Movie Review: Prometheus (2012)

Ridley Scott's ALIEN films have been a grand source of entertainment for me, exposing me to the interesting works of Swiss artist H.R. Giger.  It was his art that inspired the shape of the Xenomorph, the primary antagonist of the ALIEN franchise.  Science fiction writer Dan O'Bannon provided the screenplay, allowing for the atmosphere and many of the thrills, mystery and suspense of the film.  Later writers (namely the franchise's proper writers David Giller and Walter Hill) and directors (The Avengers' Joss Whedon, Titanic's James Cameron) left their mark on the franchise, with a mixed bag of results.  Mr. Scott's latest outing with the ALIEN franchise, Prometheus touches on the background story of a very important but little-explored race of extraterrestrials who are intertwined with the Xenomorph: their indirect creators.

These indirect creators are referred to as "Engineers" by Drs. Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Charlie Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green), archaeologists that find connections between several ancient cultures on Earth that all point to a grouping of stars in the heavens.  They have interpreted it to be the location of the homeworld of mankind's creators--their Engineers.  They soon pack their bags and join a crew for an interstellar flight on the starship "Prometheus" to the location indicated, funded by Weyland Industries (precursor to Weyland-Yutani Industries in the later ALIEN films) under the instruction of the hologram of the late Charles Weyland (Guy Pierce) and mission director Meridith Vickers (Charlize Theron).  They find a planet with a moon, marked as LV-223, in 2096 and land to investigate the strange structures found on long-range scans.  Their findings reveal that the structures are ancient and abandoned alien spacecraft, and that something that left behind a litter of alien humanoid corpses and several cylinders filled with an animate black liquid.  A sensible group of people would simply walk away and fly back home, but David (Michael Fassbender)--an android--has been secretly tasked to retrieve samples or a live specimen.  In his attempts to achieve his goals, hijinks ensue.

Strangers in the niiiight...exchanging glances....

It's safe to say that Mr. Fassbender steals the show even in light of Idris Elba's performance as Janek, captain of the "Prometheus".  Much of that has to do with the marketing campaign for the movie, which featured a character profile on the android.  It showed how complex of a creation he was, from interpreting different genres of art to complex mathematical and spatial computations.  When it came to concepts that would generally make a person sad (i.e., murder), David offered tears of sadness; when it came to accomplishing a task that his human counterparts would find unethical (ex.: violating a person's physical being in some manner) to achieve a goal, David stated that he would not have a problem doing such things.  These two examples of an incongruous and conflicting thought process along with a face devoid of emotion really sold the idea of Mr. Fassbender's android character.  Not bad for an 8th-generation Weyland Industries android fresh out of the box.

The film was sufficiently suspenseful, and entertaining as an exercise of human frailty and folly when faced with one of the most dangerous things in the cosmos: desire.

Video Game Review - Terraria (2011 - PC/Windows)

I am a big fan of Toby "Tobuscus" Turner 's videos on YouTube.  He is very funny and makes videos one after another, seemingly without stopping.  At the time of this writing he is off at PAX 2011 doing live performances of his "Literal Trailers", but I went through his past video game clips and found some funny videos for PC like F.E.A.R. 3 and the game I am reviewing now, Terraria.
 Developed by Re-Logic, this game has been called "a 2D version of Minecraft".  I've read that in Game Informer Magazine and that's exactly the vibe I got when I looked at the game as Toby recorded his progress through the game.  I decided to play and I am hooked.  The sandbox design of the game and character customization are what I have been asking for for a very long time in almost every game I play.  I play Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach for character customization, but I have yet to invest in the hardware that would allow me the sandbox feel of Minecraft.  What I have done instead is further my complex to reshape the world as I see fit.

I've build castles and honeycombed the earth, I've laid flat the sand dunes and driven the water deep underground.  I've even spanned jungle valleys and the craters of the corrupted zones.  This I do in search of materials and even greater tools to aid in my quest to...not sure what the main goal is in the game, but they provide several bosses to fight via Summoning Altars.  You don't level up, but you can find extra hearts and mana stars to lessen the damage.  Trust me; you'll need 'em. 
There are several zones to explore (jungle, corrupted, desert, ocean, etc.), in addition to various hazards to encounter along the way (monsters, nature, etc.)--all within a customizable options menu that determines the size of the world on which you play at the outset.  Currently, I'm playing in a Small-sized world; Toby's playing in a Medium-sized world.  I can only imagine the madness that a Large-size world would be...

There so much to the game that I can't fit all of it into this article, but I will add this tidbit: I've heard rumors about a floating island in the game made of gold ore, but I'll have to test that theory out for myself.  Not unlike a rare nugget, Terraria gets a great recommendation from me.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - PaRappa the Rapper (1997 - Sony Playstation)

 *INTRODUCTION*

Once upon a time, there was a thing called hip-hop. Hip-hop was good, because it did not infringe upon the world at large with sappy pop hooks or massive metal guitar riffs. It was also good due to the fact that it appealed to the ethnic inner-city massives who took it as their own thing, not to be mistaken for pop music. And then the world began to incorrectly link hip-hop with not only people of color, but inner city crime as well. With a triad of trouble afoot, the Man sought a way to squash hip-hop. Through the interference of record companies, hip-hop was spliced into the parent and its offspring Rap. 

 

Rap didn't heed the word of the elder Hip-hop and began to talk about that which needed no conscious mouthpiece: the commission of crime. Thus began the rift between what was Hip-hop and what was Rap.

Things went from bad (meaning bad, not bad meaning good) to worse in the coming years, with the 1992 Los Angeles Riots highlighting the need for a stronger, pointed message than the words of the forefathers. Enter "Gangsta Rap", a form of Rap that's like a cigarette without the filter. It was misogynistic, homophobic, materialistic and ill-planned as a way to discourage violence and crime through overexposure. All the hatred spit out in rhyming prose to a sweet baseline from the days of our grandfathers was aimed in the general direction of their perceived enemy of White America. The sad thing is that Gangsta Rap behaved like the gangsta's attack of choice, the drive-by shooting: it had a habit of hitting unintended targets. The unintended targets: the children of White America.

It's unknown whether the children of White America were being used as pawns against their parents or if it was a mistake in getting through to them instead of the parents. While some members of the Rap community would take steps to have their life imitate their art, White America was listening and was more than happy to make it a part of their daily newscast. And suddenly, Rap became cool for everyone... but for all the wrong reasons. The gates to what makes Rap tick were opened and now there's other offensive strings of Rap (see: Nerdcore, Rap-Rock.) Who could have known that Rap would grow into the abomination we hear and praise so often? Only Hip-hop did, and it tried to come back and claim its moral grounds. Unfortunately Rap had a stranglehold on beats and rhymes in their origin country of the United states, forcing Hip-hop to find greener pastures in foreign lands.

Hip-hop has flourished in other countries like Germany, France, the United Kingdom and has done especially well in places like Canada and even the Arab country of Yemen (where the only acceptable music is drumbeats and the word is king). Of these countries, Japan stands out because it has the wackiness to inject humor into a socially conscious medium without degrading it. Rap and Hip-hop are fighting over control of the Land of the Rising Sun, the details of which can be read in the

game context of the PlayStation game, PaRappa the Rapper.

-----------------------------------------------

In the game PaRappa the Rapper, you play the titular character PaRappa. He's a hip-hop dog who's in love with the local beauty named Sunny. She's a sunflower. In his effort to raise a band and impress the girl, he becomes involved in scenarios to reach his goal. While many of the activities in the scenarios are physically oriented, PaRappa's forte' is rappin' to the beat. Thus, the only way to complete the scenarios presented to the gamer is to rap to the preset beat markers in a timely manner. Failure to do so results in a poor rating, by which a satisfactory rating is rewquired to pass all scenarios. An added bonus to the scenarios is the freestyle option when your rappin' rating goes beyond "U Rappin' GREAT!" So long as you rap to the beat, you can rap what you feel for bonus points.

PaRappa the Rapper is an animated video game tale created by Rodney Alan Greenblatt, an American expatriate living in Japan. He is responsible for the artwork in PaRappa the Rapper, as well as the PaRappa spin-off game, Un-Jammer Lammy (a story about a ewe who dreams of rock-stardom). His ideas of merging music and story into an interactive experience has been duplicated in the more recent incarnation of the PS2 titles Gitaroo Man and Mad Maestro.

The feel of PaRappa the Rapper is a silly one, due to PaRappa's adventures involving an onion-headed Kung-Fu master (called Master Chop Chop), a chicken chef with her own TV show, a moose that works at the DMV and a materialistic Rastafarian frog (my personal favorite). All of these characters have their own flavor to them, making this game a distinctive if not singular experience. The extensive advertising behind PaRappa the Rapper was grand and it was featured on a PlayStation demo disc, as well as in several commercials featuring the characters spouting lines from scenarios: The Rastafarian frog says "In the rain or in the snow/Got the got the funky flow" and PaRappa's exclaim of faith in his rappin' abilities is "I Gotta Believe!" Despite the want from both quotes to be THE line from PaRappa the Rapper remembered, only Master Chop Chop's line of "Kick Punch/It's all in the mind" stands the test of fleeting interest.

The limited graphics and processing power of the PlayStation are the only limits to the original PaRappa the Rapper reaching the maximum score allowable, so this game gets a rating of 9.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Phantasy Star Online (2000 - Sega Dreamcast)

When I first heard about this game, I said, "Hmm. Phantasy Star. I've been meaning to play that game." I meant the original Sega Genesis games of Phantasy Star parts one through four. I eventually got to play Phantasy Star II, but the game in question was featured on the game system I hated: the Sega Dreamcast.
The Sega Dreamcast was initially an abomination in my eyes due to its presentation of the game Soul Calibur. The Dreamcast was so powerful that its rendering of games was better than the arcade version of the game. At this point, I always believed that the arcade port of a game should surpass any console version of the game. This notion was assaulted by the Dreamcast and I began to shun it in earnest. I didn't last long, because of games like Power Stone (and its sequel), Street Fighter III: Second Impact, Street Fighter III: Third Strike, this game and the rampant NES, SNES and Genesis ROM CDs I had burned by friends. The bloody thing was a treasure of time-killing. I soon learned to love Big Brother--I mean, the Dreamcast.

I started watching the game being played both on-line and off and I came to a revelation: this is how the future of gaming SHOULD be! You go online and quest while fighting monsters alongside friends! What could possibly go wrong? The only thing that could go wrong: human error.

Phantasy Star Online (we'll call it PSO for now) became a haven for a truly idiotic market scheme: players could sell the Meseta (fake money in PSO) they earned from playing PSO and then go online and post them up for sale on eBay, for a certain rate. Other PSO players would respond and pay REAL money for FAKE money and meet up in the PSO world later and exchange Meseta. The Meseta (read: FAKE MONEY) would then be used to purchase stronger weapons and armor that was not previously affordable, thus allowing the user to strike harder, absorb more damage and level up faster than normal. This looked like it was gonna work, no matter how silly it seemed--and then Sega started charging for online accounts, which were previously free. More often than not, people were on PSO because it was (a) cool and (b) free. Thus began the mass exodus of free account users to greener pastures.
There are more Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games out there now (Dungeons & Dragons Online, Conan, World of Warcraft, RIFT, and Final Fantasy XIV) each with its own flaws, problems and users whose lack of self-control get the game developers unwarranted press. None of these games captured my imagination more than the visual masterpiece called PSO--Phantasy Star Online.

The whole look, feel and urgency put into Phantasy Star Online came through so well, not to mention its initial character creation interface. This is where I really began to like the game. You could choose from 3 classes, each with 3 character templates, for a total of 9 possible characters with specific base stats.  Then you had a palette of colors to apply to clothing styles, faces, hairdos, skin tones (if applicable). You could even control the body proportions! These functions were a bit cumbersome to master, so there was a randomizer that spit out random variables and made a character quickly. When you finally named your character, you were assigned a color badge based on the structure of your name. And off you go to the Hunters' Guild to join in the story of PSO.
The story goes that the home planets of an indigenous race have died and they are searching for a suitable planet. Probes sent out came back with the loction of a suitable planet the leaders of these transient people named Ragol. The transport ship Pioneer 1 went to check it out and said it was all good. Then Pioneer 2 came along, a massive generation-type ship that carried the bulk of all the dying worlds on it. Pioneer 2 arrived at Ragol and tried to contact the Pioneer 1 colony on the surface, but just as contact was established the link was broken by a massive explosion visible from orbit. The president of Pioneer 2 sent some adventurers led by his daughter, Red Ring Rico, to investigate. They never came back, so now he wants you to investigte what became of his daughter and the crew of Pioneer 1.

The game is all anime and super-simple sci-fi than all get-out. The menus you use to organize and make use of are straight and to the point; the quick-menu avaliable by a few button presses is even more so. The world you inhabit in downtime is small but richly detailed. Everything's glowing and shining and floating and flying and whooshing by. On the surface of Ragol, it's very beautiful and your surroundings are the perfect distraction for the mutated denizens it holds in its depths who want to kill you. The bosses are massive and more than hard enough. You'll need to watch how you fight them and make use of your little sidekick buddy, the MAG.

In watching this game, the visuals and the music all had me in a mental tizzy. Why? Because the visuals are how I imagined the future would look when I was a little boy. Hell, I still think that the future can look like that, but I feel that the amount of human error we allow will limit the level of technological advances we want to have. Basically, it's stupid and greedy people that prevent us from colonizing the Moon and having androids, airships and flying cars back on Earth. Until we can get past that, the world will have to settle for the imagined future world of Phantasy Star Online.


RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Suikoden IV (2005 - Sony PlayStation2)

I had been really distracted with the creation of my second animated feature and I had completely lost track of when Suikoden IV was coming out. It took a reminder from my college friends to bring back into the fold of the 108 Stars of Destiny.  When I heard it was finally out, I went right out and bought it. Needless to say, it's become one of my favorite games to relax with.
Upon watching the intro movie, I thought that the game would suck. I also thought that the sailing would be peripheral to the main gameplay. How wrong was I about this prequel to the first Suikoden? Plenty wrong, on both counts.

Our story follows the exploits of a young knight-in-training and his fellow classmates. The most notable of his classmates is the young man called Snowe. Snowe, while not truly your rival, is very jealous of the praise heaped upon you. He's instrumental in your banishment from your home of Razril upon your receiving the rune of this game -- the Rune of Punishment -- from your dying commander. Blamed for your commander's death, you are set adrift at sea. It looks as if you're done for, until you realize the beauty of true friends that is the driving force behind the 108 Stars of Destiny. And that's where the most awesome island-hopping adventure begins.

As previously mentioned in the Suikoden III  review, I hoped that Konami would take a page from the Pirates of the Caribbean game and improve upon it. I also hoped that they would go back to the original type of World Map, instead of the "point A to point B" interface. The game designers have done one better and did it their own way. Not only did they combine the free-roaming World Map of older games and the "point of interest" format from Suikoden III, they have cut out the micromanagement of the sailing system in Pirates of the Caribbean. While some have said that sailing is a pain in the ass, it's one of the most visually relaxing and constructive things I have had the experience to do. Why? Because the game has done something that I never thought they would do: the castle from all previous Suikoden games is now a large sailing vessel--almost like a cruise ship.

Above: The current wielder of the Rune of
Punishment, a Rune that has an unfortunate
side-effect of slowly killing its host.

Speaking about the ship, the ship allows you to do another thing that has me torn. The game designers have eschewed the traditional six-man party and brought it down to a four-man team. While this would be a pain to me, I have realized that the four-man team holds true only on land. When on the deck of the castle-ship you have access to all 108 characters, so the ship allows you to create two auxiliary parties of four to call topside. This increases your World Map party to TWELVE, double the previous sizes in Suikoden and three times as large as the Basic Party. This creates a way to level up scrubby characters you don't want in your Basic Party (aka "the landing party") and allows you to work out the one problem I have with this game: earning team-up attacks.
Team-ups happened whenever people with common traits got together in the same six-man party. If two people with uncommon traits had a team-up attack, the results were usually hilarious (see Nina and Flik's "Groupie Attack" from Suikoden II). Now, the people marked for a team-up attack must stay in the same party for a number of battles until the team-up attack is discovered. This wastes a lot of time where deciding who should go in what team is concerned.

There are a lot of great things about Suikoden IV that easily overshadow the having to earn your team-up attacks. The minigames are totally awesome, and fun to play. They still have Chichinronin for the old-school gamblers and some new games to burn hard-earned cash on. You can make your own accessories and armor on your ship, and look around at everything and everyone with a first-person camera option. Most importantly, some of the characters you meet in your quest to gather the 108 Stars are references from the previous games. It's great to learn that rune mistress Jeane was always a hottie, Viki was always scatterbrained and the name "Scholtenheim Reinbach" is not just a name that Viktor made up in the first Suikoden to get past the guards.

With all that's available to you in the course of your career of "privateering" (licensed piracy in the name of the kingdom of Obel), this game is a grand addition to the Suikoden storyline. I anticipate Suikoden V, yet I have no idea where it could be headed. Perhaps the story will take a cue from the Final Fantasy series and sail into the far-flung future, bringing extraterrestrials and cyborgs from across galaxies into the fold of the 108 Stars of Destiny.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Suikoden III (2002 - Sony PlayStation2)

Suikoden III is a game that is a worthy success or to its predecessors, in that it keeps almost all of the wonder and characters of the original stories. The game raises the ante on game play by allowing you to play as one of three heroes (via the "Trinity System") that will inherit the name you chose at the beginning of the game. While the character you choose will not be named that, the character you named will be that of the legendary man known as the Flame Champion.

Legend has it that the Flame Champion is a young man who fights for freedom and justice while bearing the True Fire Rune.(The Flame Champion might be a composite of both heroes from Suikoden and Suikoden II.) The problem with the authorized legend is that it depicts the Flame Champion as a warlord bent on destroying civilization and leaving a flaming ruin in his wake. So when rumors of the Flame Champion start to surface among the many tribes of Grassland, the government reacts quickly to quell any uprisings. This introduces us to 2 of our heroes.

The first is Captain Sarah of the Knights of Zexen, also known as the Silver Maiden. She's a swordswoman loved by her people and revered as a hero. The second hero is Hugo, son of Lucia, leader of the Karaya Clan. He is always accompanied by his gryphon mount, Fubar. Yes, Fubar (military acronym: fucked up beyond all repair). Our third hero is on the other side of the map when most of their story goes down, but he eventually becomes a big part of it. The man in question is Geddoe, captain of the Holy Harmonia Southern Frontier Defense Corps, 12th Division. His skills and choice of magic rune echo that of a prominent character from the series.
The search is on between all these parties for things that matter to their separate missions, yet the searches push them closer to each other in an effort to stop a clandestine plot to destroy the world. The villain in question is someone from previous Suikoden games, and the last person you'd expect. That's all I can say about the story itself, but I can say more about the game.

A game that can stand on its own with bonuses for those who have stayed on for this latest installment, Suikoden III is a great game. The use of 3D characters and surroundings rendered in acceptable proportions was a very good idea, as well as the inclusion of the feature to upload old Suikoden II data.  Many other factors made this game extremely fun to play, yet there were some flaws that I had issues with. These issues were enough to bring the game's rating down one point on the rating scale, because they violate a set of laws with amendments I have set aside for RPGs. These laws I have in my head are necessary to make an RPG flow as smoothly as possible. I understand that many RPGs try to be different to draw an audience, but some gimmicks shouldn't be done. On with my beef on Suikoden III.

Above: The former wielder of the True Fire Rune,
The Flame Champion. Long since dead, he leaves his
legacy behind for the next Flame Champion to lead
the people against tyranny.

First, the Trinity System.
This feature violates a rule that stipulates ONE main character per game, and all others act as NPC's in the event they are not chosen and cannot be used again until all the chapters of the story are complete. It does look like the Trinity System follows this rule with the goal of being chosen as the next Flame Champion, but look again. The user can switch between characters at the end of each chapter, which can become a muddling experience because each main character has their own inventory and item cache. Sure it's a new way to play the game, but if one character has an item -- that can't be bought -- that the other needs in order to complete a chapter with no way to meet, the problem becomes two fold. And just as you're getting on with one character, another pops up for you to "investigate."
Another problem with the Trinity system is its name. The game requires you to play as all three characters, each assuming the nom de guerre of the Flame Champion chosen at the point of file creation. The interface for the Trinity system also allows you to use 3 other interface points. Two of those points (one of them is the villain's POV) have something to do with the story, the other is pretty useless. This makes six points in the Trinity System; a "Sextet System". That's way too many accessible main characters.

Second and foremost, the World Map.
This feature violates the entire concept of the World Map. From what I understand, the World Map is used as a tool to make it from point A to point B as quickly as possible, with the chances of getting lost significantly reduced. This is not so in Suikoden III.
The World Map feature has points on it that denote places of interest, dungeons/caves, towns and castles which you can travel to and complete chapter objectives. The problem with that concept is that you can't wander about anywhere in between and have a random encounter. The game makes up for this by including NO extra random encounters in the qualifying map points. I understand that many RPG gamers are adverse to random encounters, but the loss of free movement is stifling compared to the prior Suikoden games. Keep in mind that Suikoden III is not the first to violate this rule (see Grandia, Grandia II, Final Fantasy Tactics, etc.) nor will it be the last. Its transgression is compounded by the opposing actions of its forefathers.
Suikoden III is still a fun game, beef notwithstanding. I hear that Suikoden IV will feature naval battles; hopefully they'll take a page from the remake of the video game Sid Meier's Pirates! (the oversea map that allowed you to sail past enemies) and improve on the sailing engine for the purpose of sea battles. If they can combine this previous idea with a good land elements, I'll be happy.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Suikoden II (1999 - Sony Playstation)

Suikoden II is the second entry in the Genso Suikoden series. It's a story that focuses on the exploits of 3 teenagers in a time of war and the ancient Sword Rune and Shield Rune. It also has the most mini-games in an RPG I've played so far, giving this game a major bonus. Despite that, mini-games do not a game make (unless you're Incredible Crisis). There is a story in this game, and it involves the usual running about and collecting the 108 Stars of Destiny.

You play the grandson of the late warrior Genkaku, part of a trainee mission to scout the outer fringes of enemy territory in a land at war. You and your childhood friend Jowy Atreides run from the danger, jump into the river and are swept into the waiting hands of the enemy...our heroes from Suikoden, Viktor and Flik of the Blue Lightning!

Somewhere along the line, you'll meet up with your sister Nanami and then the story kicks into full gear. This game spans several countries and features many characters from Suikoden who still were around; this makes for a great treat for people who played the first Suikoden, like me. The aforementioned Viktor and Flik are there, as well as Pesmerga, Stallion the elf, the cooks Antonio and Lester, Humphrey and his Dragon Knight squire, Futch. Both Kasumi the ninja and the warrior Valeria are around to help the new hero. Kage makes a brief appearance, as does Leknaat and many other other characters such as Mathiu's dad Leon Silverberg, the innkeeper Marie, Cleo and Pahn (if you kept him alive). Clive the bounty hunter is still pursuing his quarry Eliza. Tai Ho returns as a playable character, but his buddy Yam Koo is not. Tengaar and Hix are about and still getting in trouble. Apple, pupil under the strategist Mathiu, returns with some age and experience, yet chooses to play second to Mathiu's star pupil Shu. makes Neclord shows up ("Again? I thought we killed him!" was my reaction) as does the weapon of his destruction: the always-sassy Star Dragon Sword. Even the main hero McDohl and his manservant Gremio (if you got all 108 before storming Gregminster) are available. The one person who I saw hide nor hair of in the game was the creature called Yuber. I wanted another go at him on the battlefield.

Speaking of the battlefield, the fights take place in open grassland instead of on the grounds of the castle you're trying to storm. Paper-rock-scissors still plays a part in the battle movements, but now there's the issue of range and terrain. It doesn't detract from the skirmish scenario experience, because you still get to have your duels. The bad thing about duels is that they are storyline-event driven; they are not guaranteed at the end of every skirmish.

Above: The hero of SUIKODEN II,
soon to have his life changed
by the Shield and Sword Runes.

While I'm on the subject of batle, the item access in Suikoden II seriously hinders survival in battle; you have to equip a healing item before you can use it in battle. This is a great way to get killed in battle when your item runs out and you have to spend another turn equipping something else. Then there's the fact that you can't use items at your leisure. For example: if I got hit by a Flying Squirrel and lost health, I could just use my equipped Healing Potion that heals a small amount of HP. If the immediate turn has me damaged by a Harmonian soldier, I'd have to use the equipped Healing Potion and disregard my healing food called "Chige Nabe" (heals a gang of HP.)

The story keeps you involved, but tends to drag ON and ON and ON and ON! Thought you were done when you killed that guy, right? Wrong! Now you have to go through another castle and fight an even bigger boss than that. Then again, the Suikoden series never lets you off the hook with a lame final boss. Final boss asides, the bosses in Suikoden II are grand and make you work to defeat them. From giant sewer rats to the Star Dragon Sword, your bosses show absolutely no quarter or mercy. Conquering the bosses always guarantees a kick-ass treasure trove, yet some treasures can only be obtained in mini-games.
Minigames can be found inside the castle you have for your army of 108 people; they must be entertained, so there are several ways to do that. There's fishing, rock climbing, investigations of your troops, the traditional game of Chichinronin (now Nerfed to limit your winnings) and the latest addition to the minigame spectrum--the cook-off, led by your army's cook, Hai Yo.

The story gets weepy at times but the minigames and extras more than make up for it. This is a great sequel to the original, particularly when both the new hero and McDohl (still bearing the Soul Eater, but with new animations!) team up for the first time. This game does what most movies can never seem to do: make a decent sequel.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Suikoden (1996 - Sony Playstation)

My first experience with a role-playing game (RPG) was by watching my buddy Kodi play a game called Chrono Trigger on the Super Nintendo. I then had my own experience with a little-known game called Shining Force II on the Sega Genesis. When my brother and I got our hands on a PlayStation amidst the buzz of Final Fantasy VII, we just played normal stuff. I didn't even know that this game existed until I noticed it at Blockbuster Video. Reading the back I found out that this game had 108 playable characters, featured dragons and plenty of adventu--
WHAT THE HELL?? ONE HUNDRED EIGHT CHARACTERS?
UNBELIEVABLE!!!

You're damn right that sold me. Let's do the math:

• Chrono Trigger allowed you to control a mix of any 3 recruited/joined characters in battle out of a possible 7 recruitable characters total.(42.8% of all characters in battle at any given combat)
• Shining Force II allowed you to control a mix of any 12 recruited/joined characters in battle out of a possible 30 recruitable characters total.(40%)
• Genso Suikoden allows you to control 6 recruited/joined characters in battle out of a possible 81 available for battle out of 108 recruitable characters total (7.4 percent)

And with that, I rented it and I haven't stopped playing the Suikoden series since.  For those that aren't into Suikoden as much as I am, please take note of the story. From what I understand, this game is loosely based on the story "The Water Margin" about 108 honorable bandits who lived in the 12th Century that fought for the rights of the people and against corrupt officials. It was written in 14th Century China and made popular in the Edo Period of 19th Century Japan. This story was translated into the digital medium to relfect a story that works like this:
You're the hero, a privileged son of a general in the kingdom of Gregminster. In your efforts to be like everyone else, you find out that you're destined to be different--beyond all expectations. Things go awry, friends die and you're stuck with a powerful magic Rune called the Soul-Eater Rune. When you find out what goes on in the real world, you're thrust into battle against your own kingdom with rebel allies from all the provinces. You gain allies, abilities, features and minigames along the way as you build your base of operations. In the end, you do fight your father and you fight your king. Once that's done, the kingdom is free, and it's all thanks to you.

The game's features allow you to get more acquainted with the mythology of the world of Suikoden and its workings. Talk to people and you'll get moree information on how to get things done in the game world. Learning how things are done allows you to access more characters. The more characters you have, the more people you must house, thus your castle grows more and more each time you recruit more of the 108 characters. Once you have enough characters, you can do something spectacular: battle combinations.

Above: The hero of SUIKODEN,
Tir McDohl. Inset: Soul Eater Rune.

Battle Combinations are where you get 2 or more people with a certain relationship or something in common and in battle, you'll have the option to use the combination attack. When the combination attack is used, the characters involved will combine their might to attack one enemy with a powerful set of moves, or multiple enemies with an increased attack. This is one of the reasons why you should recruit all 108 characters. Another reason to do the legwork in recruiting is to get all the magicians and their Runes.
Runes are magical stones that grant magical powers. Some runes are broken into shards and can be placed on weapons to do magic damage, but mostly they are whole runes that are worn by an individual. These runes allow the average fellow to wield awesome power. There are the standard 4 elements (earth, wind, fire & water) and a fifth magical element unique to Japanese culture (lightning), in addition to the other fighting runes that allow its wearer to have special powers beyond the elements. Then there are the special runes worn by magicians that are a step above the normal elemental runes in magic strength. The most amazing thing about the runes in this game is that if you time it right, you can get magicians to combine their magics to create a stronger magic, just like a battle combination. This maneuver ends up having disastrous results for the enemy. For all the magic and battle combinations you may have up your sleeve, it ain't nothing unless you SHARPEN YOUR WEAPON.
Sharpening your weapon is like literally leveling up your weapon. The weapons go up to level 16, increasing from its initial level (whatever it may be) and increasing in damage at an average rate of 4-20 attack points each level. The weapons have names and the names change on the weapon when they reach certain levels. The one thing I had a problem with initially is that your character uses a bo staff. How can you sharpen a bo staff and not call it a spear? I realized after a time I was thinking on it too hard. I then went on playing the game and got into by first skirmish.
Skirmishes are the war portions of Suikoden. In these skirmish battles, you'll fight with everyone--yes, everyone--in a bid to attack a general under King Barbarossa. You'll have limited use of all of their skills, plus skills they can only access in a skirmish. When you boil down the control system of fighting in the skirmishes, it's basically a grand game of jan-ken-pon (rock-paper-scissors). The down side to skirmish scenarios is that if someone dies in a skirmish scenario, they're gone for good. With the battle scheme dependant solely on chance and an understanding or rock-paper-scissors, anyone can complete a skirmish scenario with little or no casualties.

There are motivating factors in this game that should keep you going when you think you've had enough of the game, and enough features to keep you in your castle when you should be out leveling up your fighters. The music is good; tinny at first, but swelling afterward, particularly in the case of the free-roaming Map Screen. The boss enemies are hard, particularly at the time you meet them. For me, that's always a plus. If you're a treasure-hunter like me, you'll really like all the little goodies they throw into the background for you. This game is a treasure in itself and receives a rating of 9.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - PowerStone (1999 - Sega DreamCast)

CAPCOM's melee fighter game Power Stone, I can safely say, has taken advantage of one of my favorite time periods in world history: the years spanning from the late 19th century to the years prior to World War II. This time period had great discoveries in science and archaeology abound, with the invention of the Atom Bomb just ahead of us and the Haymarket Riots behind us and the Bolshevik revolt somewhere inbetween. Electricity, the invention of the automobile, manned flight, the excavation of the Pharaoh's Tombs, the initial concept of the computer and the atom, ideas on human evolution; all were found and reported on in this short period of time.

Other things came from these years, namely the stories, books and legends of the early 20th Century. The Red Baron, the mystics of the British Raj, the curses of Pharaohs and many more legends were competing with the more contemporary writers of the times like H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Mary Shelley, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert E. Howard, Edgar Rice Burrows, Mark Twain, H.P. Lovecraft and several other authors who made strides to preserve their past--and visions of the future--in writing.

Most of these stories involved scientific marvels that had a basis in reality, and only had to be invented; thus the stories were called "science fiction."

sci•ence fic•tion. n. fiction dealing principally with the impact of actual or imagined science on society or individuals or having a scientific factor as an essential orienting component[date:1851]

Motorized tanks, submarines, spaceflight, robotics, time travel, television, first contact with extraterrestrials, computers and the visit to another heavenly body (usually the Moon) all fall into the wishful writings of science fiction.The adventures completed during these science fiction novels in exotic locales served up exotic peoples-- mostly beautiful women, great treasures to be found, cunning foes and dangerous beasts (some of conventional design and others of radical or impossible biologies). These novels served to pump the blood and excite the imagination, awakening the heroic (by European standards), adventurous being in all males.
The same things can be achieved my almost any video game, rendering most books obsolete and almost all gamers somewhat illiterate. If you took the time to read the works of the aforementioned authors, you'll see the great influence that written science fiction had on the creative staff of Power Stone.

Power Stone is set in the late 19th Century amidst the search for the legendary titular item. Said item has the power to make one wish--any wish--come true. Those that search for it will resort to fighting each other tooth and nail to get it. Luckily, there are MANY weapons lying around to hely the combatants fight each other for the best 2 out of 3 rounds for a win. The contenders for the Power Stone come from all over the globe, bearing with them great will and skill, multiplied several times over when in contact with pieces of the Power Stone. Let's take a look at our candidates:

FALCON

FALCON
Falcon is the son of Pride, a legendary aviator and treasure hunter. He could be the best bet for winning the Power Stone. When in contact with the Power Stone, he transforms into a red metallic, flying superhero that looks like "The Rocketeer".
The German flying ace Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (aka "the Red Baron") may have been the inspiration for Falcon.  The name Falcon, however, may have come from the type of plane the Red Baron flew during World War I: a Fokker Dr.I triplane. A guess as to why he's called "Falcon" as opposed to "Fokker" is a dodge against reviving Nazi ideology (the Union Jack on his shoulder would probably be an Iron Cross). Given that the German combatants were not Nazis during WWI, this has yet to be made clear.

ROUGE

ROUGE

Although One Thousand and One Arabian Nights was written well before the age of science fiction, it was re-explored by the people of the 19th Century. Rouge brings it back as a mystical, exotic woman. Touching the Power Stone turns her into a type of genie called an Efreet (more commonly known as an Ifrit). All fire and brimstone, she's a dangerous character to play against. In a nod to the myths about the area encompassed by the British Raj, Rouge enters on a flying carpet.

WANGTANG

WANGTANG

Yet another sendup of the Monkey King Sun Wukong/Son Gokuu of the Eastern epic Journey to the West (aka Saiyuki), this Asian boy bears the swirling crown symbol of Son Gokuu proudly as his belt. When he touches the Power Stone, he's more of a reference to Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball Z's Super-Saiyans than anything else. Another nod to the Monkey King comes in the form of an extending weapon found in the game called the nyoi-bo, more commonly known as the Power Pole. 

GALUDA

GALUDA
A representative of the Native Americans, Galuda is frickin' huge. He is a note to the slowly disappearing Old West. Touching the Power Stone allows him to turn into a totem statue of great power. I refer to him in this form as the "wooden Optimus Prime." Twisting stereotypical ideas about native American weapons, Galuda can fire giant shining arrows at his opponent. Oddly enough, Galuda is another way of pronouncing Garuda, a name for a winged bird-like creature of Hindu (read: Indian) mythology.  The Indian may have been a mix-up with feather Indians and forehead-dot Indians, but Native Americans have been known to give great importance and spiritual significance to the eagle.

RYOMA

RYOMA

Fulfilling the necessary convention of having two representatives from Japan in a fighting game, enter our ronin samurai hero Ryoma. You'll see he's the most efficient fighter in the game because he brings his own weapon to the fight. The Power Stone transforms him into a super samurai in silver beetle armor, a character I sometimes call "Mushido" but am apt to mark as the X-Men villain Silver Samurai. One of his moves allows him to make several slashes in the air that home in on its target.

JACK

JACK

Jack was based on the mutilating murderer Jack the Ripper. The basis is changed some to reflect Japanese influence: Jack behaves like a ninja, yet his image incorporates ideas of the Pharaoh's mummies. Nonetheless, when he has the Power Stone, Jack turns into Robo-Jack, capable of rending the flesh from his opponent's bone in the span of a match.

AYAME

AYAME

One would think that she's a geisha in training, but her behavior is anything but geisha-like! Ayame  is a fun little girl who can do just as well as the boys can. Contact with the Power Stone transforms her into a ninja dressed in pink...with the largest shuriken ever on her back. Her specialty is throwing the large shuriken about, hoping it hits. It will indeed hit, and for 9 hits at that. Looking at her makes me think of the Pink Ranger from Power Rangers.

 

GUNROCK

GUNROCK

I'm not sure whether this guy is supposed to be a nod to Pancho Villa, but he's a big ol' Mexican dude who will hurt you if he gets you in a corner. In Power Stone mode, he turns into an earthen golem creature that bears a strange resemblace to the Fantastic Four superhero, the Thing. There's a lot of industrialization in Gunrock's stage; I wonder if it has anything to do with the industrialization of Mexico as seen by the eyes of Mexican artist Diego Parra.

These 8 heroes are all vying for the Power Stone, but undesireable forces would have them first. Such villains have set up shop in the lost city of what looks like Atlantis. Needless to say, the battle is on against the villains in all hope to save the world. Such grand goals from people across the world appeals to me at the basest of levels.
The control for this game is a bit hectic and rushed. It takes a while to get used to the craziness. The transformations are cool, their supers are cooler and the whole vision is absolutely wonderful. With all these benefits, could there be a problem? Not at all. 

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Golden Axe 2 (1991 - Sega Genesis)

Coming up, I was brought up on fairy tales. I was taught the code of chivalry, about knights saving fair damsels and the perils of ancient Greece from Edith Hamilton's Mythology as related to me by my mother. I've never read The Lord of the Rings, yet I feel I know it through myriad homages to it. My cartoon lineup consisted of Thundarr the Barbarian, Galtar & the Golden Lance (an early double-bladed lightsaber), the original Dungeons & Dragons cartoon and to a stretch, He-Man. Nothing appealed to me more than cleaving through monsters to stop the bad guy and get the girl. There are two ways I was able to access this fantasy: one was the all-purpose daydream, the other was through video games.
Some of my favorite memories are the times I spent playing the original Golden Axe, Gauntlet, Final Fight, Double Dragon and Streets of Rage. The release of smacking a few hundred bad guys around who'll smack back was fun. I was not prepared for the onslaught that is Golden Axe II.

Every "sword-and-sorcery" story has to have a text scroll to inform the viewer of the world they were about to visit. So it is with Golden Axe II:

A few years after the last battle...
in this land, the peace is threatened again
by an evil power.
The lord of darkness, 'DARK GULD',
who should have been imprisoned
in ancient times, arose again.
He destroyed entire countries with his evil clan
to bring this world into chaos.
Once again, the three warriors
have thrown themselves into a mighty battle.

Yep, the big dude in the big armor with the BIG axe is at it again. And so are our 3 heroes.
The dude, the girl and the dwarf are ready to take on the forces of evil once more as the crawl stated earlier. The Bizarrians (the weird pink-parrot-sperm thingies you ride) are back also. The gameplay of Golden Axe II has been spiced up with several options. Each character has their own maneuver to get out of being surrounded by pressing the attack button and the jump button at the same time. You can collect as many magic potions (to cast magic) and use as many as you want in a given moment by holding down the magic button. An example:
Tyris-Flare (the girl) has 8 magic slots. She can hold 6 magic spells. When she casts a small spell, you'll only have to hit the magic button once. One of the blue bars representing a magic slot will turn white and the spell will be cast. To cast the magic at full power, hold the magic button down until all of the blue bars turn white. Needless to say, game play has improved. But what of the enemies? Have they improved as well?

The enemies in Golden Axe II have improved vastly, yet they leave something to be desired. Many of the low-level enemies are dumb as posts (as they should be). Some of the bosses are the same way also. Two different enemies stand alone in their ability to kick ass in greater quality than their peers or supervisors.

THE SKELETON: Cunning, fast and relentless, these undead minions make up only a few elite units in Dark Guld's army and his personal guard in the final battle. Fighting them is worth every minute spent outwitting them.

THE LIZARDMAN: Lizardmen are not to be fucked with. Close-quarters fighting is their forte; the only way to really stop them is lots of charges. Even with that tactic, they'll find a way to make you pay with your blood and sweat.

The only disappointing thing about Golden Axe II is its bosses. The programming for these enemies makes the boss look like he's phoning it in. The only thing that makes the bosses formidable enemies is their attacks hurt a lot when they are conscious enough to hit you.

With a high nostalgia factor and some of the best rear attacks out there, Golden Axe II gets a 9.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Eternal Champions (1993 - Sega Genesis)

When I first heard the buzz on this, I was glad. Not everyone is on Street Fighter's jock. Then again, this was during a time that people were marveling at the new level that video games had come to with Mortal Kombat. So, many video game companies decided to do just what they did before with the popularity of Street Fighter II: they released a glut of fighting games that tried to copy Mortal Kombat. The arcade game TimeStoppers surpassed the mark set by Mortal Kombat, by allowing dismemberment for dismemberment's sake. Eternal Champions failed in that respect because it ended up being more original than an ape of Mortal Kombat. The only thing the two games shared was their need of cool fatalities.

The story goes like this: Some warriors from across the span of Earth's history were brought to the temple of the Eternal Champion, a spectral being obsessed with honor and battle. He pits the warriors against each
other with the promise that if they emerge victorious against their peers and himself, they'll be able to go back and prevent their premature deaths. Each of the warriors are masters in their respective martial art, and the Eternal Champion is master of them all! Who could best the Eternal Champion?

First of all, Eternal Champions' characters have endeared themselves to me due to the circumstances that brought them to the attention of the Eternal Champion:

• Blade: a bounty hunter from the 26th Century and master of Kenpo.
• Shadow: a female Koga ninja assassin from the 21st Century and  mistress of ninjitsu.
• R.A.X. Cogswell: cyborg Muy Thai kickboxing champion from the 23rd Century.
• Xavier Pendragon: warlock from the 17th Century.
• Slash: Caveman from the birth of time.
• Trident: Merman gladiator from ancient Atlantis. Master of Capoeira.
• Jetta: French gypsy acrobat from the 18th Century. Mistress of French Savate.
• Midknight: scientist from the late 20th Century transformed into a vampire by Agent Orange. Master of Jeet Kune Do.
• Larcen: Cat burgular from the early 20th Century. Master of Praying Mantis Kung Fu.

One of these men is a Kool Moe Dee impersonator;
the other slapped Michael Jackson. Both of these
men share the name Blade. No word on whether
Kool Moe Dee has slapped Michael Jackson.

All of these characters could be comic book characters easy, yet they were developed by Sega stateside. With the detail that went into each character's backstory, I'm not surprised if they stole the idea wholesale from an aspiring comic artist.
Rated MA-13 (remember that, folks?) for its gruesome fatalities, it shouldn't have been. Those fatalities (called Overkills to avoid a Mortal Kombat lawsuit fatality, also called a "LEGALITY") had to be activated by landing your opponents in a specific area of the stages. If your opponent bounced in his/her falling, s/he must fall in the area required. Hard as fuck to pull off when you're beating the crap out of someone. Another interesting quirk in this game is the win count option. Your fights can go for the standard best 2 out of 3, but they can also go 4 out of 7 OR reach the maximum match point of 11 out of 21. That's a whole lotta scrappin'.

This game had a great potential to be one of the best fighting games out there, even with its difficult controls. Hey, if Tekken can have you punching out Morse code to do a simple backfist, then why couldn't this game rule? I have no idea. Maybe Street Fighter II: Championship Edition really was all that & a bag of chips; so much that it eclipsed any and all challengers. It's really sad that the only way people of the Internet Age will know of Eternal Champions is through this webpage. That's all I have to say about a game featuring the ten fallen heroes who will always be--ETERNAL CHAMPIONS.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Contra: Hard Corps (1994 - Sega Genesis)

The only Contra game in the series to reach the Sega Genesis, Contra: Hard Corps (now "CHC") is frickin' awesome. The game definitely expands on the capabilities of what a Contra game is all about, making it into an example of what a Contra game should be.

The story starts thus: Red Falcon, the alien overlord, is at it again. He has sent his troops to plague the cities of Earth and to wipe out the human race. With ground troops. Whatever. Anyway, the Earth defense forces have selected four specially-trained soldiers to combat Red Falcon and his forces of evil. It is with these four troops that the whole game comes together.
Instead of the Droll Duo of Steve (aka Player 1) and Lance (Player 2), we have four unique soldiers that have made it their job to use certain weapon power-ups (A,B,C and D) in different ways.

• Ray is "the guy" of the crew, a natural with a weapon and a career soldier. The best weapon for him is weapon D, which gives him the old Contra standby, the Spread Gun.
• Sheena Etranzi is "the girl", a jungle commando without equal. Her best weapon is weapon B, giving her Homing Missiles.
• Brad used to be human, until Red Falcon got its hands on him. Now Brad is a cyborg werewolf with a penchand for close combat and sunglasses. Since I played Brad a lot, it's a toss-up between weapon A (Spread Vulcan) or weapon C (the greatest Flamethrower ever) as to what is his best weapon.
• The robot Browny is a scrappy lil' guy. It has the extra skill to use its built-in jetpack. Its best weapon is weapon C, the EM Grappler. It's a homing weapon that never leaves the enemy unless you let go of the button.

What makes these elite soldiers much better than Steve and Lance is the fact that they can slide. Sliding allows you to do damage to the enemy while remaining invincible. It's very useful for evading bullets and the only way you'll ever defeat some of CHC's bosses.
The bosses in Contra: Hard Corps are wonderfully animated by the crew at Konami, who took the time to stretch the capabilities of the Genesis. From Cyborg Joe (the nastiest bounty hunter on their side of the war) to robotic fish to, most importantly, the Burgundy Ball Tank in stage 5, every enemy boss is tailor made to make you work for its defeat. Never will you ever spend this much time fighting that boss once you've beaten him already; not because of a save feature but because the Burgundy Ball Tank exists in all 8 possible endings. Yes, eight.

CHC has a branching storyline that pits you against different enemies and bosses in different locales. Each choice you make changes the direction of the story and the mission that our heroes move to complete. For instance, trying to kill Cyborg Joe after you beat him ensures that you'll have to fight and beat him twice more. Letting Cyborg Joe go prompts him to go all suicide bomber on you and self-destruct. The choices you make are important to keep ing the game fresh, because some branches are sealed off once you make a choice. As soon as you realize this, you'll actively make an effort to get all 8 endings. Some are good, some are bad and a few straight up suck. You'll be able to see a bad decision a mile away.

If there's a Contra completist out there, make an effort to get all the Contras you can (with the exception of Contra: Legacy of War for the PSX), making this game paramount on this list.

RATING: 9/10

Movie Review - Mechanical Violator HAKAIDER (1995)

I love movie previews. They are a great money-saving medium when considering what movies you should see. More often than not, they'll tell you whether a movie is worth seeing or not. In many cases, I don't listen to myself and NOT go see a bad movie, because I know I'll have a good time nonetheless. That was the case with Underworld (2003) and Waterworld, but a grave misstep in the case of the recent Uwe Boll film House of the Dead. What's important about this nex example is that the preview I saw led to another preview, which led to another movie. All three Asian movies and their traliers are videos released by TOKYO SHOCK!, a division of Media Blasters.
I first became acquained with TOKYO SHOCK! through Craig Kilborn's "5 Questions" clip of someone getting their head crushed. That is a clip from the film Riki-Oh: the Story of Ricky. I went out and bought it and it still is an entertaining romp to this day, especially when I saw a preview or another TOKYO SHOCK! video release: Keita Amemiya's Moon Over Tao. I watched that film and saw the trailer for another Amemiya film called Mechanical Violator Hakaider.

Hakaider is the name of the villain in the manga/anime/live action show "Kikaider". He's more cyborg that robot because his brain is easily seen from the transparent glass over it. While Kikaider would be the normal choice for a movie character in the United States ('cuz he's the hero), Amemiya decided to turn Hakaider into an anti-hero. Channeling Schwartzenegger in Terminator 2 (complete with Winchester shotgun in motorcycle holster) for the entrance to our setting of Jesus Town, he's all kinds of bad-ass; a major point in the story.
The story is about rebels fighting against the misguided, angelic King Girjev (Yasuyaki Honda) and his utopian dream where people no longer have freewill via a simple lobotomy. The rebels aren't shining examples of goodness either; stealing and counterfeiting money as they see fit. One member, the young love interest Kaoru (Mai Hosho), seems alone in her dream for a good world where people can be free. While dreaming of freedom for the people, she is also plagued by nightmares where she's menaced by an evil white angel and the only one who comes to save her is a black knight astride an ebony steed...

Enter Hakaider in a battle for his life. He barely makes a getaway from Girjev's troops with the help of the rebels. With most of the engaging troops destroyed, the survivors must face an even greater threat: Girjev's trusted robot lieutenant, Mikhail (voiced by Kazuhiko Inoue). The presence of Mikhail can only mean one thing in a movie like this: ROBOT SHOWDOWN. And what a showdown it is. Will Jesus Town be free of Girjev's mad dream? Will Kaoru's dream of a world that's filled with good and love be realized? Will Kikaider make a cameo?

Mechanical Violator Hakaider has the most interesting tagline that I've heard in a while:

    "IF THIS PEACE IS FICTICIOUS... I WILL DESTROY IT!"

Sounds like "Engrish" to the untrained movie watcher, but if you actually see the movie and have a small understanding of how the native Japanese sci-fi fan thinks, you'll understand. You'll still laugh at it when it's in the trailer.
The movie itself is very cheap-looking in the street throng scenes, achieving the look of a dystopian future. The street battles are awesome. He may have blown up many a mannequin, but Hakaider's off the hook! There was an atristic idea that was placed in this movie that wows me to this day: when Hakaider and Mikhail fight in Girjev's chambers, they damage the pristine white walls and reveal bright red insulation. It's almost as if Girjev's chamber is made of flesh and blood. A similar effect is achieved when Hakaider damages Mikhail, showing Mikhail's interiors of red piping and wiring. The battle between them slowly begins to turn the pristine world Girjev puts forth into a bloody-like representation of its true form. This is further cemented through
Kikaider's cameo (it's very brief and you'd have to know he was there to see it.)

Video Game Review - Comix Zone (1995 - Sega Genesis)

This game would've escaped my view had I not been into comic books like I was when I was younger. I understood that Spider-Man was out of my grasp as far as story (boring) and vendor availability (non-existant). Hell, Spider-Man was as inaccessible to me as a peak-era Spawn issue or any issue of Battle Chasers. Yet my focus was not as a comic collector; it was as an artist. That's why someone presented me with Comix Zone for either my birthday or Christmas (can't remember which) and expected I would like it. If that person is reading this webpage, thank you. Thank you so very much.

Comix Zone was a great game to sit and play, because it took a character that most young boys wanna be and put him into the place of the protagonist. Sketch Turner, freelance comic artist, has created a villain canned Mortus and hopes that his comic will be a great success.
He confides these wishes to his pet rat Roadkill as a thunderstorm rages nearby. Lightning strikes the room and magically turns Mortus into a physical being with all the powers he has in the comic. First thing Mortus does is put Sketch and Roadkill into the comic. Now our hero has to fighure a way out of his own crazy comic book world. To his credit, he has created a secret organization that'll help him in the comic book. Their top operative is Alicia Cyan and she gives hints to Sketch as he fights his way from page to page in his comic. His ultimate goal is to get to the end of the comic and possibly defeat Mortus by doing so. Many obstacles wait in his way, so he'd better get ready to defeat them all.

The moves available to Sketch are very cool. He can do a bunch of kung-fu stuff and transform into a superhero when necessary. The enemies can be a pain in the ass, but in a good-natured way. All the music is great, without any cheesy rinky-dink music to make you think of light-hearted stuff. The whole damn game is a manly affair. And I like that need to make it manly; with that goal firmly in place, the game kicks serious butt.
As an added bonus, there was a black-and-white comic book inside the game packaging, which was great. Comix Zone also came along with a CD called "American Underground". This CD was actually my FIRST CD EVER (pathetic, I know) and it had music from Danzig, The Lords of the Underground and Lords of Acid. I still own the CD...and it still sucks, but in an early 90's way of sucking that'd make you smile.

RATING: 9/10

Video Game Review - Armored Core (1997 - PlayStation)

As I established in my Xenogears review, I love mecha. I love big robots. From Voltron to Veritechs; Dancougar to GaoGaiGar to Gasaraki, that's all that I need to really enjoy myself. If one were to say that my love of mecha is a metaphor for a penile inferiority complex, then by all means say so. Know that by doing so is essentially a waiver that makes it OK to combine the plasma power of my Blazing Sword and Tekno Power-Blasters on your puny fleshbag body.

*sigh. If only…*

Anyways, I'm talking about a game that had no real impact on me when I initially played the demo version. It only had a sampling of all the components available, so there wasn't much appeal. Plus the controls for aiming the mech's targeting was set up like an airplane. I wasn't in an airplane, so what gives? So Armored Core sat on the shelves until I saw it again at Blockbuster Video. It was during those days that i had a lot of free time: I was making comic books left and right while watching as much Mystery Science Theater 3000 as I could muster. When I couldn't watch it on cable TV, I had my buddy David hook it up with taped MST3K(with Joel, TV's Frank and Dr. Forrester). While he showed me those taped episodes(of which "Eegah!" is still my favorite), I also got to see some import games on his modified PlayStation. The fighting game "Sailor Moon S" wasn't a big draw for me, but Cyberbots: Full Metal Madness was. This is the game I had seen in magazines where there was a mech that looked like Akuma from the Street Fighter series. This game is also the backstory for the Marvel vs CAPCOM character Jin, his BLOODIA mech and the Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo villain Devilot. While I played this game, I remembered Armored Core. I thought to myself, "Wait a minute, Armored Core lets you CUSTOMIZE your mech" and I realized that for all the 2D CAPCOM goodness that Cyberbots brought to the table, it wasn't gonna touch Armored Core. With that, I went out and rented the game. 

Armored Core is a simulation game along the lines of Gran Turismo, but better. Instead of limiting oneself to a internal combustion engine and 4 wheels, Armored Core allows you to pilot huge-ass mechs. You've got the ability to combine pieces of mechs(arms, legs, bodies, head, weapons, etc.) into a fearsome battle unit with limitations on weight and energy consumption. In Armored Core's sequel, Armored Core 2: Another Age, the mech cannot leave the shop if overweight. Luckily for the inexperienced mech-builder, that does not apply in the original.
You're part of a mercenary group called the Raven's Nest. Your people do the jobs that pay very well and are, by necessity, very dangerous. You'll do battle with many types of enemies, yet you'll only have to fight another good mech pilot once. You'll go into battles that require you to have certain components in order to survive the environment let alone the battles on the stage, so the option to do missions over again in order to get more money is a plus. A minus for some people is the touch of realism: when you use weapons that have solid ammunition or you take damage during a mission, you will have to pay for repairs to your mech. If you're trigger happy, the ordinance fee will kill you. Luckily, there's an alternative: energy weapons. They take energy from your generator and heat up your jets, so flying and firing your lazer gun is not the best idea.

Another customization point is the paint job of your mech. you can go with any of the preset paintjobs and modify those, or you can make your own. If you want a brand on your mech, you can choose from the large selection of premade logos, blank logo standards or make your own. The downsides to both of those functions are:

1. You cannot color an individual limb a different color than the rest of the mech.

2. If you don't know how to draw, the logo creator can be the hardest thing in the game.

These functions alone kept me occupied for most of the game, due to my thing about making my mech look sweet as hell. That's not the only thing you should be wary of because it's what's inside the mech that counts.

In addition to being a good pilot, being armed and being armored, you must take advantage of the internal components. While your weapons and mech have base abilities, certain chips and additional items installed into your mech's computer and engine will allow you to excel where you couldn't before.

Case in point: the WM-S60-6(a back-mounted small missile launcher, aka "the Hex Launcher") has up to 6 separate lock-ons at once. The problem is they lock on too slowly to be effective. Luckily, the internal component SP-AXL(a 2 slot component) can greatly speed up your lock-on time. While this is great and all, you have to remember to TURN THE COMPONENT ON. (NOTE: the problem can be eliminated by obtaining the secret weapon WX-S800-GF[a dual missile pod weapon], which shoots 6 missiles with a quick, single target lock.)

I got over the airplane controls, went above and beyond good taste in mech battle protocol and ultimately enjoyed the game Armored Core. This game spawned some expansion games to it called "Armored Core: Project Phantasma"(new parts and missions) and "Armored Core: Master of Arena"(a tournament competition for your mech). Agetec has also produced challenging sequels for the Playstation 2 called "Armored Core 2: Another Age" and "Armored Core 3: Silent LIne." Both PS2 sequel have the Master of Arena feature built in, with some of the hardest-fighting mech pilot AI I've ever seen. All of these games deserve medals in their respective areas, but I'll have to stay with the originator.

RATING: 9/10