The Optimistic Review

A New World: Streaming

2012-01-24T04:05:00.000-05:00

So I have embraced another aspect of the internet. I am going to start doing live streaming for a variety of games. Hopefully if I can figure out what needs to be done for my capture card I can really branch out. In the mean time I will stream things off my computer. Please check out my twitch.tv page and keep an eye on it. I hope to spend a good chunk of time streaming very shortly. I will also try to talk about things that could be covered in this blog as well.

My Skyward Experience

2012-01-03T13:24:00.000-05:00

Before I begin writing this segment I would like to wish everyone a happy and healthy new year. I hope this year finds you all well and will find growth for this blog.

I am currently in my lunch break in the middle of the voir dire process of jury duty selection so if at some point is seems like my thoughts have shifted slightly, that likely has to do with my inability to write this in the allotted time before I have to go back. For what it's worth jury duty (or at least this part of the process) is almost enjoyable if not just quite boring at times.

Warning: Slight spoilers

So after finishing off my semester I finally cracked open my collector's edition of Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (which I promptly finished on New Year's Day after playing for 15 hours straight in that sitting). At first this game struck me as just another game of the illustrious Zelda franchise and for the most part I was right. It fits into the same mold as some of its predecessors such as Ocarina of Time, Windwaker and Twilight Princess. Some differences to note are:

1) I felt the controls were clunky and not very intuitive (I think I finally figured out the full extent of the controls in the second to last boss battle and I even had a hard time selecting items in the menus and the constant centering of the pointer was irritating to say the least) and I felt that that took away from the enjoyable experience (I can't remember the last time I want to chuck my controller at the TV, in fact I don't think it's ever happened).

2) There is actually a different story behind this game (compared to Ocarina of Time, Windwaker and Twilight Princess). In fact, unless I wished something, they did not even mention the names Hyrule and Ganon(dorf). There is a relatively intricate storyline that puts a different spin onto the game (although with the announcement of an official chronology of the series it makes sense seeing as how this game preceded all other iterations of the Zelda franchise.

3) There were some difference in the item system in that you do not have full access to all of the items at any given time.

4) The game is MUCH harder than almost any other Zelda game (at least when comparing it to Ocarina of Time, Windwaker and Twilight Princess). Not only is the game actually harder (enemies do more damage compared to other games and you even start with six hearts, which you need. The only saving grace is that you do not lose any hearts for falling off a cliff, into lava, etc.), even some of the puzzles are quite confusing and some of the boss battles get quite difficult (especially two bosses you fight three times). That being said the final boss dishes out a ton of damage if he can land hits but other than that he is quite, and maybe almost too simple.

The gimmick to this game was the ability to fly around on a Loftwing (a giant bird), very much akin to the Kind of Red Lions, Linebeck's Ship and the Train (can't remember the name), in their respective games. Unfortunately I did not feel this gave anything extra to the game, rather I was annoyed every time I had to schlep across the map to get treasure or go somewhere.

Also instead of having multiple regions to go to (most notably in Ocarina of Time and Windwaker) you return to the same 3 areas (not including your home island of Skyloft) that you travel to multiple times over the course of the game and while each time there is usually some new area of that place that you gain access to with each trip, it still gets a bit boring.

Many people were annoyed at Navi from Ocarina of Time (and I suppose Tatl from Majora's Mask was more or less identical). The guiding force in this game is a spirit(?) named Fi. The problem does not come from some annoying exclamation yelled at you every other minute. Rather the issue comes from the constant dialogue from Fi telling you what to do, where to go, etc. but at the same time giving some statistic (the saying 90% of all statistics are made up comes to mind here) about something you can easily extrapolate from the situation. I don't think I ever actually called on Fi for help while playing.

In all fairness most of my real issues came from the controls and what I learned at the end of the game was that it was my fault for not investing the time to either research or figure out the controls. So overall the game is another very solid addition to the Zelda franchise, does not disservice to the series and is probably one of the better ones (I'm not going to state my opinion because I don't know how I'd rank the console Zelda games from Ocarina of Time onward, although I will say Majora's Mask is likely my favorite); however, I do not agree with Famitsu's rating of 40/40 (my own personal belief although I can understand why they gave it a perfect score). I agree more with Nintendo Power's rating which (surprisingly enough) was a 9.5/10.

So there you have it, a rather basic review of my experience with this game. I hope to be able to give more full reviews in the near future. But for now I have to finish up my voir dire soon.

Interview with ChrisG

2011-12-18T03:15:00.000-05:00

As I am writing for Local Battles. I have spoken with one of their players (LB| NYChrisG) on several occasions and he answered several questions I had for him regarding his experiences at Northeast Championships and Shoryuken.com's $1000 Showmatches. The interview can be found here.

Salty Battles 7

2011-11-28T01:29:00.000-05:00

First of all I wish to apologize for the lack of new material that has been added to this blog. I have been really stressed out and now find myself with another writing obligation (I am writing for Local Battles and I have already attended the first Big Two tournament and traveled to Local Battles twice). The material I have comes not in the form of a review but rather a stream from Local Battles Salty Battles 7 tournament. Salty Battles is a small event that generally features Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition and Mortal Kombat 9 tournaments. Unfortunately the small attendance for SSFIV AE and MK9 meant that the only tournament that was going to be held was UMvC3. The tournament started around 2 hours late but the matches were crazy and I got my first chance to commentate matches (admittedly I am not good...yet, I hope to have a chance to commentate again). It was LB| ChrisG who ultimately won.

The Grand Finals of Salty Battles 7

I plan on attending the Northeast Championships and Salty Battles 8 so I hope to have a lot of stuff to write about/publish so keep track of this website, Local Battle's website or sites like Eventhubs.com or Shoryuken.com for updates.

Chronicles of Dunk: Pilot

2011-11-06T13:28:00.001-05:00

First of all sorry for the time between this and my previous post but things are getting hectic so I will try to update the blog with new content at least once a week.

One day I was bouncing ideas off a friend and we came up with the idea to make a video series that is essentially a game playthrough with funny/stupid commentary (nothing innovating) and after hooking up a capture card and figuring out how XSplit works I have the pilot episode to show. We have been playing Final Fantasy X so we decided to start recording in the middle of the game (we only had about 10 hours logged in and were up to Mi'hen Highroad so we didn't miss too much). It breaks down quickly due to many people showing up so I was going to upload this later as an outtakes kind of video but just decided to upload it now.

For those of you who might be wondering why we chose this name. The story is that "dunking" has become something of a meme in my group of friends due to this video.

Look for more of these videos. I think they should be cranked out at a fairly fast pace.

Spooktacular Games: Ghosts and Goblins

2011-10-30T22:00:00.000-04:00

Since it is eve of Halloween, it is time to add another game to the spooktacular list. This time it is Ghosts and Goblins.

Ghosts and Goblins (1985) is a platformer that is regarded as one of the hardest games in history (I can't pass stage 2 although I haven't spent much time playing). I can only speak on this game (I can't speak on its sequels I have played only a small amount Ghouls and Ghosts, and that was a long time ago, but it is a bit easier). What can be said about a game that can be beaten in the span of a few hours (or 20 minutes if you are really good)? Not all that much.

You play the knight, Sir Arthur, who is trying to save his girlfriend Princess Prin Prin, who has been kidnapped by Satan, King of the Demon World. Over the course of 6 stages (with 1 checkpoint in each...I think) you kill zombies, cyclopes, dragons, birds, ogres among others, and can collect a few weapons (I have seen a lance, fire and knives and I think there are weapons like an axe and a shield). The game is difficult in that you can only get hit twice (one breaks your armor, the second kills you) before losing one of your 3 lives, and extra armor and extra lives are extremely rare (I don't think I've ever even seen an extra life) and each life is timed (about 3 minutes). And in some sadistic twist, after you "defeat" Satan and save your girlfriend you must go back and complete the game a second time on a harder difficulty. Overall a simple game with a simple premise, however it is one of the hardest games ever. But don't let this dissuade you from playing, it is still quite fun (although it is likely more fun on an emulator with all (three of) the cheats enabled.

And one last thing: What made me want to play this game again:

Check out Brentalfloss' other videos (some really great stuff) here.

From the Bookcase: Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

2011-10-26T00:21:00.000-04:00

What do you get when you cross guys with physiques out of Fist of the North Star, a stone mask that turns people into vampires and protagonists who harness energy similar to that of the sun to defeat said vampire? The beginnings of a truly unique, ongoing manga series, created by Hirohiko Araki in 1987, named Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. (Please bear with my upcoming summary, it has been a while since I have read this series and I don't remember all the details and I will also try not to spoil too much, I have to spoil some stuff).

First Volume of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 1 (Phantom Blood)
Part 1 takes place in Victorian England (I can't remember the exact year) begins with Jonathan Joestar (Jojo) and his rivalry with his adopted brother Dio Brando, Jonathan studies a stone mask used by people thousands of years ago in rituals and discovers it reacts to blood (spikes come out of it and bore into the person's head if it is being worn). Dio finds his notes and uses the mask on himself, turning himself into a vampire (not the western concept entirely, there are some differences). Jonathan finds a man named William Zeppeli, who instructs him in the art of Hamon (also known as the Ripple) which harnesses an energy similar to the sun (which destroys vampires). The penultimate event of this part is a climactic battle between Jonathan and Dio.

First Volume of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 2 (Battle Tendency)
Part 2 takes place in the 1930's and is similar, but focuses on Jonathan's grandson Joseph (Josef) Joestar (Jojo) and to a smaller extent William Zeppeli's grandson Caesar Zeppeli and their fight against vampires collectively known as the pillar men. They too are instructed art of Hamon to fight the pillar men. This part culminates in a fight between Joseph and Cars (one of the pillar men) after achieving "perfection".

First Volume of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3 (Stardust Crusaders)
Part 3 takes place in 1989 and focuses on several men, most notably a returning Joseph Joestar and his grandson Jotaro Kujo (Jojo) and their battle against a returning Dio Brando. This part is where the series takes a swerve as the focus draws away from Hamon (it is there but only in use sporadically by Joseph) and is placed on manifestations of psychic power called Stands. This part ends with a dramatic battle between Jotaro and Dio.

First Volume of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 4 (Diamond is Unbreakable)
Part 4 takes place in 1999 and focuses on Josuke Higashikata (combo-breaker), the illegitimate son of Joseph, and a few friends in their quest to find a serial killer (Yoshikage Kira) who killed a friend of theirs. This part ends with the expected battle between Josuke and Kira (although it ends quite anticlimactically). Part 4 also has the distinction of not taking place in a really location. Many have speculated that it is supposed to represent Sendai (the birthplace of the mangaka; which was near the epicenter of the terrible earthquake that hit Japan earlier this year). We also learn in this part that Stands are manifested when a chosen person is struck with a special arrow.

First Volume of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 5 (Vento Aureo)
Part 5 takes place in 2001 and focuses on Giorno Giovanna, the son of Dio Brando and his attempts to become, as he puts it, a "gangstar." Once again there is a group of people (this time it is literally a gang) with him and the part revolves around their attempts at killing the head of the mafia. This part gets quickly crazy and we learn that the arrows have another function. The part ends in a strange (albeit awesome) manner, during the fight between Giorno and Diavolo.

First Volume of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 6 (Stone Ocean)
Part 6 takes place in 2012 and focuses on Jolyne Kujo the daugther of Jotaro, who is incarcerated for a crime she didn't truly commit. She must rescue her father (not physically) who was incapacitated within the jail from Enrico Pucci. The part ends in a truly bizarre manner after the final battle.

First Volume of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 7 (Steel Ball Run)
Part 7 returns to the 19th century (however in an alternate timeline) and focuses around Johnny Joestar and to a seemingly larger extent, Gyro Zeppeli. This part revolves around a horseback race from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean and the events that occur during the race. I really cannot say much here as I have yet to finish part 7 (there are about 10 chapters yet to be scanlated), however the 84 chapters I have read so far are amazing.

First Issue of Ultra Jump with Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 8 (Jojolion)
Part 8...Well I have no idea. There are a few chapters out (and fewer scanlated) but I am not reading them until I finish part 7.

So there is a brief synopsis of each part. Truly this is a one of a kind series. Bizarre describes the series very well. If you look close enough (or just read the names) you will likely notice a lot of music references (Jojo is a reference to the Beatles song Get Back) The series however has not been released everywhere, in fact in the United States, only part 3 has been released, so if you want to read it you will likely have to find scanlations online (be it on a site or through direct download or IRC) unless you can read Japanese or live in a country where it has been released.

First DVD of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3 OVA series
Part 3 was also made into an OVA (an admittedly terrible OVA). There isn't too much in terms of differences between the OVA and the manga except that the OVA skips over a lot of things.

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3 Fighting Game
Part 3 also got it's own fighting game (which is quite good). Some of you may have already seen some of it if you are familiar with the Za Warudo/WRYYYYY meme.

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 5 Video Game
There are a few other things that have been made: a Part 5 video game which I don't know anything about and a part 1 movie that I know nothing about except the fact that it is impossible to find footage of it (barring trailers). Also (just like many animes; or in this case an OVA) there is an Abridged series of the OVA (created by AntfishTAS on youtube) which in my opinion is better than the OVA.

So this is Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. If you have time and like action mangas I definitely recommend you pick this series up. All parts together total about 900 or so chapters but it goes by very quickly. This is by far one of my favorite manga series, it is a great mix of action, dialogue and improbable situations. It is very likely that this series will blow your mind. I don't know how I could have gone this long without mentioning it but the artwork of the mangaka and specifically the poses the characters make is absolutely amazing. So let me end with an obligatory reference.

Spooktacular Games: Resident Evil 5

2011-10-25T16:54:00.000-04:00

As Halloween is approaching, and I am currently watching a friend play Resident Evil 4 (I've only run through RE4 once), I've thought of reviewing Resident Evil 5.

NA Cover Art
Resident Evil 5 is a survival horror third-person shooter (admittedly a little light on the horror aspect) developed and published by Capcom and released in 2009. You play as B.S.A.A agents Chris Redfield (returning from Resident Evil 1) and Sheva Alomar who are trying to find information about a bio-organic weapon. Their search leads them to Albert Wesker and a brainwashed Jill Valentine (also returning from RE1, amongst others). Wesker has a plan to infect the entire world with the bio-organic weapon and it is up to you to save the world (a cliched premise I'll admit).

Split Screen (2 player) Gameplay
The gameplay is solid. The controls are relatively simple and there is a lot to discover in the game (mostly all the treasures, but also the weapons to a lesser extent). The ability to upgrade all the weapons make the game interesting (although much less challenging on multiple playthroughs). The difficulty is pretty irrelevant until you get to professional mode which is exponentially more difficult, especially with the intelligence of the AI, which can border on retarded. RE5 also offers tons of different modes which includes Mercenary mode and the DLC which includes Lost in Nightmares, A Desperate Escape, Versus and Mercenaries Reunion.

All in all a fun game (I spent enough time to platinum the game) and it is a good game to play if you need some time to kill. It may be a bit weak when compared with the rest of the series (especially RE4) but nonetheless is a credit to the series.

The Fighting Game Corner: My Marvel vs Capcom 3 Experience

2011-10-25T01:38:00.002-04:00

Before I begin this post let me clarify something: I am by no means a fighting game expert. I have very small amounts of experience playing fighting games. These include Soul Calibur 2 and 3 (very casual play with my sister), all iterations of Street Fighter IV (constant basis but not much play on my part) and Street Fighter Third Strike (similar to SFIV but I have probably played more), a tiny, tiny amount of Blazblue and also the Smash Bros. series (however I don't consider this in the same vein as the other fighting games, however Marvel vs Capcom 3 was the first fighting game I absolutely fell in love with.

NA/EU Cover Art for MvC3
Here is my journey into the world of MvC3:
I have been playing since July and despite promising myself (for reasons I can't remember) that I would never play it, I relented (after about 5 months). Marvel vs Capcom 3 drew me in with it's interesting, fast paced gameplay (I had never played a tag fighting game or any Vs series really), colorful cast of characters and relatively simplistic controls. For the first few weeks I played to get to know the game so I could play against my friends but as time passed something I couldn't even believe happened: I actually wanted to get much better at a fighting game. After a mere month I found myself not only playing in online ranked matches (something I had never cared to do in any game, regardless of genre; in simplest terms I am usually a very casual gamer). But by the beginning of August I had placed an order for the Qanba 4 Arcade Stick and haven't looked back. Today (about 3-4 months and 75 in game hours later) I am still quite mediocre at the game (even compared to most of my friends but that likely has to do with my ineptitude with the genre as a whole rather than just the game itself), but feel like I have learned a lot and I am constantly learning and surprising myself with what I can do (I have definitely come a long way from my beginnings with Wolverine, Sentinel and Akuma; currently I have been working on Magneto, Doctor Doom and Wesker).

One of the first matches I played against a friend (on the left)
Nice Random

Now let me backtrack a bit. In July (likely a few weeks after I picked up MvC3) Capcom unveiled Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, a "sequel" to MvC3. I was happy to hear this and I immediately made plans to buy it when it was released (still waiting; it comes out 11/15/11). However I was absolutely blow away by an admittedly terrible event (terrible for Capcom anyway), the 8 new characters not unveiled at San Diego Comic Con (there are 12 new characters total) were spoiled via images online and one of them is Capcom fan favorite (myself included) Phoenix Wright (from the Ace Attorney series).

I am a huge Ace Attorney fan and was thrilled to hear that Capcom had finally put him in a fighting game (I knew they had tried before). So as the weeks went by and more characters were unveiled, by mid-October only 4 remained. I attended New York Comic Con and on the first fay of NYCC I saw this video before heading off to the event:

I was ecstatic that not only had I finally seen Phoenix Wright's gameplay, but this meant that at NYCC and specifically at Capcom's booth I would be able to play Phoenix Wright. I got my first chance to play with a friend (who was more than excited to play Vergil), and I was enthralled by how weird his gameplay was. I also attended the UMvC3 panel and witnessed the unveiling of some details of UMvC3.

Me (Cosplaying Phoenix Wright) with Ryota Niitsuma (director/producer of UMvC3)
After the UMvC3 panel
So this is where my journey has led me. I am still anxiously waiting for UMvC3 to drop and really can't wait to get a real grasp for the changes implemented in this new iteration of the game, so in the meantime I constantly check sites like eventhubs, shoryuken and Maximillian's videos (Online Warrior and Assist Me series, especially the Assist Me series, which really helped my love for the game grow and as such I seriously recommend checking out Maximillian's videos if you haven't seen them before, a perfect blend of information and comedy) for updates and new content. I feel that this game can easily appeal to all gamers, from those who enjoy MvC3 to those who have never played a fighting game before. And who knows maybe I'll get into more fighting games, Street Fighter X Tekken is around the corner.

Retro Game Spotlight: Advance Wars: Dual Strike

2011-10-23T18:58:00.003-04:00

One of the games I have recently dusted off is an old favorite of mine, Advance Wars: Dual Strike (released in 2005, developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS).

For those of you who have never heard of this game (or the series), it is a turn based strategy game based around the efforts of a coalition of 4 nations (Orange Star, Blue Moon, Green Earth, Yellow Comet) trying to stop the evil plans of a group known as Black Hole, which is now being led by a mysterious old man named von Bolt (after the likely death of the previous leader Sturm). This game introduced a few new concepts into the Advance Wars universe, namely new units and CO's, (Commanding Officers) the ability to choose up to 2 CO's (and the use of simultaneous CO Powers) and the use of both screens on the DS to simulate a 2 front battle.

Dual-Front Campaign Map

The gameplay is brilliant, you control army units and must win by either capturing the enemy HQ (headquarters) or routing the enemy (destroying every last unit of theirs) or sometimes have to complete a special objective (destroy a unit, capture certain territories, etc.), there are dozens of units to choose from and the amount of thought that goes into every move (both yours and on the part of the AI) seems staggering (especially when you replay maps and notice the computer makes different moves even though you make the same moves). Admittedly the story is slightly lacking and seems to play second fiddle to gameplay (not entirely a bad thing but something that is changed, at least to some extent in the next game of the series: Advance Wars: Days of Ruin), it is still a very interesting game with it's multiple game modes (2 of which are new), medal system (an accomplishment/trophy system), multiple interactions of CO's and units. It is an extremely deep game waiting for you to plunge its depths and if you enjoy games in this vein you will likely love Advance Wars: Dual Strike.

I hope you enjoyed my first post from this segment. Hopefully they will get refined as I go along.

Here's to a New Beginning

2011-10-22T23:27:00.001-04:00

Hello all,

Well here it is, the first post in my blog. I want to thank those who have spent the time to check this site out and I hope I can offer something special. I plan on reviewing anime/manga series and video games for the most part, focusing on what is special (good) about it, rather than harp on the negatives. While there may be times where it might not be easy for me to speak about new material and as such I hope to supplement posts of new things with posts going back a few years and talk about something regardless of whether it is famous or obscure or possibly just a general discussion. I also hope to make posts that revolve around either audio or video footage.

So here's to this blog and to the future.

Yours,
Seth