Devil’ Social Link and Host of a shopping show in Persona 3, has another show this time around, ‘Tanaka's Amazing Commodities,’ which airs every in-game Sunday. Edogawa-san, the magick obsessed nurse from last year, gives a lecture about the very plot-relevant Izanagi and Izanami.



Your squad will meet Chihiro, the shy treasurer of the Student Council and Persona 3 ‘Justice’ Social Link, and will have references made to Mitsuru (leader of your squad in P3 and the ‘Emperess’ Social Link.) Players will also visit previous locations such as Hagakure Ramen, Club Escapade, and the ‘romantic’ hotel used in one of P3’s boss fights.



- Official Wikipedia Page

- Official Japanese Website

- Official English Website

- Megaten Wiki Page


- Persona 4 is Metacritic’s “Best Videogames of 2008” selection for the Best Playstation 2 Game, with an incredibly high score of 94, in a 4-way tie (with Metal Gear Solid 4, Super Smash Brothers Brawl, and World of Warcraft: Wraith of the Lich King) for the 3rd best reviewed game of 2008

- The manga adaptation of Persona 4, penned by the same artist as the manga of Persona 3, began serialization on September 19, 2008, in ASCII Media Works’ Black Maoh magazine.

- All copies of the game purchase-able at store-front contain the Side A of the game’s OST (Official Sound Track), Side B is available with amazon.com’s bundle of the game






You can’t get any more suave than Shin Megami Tensei, it’s the Cowboy Beebop of gaming: indescribably cool. It walks its own road, screw the consequences and the naysayers. Sadly, this game’s fate will most likely be to be buried under the wealth of content being picked up this holiday. If the cult following has any say to it, this will be one of the Playstation 2’s final Greatest Hit, like the surprisingly high sales given to its prequel earlier this year. Again, it won’t appease everyone, especially Gears Heads or Shooter nuts, but if you want to indulge in a living world of deep philosophical themes and amiable friendships, you can do no better than Persona 4.

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Fire Emblem (GBA)/ Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones (GBA) reviews

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Fire Emblem (GBA)

Release Date:November 3, 2003

Developer: Intelligent Systems

Publisher: Nintendo

Genre: Tactical Role-playing game (turn based)

ESRB Rating: Everyone
Violence

Intro

Fire Emblem, a game that has followed in the footsteps of Intelligent System's previous series, Advance Wars, has been available for half a decade now. The game effectively combines text-based narrative and turn-based RPG game play, but you just want to know if you would like it, right?


Story

Before starting the game, watch the Introduction explaining some relevant historical events from the land of Bern. Keep in mind, this story will involve the events from the introduction in some form or fashion later on, so try guessing what will happen.

Fire Emblem's tale begins with an unknown woman named Lyn caring for the protagonist the player just created. Outside of the abode where Lyn tends to your creation, a few brigands (ruffians, bandits, etc.) arrive and attack. Lyn's hesitancy to defend her property without assistance prompts the protagonist to proffer their help. When Lyn asks what your creation does, she learns that they have served as a tactician before. Thus begins your journey as a faceless wandering tactician, which is not as ridiculous as it sounds. It's actually fairly unique, makes your character have a mercenary feel, and it makes your character essentially the General (HA, first female General in 2008? Wrong, try Fire Emblem fools.) of the various troops you will gather. The narrative for Lyn's struggles is the game training the player on how to play, but after beating her story, the Story continues with a Lordling named Eliwood who needs your tactical expertise. If you have beaten the game before, you can continue the story as a third Lordling by the name of Hector. Trust me, they put some effort into this story. It's freaking epic, long, a little wordy (text-based puns for the win!), and very well translated.

Game play

Essentially, the tactician you create takes control over every friendly unit and moves them with a handy-dandy cursor telling you where you are planning on moving each respective object to. Within each level, there is an objective along with other side objectives, but you have to keep the main three Lordlings alive (Lyn, Eliwood, and Hector all end the game if killed). You can change weapons ( staves, bows, swords, lances, axes, magic, etc. ), healing salves, and various other items with the other characters on the field. Each character has a max of five slots to carry these aforementioned items, but they can discard unnecessary items, and they can only trade if directly next to each other. For the major weapons they follow a rock-paper-scissor's like affair. Swords beat axes, axes beat lances, and lances beat swords and similar concepts with magic. The underutilized weapons have advantages, but not against other weapons necessarily. For example, bows are effective against flying units while staves are mainly used to heal your comrades, but some have other uses such as sleep or light a torch. Weapons have a max number of uses, so you have to keep your team well stocked all the time. To get new weapons you visit shops that sell physical (swords, axes, etc.) weaponry and more spiritual (magic, staves, healing salves, etc.) weaponry respectively. Each character can perform critical attacks, animated based on class and brought about by a high enough skill and some luck.

As these characters fight, they gain experience and level up based on probabilities for each character. They have a max level cap of 20, but anytime after 10, they can essentially "evolve" through the use of special items similar to evolving Pikachu with a thunder stone. Also, as they fight, they gain experience with the weapons they use, so they can use higher quality weaponry.

What's so great about this game play is that it rarely results exactly the same unless one of your Lordlings dies, in which case, yeah it will repeat the same death and game over sequences. I liked the game play, but to play this game you have to be willing to think and plan, so don't really rush this game or else you will die over and over.




Audio


If you have ever played Smash Brothers, you have heard some of the audio of Fire Emblem. The tracks sound very dramatic or very lighthearted depending on the situation, but they all sound great. Also, the dialogue in this game is solely text-based, so no worries about poor voiceovers. I personally enjoyed the audio and most gamers will too, but if you don't you can always turn down the volume.

Controls

Directional pad: move cursor/unit to location, navigate through menus, trading, and pretty much everything related to navigation or moving an object.
A button: open up option menu when on just the generic map, select unit, weapon, item, perform action, continue text, etc. Pretty much the generic action button.
B button: cancel, return to previous status, and speed up movement of cursor that's about it from what I recall.
L button: moves cursor to next unused unit.
R button: provides information on your units, enemies, terrain obstacles, etc.
Start button: skip text/cut scenes, display overview map.
Select: open map menu, turn info window on or off.
Can use Start, Select, A, B all at the same time to restart the game. Creates a save based on where you quit though.

This image has been resized. Click this bar to view the full image. The original image is sized 800x600 and weights 212KB.

Good Aspects

Great story, no translation issues, some amazing bosses that you need to cluster attacks on just to hurt more than they will heal, great animations and backgrounds, great value (my average complete play through is somewhere around 30 hours, but that could easily be shortened through some techniques and not abusing the various exploits), options allow the player to drastically speed up the game should they desire to, huge cast of characters, game play is never the exact same, multiple stories, multiple difficulties, semi-realistic portrayal of death, some great exploits (Coming from Intelligent Systems, I'm sure some of these were intended to help the player.), hidden chapters, a multiplayer mode (requires multiple games and systems. Each player builds teams from their current saved games and take on their friends choices with standard weaponry), extra features (Sound test, battle history, support history (supports occur between characters of similar affinities, this mode allows the player to view or watch these conversations whenever.) ), tons of side quests, extremely fun, and challenges the player to consider their situation before making a hasty move.


Problems

Characters that you spent inordinate amounts of time training can die and you only have one chance to regain these lost souls, but you probably won't want any of the possible characters that badly. The game calculates what happens based on a random number generator (RNG), so very good stuff can happen or very bad stuff can happen at the snap of a finger. Ex. I had a 99 % hit rate while my opponent had a 20% hit rate, I missed twice, they hit once. I died. The RNG can screw the player over, but typically it won't. I always wanted to do what I do in other RPG games: save before every battle so I could get the best stats and retain them, but this is not allowed because of the save system's design. It makes the game harder, so perhaps it's a good thing, but restarting because a character failed or got terrible stats is an easy method to add time to your rank and thus lower it. Some characters are so fruitless that it's better to train a weaker character and replace them. Most pre-promoted units have terrible stats. Some characters are terribly annoying in their dialogue. There are random fortresses everywhere and the characters can just run through or stay and get healed (This doesn't make sense. Trees do, Mountains do, this doesn't.). Enemies are rarely specified with names, enemy models reused just recolored, bosses can be idiots or wimps, and AI can fail sometimes especially in defend circumstances, but in general it is smart. (Except on hard mode, then the game screws you over on a highly regular basis by clustering attacks on the weakest character you have.) Money gets around rather quickly (Unrealistic portrayal of money isn't that big of a flaw, but you know with a game this good, they could have given a little more thought.). Multiplayer is pretty boring, but at least it is offered and it can include up to 4 simultaneous players. If you start Hector's story, in the first chapter, the characters can move without a tactician, but the same controls are proffered to the player. Whom is the player serving as in this instance? God? That's about all I can think of, but there are probably a couple more that could come to mind if I thought terribly long about the game.

Summary

Fire Emblem is a great game that tests its players and it should be tried by anyone willing to devote time to thinking. I like to think of it as a highly advanced form of chess for a frame of reference. If you have a Game boy advance (any version at all), a GBA player for your GameCube, or can find this game on Virtual GBA for the PC or something. Play it! I'm going to go continue my 6th play through now.





I called this thread a review of both the first American Fire Emblem and its sequel, so now I will add a little clarification on some differences between the first and second games. Sacred Stones has added new unit classes (evolutions, whatever you want to call them), some balancing changes between classes, completely new characters in a completely new setting, a new story, new weapons, some new bonuses, multiple storylines, new side quests, etc, but they still rely on the same style of game play. It's essentially the first game with some major updates.

It's a bit easier than the first because of infinite monster fights around the country, but it mostly retains the first game's style and challenge. If you do get this game, make sure to keep two separate save files for each of the related stories. I would recommend playing them both, but if you have to pick one, the first game is a better experience in my opinion because of the added difficulty and it is probably cheaper now. In any case, both are games worthy of adding to your collection and I guarantee you will want to come back one day and experience the challenge of Fire Emblem anew.


Sincerely,
Randomduded12

Intro I mentioned of historical events.

Fire Emblem- The Scouring Legends Close

A look at the introduction chapters of Fire Emblem.

Let's Play Fire Emblem: Challenge 01 - I'M BACK! Close

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12.11.08

Yo,

Think I’ll ride this post-final wave of elation into some creativity, and bring to a delayed recommendation for all those gamers you have yet to narrow down a gift for.

EDIT: It seems that it is still impossible for me to edit this blog more than once without the site crashing on me, but thankfully now I am at least able to upload in the first place. The more astute among you may have noticed that the 11th of this month passed some time ago. I have been attempting to upload this baby daily since the above date, but I was among those hit hardest by the Blog Crashing Issue. Now that this has been resolved, I hope you enjoy my most recent masterpiece, as I return to my quasi-regular writing schedule.

Name:Valkyria Chronicles

Genre:Tactical Role-Playing Game

Developer:Sega WOW

Publisher:Sega

Rating:T for Teen

Release Date:November 4th, 2008

Platforms:Playstation 3




Chronicles takes place in a fictionalized version of 1930s Western Europe – Europa - in the fictional country of Gallia. Similar to modern Switzerland, Gallia has a policy of required military service, despite a stalwart position of neutrality in all outside armed conflicts. Despite this political stance, the country’s denizens are called into battle once the ore-rich nation comes under attack by the East European Imperial Alliance, a move of their larger war with the Atlantic Federation.

Players take main control over Welkin Gunther, a university student – comme – commanding officer over Squad 7, one of the many units involved within the Gallian army. His military heritage, along with his extensive knowledge of local fauna/flora, dictates his strategy in battle and over his squad-mates. Amongst those in his unit are Brigitte Rosie Stark, former bar dancer turned lead assault fighter; Alicia Melchiott, the game’s heroine with powers yet unknown; Isara Gunther, Welkin’s younger sister and the unit’s tank maintenance; Eleanor Varrot, Welkin’s superior and captain of the Volunteer Corps of Gallia; and Largo Potter, the eldest member of the team with severe anti-tank skills.



The story boasts at least 30 hours of content to those that wish to just roll through the main quest. Dedicated enthusiasts can most likely mine at least 50 hours of content through the game’s many side missions and battles. The main plot of the game is split up between battles, so those looking for stringing together a couple of battles right after another may be deterred with the bookending cutscenes. Exposition also occurs with several segments during the larger chapter sequences of the game, and some short scenes can be found in the thick of some choice battles. Without going into too much detail, Sega has promised a complex back storyline for each character, with a main plot of betrayal and a conclusion ranked among the highest in RPGs of this generations by several publications.




The game’s graphics engine, Sega’s CANVAS, has given the game a well-crafted world of cell-shaded characters a slightly washed out color palette, giving the feeling of a moving water-color painting. The game’s motion cutscenes employ a slightly more polished look, with slight CG overlays that give the game an extra sense of dimension and depth. Universally praised, regardless of how any other aspect of the game was received, the IP has been named one of the best looking titles in the current PS3 library, eclipsed only by powerhouses like Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, and Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune. The rag-doll physics are convincing from a far angle, but closer shots may reveal more than a little clipping, and slightly over-done limb flailing. The most kitsche cosmetic attachment to the game’s visuals is the smatterings of comic-book style text supplementing some actions in game (a knock at a door comes with the word “knock” bouncing around the doorhandle, gunshots come with “ratta ratta” appearing next to the shooter’s arm, etc.)



The game features both the English and Japanese voice-over track, both of which are suitably dramatic and poignant. It is worth noting, though, that the lip synching on the English track more than slightly off, an aesthetic quibble, but one that gets under the fingernails of many gamers. The soundtrack is suitably epic, with a few tracks rising head and tails above the rest. The majority of the orchestral pieces, however, are well implemented and paced in the battle and story sequences; however, those that take longer to get through a single in-game scene may suffer a repeating song track. The full presentation package is one of great refreshment, not the blinding contrast of Mirror’s Edge’s stark city-scape, or the muddy browns and grays of yet another Gears of War frag-fest.




Chronicles lies halfway between the overhead movement of chess-like strategy games from the Tactics Ogre era, and the third-person gun slinging like any one of the many modern shooter releases. Battles begin with an overhead view of the entire map in focus, enemies and allies represented by color-coordinated iconography. Each squad member has a specialty and a weakness, designated in a sort of rock-paper-scissors mechanic of military expertise (including engineer, medics, assault infantry, etc.) Once a specific unit is selected, the game zooms down into the battleground, fixing the camera over the shoulder of the soldier in question. The player then moves the character around the battlefield according to action point meter that depletes as movement/attacks are taken. Players can take cover (and are recommended to by the depletion of the action point meter) to avoid enemy retaliation. When attacking an enemy, the game closes in to a closer angle to allow the player to target an enemy’s weak points and attempt direct types of attack. Once each character’s action meter has been exhausted, the game shifts into the enemies turn, where the placement of the player’s characters and cover affect the damage received. Battles are won, as per usual, by either defeating the breadth of the enemy units or an alternative motive such as flag capture or destruction of a specific unit/item.



The many types of arms and other material within the game can be purchased and upgraded through money received at the end of each battle, or completion of side-quest. It can also be used to upgrade a character’s stats and level up. The player has a roster of soldiers to select for battle, later including cameo appearances by a couple of characters from Skies of Arcadia.




- Wikipedia Page

- Offical US Page

- Official Japanese Page



- Two manga adaptations of the game have already had a Japanese release; one developed internally at Sega following a looser version of the main storyline, and another called ‘Valkyria Chronicles – Wish Your Smile’, following two original characters drafted into the Gallian army.

- An anime is scheduled for a 2009 release in Japan, developed by Aniplex’s A-1 Pictures. News updates for the series can be found here

- On a personal note, reviewers and fans alike have been toting this game’s art style as ‘original,’ to which I disagree with most vehemently. Despite the overall appeal of the visuals having a certain unique charm to them, the cell-shaded, washed-out aesthetics of the character designs are practically equivalent to those we saw on last year’s portable remake of Final Fantasy Tactics. As evidence, you will find a character picture from Chronicles here, and a character picture from Tactics here. Filter and thinness aside, am I the only one that sees the similarities here?




All too often these days, RPGs have to tack on the Action – prefix in order to sell well. It’s nice to see an effort to return to the days of the thinking gamer, where battles were won by strategy and intellect rather than anything else. If this is up your system-owning alley, you shouldn’t be without it. Even if you aren’t sure, wait silently for a moment. If you don’t spasm from the lack of adrenaline, you could probably stand to give this one a shot.

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 Finally an RPG for the Genesis that you won't want to use to prop up that coffee table leg.

 

 The Sega Genesis was a very popular machine. It had a popular mascot named Sonic the Hedgehog. It also had a signature archive of sports titles that were far superior to the SNES sports games. The one genre that was severely lacking was Role playing. The Genesis lacked role playing like Fullhouse lacked writers. Yes- there were the 3 Phantasy start titles, but they were turn based. Sega needed a Zelda ripoff. That is just what they got with Crusader of the Centry. The game may get overlooked because of the fact that it is a Zelda clone but there is actual a lot more to this title.

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