So E3 2011 has now come and gone and while you may have expected me to immediately toss up a reaction to the *makes sour face* Wii U. I think I'm actually more excited about the PSVita at this point. Don't get me wrong, Nintendo's new system - let's just refer to it as "the system that shall not be named" - looks like some awesome technology, but I think Nintendo did an absolutely terrible job of revealing it during their press conference. Their showing brought up far too many questions and far too few answers (though some answers have trickled through the media since Tuesday).
But all of that is besides the point because I'm writing up this blog today to discuss Sony's new handheld. Why am I doing this? Because I feel like I'm the only one excited at this point and that the system is receiving a lot of flack or is just generally unknown. I'll agree that Sony has taken some very big missteps - especially in the handheld market *cough* PSPGo *cough*- but I'm hoping the following five reasons as to why I'll be picking up the Vita might help to change your mind.
With just about a week until gaming's biggest event, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), I decided it was just about time to chime in with my predictions, hopes, and fears for what is promising to be a very exciting year. To make things easier I'll divide this blog into the familiar breakdown of the big three conferences and then wrap up with some third party games I'd like to see. Let's start with the system I no longer own, X-Box 360.
If you have somehow managed to never play a Traveller's Tales Lego video game before this point do yourself a favor and slap yourself across the face. After you're finished with that, go ahead and find a copy of Lego Star Wars or Lego Indiana Jones and get started. However, if you're like me and you can't get enough of the genius combination of everyone's favorite connectable bricks and movie series in video game form, then you've probably just played through Lego Pirates of the Caribbean and are wondering what Traveller's Tales has up their sleeve next. Well the answer to that question would of course be the second half of the Harry Potter series, which was officially announced not too long ago. But, considering the fact that the Lego game franchise has raked in millions of dollars, it would be very surprising if TT called in quits after that. So the question remains - after the likes of Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, Batman, and Pirates of the Caribbean, where does a developer go next? After much consideration, here are my top five picks.
Top 5 Franchises Traveller's Tales Needs to Lego-ify Next
Brink is a bit of an odd entity. It's one of those games that has sort of flown under the radar for a long time while occasionally tossing very tantalizing little clips at its followers every now and then - sort of like some sketchy dude driving really slowly through your neighborhood and tossing out candies. In both situations the question "is this legit?" comes to mind. Well, because I don't want all you readers out there dropping $60just to find out, I decided to swim out into deep water and investigate Brink's ark.
The bonfire snapped and cracked as its flames bounded around the small pile of wood beneath it. Even though the night was not an abnormally cool one for late summer, I stretched out my hands and felt the searing warmth of the fire. I looked over to see Jesse and Tommy laughing in the flickering orange light. A hand clamped down upon my shoulder, and I turned to see Jon’s figure emerge as he steadied himself to climb over the crude log bench I was sitting upon. The deafening roar of the crickets and bullfrogs and the chatter of the youth surrounding the campfire was then broken by a single commanding voice.
“All right, before we begin tonight, does anyone have anything they’d like to share?” The Wednesday night youth leader of our church was sitting on a log next to the fire.
Since all of my writing time has been dedicated to a paper for my finals this week I thought I'd upload an older research paper I wrote about one of my favorite composers. It was written about a year or so ago but I think it's still pretty solid. Make sure to listen to the links afterward for the full experience. Enjoy.
Yoko Shimomura
What is commonly referred to as “classical” music has come a very long way. Starting from the humblest beginnings of simpler instruments and uncomplicated compositions in the medieval ages, through the more elaborate compositions of the Baroque period, to the unforgettable symphonies and movements of the Classical and Romantic periods; music clearly has a legacy as varied and evolving as history itself. It seems like this legacy has arrived today most commonly (to the mass public at least) alongside the mediums of theatre and film. Asking someone off of the street for the name of a late twentieth century composer, the most common reply would probably be film-scoring mastermind John Williams.
Though it's been less than three years since the release of Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe, it feels like much longer since a Mortal Kombat game has been released. Luckily, the stars above Earthrealm have aligned and just when you thought the franchise was finally dead; Scorpion, Sub-Zero and all of their weird friends return for another round of gore-tastic fatalities.
Let me preface this gut reaction by saying that I'm not a huge fan of the fighting game genre (despite Super Smash Bros being in my top five favorite franchises - but does that really count?). There's something about learning complicated series of joystick quarter-turns and button presses and applying them within the blink of an eye that has never appealed to me. This could be, in part, because I was never very good at it. The other main reason I've avoided the genre is because it's usually really only fun with two or more people and this boils down to me either getting slaughtered by someone who loves fighting games or getting slaughtered by someone wildly button-mashing.
It feels like it's a been a very long time since we've been lost in the sterile, mind-bending halls of the Aperture Science Laboratories - but for those who have played through the first Portal, I guarantee that this is a time that will not be forgotten. Nevertheless, like many avid fans out there, I couldn't wait to jump back into GLaDOS' twisted world of first person mind games... in the name of science, of course.
I'm still here. I know you were worried about me, but I've been doing fine - just a lot of school work, homework, and work work. Luckily my classes are done by May 6th and then I'll have the WHOLE summer to post random little blogs, thoughts, ideas, videos, lists, and everything else that is awesome. In the mean time though I wanted to blog about two very random different things.
Hello readers. I was going to start this post with another apology for not posting in over a week and then I realized that I usually start my posts with exactly that - so I think at this point it's a given. Hopefully when summer rolls around I'll have a bit more time to blog but until then keep your eyes open every week or so.
Now that that's out of the way let's move right on to what I wanted to blog about today: the Nintendo 3DS. If you haven't been keeping up on the video game front and have no idea what a "3DS" is then check out the official specs and features here. All right, now that I don't have to go in to descriptive detail about the unit itself let me start by saying: yes, it works.
Even though I should probably be writing a paper for school right now I just played the first 30-45 minutes of Homefront and decided I would take this chance to start (what will hopefully be) a new series here on the blog that I'm tentatively calling "Gut Reactions." Basically I'm going to spew out my thoughts on the first thirty minutes to an hour of games I play and hopefully form some sort of opinion that will help you judge if you want to give the game a shot or not. I'm thinking that this format (without previously used ratings scales or lengthy and formal prose) will allow me to actually update more often and quicker than a full review. Make sure you let me know what you think. Without further ado: enjoy!
Homefront - Gut Reactions
The game begins with actual video of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a press conference discussing a North Korean attack on South Koreans that occurred not too long ago. Homefront uses this incident and other similar ones as a jumping off point and spirals through years 2012-2027 (the latter being when the game takes place) all the while showing various clips, news reports, and stock war footage in order to weave a story of North Korea eventually occupying the United States. While the concept is tied together well enough there are certainly some gaping holes and the intro really felt more like a xenophobic conspiracy theorist's dreamworld than an overly realistic outcome of the next quarter of a decade.
Since I haven't posted anything in ten days - I was actually busier than I thought this Spring break and really didn't feel too inspired unfortunately - I thought I would take a few minutes now to copy/paste an essay I wrote last month for my Nonfiction Workshop class. I believe I got an A- on it (which I'm quite pleased about) but definitely let me know what you think with a comment below. I really will try to post something else before the week is done but since I do have another paper or two to write I can't make any promises. Stay tuned though and enjoy the essay below.
The Boggling Gardener
Though both of my parents come from fairly large families, I can’t recall a time when we lived within the same city (let alone the same state or province) as any of my grandparents, aunts, uncles, or cousins. At first, this might seem like a negative circumstance, but growing up it felt grander to me to see my relatives after a long family drive to a distant land. More than any other location, though, I yearned for the times when we would travel to Sault St. Marie, Ontario, to visit my grandparents. It didn’t matter that the drive from Montreal, Quebec to Sault St. Marie was roughly twelve hours long. When we eventually pulled up the dirt road to that quaint yellow house my grandfather built with his own two hands over half-a-century ago, the rush of nostalgia and the fresh country air made it all worthwhile.
I should first state that the 360 in question is actually my third or fourth 360 due to various issues with freezing and the system generally not being built even remotely well. I managed never to get the dreaded Red Ring of Death but that doesn't mean I avoided the other avalanche of issues that plague one of the most faulty products I can think of. Imagine if other items you purchased had a 54.2% chance of failing? Would you drive a car where the odds that it would break down were better than the odds that it would actually work? Having worked at Gamestop for a little while now, I can also attest to this statistic. I don't think I've yet to work a shift where someone has not either traded in a broken X-Box 360 or called about/mentioned issues with one.
However, this is not the reason I'm trading in my X-Box 360 - miraculously the unit is still somehow working - no, I'm trading it in because there simply isn't a reason to have both the 360 and PS3. Like many, I used to simply have the 360 because of the fantastic online capability and party system... but when it comes down to it, I'd rather not pay the eight or nine dollars a month (I'm monthly subscribed for some reason) and enjoy PS3s comparable FREE online.
The only real benefits to the 360 that remain then would be the exclusives and the FPS-centered controller. Well as for the controller, I think I'm going to try this and this. And as far as exclusives go, let's look at what's been planned exclusively for PS3 this year:
Killzone 3
LittleBigPlanet 2
Resistance 3
Infamous 2
Socom 4
Uncharted 3
(just to name a few)
Now let's take a gander at X-Box 360's exclusives:
Gears of War 3
Kinectimals
Umm... Halo Map Packs?
I sure hope X-Box is up to something and has some serious plans for E3 this June because at this rate I think the choice is fairly obvious. But what do you think? Do you have any 360 stories to tell me? Am I just being a ranting fanboy?
So here I am again with another Simpsons reference (in case you missed it) because I feel like it pretty much sums up what's been going on here in New Hampshire - lots and lots of snow and rain. Luckily my school hasn't been canceled despite me wishing as hard as I can x_.x. But hey it's March 1st, that's exciting right? I thought I'd just do a quick little update/blog post. I guess the first thing I should talk about is the Academy Awards (and thanks to everyone who came over and watched them - I had a great night!). So I have to say it was probably one of the most unsurprising Oscars I have seen. The King's Speech pretty much swept as everyone expected it to. It was, however, nice to see Inception win best Cinematography (and rightly so). Not too much else to say here really other than the obvious about Hailee Steinfeld being robbed (even though I knew it was going to happen it doesn't make it any less annoying).
Yes, like GLaDOS I am in fact still alive despite the fact that I haven't posted anything in over a week. Firstly, my apologies on that - I've actually been crazy busy between school and work. Secondly, the Oscars are tomorrow night! I've actually seen more than half of the picture nominees this year (haven't seen Black Swan, The Fighter, King's Speech, or The Kids Are All Right) and I must say I'm excited to find out who will win. I recently watched Winter's Bone and while it was incredibly slow I have to say that it definitely wasn't bad and I can see the nomination for Jennifer Lawrence being justified. Alongside Winter's Bone I also rented Megamind, The Road, and Paper Man (I'll attach links to those so you can follow them to their IMDBs).
So for Valentine's Day this year, since I sadly do not have a Valentine, I thought I would make a short list of my favorite romantic scenes from some of my favorite movies. Please realize that this is not a "Best Romantic Scenes" list - it is merely a list of scenes that I love (though I'm sure I'll forget many). They aren't in any particular order and I think this time (unlike my previous lists) I'm just going to post the video links and not explain why I love them... you should be able to figure it out :P So anyway, sit back, relax, and enjoy!
P.S. Indeed I am a hopeless romantic. I can't help it.
P.S.S. Spoiler alert!
Oops, it's once again been over a week since I last posted! I really do apologize for that. I started working on a "Most Anticipated Films of 2011" list but it's taking longer than I anticipated. That and I've actually been really busy with school work. I did somehow manage to play through the last couple hours of Dead Space 2 though and I have to say it's absolutely fantastic. The ending was very well done and it was just an incredibly solid game throughout. I think I can honestly say I've never felt such a real feeling of anxiety and dread while playing a game. The only negative thing I can say about it really is that I probably shouldn't have played on hard my first time through... x_.x
So yes Valentine's Day is quickly approaching. And you know what's sad, I've never had a girlfriend over Valentine's Day :( I know, hard to believe right? What's that? It's not, you say? Well you don't have to be so mean about it. In all honesty it definitely would be nice to find that special someone but I'm hoping that all this waiting will make it that much more worth it when I do find her. And it would be nice to have someone to help my arms from getting cold in this February air. Anyway, I plan on making a special little post on good ol' Saint Valentine's Day so make sure you check back then.
Umm... I think that's basically it. Feel free to comment about whatever comes to mind. Have a great weekend!
I almost forgot it was Groundhog Day (who didn't really?). However, Groundhog Day is made that much more amazing because of the movie of the same name starring Bill Murray. If you haven't seen it, do yourself a favor and rent it or buy it.
So I guess the word of the week here in New Hampshire is "Snow." I think it's finally stopped out there but we've just received another two feet or so to add to the three or four that are already blanketing the state. On the bright side, when it finally stops snowing it looks dang beautiful out in the sun. On the even brighter side, school was once again canceled today which means that it's been another lazy day of staying in my warm pajamas and breaking up homework with movies, TV, and video games.
There's something inherently exciting about finding a new TV show that is really interesting and being able to watch entire seasons. That is why I love you, Netflix. Recently I watched the first two seasons of the Animal Planet series River Monsters. If you haven't seen it and have any interest in insanely large or strange fish then I would highly suggest it (make sure you have a strong stomach too though because it can get gross). The host, Jeremy Wade, is just plain awesome. Not only is he a biologist and "extreme angler" but he's definitely entertaining to watch and most episodes play out in a sort of "CSI" was-this-fish-really-the-murderer sort of way.
So if you haven't heard, the Oscar nominations for 2010 were announced a couple of days ago and I must say I'm very pleased with the results. Many of my favorite films of the year have been nominated but I think I was most happy to see that Hailee Steinfeld, the incredible young actress of only 14, was nominated for Best Supporting Actress (Mattie Ross in True Grit). I think it's a bit of a shame that she was not recognized as the lead actress of the film merely because of her age but it is certainly well deserved for a fantastic job nonetheless.
As usual I somehow missed the movie that received the most nominations (The King's Speech) but I did manage to see a fair amount of the other films nominated including 127 Hours - which I just saw yesterday. If you're unfamiliar with the film (which I think most people are at this point) it's an adaptation of the very true story about how hiker Aron Ralston became trapped under an 800 pound boulder for 5 days before amputating his own arm with a blunt pocket knife. As you can imagine, it's not the easiest film to watch, but with Danny Boyle (of Slumdog Millionaire fame) at the helm it was incredibly well done. James Franco received a nomination for Best Actor for his portrayal and I do believe it's also well deserved.
I think I'll actually keep this post short (which I always say but never do) and end it with this paragraph. I'm sure I'll talk more about the Oscars as they draw nearer and I will also try and post an update about what else I've been playing, watching, and generally what's been up in my life (spoiler alert: mostly school). Until then, have a great day and go read my older posts :P
I haven't done a plain old blog post in a while have I? It's all been lists and advertisements and blah blah blah. Well in honor of the fact that I'm still awake and it's 12:30 (WAAAAY past my bed-time) I thought I'd ramble on for a bit. Let's start with how I'm doing. Generally I'm feeling pretty well. School's started up again and it's been good so far. My new classes (Brit Lit, Ethics, Nonfiction Workshop, Humanities 2) all seem to be pretty solid and I think I'm going to have some fun this semester and learn a lot. There's definitely a couple places where I feel I'm struggling though and unfortunately those places are the most important ones.
The first is in a subtle loneliness. I feel as though I've come a very long way with my anxiety issues and the day to day but I often still feel lonely at times if I'm being honest with myself. I feel like I have a hard time making friends and meeting new people in New Hampshire. I love the friends I've made and appreciate everything they do but it seems like all my friends are from high school. Despite my best efforts I can't help feeling, at times, that I am per chance slightly unlovable.
Everything in the above paragraph leads into the second stumbling and struggling in my life - which is church. I'm not sure who's reading this or who will be reading this but I feel that I really need to find a church around here so if anybody has any ideas please let me know. I find it more and more difficult to find a solid church where I really fit in the older I get. Perhaps it's simply the changing times or the area I live in but it has been difficult nonetheless. I remember a few years ago feeling as though everything made sense and God had brought me to this point in my life after so many moves and changes for a reason. I still believe that but I feel like some of that feeling of direction has faded and I want to find it again.
Well before things get too depressing I should inform you that I received a letter the other day informing me that I'm on the President's List at my university after last semester's straight A's (w00t!) and every class I take I feel I am closer to becoming the writer I want to be. Speaking of which, I don't know if I've mentioned my novel much on here ("Hunting the Seven") but I am still working on it. I actually have a query letter worked out and the novel has been completely edited several times now. As I take new classes and grow in my writing though, and I can't help but go back for one more edit. Hopefully this summer will be the summer I finally send it out to some publishers and see if it'll catch. I really feel like I'm finally ready.
I'd say that's probably enough rambling for now though so I'll leave you with a song to inspire (though it may not seem like it at first). Deathbed by Relient K is by far one of my favorite songs of all time. Here it is:
Make sure you listen to and read the incredible lyrics. God's grace is completely and wholly awesome and undeniable.
I'd also like to share another one of my all-time favorite songs that I share with everyone. Some of the best advice I can think of. Enjoy!
I thought I'd do just a little post here in honor of everyone's favorite wall-crawler since I haven't done a non-2010 list post in nearly a month. Before I get to what I have to say about Peter Parker and his web-slinging alter-ego though, why don't I fill everyone in on what's been going on.
I've been promoting this list for a while now and I think the reason is that it has been the most difficult for me to put together. There were a ton of great films this past year and ranking them has been near impossible. Before I actually get into the list let me remind everyone that I DID NOT see every movie that came out in 2010 (not even all the films I wanted to) and this is purely my opinion. I will include a few lines with each film choice explaining why it is my choice. Most importantly though: enjoy and let me know what you think! (Also, I just couldn't cut it down to 20... so um yeah.)
(Yikes, sorry it took me so long to get this out. I probably should have posted something in the mean time. Anyway here it is.)
Hello everyone and Happy New Year! It's taken me a while to sort out all of my favorite games from 2010 but I think I finally have a pretty solid list here (there are still a few more films I'd like to see before I make my movie list so sit tight for that one). Without further ado, here are my top 20 favorite games of 2010.
Honorable Mention
Before we get into the actual top 20 there are a few titles that I either did not play enough or didn't get a chance to play but deserve mention and possibly a position on a future list. These are:
Fallout: New Vegas Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Super Mario Galaxy 2
Perhaps I'll get a chance to play them sometime soon but with LittleBigPlanet 2 just a few weeks away chances are looking slim. :P
