As a fan of Pitch Black I was more excited than I probably should have been that the Riddick series was getting a new installment. Mildly disappointed after Chronicles of Riddick, I should have kept my expectations low, but something in the trailer made me believe again.
Riddick is plauged with awful dialogue, terrible CG and a lack of character development that leaves audiences wanting.
The films dialogue as previously stated, is atrocious, the actors deliver their lines with little to no conviction and there is a kind of mental dissonance between their actions and their delivery. It's almost as if someone forgot connect the mic and decided there wasn't enough time and they would edit in a recorded table read. The problem is not so much that the dialogue was cheesy, because this was an action movie and I expected it to be cheesy, predictable and a cliche like most action movies are, but that's sometimes what makes action movies great.
Remember when I said I liked Pitch Black, it's still true, I like that movie, but remember how Pitch Black is getting on in years? Yea me to, but you should watch it again because it holds up surprisingly well. Do you want to know what doesn't? This movie, the CG looks like it came out of a SyFy original TV series and I mean no disrespect to SyFy shows, because I watch some of them, but this movie, had a larger budget. The beasts on the planet were definitely serviceable, but once Vin Diesel gets his pet zebra/hyena/wolf/lion and whatever other animal hybrid, it's as if he is talking to a marker on a stick. All of the flight scenes are terrible and look like they came out of an FMV sequence from a PlayStation 1 game. If I were 12 and this movie came out 15 years ago I would have been pretty impressed, but it didn't, and I wasn't.
Speaking further on Riddick speaking to his pet hybrid creature, there is no development of the bond the two are supposed to share. So when (GIANT SPOILERS TO A MOVIE YOU SHOULDN'T CARE ABOUT AND ITS NOT EVEN REALLY A SPOILER BECAUSE YOU SEE IT COMING FROM MILES AWAY) this thing dies I didn't even care, because the movie let me know that it was going to die, because it's garbage. There wasn't a clear antagonist in the film so when (GIANT SPOILERS TO A MOVIE YOU SHOULDN'T CARE ABOUT AND ITS NOT EVEN REALLY A SPOILER BECAUSE YOU SEE IT COMING FROM MILES AWAY) the person you think is supposed to be the main antagonist of the film dies at about the half way point, you're left scratching your head wondering how the movie is going to have an hour of resolution.
Some of the enemy deaths almost make this movie worth fast-forwarding so you can see them, but I wouldn't even tell you to waste your time on that. Skip to the slide-cut scene (sword goes through something it looks whole for a couple of seconds then slides and falls off) and call it quits.
Riddick really has no redeeming qualities and be glad that I watched it so you don't have to. Riddick will probably see one or two more films as the end of the film has that open ended ending that I am beginning to hate in Hollywood, because sequels used to be delightful rather than expected.
My Rating: If you have a hankering for some Riddick pop Pitch Black in your preferred media player and watch it again and find that sweet spot between the fourth and fifth vertebrae
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Rust Adventure Journal: Day 1
Blinded by the light I awoke and found the whole world had changed, what was once a living breathing organism is now a desolate, barren wasteland. I was lucky enough to find a torch and some bandages next to me as well as a sharp enough rock to use as a makeshift tool.
I found myself near a road that stretches for what looks like miles in both directions and I had to decide which way to travel. I thought of my friends and trying to get my bearings so that I might find them. I know the sun rises in the East and sets in the West and the sun looked as if it was setting. I decided to try and find my friends who used to live out on the West side of town, but God only knows if I will be able to find them.
After several hours of traveling the road I started to feel hungry, luckily there was a pig near the road and I did what needed to be done. This is the first time I had to kill for my own food, I felt sick, the work is messy and I realized I need to fashion myself some sort of tool using the sharpened rock. Skinning the pig I found several chicken breasts along with some cloth, relying on knowledge that must have been passed down through the ages, my primal side takes over and there I was crafting a hatchet I feel accomplished.
I built a sorry excuse for a camp and I lit a fire so that I could cook the raw chicken that the pig for some reason had. I sat with my hatchet by my side as I stoked the fire and allowed the food to cook. Devouring my food I decided it best to wait for day and watch the sunrise. I heard footsteps and before I could do anything a voice called out, "leave what's cooking and we'll let you live!" startled and struck with a fear I have never known, my heart beat hard in my chest, fear took over and I felt ashamed I let what was mine go and I didn't even fight for it.
I made my way by the light of the moon further down the road and in the distance and saw a town with a giant, dormant smoke stack. I am drawn toward it, it gives me hope modicum of civilization remains and that we will make it through whatever it is has taken our way of life. I continued my walk along the road and I heard screams of agony and moaning. I figured this was ground zero and I ran toward it trying to see if I could help, what I saw next will stay with me for the rest of my life.
I saw a man stuck between life and death who couldn't decide whether he was staying or going. He and I locked eyes and his face contorted with rage as he let out a primal shout and started to run at me arms flailing.
Back-peddling and almost falling over, I found my feet and ran as fast as I could and as I did I heard a whiz and then a splat as an arrow struck the man down his decision made for him, he was going and the arrow was going to take him there. A hooded man emerged from the shadows into the light of the breaking dawn and introduced himself.
"My name is Pnutz," he said.
"I'm Lancernemo," I replied.
"You better watch yourself out here, you know how to--"
"Friendly?" a new voice interrupted.
"Friendly," Pnutz said
"Good," said the voice and a man with a rock much like my own started to beat Pnutz, all the while Pnutz screamed friendly. Pnutz tried to loose three arrows and none found their mark, with his dying breath he told me to run. So I did...
I found myself near a road that stretches for what looks like miles in both directions and I had to decide which way to travel. I thought of my friends and trying to get my bearings so that I might find them. I know the sun rises in the East and sets in the West and the sun looked as if it was setting. I decided to try and find my friends who used to live out on the West side of town, but God only knows if I will be able to find them.
After several hours of traveling the road I started to feel hungry, luckily there was a pig near the road and I did what needed to be done. This is the first time I had to kill for my own food, I felt sick, the work is messy and I realized I need to fashion myself some sort of tool using the sharpened rock. Skinning the pig I found several chicken breasts along with some cloth, relying on knowledge that must have been passed down through the ages, my primal side takes over and there I was crafting a hatchet I feel accomplished.
I built a sorry excuse for a camp and I lit a fire so that I could cook the raw chicken that the pig for some reason had. I sat with my hatchet by my side as I stoked the fire and allowed the food to cook. Devouring my food I decided it best to wait for day and watch the sunrise. I heard footsteps and before I could do anything a voice called out, "leave what's cooking and we'll let you live!" startled and struck with a fear I have never known, my heart beat hard in my chest, fear took over and I felt ashamed I let what was mine go and I didn't even fight for it.
I made my way by the light of the moon further down the road and in the distance and saw a town with a giant, dormant smoke stack. I am drawn toward it, it gives me hope modicum of civilization remains and that we will make it through whatever it is has taken our way of life. I continued my walk along the road and I heard screams of agony and moaning. I figured this was ground zero and I ran toward it trying to see if I could help, what I saw next will stay with me for the rest of my life.
I saw a man stuck between life and death who couldn't decide whether he was staying or going. He and I locked eyes and his face contorted with rage as he let out a primal shout and started to run at me arms flailing.
Back-peddling and almost falling over, I found my feet and ran as fast as I could and as I did I heard a whiz and then a splat as an arrow struck the man down his decision made for him, he was going and the arrow was going to take him there. A hooded man emerged from the shadows into the light of the breaking dawn and introduced himself.
"My name is Pnutz," he said.
"I'm Lancernemo," I replied.
"You better watch yourself out here, you know how to--"
"Friendly?" a new voice interrupted.
"Friendly," Pnutz said
"Good," said the voice and a man with a rock much like my own started to beat Pnutz, all the while Pnutz screamed friendly. Pnutz tried to loose three arrows and none found their mark, with his dying breath he told me to run. So I did...
Saturday, May 8, 2010
KMK Ep 4
I just posted a new episode of KMK. You probably all check it out. It's our most off topic podcast yet. It's over at kmk.podbean.com
Friday, April 16, 2010
Respawn Entertainment
According to GameRadar.com EA has signed on to work with former Infinity Ward heads to create a new studio.
If I understand this correctly, I can only assume that Activision is kicking themselves in their teeth right now. Let's let go the people who helped create one of our greatest franchise only to have them picked up by our rival game publisher...Smooth move Activision.
This comes at a time where both parties are suing one another and at least now the former Infinity Ward heads have something to put them in a positive light instead of a legal battle with one of the biggest game publishers around.
On a much lighter note, I have been sitting on a link for a while and then a friend sent it to me so I decided to check it out. It's grooveshark.com. It's an internet radio like Pandora, but from what I can tell it's a hell of a lot better. There is more variety and you can pick the music that you want to listen to, as in full albums streamed at good quality. Check it out. Thanks to TJ.
And on a final note, KMK episdoe 4 will be coming soon as I find the time to edit it and put it up on podbean.
Nigel
If I understand this correctly, I can only assume that Activision is kicking themselves in their teeth right now. Let's let go the people who helped create one of our greatest franchise only to have them picked up by our rival game publisher...Smooth move Activision.
This comes at a time where both parties are suing one another and at least now the former Infinity Ward heads have something to put them in a positive light instead of a legal battle with one of the biggest game publishers around.
On a much lighter note, I have been sitting on a link for a while and then a friend sent it to me so I decided to check it out. It's grooveshark.com. It's an internet radio like Pandora, but from what I can tell it's a hell of a lot better. There is more variety and you can pick the music that you want to listen to, as in full albums streamed at good quality. Check it out. Thanks to TJ.
And on a final note, KMK episdoe 4 will be coming soon as I find the time to edit it and put it up on podbean.
Nigel
Monday, April 5, 2010
A break from games
Whoa, it's been awhile.
Alright let's get to the meat of the message here. Since last week I have been listening to two artists almost exclusively. These two artists are Pomplamoose and Ronald Jenkees.
Let's start with Pomplamoose as they have almost taken over my ears. In all honesty, I have no idea why I didn't start listening to Pomplamoose sooner than I did, only because I have heard some of their stuff before and thought it was pretty incredible. Pomplamoose has some really awesome covers, but they are much more than just a cover band with creative and original songs as well. The band consists of two people Jack Conte and Nataly Dawn who play a variety of instruments and edit them into very awesome music videos.
Nataly's vocals are among some of the best I have ever heard. There is something soothing and relaxing in the way she sings. Jack and Nataly have an impressive repertoire of instruments that they play. The sound is so hard for me to describe just go check their videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/PomplamooseMusic or buy their album on iTunes.
Recommended Tracks: Pomplamoose - Little Things
Pomplamosse - If You Think You Need
Some
Ronald Jenkees is a keyboardist with incredible talent, he also knows how to lay a pretty rad back beat to his music. My only problem with Jenkees is that he has this online persona for youtube that kind of bugs me...at least I think it's an online persona if not he doesnt' bug me at all. Jenkees is also one of those musicians you go back to and wonder why the hell you weren't listening to them all along.
You can also check out Jenkees' youtube page at http://www.youtube.com/user/ronaldjenkees?blend=1&ob=4
Recommended Tracks: Ronald Jenkees - Throwing Fire
Ronald Jenkees - Guitar Sound
Alright let's get to the meat of the message here. Since last week I have been listening to two artists almost exclusively. These two artists are Pomplamoose and Ronald Jenkees.
Let's start with Pomplamoose as they have almost taken over my ears. In all honesty, I have no idea why I didn't start listening to Pomplamoose sooner than I did, only because I have heard some of their stuff before and thought it was pretty incredible. Pomplamoose has some really awesome covers, but they are much more than just a cover band with creative and original songs as well. The band consists of two people Jack Conte and Nataly Dawn who play a variety of instruments and edit them into very awesome music videos.
Nataly's vocals are among some of the best I have ever heard. There is something soothing and relaxing in the way she sings. Jack and Nataly have an impressive repertoire of instruments that they play. The sound is so hard for me to describe just go check their videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/PomplamooseMusic or buy their album on iTunes.
Recommended Tracks: Pomplamoose - Little Things
Pomplamosse - If You Think You Need
Some
Ronald Jenkees is a keyboardist with incredible talent, he also knows how to lay a pretty rad back beat to his music. My only problem with Jenkees is that he has this online persona for youtube that kind of bugs me...at least I think it's an online persona if not he doesnt' bug me at all. Jenkees is also one of those musicians you go back to and wonder why the hell you weren't listening to them all along.
You can also check out Jenkees' youtube page at http://www.youtube.com/user/ronaldjenkees?blend=1&ob=4
Recommended Tracks: Ronald Jenkees - Throwing Fire
Ronald Jenkees - Guitar Sound
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Mass Effect 2 and what this means for gaming.
Mass Effect 2 revolutionizes what a sequel should be in the western RPG market.
I finished Mass Effect 2 and I can safely say that it is the best western RPG I have ever played. It now ranks in my top 10 favorite RPGs of all time and I am venturing a guess that this game will have no rival in terms of what a sequel does to evolve a storyline.
Mass Effect 2 as stated in my last post, is the follow up to Mass Effect...duh. In Mass Effect there are tens of hundreds of choices a player can make that shapes the plot of Mass Effect, but as the saying goes "all roads lead to Rome" so to do all choices in Mass Effect lead to the end goal of the game. Regardless of how players chose to get there, the end destination is the same for every player save a couple minor details.
That is, until Mass Effect 2 game along. Never in my life as a gamer have I ever been shown the consequences of my actions on a longer time-line. I will say that it is one of the most awe-inspiring moments to see that all of those good choices I made in Mass Effect are so far reaching that they even help countless others in Mass Effect 2.
Knowing now that my consequences have actions, choices became even harder to make and had more impact. Choice no longer became "Do you skin this family alive for lying to you, or do you let them go?" I now had to debate on what the consequences of my actions would have to be in the long run.
Perhaps my next statement is a tad to early to tell, but it could be that BioWare is making a statement to the players of the game. Saying "Wake up gamers, choices do exist and they have consequences."
While this statement may seem an obvious one, how often do we see gamers choosing games over family or other obligations. I love games and always will,but a problem with my peers seems to be a general separation from the choices that they are making. Even now as I write this blog, I wonder if this would not be better a discussion to have in a public forum open for debate and the kind of feedback that one can only receive while having genuine human interaction. But, I guess that's a topic for another day.
I finished Mass Effect 2 and I can safely say that it is the best western RPG I have ever played. It now ranks in my top 10 favorite RPGs of all time and I am venturing a guess that this game will have no rival in terms of what a sequel does to evolve a storyline.
Mass Effect 2 as stated in my last post, is the follow up to Mass Effect...duh. In Mass Effect there are tens of hundreds of choices a player can make that shapes the plot of Mass Effect, but as the saying goes "all roads lead to Rome" so to do all choices in Mass Effect lead to the end goal of the game. Regardless of how players chose to get there, the end destination is the same for every player save a couple minor details.
That is, until Mass Effect 2 game along. Never in my life as a gamer have I ever been shown the consequences of my actions on a longer time-line. I will say that it is one of the most awe-inspiring moments to see that all of those good choices I made in Mass Effect are so far reaching that they even help countless others in Mass Effect 2.
Knowing now that my consequences have actions, choices became even harder to make and had more impact. Choice no longer became "Do you skin this family alive for lying to you, or do you let them go?" I now had to debate on what the consequences of my actions would have to be in the long run.
Perhaps my next statement is a tad to early to tell, but it could be that BioWare is making a statement to the players of the game. Saying "Wake up gamers, choices do exist and they have consequences."
While this statement may seem an obvious one, how often do we see gamers choosing games over family or other obligations. I love games and always will,but a problem with my peers seems to be a general separation from the choices that they are making. Even now as I write this blog, I wonder if this would not be better a discussion to have in a public forum open for debate and the kind of feedback that one can only receive while having genuine human interaction. But, I guess that's a topic for another day.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Quick hit reviews
"Mass Effect"
I just recently beat Mass Effect and despite it's physics flaws and chugging frame rate, I felt a need to finish this game.
"Mass Effect" does a lot of things that were refreshing during my play-through. Namely, "Mass Effect" had a story that was engaging and created a bond between my characters and me. The choices were very basic and binary at the beginning, which led me to believe that I was going to have to trudge through "Mass Effect" making choices that had no real consequences or bearing on what would happen later in the game. Yet, late in the game there is a choice that really affected me. I was totally blindsided and wasn't ready for the ramifications of the choice I was going to have to make. Everything considered, I finished "Mass Effect" which says a lot about what the game does as I normally can't be bothered to finish a game.
"Mass Effect 2"
Finishing "Mass Effect" I felt the need for more, and I was blessed that BioWare was going to release "Mass Effect 2" the day after I have finished. "Mass Effect 2" is one of the most beautiful games of this generation. BioWare polished out the frame rate issues of the first "Mass Effect" was plagued with. Importing saved games from the first allows for continuation of the narrative and allows for even more connection to even the most minor characters from the first. I have not finished my first play-through but thus far the story seems to be every bit as driving as the first.
I just recently beat Mass Effect and despite it's physics flaws and chugging frame rate, I felt a need to finish this game.
"Mass Effect" does a lot of things that were refreshing during my play-through. Namely, "Mass Effect" had a story that was engaging and created a bond between my characters and me. The choices were very basic and binary at the beginning, which led me to believe that I was going to have to trudge through "Mass Effect" making choices that had no real consequences or bearing on what would happen later in the game. Yet, late in the game there is a choice that really affected me. I was totally blindsided and wasn't ready for the ramifications of the choice I was going to have to make. Everything considered, I finished "Mass Effect" which says a lot about what the game does as I normally can't be bothered to finish a game.
"Mass Effect 2"
Finishing "Mass Effect" I felt the need for more, and I was blessed that BioWare was going to release "Mass Effect 2" the day after I have finished. "Mass Effect 2" is one of the most beautiful games of this generation. BioWare polished out the frame rate issues of the first "Mass Effect" was plagued with. Importing saved games from the first allows for continuation of the narrative and allows for even more connection to even the most minor characters from the first. I have not finished my first play-through but thus far the story seems to be every bit as driving as the first.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
KMK Episode 3
My laziness has finally been overcome, I have finished editing Kamikazee Mind Kontrol so take a listen...it's good, I think.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
KMK Episode 3
OK, I figure if I post I will finally get around to editing the second half of the podcast. It should be out next week sometime.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Game Reviews
In the past two weeks I have been thrust back into the world of table top gaming, and I will say that it has been a long time coming that I reunite with my table top pals. In the past two weeks I have also learned two new games.
A Game of Thrones card game:
"A Game of Thrones" is the first book in the G.R.R. Martin book series "Song of Ice and Fire." The objective of the game is to reach 15 power which are points you recieve for receive for completing various tasks.
You can play a "Joust" which is a 1 on 1 game and a "Melee" which is for multi-player games. I got to participate in one of each of the game modes.
In my first game I played a melee game. I played as House Stark and didn't get utterly decimated which is all I really wanted to do. In my joust match however; I got annihilated. The guy I was playing against said that it was late and I was probably tired...nothing like a little pity to make you hate the loss even more.
Rather than explaining each phase of the game in-depth I will say that I recommend it and you should play it if you get the chance
Warmachine in all honesty was much to complicated for me. Warmachine is game similar to Warhammer only in that you control miniatures on a map and move them and fight other miniatures. Calm down, I just made a comparison which I can only assume no one will really understand, but if you are offended that I compared Warmachine to Warhammer deal with it...that's the kind of hard hitting edgy blog I am.
For me to learn Warmachine it took about 4 hours, and even then I still didn't really understand what I was doing. I played a 2 on 2 and my teammate was guiding my pretty much the entire time.
Again, I started out strong thanks to my good friend beginners luck and some hot dice but in the end my army was destroyed and sent to the scrap pile. As for my recommendation to you, well, if you are into the miniature thing then go for it. If not, watch a game and see if it picks up your interests. Fair warning, Warmachine is expensive especially if you want to play it properly. You need to buy miniatures and you will need to paint them. Warmachine is a serious commitment even if you are a casual player.
As I am lazy I am not going to make a banner yet for my check it out rating. I will also accredit Destructoid.com for the idea for my ratings. If I can avoid putting a score on something I will avoid a lot of hate...from the one reader I probably have ;) hello out there.
Games I am playing: Uncharted: Drakes Fortune(PS3), Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood(360), Scribblenauts(NDS), Shiren the Wanderer(NDS), Madden 10(PS3), Ghostbusters(360)
Watching: Robotech: The Macross Saga
Feel free to watch or play along, leave comments and spread the word. Gamers on Hiatus is back and as much as I hate using this cliche it's with a vengeance.
A Game of Thrones card game:
"A Game of Thrones" is the first book in the G.R.R. Martin book series "Song of Ice and Fire." The objective of the game is to reach 15 power which are points you recieve for receive for completing various tasks.
You can play a "Joust" which is a 1 on 1 game and a "Melee" which is for multi-player games. I got to participate in one of each of the game modes.
In my first game I played a melee game. I played as House Stark and didn't get utterly decimated which is all I really wanted to do. In my joust match however; I got annihilated. The guy I was playing against said that it was late and I was probably tired...nothing like a little pity to make you hate the loss even more.
Rather than explaining each phase of the game in-depth I will say that I recommend it and you should play it if you get the chance
Warmachine in all honesty was much to complicated for me. Warmachine is game similar to Warhammer only in that you control miniatures on a map and move them and fight other miniatures. Calm down, I just made a comparison which I can only assume no one will really understand, but if you are offended that I compared Warmachine to Warhammer deal with it...that's the kind of hard hitting edgy blog I am.
For me to learn Warmachine it took about 4 hours, and even then I still didn't really understand what I was doing. I played a 2 on 2 and my teammate was guiding my pretty much the entire time.
Again, I started out strong thanks to my good friend beginners luck and some hot dice but in the end my army was destroyed and sent to the scrap pile. As for my recommendation to you, well, if you are into the miniature thing then go for it. If not, watch a game and see if it picks up your interests. Fair warning, Warmachine is expensive especially if you want to play it properly. You need to buy miniatures and you will need to paint them. Warmachine is a serious commitment even if you are a casual player.
As I am lazy I am not going to make a banner yet for my check it out rating. I will also accredit Destructoid.com for the idea for my ratings. If I can avoid putting a score on something I will avoid a lot of hate...from the one reader I probably have ;) hello out there.
Games I am playing: Uncharted: Drakes Fortune(PS3), Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood(360), Scribblenauts(NDS), Shiren the Wanderer(NDS), Madden 10(PS3), Ghostbusters(360)
Watching: Robotech: The Macross Saga
Feel free to watch or play along, leave comments and spread the word. Gamers on Hiatus is back and as much as I hate using this cliche it's with a vengeance.
Lamentations and Resurrection
So last week I lost my XBOX to the dreaded red-ring of death...I thought to myself that my XBOX must still be under the warranty that Microsoft extended in order to cover the red-ring, unfortunately this was not the case.
I then searched(youtube) diligently(first video) as to find a solution that wouldn't require me to spend $100 to ship it out for repairs. See I am a college student, and I am on a tight budget what with paying for things to help me live and what have you. So I came to the towel trick.
Which to my surprise actually worked. This fix was but a poor band-aid to a much larger problem. I lost my XBOX about three days later and was forced to think that I would be without my XBOX for an extended period of time.
Some of you might be spouting off that I need a PS3 or a Wii. I have both, but I have a lackluster game library on all of my machines, I just happen to have bought a new game(Modern Warfare 2) when it came out and I have a need to play it.
So today I decided that an already expired warranty and not wanting to spend the money outweighed my fear of opening my XBOX.
I will not detail what you have to do in order to fix it, but it is readily available on the internet.
In all this repair cost me about $25 and my XBOX is now fully functional and is still able to connect to Live.
I will say that opening the XBOX is a lot easier than I expected. I am happy to be back and will report more as time goes on.
GAMES I AM CURRENTLY PLAYING: Shiren the Wanderer(NDS), Ghostbusters(XBOX 360), Uncharted: Drakes Fortune(PS3), Scribblenaughts(NDS), Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2(XBOX 360)
I then searched(youtube) diligently(first video) as to find a solution that wouldn't require me to spend $100 to ship it out for repairs. See I am a college student, and I am on a tight budget what with paying for things to help me live and what have you. So I came to the towel trick.
Which to my surprise actually worked. This fix was but a poor band-aid to a much larger problem. I lost my XBOX about three days later and was forced to think that I would be without my XBOX for an extended period of time.
Some of you might be spouting off that I need a PS3 or a Wii. I have both, but I have a lackluster game library on all of my machines, I just happen to have bought a new game(Modern Warfare 2) when it came out and I have a need to play it.
So today I decided that an already expired warranty and not wanting to spend the money outweighed my fear of opening my XBOX.
I will not detail what you have to do in order to fix it, but it is readily available on the internet.
In all this repair cost me about $25 and my XBOX is now fully functional and is still able to connect to Live.
I will say that opening the XBOX is a lot easier than I expected. I am happy to be back and will report more as time goes on.
GAMES I AM CURRENTLY PLAYING: Shiren the Wanderer(NDS), Ghostbusters(XBOX 360), Uncharted: Drakes Fortune(PS3), Scribblenaughts(NDS), Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2(XBOX 360)
Monday, November 16, 2009
My reimmersion into gaming
Alright well it finally happened. I am back into the gaming community full force... What did it take to wake me from my gaming slumber? Borderlands and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
Let's start with Borderlands as it was the game that first pulled me back in. I had been hearing a lot about Borderlands and have been interested in it since they changed the art style a while back.
Borderlands is essentially first-person shooter Diablo. I will admit that I am a loot whore and I love games that have that aspect in it. Borderlands exploits my love for collecting loot to the full effect. Although there are a couple of items that are recognizable in the game, there are no, as far as I can tell, Stone of Jordans or Tal Roshas Armor or anything like that.
The art style is a stylized cell shading that just works really well. Here is the box art, and basically what the game looks like.
The game had enough side missions to keep me playing for a good 25-30 hours. The main story line could probably be finished in about 8 or 9 hours. The game offers a new game+ feature that ups the difficulty of the enemies.
Basically what my love for this game boils down to is the fact that the stylized art and shooting and rpg-elements all blend well together.
The cons...this game has awful, and I mean awful netcode for PC. If I wasn't against all caps when describing something I would say it's AWFUL...oh wait I just did.
All that aside, it's real fun when you can connect to someone and even better if you can hook up with a friend. With a surprising amount of sales I would say that we can be expecting more Borderlands in the future and I am not ashamed to say that I will buy that one too.
Modern Warfare 2
Really, what do I need to say about Modern Warfare 2. It's fun, it's multiplayer is amazing and it even appeals to people who aren't good at it by having a fast rank up system.
I am now level 24 on Modern Warfare 2 and I haven't even touched the campaign. Now I know that 24 is not a very high rank, but I have other games I want to try while I am still on my streak of wanting to play games.
With the controversy about the PC version still (sarcasm) raging (/sarcasm) not having dedicated server support I am surprised to see how many people are still logging on to Steam to play. As I play on my Xbox I am always pleased with my experience online...as long as I am playing in a party. Even though party chat has been disabled I find that playing in a party is much smoother in this iteration.
Infinity Ward has earned my money on this one and while I may not run out and buy everything that they will produce in the future I will say that Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2 certainly have not hurt their reputation in my eyes.
Well, as much as I would love to stay around and blog more for you games are calling my name...it feels good to be back.
Let's start with Borderlands as it was the game that first pulled me back in. I had been hearing a lot about Borderlands and have been interested in it since they changed the art style a while back.
Borderlands is essentially first-person shooter Diablo. I will admit that I am a loot whore and I love games that have that aspect in it. Borderlands exploits my love for collecting loot to the full effect. Although there are a couple of items that are recognizable in the game, there are no, as far as I can tell, Stone of Jordans or Tal Roshas Armor or anything like that.
The art style is a stylized cell shading that just works really well. Here is the box art, and basically what the game looks like.
The game had enough side missions to keep me playing for a good 25-30 hours. The main story line could probably be finished in about 8 or 9 hours. The game offers a new game+ feature that ups the difficulty of the enemies.
Basically what my love for this game boils down to is the fact that the stylized art and shooting and rpg-elements all blend well together.
The cons...this game has awful, and I mean awful netcode for PC. If I wasn't against all caps when describing something I would say it's AWFUL...oh wait I just did.
All that aside, it's real fun when you can connect to someone and even better if you can hook up with a friend. With a surprising amount of sales I would say that we can be expecting more Borderlands in the future and I am not ashamed to say that I will buy that one too.
Modern Warfare 2
Really, what do I need to say about Modern Warfare 2. It's fun, it's multiplayer is amazing and it even appeals to people who aren't good at it by having a fast rank up system.
I am now level 24 on Modern Warfare 2 and I haven't even touched the campaign. Now I know that 24 is not a very high rank, but I have other games I want to try while I am still on my streak of wanting to play games.
With the controversy about the PC version still (sarcasm) raging (/sarcasm) not having dedicated server support I am surprised to see how many people are still logging on to Steam to play. As I play on my Xbox I am always pleased with my experience online...as long as I am playing in a party. Even though party chat has been disabled I find that playing in a party is much smoother in this iteration.
Infinity Ward has earned my money on this one and while I may not run out and buy everything that they will produce in the future I will say that Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2 certainly have not hurt their reputation in my eyes.
Well, as much as I would love to stay around and blog more for you games are calling my name...it feels good to be back.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Why I no longer finish games
I have discovered that as of just recently I do not finish, nor do I intend to finish some of the games I buy or rent. I will take a more specific approach and say that I will probably never again finish a J-RPG or almost any other RPG for that matter. I bought Fallout and I borrowed Oblivion and both games got only a couple hours out of me before I lost interest. I played the first disc of Lost Odyssey before sending it back to gamefly.
I have been wondering what it is about this particular genre of games that has kept me away. I thought it might be the length only to realize that that was only a part of the problem. I also realized that I am no longer able to sit and grind out levels until I can beat a boss. I find it to be an archaic formula for games. That is not to say that I want to be able to breeze through a game, but I find that spending countless hours trying to bust a couple levels just to beat a boss is a stupid way of doing things...J-RPGs are the biggest offender in this category.
Oh western RPGs aren't far off. I am tired of being the biggest baddest dude and people not responding accordingly. In J-RPGs at least they never really make any aesthetic changes to your character. When you get the best armor and a sword that spews all types of elements from the very bowels of hell I expect people to run for their lives not greet me and tell me to get their dogs out of trees.
Then we have games with awesome mechanics that are poorly executed. EA's "Mirrors Edge" is a perfect example. I really liked what was going on in that game and the story and ALMOST everything...The controls and the ambiguous way points made for an awful experience that I chose to stop after getting halfway through.
I almost like going back to formulaic gameplay...ie Koei's Samurai and Dynasty Warriors games. There is some comfort in those games, perhaps due to my nostalgia I have associated with those games.
I guess what I am trying to say in my very long winded way is that what game developers should be looking at is to try and make a well balanced game...."Well duh Nigel don't you think they think that...?"
And my answer to you is no...I don't think they are thinking that, at least not at all times of the creation processes. I mean we can take a look at "Mirrors Edge" again. It feels as though the developers were constantly pushing having a game that looks fantastic and a game where the concept of free running really felt like you were free running...however, they seemed to forget that this was not a free running sim, but a game that had more aspects to it, and somewhere along the way the combat got messed up and the way point system never got finished. If the developers get another chance to make this game, which I feel they should, I suggest rounding out the game to have something more than just the BEST of one thing... and this goes to the rest of the developers.
Whatever take this for what you will but let's try and focusing on making our games well rounded and not just the best in one category.
I have been wondering what it is about this particular genre of games that has kept me away. I thought it might be the length only to realize that that was only a part of the problem. I also realized that I am no longer able to sit and grind out levels until I can beat a boss. I find it to be an archaic formula for games. That is not to say that I want to be able to breeze through a game, but I find that spending countless hours trying to bust a couple levels just to beat a boss is a stupid way of doing things...J-RPGs are the biggest offender in this category.
Oh western RPGs aren't far off. I am tired of being the biggest baddest dude and people not responding accordingly. In J-RPGs at least they never really make any aesthetic changes to your character. When you get the best armor and a sword that spews all types of elements from the very bowels of hell I expect people to run for their lives not greet me and tell me to get their dogs out of trees.
Then we have games with awesome mechanics that are poorly executed. EA's "Mirrors Edge" is a perfect example. I really liked what was going on in that game and the story and ALMOST everything...The controls and the ambiguous way points made for an awful experience that I chose to stop after getting halfway through.
I almost like going back to formulaic gameplay...ie Koei's Samurai and Dynasty Warriors games. There is some comfort in those games, perhaps due to my nostalgia I have associated with those games.
I guess what I am trying to say in my very long winded way is that what game developers should be looking at is to try and make a well balanced game...."Well duh Nigel don't you think they think that...?"
And my answer to you is no...I don't think they are thinking that, at least not at all times of the creation processes. I mean we can take a look at "Mirrors Edge" again. It feels as though the developers were constantly pushing having a game that looks fantastic and a game where the concept of free running really felt like you were free running...however, they seemed to forget that this was not a free running sim, but a game that had more aspects to it, and somewhere along the way the combat got messed up and the way point system never got finished. If the developers get another chance to make this game, which I feel they should, I suggest rounding out the game to have something more than just the BEST of one thing... and this goes to the rest of the developers.
Whatever take this for what you will but let's try and focusing on making our games well rounded and not just the best in one category.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Episode 2 is out
Hi Everyone,
Episode 2 is out on kmk.podbean.com the audio should be a little bit cleaner than last time. Tomorrow I should get around to writing a little bit on here....I promise...for what that;s worth.
-Nigel
Episode 2 is out on kmk.podbean.com the audio should be a little bit cleaner than last time. Tomorrow I should get around to writing a little bit on here....I promise...for what that;s worth.
-Nigel
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Podcast
Hey everyone,
I just got my podcast up at kmk.podbean.com give it a listen...It's rough, I know, but check it out.
-Nigel
I just got my podcast up at kmk.podbean.com give it a listen...It's rough, I know, but check it out.
-Nigel
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Back from a long hiatus
Hey Everyone,
I am back, I plan on writing finally. School is crazy and everything that you would expect.
Just a quick update saying I am back, I will be changing the blog to include everything that I am into and not just games. Hope you enjoy when I get around to posting a real post.
-Nigel
I am back, I plan on writing finally. School is crazy and everything that you would expect.
Just a quick update saying I am back, I will be changing the blog to include everything that I am into and not just games. Hope you enjoy when I get around to posting a real post.
-Nigel
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Ultra Violence on Wii
I am, one would say, late to the party on a lot of video game issues. I have been itching to play Madworld, I am a student however, and therefore have no real money for gaming, what with tuition and all. What I do have, is enough money for a Gamefly subscription, so I played through a couple of games, and then Madworld arrived.
I will say, I played the game for a mere 2 hours before turning it off in sheer and utter boredom. There are so many things wrong with this game. The combat is repetitive. It consists of limiting an enemies arm movement jabbing something into said enemies face and then throwing that enemy into spikes. This sounds as if it would be something poised for greatness, it turns out that doing the same thing over and over with poor controls isn't that fun after all.
I am not trying to review the game, what I want to bring up is that recently analysts said ultra violence on Wii and DS wont sell well. My response: How wrong you might be. I feel ultra violence could sell well on Wii or DS, but how often is it said of Wii games that it's controls are awful. Who can make good Nintendo Wii games? I'll tell you, Nintendo. They know how to make their controller work properly as well they should.
What needs to happen, is that there needs to be someone who understands what good controls on games are, and step up and take a risk with a Mature themed game. "Oh Nigel they can't do that, it would be suicide." I say that taking risks is what is going to push this medium forward.
At any rate, make a better game and you will see that ultra violence will sell just fine on Wii just like everything else.
I will say, I played the game for a mere 2 hours before turning it off in sheer and utter boredom. There are so many things wrong with this game. The combat is repetitive. It consists of limiting an enemies arm movement jabbing something into said enemies face and then throwing that enemy into spikes. This sounds as if it would be something poised for greatness, it turns out that doing the same thing over and over with poor controls isn't that fun after all.
I am not trying to review the game, what I want to bring up is that recently analysts said ultra violence on Wii and DS wont sell well. My response: How wrong you might be. I feel ultra violence could sell well on Wii or DS, but how often is it said of Wii games that it's controls are awful. Who can make good Nintendo Wii games? I'll tell you, Nintendo. They know how to make their controller work properly as well they should.
What needs to happen, is that there needs to be someone who understands what good controls on games are, and step up and take a risk with a Mature themed game. "Oh Nigel they can't do that, it would be suicide." I say that taking risks is what is going to push this medium forward.
At any rate, make a better game and you will see that ultra violence will sell just fine on Wii just like everything else.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
From the ashes.
I have recently been in a slump and seeing is how I really only write about once a month I figured I would look at what drives me to write at all. I have come to the conclusion that I write so that others can read. I am going to focus now more on media in general and give opinions on movies I see, books which I read which is a lot less than I would like, and games I play.
This week I have been playing Bully for eat-sleep-game.com Game Club, where listeners have the opportunity to go back into their pile of shame and play a game all the way through and have a discussion on the games flaws and also where the game does well.
From the start a question has arisen in my mind, and that is this, was there a fuss over the content that is in Bully? Admittedly I have not done my research, but the question stands. I find the content in Bully to be far more disturbing than that of any GTA or Resident Evil or any other game which has been put on the controversy cutting board. I don't know what dictates what makes us feel disturbed and what doesn't but I have a feeling that in this particular case it has something to do with kids, and their portrayal as sadistic and twisted.
I am only 12 percent done with the game according to the progress tracker in the game, but I still feel that this game has the potential to be a game that really makes me question the way I feel about violence on some level. I am not however going to condemn the game just as I wont condemn a film such as American History X for putting something in front of me that I may not feel comfortable with.
As far as the game mechanics are concerned I have had a little trouble with the camera, but in the games defense it is a little more dated than games that I have been playing recently. I am enjoying the games story and am interested in seeing where the it is taken. I am also excited to see where the direction of the character is going to be taken. For me it is hard to feel comfortable playing as a character who is a bully, I feel as though it again has something to do with the social constraints placed upon us in society that tell us that children are supposed to be innocent and when that constraint is then lifted I feel that audiences might be a little apprehensive to do the things that are asked of them.
I also have recently finished watching Noise featuring Tim Robbins and William Hurt. The movie was decent.
Tim Robbins plays a man who can no longer take the noise in his city, this drives him to a boiling point which makes him take on the persona as the Rectifier. His mission, to destroy all car alarms and let the owners of the vehicles know that they have not only wronged him but have wronged society. I feel as if the progression of his character lacked something for people to connect to. I mean I guess a hatred of noise, but I don't feel that was a connection that would make people want him to win against William Hurt's character, who is only looking to put the Rectifier away for a long time.
The movie borders comedy and drama not doing either very well for very long. I enjoyed the movie strictly for entertainment, but yet again, I feel that it didn't really have any depth to it. If I had to rate it, I would have to stick it in the C+ B- range.
On that remark I would like to echo so many who have come before me. Ratings are purely Relative. I am subjected to material and I rate said material based on how I feel towards it. Therefore opinions and ratings should be taken with a grain of salt. The reason they exist is for advertising if anything else. If you say a movie or a game is an A+ people can put a finger on that. They can have a sense of what they should expect. Then the people who hate the game or movie complain for a while at how the critics have some bias or some other such non-sense. The point of a review is to try and give people a general idea of what they are going to be getting themselves into before they exchange their money for goods and services. The best way to read reviews is to find one or two people whose opinion generally matches yours and that you like to read so that you can actually read something worthwhile while learning about a particular medium. Conversely you could read someone who you like to read but whose opinion completely differs from yours.
Well, that's the rant for today and it feels good to be writing again...even if no one is reading me.
This week I have been playing Bully for eat-sleep-game.com Game Club, where listeners have the opportunity to go back into their pile of shame and play a game all the way through and have a discussion on the games flaws and also where the game does well.
From the start a question has arisen in my mind, and that is this, was there a fuss over the content that is in Bully? Admittedly I have not done my research, but the question stands. I find the content in Bully to be far more disturbing than that of any GTA or Resident Evil or any other game which has been put on the controversy cutting board. I don't know what dictates what makes us feel disturbed and what doesn't but I have a feeling that in this particular case it has something to do with kids, and their portrayal as sadistic and twisted.
I am only 12 percent done with the game according to the progress tracker in the game, but I still feel that this game has the potential to be a game that really makes me question the way I feel about violence on some level. I am not however going to condemn the game just as I wont condemn a film such as American History X for putting something in front of me that I may not feel comfortable with.
As far as the game mechanics are concerned I have had a little trouble with the camera, but in the games defense it is a little more dated than games that I have been playing recently. I am enjoying the games story and am interested in seeing where the it is taken. I am also excited to see where the direction of the character is going to be taken. For me it is hard to feel comfortable playing as a character who is a bully, I feel as though it again has something to do with the social constraints placed upon us in society that tell us that children are supposed to be innocent and when that constraint is then lifted I feel that audiences might be a little apprehensive to do the things that are asked of them.
I also have recently finished watching Noise featuring Tim Robbins and William Hurt. The movie was decent.
Tim Robbins plays a man who can no longer take the noise in his city, this drives him to a boiling point which makes him take on the persona as the Rectifier. His mission, to destroy all car alarms and let the owners of the vehicles know that they have not only wronged him but have wronged society. I feel as if the progression of his character lacked something for people to connect to. I mean I guess a hatred of noise, but I don't feel that was a connection that would make people want him to win against William Hurt's character, who is only looking to put the Rectifier away for a long time.
The movie borders comedy and drama not doing either very well for very long. I enjoyed the movie strictly for entertainment, but yet again, I feel that it didn't really have any depth to it. If I had to rate it, I would have to stick it in the C+ B- range.
On that remark I would like to echo so many who have come before me. Ratings are purely Relative. I am subjected to material and I rate said material based on how I feel towards it. Therefore opinions and ratings should be taken with a grain of salt. The reason they exist is for advertising if anything else. If you say a movie or a game is an A+ people can put a finger on that. They can have a sense of what they should expect. Then the people who hate the game or movie complain for a while at how the critics have some bias or some other such non-sense. The point of a review is to try and give people a general idea of what they are going to be getting themselves into before they exchange their money for goods and services. The best way to read reviews is to find one or two people whose opinion generally matches yours and that you like to read so that you can actually read something worthwhile while learning about a particular medium. Conversely you could read someone who you like to read but whose opinion completely differs from yours.
Well, that's the rant for today and it feels good to be writing again...even if no one is reading me.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Death of a dream
Last post I talked about my optimism of being a Games Journalist, if you can call it that. I have however looked at the job market and the way things work and am probably going to study History and maybe just keep my writing as a hobby. I will continue to review games and the like but I have unfortunately seen that life doesn't always give you what you want.
That being said. I am still working on Half-Life 2, I am also working on Oblivion which I finally understand which will make Fallout 3 REALLY enjoyable. Something I really enjoy about gaming is the joy you receive when you finally get a game that everyone raves about. On the other hand it is frustrating when you see why a game is terrible and everyone likes it.
Well Hopefully this all works out and if you are out there and you are looking for your dream job and it's looking slim I would recommend keeping with it even though I might not.
That being said. I am still working on Half-Life 2, I am also working on Oblivion which I finally understand which will make Fallout 3 REALLY enjoyable. Something I really enjoy about gaming is the joy you receive when you finally get a game that everyone raves about. On the other hand it is frustrating when you see why a game is terrible and everyone likes it.
Well Hopefully this all works out and if you are out there and you are looking for your dream job and it's looking slim I would recommend keeping with it even though I might not.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Sucked back in
With the closing of 1up.com I thought that I would no longer want to pursue a career in games journalism or journalism as a whole for that matter. Jokes on me, I can't get away.
1up's closure has hit the gaming community pretty hard. I for one thought that I might be a teacher or something, but I continued to look at gaming sites this past week and I realized that I can't get away. The draw to do what I love is still there and if anything I no want to work harder in order to create something like old 1up's caliber.
On a side note, I started playing Half-Life 2 for the first time and I am starting to enjoy it. I can only handle it in limited spurts only because I am a baby and things get pretty hectic so I have to take a breather. It is amazing that the game still after all this time looks so good.
1up's closure has hit the gaming community pretty hard. I for one thought that I might be a teacher or something, but I continued to look at gaming sites this past week and I realized that I can't get away. The draw to do what I love is still there and if anything I no want to work harder in order to create something like old 1up's caliber.
On a side note, I started playing Half-Life 2 for the first time and I am starting to enjoy it. I can only handle it in limited spurts only because I am a baby and things get pretty hectic so I have to take a breather. It is amazing that the game still after all this time looks so good.
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